A Word from the Pastors | 5-12-2022
Church Council.
Your elected servant-leaders gathered for a Zoom meeting on Monday, May 9, 2022. We are full of gratitude for the willingness of Church Council members to continue guiding and serving here at St. Peter’s during these different and difficult COVID times! Some notes from that meeting:
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- Minutes from the April 11 Zoom meeting were reviewed and approved.
- Finances. A report was presented by Ben. After four months (January – April) BUDGET INCOME was $53,254.50 and BUDGET EXPENSES were $60,943.80, a deficit of $7,689.30. The expenses included two installments in our commercial insurance; the regular compensation of our pastors, musicians, and sexton; and some increases in gas, electric, and water bills. But income was less than anticipated. [Note: After the online Council meeting the Pastors looked back at 2021 figures for January – April. Budget Income was $59,273.63 and Budget Expenses were $61,098.96. This would confirm Ben’s report about decreased income. The challenging economic times continue!]
- LoftySpot. The creator, Ms. Jean Steinke, offers a software-based platform for assisting community centered organizations (churches, libraries, community centers, etc.) advertise, book, and bill underutilized space, thus providing some income for the organization but also serving the community. Following a visit to our site in February by Ms. Steinke that included general discussion with three St. Peter’s Council representatives, we were looking for more information from her and also considering the opportunities and challenges before making a formal decision. But there has been a delay in her response. We anticipate renewed conversation with her and consideration about this in the autumn.
- Roof repair. In 2016 we repaired one side and replaced the other side of our sloped Sanctuary roof at a cost of $24,535. At that time we elected not to repair/replace our flat roofs because, as our roofing contractor, John P. Donnelly Roofing, wisely advised, “If the other roofs are not leaking, why replace them?” Now they are apparently leaking. Pastor Neil will contact the roofer for a visit to investigate.
- Outside Entrance Doors. We have a February bid of $19,932.08 to replace two sets of double doors (the lower Church Office entrance and the Briar Road entrance) from James Doorcheck, but the quote expires at the end of May. In light of probable roof repair expenses, we will request an extension up to one month to respond to the door estimate.
- “Video Equipment Project.” We are in a holding pattern. We had a meeting and initial training session of St. Peter‘s volunteers in February. Airwaves Electronics, Inc. has come several times and reports having completed all installation work and any operational adjustments by mid-April. But we still need to check for ourselves and then prepare and train. We are praying that we might be prepared and trained soon to have “hybrid worship” that would include connection and interaction between our “in-person” worshipers gathered in the sanctuary and our “remote” worshipers in their homes both near and far away. But as we met for our meeting, we also realized that there seems to be another little COVID-19 “surge” in our city and throughout our nation. Our Synod will be hosting another online session reflecting on this on Thursday, May 12.
EASTER BLESSINGS
Who would have thought that we would be going through another 50-day Easter season spiritually gathered together as a scattered online congregation? Three years of this? Expecting that some of us were going to be meeting in the Sanctuary for worship this past Easter Sunday, April 17, Pastors Gwen and Neil had pre-ordered 24 Easter lily plants to represent those 24 months of Sunday worship outside our Sanctuary. But we weren’t ready for “hybrid worship” yet, COVID stirred and coughed a little once more, and the lily plants instead became messengers of Christ’s resurrection to the homes of some of our seniors and shut-ins Let’s keep praying that soon this strangeness will end!
And let’s rejoice that the risen and living Christ continues to be present in our online worship and
in our lives!
Dear friends, we have a message to hear and a story to tell!
Let sorrow turn to joy,
let shadows turn to light,
let fear turn to faith,
let doubt turn to assurance,
let cowardice turn to courage,
let hesitation turn to proclamation
let death turn to life,
and let there be hope when hope is gone!
We are – only by God’s grace – EASTER people, always rising! Because HE died, YOU are alive!
KEEP THE FAITH… BUT NOT TO YOURSELF.
Pastor Neil & Pastor Gwen