Bethlehem Star September 2018

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Julie Stone
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1 Bethlehem Star September 2018 Mission 2020 the Listening Process Begins As a congregation we have entered into a process of mission planning as requested by our Synod Office. In Bethlehem the past Lufour ther an newsletters Ch u r ch I have shared the over-view of the request, some insights that the mission directors have to offer; and then two resources that give guidance as we begin. In July I included on this page the Seven Faith Practices of the E.L.C.A. Call to Discipleship. The list of the seven practices, worship, study, pray, give, serve, encourage, and invite, included a passage of Scripture that shed light on each practice. In the August issue I included the statement of purpose of our congregation according to our constitution. That statement purpose had six points which were obviously a very close re-phrasing of the faith practices: Worship God, Proclaim God s saving Gospel, Carry out Christ s Great Commission, Nurture its members in the Word of God, and Manifest the unity given to the people of God. There are so many points of correspondence among these two resources. Together they describe us well. What I propose we do moving forward is to take seven weeks to thoroughly work through each of the Seven Faith Practices, what Martin Luther and the reformers recognized as God-shaped and God shaping activities given to Christians for their lives in the world. Therefore on Sunday September 9 I will introduce the first of our study guides. And we will proceed week by week. With these guides I encourage us all to participate in a time of listening to what the Word of God says about these God-shaping activities. I do believe this will be an excellent way for us as a congregation to listen well to God s intentions for us as God s Church. Also I believe that this is something that like good cooking, is best when not rushed. We will take our time to listen well. This is but the first of a three part listening process. First we listen to God this Fall, then we will strive to listen to the Church during the winter months, and finally we will listen to the Community when Spring returns. And we will spell those parts out as we move forward. At first I had enthusiastic expectations that we would complete this process quickly and in time for our annual meeting. I am now of the mind that careful listening is a significant work in itself. Does that sound like a lot of listening? It makes me think of the old proverb which states that we are born with two ears and one mouth indicating that we should do twice as much listening as speaking. On Sunday, September 9 and Wednesday, September 12 we will begin listening to the scriptural passages that relate to our lives of worship. These will be available in the bulletins and in extra hand-outs. I encourage members to use these in Circle meetings, committees, council, at coffee gatherings, and in personal devotion. Our aim is to listen to what God has to say to us today. Like the African song in our ELW hymnbook says Listen, listen, God is calling, through the Word inviting, offering forgiveness, comfort and joy As we listen, God will teach us what we need to know. Pastor Mark

2 Wednesday Worship Resumes Wednesday Worship resumes on September 5 at 6:00 p.m. This is our wonderful casual worship service that includes more contemporary music as well as the participation of our youth. Holy Communion is served each week. There will be no meal prior to the worship service for the first few weeks of September as we gear up for our classes for Confirmation and Senior High Ministry. We ll let everyone know through the E- Weekly and Facebook when the suppers start again. Worship Notes Season of Creation for five weeks! Beginning Sunday, September 9 our prayers, hymns, scripture, liturgy will lead us into a time of specifically giving thanks for the gift of God s awesome creation and our amazing responsibility of stewardship. Each week will have a theme which we have used in past years. A part of the service this year will be the Benedicite Minnesota adapted by Rev. Christopherson of Central Lutheran Mpls. Based on the Benedicite, omnia opera or a song of creation in the historic Easter Vigil, this adaptation will connect with your Minnesota imaginations. Join us as we praise God for the beauty of the earth. Homestead Weekly Bible Homestead Weekly Bible Readings resume on September 10 at 2:00 p.m. Everyone at Homestead and more are welcome. As we have done so in the past we will hear the worship texts for the upcoming week and reflect together about what they mean in our daily living. Men s Retreat at Wilderness October 12 & 13. The Bethlehem Men are booked at Wilderness Canoe Base for our annual faith retreat. $75.00 covers our four meals, one night lodging and program. Sign up soon.

3 Great Volunteers Aren t they all! Great that is! And this is especially so of our members who are volunteering at ODDZ & ENDZ and have chosen Bethlehem as the non-profit organization to which their time should be credited. Let me share this from the letter we just received from ODDZ & ENDZ, ODDZ & ENDZ is now celebrating over four years since it opened and are pleased to announce that not only have we been able to provide affordable furniture and household goods to our many shoppers, but are able to return nearly $48, back into Cook County non-profits who serve our community in important ways. And in that letter was $1, for Bethlehem Lutheran Church. Wow! Thanks be to God! God s work. Our hands. Sunday, September 9 This year we will again pair up with Care Partners- Chore Projects. Come to church and get your golden E.L.C.A. work T-shirt and be ready for a fun service project in the afternoon. We ll get started at 1:00 p.m. and put in a couple hours of work together. Thank you Notes from our Mission Recipients keep coming in! Union Gospel Mission says Thank you Bethlehem, your giving has provided hearty meals and other critical care to men and women who find every day is a struggle to survive. Because of you, their despair has now faded and been replaced by hope. Thank you for your gift of $ Lutheran Social Services Lutheran Social Services says thank you for $ It s because of you that LSS is able to provide: a hot meal or a caring companion for an older adult; financial or family counseling for a returning veteran; a second chance for a homeless youth; and so much more! Mission of the Month This month we will be the E.L.C.A. World Hunger Appeal. More than 800 million people in our world today are undernourished. We start by listening and learning how we can accompany them to help them break the cycle of hunger and poverty for good. From water wells to animal husbandry, microloans to health clinics, your gifts to ELCA World Hunger support innovative solutions that get to the root causes of hunger. Please write ELCA World Hunger on your donation.

Youth and Family News I hope you have all had a wonderful Summer and are ready for Fall. We are looking forward to starting our Wednesday classes again at the end of the month.

4 Youth and Family News I hope you have all had a wonderful Summer and are ready for Fall. We are looking forward to starting our Wednesday classes again at the end of the month. If you are interested in getting involved with the Youth and Family programs, please let me know. There are many opportunities available from teaching a regular class, serving as a substitute teacher, serving on the Youth and Family committee or volunteering at one of our retreats or fundraising events. Speaking of fundraising, we are serving food again this year at the Radio Waves Music Festival. We had a great time last year and raised over $1, for the Youth and Family Fund. Stop by our food booth on Friday, September 7th or Saturday September 8th and enjoy some great food while supporting the BLC Youth. Upcoming Important Dates: November 16-18th Middle School Gathering (grades 6-9) at Cragun's October 28th Confirmation Sunday Blessings, Cara Sporn Updates from the Office Recently we had to migrate our system. During that phase our E-weekly list was lost. I have tried to recreate it, but if you are not getting the E-weekly, send a to blc@boreal.org and I will add it to the list. Also we are looking for people to assist with Usher, Reading and Greeting for our worship services. If you are interested let Laura in the office know. Blessing of the Backpacks! Students bring your backpacks to church on Sunday,September 9 for a special backpack blessing.

6 B e thle h em Luther an C h ur ch 417 W. 1st Ave. Box 638 Grand Marais, MN Phone: Non Profit Org. US Postage Paid Permit #3 Grand Marais, MN blc@boreal.org Belonging to Christ, Sharing Christ on the North Shore and beyond. Mark Your Calendars! HARVEST DINNER Once again, the Women of Bethlehem are preparing for our ANNUAL Harvest Dinner to be held on Friday, September 28th; serving from 5:00 to 7PM, in the Social Room. To keep our expenses down, we will accept donations of butter, cabbage, home-grown carrots, many pickled beets and other veggies, home made breads, and apples for the Apple dessert. Please call the office or Gwen (leave message) about your plans to donate any of these items. Cost of the Dinner: still $12 Adults, Children ages 6-10 $5 ages 5yrs and under-free HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL!

Bethlehem Star October 2018

Bethlehem Star October 2018 In a recent conversation with one of our saints I was truly blessed. It was absolutely unintended by her, it was just something she said. When I say unintended I don t mean