Epistle. Mission Statement

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1 FIRST ENGLISH AND BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCHES 17 MAIN ST. NW PO BOX 189 MENAHGA, MN PHONE: FAX: PARSONAGE: PASTOR S PADREBRUER@WCTA.NET SEPTEMBER 24, 2009 FIRST ENLGISH LUTHERAN BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH CHURCH STAFF PASTOR STEVE BRUER PARISH SECRETARY LISA DORMANEN CUSTODIAN CLAYTON ELLINGSON FIRST ENGLISH COUNCIL PRESIDENT ROGER HOLLERUD BETHANY COUNCIL PRESIDENT DAVE MICKELSON FIRST ENGLISH ORGANIST BARBARA AHL BETHANY ORGANIST SHIRLEY ANDERSON SANDI MICKELSON Weekly Worship Schedule Weekly At First English Worship Lutheran Schedule At Worship: First English 8:30 Lutheran a.m. Coffee Worship: Fellowship 8:30 a.m. Adult Bible Coffee Study Fellowship and Sunday Adult Bible Study and Sunday School 9:45 a.m. School 9:45 a.m. Weekly Worship Schedule Weekly At Bethany Worship Lutheran Schedule Worship At Bethany 10:30 Lutheran a.m. Sunday Worship School 10:30 9:30 a.m. a.m. Sunday School 9:30 a.m. 2nd and 4th Sundays Visit Our Website at: Mission Statement First English and Bethany churches are a caring, inclusive Christian Community dedicated to Word and Sacrament ministry; Growing in Christ; Sharing the faith; Serving our neighbors; and Supporting each other.

2 Page 2 Pastor s Perspective Greetings Friends, Don t you just love Fall? This is the time of year that after our summer rest God calls us to get moving for Him in high gear. Pastors will tell you that September is one of the busiest times of the year. It is time to get going and here at Bethany & First English and we have surely done that. We have resumed confirmation on Wednesday afternoons, Sunday school for all ages is up and running again. Our WELCA ladies have been meeting and studying God s Word regularly. Now that we have September under our belt, let s see where God is leading us for October. God calls us to be on fire for Him in October and the months ahead here at Bethany & First English. We have heard the Word on Sundays telling us to forgive our brothers and sisters so that God can forgive us. He calls us to receive His gift of salvation and He calls us to not be religious but faithful to Him and walk in love. We have wonderful buildings that God gave us use for His Glory. How are we going to answer that call we just heard about? Folks God is not calling us to feel pride that we have something to show off. God is not calling us to think of our own needs when we come here to worship. God is calling us to further His kingdom! Now, you might say to me, Pastor, how can I further His kingdom? Let me tell you, God gave you, the people of His church, a vision for Him. This was not a vision for the people, it was God s vision. We all need to be in prayer about what God s will is for us, how does He want us to use this gift for Him? I will tell you that we cannot sit back and expect things just to happen. God has a task for each of us to do. We are called to come to worship regularly; pray with our community of faith; and then follow His calling. Right outside the walls of our church, there are people who need to know we love them through Jesus. We are called to be missionaries right here, right now! Please jump in and be a part of God s plan for us. First by coming to worship every opportunity, by putting other stuff (your stuff) second to God s plan for His people to come together and worship Him. As a pastor, it is so hard to understand why everything else in our world seems to, at times, be more important than worship. Please, let the Spirit of God wake you up on Sundays and come and praise God with your brothers and sisters, and bring a friend. Second, pray everyday to hear God s will in your personal life and for our life here at Bethany & First English or wherever you are. God has a plan, let s not get so busy that we don t hear Him tell us. And then let us join together and respond with a loud, Here we are Lord use us, use us!! Praising God and Serving Him, In Christ Love, Pastor Steve The Protestant Reformation Protestants recall the Reformation on October 31. On that day in 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on a church door in Wittenberg, Germany. Ultimately, the following five statements of belief become central to Protestant Christians. 1. Scripture alone is the final authority of Christian doctrine. 2. Christ alone is Lord and Savior. 3. God s freely given grace is central to salvation. 4. Sinners are justified by faith in Christ alone. 5. God alone is worthy of all the glory.

3 Parish Report Thank you for the memorial gifts in memory of Jerry Larson from Martin & Ramona Olson to the Building Fund. Gifts in memory of Don Kangas from Lenora Maaninga, Laurie Carlson and Mark & Bonnie Pass. In memory of Ormen & Elaine Torvinen from Shirley Torvinen. Thank you for Memorials in memory of Lyle Mickelson to the Parament Fund from Dave & Jan Mickelson, Dean & Diane Mickelson and Jeremy & Tracy Mickelson. Banner Fund from Avon, Don & Evelyn Meech, John and LaRaye Anderson, James & Jill Rader, Fred & Lois Corwin, Rev. Lane Doerring, Charles & Kathryn Espe, Larry & June Nygard, Daryl & Janice FIRST Pollack, ENGLISH Paul & Joyce 4/1 Ramsay, Frederick attendance & Angeline Theide, 65 Mavis Offering Torvinen, Cheryl $ Towner, Shirley Wear. Cemetery Fund 4/5 Mildred Kangas, 100 Helen Mickelson, General Rosella Mickelson, Building Virgil & Verlene Nordby, Act George for Messiah & Josie Peterson, Food Arnold Shelf & Rosie Thompson, Roger & Marie $ Henstorf. 4/9 46 Offering $ /10 92 FIRST ENGLISH Attendance 8/30 84 General $ Loose $ Building $ $ /6 71 General $ Building $ Loose $ Food Shelf $ ACTs for Messiah$ Memorials $ $ / General $ Building $ Loose $ $ /20 97 General $ Building $ Loose $ $ Women of First English Are encouraged to participate in the Fun Fest on October 10th by bringing baked good to be sold at the Bake Sale. Bethany 8/30 86 General $ Auction $ Pop Sales $ Bake Sale $ Lunch $ /6 28 General $ Bulletins $ World Hunger $ /13 40 General $ World Hunger $ Memorials $ I would like to Thank our family and church family for all their prayers, cards, phone calls, food and visits during my recent hospitalization and treatments. God s Blessings, Jan Pederson Page 3 ***** Thanks, Jordan Torma, for correcting our problem in the bathroom. Thanks, Lefty for painting our outside door.

4 Page 4 Parish Report continued: We are still looking for volunteers for Ruby s Pantry! Contact Lynn Litzau for additional information or a volunteer form. A volunteer dry run meeting will be held on Thursday, October 1st at 6:30 pm at the city park. The Lutheran Magazine Congratulations to Krystal Wiekamp & If you are receiving the Lutheran magazine and would Joshua Phillips who were married at like to help defray the cost. The rate is $7.95/ year, This First English on Saturday, September 12th. is a reduced rate for the church. Please remember to pray for Krystal and If you are not receiving the magazine and would like to, or if you are receiving the magazine and no longer wish Josh that their love for each other has to, please notify the church office. husband and wife grow stronger each day. There are copies of the current Lutheran available at the church for anyone to read. First English Lutheran Church Baptized in our Parish during the past months Altar Flowers Saturday, are, June Jack 6th Matthew and WELCA of First English has provided a sign up 9 11 Charlie am Jo Ekren, twin sheet, posted on the rolling bulletin board, for Free the will sons offering Travis and Julie opportunity to share flowers for the Altar. This opportunity can be in honor or All memory proceeds of a received Eckren, go baptized to the on May 31st. At Bethany loved one or special event or just because. During Campership Program. and John Michael Spadgenske, infant son of the gardening This program season, we helps encourage families you to supplement share Michael the cost and RaeAnn of sending Spadgenske, their children on August to your fresh cut flowers as well Camp - Emmaus 23rd, Bible also Camp. at Bethany. Sponsor Our Sunday On July, 18th, Griffin Joshua Werlinger, infant son with of Neil pancake & Michelle breakfast. (Sagedahl) Werlin- LYO Bulletins Silent Auction in conjunction Remember to sign Silent up to Auction sponsor the proceeds supplement bulletins on a ger was costs baptized associated at the home with of the Sheldon & Lita given Sunday. The sheet is on the rolling bulletin Sagedahl. Eliana Rose Jettman, daughter of National Youth Gathering in New Orleans. board at First English and on the kitchen counter at Bethany. The cost is $ This can be in honor of someone or event, in memory of, or just because. Please sign up to help offset the cost of the bulletins each week! WORLD HUNGER ENVELOPES World Hunger Envelopes can be found on the round table in the fellowship area. Pick them up from there to make your contribution to World Hunger. Need a ride to church? Call the church office by Friday 2:30 p.m. we will arrange for you to be picked up on Sunday morning! Parish Partner Groups # 1 & 2 are in need of volunteers to lead these groups. Please contact the church office and let us know that you are willing to serve in this way Eli and Diana (Olson) Jettman was baptized at home on August 1st. Congratulations and God s Blessings to these children of God, their families and sponsors as they are brought into God s family of faith through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. Our Christian sympathies go out to the family of Donald Kangas who went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, August 27th. His funeral service as held on Monday, August 31st at First English Lutheran Church. May God strengthen all of Donald s family in the days ahead that they might have comfort and peace in the hope of the resurrection to come.

5 Page 5 FIRST ENGLISH USHERS 10/4 Joe & Nick Meyer 10/11 Taylor Carlson, Brittany Floyd, Jacob Dissmore, Taylor Tomperi BETHANY USHERS Curtis Hasbargen Dean Mickelson BETHANY READERS 10/4 Diane Mickelson 10/11 Dave Etter 10/18 Lois Peterson 10/25 Mark Spagenske BETHANY COMMUNION 10/4 Evelyn Meech 10/18... even Kris as Spadgenske the Son of man came not to be.. served. even but as the to serve. Son of man Matthew came 20:28 not to be served but to serve. Matthew 20:28 We serve because We Christ serve served. because Christ served. FIRST ENGLISH COMMUNION 10/18 Ellis & Sheila Bower 10/25 Rodney & Linda Allebach GREETERS AT F.E. 10/4 Tim & Monica Pederson 10/11 Martin & Ramona Olson 10/18 Lorraine Madsen & Lenore Maaninga 10/25 LaVerna Ohlgren & Helen Comnick FIRST ENGLISH READERS 10/4 Tim Pederson 10/11 Tareyn Stomberg 10/18 Tim Kohrs 10/25 Rodney Allebach ACOLYTES Tanner Neisess Kody Kocurek June 7 Server - Arlette Markkula Communion Helper Brittany Floyd COUNTERS AT F.E. FIRST ENGLISH COMMUNION Setup/Cleanup - Mavis Mattila 10/4 - Marie S. - Clayton Oct. June 421 Server Server - Norma Dissmore Communion Communion Helper Jacob - Jacob Kicker Kicker 10/11 - Brian - Kyle Setup/Cleanup Setup/Cleanup - - Mavis Mattila & Eloise Pulju 10/18 - Marlene - Marie H. Oct. 18 Server Communion Helper - Jessica Yrjo Setup/Cleanup - 10/25 - LaVerna - Phyllis

6 Page 6 Via De Cristo Community Grace and Peace to the members of Bethany and First English. Fall is here and many folks are getting into the routine of the school year and bracing for the inevitable chill of fall and then winter. In the Via De Cristo we are getting ready to hold our third northern weekend for It will be held in Alexandria MN at Calvary Lutheran church. The weekend begins Thursday evening and ends on Sunday afternoon. As members of these two churches you may have heard about the Via De Cristo before and possibly have been asked if you cared to attend. If you answer was not at this time or I m not sure if I can get the time off. We as members of the Menahga Via de Cristo community would like to re-invite you to attend. Ask any one of us if you have any type of question about the weekend. Remembering that you are driven there and back, so transportation is not an issue. The cost of the weekend is minimal and paid by your sponsor. And there are many former attendees waiting to sponsor you. So look at your calendar and check out the days of October th for the men s weekend and October for the women. You can get an application form from the church office or the community liaison, Deb Sorenson. This is a great time to renew, refresh or possibly start a closer relationship with Christ and your Faith. God Loves You and So Do We. Menahga Via de Cristo Community There are millions and millions of dollars of corporate surplus food and goods each week. Many rural service organizations have little or no funds to help provide the basic necessities for people with low resources and crisis in their communities. Ruby s Pantry is about picking up corporate surplus, distributing it to Community Partners, and into the hands of people, turning waste into wellness! Here is how the program works: We gather many skids of food delivered by a semi truck and place it in a line with tables. Volunteers put the food on the tables and pass it out as people come through the line with the boxes or containers they brought. When they arrive we have them register, sign a liability waiver and we give them a number. We give everyone the opportunity to pay a cash donation of $15 to help cover fuel costs and other associated expenses. We do not sell food! To qualify, one only needs to be hungry and be able to eat! No one is ever turned away nor made to feel obligated to contribute. In reality, people feel good helping the organization with a small financial contribution. Often families will leave with over $100+ worth of groceries. This new program will be held in Menahga at Assumption of Our Lady Catholic Church on the first Saturday of each month. The doors open at 9:30 am for registration. Distribution is started at 10:30 and generally over by 1:30 pm. For more Information call: Karol or Dave Andreasen

7 Page 7 First English Executive Board Meeting September 18th, 2009 Marlene opened with prayer. The Treasurer s Report was approved as read. Old Business: First English Women s Executive Board There was discussion on how to find someone to chair the kitchen committee and if there was a list somewhere that listed those on the committee. Marlene will try to find out the answers to these questions. It was also decided to place this list in next year s WELCA Booklet. It was decided that there would be a separate committee for Wedding Coordinators instead of a representatives from each circle in next year s WELCA Booklet. Penney Pot Sunday on Sept. 27th was discussed. Marlene read a letter from Susan Bowland, Executive Director of Headwaters Intervention Center that she will share in a Temple Talk on Sunday the 20th. Marlene would make sure there was a large flowerpot to receive the special offering in on the 27th. WELCA s responsibilities for the Fun Fest on Oct. 10th are baked goods for the Bake Sale. Also it was decided monies made on the Bake Sale be given to the youth organization as it was the year before. We would be responsible to set the Bake Sale up and taking care of it during the Fun Fest activities. There would be a notice put into the newsletter encouraging women to bring bake goods for the sale. Special program on Monday, Oct. 19th was discussed. A Video Bible Study by Beth Moore will be the presentation. Dessert will be served from 6:30 pm to 7:00pm with the presentation beginning at 7:00pm. Two 9x13 desserts will be requested from each circle. New Business: The next Executive Board Meeting will be Thursday, October 22nd at 4:00 pm Thankoffering Service will be Sunday, November 22nd more discussion next board meeting. Pumpkin desserts for the Annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner will be increased to 8 9x12 pans from each circle. Anna Circle will be responsible for kitchen cleaning and flowers. The meeting closed with the Lord s Prayer. Acting Secretary Marlene Schiotz Cell phone vs Bible Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone? What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets? What if we flipped through it several times a day? What if we turned back to get it if we forgot it? What if we used it to receive messages from the text? What if we treated it like we couldn t live without it? What if we gave it to kids as gifts? What if we used it when we traveled? What if we used it in case of emergency? This is something to make you go...hmm...where is my Bible? Oh, and one more thing Unlike our cell phone, we don t have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill. And no dropped calls!

8 Page 8 WOMEN OF FIRST ENGLISH AND BETHANY Quilting on Wednesdays 9:00 am First English 1:00 pm Bethany Women of First English Executive Board Meeting Next meeting October 22nd 4:00 p.m. Worship Service At GPA 2:00 pm Tuesday October 6th Anna Circle Meets: October 5th 10:00 am WSM Rebecca Circle Meets: October 6th 6:30 pm Hostess: Mavis Mattila CIRCLE SCHEDULE Sarah Circle Meets: October 13th 1:30 pm ESTHER Hostess: Meets: Thurs. 6/11 Meets: All Thurs. 6/11 Lesson: Lois Peterson 1:30 pm 1:30 pm Esther Circle Hostess: Hostess: Meets: October Eleanor Eleanor 8th Huwe Huwe 1:30 pm Lesson: Lesson: Hostess: Emogene Eleanor Huwe Eleanor Etter Huwe Lesson: Emogene Etter Parish Partner Group Parish Partner group #2 will be contacting the greeters and servers for coffee hour during the month of October. Helen Comnick and Eloise Pulju are the leaders. Parish Partner Groups # 1 & 2 are in need of volunteers to lead these groups. Please contact the church office and let us know that you are willing to serve in this way ALTAR GUILD MEMBERS Altar Guild FOR OCTOBER AT FIRST ENGLISH Millie Hendrickson, Deb Madsen, Bev Hepokoski, Jane Bruer, Linda West, Karen Petterson. FOR OCTOBER AT BETHANY Dean & Diane Mickelson BETHANY CHURCH CLEANING-OCT. Rosie Anderson, Jamie Etzler, Irene Nordby

9 Page 9 WELCA SPECIAL PROGRAM MONDAY OCTOBER 19TH, 2009 DESSERT SERVED FROM 6:30 7:00 PM PROGRAM 7:00 PM VIDEO PRESENTATION BY: BETH MOORE OF LIVING PROOF MINISTRIES ENTITLED He Is Beth communicates with great energy, passion, humor, warmth and grace. Having heard her speak at the Fargo Dome in July she makes Scripture exciting and pertinent to our lives as women. Bring your Bibles. Bring a friend. The First English Lutheran Church of Menahga would like to invite everyone to our 6th Annual Family Fun Fest Saturday, October 10, :00 am - 1:00 pm Pancake Breakfast served by the Sunday School From 8:00 am to 10:30 am BBQ Beef Sandwiches 11:00 to 1:00 We will have available: Silent Auction Items, Raffle Baskets, A Bale Sale, Quilt Raffle, Cookie Decorating, Cake Walks and lots of games for the kids. Our local LYO will be taking orders for frozen Hot Stuff Pizza The Social Ministry Committee of the First English Lutheran Church of Menahga would like to invite EVERYONE to come and share a day of fun. All proceeds will be used for Local Concerns and church related functions as in previous years. Come out and have a great time with family and friends. Contributing funds from Thrivent

10 FAITH STATEMENTS Faith-A system of religious beliefs, faith to me is trusting in God completely. Whenever I experience faith it is when I m in trouble, scared, or hurt. It s very embarrassing to tell people I m afraid of storms, don t laugh, but I am. Faith comes to me when a storm is rolling in, even if I am scared I always try to remember that I will be okay if I pray to the Lord. When I was little I had to get a lot of surgeries because I had really bad ear problems. I had o go in and get tubes in. A few years ago my T tubes were supposed to fall out by themselves but they didn t. When I found out that I had to get them surgically removed I got so scared and thoughts were just going through my head like, they won t find them and I ll end up deaf, or one of the tools slipping and puncturing my ear drum or maybe even something worse. But I remembered the word Faith and knew God and his Angles would be in the room guiding them through everything. Last year sometime my Grandpa Art Acuff and Grandma Bernie Samuelson found out some bad news. They found out that they had caner. When I hear the news I was so sad and started crying because cancer patients don t always survive. They both took tests and began chemo and radiation, looking at my Grandma it looks like she was getting better but hearing from my Dad, my Grandpa wasn t doing so well. This time today they are both living, that s what I call Faith! My Grandma s cancer is gone for now and she is living a happy, normal life, My Grandpa s cancer isn t getting much better, he won t be with us for that much longer. It s very sad but if that is what God wants than this is what s going to happen. I will always remember him and he will be loved and missed my many people. Faith is a big part of my life; I hope I inspire many kids to follow in the paths of the Lord. I would like to thank my Mom for being there for me when I had a hard time understanding or when I needed help. I would like to thank my best friend Brittany for helping me through all the rough times in life. I want to thank my mentor Lucille for guiding me to a better path, and being there to always answer my questions. My Grandma and Grandpa have been a huge part in my life too, and I would like to thank them both for being here to support me. I want to thank Pastor Steve too, for opening my eyes to this church. It truly is a wonderful gift from God. - Samantha Acuff 9/9/09 Page 10 Faith can be seen in all different forms, but the meaning is still the same. In Hebrews, it says faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. We know that we can t physically see faith, but we always know it s there. Over the years, faith has impacted me in many different ways. Faith took me to Sunday School as a child until I turned 13 and started going to Confirmation. Once I started going there, I learned more and more about God, faith, and how to live a Christian life. My Pastor explained faith in a very good way. He said, Even though you can t see air, you can feel it and know it surrounds you. Same with love. You can feel it in your heart with family and friends. Faith to me today is very important and I can definitely say it has grown over the years. He also helps me to remember that thins have there own way of working out, and God makes everything happen for a reason. Now that I m done with confirmation, I plan to keep going on my faith by going to church and LYO, reading the Bible, sharing my faith and what I know about it. - Bradi Carlson Why Have Faith? I believe faith is important to have because it strengthens me in the days and years ahead. It has and will help me in times of trouble, when loved ones and I are dealing with death, or when injuries occur. My faith also grows with celebrations, births, and moments of pure joy. I am so fortunate to have had the chance to go to Camp Emmaus, The National Youth Gathering in New Orleans, and all of the other smaller gatherings. It was so cool to look out in the Super dome in New Orleans and see 36,000 people celebrating God. On our service day, I noticed people s faith as they did the work of the Lord. There were young people at camp who have already gone through hard times in life and they talked about how their faith has helped them through it. All of the opportunities that I ve had have made my faith grow. Your faith can and will grow by just having people with strong faith around you. Having a family and a mentor with strong faith has helped me become a person with a growing faith. I hope that I will have a faith like them some day. My faith will and has helped me make difficult decisions in life. It helps me know where I want to go in the future and reminds me of where I have been. My faith has helped me become a more trusting, compassionate, and forgiving person in life. I am also more grateful for what I have in life and what I receive. When I think about the poem with foot prints in the sand I know that I ll never be alone and God will always be with me. God has control of my life and I have faith that he will carry me through it and be by my side in times of uncertainty. Faith has made me a stronger individual and my faith will continue to expand as I get older. -Morgan Clements

11 FAITH STATEMENTS Why Have Faith As I gathered my thoughts about faith, I asked myself What is faith and how does it help me each and every day of my life. Faith to me is the trust we have in God and in His promise made through Christ. When I was younger, I didn t really understand what faith really was. As I attended Sunday school I started to understand what it was. Once I started confirmation, my faith in God grew even stronger as I learned more about how God loved us and how he is watching over us even if we don t realize it. Each and every day of my life, I know that I have to have faith in God, to trust in him and to believe in him. As I move forward in life, I will continue to build upon my faith and I know that He will be with me and protect me in good times and in bad. In the book of Hebrews, Chapter 11, verse 6, it says And with out faith, it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach Him, must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. This verse says to me that if I have faith in God, He will protect me as I continue on life s journey. At this time I would like to extend a special thank you to my entire family, my mentor, my sponsors, the congregation and Pastor Steve for all your love, support, prayers as I continue to grow in my Christian faith. God s blessings to all of you. Thank you. - Allyson Ohlgren Why Have Faith? The dictionary definition of Faith is believing in something you can t see. I think Faith is putting your trust in someone and having hope it will be okay. All of us heard about confirmation and I know I was nervous about having to write a paper and read it in front of the congregation. When we were young, I don t think faith was something we understood. I took it for granted that I would have faith. Not just in God, but in everyday things. The truth is having faith can be difficult. Having faith was a struggle with all the things I have seen my dad and family go through. Watching him through the past couple of years has made me realize that you can t blame others or God, for your misfortunes. He has never once blamed someone else or tried to take it out on someone. Life has thrown everything it has at him and I have never seen him once loose faith that it would get better, or that everything would work out. Having faith in God and others has helped me through some rough times. I don t know what I would have done without it or my family being there for me. I think the main reason to have faith is that you know you are not alone. You will always have someone to lean on, someone to trust. Sometimes it can get hard and you just Page 11 want to blame others, but I believe that if everyone had faith that things would work out they could stop worrying and put their trust where it should be. I want to thank my Dad for showing me what it means to have faith. My sister for helping figure out what to write about. My Mom and Dale for always being there. Mavis Mattila for being the best mentor anyone could ever ask for and teaching me how to pull a weed and about farmers. My Grandma for always being there to talk to. My aunts and brother for being my sponsors. And the rest of my family for being there along the way. -Tareyn Stomberg Why Have Faith When I was younger, I didn t really understand what faith was. I thought that it was something I had to have so I tried to make stuff up about it. As I started to get older I started to realize that faith is more than just seeing and believing. I realized that through God, I could gain it more and more. Then a couple of summers ago, my big brother Andy got really sick, and came really close to dying. Little things happened that really made me gain faith. For example: The week before all of this happened my Dad and I were helping my uncle build a house and 2 days before it happened my uncle s truck broke down, then the next day the truck we brought up there broke too, and looking back at it I realize, what if we would have been driving to the hospital and our care broke down, we would have been stranded some where worrying about Andy. And while we were at the hospital they told us that Andy only had a 50% chance of living. All I could think about was, God please help by brother. That s when Pastor Roger Olson came into my brother s room and we had communion with our family and Brady Yrjo. After it was done, we all held hands and said a prayer. After this happened, the whole family finally felt relaxed and more confident. Then out of no where he started to get better and better. It showed me that having faith in God and knowing your in God s hand is rally hard to understand, but when you find it, it is so great! So why have faith? It s a great way to connect to something and being able to believe in it without being able to see it! I also wanted to say thank you to my parents for being there and my confirmation mentor Jennifer for always letting me talk to her about anything. My big brother Andy has taught me so much about life and how valuable it is. Zach, I know your still young, but you will grow in your faith and I hope I can help you with that. I would like to say thanks to the congregation for praying and helping me through some hard times, I would also like to thank all my friends and family for being there. I am truly thankful to the Gonska s and Yrjo s for always being there and supporting me through everything. And finally, my best friend Sam. We have shared many good and bad times and we have stuck together. Thank you so much. - Brittany Floyd

12 FAITH STATEMENTS To me faith is something that has just been assumed that you have. You have to have faith in God, your parents, your teachers, and other people that they won t hurt you. Well having faith in all of these people is very difficult. So how do you pick who you have faith in? Well for me this was an easy decision. I have been raised in a very religious family and I thought hmm my parents and grandparents have faith in God so why shouldn t I? This was even easier when I was sent to ABC preschool in Park Rapids which is a Lutheran preschool and attended Sunday school. When I was young going to church was just something that you did every Sunday. When I was really little I would sleep through the sermons and just hang out and sing along with the songs. Then as I grew older I started to get some meaning from what was going on. Then when I started Kindergarten I was getting a different prospective on life. I was still going to church regularly and attending Sunday school but play and skating overwhelmed almost everything else. Then as I started to go through school believing in God just sort of escaped my mind. I would watch grandma doing devotions every day and would sometimes sit with her while she did it but it didn t really mean anything to me all I knew was that she was talking to God. She tried to explain to me why she was doing this but as all young kids do I got distracted and decided to go and play or see what grandpa or mom was up to. When I was older and started thinking about why God would take my uncle Skip at such a young age, I started to question God. Why did he do this when he is supposed to be good? How could he hurt my family like that? Well these questions I never asked. But when I started to get older my grandma read to me a verse they would always read to Skip it was Psalms 23. The lord is my sheppard I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quite waters, and he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his names sake. Even though I walk through the valley of death I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. This isn t the whole verse but this is the part that applies to me. Then a couple of years later when grandma got put in the hospital with a heart problem I started to ask the same things. The day she got transferred to Fargo I just burst out crying seeing my grandma get carried to the Page 12 ambulance since my mom rode with then I went to Fargo with my aunt and grandpa. In the car grandpa asked me why I was crying. I think I said something like I m scared why would God do this to us? He continued to explain to me that God wasn t doing this to hurt us that he was preparing us for when we lose someone who is close to us and that we shouldn t be afraid because heaven is a great place to be. I started to think about that and I guess it made sense. This is partially why I chose my verse which is Isaiah 41:13. I am the LORD, your GOD, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. I wish someone would have shown me that verse a while ago. Well grandma turned out to be fine. I also had to overcome another hard time at the same time because just days before that our God took my neighbor Reino. I think this was a good thing though because he was in the nursing home and it was hard to see him in there because he was so independent. I remember the morning I found out that he had died. I just walked around in a daze while grandpa went to take care of the stuff he had to take care of. When my aunt found me sitting where Reino would always sit she saw that I was upset and told me to remember that God loved us and that he took Reino to a better place. I understood that. Now that I am older and have attended conformation and camp I have decided that I would like to further my relationship and understanding of God by going to church and camp and just worshiping God. As people come in and out of my life we all have to remember that God loves us and that we each have a special place in his heart. I would like to thank all of my friends, family, and this congregation for helping me through this journey. I would personally like to thank my mother for always being there for me and my grandparents Jerry and Almira for just being my grandparents. A few other people I would like to thank are Ralph Cox, Clyde Allebach, my mentor Norma Dissmore and her husband Dick, Corrine and Ron Neisess, and many others. -Alexandra LaPitz

13 Page 13 First English Lutheran Church Council Meeting September 8, 2009 Members Present: Roger H., Dick D., Lynn L., Keith K., Clair M., Joe M., Marie H., Pastor Steve Absent: Marie S., Mike S., Megan M. Congregational Members Present: Helen C., Donna., Lorraine M., Onnie & Betty Samuelson, Gloriann L., Carol M., Lucille E., Morris & Jean J., Paul., Diane P. Meeting called to order by President Roger H., at 7:02 pm. Devotions were led by Pastor Steve Secretary s Report was read. Motion to accept as read was made by Dick D. and a second by Lynn L. Motion carried. Treasurer s Report Roger H. reported on income and expenses and we are close to budget. Motion to accept Treasurer s report was made by Keith K. and seconded by Clair M. Motion carried. Committee Reports: Finance: No further report Worship: Committee met and music has been chosen to early November. Suggestion was made to have every 5 th Sunday as the Contemporary Service as per our July minutes. Social Ministry: Committee has met and October 10 th will be the Annual Fun Fest. The Sunday school will be serving pancakes and there will be games, silent auction, baskets and etc. Youth: No Report Building/Grounds: The carpet has been cleaned. The fans need to be cleaned. The sprinklers are on a scheduled maintenance. Lee H. will be doing snow removal. A discussion of the need to paint the fellowship/ Sunday School rooms was made. Donna A. volunteered to look into possibly getting a grant for the paint. Education: A meeting was held with all Sunday school teachers present and they went over the new curriculum. Several projects were discussed and the possibility of a treasure chest for attendance. A letter will be sent to parents. Evangelism: No Report Stewardship: Pledge cards will be handed out September 20 th which will help with our budget planning. Pastor: Our church is starting a very busy season and many important decisions will have to be made. Old Business: 1. Ruby s Pantry: October 3 rd will be the first food distribution at the Assumption of Our Lady Catholic Church. There is still a need for volunteers. 3. Rally Sunday: September 20 th. A brunch will be served and a balloon send off will be held. New Business: 1. The meeting in Henning, September 3 rd was attended by 3 Council members along with congregational members. A discussion followed with Roger H. submitting the following resolution: BE IT RESOLVED, that the ELCA 2009 Church wide assembly has passed a resolution (CA ) to commit itself to finding a way for people in such publicly accountable, lifelong, monogamous, same-gender relationships to serve as rostered leaders of the church, the Council of First English Lutheran Church of Menahga hereby refrains from submitting benevolence to the Synod, with said available funds to be distributed to local charity needs, until the Congregation of First English Lutheran Church of Menahga makes a decision on what action to take. Motion to pass resolution was made by Clair M. and a second by Lynn L. Motion carried. 2. Confirmation Sunday is September 13 th. 3. Pastor read a Thank you from Brock C. for the scholarship. 4. An anonymous donation was made to the building fund. Motion to adjourn was made by Clair M. and a second by Lynn L. Closed with the Lord s Prayer Respectfully Submitted, Marie Henstorf WHAT IS STEWARDSHIP? Stewardship is not just raising funds; It s raising Christians. Stewardship is not a matter of budgets; It s a matter of faith.

14 Page 14 BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES August 12, 2009 BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES August 12, 2009, 7:15 pm. Bethany Lutheran Church Council members Dave Mickelson, Dean Mickelson, Matt Mattick and Joanie Anderson were present along with Pastor Steve Bruer. The Secretary s report was approved as read. A discussion was held on the possible shortage in receipts. Mission funds and the cemetery are areas of concern in this regard. Motion made by Matt and seconded by Dean to implement Year to Date income reports. Motion passed. Education: Lianna Vry is sending letter of invitation for the Sunday school. Rally Sunday will be the 20 th of September with Fellowship before church. Curriculum to be discussed... Worship: A card was sent to Pastor Espe for his part in the Lyle Mickelson funeral. Evangelism: No report Building and Grounds: Cemetery survey was discussed. The parsonage rain gutter needs repair/replacing. For sandblasting the church, Curt Marjamaa gave an estimate of $4100, but Don Meech knows of someone who would donate same. Have Don follow up on sandblasting. Doc Anderson will paint after the sandblasting is done. Again, the signs by Hwy 87 we discussed. Don and Kelly will meet with Matt to get double sided sign with reflective lettering showing times of service, etc. Dave and Dean sprayed and trimmed the church grounds. Thank you! Pastor s report: There was much discussion on Human Sexuality insofar as the meeting of the ELCA and their upcoming decision. Would this cause a break up of the church as we now know it? The upcoming Auction (August 30, 1pm) is being managed by Dennis and Rosie Anderson. Dean will get wagons for auction. Joanie will contact the Blueberry Bugler, Review Messenger and KRCQ for advertising. New Business: Discussion on less expensive bulletins. Dave made a motion and Dean seconded that we now order the 11 x 17 bulletins at a cost of $ These will be used each week except for the 1 st Sunday of Advent, Christmas and Easter. The siding may be under warranty. After considerable tracking the manufacturer was found and we will learn if there is any warranty left to help defray the costs. Don and Evelyn had grids installed around the outside of the building. The cost was $700 and was donated by the Meech s. Thank you Don and Evelyn! Carpet cleaning was done to just half of the carpet at a cost of $300. Matt has noticed the light from the tower shines directly on the road. Have that checked out and fixed. Fall Theological Days will be September Cost is $221 for Pastor. Matt and Dean made and seconded approval to pay. Meeting adjourned with prayer. BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 16, 2009 MEMBERS PRESENT: Pastor Steve, Lianna Vry, Dave Mickelson, Matt Mattick, Dennis Anderson, Joanie Anderson and Kris Spadgenske. Pastor gave devotions. Secretary s report was approved with the following change: A card was sent to Pastor Espe thanking him for taking part in our worship service on the anniversary of his ministry. Matt made a motion to approve the change and Dennis seconded. Motion passed. Treasurer s report was approved as read. Joanie made motion and Lianna seconded. Committee Reports: Social Ministry Kelly- no report. Stewardship Dennis- Could be doing better with offerings, but we are holding our own. Education-Lianna- Letter was sent out to families announcing Rally Sunday on September 20. Sharing and Caring time (fellowship) with coffee and cookies will also take place for the congregation during Sunday School. Curriculum will be purchased with a one room classroom format. Worship Dean No report. Evangelism Joanie- Continues to recruit new members slowly. Joanie suggested watching the movie The Cross as a congregation with discussions to follow. Will look into setting this up. Building and Grounds - Matt - Kelly, Matt and Don have looked at the wall and think total (continued)

15 Replacement would be best. Matt estimates with donation of time, cost would be about $ or under. Will put in drain tile. Will contact Todd Rodeman about helping with project. Dennis made a motion to go ahead with repair and Joanie seconded. Pastor: Very excited about Rally Sunday. Worship will be geared for the youth. Old Business: 1. Auction: Good auction with an excellent turnout. Auction: $ , Lunch: $470.75, Bake Sale: $ , Pop: $ Free will offering for meal went well. Will need to increase food quantities next year. New Business: 1. October 18 from 7-9 at Emmanuel in Wadena, Matters of the Heart will meet. Gathering for all leaders from the congregation. Will look for volunteer to attend. 2. Meeting in Henning on Sept. 3 on Sexuality Resolution vote. Well attended meeting. People were given an opportunity to speak about the vote. Council held a good discussion on the role of the council during this time. Pastor will have a meeting for both congregations on October 4 and 11 at 6:30 to have a joint discussion. One meeting will be at Bethany and one will be at First English. The council reiterated that no decisions regarding this vote will be made without a congregational meeting and vote. Joanie made a motion to adjourn and Matt seconded. Meeting concluded with the Lord s Prayer. Respectfully submitted by: Kristine Spadgenske, Secretary Page 15 Will be at Redeemer Lutheran Church of Menahga on Wednesday, October 21st. All donations need to be at the church by 11:00 am that day. Donations will be accepted Sunday Oct. 18 Wed., Oct. 21. Call Elma Katainen at for assistance or if you have questions. THE WADENA COUNTY DAC IN SEBEKA INVITES YOU TO A FUNDRAISER FOR THEIR NEW BUILDING At the Sebeka United Methodist Church SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4TH 11:30-2:30 SILENT AUCTION - CHILI FEED Please let us know when you have a prayer request. You can call Pastor Steve or the Church Office or Requests will be listed for 4 weeks. Please let us know if you would like your requests listed longer. Susan Gullekson Marvin Anderson Marion Hansen Linda Ely Colton Polman Arlene Anttila Phyllis Leritz Jan Pederson Wayne Stomberg Shelley Ohlgren Patricia Qualey Jon Lenzen Naomi Polman

16 FIRST ENGLISH BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCHES 17 Main St. NW PO Box 189 MENAHGA, MN Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE Menahga, MN Permit NO. 3 Sunday, October 25, 2009 On Reformation Day, we glorify God for what he accomplished in 16th century Germany through His servant, Dr. Martin Luther -- the recovery of the gospel of salvation by grace through faith for Christ's sake. We also earnestly pray that God would keep all of us faithful to the true gospel and help us to joyfully declare it to the world. This lovely hymn verse encapsulates the theme of our Reformation celebration: By grace God's Son, our only Savior, Came down to earth to bear our sin. Was it because of your own merit That Jesus died your soul to win? No, it was grace, and grace alone, That brought Him from His heav'nly throne.