This year Trinity Downtown celebrates a campus-wide theme – Real.Present.God. We are very excited about this theme which is based on Psalm 46:1,  “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”  These words speak of our past, our present and our future, capturing the very essence of where we have been and where we are going.  As we reflect on nearly 100 years of God’s grace as a Church body with multiple ministries committed to sharing the gospel through witness and service, and 66 years with a school ministry dedicated to raising up a next generation of young people leading purpose-filled lives for Christ, we can certainly see the hand of God!  We are touched by the reality of God seeing that He was, and is, Real and He has always been Present in our ministry here in downtown Orlando.  He has made us strong allowing us to survive tough times and accomplish big things! We kicked off a new school year here in Orange County along with our own Trinity Lutheran School ministry, with back to School Open House events and four weekend worship services that included welcoming school families to worship, back-to-school prayers, backpack blessings, and a dedication of teaching staff for all the teachers in our congregation, in our Trinity Lutheran School staff and throughout the community.  What a great joy it was to see so many children, students, and even our Comfort Dog, Peace, come up during worship with their backpacks, to be blessed for this next year of their lives as disciples of Christ!  As a church family, we sent with each of these students and teachers, a prayer and blessing that they will carry with them throughout the school year to remind them WHOSE they are and that their Trinity family loves and supports them. Each student who brought their backpack wtih them for a blessing received a backpack tag as a daily reminder to be worn on their backpack.

The fun didn’t stop there, as Trinity’s Sanctuary was full for the Back-to-School opening chapel for Trinity Lutheran School students who began this new school year at TLS. Pastor Doug and Julia Malenke served as the chapel leaders for both K-8 and Preschool chapel services with the goal of helping the children discern the difference between what is REAL and what is IMAGINARY. As a complete surprise to almost everyone in worship, a very confused “Wonder Woman” made an appearance, at first taking offense at having been referred to as “imaginary”, and then owning up to being just an adult in a costume – making it very clear, under Pastor Doug’s child-centered unfolding of God’s Word, that while television and movie super heroes are imaginary, our God is very real and very present in our world and in our daily lives. Dr. Brockberg joined in leading K-8 chapel and shared Trinity’s “Prayer for the School.”  You are invited to pray this prayer often, as together we all learn more about our real and present God this year.

Dear Father,
We open the doors of our school today and invite you in.
Please be in our lessons and help us concentrate and learn.
Fill us with happiness as we learn about the world you made.
Guide our creativity as we learn to express ourselves in art, music, and movement.
Help us to share, care for, and love one another.
Watch over us and protect us as we run and play today,
Please come and be a part of everything we do or say.
In Jesus Name, Amen.

We’re looking forward to another great year at Trinity, and excited to celebrate the beginning of Trinity’s second century of ministry this Spring, knowing that our REAL PRESENT GOD will be with us every step of the way! Our mission is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ through ministries which strengthen and equip people for Christian witness and service in downtown, metropolitan Orlando, and the world.  Our purpose in all that we do is to bring people one step closer to Jesus. Thanks for being part of this wonderful Trinity Family!