There will be an offering during our online worship service. Remember our offerings are an important part of our worship even though we are not meeting in person.

• Electronic Giving -  If you would like to move to electronic giving, you can find more information and a sign up form here. Complete the form and mail it into the office along with a voided check.
• You can also send an offering check via the US Mail.

Dear Sisters and Brothers at Cross and Crown,

Grace and peace in the name of Jesus.

As the Church anticipates this Sunday’s celebration of the third great day of the year, the Festival of Pentecost, I’m filled with gratitude for the wonderfully gifted and dedicated saints that the Holy Spirit has gathered together into the community of Cross and Crown. Just about a week and half into my ministry with you, I already feel yoked with you in the mission that God has entrusted to us.

At this juncture that’s due in large part to your staff. As I’ve jumped into the deep end of the C&C pool, they’ve been there to keep me afloat and made it possible for me to enjoy the efforts to keep my head above water.

Chris Lantz has amazed me with her ability to both read my mind and anticipate what I need. And her zeal to do well and “get the job done” is obviously rooted in her deep affection for and connection with the congregation. I’ve learned not to ask Chris to do something if I don’t really want it done and done now! She truly keeps things running and running well.

You all know what an extraordinary musician Matthew Rhea is. And I had some sense of that prior to my arrival. But in my short time here, I’ve learned that his ministry with the congregation reaches beyond the keyboard and the choir loft! This was true when you were able to gather for worship and he led the songs of praise, thanksgiving, and lament. And it is even more the case now. His willingness to be available to help plan and produce our new ventures in worship is just the tip of the iceberg of contributions that he is making to our leaning into the new opportunities that the Spirit is making known to Cross and Crown.

And Lisa Stocks is both a veteran and a newcomer to the Cross and Crown staff. For several months she’s been serving with the children’s ministry. But, just last week the council approved a new position which Lisa has accepted and will begin on June 1. She will serve 20 hours each week in a variety of ways that support the faith formation of all members of the congregation, but will focus on school-aged children and their families. I’ve spent a good deal of my ministry engaged with Christian education and educators. And I can tell already that Lisa is gifted for this ministry and is an asset as we address the unique needs of the present and plan for the future.

And now I’d like the opportunity to get to know all of you! For now, we’ll need to do that via Zoom Meetings. I hope that you’ll be able to attend one and we can chat for about 45 minutes. Bring your favorite beverage and snack to the meeting. For those of you who aren’t on the internet, please feel free to phone me: 419-792-5564.

Zoom Meet and Greets with the Deacon will take place on these days and times. Reminders and links to the meetings will come to you closer to the dates.

               Tuesday, June 2 at 4:00 pm

               Thursday, June 4 at 7:00 pm

               Saturday, June 6 at 10:00 am

               Wednesday, June 10 at 7:00 pm

May the blessings of the Holy Spirit be yours!

Blessings to you all,

Deacon Marilyn

The "regathering for worship" task force has been appointed and will be meeting this weekend to begin its work to prepare for the return to corporate worship in our sanctuary. Many issues and items will be considered by the task force before regathering for worship, including state and health department guidelines and how to provide a loving and safe environment for our members and visitors in worship services. 

The task force will be charged with seeking input from the congregation. Some protocols will have to be implemented in order to provide a safe worship space and experience such as social distancing, hand washing and sanitizing, and wearing face coverings. Our worship service will look different as well. The task force will put together a plan of regathering for worship for the council to consider and approve. 

The pandemic has been difficult, and it continues to be and is a fluid situation. The goal is to regather to worship as a Body of Christ but to do so in a safe and Christ-centered manner. Please continue to pray for guidance as to the time and appropriateness of regathering for worship and to pray for all who are affected by the pandemic. And may I be so bold to say pray for a vaccine or treatment for this disease.

Updates on the progress of this task force will be provided through the Connection and other means of communication.

Please contact me with questions or concerns,

Julie Slavens

Participation in Worship

If you would like to participate in the recording of the online worship service, email Chris Lantz.

Devotionals

For those of you who normally pick up one of the devotionals, Word in Season or Christ in Our Home, and would like the 2nd quarter edition mailed to you, please let Chris Lantz know.

Text Alerts

If you would like to be included on the church text alerts, send Chris Lantz an email with the mobile phone number you would like to receive the messages. This method of communication will not be used for prayer requests. 

As we begin to move into this period of transition, the council would like to keep you updated on a few things:

Call Committee Update

The call committee met this week. They will send periodic updates to the congregation via the Connection and through our Sunday morning fellowship time. They are developing plans for a congregational survey and for small group discussions either via Zoom or socially-distanced meetings. They will need to hear your thoughts and opinions about what to look for in our next pastor. Stay tuned!

Call Process Q&A Wrap-up

Last Sunday Heather Apel, Assistant to the Bishop, led two Zoom Q&A's regarding the call process. If you were unable to attend, you can view the recording of the first meeting here (enter Password: 6N*&M3i% ). The first 35 minutes is a presentation by Heather about how the process works, and the last 30 minutes are questions asked by participants. If you would like to see the PowerPoint slides that Heather showed in her presentation, please email Chris Lantz and she will email it to you.

Heather also shared some documents during her recording, you can view the Call Process Outline here.

Interim Pastor

Deacon Marilyn Smith was recommended by the Synod Office to serve as our part-time interim pastor. She was interviewed and approved by the council on April 16. Final details of her start date are still being worked out. She is also serving as Pastor of Record for Cross and Crown. (A Pastor of Record is a Pastor or lay person assigned by the Synod Office to handle pastoral care in absence of a called Pastor.) In case of pastoral emergency, please contact Marilyn Smith at 419-792-5564 or via email.



Call Committee Members

The call committee has been finalized and the C&C members who agreed to serve are: Craig Beougher, Brenda Cooper, Eric Jensen, Brent Johnson, Sara Paul, and Jill Speraw. Ashleigh Gelfius will be serving as a nonvoting youth advisor.

Call Process

Amy Gerl and Carolyn Ramsey have begun the preliminary drafting of the Ministry Site Profile (MSP) location, demographics, etc. The MSP does require input from the Congregation. This will be focused on once we begin meeting in person again.

Prayer

Young and old are asked to pray for Cross & Crown, the future call committee, the church council, and the future Pastor for Cross & Crown. Additionally, the council would like to identify a team of prayer warriors to call upon for specific prayer concerns. If you would like to be a prayer warrior during this transition period email Johannah Frey. Please continue to pray for Pastor Chris and your church council during these challenging times we are all in.

Updates

The council will keep you updated via email and through occasional gatherings of the congregation. If you have any specific questions, please email Julie Slavens or call her at 317-818-9137.

Announcements of upcoming church events delivered at the beginning of our Sunday worship services are part of the life of our community. But we need to be able to respect the time constraints of our members. So, beginning immediately, Church Council has created some simple guidelines regarding announcements: 

• Each announcement must last no longer than 30 seconds. The announcement should primarily direct listeners to the bulletin insert and the weekly Connection for more information. 
• All announcements must be in the bulletin insert and Connection for that week. 
• Deadline for the bulletin insert and Connection is Thursday at noon. Send your announcement by email to Chris Lantz in the office, chris@cclutheran.com. 

Thank you for your help!