VBS begins on Monday! Please keep our VBS volunteers and participants in your prayers - that lessons will be learned and hearts and minds transformed by the Word of God through this fun week of activities! MANY THANKS to all of our volunteers!! YOU ARE AMAZING!
Bottles Due Back this Weekend
We're currently participating in the Baby Bottle campaign to raise money for our ministry partner, Redeeming Life Maternity Home. Bottles are due back this weekend! THANK YOU so very much for your support!
MUST READ! We Know You Care About Trinity's Future!
This is an exciting time at Trinity. We have much work to accomplish in our Community and His Kingdom which offers us great opportunity to come together as God's people to live out the "Great Commission".
During the past year we have faced stiff challenges as well as great opportunity in working toward meeting God's call to Trinity to share the gospel with others through ministries which strengthen and equip this Trinity family for service and witness. Finances continue to be an ongoing challenge for Trinity. But, we came together to cover a daunting four month cash flow shortage, and we are approaching solutions for our balloon payment and managing our Magnolia building and Ruth Lane properties. By far, the most painful decision this year was closing the K-8 portion of our school ministry, which even after many, many years of investing every last bit of effort and resources we could pull together, simply could no longer be sustained given our available resources.
We must trust that we are guided by God's will for Trinity's future. Moving forward, much of our work will be difficult, some decisions painful, but through these challenges we have a great opportunity as we adjust our course in preparation for Trinity's second century of ministry. One area of ministry that we recognize where growth
is imperative is our Pastoral Ministry Team. By the time we all meet for our budget meeting, we will have
only two FT staff members remaining on our Pastoral Ministry Team: A Senior Pastor and a Ministry & Communications Coordinator. Mrs. Julia Malenke retires at the end of this month, and the Pastoral Ministry office receptionist position was removed earlier this year in order to assist with the four-month cash shortfall.
We must commit to, and intentionally focus on, the health and well-being of our Church and church ministries, first and foremost over the next several years, in order to restore health and balance, and begin to plan for growth, by increasing financial resources and support allocated to the church ministries, by increasing funding available to increase the number of Pastoral ministry staff members and by supporting our Pastoral Ministry staff in creating a long term comprehensive, strategic ministry plan that they can reasonably hope to accomplish with the resources available. At the same time, we will continue our support to maintain our CDC school ministry and will develop a more comprehensive outreach plan to ensure our school ministry is first and foremost an outreach ministry to our community wherein we foster opportunities and provide support & encouragement for those Trinity families to build strong families of faith, whether or not they connect with the church during their time at Trinity's CDC. This is a tall order and we have a lot of obstacles to overcome to make this happen. I ask for your continued prayers for Trinity, its staff and lay leadership.
So, as we close in on the final days of this fiscal year and plan for the next two years of ministry at Trinity, our work is focused on a strategic plan to grow our Pastoral Ministry Team staff to enhance Trinity's ability to reinvest in our church ministries, commit to a long term plan for church ministry program development, intentionally address member spiritual health and growth, purposefully strengthening and equipping our church family to serve as disciples and to encourage and support making new disciples, focusing on a plan to right size our ministry efforts and to get back to the basics through Word, Worship, Stewardship, Witness, and Fellowship, and to support our CDC school ministry in becoming the best possible source of support to our CDC families in building strong families of faith. I ask your continued prayers for the Leadership Council and our staff as they work to prioritize the budget planning process to bring about these much-needed changes in our Trinity ministries.
The Leadership Council is preparing to bring a budget to the congregation for approval on Sunday June 30 immediately following the 11am service. However, we've also scheduled a Special Voters Assembly on June 23 immediately following the 11am service to allow for some time to talk about our plans for building the Pastoral Ministry Team as well as planned budgeting for other areas of ministry at Trinity. We will review sources of income and projected expenditures for both ministry and operations for the coming two years. These are important discussions that provide opportunity for Leadership Council to interact with you and the rest of the congregation in setting priorities and understanding the challenges in bringing these much needed changes to Trinity. WE NEED YOU TO INVEST in these discussions and show your support for reinvesting in church ministries, our Trinity family, and moving forward to restore our Pastor Ministry office staffing to full capacity. We look forward to spending this time with you on the 23 and again on the 30.
Thank you, Ted Lange, Congregational President
Nah, I'm Not Going to Those Voters Meetings
"What's the point?"
"I hate voters meetings!"
"I just started coming to Trinity."
"They don't need my vote."
"I don't understand all of those numbers anyway."
"Nothing will change..."
Listen friends, we really, really WANT & NEED your support. Adjusting the course of a huge ministry with so many moving parts, especially after so many years of focusing primarily on property development for our school ministry, and after some huge financial challenges... it MATTERS to the leadership and the church staff that you show up even if it's just a show of support. What's getting in your way? Tell us. Not everyone has to talk, not everyone has to understand every detail, but your PRESENCE is a gift to us to show that you are invested in Trinity and want to see the best for Trinity moving forward. It would MEAN THE WORLD to us, if you would attend, listen, affirm the efforts being made, pray, raise your hand and share some input or ask a question if you don't understand, and just fill the pews to let us know you're on board. This is FAMILY BUSINESS... and we're the Trinity family. Please come to the family meetings on the 23rd and 30th!
Supporting our Comfort Dog Ministry - June 30
Trinity's Comfort Dog Ministry is celebrating Peace Comfort Dog's 2 1/2 year birthday and one full year of being vested here at Trinity. It has been a very successful year of ministry for Peace here at Trinity and we hope to grow the ministry even more! We will celebrate on Sunday, June 30 with a cake and coffee/water reception in the Fellowship Hall after each Sunday service. If you would like to support efforts to continue to grow the Comfort Dog Ministry, you can donate with checks or cash with a note to Comfort Dog Ministry. As this is not included in Trinity's operating budget, the work of the Comfort Dog Ministry is supported entirely by private donations like yours. Thank you for your support and prayers for Peace!!
Salvation Army Collection This Weekend and Next
A member of our CDC staff team who is working on completing her BS in Social Work at UCF has organized a service project with the Salvation Army Women and Children's Unit. She has asked for CDC families and Church families support to collect supplies that will be a great support to this community service agency. You are welcome to drop off a donation in the Narthex this weekend and next for these items: diapers (sz 3-5), wipes, toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, bar soup, new underwear/socks/bras/flip flops (all for both women and children), deodorant, razors, lotion, sanitary napkins, adult diapers, tissues, Blankets, towels, sheets, combs, Bibles.
Food & Funds on the Fifth
On Fifth Sundays we stock up on pantry goods to donate to a local food pantry and replenish the Pastoral Discretionary Fund which helps people in an Urgent Financial Crisis.The month of June has five Sundays, so start stockpiling those BOGO deals and re-organize your cabinets. Collection will take place on the weekend of June 30.
Please let us know!
Please let your Trinity family know of any scheduled surgery or hospital stay. In addition to scheduled procedures, please give the church office a call to let us know about extended illness, unplanned hospital stays, or even the birth of a child. You can call the office at any time and leave a message-no need to wait until business hours (407-488-1919 x101). During business hours, that information can then be forwarded to the appropriate caregivers. For an emergency that requires the care of a Pastor after hours or over the weekend call or text us at 407-490-7339 and leave a message. We'll get back to you ASAP. We want to be sure to know when you need us-whether to pray with you before a scheduled procedure, sit with you during a loved one's procedure, pray for you while you recover, visit you in the hospital/at home or to share praise and thanksgiving prayers for good news/results. Just let us know. Thank you.
Urgent Prayer Requests
If you have an urgent prayer request that can't wait until you fill out a yellow prayer card during worship, please submit it via email to
Pray@TrinityDowntown.com. While submitting a yellow card during worship is still the preferred way to share prayer requests, sometimes a prayer need can't wait until Sunday. Your prayer request (first name and basic details of the prayer requested) will be shared with a team of committed weekday prayer warriors and will also be added to Trinity's regular printed prayer list for the congregation. All prayers are kept on the printed list for a period of three weeks, so please resubmit long term prayer needs regularly so that they stay on the printed list. Thank you.
Important Dates
June 2 Youth Host Free Car Wash
June 16 Father's Day, Baby Bottles Due Back
June 17-21 "ROAR" Summer VBS African Safari Adventure
June 23 Special Voters Meeting - budget planning
June 30 Regular Voters Meeting - budget
June 30 Peace Comfort Dog - Celebrate and Support - after all services
July 11-15 LCMS National Youth Gathering
Sept 15 Trinity's 100th Anniversary Events
