Cross Ways. Grow, Go & Glorify God

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1 Beaver Lake Lutheran Church July 2017 Grow, Go & Glorify God From Our Pastor: As I hope you are aware, we have a pretty incredible event coming this fall: the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. I think we are quite fortunate to be living during the celebration of this momentous occasion and I will be focusing on the anniversary of this great event for the next several editions of my article. Of course it was October 31, 1517 when a stubborn monk and towering theologian and thinker, Martin Luther, nailed his 95 theses on a church door in Wittenberg hoping to start a debate about some of the issues he saw with the Catholic Church of his time. Little did Luther know how wide sweeping the consequences of that action would be and we still live with the changes that Luther s bold action set into motion. The Reformation that resulted from Luther s stance against the church of his day, divided the Western church and transformed the lives of millions of people and changed their understanding of their relationship with God. The path for the Reformation was in place with all of the other changes that were happening in the world at that time. New scientific discoveries were being made helping people understand how complex the universe truly was. People were traveling the world including over the oceans, those ominous waterways that were once greatly feared and avoided were now being used for travel and for trade. Peasants and workers who had labored under harsh and unjust conditions for generations were seeking revolution for their lives and power centers began to shift. The bubonic plague had claimed around 75 million lives in the mid-14th century and it continued to create panic in cities throughout Europe. The printing press was invented allowing people to share their ideas on a much wider scale. Much like our own day and age, change seemed to be everywhere in the world. Yet even with all of the dramatic changes that were taking place in Luther s world, for Luther, one thing remained unchanging: the belief that we have a God who continues to offer salvation, forgiveness, love, and grace through the life, death, and resurrection of God s own son, Jesus Christ. In times in which changes were happening quickly and dramatically, the love and promises of God did not change. These things were at the heart and soul of Luther s thinking and writing and we Lutherans still hold to Luther s teaching--that stems from the writing of the Apostle Paul--that we are saved by grace through faith and that even our faith is a gift from our gracious and loving God. Much is being done to celebrate the anniversary of the Reformation. Beginning in 2008, and continuing through the fall of 2017, there have been exhibitions and concerts and festivals all over Germany. That country has dedicated an entire decade to celebrating the 500th anniversary of Luther nailing his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. There are several documentaries that continue to be produced about Luther and his Reformation and Lutheran communities throughout the world are finding ways to celebrate this great religious reformation. If you go to the website you can see how our own Lutheran synod is celebrating through many different events and resources. That website has a piece from our presiding bishop, Elizabeth Eaton, as well as several blogs and ideas for celebrating. It s definitely worth your time to check it out. Continued on page 2 Yet, O Lord, you are our Father: we are the clay and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Isaiah 64:8 Thought for the Month: A smile costs nothing but creates much.

2 Page 2 I will do my best to keep you up-to-date regarding celebrations that will be taking place in our area. We will also have our own celebrations periodically here at BLLC leading up to our big celebration on Reformation Sunday in October of this year. This is great stuff and I am really excited that we get to be part of it all! Thanks be to God for the work of all of the reformers throughout our church s history who remind us that our salvation is fully and completely a gift from our amazingly loving creator and redeemer! Yours in Christ, Pastor Nate The Story of the Fourth of July The Declaration of Independence We celebrate American Independence Day on the Fourth of July every year. We think of July 4, 1776, as a day that represents the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the United States of America as an independent nation. But July 4, 1776 wasn't the day that the Continental Congress decided to declare independence (they did that on July 2, 1776). It wasn t the day we started the American Revolution either (that had happened back in April 1775). And it wasn't the day Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence (that was in June 1776). Or the date on which the Declaration was delivered to Great Britain (that didn't happen until November 1776). Or the date it was signed (that was August 2, 1776). So what did happen on July 4, 1776? The Continental Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, They'd been working on it for a couple of days after the draft was submitted on July 2nd and finally agreed on all of the edits and changes. July 4, 1776, became the date that was included on the Declaration of Independence, and the fancy handwritten copy that was signed in August (the copy now displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.) It s also the date that was printed on the Dunlap Broadsides, the original printed copies of the Declaration that were circulated throughout the new nation. So when people thought of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776 was the date they remembered. In contrast, we celebrate Constitution Day on September 17th of each year, the anniversary of the date the Constitution was signed, not the anniversary of the date it was approved. If we d followed this same approach for the Declaration of Independence we d being celebrating Independence Day on August 2nd of each year, the day the Declaration of Independence was signed! How did the Fourth of July become a national holiday? For the first 15 or 20 years after the Declaration was written, people didn t celebrate it much on any date. It was too new and too much else was happening in the young nation. By the 1790s, a time of bitter partisan conflicts, the Declaration had become controversial. One party, the Democratic-Republicans, admired Jefferson and the Declaration. But the other party, the Federalists, thought the Declaration was too French and too anti-british, which went against their current policies. By 1817, John Adams complained in a letter that America seemed uninterested in its past. But that would soon change. After the War of 1812, the Federalist party began to come apart and the new parties of the 1820s and 1830s all considered themselves inheritors of Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans. Printed copies of the Declaration began to circulate again, all with the date July 4, 1776, listed at the top. The deaths of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams on July 4, 1826, may even have helped to promote the idea of July 4 as an important date to be celebrated. Celebrations of the Fourth of July became more common as the years went on and in 1870, almost a hundred years after the Declaration was written, Congress first declared July 4 to be a national holiday as part of a bill to officially recognize several holidays, including Christmas. Further legislation about national holidays, including July 4, was passed in 1939 and 1941.

3 Page 3 By: Deb Houtkooper I came across this article written by Dr Amit Sood, Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. It really resonated with me, and I d like to share it with you. What is Happiness? Happiness isn t just seeking sensory pleasures or material goods for oneself. Happiness is deep sustained fulfillment from living a good, virtuous and meaningful life. Happiness depends on: Present moment experience and overall life satisfaction. Present moment experience = what you re experiencing this very moment. How you perceive this moment is entirely up to you. Overall life evaluation = your satisfaction with relationships, accomplishments and life experiences. This article immediately brought to mind our congregation. We attend worship regularly to share in God s word and deepen our connections with God and each other. We are encouraged by God and each other to live good, virtuous and meaningful lives. We experience fellowship, evaluate our lives, confess our sins, celebrate accomplishments and walk beside each other as we experience life together. Dr Sood goes on to say, Life s happiest moments have one or more of these three ingredients: Creating, Connecting, Caring: Creating: creative immersive activities put you in a state of flow that unlocks joy. Connecting: meaningful and nurturing relationships markedly increase happiness. You are 30 times more likely to laugh in good company than alone. Caring: happiness lives in a mind that is caring and kind. Life s most rewarding moments are when you selflessly serve and love. Let happiness find you while you re busy creating, connecting and caring. Reflecting on Dr. Sood s words, think about all the opportunities our church offers to Create: Card and Craft Ladies, making treats and handicrafts for the Fall Fair, music (choir, Praise Band, Bell Choir, special music), quilting for Lutheran World Relief, assembling the bulletin and newsletter (and some I m sure I forgot!). The next ingredient is Connecting; we have so many occasions to connect! Sharing the Peace during our services, fellowship and coffee after the services, Community Meals, Social Seniors, committee meetings, cards, Bible Studies, Rhoda Circle and visiting our homebound. And finally, our happiest moments involve Caring, and what a wonderfully caring church family we have here at Beaver Lake! We care for each other through phone calls, cards and hugs, lifting up names during our services, the Prayer Chain, reading with children at Achieve Academy, providing Food for Families on the weekends, attending baptisms and funerals, and serving meals at conference time for the teachers, parents and students at Achieve Academy. Our faith community offers us all opportunities to let happiness find us while we are creating, connecting and caring. I feel privileged (and happy!) to belong to such a congregation! Deadline for Publications Crossway articles are due by the 20th of each month. Info for weekly bulletin is due by noon each Thursday. Electronic content can be ed to jdhilpert@comcast.net. Do We Have Your Correct Address? Please notify the church office when you have a new address, phone number or address. This will help us with our church directory, other publications and mailings. Thank You!

4 Page 4 VBS 2017 Mark Your Calendars! When: July 17-20, 5:30 7:15 pm, includes a light supper Who: Kids -- 3 years old 4 th grade (preschoolers must be toilet-trained) Where: Beaver Lake Lutheran Church What: ReNew: Grow in Faith. Have Fun. Change the world. Inspire your kids to change the world. Each day will explore Jesus Parable of the Sower with engaging activities that help kids learn how to care for God s creation. We can t wait to see you there! We are looking for volunteers to help with serving a light supper, group and activity leaders, decorations, etc. Please consider sharing an hour or more with the youth, the benefits are great! A donation board for VBS supplies will be displayed soon. Any questions? Please ask Julie Johansen, Katie Xiong, or Kim Richardson The 2017 BLLC Farmer s Market is in Business! The BLLC veggie garden has been planted, the veggies are growing, and our Farmer s Market is back in business. We planted a variety of veggies that we know our church members enjoy radishes, beets, peas, beans, carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, squash, tomatoes and peppers. Our Farmer s Market is open Sunday mornings in the atrium. Please be sure to check each week to see what veggies are currently available (there may be some already today). We ask for donations for the veggies. This year we are donating the money to both the ELCA Good Gifts to establish a community garden in areas of need - and the N. St. Paul Food Shelf. Last year we received $ in July Happenings July 03 & 04 Office Closed July 05 & 19 Community Meals July Vacation Bible School

5 Page 5 Kid s Coloring Page