Elder, Usher, and Acolyte Schedules August 2017

Elder and Usher Schedule

Date
8:00
Elder
10:30
August 6Craig Culp, Daryle Schempp, Gene Fuller, Richard RossCurt KesslerGreg McNeely, Theron Noth
August 13Gerald Semelka, Steve ParryBarry HamlinBrian Dirks, Bud Kessler, Curt Kessler
August 20Joshua Parry, Mike Field, Nathan Kluender, Paul GerikeRandy ReinhardtGreg McNeely, Mike Huth
August 27Jeff Piper, Lucas PiperNathan KluenderBrian Dirks, Bud Kessler, Theron Noth

Acolyte Schedule

Date
8:00 AM
10:30 AM
August 6Tanner HitchPastor/Elder
August 13Pastor/ElderJessica Isaac
August 20Clayton PiperPastor/Elder
August 27
Pastor/ElderWill McNeely

Stewardship Corner August 2017

Winston Churchill reportedly said that “we make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”  According to Churchill then, our lives are defined less by what we have gotten, and more by what we give away.

Our Lord’s life is defined in this way.  He gave completely of Himself for us. He became man for us.  He taught the truth of God’s Word.  He healed those with many and various diseases.  He died the death that we deserve because of sin.  He gave of Himself in order to save us from sin, death, and hell.  And so, it is that by giving completely of Himself, He got for Himself us, making us citizens of His eternal kingdom by grace.

As it was for Jesus, so it is also for us.  We get more from giving than we do from simply getting.  For giving softens our hearts and frees us from the grip which the worries of this world and making a living has on us.  For when we are singularly focused on making a living, we are singularly focused on what we get.  That mindset begins to bleed into all areas of our lives—our relationships with friends and family, with neighbors and coworkers, and with the Lord.  It shifts our focus from asking the question—How can I be a friend, family member, neighbor, and servant to others—to asking the question—what have they done for me lately.  We become more selfish instead of selfless.

But when we give, we do not have less, we have more because when we give we join in the bond of friendship and family, the bond of service to those around us out of love for them.  And love is the fulfillment of the Law. It is the nature of God Himself, for God is Love.  Thus we are reflecting the divine nature.  As Jesus said “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

Celebrating August 2017

Birthdays

8/1         Georgia Boriack

8/3         Vicki Miller

8/5         Paul Gerike

8/5         Eric Schneider

8/8         Benjamin King, Jr

8/9         Jeanette Ross

8/10       Bryan Benjamin

8/11       Clayton Piper

8/11       Emilia Schempp

8/12       Brian Dirks

8/15       Jacqueline Kwasny

8/16       Kristina Warren

8/18       Becky Love

8/22       Kitti Miller

8/24       John Campbell

8/24       Michael Huth

Baptismal Birthdays

8/7         Deborah Huber

8/11       Andrew Benjamin

8/15       Phoenix Kleiboeker

8/19       Benjamin King, Jr

8/23       Stephanie Schempp

8/24       Paul Gerike

8/25       Eric Schneider

8/28       Jerzey Kleiboeker

Pastor’s Notes August 2017

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

One of the things we enjoy about summer is the chance to “get away.”  What does that mean to you?  Are you getting away from work?  Are you getting away from home and the responsibilities that come with it?  Are you getting away from the monotony that is your life?

When we “get away,” our routines change.  Recently when I “got away” with the family at a baseball tournament for Holden, every day I was up at 6:00 a.m.  Yes, you read that right, your Pastor who loves his pillow and his siesta was up early!  But that is what happens when you “get away.”  The minutes and the hours and the days change from the usual.  I don’t like to sleep in when I “get away.”  I like to be doing and going and enjoying.  Some people, maybe you, are the complete opposite.  You “get away” to sleep later, lounge around and enjoy an adult beverage on a beach somewhere.  “Getting away,” means different things to different people.

Do you ever want to “get away” from your foolish actions?  Do you want to run to a beach and hide because of words you said in haste?  Would like to sleep in and not face the transgressions you displayed the day before?  Where can we go in those instances?  The cross of Jesus.  There we “get away” from our actions, our sins, because they’ve been placed on Jesus, and He removed them as far as the east is from the west.

Furthermore, our natural inclination is to wonder what we must do to be right with God, and that’s totally frustrating and wearisome, for it has no end.  Once again, the cross is the reminder that Jesus did everything necessary to make us right with God and we have perfect rest, at no price to us.  In Christ, our rest is eternal.

One of the blessings as a Pastor in “getting away” is the chance to sit with my family in worship.  I always enjoy visiting a sister church of the LCMS.  Have a good time when you “get away” but don’t get away from your life of worship.  We need the constant of God’s Word in our lives.

In Christ,

Pastor