PILGRIM LUTHERAN CHURCH 44 CHAPEL ROAD KENMORE, NY (716) A Congregation in Mission, Community and Service PILGRIM S PROGRESS

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1 PILGRIM LUTHERAN CHURCH 44 CHAPEL ROAD KENMORE, NY (716) A Congregation in Mission, Community and Service PILGRIM S PROGRESS NOVEMBER 2016 PASTOR: Rev. Ben Eder EDITOR: Mary Werth ASSOC. EDITOR: SUNDAY SCHOOL: 9:00 AM TUESDAY BIBLE STUDY: 9:30 AM WORSHIP: 10:00 AM

2 From the Pastor No matter what church I am visiting...be it Lutheran or even that of another denomination...i find that worshipers share one tendency: to sit in the back. I find this especially true with older and longtime members; not so much with younger people and newer members they have a tendency to sit near the front. I wonder, Why do people sit near the back? Is it because they're afraid of something? Perhaps they want to make a quick exit in case the service goes too long or the sermon is boring? I can't speak to that, but it seems to me that those who sit near the front are more engaged in what is happening: they are there to hear, to learn, to receive God's good gifts with eagerness and joy. Some of our longtime members who used to sit up front are no longer there due to illness and death; so I say to those who sit in the back, It's time to move up front! My call for you to move up front has both a literal and figurative meaning. Certainly, I prefer to preach to throngs sitting up front than to a group clustered in the rear of the church. And, of course I pray that the Holy Spirit will move others to fill those empty pews in due time. When I say Move up front, I also mean it in another way: it's time for you to move up in your ownership of the mission, ministry, and direction of Pilgrim Lutheran Church. When I arrived at Pilgrim in 1993, the church was led mostly by the World War II generation; now, most of them are with the Lord. Since then, the Baby Boomers took over and now constitute much of the leadership and servant base of the church. What will the future bring? My prayer is that God will continue to bless Pilgrim with servant-leaders who will continue the mission of proclaiming Christ and him crucified for years to come. These words that God spoke to Joshua before the Israelites entered the Promised Land also inspire us today: Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. - Joshua 1:9 In the meantime, I invite you to move up and take your place in service to the King of Kings, Jesus Christ. + Pastor Ben Eder

3 SUNDAY SERVER SCHEDULE NOVEMBER 2016 DATE Nov. 6 Nov. 13 Nov. 20 Nov. 27 READER Wes Wiers Colvina Colvin Dooley O Rourke Eric Fellner USHERS Mike Weurch * Dianne Weurch Peggy Clark * George Alessi Eric Fellner * Gary Smith Tyrone Bryant * Jim O Brien COMMUNION ASSISTANT NURSERY George Alessi Carolyn Alessi Frank Alessi Jim & Gabby O Brien Jim O Brien Carol Obot Gary Smith Peggy Clark * Learning to repent Just as we learn to read, share and play ball, we learn to apologize, right a wrong and repent. Gracefilled parents, teachers and other adults can guide that process. A young visitor to a national park took home a pine cone, despite the adage to take only photos and leave only footprints. But the child likely prompted by Mom or Dad later thought better of it. Opening a lumpy envelope from the mail, a park ranger was tickled and touched to discover the pine cone. An anonymous note in childish script explained regret for my decision and asked that the bit of nature be returned to its rightful place. Repentance is tough, but the caring support of someone more mature in life and faith can make it easier. May we all keep learning to say we re sorry.

4 Loretta Himmele Nov. 1 Nov. 12 Abigail & Kevin Size ==================================================================== Special dates All Saints Day, November 1, 2016 Daylight-Saving Time ends, November 6, 2016 Election Day, November 8, 2016 Veterans Day, November 11, 2016 Thanksgiving, November 24, 2016 First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2016 ==================================================================== Notice anything on this page? Birthdays and anniversaries are mighty scarce for November. If you are celebrating one of these this month, please let me know so I can add it to my records. Then you will see it in the newsletter next November... and the next... and the next... Thank you. Mary Werth

5 ESTHER CIRCLE November is the month of Thanks Giving and the Esther Circle would like to thank the following: Thank you to all who donated winter apparel for the refugees. We will continue to collect these items until Sunday, November 13th. Andrea Cammarata, Executive Assistant at Journey s End, will attend the Esther Circle meeting in November to collect the apparel. Thank you for sending in Dash s tapes. We are very close to our goal of $5000 so keep sending them in to Sue Holway. Thank you for giving pennies for the Mites Mission. A check was sent to LWML Buffalo Zone for $25.00 due to your efforts. My personal thanks to the members of the Esther Circle who donate their time and talents. We especially wish to express our thanks to God for Ruth Caldow and her MANY years of service here at Pilgrim. She will be greatly missed. Fellowship hostesses for November are Carol Obot and Karen Smith. Our next meeting is on Monday, November 14 th, at 6:30 p.m. All women are welcome to join us. The next Community Dinner will be on Friday, November 4 th, from 5 to 7 p.m. The menu is homemade meatloaf with gravy and real mashed potatoes (a few lumps included to prove it s real!), served with a vegetable, salad, bread, butter and assorted desserts and beverages. This dinner is sponsored in part by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. Come and join us and bring a friend! The P.A.L.s will be meeting on Saturday, November 19 th, at 8:00 a.m. in the fellowship hall. All men are welcome to join us.

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8 Ruth Caldow, a grandmother, our Gram Love you bunches!! Ruth Caldow, Gram as my little brother and I lovingly called her, would always end our phone calls and our visits with this simple and beautiful phrase. She was such a sweet, caring person that had a heart of gold. We learned so much from Gram and she meant the world to us. From a very young age, she installed in us a love for our Lutheran faith. She taught us how to practice and respect our faith. During service, she would always tell us to sing louder and belt out those old Lutheran hymnals. Because of Gram, we learned what it meant to be a devoted and faithful Lutheran. For Gram, family was not limited to blood relatives. Everyone at church, in the neighborhood, and the hundreds of foster children she cared for were all family. Gram s always shared family news and updates with other members of the family. Gram did this so that everyone in our family felt close to one another and created a family full of people cheering each other on. Traditions were important to Gram. She sent us cards and homemade treats throughout the year. I don t think Gram ever saw a holiday card that she didn t like. It was always exciting to get a box of goodies from Gram. Typically, by the next day, a somewhat embarrassing phone call would be made to Gram to apologize that the treats were inhaled in one sitting. The traditional goodies that will be missed most will be her candy cane coffee cake for Christmas and her beautiful lamb cake for Easter. Gram taught me how to make these sweet tasting treats and shared that her special ingredient was love. I look forward to sharing all her tips and tricks with my niece Ayla, Gram s Great-Granddaughter. Gram was so free in sharing her love. She loved to sing us I love you a bushel and peck. She loved to cup our faces when she kissed us as each of our visits ended saying love you bunches. This is also how she ended her cards and letters by saying Love you bunches!. A few days ago, with tears in our eyes, we said our final goodbye to Gram. As we looked at her beautiful, sweet face, we said love you bunches Gram. - Cindy Caldow Ceriello and Jason Caldow Ruth was a true blessing to all the lives she touched. She never failed to give a hug, a kind word or a smile to everyone and anyone she met. She adored her husband, sister and Gracie (her angel). Ruth never failed to attend church functions. She and her husband Harvey attended church both Saturday evenings and Sunday mornings. Ruth loved her church family and always went out of her way to show her love to us all. We will all miss her and I pray we as her church family can keep her love alive and growing. From Traci LaFalce

9 (Letter of May 13, 2016)

10 LHM's 'Online Mission Trip' Heads to Madagascar Lutheran school students will "travel" to Madagascar for a virtual mission adventure during National Lutheran Schools Week, Jan , Sep. 24, 2016 Since 2012, Lutheran Hour Ministries has been introducing students to how the Gospel is shared around the world through the Online Mission Trip. Past trips have taken students to Paraguay, Thailand, Kenya, Guatemala, and Latvia. This year's trip is journeying to the African nation of Madagascar during National Lutheran Schools Week, January 23-27, Madagascar is known to many people for its natural beauty and abundance of rare plant and animal species. However, most kids know the country better from the series of popular animated films in the last decade featuring stars such as Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, and Jada Pinkett-Smith. Lutheran Hour Ministries is excited to show kids the real Madagascar, a land filled with fascinating people and cultures as well as amazing opportunities to share the Good News! Since it is meant to be a "trip," the goal of the Online Mission Trip is to take students "outside" of the classroom and experience the people, places, and ministry in a different part of the world. Students watch engaging daily videos that expand their awareness of the world and how God's church is at work. These videos offer opportunities to meet ministry staff in the country, trips to historic locations, day in the life videos with kids in the country, and on-site filming of ministry programs. The goal throughout the week is to immerse the kids in many parts of the countries where Lutheran Hour Ministries operates. The videos will be made available online at the beginning of each school day, which means that home schools and others outside of Lutheran Schools can participate as well. Beyond the videos, classes are encouraged to interact with the staff of Madagascar by posting questions and comments on Facebook and Twitter. Our staff in the U.S. and Madagascar will respond to these questions and continue the conversation with classes around the country. Students are also encouraged to color pictures and write notes for kids in Madagascar! These notes will be sent to the ministry center in Madagascar and shared with actual kids in that country. This simple act allows students in the U.S. to see firsthand how they can share God's love with other kids around the world! Students also learn how they can directly impact the people they see in the Online Mission Trip. Students, parents, and schools are invited to generously support the mission work taking place in Madagascar. Many schools choose to designate part of their chapel offerings for the year to the Online Mission Trip destination country. Students also fill milk carton banks to support Lutheran Hour Ministries' global mission work. Since the beginning of the Online Mission Trip in 2012, more than $100,000 has been given by kids in response!

11 The Online Mission Trip is a great way for teachers to educate their students and help them experience the spread of the Gospel around the world without having to leave their classrooms. Please share this information with your pastors, teachers, children, or grandchildren and encourage them to take part in this unique experience. Schools can sign up right now at To learn more about Online Mission Trips with Lutheran Hour Ministries or get details about this year's event, visitwww.lhm.org/onlinemissiontrips/guide.asp. Lutheran Hour Ministries, All rights reserved. 660 Mason Ridge Center, St. Louis, MO Love in action Fiddler on the Roof, the 1964 musical about an Orthodox Jewish family navigating cultural change, includes a duet by the main character, Tevye, and his wife, Golde. As they watch their daughters marry for love, they contemplate their own arranged marriage. Do you love me? Tevye sings. After first deflecting the question, Golde recounts the many things she s done for or with him during 25 years together cooked, cleaned, endured hardships, raised a family. She concludes, If that s not love, what is? When Jesus speaks of love, he uses a word that might be better translated as serve. Above all, love is an action. Sometimes we feel loving; sometimes not. But Jesus calls us always to act lovingly. And in the end, serving is the best way to show our love. Use it all up About two-thirds of Americans say eating Thanksgiving leftovers is more important than eating the actual holiday meal. That s one of the few times people hope food is left on the table. When it comes to giving out blessings, God doesn t want any leftovers to remain. In Genesis 12:2, God blesses Abraham so he will be a blessing to others. Charles Stanley writes: A hoarded blessing is never enjoyed as richly as a shared one. Using your gift to meet someone else s need glorifies God by demonstrating his grace at work in your life. Don t let his generous provisions end with you. Pass them on and discover the joy of a never-ending cycle of blessings. God gave us five senses; it is sheer ingratitude to worship him with any less. Martin Luther Greed says the more you get, the more you have. Christ says the more you give away in love, the more you are. Frederick Buechner

12 THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR THE DECEMBER NEWSLETTER IS NOV. 27 TH.