WORDS of GRACE. A Letter from the Pastor AUGUST Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church SANCTIFIED.

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1 WORDS of GRACE Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church 1809 S. Main St. Fairgrove, MI church office: (989) church website: Rev. Joshua T. Haller cell phone: (248) AUGUST 2018 A Letter from the Pastor SANCTIFIED. This past July, six youth from our congregation along with two chaperones and myself went to Southern Illinois University for a Higher Things Conference. The campus was filled with over 800 LCMS Lutherans, and this was only one of four of the conferences taking place this summer. It was a joy to be able to spend a week with not only our group but with other groups filled with Lutheran kids and adults just like us. We prayed every morning, afternoon, and night in church. We broke bread and laughed together. We studied God s Word and grew in the faith together. The theme for this year s conference was Sanctified. The word sanctify comes from the Latin word sanctus, which means holy. To be sanctified is to be made holy. A saint is a holy person. The word holy has always been misunderstood. Many think that it means to be perfect or without sin, so that a saint is a perfect person who does no wrong. This then would exclude us from being called saints, since we certainly aren t perfect at all. But, the word holy doesn t mean that. Holy simply means different or set apart and specifically something that has been made different and set apart by God and for God. Therefore, you are holy, and you are a saint. You are holy not because you live a flawless life, but because God has declared you to be different from the rest of the world. He has set you apart from all people to be his holy people. This is what he did for the Israelites in the Old Testament. When the people of Israel were trapped in Israel as slaves, God promised them, I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God (Exodus 6:7). And so after many plagues in Egypt and a journey through the Red Sea, the Israelites were finally free and began their voyage to the Promised Land in Canaan. On their way, they stopped at Mount Sinai where God gave them the Ten Commandments, and he began those commandments with these sweet words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery (Exodus 20:1).

2 God declared that the Israelites were his people. He had set them apart from the Egyptians and all the rest of the nations of the world when he delivered them from the hands of Pharaoh and out of slavery. And because they were his people, they were expected to act like it. That s why he gave them the Ten Commandments, not as arbitrary and burdensome rules but as guidelines on how to live a holy and different life since they were now a holy and different people. God gave the Ten Commandments not as a burden but as a gift. But, the Ten Commandments eventually became a burden to the Israelites, because they were still a sinful people. When you look into the mirror in the morning, you may not like what you see, but is that the mirror s fault or your fault? When you look at the Ten Commandments, you may not like what you hear or what you learn about yourself, but is that the Law of God s fault or your fault? It s your fault. The Law condemns, because we are a condemned and sinful people. Thanks be to God that he sent his Son to save us. Jesus lived a perfect life, following all of God s laws and loving them. He obeyed his Father and served his neighbor by laying down his life for the sins of the world. Jesus has freed us from the law s demands. He has forgiven us of all our sin. He has made us holy in his blood, so that like the Israelites, we also are God s people. We are different from the world, and we are free to live as he desires us to live. We are free to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are free to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind. We are free to love His Law and want to follow it. God has made you s saint in the waters of Holy Baptism. He keeps you in that sainthood through his Holy Word. He fills you up with his holy self in the Holy Supper of our Lord s body and blood. The Lord makes you holy each Lord s day that you may go out from his temple to live the life he wants you to live a life in service to him and to all those he has placed around you. You are sanctified. You are holy. In Christ, Pastor Haller SUMMER CHURCH NIGHT Wednesday, August 15th from 6 to 8 pm The summer months can be a busy time filled with ball games, family vacations, yardwork, etc. Let s take some time out of that chaotic schedule and join together around food and Christian fellowship. Join us for the last Summer Church Night with a free meal from 6 to 7 pm and God s free Word from 7 to 7:45 pm. The children will have their lesson, while the adults will be with Pastor Haller. After being filled with the Bread of Life, we will pray together in the church sanctuary to close out the evening. If you rarely or never attend any of our Bible classes, this would be a great opportunity to check out what it s like. ALL ARE WELCOME!

3 **COMMUNITY EVENTS** MICHIGAN BEAN FESTIVAL Friday, August 31, 2018 to Monday, September 3, 2018 KNOWN AUGUST BIRTHDAYS Marge Montgomery Rachel Chaney-Ruiz Daryl Winter Arron Winter Harold Burnison Joann Van Every Pastor Joshua Haller Daniel Reinbold Carol Jamison NEW SANCTUARY FLOOR A special Voters Meeting will take place on Sunday, August 26, 2018 at 10:45 am to approve the flooring plan put forth by our flooring committee. You can still support the new floor by contributing to the Church Floor Fund. KNOWN AUGUST ANNIVERSARIES PRIVATE CONFESSION Paul & Lisa Hodgkinson Rachel & Nicholas Chaney-Ruiz Gordon & Joanne Bigham John & Ruth Ann Kaijala Larry & Diane Spencer Private Confession and Absolution is available by appointment. You can call Pastor Haller at the church office or on his cell phone: (248) donations August Divine Services THUMB AREA CRISIS CENTER donations can be placed in box under fellowship hall window (services with Holy Communion) Sunday, August 5, 2018 The Tenth Sunday after Trinity Luke 19:41-48 Sunday, August 12, 2018 The Eleventh Sunday after Trinity Divine Service Setting 1 Luke 18:9-14 Sunday, August 19, 2018 The Twelfth Sunday after Trinity Mark 7:31-37 Sunday, August 26, 2018 The Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity Luke 10:23-27 AUGUST disinfectant spray LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF donations can be placed in box by the coat rack BABY CARE KITS Lightweight cotton t-shirts Long or short-sleeved gowns or sleepers (without feet) Jackets, sweaters, sweatshirts Bath-size bars of gentle soap HIGENE KITS Bath-size towels Bath-size bars of soap Sturdy combs SCHOOL KITS Ruler (centimeter and inch) Pencil sharpener Blunt scissors Unsharpened #2 pencils Ballpoint pens (no gel ink) Box of 24 crayons 2.5 pink eraser

4 FREE CLOTHING GIVEAWAY! Everyone Welcome! For: Babies through Twelfth Grade. When: Saturday, August 4, 2018 Time: 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Where: Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church 1809 S. Main St, Fairgrove Questions or donations? Contact: CATECHESIS CLASS TALK RADIO FOR THE THINKING CHRISTIAN Issues, Etc. is a radio talk show and podcast hosted by LCMS Pastor Todd Wilken and produced by Lutheran Public Radio in Collinsville, IL. You can listen live or from past shows at LUTHERAN SCHOOL TUITION ASSISTANCE Tuition assistance forms for next year s academic year can be found on the back table of the narthex. Catechesis is a fancy word meaning instruction. It s this instruction in God s Word which is essential for each and every Christian to not only grow in the faith but also be able to defend what we believe. This year s catechesis class for our 5th through 8th graders begins on Wednesday, September 12th at 6 pm. Every Wednesday until the end of May (except during the seasons of Advent and Lent), we will be learning the Lutheran faith based on Martin Luther s Small Catechism. Catechesis isn t just for children. It s not just the class you take before receiving communion or getting confirmed. CATECHESIS IS FOR ALL AGES. Luther s catechism was written for an infant, a child, a teenager, and an adult. Please, join us on Wednesdays. If you have a catechism, bring it! If not, one will be provided for you. Come and relearn the Christian faith with God s children in a simple and relaxed format. For more information, please feel free to speak with Pastor Haller.

5 Serving our Lord in the Month of August Elders for August Brian Steinley & Steve Reinbold Ladies Aid for August Irene Stange & Joanne Bigham Sunday, August 5, 2018 Greeters: Ed & Lil McAlpine Ushers: Ed McAlpine, Earl Voss, Hunter Reid, Steve Reinbold Refreshments: Joanne Reinbold, Leslie Reinbold, Diane Spencer, Irene Stange Sunday, August 12, 2018 Greeters: Sarah Pierce Ushers: David Hills, Joseph Bublitz, Harold Burnison, Steve Reinbold Refreshments: Bev Voss, Helene Weber, Kristi Weber, Lillian Wheeler Sunday, August 19, 2018 Greeters: Susan Pfund Ushers: Larry Spencer, Brian Steinley, Daniel Bublitz, Steve Reinbold Refreshments: Joanne Bigham, Ashley Bublitz, Cindy Burnison, Carolyn Carpenter Sunday, August 26, 2018 Greeters: Tom & Sarah Reid Ushers: Harold Burnison, Vic Trisch, Jim Burnison, Steve Reinbold Refreshments: Sandy D Addezio, Joyce Dickson, Ann Emery, Sharon Hadaway **If you are unable to provide refreshments when scheduled, please switch with someone on the list. **If your name is not on the Greeter and/or Refreshment list and you would like to serve, please contact the church office. **the Secondary Elder assigned for that month will also serve as the fourth usher. **If you re not able to serve on a particular Sunday, please call another usher to replace you.