July 2008 Newsletter

If you would like to view the PDF versions of the newsletter, click here.

In this Issue:

Welcome Pastor Glenn and Sue (photo)
Pastor Glenn Zorb and his wife Sue come to Mountain View from All Saints Lutheran Church in Worthington, Ohio where he has been the senior pastor for the past 10 years. Pastor Zorb was ordained in 1979 after attending the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. Sue has degrees in Early Childhood Development and Education and Education/Counseling. She most recently taught Kindergarten in a church child care center. Pastor Glenn and Sue have two children, Brian and Julie. Brian is entering his senior year at Duke University majoring in Economics and Julie is entering her sophomore year at Notre Dame majoring in Political Science.

Please join us in welcoming Pastor Zorb and Sue the weekend of July 5 & 6. We will be having a reception after the 5:30pm service on Saturday, July 5, with light refreshments. On Sunday, July 6, we will be having a brunch after the 8:30am and 10:00am service.

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Message from Pastor Ken
A few Sundays ago I preached about Jesus’ invitation to join him at the dinner table of the Kingdom. The text (Matthew 9) records the desperate plight of Matthew, a tax collector (generally regarded as a crook), a woman with an unstoppable flow of blood, and a “pillar of the church” at his wit’s end. Matthew finds peace and fulfillment in discipleship with Jesus, the woman is instantly healed when she touches the hem of Jesus’ garment, and the prominent synagogue president’s daughter is raised from the dead when the community leader swallows humble pie and goes to the upstart prophet to ask for help.

All three victims of desperation are delivered from hopelessness to new life. Elie Wiesel, the psychiatrist, survived months of internment in a Nazi concentration camp. He has written about his ordeal and notes that only prisoners who possessed hope survived to tell about the brutality of the Third Reich. For example, in the Spring of 1944, word reached the prisoners that the Allies had invaded the continent at Normandy. Surely, they would be free by Christmas of 1944. But deliverance from the camp of death did not occur by the year’s end. Despair drained them of the will to live. Only those who were able to overcome disappointment lived long enough to be rescued in the Spring of ’45.

Someone has said that life ceases when there is no future. Mountain View has a future. During its two-year sojourn in transition, there have been many who have held firmly to hope. As your transition pastor, I have been impressed and encouraged by the unfailing faith of Mountain View’s staff, its leaders, and its core cadre of members who have witnessed to an incredible faith and spiritual foundation. In fact, it is I who has been strengthened and encouraged in my own journey of faith. Pastor Glenn Zorb, your new senior pastor, will be blessed as I have been. He comes with a new vision for Mountain View and many are those who will eagerly embrace his vision and pick up the mantels of co-discipleship.

Congregations who endure are congregations who are willing to accept challenges. Mountain View is challenged: there is a building debt to reduce and there are new congregations in the neighborhood competing for members. But numbers do not tell the whole story. The kingdom grows (not always numerically) when a faithful witness is given, when new and challenging programs are initiated, and when the gospel is preached and the sacraments are celebrated. Mountain View has always thought outside of the box. New challenges present new opportunities. Some programs will remain in place (it’s not always prudent to re-invent the wheel), others may be dropped, and new ones will be initiated.

Many thanks for the opportunity to serve you and learn from you. May God’s richest blessings be yours for many years to come.

Your servant in Christ,
Ken Lentz

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Camp ALOMA
Summer Camps
The brochure/registration form for the following camps is available at: www.mvlutheran.org/pdf/CampAlomaSummer2008.pdf

2008 Summer Schedule
July 6 – 11                                Mini/Scout /Pioneer
July 13 – 18                              Scout /Pioneer/Junior High

Mini Camp                              Grades 1-3
Scout Camp                            Grades 3-4
Pioneer Camp                         Grades 5-6
Junior High Camp                    Grades 7-9
Junior Staff Training                Grades 10-12
Senior High Camp                   Grades 9 –12
(All grade levels are based on the Fall of 2008 school year.)

Bob’s Incredible All-You-Can-Eat Gourmet Burger Bash
Saturday, July 19, 1:00pm
Suggested donation: Adult $7.50; Child $4.50
We will be holding our annual Silent Auction again this year. Contact us if you have any items you wish to donate.
Everyone is Welcome!

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Christmas Spectacular
Mark your calendar and save the date!
The Grace Notes Orchestra, Children's choir, and Drama team will be performing A Christmas Spectacular: A Walk Through Bethlehem on Friday, December 5beginning at 6:00pm and again on Saturday, December 6 at 1:00pm on the MVLC campus. Orchestral sounds of Christmas, the annual children's program, and the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of Bethlehem the night of our Saviour's birth will all be part of a truly very Spectacular Christmas event! You won't want to miss it! Watch for more details in the coming months.


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Family Camp
Enjoy getting out of the heat for the first weekend after school starts in the cool pines of Prescott. Join us at Camp ALOMA for Family Camp the weekend of August 8-10. Applications are available in the Narthex.

Camp Aloma is a small Lutheran Camp supported by our church located in the pines west of Prescott about three miles past Thumb Butte Park. Four meals are included with indoor sleeping and bathrooms. Enjoy fun activities with families, a playground for small children, time to relax and hike.

Please note that this year’s Family Camp is earlier than last year. If you have questions, contact Ron and Bev Lichty at 480-460-1904 or Lichtyfam@cox.net.

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Family Promise
“Christian perfection lies directly and essentially in charity, primarily in the love of God, secondarily in the love of our neighbor.” St. Thomas Aquinas

Here we go again! Mountain View will be hosting homeless families July 13 through the 20. We are in need of hosts and hostesses in the evenings to help with meals, children and overnight. We will need to transport the beds to Scottsdale on Sunday morning July 20 at 7:30am. We have approximately 20 beds and can usually fit 4-5 beds in the back of a pick-up truck. Set up is on July 13 at 3:00pm and takes about 1½ hours. One to two loads of laundry needs to be done each day and can be picked up in the education building. At the end of the week we bag the bedding and need people to pick it up and return it at the end of the week.

We will have a table for information and sign ups. There will also be a donation board if you wish to help with groceries and Day Center supplies. Thank you so much for your generous support over the years. If you would like more information, contact Sandi Hilderbrand at 602-460-1942.

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Financial Summary – May 2008

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Foreclosure Prevention
The Governor Asks for the Church’s Help in Foreclosure Prevention

One of the Governor’s Faith Based Initiatives has resulted in an effort to make free consumer credit counseling more readily available to people in communities most affected by foreclosures. Churches are a place that people often turn to for help during times of stress. Parts of Ahwatukee, Maricopa and Queen Creek are considered to be neighborhoods with high rates of borrower distress. Mountain View would like to provide a hot line number and encouragement to pursue financial advice as soon as possible.

If you, a friend or neighbor are in need of help please call the 24/7 toll-free help line at 1-877-448-1211 to reach a local Arizona foreclosure counselor. The Arizona Department of Housing has contracted with Community Information and Referral Services to staff the call center to connect homeowners to a local certified foreclosure counselor. Other resources and tips on helping to avoid foreclosure can be found at www.azgovernor.gov.

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Health & Wellness Ministry
Mountain View will sponsor a Blood Drive on Sunday, July 20 from 8:30am to Noon. Summer is a particularly difficult time for United Blood Services to maintain the blood supply to meet the demand. You, your neighbor, a family member or someone you don’t even know may be saved by the life giving donation of blood. Your single donation can save several lives because blood can be separated into components. In just one hour your donation could help an accident victim, a person undergoing surgery and a child receiving treatment for cancer.

Did you know?...

• United Blood Services of Arizona supplies 92% of Phoenix area hospitals; 100% of East Valley hospitals
• Arizona was forced to import approximately 25,000 blood transfusions last year to meet Arizona patient needs
• 700 donors are needed daily in Arizona
• Red blood cells have a 42 day shelf life
• Platelets last 3-5 days

Good news is that the blood donor interview has been shortened and all July and August Donors will be automatically entered to win a new, 2008 Saturn of their choice!

To schedule your appointment visit www.BloodHero.com (sponsor code: Mt. View) or call (Chris Mahon at 480-893-2579 x130.

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Music Notes
Actions Speak Louder than Words
Many people enjoy the music program at Mountain View Lutheran Church. But have you considered that for all the music that delights you in service, these dedicated people have spent weeks planning, preparing and practicing? Perhaps this type of commitment might scare you off. Actually it should bring you in. There is nothing more glorious than pulling together for a common goal, working and achieving a sense of harmony, in all senses of the word. Some of the best moments have been in rehearsal when things start to jell and the music echoes. There are friendships gained, sorrows shared and a general feeling of camaraderie.

Come sing, play, and ring with the Music Program at Mountain View. Your actions will speak louder than words, because you will be making music!

You can go on the website (https://mvlutheran.org/min/music.asp) and see when the individual groups are rehearsing and at what services they tend to bring forth their talents. Or if you would prefer to chat, please feel free to call me at 480-893-2579 x119.

Jennifer Sheldon, Music Director

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Pastoral Acts
Baptisms: Brenna Grace Acklam, Tatum Ann Storment, Kaylee Ann Morello, Brady Ryan Richardson, Ty Richard Larsen, Marli Nicole Osborne
Victories in Christ (Died in the Faith): Florence Smith, Ruth Carlson Bringleson, Joe Bond

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Prayer Ministry
Are you looking for ways to strengthen your prayer life? Many Christians find keeping a prayer journal a great way to stay connected. You can look back and see how God is listening and answering your concerns. As you grow in your prayer activity, you may want to join a prayer group. We invite you to attend prayer at Mountain View on Thursday evenings as we pray together for our church, community and beyond.

“So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.” Ezekiel 22:30 NKJV

The prophet Ezekiel is here expressing the need for prayer intercessors who would “stand in the gap” before God in behalf of the needs of His people. This also is what Jesus clearly teaches: "I also tell you this: If two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together because they are mine, I am there among them." Matthew 18:19 NLT

 Prayer for others (intercessory prayer) is a loving way Christians care for each other and our world.

Prayer Rolodex
Here is a tip from the ELCA website regarding jumpstarting your prayer life: Develop a Prayer Rolodex. Put together a rolodex with names on them. Use either 7 or 30 cards. On each card put together a short list of people and then take one card each day and pray for the people on the list. A short list allows you to go deeper into prayer for each person and yet keeps several people in your prayers every day. If you use seven cards, you have one for each day of the week. If you use 30, you have one for each day of the month.      

PRAYER: Positive Reassuring Action Yielding Eternal Results

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Prayers for God’s People
For privacy purposes, we do not publish individual names for prayers. However, you may obtain a copy of the prayer list which is included in the weekend worship bulletins at the church. We ask that you keep in your prayers all of our members and friends who are ill, hospitalized or homebound; and all those serving in the Armed Forces.

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Sages/Seniors
On June 10 the Sages Lunch Bunch went to IKEA. There were twelve of us, three men in the bunch. I think most of us had Swedish meatballs. After lunch most of went back to Café Soul for coffee and cookies. Pastor Ken joined us in lively conversations. It was a very pleasant outing. Next month, July 8, we’ll go to Macayo’s on 48th Street and maybe an afternoon movie. We’ll meet at 11:25am at Café Soul just before it closes. We’ll car pool down the street to the restaurant. Any questions, call Roseland at 480-893-3288.

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Scripture Readings
July 5 & 6............... Zech. 9:9-12; Psalm 145:8-14; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
July 12 & 13............ Isaiah 55:10-13; Psalm 65:[1-8]9:13; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
July 19 & 20............ Isaiah 44:6-8; Psalm 86:11-17; Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
July 26 & 27............ 1Kings 3:5-12; Psalm 119:129-136; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

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Senior Quilts
A special thanks to all the people who made and donated quilts for this year’s graduating seniors. Your contribution will serve as a reminder of the love and prayers from their church family at Mountain View as they begin their new journey in life.

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Social Ministries Committee
Food Pantry
With all the kids out for the summer our food bags are going quickly. The children who qualify get breakfast and lunch when school is in session. We need peanut butter, jelly, soups, tuna, spaghetti, spaghetti sauce, beans, macaroni & cheese, canned fruit and veggies.

Thank you for continuing to generously support our food pantry. The families express their appreciation to the staff. And thank you also for the many donations of bottled water for Phoenix Rescue Mission.

Volunteer Day
Seven women and three men prepared and served dinner at UMOM on Saturday, May 31. All enjoyed the opportunity to serve at the shelter and enjoyed great fellowship together. Undie Sunday donations were delivered to UMOM also.

Back-to-School Clothing Drive will be July 6-12. They need volunteers to assist the children in selecting new school clothing, shoes and a full back pack. Car pooling is available. There is a signup sheet in the church entry area.

Committee Meeting
We will not meet in July although we will be active with volunteer opportunities. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, August 5 at 6:30pm.

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Stewardship Thought
Jesus talks a lot about money and possessions. He talks about it more than he talks about prayer or forgiveness and even more than he talks about his own death. The reason is that Jesus is acutely aware that there is an intimate connection between faith and finances, a connection that can either threaten faith or strengthen faith.

In Matthew 6:24, Jesus says: “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” There is a real threat of having money and possessions. When someone has wealth, he is tempted to trust in that wealth. (Note: “wealth” is a relative term; if we live in the USA we all are wealthy compared to the extreme poverty of others. Jesus is talking to all of us.)

Our culture talks to us constantly about financial security. Newspapers, magazines, and television shows and commercials all sing the same song. “Make sure you have enough. Make sure you have saved enough, and that you have invested wisely. That way, you will be able to trust that your future is secure.”

However, the Bible warns us about that thinking. In 1 Timothy 6:10, Paul says “…for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith…” The point isn’t that money in and of itself is evil. Money is necessary and part of being a steward is managing your money well. The point is that wealth has a way of luring us to trust in it. It has a way of convincing us to stake our future on our accumulation of it.

When wealth becomes the object of one’s trust, then that wealth has taken the place of Jesus who is the only worthy object of a believer’s trust. Jesus doesn’t want one of his beloved to stop trusting in him, he doesn’t want to lose any of his children.

This is the bottom line. He knows that if you try to trust your wealth and him, you are in an impossible situation. Your trust will go one way or the other. You can’t do both.

So listen to Jesus. Trust him.

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Visitation Ministry
While serving as an Interim in Iowa five years ago, I was sitting with Charlie Bean in the hospital room of his wife of 48 years. Mr. Bean was a successful farmer and cattleman, now president of the local bank. His wife Helen was dying of cancer and Charlie was just a tad angry at God, the world and especially at the cancer that was taking his beloved life partner just when they had been ready to go on that cruise, and finally visit their son John who was doing so well in the Navy, stationed in San Diego. “Preacher!” he blurted out one afternoon, in a voice with a bit of an edge to it, “What’s the point of it all? You try to live a good life, and one of the ways one will know that you’ve succeeded is by the number of people who show up at your funeral.” Funerals are big events still for Northern Plains folk. “And then if it happens to rain that day half of them will stay home!”

Charles Bean was asking a big question, although perhaps it was a bit of a surprise that this was foremost on his mind moments before his wife’s death, it was a significant issue. As we talked more that Thursday afternoon he shared that his major goal had been financial independence, and now God had decided to “sidetrack” all that with “cancer, for God’s sake.” Charlie had always wanted to be a teacher, but the only son of the Bean family was convinced by grandfather Emil that he should not waste his life struggling with kids at a low salary in a small Iowa town, and without what seemed most important to the Beans, wealth and status. I remember gulping hard when I realized the significance of his question. The world is full of people who have listened to another voice and engaged in life work in which they found a shortage of real satisfaction and purpose and now run the risk of realizing that they have spent the only years they have been given doing something that pleased someone else.

Knowing so well that I am living through that time of my life when I worry too much, and tilt toward paranoia and suspect materialism is winning the hearts and minds of our culture, I remember what Jesus answered when the devil finds Him hungry in the wilderness, and reminds Him that He only need turn those stones into bread: “Man shall not live by bread alone.”

Charlie was struggling with the realization that he was not made to live on status and the biggest house in town and something terribly important was missing from his life even though he was not sure what it was. Most people who knew him thought “he had it made in the shade.” And this is of course a deeply personal question that only Charlie could answer. I don’t mean to sound moralistic or simplistic about that old debate over money. To me that day’s experience with this man’s question reminded me that we must be careful with our lives, for Christ’s sake, because this is the only life we are going to have in this puzzling and perilous world and what we do with it matters enormously. 

Pastor Glenn Lundahl 

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Women of Faith
Infinite Grace Conference
November 21-22, 2008
Jobing.com Arena
Premium Seating $65 - ticket only, does not include lunch or pre-conference
Please visit www.womenoffaith.com for more information.

“And God is able to make all GRACE abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an ABUNDANCE for every good deed.” - II Corinthians 9:8

Contact Charlotte Mester for tickets and information: mester@cox.net or 480-496-0036

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Children & Youth News

PlayCare
Are you tired of lugging a diaper bag to PlayCare? Sometimes we have so many bags. If you will supply us with size 4 or 5 diapers, there won’t be a need for a bag.

It’s time to fill “Grandma’s” cupboard with apple juice, graham crackers, goldfish crackers and vanilla cookies. Also, paper towels and hand soap. If you can help, it will help keep down the cost of PlayCare. Just drop off the items at PlayCare or the church office. When we get low, I’ll post a message outside of the PlayCare room.

Thank you so much for this past year! Hope to see you August 4. Don’t forget…our new times will be 9:00am-noon.

Grandma Lois

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Sunday School
Blessing of the Backpacks
Mountain View Lutheran Church’s annual “Blessing of the Backpacks” will be Saturday August 2 at the 5:30pm service and Sunday August 3 at the 10:00m service. Mark your calendars for this event! Children need to bring their school backpacks to one of these services. What a fantastic way to start a new school year!

We Need You!
Calling all people looking for an exciting ministry working with children! We need new faces and not so new faces, young and more mature, men and women to share their faith with our church children. If you would like to know more about teaching Sunday School please contact Cindy Rosendaul at sundayschool@mvlutheran.org or call her at 602-438-0662.

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High School Beach Camp
July 7-11 in Thousand Oaks, CA
Just Breathe Summer Journey
Students will travel to Thousand Oaks, California and will stay on campus at California Lutheran University. This will be a wonderful opportunity to Just Breathe in the California beauty and the amazing wonders of God’s Love. We will travel to the beach, spend a day at Magic Mountain, have time for devotions, take a tour of CLU, and much, much more! Invite a friend and get out of the Desert Heat! Cost: $ 250; $75 deposit to reserve your spot! They are first come, first served, so sign up today. More information and registration forms are available online (www.mvlutheran.org/pdf/BeachCampReg_HighSchool.pdf ) and in the church office.

Middle School Beach Camp
July 21-25 in Thousand Oaks, CA
H2O Summer Adventure
Students will travel to Thousand Oaks, California to enjoy some fun in the sun as we Open our Heads and our Hearts to the Living Water of Christ. Games, Bible studies, worship, time at the beach, and a trip to Magic Mountain are in store for all students who participate in this H20 Summer Adventure. Come join us, meet some new friends, and get out of the Phoenix Heat! Cost: $250; $75 deposit to reserve your spot! They are first come, first served, so sign up today. More information and Registration forms are available online (www.mvlutheran.org/pdf/BeachCampReg_MiddleSchool.pdf ) and in the church office.

Adult Chaperones needed, please contact Ashley Hochhalter at 480-893-2579 x135 or ashleyh@mvlutheran.org .

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