Skip to content

Evergreen Outreach

By Charlene M. Jett
And the Lord created joyful chaos at Evergreen Outreach.  Without a doubt, this was a great day! Judy Varga and Randy Schukar were back on stage, and were in great form!

But first, we warmed up by greeting each other and sharing refreshments. We sang "Happy Birthday" to Larry Lusch, Tina Sewell, Joan Fackler, Francis Friesland, Shelda Kaltschnee and Bonnie Eck. We also welcomed back David and Karen Hunter, and Wolf and Jeannie Schlicht. Unfortunately, Katy Schukar is still in the hospital.
The Rev. Krista Stokke, pastor of St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, led us in devotions. Her theme was “Today.” She reviewed Psalm 1:18, “This is the day the Lord has made.” And she also reviewed Mathew 6:25, “Do not worry about what you eat, drink or what you wear… Do not worry, all will be given to you.”
She also emphasized that today’s trouble is enough for one day. In simplistic terms, this means “one day at a time, sweet Jesus.” We are not to worry!  Krista defined the characteristics that she enjoys and those that the Lord wants us to have:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control! Don’t we all wish we were so driven? That we were never cynical or complaining! She also shared additional characteristics that Jesus wants us to have: courage, faithfulness, gentleness and grace –  especially when we fail!
Key practices in being spiritual and holy are reading the Bible, listening to and learning from Christ. The bottom line is choosing love.
After a five-month hiatus from EO, Judy and Randy played to a full house, and the roof nearly collapsed. Even the ceiling tiles were happy!
Randy opened solo, with one of our favorites: “I Can’t Even Walk Without You Holding My Hand.” It was powerful and moving enough to bring those in the audience to its knees – the entire room felt his emotions. Way to go, Randy! Thank you for baring your soul to us.  
Judy sped things up with two of our most-loved songs: “Chicken Dance” and “Locomotion.” There were many, many chickens and lots of clucking as we danced. The “Locomotion" train was extra large and moving fast on Monday – and that makes me happy! We got to sing our favorites, like ”Coal Miner's Daughter.” Randy sang ”Your Cheatin’ Heart” and “Release Me.” Then Judy belted out "Rocky Top," which brought even more people up out of their chairs and onto the dance floor.  A few more songs and the magic was gone, but not before I got to sing and dance the “Tennessee Waltz” with Randy.
What an amazing event. The wholesome love and joy of Christ was PURE! Thank you,  God!
The pinochle table was very busy. Richard Kruenegel and Shirley Locke won all three  games, with Mary Woolsey and Susan Meador needing a card-shark partner! They were all smiles, even those who lost, so EO is almost back to normal!
See you next week!

Marie Sutton and the Rev. Krista Stokke

Leave a Comment