Celebrations: Thank you to Pastor Howie and Pastor Neal for filling in the last couple of weeks. Kris and I had a great time of refreshment on our vacation.

This week I'd like to celebrate our Children's Ministry. Tonya and her team have been working very hard. We celebrate the sensory room that is nearly finished. We are still waiting on a few things to arrive and to be implemented. These improvements were a part of the grant we received through the Children's Ministry. The Nursery has been refreshed. Many of the items were donated and the work done by volunteers. Recently we've had an increase in both our Nursery and Children's Ministry. We're averaging over 20 children for our Kid's Church and over 10 little ones in our nursery. There's been a lot of work behind the scenes from our team reaching out to younger families and God has blessed these prayers and efforts. You are invited to peek into the nursery or sensory room this Sunday, after church, if you'd like to see these improvements. And, if you see Tonya or her team, please let them know how much we appreciate all that they do for our church and His Kingdom!

This week is a celebration of secretaries. We have been blessed to have Lorenda and Joanne, with each serving over 25 years with our church. Please drop them a note, handshake or hug (with their permission) to let them know how much they mean to us and how much we appreciate all that they do.

Finally, our latest total for the Capital Campaign is over $140,000. We have two matching gifts, one for $10,000, and one for $25,000 if we meet either of these for the month of April. Thank you so much for all your prayers and for the many people who have already, or are still praying about giving toward this all important campaign!

And, for all of these things, we give God the praise and glory!

Music Ministry: We learned this week that our Choir and Music Director, David Pletincks, will be moving very soon. He has accepted a job with the Department of Education in Tallahassee. He and Sandy plan to be with us through the end of May and then make their plans for moving to Tallahassee in June. This is a great opportunity for David and Sandy. We will miss them greatly but they are also looking forward to this new season of life. This is a state level job where David will get to make an impact regarding the Fine Arts for all of our Florida schools.

PART-TIME CHURCH FINANCIAL SECRETARY POSITION

We are looking for a responsible person with some computer and accounting experience. The job requires confidentiality and accuracy. If interested, please contact Karen McCleskey, Staff Parish Relations Chairperson, at karengmccleskey@gmail.com or 352-358-7719.

The LifeSouth Bloodmobile will be in our front parking lot Sunday, May 3rd from 8 am until 12:30 pm. All donors get a free cholesterol screening and a free T-shirt. Platelet donors receive a $40 e-gift card. Please consider offering your healthy blood to those less fortunate in our local hospitals awaiting surgeries, anemic, life-saving treatments, or a host of other ailments. You could be someone’s miracle! The need is great, and your one donation can help three people in need.

The National Day of Prayer is Thursday, May 7th. Our Sanctuary will be open from during the day for individual prayer time. We will have a Prayer Gathering led by Chaplain Howie Grimmenga at 6 pm in the Sanctuary.

Women’s Fun & Fellowship now meets the second Friday evening of each month in building B. We next meet Friday, May 8th at 6 pm in building B, the Fellowship Hall. Come join us as we do a spring craft, enjoy snacks and have lots of great fellowship. We hope to see you there.

Pastor’s Wednesday Bible study meets at 6 pm in building B. You are all welcome to join the class. This week the study is on Ephesians chapter 5. Everyone is welcome. All you need is a Bible and an open heart. 

The Food Pantry is open Wednesdays from 9am to 1pm in our back parking lot. It is a drive-thru ministry. You need to show a current FL driver’s license or picture ID. Many thanks to our pantry volunteers for their exceptional service to the community and needy.

Prayer Requests Ministry: 45 Prayer Partners receive updates on all prayer requests via email, to pray over and intercede for requests each week. You may wish to be included as a prayer partner so call Lorenda in the office to add your email to the group. Submit prayer requests through our website or call the church office. We celebrate Praises and answers to prayer also. Prayer requests, updates and praises are shared each week as the Prayer list is updated and sent to all in the Ministry either via email and on the printed copy found in the Sanctuary lobby each Sunday.

Prayer Shawl Ministry: Our Prayer Shawl groups meets the third Wednesday of each month. Join us Wednesday Feb 18th at 10:30 am in classroom 2 of building D. Kudos to all the ladies creating beautiful prayer shawls and baby blankets! We know the recipients are very appreciative of your talents. We also have a supply of yarn for you to use when making the shawls if you need it.

If you like to knit or crochet, you can bring your finished shawls to the meeting or to the office for Pastor to bless.

It's very important to follow the size guidelines. We have found these sizes to be best… For Baby Prayer Blankets: approximate size 29” by 29”. NO fringe please, and also solid soft colors are preferred. For Adult Prayer Shawls - please keep them to this size: 26” by 60” (no fringe), or 26” x 55” (with fringe). This adult size is very important—if they are too short, they don’t wrap around an adult comfortably. If they are too long and have extra fringe, they can get caught in the wheels of a wheelchair and create a safety hazard. ~

LIBRARY MINISTRY—Our library has a huge selection of fiction, non-fiction, devotions, biographies, Bible studies, reference books, humor, CD's DVD's, and more. Check out the web for our a vast collection of cataloged material. We recently received a donation of 4 bags of fiction and historical fiction stories. There is always something new at the library! Our books can be lent out for a month at a time to our regular church attendees. We even have a "Freebie section " as you enter to the left. These are free for the taking, for your own home library to read and to share with others.

Volunteer Opportunities:

· Tuesday mornings from 10 – noon, on a rotation schedule.

· Sunday mornings 10:00 – 10:30 and 10:30 – 11:45 on a rotation schedule.

· We can discuss additional opportunities if it better suits your schedule.

Library circulation remains active. We appreciate donations and we evaluate each one for cataloging into the library, or place them on the “free shelf”, or donate to other entities depending on condition, topic, and if the item is currently available in the library. Check out the web for our a vast collection of cataloged material.

The library is open whenever the church is open. If the librarian, or volunteer, are not available, you can check out books by writing your name and the complete date on the card and leaving the card on the desk. You will find the card in the back of the book, CD, or DVD. If you can only make it during the week, the office will be happy to let you into the library to "check out" our material.

Thank you for your continued interest and support in the SpringLife Church Library. ~Lois Johnson, Librarian

Congregational Care - Monthly Report

“Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2

Care Companions are matched with a care receiver and are given a guide to share the love of Christ with these persons. Sometimes its just a phone call or card sent in the mail,, while others like a monthly visit to them in their home or Nursing Home/Rehab.