Newsletter

February 2015
Angel Tree
Amy Rask, Angel Tree coordinator

Dimond Skateland
Skating is free
Cash Snack Bar
(donations to defray expenses welcome)
Please contact Kathy Callies, 345-8029 or
kathycallies@gci.net to RSVP and information.

Thank you all for your donations!

Here's a list of everything we donated through the
LSSA Angel Tree in December.
Diapers: 15 packs (1,080 individual diapers)
Baby Wipes: 37 packs (3,552 individual wipes)
Washcloths: 112
Hand Towels: 8
Bath Towels: 16
Gloves: 27 pairs
Mittens: 9 pairs
Hats: 23
Winter Jackets: 5
Long Sleeved Shirts: 1
Socks: 93 pairs
Shampoo: 19 bottles (totaling 344oz)
Conditioner: 2 bottles (totaling 24oz)
Soap: 104 bars
2 bottles of body wash (totaling 24oz)
60 travel size
20 bottles of liquid hand soap
Kleenex: 8 travel packages
Toothbrushes: 4
Toothpaste: 4 tubes
Twin Sheets: 8 sets
Cat Food: 2 bags (totaling 40lbs)
Dog Food: 7 bags (totaling 80lbs)
Pet Toys: 8
Overall I'd say it was a great success! I could tell
that people really gave what they were able to. For
some it was large quantity items (i.e. in bulk from
Costco) and for others it was just one item. I'm glad
this was something everyone felt they were able to
participate in no matter how large or small the
contribution. Ryan said the items were going out all
through the holiday season and people have been
very appreciative!

Clipping Labels for Education

Shirley Luedke, LWML

Center Bowl

Corner of Minnesota & Spenard

Bowling is free includes shoes & balls

Cash Snack Bar Open
(no outside food brought in)

Please continue to save assorted UPCs from

Campbell, Pepperidge Farms, Glad storage bags. BIC
office products, Prego sauces, Swanson broth,
PopSecret popcorn, V8 juices, POST cereals,
Emerald Nuts and Dannon yogurt. The labels are
collected, trimmed, and sent to the WA/AK Unit of
the Bethesda Auxiliary by ALCs Lutheran Womens
Missionary League (LWML) and are used to obtain
items for the Bethesda Lutheran Community group
homes in Renton, WA. Collection containers are
located in the church entry and in the kitchen. The
mission of Bethesda Auxiliary is to prayerfully
provide spiritual and financial support for people
with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The auxiliary depends greatly on membership fees
to help fund their mission. Would you like to
become a member? Its easy. Fill out the form, write
a check payable to Bethesda Auxiliary ($10 or more
yearly donation) and leave them in the church
office. The Womens Guild of ALC will get them to
the Auxiliary.

Bethesda Auxiliary
Membership form

Donations accepted to defray cost of larger venue

LWML Mite Sunday

Shirley Luedke
Sunday, February 22, we will call special
attention to the work of the Lutheran Womens
Missionary League. It is Mite Sunday and the large
purple and white box will remind you of the
opportunity to help fund the 2014-2016 mission
projects from Alaska and throughout the world.
25% of these monies is used for international
projects such as the Trinity/Hope Feeding Program
in Haiti or the Coffee 4 Kids/Hope Feeding Program
which helps feed children in desperate need at the
Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital in Honduras.
75% helps fund various Washington-Alaska
District grantsincluding the Alaska Mission for
Christ ministry. The total pledged for 2014-2016
district projects is $89,000. All monies collected is
used only for special mission grants.

Name

Address
City

Church

State

Zip

Email =
Phone
Unit

New member

Renewal

We believe God is interested in restoration not just in life after death as he gives salvation to through Jesus but
here on earth as well to address our brokenness.
We believe when we open our eyes and hear the stories of others we can see where God has been working in
our like and the live of other people even if they do not recognize or acknowledge God.

We believe God has invited us to join Jesus on his mission and we can be the hands and feet of Jesus to people
where we live.

So we are exploring and beginning to now share with the congregation, district and others a vision to start up a
non- profit or for profit ministry of transitional housing. This is a BHAG (big hairy audacious goal). It would be
centered likely in the Anchorage midtown or Muldoon area where the population of those in need of this
ministry is greatest.

We want to look at providing transitional housing for men, women and families who are motivated to move out
of the government system or a homeless situation where we and others would stand beside them to help them
make that transition. It would not be limited to supplying housing for a limited time only but would be a
comprehensive program helping people to learn new life skills that would lead to a complete restoration of life.
Working together with others in the community of Anchorage it would offer life skills training in things like:
Classes on how to run a household (how to cook instead of living off processed foods/ restaurants)
Parenting or Couples classes
NA/ AA support groups
Financial training/ debt counseling like Crown Financial ministry or Financial Peace University
Car ministry to provide people with well used but running cars to get them to work or help fix old cars
Spiritual mentoring
Career counseling
Job search help
Childcare
Meals (possible) ministry
Classes for resume and job interviewing success
Counseling to help people set goals and move forward and out of transitional living
English as a Second Language
Clothing ministry
Eye glass/ dental help
Computer training
Community service to "pay it forward" what they are receiving.
....others to be sought as needs are seen

The idea is to have people apply for the transitional housing and develop a set of measurable, obtainable, date
driven goals to move through and out on their own and off government programs or the streets. This would
not be long term housing but a place to give them time to get the training and help needed and up on their feet.
This will help them feel and obtain the sense of value and accomplishment and end a cycle of being "stuck" at a
place they cannot get out of on their own.

What is needed?
Prayer for Gods direction
Conversation with each other and with others outside the church to develop ideas.
People willing to look into funding grants and business models.
People with skills, gifts and knowledge to help serve these needs.
People with practical business experience who will look through this with eyes of faith and trust in God.
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat,
I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,
I was a stranger and you invited me in,
I needed clothes and you clothed me,
I was sick and you looked after me,

I was in prison and you came to visit me.

This confused the people and they said when did we see you this way?

I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me. Matthew 25:35

From: South Sudanese Lutheran members

To: Anchorage Lutheran members
December 15, 2014

Dear Lutheran member:

Glory be to God, who by His mighty power at

work within us is able to do far more than we
would ever dare to ask or even dream ofInfinitely
beyond our highest prayer, desire, thoughts, or
hopes. (Ephesian 3:20). We are brothers and
sisters in Christ here. We want to send this letter of
appreciation for your generous offering of love on
behalf of our Sudanese families who were in need in
our church this year; for their families who were in
a critical time in Southern Sudan and were between
life and death.
Each of you has our respect and admiration for
enduring a life that no human should ever face. For
recognizing that the road ahead is still long and
filled with prayer, hardship, and charity. We see the
real servant acts from you as we serve God by
serving others. We appreciate and applaud your
tenacity and courage throughout the difficult years
of our families/country ongoing struggles as a
group or individuals. Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy
and find grace to help in the time of need. Hebrews
4:16. Now, some of our relatives are smiling
because of you! The monies you all contributed for
their transportation to safe places and food.
We have been silent for a year, forgive the late
expression of our appreciation at this time. We
thank you for your generosity in support of our
relatives who have been in the middle of difficult
crises. That was a nightmare for South Sudan
people, especially Nuer. Children, women, elders,
civilian men, and youth, based on their tribe, were
all killed. Pastor Andy, your personal commitment
along with our members was incredibly helpful and
allowed us to reach our relatives. Your assistance
means so much to us but more to the God you serve.
A verse we can think of is Daniel 12:3 And
those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of
the sky above; and those who turn many to
righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. It
touches our hearts about you Pastor Andy on that
fantastic job you been doing in our Church. Like
stars those who are wise and those who return

other to God will be like stars in the sky. Pastor

Andy, you are one of those.
Thank you for all things you and our church
have done for us.
Sincerely yours,
Lam Lul

Lutheran Social Services

of Alaska
Alan Budahl, Executive Director
Happy New Year! I am thankful to all the
wonderful people who have shared their time,
talents and financial resources with our ministry. It
is because of your concern and care that we were
able to touch the lives of over 20,000 of our
neighbors in need last year.
First I need to thank everyone who made our
Harvest of Hope Auction such a great success. To
the planning committee, donors, volunteers, and to
all who attended a great big thank you. Soon we
start planning for next years auction and if you
would like to be a part of that committee please
give me a call. We are especially looking for a cochair of the event, so if you are interested I would
be pleased to meet with you and explain the duties.
A great big thank you to all the individuals and
groups who got busy to help us provide Christmas
stockings to the children of our clients in the Food
Pantry. These stocking really do mean a lot to
families who receive them.
We served over 4,000 families and close to
8,000 children at this year's Neighborhood Gift
Thanks to everyone who purchased toys for the
Salvation Army or Marine Corp Toys for Tots
campaigns, volunteered their time for set-up and
distribution. We couldnt do this without a
tremendous effort from so many of you.
Beginning January 1st you will again have the
opportunity to contribute to our ministry through
the Pick.Click.Give. when you apply for your Alaska
Permanent Fund Dividend. When applying on-line,
you will have an option called the Gift of Giving.
Simply follow the instructions to make a donation.
In 2014 LSSA received $18,250 in donations
through this program from 241 donors.

Greetings Fellow Disciples,

Its been awhile since I have written to you to fill
you in on things at Anchorage Lutheran (ALC), so
bear with me as I have a number of articles that I
am writing to inform you of stuff at church.
This letter happens to be a joint letter from Pastor
Andy, Pastor Harrison, and me, your President. We
talked about thanking all of you in a special way for
your support. We want to thank you, because:
You are encouragers. You support Pastor Andy
and Pastor Harrison as our Pastors and you support
me in my role as Licensed Deacon, as well as your
President. Your support helps us as a congregation
to Join Jesus on His Mission as we work together to
connect ALL people to Jesus. (More on this in
another article).
You are volunteers. You faithfully give of your
time and talents as we work together to build each
other up, reach out into the community, and make a
difference in peoples lives (more on this in another
article).
You are disciples. You are not only hearers of the
Word, but you are doers of the Word too.
You are followers. There are no leaders without
followers. Leading willing and cooperative people is
much more pleasurable and accomplishes much,
much more for Jesus.
You are givers. You give back to the Lord as He has
blessed you through your tithes and offerings
(more on this in another article).
You are hosts. You welcome guests and visitors
into our family here at ALC.
You are family. As part of Gods family, we all
strive to grow stronger in our relationship to God
and to each other.
Once again, thanks! Thanks for the privilege of
serving you and supporting us as together we serve
God.
Blessings!!!
Terry Callies, President and Licensed Deacon
Pastor Andy
Pastor Harrison

MMC
Terry Callies, President, ALC
The following disciples are members of the MMC as
officers or at-large members: Terry Callies,
President; Angie Werner, Vice President; Laura
Burfeind, Secretary, Gerd Krause, Treasurer; Dick
Mikkelsen, Wayne Helms, Elizabeth Dick, Don Dietz,
Albino Cong, Gordy Morgan, and Renada Walker.
The MMC had a retreat where we studied the book
Joining Jesus on His Mission. We will be spending
portions of every meeting discussing where Jesus is
at work within our community and seeking ways in
which we can join him in His mission.
We will be learning about policy based governance
and how that would work at ALC. I have been a
member of ALC and been in a leadership position
most of that time. Quite often I have been very
frustrated at the inefficient way churches are run.
Im not the only one. Others here at ALC feel the
same way, and many other churches feel the same
way that we do. Even our Synod and a number of
Districts have the same feeling. Policy based
governance is a way to make, not only churches, but
other organizations within the synod to function
much more efficiently. Most major corporations are
run this way. To be more effective Synod has
switched to a policy based form of governance, as
well as some of the Districts, including our District,
the Northwest District, and many other churches.
The MMC will be looking at applying this form of
governance to ALC. Along with this comes
establishing policies and goals. We will be busy in
the next few months, but I always look forward to
ways to be more effective in accomplishing goals.
There will be a Congregational Assembly Meeting
(Voters Meeting) after the late service on Sunday,
April 26th. The purpose of the Meeting will to elect
MMC members and approve a budget. Mark it on
your calendar.
Blessings!!!

Following Jesus on His Mission

Terry Callies, Licensed Deacon
Everyone should have received a copy of this book as a Christmas present from ALC. I hope you all have
had a chance to read it and put it into practice. I am anxious to hear how this works for you.
I have attended a lot of evangelism seminars and participated in a lot of programs about sharing Jesus. I
have tried to glean an important concept from each program that I participated in. Here are the four most
important concepts that I have learned.
1. We are witnesses 24-hours a day by what we do and how we behave. Are we good witnesses or bad
witnesses?
2. We can tell others about Jesus through a personal testimony. What does Jesus mean to you? What has
He done for you? How important is He to you? Nobody can argue with you because it is your personal story.
3. God created the world and created man. Man was created in Gods image and was given a free will. Man
disobeyed God and sinned. Sin separated man from God and there was nothing that man could do on his own to
gain Gods favor. God hates sin but He loves man. God sent His son Jesus into the world to reconnect man to
him. Jesus is true God and true man. As true man, he lived the perfect life that we could not. He also paid the
penalty for all of our sins by suffering and dying on the cross and rising from the dead. You can be connected to
God through faith, believing that Jesus died for you. It is more than just knowing that, it is totally trusting that
Jesus died for you. The end result is having a living relationship with God through eternity, both here on earth
and later in heaven. When you know this you can present the basic story of redemption or expand on it if you
have more time.
4. Once prepared, always be on the lookout for opportunities to witness. By the way, I have heard many
people say that they dont know what to say to others about Jesus. It is as simple as following one or all of the
first three points above.
It really should be simple, but it is not easy. I have received more training and am more prepared than
most people and connecting people to Jesus has been hard for me. I miss many opportunities to witness and
there have been a few times when I opened my mouth too soon and turned people off because they werent
ready to hear Gods message. I love Jesus and appreciate all that He has done for me and I want to be a good
witness for Him, but I am not. Thank God that I am forgiven for this inability. I like what the book Joining Jesus
on His Mission has to say about being an effective witness. I like the idea of partnering with Jesus. He does the
hard work and I do the easy work. As the Redeemer of the world, He suffered and died for ALL people and he
wants to be connected to ALL people. He works among people to prepare them to be receptive to receiving
Him. All I need to do is to join Him and be a good neighbor and a good friend to the people around me, reaching
out and helping them by showing Jesus love for them through my actions. I can do that! You can do that! We all
can do that!
As I said I am anxious to hear what you think of the book. If you havent read it yet, I encourage you to do
so. If you arent going to read it, feel free to re-gift it and give it to someone who would like to join Jesus on His
mission. And please pray for ALC that we join Jesus on His mission.

ALC Financial Situation

Terry Callies, President
I would like to extend a special thank you to our
disciples for your faithfulness in giving financially
to ALC and to other causes that we support. Our
financial situation at the end of the calendar year
(halfway through our fiscal year) is sound. We have
received approximately $16,000 more in offerings
than what we have spent and we had
approximately $35,000 in our checking account at
the end of the year. Let me point out some
significant financial accomplishments:
1. We gave out over $5,200 from the needy
family fund to help people who were
experiencing hardships in their lives. We
dont give out very much money at one time
so this means that we helped out a lot of
people in need.
2. We gave approximately $3500 to our
ministry partners and disciples further
supported Lutheran Social Services and
Anchor Lutheran School by attending and
participating in their auction fundraisers.
3. Disciples made significant donations of food
and household supplies to two LSSA
projects. Food was collected for LSSAs
Thanksgiving Dinner food give-away in
which over 1300 Anchorage families were
fed. We also collected household supplies for
LSSAs Christmas Angel Tree.
4. We received a thank you letter from Lam
Lul, one of our Sudanese brothers. He
expressed extreme gratitude for all that we
have done as a church and as individuals for
his fellow Sudanese people this past year.
Special thanks were given for all of the
prayers, encouragement and financial
contributions during this time of civil war in
South Sudan. It has been a tough time for
every Sudanese person because they all have
family and friends back in South Sudan and
Ethiopia who are in extreme danger. In
many cases they are not aware if family
members are alive or not. Your prayers and

kind words have brought comfort to our

fellow disciples. They are also appreciative
of all of the donations of food, household
supplies, transportation, etc., that have been
given to the families here in Anchorage. A
special thank you was given to Pastor Andy
for his words of wisdom, advice, and
continual support. Attached is a letter from
Lam Lul.
5. We successfully completed a major project
of replacing the lighting in the sanctuary and
the project was totally paid for from Mission
Outreach funds.

BHAG
Do you all know what a BHAG is? Big Hairy
Audacious Goal. On Jan. 25th Pastor Andy shared
with us a BHAG that he and Pastor Harrison have
been thinking about. The BHAG is establishing a
transitional living place that will help street people
turn their lives around. Attached is a copy of a letter
that Pastor Andy provided to worshippers after
services on the 25th. We are at a stage of asking a lot
of questions, brainstorming and gathering
information. This would be a way for us to make a
huge difference in peoples lives and a way for us to
join Jesus in his mission. Please pray that God
would give us answers and guidance.

Additional Info
Terry Callies
1. Some of you have asked when we would be
seeking a replacement for Matthew Ostlund,
our Director of Music who resigned. We have
made the decision that we will not be
replacing him. There are not that many
potential candidates available that could fill
that position so we will be hiring different
people to fulfill the separate duties.

2. We have a new young lady who is leading

our Praise Team. Her name is Lauren Curran
and she is an extremely talented singer and
guitar player. Introduce yourself to her and
let her know how much you appreciate her.
3. Ed Harris is working with Don Henry to
learn how to use and adjust the sound
system. He will be working at both services
on Sundays.
4. Brandon Burfeind will be putting together a
team that will be working on correcting
problems with the sound system and making
improvements.
5. Pastor Andy and Pastor Harrison will begin
training three men in February who have
expressed interest in learning to lead
worship. The three men are Dave
Keddington, Brandon Burfeind, and Eric
Gustafson. They may also be considering
furthering their study to become Licensed
Deacons. Joining us will be a fourth person,
Rick McCafferty, who will begin training
with us in preparation to become a pastor
through the EIIT program, (similar to what
Albino Kong is going through now) and work
with Pastor David Sternbeck, Fairbanks, who
is with Lutheran Indian Ministry. Rick and
his wife will become a part of our
congregation. If anyone is interested in,
thinking about, or has any questions about
becoming a Licensed Deacon, I will be glad to
talk to you.
6. Our old web page went away at the end of
the year. Pastor Harrison and Matthew did
some research on a new one for us to take its
place. The new web page is up and
functioning but it still is under construction
in some places. At the end of the year Pam
Hueners stepped down as our web master.
She has served in that position for many
years, so please take time to extend your
thanks to her when you see her. Our new
web masters will be Jamie Heinz and
Stefanie Busch.

Welcome to America Brunch

Kathy Callies
We have an exciting opportunity to WELCOME
a Chinese contingency from Global Village who will
arrive in Anchorage late the night of Feb. 20th to
work with Habitat for Humanity. Normally, they
would have a welcome dinner, but since they arrive
so late on Friday, we will welcome them with a
brunch at Anchorage Lutheran. Saturday, Feb. 21st
at 10 a.m.
Several volunteers have already signed on to
help with the preparation of the food, but this is
NOT just a meal for the Chinese. It is a wonderful
opportunity for us to welcome them to the United
States, sit and eat and visit with them and just give
them a wonderful greeting into Alaska as well. They
will be coming by bus over to church, and we will
be their first contact with Anchorage folks. I want to
invite everyone to join us for the brunch, sit and
eat with and visit with the volunteers.
Since we will be one of the first impressions of
America to them, Id like them to feel the love we
have and leave them with the love of Jesus which we
show through our actions. In the past I have led
these kinds of dinners and just a few people have
come to help with the food, but no one to actually
visit with them and get to know them. I believe we
have missed the boat and lost opportunities to get
to know so many people from all over the world.
Again, this is not about making food, or serving it,
but to welcome them and visit and perhaps learn
about them and more about their part of the world.
I am so excited and I hope you all catch the
excitement and come and help welcome them!
Please ask me any questions and RSVP so we
know how much to make. If youd like to bring a
food item, also let me know and I will give you an
item to bring, like juice or bread or whatever we
will need. I asked if we should serve Chinese food,
and was told NO, serve American food, so that will
be a treat for them to enjoy some American food.
I believe there will be 20 coming from China and
perhaps someone local from Habitat office. Please
join the fun! kathycallies@gci.net or 345-8029.