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Baptism of our Lord 1.10.10

January 17, 2010

The Truth Hurts

Grace and peace to you in our Lord Jesus Christ! As many of you are aware, our Education Committee has found it necessary to make changes in our High School Sunday School staff.  Unfortunately, change seldom comes easy and these necessary changes have created a wide range of emotional responses. Our Education Committee has addressed these issues and now we move forward, prayerfully, to a new and exciting renewal for our Youth Ministry here at Trinity. I remain hopeful in the Holy Spirit that our Youth Ministry at Trinity will be vital and provide a strong foundation of faith formation for our young people who grow here. To accomplish our goals, I believe we will require some redevelopment of the leadership and structure of the Youth Ministry Committee. I have in mind a structure more like a Youth Ministry Council, modeled after the ELCA’s Lutheran Youth Organization, in which youth leaders hold officer positions, and adult leadership serves more of a facilitating role.  This model will give our youth a greater voice in decisions and will prepare them to hold leadership positions as they grow into adulthood in the church.  The election of the youth leaders will coincide with the election of TLC’s Council members in January. In planning our calendar for 2010, we will be working on identifying topics of significance in the lives of our Youth and discovering how they relate to and are shaped by, the gospel message. These topics include Christian service projects both within and outside this congregation, training for leadership in the church, and enjoying fellowship and building up our Trinity Youth community together.  To get this planning off in the right direction, I have asked Rachel Alley, Director of Youth Ministries for the Southeastern Synod, to spend a couple of days with us this month.  Having known Rachel personally as a leader of the Youth Groups in my home church several years ago, I know her to be highly skilled in helping churches within our Synod develop internal Youth programs and to connect them with Synod-wide Youth activities.  In the meanwhile, I have begun to schedule one-on-one meetings with youth and their families. I am excited about the opportunities to get to know each family and listen to you tell me what dreams you have for our Youth Ministry at Trinity and what you desire from the church in assistance with faith formation within your family. With trust in the Lord, I have great hope and am encouraged for our future. For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.Jeremiah 29:11 In the love of Christ our Lord, Pastor Pauline

Pastor Pauline’s address is 7477 Commons Blvd, Apt. 325,

Chattanooga, TN  37421; email pastorpauline@lutherantrinity.com