The Key to St. Peter

Transcription

1 The Key to St. Peter JULY 2018 St. P e t e r L u t h e r a n C h u r c h - L C M S, H w y 5 9 N P O B o x 1 3 3, B o w i e, T X w w w. s t p e t e r t e x. c o m s t p e t e r t e a t t. n e t The Parson s Pen By Pastor Larry Knobloch INSIDE THIS ISSUE Parson s Pen Parson s Pen (cont d) Vacation Bible School Ramp Build Blessings In A Back Pack Camp Lone Star BBQ Serving in July Grace, mercy and peace be you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Amen. My goodness, it is hot and DRY! I know, we are in July now and it is supposed to be that way. But it doesn t mean that we have to enjoy it! In fact, talking about the weather is the favorite topic of people wherever you are. Even in Panama where the weather on the equator is almost the same year round, we talked about the weather. However we know and trust that God is in control so we leave it in His capable hands. We pray as we are called to do, but we trust that God will care for His creation. Another topic that comes up in conversation is family. We enjoy talking about family. Close family, extended family, it really doesn t matter. A good conversation is always asking about family. And this leads us to the topic of my article in this newsletter. We are adopted children of God. As St Paul bears witness to: Romans 8:14 17 (ESV) 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, Abba! Father! 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. Rom. 8:12 17 (ESV) 9 Calendar As I was thinking about this, I received this devotion from Truth for Life. Some of you may be familiar with this ministry group but I wanted to share it with you. Open Adoption We wait eagerly for adoption as sons. Romans 8:23 Even in this world saints are God's children, but the only way that people will discover this is by certain moral characteristics. The adoption is not displayed; the children are not yet openly declared. Among the Romans a man might adopt a child and keep it private for a long time; but there was a second adoption in public; when the child was brought before the constituted authorities, its old clothes were removed, and the father who took it to be his child gave it clothing suitable to its new status in life. "Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared." (1 John 3:2) We are not yet clothed in the apparel of heaven's royal family; we are wearing in this flesh and blood just what we wore as the children of Adam. But we know that "when he appears" who is "the firstborn among many brothers," (Romans 8:29) we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. Can't you imagine that a child taken from the lowest ranks of society and adopted by a Roman senator would say to himself, "I long for the day when I shall be publicly adopted. Then I shall discard these poor clothes and be dressed in clothes that depict my senatorial rank"? Glad for what he has already received, he still groans until he gets the fullness of what has been promised to him. Continued on page 2

2 The Key to St. Peter Page 2 The Parsons Pen from page 1 - So it is with us today. Can't you imagine that a child taken from the lowest ranks of society and adopted by a Roman senator would say to himself, "I long for the day when I shall be publicly adopted. Then I shall discard these poor clothes and be dressed in clothes that depict my senatorial rank"? Glad for what he has already received, he still groans until he gets the fullness of what has been promised to him. So it is with us today. We are waiting until we put on our proper clothes and are declared as the children of God for all to see. We are young nobles and have not yet worn our crowns. We are young brides, and the marriage day has not arrived, but our fiancée's love for us leads us to long and sigh for the bridal morning. Our very happiness makes us long for more; our joy, like a swollen stream, longs to spring up like a fountain, leaping to the skies, heaving and groaning within our spirit for lack of space and room by which to reveal itself to men. Devotional material is taken from Morning and Evening, written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright 2003, Good News Publishers and used by Truth For Life with written permission. I ve mentioned in several different Bible classes that in Hebrew culture, adoption wasn t just in name but in blood. After you were adopted into a family, you were considered a blood relative. In the same way, we are truly brothers and sisters in Christ and because of His blood we are truly God s children As adopted children of God, we are so very blessed; however, we also have great responsibility that goes along with being children of God. The biggest part of the responsibility is found in the Great Commission of Christ: 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. Matthew 28:19 20 (ESV) We can accomplish this is many different ways, large and small. First and foremost, we teach our children, we speak of Christ and His salvation in our homes and outside of our homes. Secondly we speak to our neighbors. People we know and trust also know and trust us. Why wouldn t we want to share the greatest news in the universe with them? Finally, among many other things, we work within our own church body. Reaching out through Midweek school, Vacation Bible School, Sunday school, etc. There are so many programs and ways this can be done but quite often we are missing an important part of these programs YOU. You are a fellow member of the body of Christ and lets be blunt here you never reach retirement age in the church. You are never too old nor too unqualified to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If we leave the volunteering and serving to someone else, there is a good chance that one day there will not be a someone else and from there the church begins to die. All members of this congregation are important and have something to offer. A congregation never passed away from too many activities or too much outreach or too much evangelism, but they have passed away quietly and softly from sitting back and hoping someone else picked up the slack. So let s get out there this summer. There are lots of opportunities to serve in these hot summer months. And even better, the opportunities continue to abound throughout the year. In Him, Pastor K.

3 The Key to St. Peter Page VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL JULY :00 8:30 Light Meal Will Be Served at 5:30 Calling All Kids, Adults, Helpers of all sizes! Be part of Splash Canyon VBS! Life is full of thrills and spills! We don t know what s around the bend, but God does! At Splash Canyon VBS, God s children of all ages learn the good news is God is with us and keeps His promises to us on life s wild ride! As staff members for Splash Canyon VBS, you have fun and share the Splash Canyon message with the kids! If you can help full or part time, we have many ways to be involved to suit your schedule and interests. Call the church office for more information. Plunge in for VBS fun at Splash Canyon! We appreciate your prayers for Splash Canyon,. Ask God to bring children to our program so they can know and grow in Jesus, our Savior! Ask God to provide leaders and helpers for this important mission.

4 The Key to St. Peter Page 4 ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL RAMP BUILD! The shapes change the personnel changes But the spirit of giving to those in need stays The same. Think about joining the group on the next project!

5 The Key to St. Peter Page 5 ICREAM SOCIAL 2-18

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8 The Key to St. Peter Page 8 Serving in God s House in July Acolytes 1 Will Jones/Austin Dirickson 8 Adam Pickett/Cooper Hammer 15 Reegen Ferguson/Brodie Childs 22 Monte Mayfield/Adam Pickett 29 Sarah Horton/Cooper Hammer Elder Billy Lee Counters Bryan Roth William Pickett Altar Guild Sharon Rainwater Nancy Hammer Altar Care Hazel Beyer Becky Geis Darlene Geis Lay Readers 1 William Pickett 8 Bryan Roth 15 Gaylon Rice 22- Bob Aune 29- Arn Anderson God Bless Your Summer Activities