THE PASTOR S PEN by Rev. Steve Bang

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1 8 December Church Council Minutes West Prairie Lutheran Church held its monthly council meeting on December 11, Those present were Lanette Branstad, Judy Norstrud, Pastor Steve Bang, Jodi Fjeld, and Lori Jacobs. Judy Norstrud read devotions. Jodi read the secretary s report. Judy moved to approve the secretary s report and seconded by Lanette. It passed. Lori gave the treasurer s report. We need to let the congregation know about the matching funds from Zion Lutheran Church. For every dollar we (West Prairie) bring in from offerings above last year offerings, they (Zion) will match, up to $5000. As of December 18th, we are short about $ from our offerings from last year. We need about $5, to make it $10, Jodi approved the treasurer s report and seconded by Judy. It passed. Pastor Steve gave his report. - First communion class will begin after the New Year. -Transfer from West Prairie to Our Saviors were Jennifer Folkerts and her children, Thomas, Trinita and Natalie. Approved by council. -We need to have visitors fill out a visitors card. - Pastor has found material to use for new members. - Thanksgiving offering will go to Our Saviors Food Pantry. - Missionary Offering was table until the next meeting. New Business: -Annual meeting date will be January 19, 2013 with the next council meeting January 8 th. Judy moved to close the meeting and seconded by Jodi. It passed. Closed with the Lord s Prayer, West Prairie council secretary, Jodi Fjeld Bible Dictionary Paraclete (par a-klet) The Greek word which designates one of the roles of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26; 16:7). It means someone called alongside to help and is frequently translated comforter. The word sometimes also describes the personal intercessory work of Christ in heaven (I John 2:1). I don t know how you got my number up here, but I do not need any afterlife insurance! West Prairie Lutheran Church LCMC-Lutheran Congregations in Missions for Christ January 2014 Steven Bang, pastor THE PASTOR S PEN by Rev. Steve Bang What will 2014 bring? Interesting question to ask, don t you think? In the book of Ecclesiastes, written by Solomon, we see that certain paths in life lead to emptiness. Solomon teaches that people will not find meaning in life in knowledge, money, pleasure, work, or popularity. Solomon discovered that life without God is a long and fruitless search for enjoyment, meaning, and fulfillment. True satisfaction comes from knowing that what we are doing is part of God s purpose for our lives. Without God, satisfaction is a lost search. Above everything we should strive to know and love God. God has a plan for all people. In chapter 3:1-8, Solomon shows us that God provides cycles of life, each with its work for us to do: There is a time for everything, And a season for every activity under heaven; A time to be born and a time to die, A time to plant and a time to uproot, A time to kill and a time to heal, A time to tear down and a time to build, A time to weep and a time to laugh, A time to mourn and a time to dance, A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, A time to embrace and a time to refrain, A time to search and a time to give up, A time to keep and a time to throw away, A time to tear and a time to mend, A time to be silent and a time to speak A time to love and a time to hate (evil) A time for war and a time for peace. Timing is important. All the experiences listed here are appropriate at certain times. The secret to peace with God is to discover, accept, and appreciate God s perfect Continued on page 3

2 January Ushers... Bryon Holst January Reader... Caroll Carson January Acolyte... Rachel Holst January Altar Flowers... Denise Holst Communion Set Up... Jan. 5 and 26 Rita Schutter and Lanette Branstad Coffee Servers... Jan. 5 Jill Holland and Janell Carson Jan. 12 Misty Juveland and Lori Jacobs Jan. 19 Denise Holst and Colette Reimann Jan. 26 Rita and Bill Schutter January Sarah Circle... 7 p.m., January 8 with Shirley Schutter January Naomi Circle... No January meeting January Couples Club No Meeting WLCMC LCMC s Women of the Word (WOW) met December 11th at the church. Ten goodie boxes were filled and delivered. Wedding Anniversaries None for January Annual Meeting The West Prairie Lutheran Church annual meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 19 at 1 p.m. A potluck dinner will be held immediately following worship service with Janet Haugen, Shirley Hanson, Janell Carson, and Judy Norstrud as the kitchen committee responsible for rolls, dessert and setting up. All members are asked to bring a dish to share salad, vegetable or hotdish. Kudos to the youth WP confirmation class brightened the day for residents of Good Sam with Christmas carols on Wed., December 18. Thank You to......jan Reimann for making and donating the stable and setting it up in two locations for the SS Christmas program and for the nativity set; Helen Finer for organizing the bake sale; Janell Carson for the ornaments and wreath for Ruth; the SS for an outstanding performance; Lana Heins for donating craft items to be sold; and the congregation for their support in making and serving the food and bake sale items for the Sunday School program. January Birthdays! Happy Birthday to the following: 15 Misty Juveland 23 Caroll Carson 28 Chris Caswell Fellowship is one of the benefits of church functions. Thanksgiving Eve lasagna dinner was a success West Prairie s youth held a lasagna dinner prior to the Thanksgiving Eve Worship Service. It was well attended by both WP and Sion members. The lasagna, garlic toast and salad was a delicious meal. The youth were gracious hosts and did a great job of clean up, too. We commend the parents who helped put this event together and we hope they do it more often! Remember this cold November Sunday when we were dubbed the frozen chosen? We had a heart-warming service in the fellowship hall. 2 7

3 6 Lesser Festivals and Commemorations The following names are listed in the LBW for the month of January: Jan. 1: The Name of Jesus Jan. 2nd: Johann Konrad Wilhelm Loehe, pastor, 1872 Jan. 5th: Kaj Munk, martyr, 1944 Kaj Harald Leininger Munk, commonly called Kaj Munk (Jan. 13, 1898-Jan. 4, 1944) was a Danish playwright and Lutheran pastor, known for his martyrdom during the Occupation of Denmark during WWII. As a playwright, Munk became known for strong characters who fought wholeheartedly. On one occasion in the early 1930s, Munk expressed admiration for Hitler for uniting Germans. However, his attitude turned to outspoken disgust as he witnessed Hitler s persecution of the German Jewish community. He was arrested by the Gestapo after he had defied a Nazi ban by preaching an Advent sermon in Copenhagen. His body was found in a roadside ditch the following day. 4,000 Danes attended his funeral motivating them to rise against their foreign oppressors. Jan. 13th: George Fox, renewer os society, 1691 Jan. 14th: Eivind Josef Berggrav, Bishop of Oslo, 1959 Jan. 15th: Martin Luther King Jr., renewer of society, martyr, 1968 Jan. 18th: The Confession of St. Peter; Week of Prayer for Christian Unity begins Jan. 19th: Henry, Bishop of Uppsala, missionary to Finland, martyr, 1156 A medieval English clergyman, Henry went to Sweden with Cardinal Nicholas Breakspeare. He was sent to organize the church in Finland where Christians had existed for at least two centuries. He is associated with King Eric the Saint of Sweden, where according to legend, they were forced to do battle with the non- Christian Finns. After they had conquered Finland, baptized the people and built many churches, the King returned to Sweden while Henry remained in Finland living the life of a preacher. Legend concludes as Henry attempted to give a canonical punishment to a murderer, the accused man became enraged and killed the bishop, who was then considered to be a martyr. The legend emphasizes that Henry was a Bishop of Uppsala, and not of Finland. Jan. 25th: the Conversion of St. Paul; Week of Prayer for Christian Unity ends Jan. 26th: Timothy, Titus, and Silas Jan. 27th: Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe January Notables. 1 President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in The U.S. and Canada reached free trade agreement in Alaska entered the Union as the 49th state in U.S. Supreme Court ruled that citizens of Puerto Rico were not aliens. 7 The first presidential election was held in U.S. forces led by Gen. Andrew Jackson defeated the British in Battle of New Orleans in The League of Nations was established in 1920; the Holocaust began in Henry Ford introduced the assembly line in First presidential news conference filmed for television with President Eisenhower in Peace agreement signed by the U.S., North and South Vietnam, and the Vietcong in First telephone exchange opened in 1878; space shuttle Challenger exploded in th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery was submitted in Pastor s Letter cont. from front timing. The danger is to doubt or resent God s timing. This can lead to despair, rebellion, or moving ahead without His leading. Although we may face problems that seem to contradict God s plan, these should not be barriers to believing in Him, but rather opportunities to discover that, without God, life s problems have no lasting solutions. Back to the question. What will 2014 bring? Good and bad. Right and wrong. Ups and downs. Yet through it all, God is faithful to us and He will keep us going in the right direction if we allow Him to do His work in our lives. That s the challenge for us today and for Pastor Steve West Prairie Lutheran Church Steven Bang, pastor th Ave., Forest City Church Council Lanette Branstad, president; Jodi Fjeld, secretary; Robb Jacobs, Judy Norstrud, Misty Juveland, Steve Reimann Lori Jacobs, church treasurer Louise Nath, church secretary Organists Ruth Sheldon, Melissa Knutson, Gene Fjeld, Janet Vinson 3

4 LCMC DISTRICT CONVENTION referred, at least four months prior to the next convention, to the District Council for review, comment and recommendation, and shall immediately thereafter be submitted in writing to the (delegates to the annual convention this part deleted as delegates are unknown until registered at the meeting) member congregations of the Iowa District. The term in writing, for purposes of this section, shall include submission by . The amendment shall be presented for vote to the delegates to the convention. The adoption of any amendment shall require a two-thirds majority vote of the delegates present at the convention, provided that such amendment shall not become effective unless it is ratified in accordance with Section (The bold text has replaced the deleted Italic text.) This amendment has to be voted on and approved by all congregations to make it effective. This will be an agenda item for the January West Prairie annual meeting. Two breakout sessions were held. The first group were: Jesus, the Multiplier by Rev. Dan Cites; Update on Haiti by a Zion Lutheran member; and Crown Fiancial by Candice VanderTuig and Wendi Cihacek. Second breakout sessions were: Sermon Series: At My Church by Rev. Dean Hess; Being the Church in our Culture by Noah Ruppert and Rev. Nathan Anenson; and Stewardship Begins at Home by Doug Pooch. Photos have been requested and will be in January newsletter. Nine-year-old Joey was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday School. Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his army build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Moses and the Red Sea Then he radioed headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved. Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you? his Mother asked. Well, no, Mom. But if I told it the way the teacher did, you d never believe it! People are funny they want the front of the bus, the middle of the road and the back of the church! 4 9

5 LCMC 2013 Iowa District annual meeting 8 The Iowa District meeting of the LCMC was held Saturday, Nov. 16 at Zion Lutheran Church in Clear Lake. Registration and coffee hour began at 8:30 a.m. Those attending from West Prairie were Pastor Steve, Lanette Branstad, Judy Norstrud, Chris Caswell, Janell and Caroll Carson, and Louise Nath. The Praise Band from Zion opened the worship service by Rev. Dean Hess. His sermon, Standing Up, led with Isaiah 29:20-22; Philippians 1:20-21, Mark 8:38 and Mark 4: The theme dealt with why Christianity is failing in the United States; why it is our fault and what we can do about it. The bottom line was, if Christians do not stand up for Jesus, then Jesus will not stand up for Christians. Jonathan Swenson gave a humorous and innovative portrayal of an eye-witness character responding to an encounter with Jesus. Keynote speaker, Rev. Dan Clites, gave a moving account of the planting churches. His brand of missions was opening storefront meeting areas and taking the gospel message to the people. His success in drawing in people, particularly in larger cities and of all ages, is phenomenal. After a lasagna dinner catered by Hy-Vee, the district business meeting was held, chaired by District Council President Doug Pooch of Waukee. Doug Pooch and Larry Kallem, treasurer, were each elected to another one-year term. Other business was: Women of the Word (WOW) Conference was set for April 5 at Clear Lake with Zion, Sion and West Prairie hosting the event. The LCMC Annual Gathering (International conference) is set for October 5-8, 2014 in Des Moines. Treasurer s Report: Beginning balance: ;Total income: $13,085.00; Total expense: $ ; Ending balance: $15, Other council members are Grace Lambert of Stratford, vice president; Rev. Scott Licht of Huxley, secretary; and directors Lois Fevold of Gowrie, Rev. Darryl Landsverk of Badger and Rev. Nathan Anenson of Altoona. An amendment was proposed to the Iowa District articles of Incorporation and reads as follows: Article 6, Amendment of Constitution and Bylaws 6.01 Any member congregation of the Iowa District may propose, in writing, an amendment to this constitution. The proposed amendment shall be Continued on next page Caroll Carson has attentive class for adult Sunday school class. Adult class coincides with youth studies Each Sunday morning adult classes are held at 9:30. Caroll Carson has obligingly led the study group. Study is focused on the book of Genesis in the Answers Bible Curriculum. The same curriculum is being taught at the appropriate age level for People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies succeed anyway. If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you be honest and frank anyway. What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight build anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous be Words to live by the Sunday School youth. Since the Sunday School has been involved with the Christmas program for the past three weeks, adults have been viewing DVDs by Ken Ham, founder of the Creation Museum. Lessons will continue in January. happy anyway. The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow do good anyway. Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough give the world the best you ve got anyway. * * * * * The root word of sophisticated is sophist look it up in the dictionary it is not complimentary to be called sophisticated! * * * * * Who was known as the Prophet of Fire? 5