Faith Community

Raising the roof

Here at Clairemont Lutheran Church we are more than just a group of people who have gathered together for worship. We are a family of the faithful and we have been blessed beyond measure.

Our Fellowship Hall was originally our Sanctuary. It has served as a gathering place for worship, reflection, ministry, singing, and spiritual growth. Once the Sanctuary was built, the Fellowship Hall became a beacon of light for the neighborhood, providing a shelter for hope when feeding those less fortunate, for social gatherings, for marriage celebrations, for remembrances of loved ones, special events and more.

But after 60 years, our Fellowship Hall no longer meets the needs of our community or our congregation.

Cracks in the brick wall are the result of a resettlement and
foundational issues. Some windows have remained cracked
or broken for years. (Aug 2020)

The Building Committee was directed in our last Congregational meeting to work with the contractor and explore ideas for reducing the cost of a new Fellowship Hall. That work is
proceeding and progress is definitely being made. In the meantime, it was recognized that we need to procure additional funds to undertake whatever the scope of the project ultimately is.

The dark, drab interior of the current fellowship hall meeting
space. (Aug 2020)

Our lender is requiring pledged commitments of $375,000 over a three year period to lend us the funding for our construction costs. “Pledging” is a promise to do something and in this case it is a promise to contribute a total of $375,000 over a three year period. The funds do not need to be given immediately. It is the
pledge that needs to be accomplished as quickly as possible.

Some people may be able to donate their entire pledge in one year, and many of us will require three years to keep our promise. Pledges can consist of cash contributions, stock donations, will or trust beneficiary designations where Clairemont Lutheran Church is the beneficiary. The church would just need to be notified that they are the beneficiary.

Please consider making a financial pledge to this important undertaking. If you can, please notify the church office so your
pledge can be counted. 

For any questions about the Building Project or
Fundraising, please contact Gary Jaus by phone or
email:

Waiting for Jesus amid the pandemic

Christmas is almost here. Will it even feel like Christmas this year?

To say this year is has been a tough one is an understatement. I’m not sure anyone could have predicted a global pandemic would have literally turned our lives inside out and upside down, but it has. Our activities, our daily patterns and even the things we take for granted have all been affected.

In my writings this year I’ve asked you to re-think what it means to be the church, to re-think our mission and to re-imagine our
vision as our congregation coped with big changes in our community and our world. What have been your answers to those questions? Have you shared them?

In the midst of all of what has happened, we’ve found ways to be the church of Jesus Christ in North Clairemont. We still feed the hungry. We’ve still had spiritual counseling via phone and online
conferencing. We’ve continued with worship in a variety
of ways: completely online, outdoors and with limited attendance indoors. But it takes a tremendous amount of work to put on worship these days.

We’ve also been able to hold Bible studies and have community groups back on our church campus, but we have had some
problems with this as well with groups not following safety protocols. And after years of work and waiting, we moved yet another step closer to our goal of building a new Fellowship Hall, and in this issue you will read about the efforts to make this happen.

Through all of the stress of this year—the spread of the novel Coronavirus, the everchanging public health orders and
restrictions, isolation from the ones we love, empty store shelves, the presidential election—we have managed to hold out
hope for the one who was, who is, and who is to come: Jesus the Messiah.

While Christmas may look and feel different this year, we can’t lose sight of the light that shines in the darkness, for the darkness has not overcome it. Our hope is in the one who came to be
friend, teacher, healer and the prince of peace: Jesus, the eternal savior of the world.