The Peace Messenger. Find Rest at Christmas. Peace Lutheran Church 2090 Commerce Drive North Mankato MN Newsletter December 2018

Transcription

1 The Peace Messenger Peace Lutheran Church 2090 Commerce Drive North Mankato MN Newsletter December 2018 Worship Schedule Sundays 8:30 & 10:45 a.m. Sunday School/Adult Bible Class at 9:45 a.m. Serving Peace Pastor Tim Hartwig Cell Pastor Matt Moldstad Cell Office - Karen Wold Phone karen@peacemankato.com Church Council President: Brad Wosmek Vice President: Eric Halvorson Secretary: Greg Miller Spiritual Leadership: Adie Harstad Christian Education: Bob Paulsen Property Management: Matt Bindert Stewardship: Jason Westman Gospel Outreach: Jon Stadler Jesus Lambs Preschool Joslyn Moldstad joslynmoldstad@gmail.com Crossed - Youth Group crossedyouth@gmail.com Special Interest Dates 1 st Decorate for Christmas 8a 4 th Board of Education 6p Stewardship Board 6p Spiritual Leadership 7p 5 th, 12 th, 19 th Advent Supper 5:15p Advent Service 6:30p 8 th Tacky Sweater Party 12p 9 th Lutheran Pioneers at MO 5p 11 th Council Meeting 6:30p 14 th PreK Christmas Prog. 6:30p 16 th SS Christmas Program 10:45a 24 th Christmas Eve Service 6:30p 25 th Christmas Day Service 9a 31 st New Year s Eve Service 6:30p Christmas time is upon us again! Is there anyone who sees it as a restful time? With the holiday program at our child s school, the company Christmas party, the decorating and cooking, and of course, the shopping for the perfect gift, our pace is hectic. By the time Christmas Day arrives we are breathless. That s ironic, since Christmas is the way to rest, perfect rest, as God purposed it. A long time ago God sent a special messenger to remind the people of Israel that Christmas is the way to perfect rest. The messenger s name was John the Baptist. He lived in the Judean desert, dined on odd holiday fare (locusts and wild honey), and spent his time preaching about Christmas rest. Find Rest at Christmas A voice of one calling: In the desert prepare the way for the Lord, make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3 Considering that we run ourselves breathless, going this way and that, and making little headway in this wilderness, John s preaching is timely. He preached about the way that brings rest, which he called a highway for our God. He said that this way would be revealed for all mankind to see, and it was this: God s eternal Son was born into the world from the Virgin Mary as the sinless man Jesus Christ. Jesus had come to save all people from their sins, and by doing so, provide the way of perfect rest. John also preached that to catch one s breath on the Jesus highway one needed to prepare. But don t worry! This preparation is not another task to be crammed into an already hectic schedule. He was talking about the inner preparation of the heart. John preached about confessing our sinfulness to God (repent) and trusting in Jesus. He also preached how this happens, and it is not through our personal willpower to reprioritize. Rather he said that God gives these gifts to our heart through Scripture and baptism for salvation. Since God promises to work in our heart through these means, it reminds us of something essential. Before we begin each new week s rat race, we need to pull off at God s rest stop, the church. We will hear during Christmas and throughout the year that Jesus is the highway to heaven, and that this is not a hectic expressway of personal achievements, but a way of perfect rest. He came into the world to do for us what we could not do for ourselves: he lived a life of perfect devotion to his heavenly Father and then at 33 years old, he gave his holy life over to hell and death at the cross to forgive all sin. This forgiveness is God s perfect rest for our conscience that is disturbed about all the times we rushed right past him. Best of all, it promises at the finish of our earthly race the eternal rest stop called heaven. - Board for Home Outreach

2 Our Mission The purpose of our congregation is to worship God, who gives life through Word and Sacrament; to serve one another in love and fellowship; and to proclaim forgiveness and salvation to all through Jesus Christ alone. Council Meeting Minutes November 13, 2018 The Mission & Ministry Coordination Council (MMCC) meeting of Peace Lutheran Church was held on November 13, Council members present were: Pastor Hartwig, Pastor Moldstad, Brad Wosmek President, Eric Halvorson Vice President, Adie Harstad Spiritual Leadership Jon Stadler Gospel Outreach, Jason Westman Stewardship, Bob Paulsen Christian Education, Matt Bindert Property Management, Greg Miller Secretary. Devotion Pastor Moldstad Hebrews 9:24-28 Announcements None. Agenda MMSP to approve the agenda. Minutes of Previous Meeting MMSP to approve. Pastor s Report (Pastor Moldstad) Worship & Adult Education 1.) I continue to work with our Music Coordinator to prepare special music for our upcoming holiday services (Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas). 2.) Kris Hough has agreed to take over our church decorations and will begin to be trained in on how to do that during the holiday season. We are planning a Christmas Decoration event for Saturday, December 1 st. 3.) Pastor Hartwig and I area planning for him to continue his series on the Gospel of John into the Spring semester for our Sunday Morning Adult Bible Study. I will continue to offer Bible Instruction Class during that time. 4.) We now are offering chapel services once a month at three different nursing homes. Spiritual Growth/Nurturing/Fellowship: 1.) Six of our youth attended the Hayride outing on Oct. 28 th. 2.) I was able to sit in on one of their Sunday morning classes which seemed to be well received by the youth. 3.) Our Men s Bible Study is now being offered every week at 6:30 AM. Regular attendance is around ) Our Trunk R Treat event on Oct. 27 th went smoothly. We estimate over 600 people in attendance and great participation /help from the congregation. 5.) Our next fellowship event is a Thanksgiving Feast which will be held on Friday, Nov. 16 th at 6 PM. Pastor/Circuit/Synod: 1.) I have been working to contact prospects gleaned from our Preschool as well as our Trunk R Treat event. 2.) The Mankato ELS/WELS churches are hosting an Outreach Training event on Nov. 17 th at the Beacon. This is especially focusing on outreach to refugees in our area. Pastor s Report (Pastor Hartwig) Attendance Comments 1.) Attendance remains very strong. We continue to have visitors in attendance. 2.) We need more hymnals for the back pews. Spiritual Leadership will purchase the amount needed. My Work 1.) I have been able to give a little more time this last month to delinquents. Looking Ahead 1.) Thanksgiving Eve Service is at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, Nov. 21 st. 2.) Advent services begin Wednesday, Dec. 5 th at 6:30 PM. 3.) Sunday School Christmas Program is on Sunday, Dec. 16 th at 10:45 AM. 4.) How many services should we have on December 30 th? The Council decided to keep two services for Dec. 30 th.

3 MMSP to approve the following membership changes: Received: Jaylin Bruns; Tom & Cindy Chopp; Natalie Harstad; Nicholas Lilienthal; Zatianna Salgado; Laura Voigt; Claire Wolff; Released: Shannon Ballman. Spiritual Leadership (Coordinator ~ Adie Harstad) Delinquent List: Thank God for a shrinking list of people and encouragement of others. Most of our meeting time was devoted to our list of people absent from worship. We organized how to contact and encourage those people and we assigned the contact person for each delinquent member. The spiritual life of children who have been baptized at Peace but whose parents have never been members is a continuing concern. EHV (Evangelical Heritage Translation): Discussed how this Bible translation is being received and its future use at Peace. We passed a motion to recommend to the Council that Peace adopt the EHV as our translation for worship and instruction. The EHV has been the translation used in our services for more than a year. We decided to wait and discuss the number of copies that we need to order. A donor will give at least $1000 for copies for Peace. The price per copy depends on the number ordered. The cost is under $20 per copy for hardcover pew Bibles. Sudanese Ministry at Peace: We recommend that we offer our facilities for Christmas worship to the Sudanese community and continue to encourage the group. Fellowship Committee: There was no time remaining to discuss this topic. Virtual Church through Peace: Discussion postponed. Gospel Outreach (Coordinator ~ Jon Stadler) The Board met on November 8, 2018, 6:00PM. Members present: Pastor Hartwig, Phil Wels and Jon Stadler. Excused: Paul Bunkowske. The meeting opened with a devotion and prayer based on James 1:13. Trunk R Treat follow-up: Eleven people expressed interest in finding a church as a result of the event. Preschool tri-folds were included in the goody bags that were handed out. We will see if anyone asks about preschool as a result of the info. We will provide support for this event in the same way next year. ELS/WELS Sudanese Outreach Initiative: A) Kingdom Workers is providing a Community Worker Orientation on Saturday, Nov. 17 th, 8am to 12 pm at the Beacon Ministry Center on MSU campus (WELS Campus Ministry location). We will ask a couple of members who have demonstrated interest in these types of initiatives if they are planning to attend so Peace has representation at the event. B) Pastor Hartwig reported that Spiritual Leadership was looking into having a Sudanese Christmas service in the Nuer language offered in December. Chuol Buol has expressed interest in having such a service for the Sudanese. One question will be how to evaluate the theological content of the sermon. (Translation is needed.) Looking at other ways to continue to help the Sudanese in the worship services. Other Business: A) Pastor reported on work with Paul Fries on the new webpage: it should be ready for launching soon. B) Discussion on advertising for special Peace services: We will advertise the Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas services in the newspaper as we have done in the past. We also discussed the possibility of mailing postcards for other services besides Easter. We sent out 5000 postcards to the zip code for Easter. Would it make sense to do the same thing for Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas? We also discussed spending money to boost posts for events on Facebook. Pastor reported that he boosted the announcement for Trunk R Treat, but he s not sure what effect it had. Christian Education (Coordinator ~ Bob Paulsen) The Board met on Nov. 6, Members present were: Pastor Hartwig, Bob Paulsen, Brandon Evers, Eric Woller and Matt Lukasek. Opened with a devotion and prayer by Pastor Hartwig. o Preschool Report: October was a busy month: The children sang one Sunday in church, had their Harvest Festival, visited a farm, helped with Truck R Treat and had parent/teacher conferences. This month the students are practicing for their Christmas program which will be presented on Friday, Dec. 14 th at 6:30 pm. o Sunday School Report: Averaging students. Eric Woller would like to have the preschool parents volunteer to help the preschool teachers in keeping things under control during Sunday School. The Sunday School Christmas program is being organized by Emily Wolff and will be presented Dec. 16 th.

4 o Mt. Olive School Report: Mt. Olive has issued a call for a full-time teacher and a call for a school administrator. The projected enrollment for is expected to be 179 students. o Youth Group Report: The Crossed Sunday morning Bible Class is going well and is averaging 8-10 students. They are also doing one activity every month. Had a hayride in October. Stewardship (Coordinator ~ Jason Westman) Met November 6, Members present: Keith Wiederhoeft, Phil Novak, Sergio Salgado, Pastor Hartwig and Jason Westman. Budget: Currently $49,287 behind budget for the year. Loan: Converted from interest only to also paying off the principal. Groups: Sergio will be stepping back due to an internship opportunity. Planning to search for a replacement soon so they can co-lead the groups for approximately 6 months. We would like to continue this model going forward (6 months co-lead, 1-year solo, 6 months co-lead with a new leader. Golf Tournament (Phil): Raised just under $600 this year. We are looking to expand next year. Minneopa is willing to allow us to have access to the course and carts free of charge again. Outstanding building fund pledges: Closing out the building fund pledges after sending out reminders to a few members with outstanding pledges. Offering envelopes: An was sent to on-line givers to give them the option to opt-out of having printed envelopes. Year-to-date Profit and Loss presented. Property Management (Coordinator ~ Matt Bindert) Jordan Smith is doing leaf collection. Jon Moldstad installed signs throughout the church. A congregation member hired a tree company to cut down a rotten oak tree. Tim Paulsen has the list of small projects to get done. Pastor Hartwig presented a request from a company providing services to autistic people. They would like to use our facility to interview potential employees. MMSP to allow this company to use our facility for two evenings coming up soon to interview potential employees. (Pastor Hartwig will be in the building those evenings while they are here.) MMSP to approve all reports. Old Business Review our Mission/Vision: The purpose of our congregation is to worship God, who gives life through Word and Sacrament; to serve one another in love and fellowship; and to proclaim forgiveness and salvation to all through Jesus Christ alone. Peace Devotions Update: The Synod Board for Home Outreach has adopted this as their project. They want to see it succeed and get to 5/week. The Synod Board has instructed Pastor Hartwig to apply for a funding grant from the Schwan foundation. It is going to be focused more on Gospel Outreach and not just a devotion for current Christians. New Business Preparation for January Open Forum: Open to all members, not just voters. There will be short reports by the chairman of each board. We would like to develop a survey ahead of time to get input on how Peace is doing from the viewpoints of all the members. The chairman of each board will bring to their boards the idea of a survey and have their board help generate ideas for questions. Pastor Moldstad will present a sample list of questions to assist them in coming up with ideas. Mmsp to set January 27 th, after the second service as the date and time. EHV translation recommendation from Spiritual Leadership: Mmsp to approve the use of the EHV Bible translation in our church. Mmsp to have the Spiritual Leadership board handle the purchase of new EHV Bibles. Next council meeting December 11 th at 6:30pm. Motion made to adjourn with the Lord s Prayer. MMSP. Respectfully Submitted, Greg Miller

5 Thrivent Members - Benefit Reminders If you are a Thrivent member there are different ways you can use your member benefits to support the ministry here at Peace. The first is Choice Dollars. Each year eligible, most Thrivent members are able to designate some of Thrivent s charitable grant funds to the non-profit of their choice. This program is known as Choice Dollars. The designation comes at no cost to you, but will benefit our church. Peace Lutheran Church of North Mankato can be found in the list of non-profits that are eligible to receive these dollars. Log into idp.thrivent.com to designate your choice dollars. The Second is Action Teams Every Thrivent benefit member is able to host two action team events per year. These events are intended to give back to our community and encourage generosity through Education, Fundraiser, or Service events. Each action team is given a $250 cash gift card to use for their event to buy supplies. Contact Pastor Moldstad at pastormoldstad@gmail.com if you are looking for ideas on ways to use your Thrivent Action Teams to support Peace. Log into idp.thrivent.com to sign up to lead an action team. Just a reminder of the option you have of using electronic giving for making your regular church offerings or special fund offerings. Contributions can be debited automatically from your checking or savings account or processed using your credit card (Peace is charged a percentage of your donation) or debit card. The electronic giving program offers convenience for you and much needed donation consistency for our congregation. If you are currently giving on a weekly basis, you will no longer need to write out 52 checks a year or prepare 52 envelopes. And, when travel, illness or other circumstances prevent you from attending services, this program will allow your weekly offerings to continue in an uninterrupted basis. It is now possible for you to set it up yourself by going to our website, clicking on the Give now box and putting in your information. You can choose how often you donate (weekly, monthly, certain date(s), etc.). The following was taken from Martin Luther s Little Instruction Book : PRACTICE YOUR PREACHING God grant us all to live as we teach and to practice what we preach.

6 HOLIDAY WORSHIP SCHEDULE MIDWEEK ADVENT VESPERS WEDNESDAYS, 6:30PM ANGELIC ADVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS 12/5 5:15-6:15PM Advent Supper 6:30PM Luke 1:5-25 To Zechariah 12/12 5:15-6:15PM Advent Supper 6:30PM Luke 1:26-38 To Mary 12/14 6:30PM Preschool Children s Christmas Program 12/16 8:30AM Divine Service 10:45AM Sunday School Children s Christmas Program 12/19 5:15-6:15PM Advent Supper 6:30PM Matthew 1:18-23 To Joseph Christmas Eve Divine Service 6:30pm Christmas Day Divine Service 9:00am New Year s Eve Divine Service with Holy Communion 6:30pm Are you unable to care for your feet? Your church home is offering a service to help you care for your feet and toenails. By appointment, a registered nurse, using sanitary equipment, will soak and wash your feet, trim toenails, and finish with a lotion foot massage. If the nurse feels further medical attention is needed, she may suggest an appointment with your health care provider. This service is free; however, donations will be accepted to go to a church cause. For more information, or to set up an appointment, please call Amy Jo Reiner at To watch our services live, go to: or our Facebook page. The service will start automatically when it is live (8:30AM). For recorded services, go to: and you can choose which service you wish to watch. We are currently only streaming and recording during the 8:30 service.

7 Serving the month of December: Altar/Communion preparation 9 th Karina Clennon & Marnie Werner 23 rd Kristie Mize & Rachel Moldstad 31 st T & C Schulz and K & J Wiederhoeft 9 th 23 rd 2 nd Communion Assistants 8:30am 10:45am Jason DeWitt Adie Harstad Paul Wold Doyle Holbird Matt Bindert Greg Vandermause Paul Fries Brad Wosmek Ushers 8:30am 10:45am Tom Schulz John Tetzloff 5 th 6:30pm 9 th Jason Westman Eric Woller Isaiah Allen Paul Bunkowske 12 th 6:30pm 16 th Matt Hartung Brandon Evers 19 th 6:30pm 23 rd Joel Kom Matt Lukasek Mark Flygare Mike Madson 24 th 6:30pm 25 th 9:00am 30 th Tim Paulsen Ben Petzel 31 st 6:30pm Ron Lorensberg Derick Lyngholm Keith Wiederhoeft Philip Wels Richie Kammer Kory Meyers John Moldstad Rob Pipal Sergio Salgado Jordan Smith Jon Stadler Nick Peters Derek Harstad Jeff Huber Mark Zenk Al Clennon Terry Field Adie Harstad Corey Olsen Mike Oliver Bob Paulsen Rob Paulsen Chris Harstad Ron Lorensberg Matt Riehl Josh Ringen Counters 1 st Sunday: Norman Madson & Todd Olsen 2 nd Sunday: Jon Stadler & Brad Wosmek 3 rd Sunday: Chris Harstad & Brian Koch 4 th Sunday: Phil Novak & Matt Riehl 5 th Sunday: Ernie Geistfeld & Karen Wold Happy Birthday! Brecken Smith 12/02 9 years old Carly Smith 12/02 9 years old Lucia Lemke 12/05 7 years old Caroline Chopp 12/10 3 years old Carl Kom 12/12 12 years old Kysen Kletschka 12/14 2 years old Caleb Moldstad 12/14 11 years old Jordan Donahue 12/17 14 years old Maria Harstad 12/20 6 years old Corynn Beitlich 12/21 1 years old Cora Jones 12/21 9 years old Ethan Pithan 12/22 18 years old Whitney Michaletz 12/31 4 years old Also Joel Brude, Sarah Henry, Sarah Jones, Alison Wierschke, Todd Olsen, Erik Hermanson, Joanna Bindert, Josh Moldstad, Chase Simmons, Abigail Smith, Bill Hough, Nick Lilienthal, Kristen Lukasek, Jami DeVos, Caleb Heartbird, Julie Kjeer, Derek Harstad, Laura Harstad, Rob Pipal, Karen Loe, Chris Merritt, Hannah Fries, Bob Geving May the Lord bless you, today and always. Anniversaries: Ted & Cristen Manthe 12/01/02 16 years Craig & Jessica Smith 12/07/13 5 years Nick & Hillary Chopp 12/13/08 10 years Matt & Joni Moldstad 12/17/04 14 years Eric & Denice Woller 12/19/98 20 years Larry & Stephanie Wentzlaff 12/20/75 43 years Jon & Madeline Kammerer 12/23/16 2 years John & Hannah Spivey 12/28/13 5 years Aaron & Carrie Urke 12/29/84 34 years Jeff & Tina Kotulski 12/30/86 32 years Congratulations! May the Lord continue to bless you and may your Christian marriage serve as an inspiration to others. We could use more men willing to be Ushers, especially from those who attend 2 nd service. If you are willing to serve your church in this way, please contact Nick Peters at petersfamilyfarm1@gmail.com.

8 Jesus Lambs at Peace Preschoolers will host a fundraiser with Pastry Puffins! These delicious pastries go from the freezer, right into the oven and bake light and crispy on the edges. They are a delicious snack and would be an added treat for your Christmas table. This fundraiser will end on November 28 and delivery will be December 12 th. Order forms can be found on the preschool table in the fellowship hall. We will use the profits to defray costs of our preschool, purchase books and learning activities. Please make checks out to Jesus Lambs at Peace Preschool. Donations are always welcomed as well. We again are excited for our annual Preschool Christmas Program, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on December 14. If you would like to volunteer to help with food for the fellowship time afterward, or to serve, please call Joslyn at The children s hearts are bursting with their songs and hymns to proclaim Jesus birth! We thank the Lord of the Harvest once again for all of His bountiful goodness. The preschoolers are learning about the pilgrim voyage on the Mayflower and the first Thanksgiving shared with the American Indians in friendship. Our Bible stories of the Passover, God s Rescue of His People out of Egypt and God s Gift of Manna and Quail, have especially taught the children to think of our own rescue by God from sin, through Jesus. God merciful keeps providing us with all of our material needs, too! If you would like to enroll your child for the second semester, please call Joslyn at Pictures of the visit from the North Mankato Fire Department on M/W/F & T/Th: And a few from the Harvest Festival: