FROM THE PASTOR S DESK

Transcription

1

2 FROM THE PASTOR S DESK DEAR MEMBERS & FRIENDS Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! February has been little colder than I would like. On the bright side, at least we did not get all the snow that Boston received. You have to feel a little sorry for our friends in Boston, even though all their snow might well melt before the little snow that we have on the ground. Since February is ending tomorrow, we can begin to think spring and to look forward to some warmer weather, eventually. Every year I seem to be reminded that March is still a winter month in these parts. March 8 th, our daylight will last a little longer in the evening, so don t forget to set your clocks ahead one hour Saturday night, March 7 th For Daylight Savings Time! I m sure that most of you have seen the recent news about the 21 Coptic Christians killed by ISIS (or ISIL as our president likes to call them). The Coptic Christians, all Christian men from Egypt, were not just killed, they were beheaded. It really does not matter what we call the ISIS group, the fact remains that they are an Islamic terrorist group. They are Muslim and their religion is the religion of Islam. ISIS is one of the most, if not the most, evil of the terrorist groups that we have seen over the past few years. I ve written about the Coptic Christians before. They are one of the oldest Christian Churches in the world. The church was founded by John Mark, the apostle of Jesus and the writer of the Gospel according to Mark, not long after Jesus ascended to heaven. The church was started in Alexandria, Egypt, and soon Christianity had spread quickly throughout Egypt. Mark was martyred by Roman soldiers around 62 AD and dragged through the streets of Alexandria. Many Coptic businesses and churches were destroyed just a few years ago when the United States ousted then leader Hosni Mubarak and the Muslim Brotherhood rose to power in Egypt. Egypt s new president, Abdel Fattah al-sisi, has called on Muslim s leaders for reform in the religion of Islam. This has allowed the Coptic Christians some measure of safety in Egypt, which helps to explain why the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians took place in Libya. Libya is where the United States overthrew leader Muammar Khadafy (Gaddafi), where our ambassador and three others were killed, and where the extreme Muslim Brotherhood has taken over. We do not even have an embassy there anymore. Our president did not mention that the Egyptian citizens were Coptic Christians who were killed for the sole reason that they were Christian. Neither will he mention Islamic Terrorists, even though they refer to themselves as Islamic. Many Syrian and Iraqi Christians have been slaughtered by ISIS as well. Women and young girls have been captured and turned into sex slaves for the ISIS fighters. Christian churches have been destroyed in Syria, Iraq, and Egypt. Some of the oldest Christian churches in the world have been destroyed by ISIS in the past few months. ISIS has stated that they want to exterminate any and all Jews and Christians who will not renounce their Jewish or Christian faith or convert to Islam. Yes, ISIS will even killed Muslims, any Muslims who get in their way or stand in their way of killing Christians and Jews. Some would say that what ISIS is doing is a perversion of the Islamic religion and the Muslim faith. ISIS fighters would disagree with that sentiment. They do believe they are doing the work that their god Allah wants them to do. They believe that they are being faithful to their god and to their religion. They want to create and Islamic State and for that state to be ruled by Sharia Law. Their mission will not be completed until the entire planet is contains only Muslims and every nation is ruled by Sharia Law. This may not be the belief of every Muslim, but it is a common thread with most of the terrorist groups. This should concern all people and especially Jews and Christians. We pray for the Jews and Christians in the Middle East. Yet, if there is to be Jews or Christians anywhere, even in the United States, Isis and other Islamic terrorist who share their goals, will have to be stopped and sooner than later! In Christ s service, Pastor Lloyd Schlomer

3 BUILDING UPDATE It was decided not to move forward with our new addition this past fall. This decision was made in part because the bids came in well above what we had anticipated and in part because we did not want to borrow the amount of money needed to move forward with the building. Currently, we have about $443,000 in our building fund. We have now received a bid for $434,700, but this bid did not include the new roof that needs to be put on the current fellowship area. We would have to work out some details before we could move forward with this bid. We still have two more contractors looking to submit bids on our building project. We hope to know more in the next couple weeks or so. We do have a building committee meeting set up for Friday, March 6 th, at 6:30. Continue to remember our building program in your prayers and to use your building funds envelopes! We will have another celebration of our 50 th anniversary on June 14 th. Pastor Martin Schulz, the first resident pastor at Ascension, has agreed to be the guest preacher for our June celebration. We have also reserved the Dilworth Community Center for the dinner and celebration following the service. Mr. Earl Nelson is head of the anniversary committee. Other details of our 50 th anniversary celebration in June are being worked out. The next Anniversary Committee meeting is Sunday, March 22 nd after church. WOA (Women of Ascension) There is a fun-filled event coming up the second Sunday in March. Women confirmation on up: Come meet the Women of Ascension (WOA) on Sunday, March 8 th at 5:00 pm.

4 The 52nd Annual LWMS Convention will be held in Rapid City, SD, June 25-28, The convention will be held at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center, located near downtown Rapid City. Registration information will be available on the convention website in January: lwms.org and is also posted on the bulletin board in the Nartex. If you have questions or would like more information, please speak with Trisha Dominguez.

5 Recharge Devotion (Taken from the LWMS website: lwms.org) March Recharge in the Night Watches by Sally Valleskey How often don t we plug in devices overnight phones, batteries, e-readers, flashlights, cleaning tools, toothbrushes so they re recharged and ready to go in the morning when we are? God gives us sleep so our bodies can do the same. What a blessing to be plugged in, to be recharged, with a good night s rest. Sometimes, though, unexpected challenges in life weigh heavy on our hearts and minds, and cause us to miss that benefit. Somehow the plug comes out. In this devotion, we d like to see how to use this unplugged time, to recharge. Scripture gives us insights through the writings of the psalmist, David. David shares his earnest prayer of praise and confession in the form of Psalm 63. We look at select verses: My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods, with singing lips my mouth will praise you. On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. (vs. 5-8) We might think David s life was in pretty good shape to prompt such joy and praise. In fact, he had some serious events going on. It is noted that at this time he was in the Desert of Judah. These were, indeed, desert days for David, either fleeing Saul (1 Samuel 23:13-29), or fleeing his own son, Absalom. In this second escape we learn of his thirst and exhaustion (see Psalm 63:1) and what it s like to be a fugitive (2 Samuel 15:23, 28; 16:14; 17:15). How will he manage? How can he possibly be recharged in such circumstances? How does he get from battle to blessing? God, in his grace, provides a way. In this psalm, through this faithful servant, David, we re given this beautiful message of renewal in the midst of the night watches and the parched desert! My soul will be satisfied with the richest of foods, with singing lips my mouth will praise you. On my bed I remember you; I think of you in the watches of the night. (Verses 5-6) Recharge in the watches of the night? Can we? Do we oftentimes bemoan the fact that we don t have time to meditate? That we re experiencing sleepless nights? What a marvelous lesson from David! We might be tempted to end it there, be we can t just yet. We have to go back a couple verses to find the key to David s ability to do this to be making the most of his meaningless moments of no sleep. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. (Verses 2-4) This is what prompts the kind of recharging for David even in his desert days. Where has he been? In the sanctuary! What has he seen? God s power and glory! He knows God s love and that prompts praise even in the night watches. BAM (Befriend-a-Mission) Assignments ( ) Please remember our BAM assignments through , cards, words of encouragement, items of need, and/or prayers. The Befriend A Mission assignments have been posted on the bulletin board in the Narthex.

6 kids c.a.r.e. care about reaching everyone with the gospel The current kids c.a.r.e. project money will go to Children s Ministry Assistance June May 2015 WELS Sunday School children are encouraged to save loose change for offering to support WELS work with Children s Ministry Assistance Please make checks payable to Ascension and in the memo write kids c.a.r.e. or place money in an envelope write kids c.a.r.e. (please place in church offering plate). CONTINUE TO SAVE! Please continue to place the following items in the narthex: Labels for Education (cut on dotted line) Box Top for Education (cut on dotted line) Coke Rewards (codes on caps and/or boxes) Cash Wise points found on bottom of receipts Thank You and God s Blessings! If there is any information that you would like included in the monthly newsletter, please either drop a note in Trisha Dominguez s mailbox or send an to: stdominguez@outlook.com ***All information for the April newsletter is due by March 23rd h ***