Prince of Peace
Weekly Update
June 12-19, 2020
"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all."

- Laura Ingalls Wilder   
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We Want to Hear From You!

As work begins both at reopening our physical space and reinventing who we are as a church, we are seeking your input on what makes Prince of Peace special to you.

It’s 4 questions .
 
4 questions… that could change the direction of our church.
 
4 questions… that will not just sit in a document. These will help us shape what Prince of Peace will look like in the coming months. 
 
4 questions… that give you a voice. 
 
Please take a few moments to prayerfully respond to this 4 question survey .
 
Your answers will be shared with the Forward Leadership team and Council. Summary data will be shared with the Re-forming teams.
 
If you are not able to access or reply to these questions, please let us know and we will have someone contact you to get your responses. You are a part of this church and we want to hear from you!
June Congregational Meeting Scheduled

Mark Your Calendar for Sunday, June 28 th at 11:00 AM.
 
The Congregational Council has selected Sunday, June 28 th , for a Congregational meeting. The sole purpose of the meeting is to vote on the sale of Misty Hollow and the election of new council members. (The location/venue and format of the meeting will be announced closer to the meeting date.)
Where is Prince of Peace?

During this pandemic Prince of Peace’s doors may be closed, but God’s work continues through our hands! Our Social Ministry has sprung to the task of bringing Prince of Peace to our community and the world.

Here is a sample of what is happening:

Prince of Peace Community Sewing Group- a group of both POP members and community members worked together to respond to the needs of those who were working closely with COVID patients. These items were donated to Danbury Hospital (Emergency Room, 8th and 12th floors), Greenwich Hospital, Bridgeport Hospital, and Danbury Visiting Nurses. Also face masks are being made for church members, family and friends and any community member who was in need. The group’s sewing machines are still humming with face masks being made for Nursing homes and Food Banks (Filosa/ Hancock Hall, Bethel Health Care, Brookfield & Bethel Food Pantry, & Daily Bread Food Pantry). Approximately 1,500 scrub caps and face masks have been created by this talented group!
Loaves and Fishes- small groups of 2 are serving food on the 2nd Sunday of each month following state guidelines for safety. Meals are being prepared and handed out in bags.

Daily Bread - members provide food and monetary donations to support those in need of food at this time.

Naomi Circle- blankets, quilts, baby blankets and hats created by POP members and then shipped to those in need in the world.

LOVE fund - monetary donations that Pastor Lutz can pass onto those in the community in need.
Alleluia! POP is alive and well, serving those in need!

~ Monica Walsh
The council met on May 20, 2020 on Zoom. Here is a summary of what they considered:

  • Reviewed current financial situation

  • Heard from the newly established Re-formation Teams. (See elsewhere for purpose of teams, ministry areas and team members)

  • Agreed to follow the New England Synod, ELCA, Bishop's request to abstain from inside, in person worship until July and possibly longer

  • Approved the following students to be Confirmed (when and where to be determined):

  1. Cassandra Buzzell
  2. Emma Cable
  3. Ava Cantone
  4. Andrew Confortini
  5. Morgen Kleppin
  6. Chris Mattera
  7. Riley Roksvold

  • Determined the current Council terms and vacancies for the Nominating Committee's work.

  • Selected Sunday, June 28th, for a Congregational Meeting to vote on sale of Misty Hollow and election of new council members. (Location and format of meeting to be determined.)

  • Approved a congregational short survey to gather positive stories about why PoP matters to our members.  
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Searching for all Graduates
 
If you or a family member is graduating from preschool, elementary, middle, high school, college, or grad school, let us know Who, from What and What's next?
 
Gracious and Loving God, we ask, now, for your almighty hand to be upon our graduates as they and their families celebrate this grand milestone. May they find comfort from our community's continued embrace and support as they journey through life. Bless their lives from this day on with goodness and success. Enable them: to stay true to their dreams for your greater glory, to discern what is right, good and just, and to use their gifts wisely and in service to others. Empower them to walk into the future with faith, hope, and great love guided by your light so that they may use their talents to "Go forth and set the world on fire." Grace be to them, grace be to us all.

Also, consider the following resource as a way to help make it even more memorable.  
Offering,Tithes and
Special Donations 

Please help us stay current with our financial obligations
during this difficult time.
We say "Thank you" to all who have mailed in their offerings.

We are now able to offer online giving here.

Now you can give a one time gift or a reoccurring gift through a checking account or a debit/credit card.  
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How to Reach
the Pastor

And as always, Pastor Lutz is easily accessible. You can email him (poppastorpaul@ sbcglobal.net) call him on his cell (609.578.7921) or post on his Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/plutznj ). Although there will be no regular office hours, the church phone is checked every couple of days for messages.
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How is God calling you to serve your neighbor even while we are stuck at home?

We Want to Hear From You!

Join us this Sunday at
11:00 a.m. for our weekly Fellowship/Coffee Hour.

We are collecting stories to better understand the power and influence of Prince of Peace in our membership.

Members of the Forward Leadership Team will be present to share their stories and to capture yours.

Sign into a Virtual Coffee Hour by clicking on the link below.
If prompted

Meeting ID: 988 8813 8373 Password: 735006

It is always helpful to test your ability to join and visual & audio sounds on your computer or tablet prior to the meeting.

See you Sunday at 11:00 a.m.!
Join Virtual Coffee Hour
"Creating Community" Email Devotions sent on Mondays
 
Creating Community is an email devotion to guide your preparation for worship for the following weekend. 

Imagine how much more clear and relevant God's Word will be if you have had an opportunity to read, reflect, and dwell in the Word prior to worship. You may do this devotion as an individual, with others, as a family, or over Zoom as a small group. 

Each devotion arrives on Monday and can be engaged in anytime before Sunday's worship. 
 
The devotion includes three simple steps:

1. Read through the text (provided)

2. Respond to the questions (select one of the sets of questions from the three possibilities )

3. Offer a Prayer (one is provided)
 
Click below to see devotions for this Sunday.
Re-forming the Church - What happens next?

During a recent zoom special council meeting, it was decided to organize four teams to create a phased approach to "re-forming" at PoP.

The four teams are worship, faith formation, social ministry, and fellowship.

The council is suggesting the following members on the
"Re-forming Teams":

Worship
Convenor: Jerry Nabozny
(Council), Susi Lehmann (Altar Guild), Kevin Fay (Music Staff), Nan Carlson (Forward Leadership/Accountability Team) and Nancy Tolmoff.

Faith Formation
Convenor: Heather Pontonio
 (Forward Leadership/
Accountability Team/Sunday School teacher), Deb Nobes (Preschool), Alison Cantone (Council/Confirmation Guide) and Liz Davies (Council/Confirmation Guide)

Fellowship
Convenor: Andrew Confortini (Council/Oktoberfest Chef), Joan Manka (Council/Committee member), Casey Johansen (Council/Forward Leadership/Accountability Team/Fellowship Host) and Paul Adam.

Social Ministry
Convenor: Monica Walsh (Forward Leadership/ Accountability Team), Julie Parker (Council/Forward Leadership/Accountability Team), Steve Davies, and Janet Lutz  

Pastor Lutz will be an
ex-officio member of all four teams. 

All of the teams have met once. At that meeting, they reviewed all the congregational activity in their ministry area with an eye for Phase 1 preparations (What's most in need of attention in our area?) as suggested by the New England Synod, ELCA. Then they began to create a list of suggestions and questions to share with the Council.

If you have thoughts, suggestions, concerns in any of these ministry areas, please speak with the Council. We want to know both what you need today in this pandemic to continue to experience worship, faith formation, fellowship, and social ministry.
And we would like to know what we need to do before you will feel safe returning to our building.  
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VIRTUAL WORSHIP

Please join us whenever convenient for your household for virtual worship. Each Sunday service is posted by 8 a.m. on our website. The abbreviated virtual worship experience including hymns you can sing along with, a gospel story worth telling, a sermon that speaks to our current reality, prayers for the community and world and community announcements about what's happening at PoP. Check your email for the link or go our website ( http://princeofpeacebrookfield.org/ ) and click on the date of the service you would like to experience.   

Virtual Lectors Sought!

If you have a phone you can record yourself reading one of our Sunday scripture passages to be included in our virtual worship.

We will include all four of the Sunday readings.

Speak to Pastor Lutz if you'd like to serve as a "virtual" lector.
Christ in Our Home is available for pick up.

The Gather Magazine is also available for pickup.

Please pick up your copy of this devotion and magazine by driving to the church building and walking up to the front door. Please wear gloves and keep 6 feet away from any others you may find there.

Pastor Lutz is available
to drop Christ in our Home devotion or the Gather Magazine to your home per your request.

You may reach him at 609.578.7921 or
by email or by Facebook.
Update on Summer 2020 VBS
 
There will be no Brookfield Ecumenical Vacation Bible School this year due to the COVID19 virus.
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DAILY BREAD
FOOD PANTRY IS SEEKING DONATIONS
 
Please consider a food or monetary donation to the DAILY BREAD FOOD PANTRY during this pandemic. 

Your food-insecure neighbors will benefit from your donations of:

  • Black beans or any kind of canned or bagged beans
  • Rice in 1,2 or 3 lb. bags
  • Pasta - any kind
  • Cereal - Cheerios, Corn Flakes. Rice Krispies (no sweet cereals)
  • Tomato sauce in cans
  • Tuna
  • Chicken in cans
  • Peanut butter
  • Pork & beans or meals in cans
  • Canned vegetables (especially corn)

Drop off your food items or checks (payable to DAILY BREAD FOOD PANTRY) to the church's freshly painted front door anytime between now and Tuesday morning.

Your neighbors thank you.
203-775-9070
popluthernchurch@sbcglobal.net