A Message from Pastor Brian

Dear Members and Friends of Faith Lutheran,

Mary, Brian, Jessi and I want to thank you for the wonderful welcome and warm reception the weekend of June 13. It was such a joy to meet all of you, and it is with great excitement and anticipation that I begin ministry with you August 1.

My first task is to get to know as many of you as possible, as fast as possible. Ministry always takes place in a context, and one of my primary tasks now is to come to a deeper understanding of the context of northern Virginia and Washington D.C. You will be my teachers as you share your dreams, values, traditions, and hopes, for yourself, for your family, for your community, for Faith Lutheran Church.

Early this fall I will work with your leaders to set up a series of small group gatherings where we can come together and you can tell me about yourself, why and how you got involved in Faith Lutheran, and what your dreams and hopes are for Faith.  In the meantime, let me know if you would like to get together to visit. We can meet at the church office, go to lunch or coffee, play golf or I would be glad to come to your home or place of work. At this point I plan on the following schedule. I will be in the office on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings and Thursday afternoon. On the afternoons of Monday through Wednesday I will either be in the office or out making visits, including hospital, nursing home, and homebound. Thursday morning will be study time at the parsonage, writing sermons, preparing Bible studies, etc.

Friday will be my day off (Pastor Bill is going back to taking Mondays off.) Of course, there any many things, including Synod and Conference meetings, that can change this schedule, so please set up an appointment ahead of time. The phone number for the church office is 703-525-9283, the parsonage 703-243-9350 and my email is pastorbrian@flcva.org.

I look forward to seeing you in August and beginning our work of discipleship together, sharing the gracious and powerful message of Christ’s love for all people.
Pastor Brian

Welcome, Pastor Brian!

On Sunday, August 1, we welcomed our new Senior Pastor, the Rev. Dr. Brian L. Erickson. Pastor Brian comes to Faith with more than 30 years in the ministry, having most recently served at an ELCA congregation in Arizona. We are excited about this new chapter in the life of Faith Lutheran Church and look forward to working and growing with him. Please pray for the congregation and also for Pastor Brian, his wife, Mary, and children Jessica and Brian, as they begin this new experience in their lives, as well.

Stay tuned for an announcement about Pastor Brian’s service of installation to be held later this summer.

Confirmation

According to the ELCA, confirmation ministry helps a student “to identify more deeply with the Christian community and participate more fully in its mission.” Faith Lutheran Church is dedicated to this goal and offers confirmation classes for students entering the 7th, 8th or 9th grades. This program is two years long and includes classroom instruction, retreats, a week-long summer camp shared with other students from the Washington area, social ministry and other peer-group opportunities.

Led by Pastor Bill, church leadership, and parents, confirmation has four primary emphases:

• experiencing the faith community
• living a life of discipleship
• knowing and understanding the faith
• personal growth in faith

For more information, please contact Pastor Brian or Bill.

Baptism

When we baptize, remember that something very important is happening. A child is being reborn. As Jesus told Nicodemus, “unless we are born again, we cannot enter the Kingdom Of God.” In this sacrament, the baptized becomes God’s child and obtains forgiveness for all sins. The child is raised from his or her natural human condition to the dignity of an adopted child of God. The child becomes a new creation through water and the Holy Spirit. Hence, they are called, and are indeed, a child of God!

The Bible clearly teaches us about the power of baptism. Baptism is called the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). It works forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). As water is used for bodily cleansing, so baptism washes away sins (Acts 22:16). Christ instituted baptism as a means of making disciples (Matthew 28:18-20), entering into the Kingdom of God (John 3:5-6), and of salvation (Mark 16:15-16 and I Peter 3:21).

The words spoken during baptism (“I Baptize You In The Name Of The Father, And Of The Son, And Of The Holy Spirit”) indicate that our Lord is accepting the forgiven sinner into God’s communion. Thus, baptism constitutes the establishment of a covenant which is similar to the covenant God made with the Children of Israel in which God declared, “From this time forth you are my child and I am your God.”

Why Sponsors?

The use of sponsors is not commanded by Scripture. However, it is a good church custom which has many benefits. In addition to serving as witnesses, the sponsors will assume responsibility, as godparents, for the Christian education of the baptized. They will also remember the child in their prayers.

Why the Baptismal Candle?

This special candle, lighted just for today, obtains its light from the Christ candle. The baptismal candle symbolizes the promise that the parents and sponsors make on this day that they will do everything possible, with the help of God, to keep the Light in this child’s heart going. Through holy baptism, the baptized has been enlightened by Christ. The parents and godparents both make such a promise today in front of God and the Church. We pray that when the Lord comes, we and the child will be able to meet God with all the saints in the heavenly Kingdom.

Why the Rose?

The rose has been placed on the altar by the congregation of Faith Lutheran Church. Like the baptismal candle, it also is symbolic. In the Old Testament, we read that the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose (Isaiah 35:1). Today, the desert blooms with new life through holy baptism. The rose symbolizes the kingdom of God, love, victory, and rejoicing. It reminds us that the baptized is welcomed into the kingdom of God, because of the great love of Jesus Christ. Because of such victory, can we do anything but rejoice?

“Thus it appears what a great, excellent thing baptism is, which delivers us from the jaws of the devil and makes us God’s own, suppresses and takes away sin, and then daily strengthens the new person; and it is and remains ever efficacious until we pass from this estate of misery to eternal glory.”

Martin Luther’s Large Catechism

Celebrating Your Child’s Baptismal Anniversary

Baptism is not a momentary act. It is a life-long relationship to be celebrated and affirmed. You may wish to establish the tradition of a baptismal anniversary for your child. Here are some things you might plan to do:

• Keep the baptismal certificate displayed in the child’s room so that the date will become as familiar as their birthday.
• Invite the sponsors and family members for an anniversary dinner.
• If photographs were taken at the baptism, these might become the subject of conversation. Who was the pastor? Where was the baptism? Who was there? In such conversations, your child will learn to know more about her baptism. Perhaps photographs from each succeeding celebration might be added to the album.
• Relight the baptismal candle at each celebration of the anniversary.
• The child might be taken to the font and shown where she was baptized.
• It would be as appropriate to give your child a gift on her baptismal birthday as on the accustomed birthday.

Sound and Tape Ministry

Sound Technicians Needed! Bruce, our coordinator for the sound system, is looking for people to assist with running the “board” on Sunday mornings during worship. You would be needed about once a month. All training will be provided. You need not be 25 or older to do this, so anyone interested is encouraged to contact Bruce at bruirb@aol.com or 703-820-6543.

We now offer CDs (compact disks) as well as cassette tapes of our Faith services, a product of the new sound system.  These CDs will play on your computer, a home stereo system that has a CD player, or your car stereo system that has a CD player. These CDs have a play time of about 80 minutes. This will hold a complete Worship Service.If you know someone who is not able to attend worship, you can take them a tape or CD. We only ask that when you have finished listening to the tape, please return it to the “TAPE RETURN” box in the usher’s station. We can then use it again for another worship.  Because the CDs are not rewritable, you do not need to return those.  If you are interested in knowing more, please contact Carolyn at 703-892-0349 (email carolynmauck@verizon.net).

Van Ministry

Get Me To The Church On Time … Faith Lutheran Church has a special ministry that provides a van to pick up members who can no longer drive themselves to church.  The route is simple, mostly on and around Pershing Drive, and takes about 20 to 30 minutes.  The van is really no more than a large car, so driving it is easy.   If you think you might be interested, come along one Sunday with the assigned driver and see how it works.

Right now there are 10 drivers in the van ministry.  If we had 13, it would mean each driver would be assigned only one Sunday per quarter (there are 13 Sundays in a quarter year).  The schedule is published monthly, and you can become a part of one of the most rewarding and meaningful ministries at Faith Lutheran Church.  Please contact Carl at 703-527-0358 or email hoffch1@comcast.net for more information or to volunteer.

Nursery

Welcome! Thank you for entrusting your child to us on Sunday morning. Mrs. Nilufar Ali and her husband, Mohammed Ali, are here to take care of your child while you attend the worship service. This is to provide you with some information and regulations in the Nursery of Faith.

Information:

Hours: Sundays from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Location: Second floor, entering from Jackson Street entrance to your right.

Ages: The nursery serves infants through 5 years old.

The nursery is divided into two areas based on age and development.  The infant area is for children from birth to 2 ½ years, or those not yet confident on their feet. The pre-school area is for children 2 ½ (walking confidently) through age 5.  It is our goal to provide your child with loving, quality care and to provide a service to you as a parent.  Nilufar and Mohammed are our long-time nursery directors.

Regulations:

Parents must sign their child in and complete the information sheet.  Parents need to place a nametag on your child and another one on your child’s diaper bag.  Diaper bag should contain:  diapers, pacifiers, change of clothes, wipes, snack and/or beverage.  Please do not bring any toys.

Pagers: Parents may request a vibrating pager when they bring their child to the nursery. This will enable the nursery staff to page you if there is an emergency and/or problem.  The pager must be turned off and returned to the nursery attendant when you pick up your child.

Health: Please do not bring your child to the nursery if he or she is displaying signs of sickness.

Safety: For the safety and security of your children, they will only be released to their parents.

Thank you very much for your cooperation.
Deacon of Education,
Dan Cable

New Disciples

New disciples classes are being offered to those interested in becoming members of Faith, and for those who might want to refresh their Faith knowledge.  Classes will begin in the future.  Watch the Key and the Sunday worship folder for dates.  New disciples were last welcomed into the congregation at the 11 a.m. worship on Sunday, March 14, 2010.

At the orientation, you’ll learn about Faith Lutheran Church, the ELCA, and Lutheran beliefs.  You will also meet some of the leaders in our congregation.

Please sign up at Information Central, or contact the church office at 703-525-9283 or office@flcva.org to let us know you’re coming.  You may contact Pastor Brian or Pastor Bill at pastor@flcva.org if you have any questions.

Communion Ministers

For the past several years, Sally has volunteered to assign the Communion Ministers for each Sunday’s Worship Service.

Faith invites you to be a part of this important ministry.  To serve as a communion minister, please contact Sally at arasonroscoe@aol.com.

Bread Ministry at Faith

Baking homemade communion bread is part of the ministry of the Altar Guild at Faith.

Faith needs more bakers.  The time commitment is about 2 hours every 2 months.  Contact Jody by e-mail at Jody.Manning10@verizon.net to be part of the team.