St. Mark Church and. School Newsletter. February Whatever You Do. Inside this issue:

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1 February 2018 St. Mark Church and Special points of interest: WELS News School Newsletter The Galloping Mustang Whatever You Do "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." - Colossians 3:17 Inside this issue: Whatever You Do 1 This We Believe/ Through My Bible in 3 years This Month in God s Word/ Birthdays WELS News 4 The Galloping Mustang NELHS NEWS 7 Thrivent Choice 8 February Calendar 2018 February Duties "Whatever you do..." Those are some pretty all-encompassing words. It pretty much means that everything you do in life you can do in Jesus' name. Everything you say can be spoken with thanksgiving. So, let's put these words to the test. Taking out the trash. Yes, this can be done in Jesus' name. For you are carrying out this task for the sake of your family, being a blessing to them as they have been a blessing to you. Looking out for their health and well-being. And you can be thankful for the company that picks up your trash, that you don't have to worry about disposing of everything yourself. Changing your baby's diaper. Sure, it can be a disgusting task at times. But what would your child do without you. Sit in their own mess, get a rash, be in pain. You are serving and loving your child, just as Jesus has called for you to do. And what a blessing disposable diapers are! Think of what time and energy you are saved. Thanks be to God! Mowing the lawn. You bless not only your own family, but the neighborhood as well. You show consideration for others by making your landscape look nice. You are caring for the property the Lord has blessed you with. And here comes thanksgiving for all that you have received from God's gracious hand. Driving your car. It doesn t matter where you re going: church, school, work, home, vacation. It s a pretty mundane task, but whoever is in the car with you is being helped by you. You have a ability to show kindness to others as your drive carefully and cautiously. You get to show your respect for authority by following the rules of the road. And how awesome it is that we can get here and there so easily and quickly. Thank you, Lord! I could go on and on with this list. Work is another chance to serve others, to provide for your family, and thank God for the opportunity to earn a living. Cleaning your bathrooms is a service to your family. And who doesn't love indoor plumbing? Thanks Jesus! Shopping for groceries is an incredible blessing. How many of us would be to grow, raise, hunt, clean and preserve all our own food? Everything can be done with Jesus in mind. Everything can be done with thanksgiving. We simply need to stop and take the time to remember.

2 This We Believe Q: A: We believe that the Sixth Commandment regulates marriage and the family. God instituted marriage as a life-long union of one man and one woman (Matthew 19:4-6). It is the only proper context for sexual intimacy and the procreation of children. A marriage can be ended without sin only when God ends the marriage through the death of one of the spouses. Nevertheless, a Christian may obtain a divorce if his or her spouse has broken the marriage through adultery (Matthew 19:9) or malicious desertion (1 Corinthians 7:15). The Sixth Commandment forbids all sexual intimacy apart from marriage, including homosexuality (1 Corinthians 6:9,10). How can we say homosexuality is wrong when it appears some people may be born with such an inclination? No unbiased, conclusive medical study confirms homosexuality is an unborn disposition. Even if such studies did conclusively show a biological component to homosexuality, that still would not make it right. We know we are all born with a sinful nature that is dead in sin and hostile to God. As Jesus reminds us in Matthew 15:19, many things flow quite naturally out of our natural sinful hearts: evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. We don t defend such sins because they come to us naturally. Rather, we flee to the cross of Jesus for forgiveness and for power to run from such temptations. The same should be true with any natural, or biological, inclination to homosexuality. Through my Bible in 3 years This Bible reading series is designed to take only a few minutes each day. If you haven t started in January, that s okay. Feel free to jump in and start in the middle of a year. This same Bible reading structure is found in the Forward in Christ. To help you through your Bible study, consider this anecdote: Peter the Barber once asked Martin Luther how he, an ordinary kind of guy, could read the Bible with profit. Luther answered: 1.What does God tell me here? 2.What makes me glad? 3.What makes me sad? 4.What do I want to pray for: Try it in your Bible reading! February 1. Matthew 4 2. Matthew 5: Matthew 5: Matthew 6: Matthew 6: Matthew 7: Matthew 7: Jonah 1, 2 9. Jonah 3, Joel 1:1-2: Joel 2:18-3: Zephaniah Zephaniah 2:1-3:7 14. Zephaniah 3: Nahum Nahum 2, Habakkuk 1:1-2:5 18. Habakkuk 2: Habakkuk 3: Habakkuk 3: Obadiah 22. Matthew 8: Matthew 8:23-9:8 24. Matthew 9: Matthew 9:35-10: Matthew 10: Matthew 11: Matthew 11:25-12:21 Page 2

3 This Month in God s Word February 4 - Listen to Christ Mark 1:21-28; Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Hebrews 3:1-6 Bible Class: Prepared to Answer February 11 - The Veil Is Lifted Mark 9:2-9; 2 Kings 2:1-12; 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 Bible Class: Prepared to Answer February Birthdays 1- Linda Hoefler 1 Jodi Kramer 4 Margaret Schmidt 5 Eleanor Oltman 11- Sami Nelson 12 Verna Rank 13 Leah Stamps 13 Dewey Page 13 Martha Wilkinson 14 Tracy Jamison 15- Gordon Zacherson 15 Jack Peitsmeyer 16 Erna Westphal 16 Amaya Theiler February 18 - Serious Savior: Serious About Repentance Mark 1:12-15; Genesis 22:1-18; Romans 8:31-39 Bible Class: Prepared to Answer February 25 - Serious Savior: Serious About Suffering Mark 8:31-38; Genesis 28:10-17; Romans 5:1-11 Bible Class: Prepared to Answer 18-Alex Mullen 25- Heather Wathor 26- Suzi Vanchoiack 27 Payton Mackenzie A Happy and Blessed Birthday to you All! Page 3

4 God s People Respond WELS members have demonstrated their Christian love and concern for hurricane victims in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico with over $1.5 million in gifts to WELS Christian Aid and Relief. We thank God for this generous response to these disasters. WELS Christian Aid and Relief has been working with local congregations to provide funding for repairs to churches, schools, and homes, as well as for efforts to help the people of the communities in which congregations are located. An assessment visit to Puerto Rico shortly after the hurricane identified immediate needs and paved the way for quick assistance for repairs and supplies. The purpose of our visit was to determine what kind of assistance would be most helpful now that power has been restored to much of the island, building supplies are more available, and travel between cities is now possible. The leaders of the Puerto Rican church were encouraged by our visit, clearly recognized that the Lord will bring blessings even through the tragedy of the hurricane, and were eager to share their optimistic plans for the future. It was heartening to see their strong faith and to hear of their confidence in God s continuing care for them and their small church body. WELS Christian Aid and Relief will be considering recommendations from the visiting team for continuing relief efforts that will address both short- and long-term needs of our sister church. Even though life is returning to normal in many of the areas affected by the storms, there is much work to be done. There may be additional opportunities for volunteers to help in the coming weeks and months. Your continuing prayers are encouraged. Serving in Christ, President Mark Schroeder Since so much of the infrastructure in Puerto Rico was still not repaired at that time, another assessment visit took place during the first week of January. The visiting team included Rev. Larry Schlomer, administrator of World Missions; Mr. Sean Young, director of Mission Operations; Rev. Tim Satorius, WELS Commission on Inter- Church Relations contact for Puerto Rico; and me. We visited all three congregations of the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church of Puerto Rico and met with leaders of our sister church. Page 4

5 No School Teacher In-Service February 2018 stmarkmustangs.org St. Mark Lutheran School The Galloping Mustang Mark Your Calendars: Echoes the Hammer April 6th, :00 P.M. Birdwatching in the Park On Saturday, March 10th, Mr. Drews will be leading a birdwatching walk at the Pioneers Park Nature Center. The walk will start around 9:00 a.m. What you need is a good pair of shoes, a water bottle, and even a field guide to birds and binoculars if you have them! Spring Migration is just around the corner. Come out and enjoy the gift of birds in God's creation. From the Principal s Desk A Prayer for Loving Others God, how can we ever thank you enough for all the blessings you give? This day has again brought proof of your goodness. Trusting in your love, help us show the joy that we have because of what you have done for us. Teach us to love others as you have loved us. At times, it can be hard to show your love to others. We struggle with our personal disagreements with our neighbor. We can suffer personal attacks for our faith in you. Through these hardships, help us be more patient and alert to the needs of others, and always ready to serve them with the gifts you have given us. Lord, help us as we strive to show your love in our lives with Page others. 5 In all these things, we ask for your loving guidance. Amen.

6 Lutheran Schools Week Our annual Lutheran Schools Week will take place from Sunday, February 18th through Sunday, February 25th. Here is the schedule of events for St. Mark Lutheran School Sunday, February 18th Christian Education Sunday at St. Mark Lutheran Church (Junior Choir Sings) Coins for Change : Joplin, MO (WELS Home Mission) Monday, February 19th School Spirit Dress-up: Color Day Team Cheers & Posters; Pep Rally Tuesday, February 20th School Spirit Dress-up: Crazy Day Donuts with Dad 7:45-8:15 a.m. (Church Basement) Plymouth 4:30 pm Wednesday, February 21st School Spirit Dress-up: Prairie Day Spelling Bee (3rd-8th) 2:00 p.m. Thursday, February 22nd School Spirit Dress-up: St. Mark Mustangs Day Muffins with Mom 7:45-8:15 a.m. (Church Basement) Knight for a Day at NELHS (7th-8th) Friday, February 23rd-Saturday, February 24th NELHS Basketball Tournament Sunday, February 25th Christian Education Sunday at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church (Junior Choir Sings) Coins for Change ends. Page 6

7 Nebraska Lutheran News and Notes Winter activities update The basketball season continues roll along. The boys team has the #4 seed and the girls team has the #5 seed in the CRC tournament. Both teams won their opening round games. Call News Speech season has begun and every Saturday for the next month the team will be out competing. Musical Tryouts have occurred and the cast is set for Madagascar which will be performed April 12, 13, and 15. Quiz Bowl Tryouts have also occurred and the Varsity and JV teams have been selected. Their season starts in February. Support Recruitment Upcoming Events Pastor Gary Bode of Helena, Montana has been called to be our next campus pastor. We pray for him and his family as he deliberates where to serve. Mr. Mark Ross of Onalaska, Wisconsin has returned the call to teach math, serve as activities director, and coach. The board of directors will be meeting on February 11 to issue another call for this position. The This is Our School campaign continues to grow. As of this writing we have 44 donors making gifts totaling $3,065 monthly which adds up to $36,780. Please consider heading to our website at and joining this campaign. If you have Thrivent products, right now is a perfect time to designate your Thrivent Choice Dollars to Nebraska Lutheran. All Choice Dollars from 2017 can be designated up until March 31, and then they are gone. Consider joining our Coin Up campaign which allows you to round up your everyday credit/debit card transactions and donates the spare change to NELHS. Go to to sign up. So far we have 3 donors sending their spare change to NELHS. Recruitment efforts continue. So far 14 students have enrolled to be freshmen next year. If you know of a family whom we can contact to tell about our ministry, please Administrator Mark Otte at motte@nelhs.org or call February 6: Grandparent s Day at NELHS (to register or get more information about this day contact Lisa at the NELHS office ( or ldressel@nelhs.org) February 23-24: LES Basketball Tournament at NELHS February 25-March 4: Spring Break March 10: Knight Out at the German-American Society in West-Omaha. We look forward to seeing many of you attend this night of fellowship and fundraising at the German American Society in Omaha. We will be enjoying the music of Koine. Contact Twila Fickel (tfickel@nelhs.org) for more information about attending this event. We will also be seeking businesses and individuals to sponsor this night Nebraska Evangelical Lutheran High School Mission Statement NELHS exists to assist parents and congregations by providing Christian training in the skills and values necessary for loyal service to Jesus Christ for time and eternity. Page 7

8 What is Thrivent Choice? The Thrivent Choice program is an easy way for eligible Thrivent members to recommend how Thrivent Financial should distribute a portion of its charitable outreach funds to organizations our members are passionate about through a vehicle called Choice Dollars. The Deadline is Approaching! Our members have until MARCH 31st, 2017 to designate the Choice Dollars that they received in Our eligible members have a minimum of $25 and a maximum of $5,000 available to designate. Page 8

9 St. Mark Lutheran Church 3930 S. 19th Street, Lincoln, NE (402) February 2018 Pastor is at a Missionaries Conference in Kansas City Children s Devotion is on Wednesday mornings at 8:30 am. Anyone who would like to join us is always welcome. Pastor Joel Vogel (402) joel.vogel@stmarklincoln.org Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 4 8:00 am & 10:30 am Worship w/lord s Supper 9:15 am Bible Class and Sunday School 11 8:00 am & 10:30 am Worship Service 9:15 am Bible Class and Sunday School 18 8:00 am & 10:30 am Worship w/lord s Supper 9:15 am Bible Class and Sunday School 25 8:00 am & 10:30 am Worship Service 9:15 am Bible Class and Sunday School 5 7:00 pm Worship w/lord s Supper 12 7:00 pm Worship Service 19 7:00 pm Worship w/lord s Supper 26 7:00 pm Worship Service 6 6:30 pm Church Council Meeting 6:30 pm PTO Meeting 7 3:30 pm Bible Study at the Lexington 6:00 pm Catechism 7:00 pm Choir :30 pm Bible Study at the Lexington 5:45 pm Catechism 7:00 pm Ash Wednesday Service :30 pm Bible Study at the Lexington 5:45 pm Catechism 7:00 pm Lenten Worship Service Lutheran Schools Week :30 pm Bible Study at the Lexington 5:45 pm Catechism 7:00 pm Lenten Worship Service 1 6:30 am Bible Study 6:30 pm Ladies Aid 8 6:30 am Bible Study 15 6:30 am Bible Study 22 6:30 am Bible Study 2 Sunday Snow Removal: Nate Workentine 9 Sunday Snow Removal: Paul Dinges 16 Sunday Snow Removal: Craig Goodrich 23 No School Sunday Snow Removal: Scott Meyer March 2, 2018 Sunday Snow Removal: Gary Mundt 3 Church Cleaning: Sec. 1 R. Gartzke Sec. 2 Gottier Sec. 3 Fury 10 Church Cleaning: Sec. 1 L. Hans Sec. 2 Hawkins Sec. 3 Hoefler 17 Church Cleaning: Sec. 1 Humphrey Sec. 2 Jamison Sec. 3 Hussman 24 Church Cleaning: Sec. 1 Krushenisky Sec. 2 Gerlach Sec. 3 Hodges March 3, 2018 Church Cleaning: Sec. 1 Lindblad Sec. 2 Lee Sec. 3 Luly

10 Elders St. Mark Church: (402) S. 19th Street, Lincoln, NE St. Mark School: (402) S. 19 th Street, Lincoln, NE Officer Family Nurture: Jarod Wilkinson President: Larry Hans Adult Nurture: Bryan Hodges Vice President: Rainer Gartzke Outreach: Tyson Martin Secretary: Tim Hans Support: Blake Baumann School: Curt Jamison Church / School Staff Worship: James Mullen Pastor: Joel Vogel Teacher/Principal: Jeremiah Drews Teacher: Jocelyn Vogel Teacher: Stephanie Peitsmeyer Administrative Assistant: Carolyn Schwede February Duties Elders: Blake Baumann, Jarod Wilkinson Greeters: Carol Hans (E) LuAnn Wattles (L) Bulletin Folders: Lisa Duffield Usher: Bill Marker, Larry Hans (E), Al Wattles, Rich Randazzo (L) Finance Committee: Paul & Karen Dinges Communion Ware Cleaners:1 st Elder (E), Mandy Krushenisky (L) 3 rd Amy Gartzke (E) Lisa Duffield(L) Shut Ins: Valerie Ellsworth St. Mark Sunday School Teachers Pre School: Marlys Parde Lower grades: 1 & 2 Mandy Krushenisky / Sue & Katey Rehm Grades: 3 6 Mel Soyk Teens: DeAnna Fanning Page 10