St. James Lutheran Church AUGUST 2012 PASTOR S POINTS:

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1 St. James Lutheran Church AUGUST 2012 In This Month s Issue: Pastor s Points Page 1 Vice-President s Corner Page 2 Birthdays & Baptismal Anniversaries Page 3 Ministries, Announcements &Upcoming events Page 4-9 School News Page 10 Prayer Needs Page 4 Calendar Page 11 ST. JAMES LUTHERAN CHURCH MISSION STATEMENT Called by God, centered in the Word and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we rejoice in the Lord, proclaim His gift of Grace through liturgical worship and service and share Christ s love and forgiveness in all we do. The Reverend Keith Getz, Pastor revgetz@yahoo.com Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 AM Sunday-School: 9:00 AM Wednesday: 10:30 am: Bible Study (Library) & Noon: Holy Communion Service (Sanctuary) St. James Lutheran Church 1137 Alice Drive Sumter, SC Office: Fax: stjamesoffice@sc.rr.com Church Office Hours: Monday through Friday: 8:30 1:30 PASTOR S POINTS: Earthen Vessels Have you ever looked at a house that needed some but was structurally sound and said, That s a fixer upper! I think God probably looks at us sometimes and says, That s a fixer upper! We may not be perfect. We may need some cleaning out, a new slap of paint, some rebuilding, but nothing is impossible with God in Christ Jesus. God looks at us and sees value even when we don t always see value when we look at ourselves in the mirror. Many years ago, when archeology was just getting started, archaeologist focused on only those artifacts that were intact. They wanted an object that they could display in a museum. Pieces of pottery and other material near the excavation site was of little value. However, as time went on, they realized that these seemingly inconsequential pieces of pottery held secrets of the past. Using them, they could determine what material things were made of and get better ideas of what happened during that time period. Suddenly they became valuable in the study of history. St. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians: 7 But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. 11 For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you (4:7-12). Paul is explaining to us that within our inept, menial, frail, and unworthy bodies, we carry the life changing proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. God reveals his amazing world altering power through our weak selves, so there is no mistake that this amazing treasure comes from the power of God alone. We carry the death of Jesus in our own bodies through our hardships in life for Jesus sake. Our physical limitations and hardship are reminders of Christ s death. But, we are also reminded through all of it, we have life; the life, the resurrection of Jesus, shines forth in us. Therefore, we do not need to fear hardships or setbacks in our lives and our ministry because the success and power of God s mission rests in God alone. Jesus invites us to participate in God s mission so others can be changed by the gospel and so we can be changed by spreading it. Christ s church is always a church on the move. The mission field is right in our backyards. As followers of Jesus, called to be sent out into the world, we need to always live our lives as a witness to others of the awesome power of God s love. We are called to spread the gospel in word and deed. I encourage us as a congregation to not be stagnant in our outreach. I encourage us to serious look at new ways we can spread the gospel to the Sumter community. The growth of our church will depend on how all of us responds to Jesus call to go out and proclaim the gospel. So, be bold, be courageous, be innovative, get involved, and do. And we really can do this with great ingenuity and courage, knowing within in our earthen vessels, we carry the power of Almighty God. Christ s Peace, Pastor Keith

2 VICE-PRESIDENT S CORNER: Summer greetings from your council Vice President!!! We are almost into the dog days of summer, and hopefully the remaining days of summer will not be as hot as the past couple of weeks. Back to school is already on the mind of most parents. Sorry kids, it is a time that most parents look forward to. We at St. James have back to school on our minds as well Vacation Bible School that is. Have you ever thought about what VBS means to you, your children, and the community? This is the one big community outreach program that we have at St. James that is designed to bring in new people from within our community. We need to put our best foot forward with this endeavor. If the children enjoy their time at VBS, their parents just might bring them to Sunday School and regular worship services. Pastor Keith and your church council have been working diligently to resurrect our Sunday School program for this fall. I believe this is the foundation that builds our church attendance for the future. Most of you remember the good old days when we all attended VBS each year and Sunday School almost every Sunday. As a church congregation we have to return to those days and start building for the future. For reasons that most of you already know, our congregation has lost a lot of good members over the last 2-3 years. We must reach out to the community and bring in those that are currently unchurched and teach them of God s love, and that they will be part of a family that is caring and committed to helping one another. In closing, I would like to update everyone on (2) recent projects that your council has been working on: The new roof is on and the project is now 100% complete. The total cost was about $76, which was covered by our property insurance with the exception of $ (our insurance deductible). The Fellowship Hall kitchen remodel is underway, and should be completed shortly after the end of Vacation Bible School. It is your council s hope that we can get a new ice machine and a commercial refrigerator once the remodel is complete. God s peace be with you always, Mike Stewart

3 AUGUST 2 Jeff Schollmeyer 3 Julie Hackett 4 Bill Scobee 5 Becca Burroughs 11 Savannah Grace Stewart 12 Alan Hackett 14 Kathy Lyons 16 Gary Blakeman, Scott Copeland 17 Grayson Alexander, Sep Harvin, III, 19 Kathryn Staab 23 Crystal Reed 25 Bonnie Moses 26 Matthew Hackworth 31 Perry Moses, III If we missed your birthday, please let us know either by noting it on the back of your attendance slip, or by calling the church office. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 Messenger Due Dates Church Council Ministry Teams Anything that you wish to be included for publication in the Messenger should be turned in at the church office or ed to: stjamesoffice@sc.rr.com The deadline is 7 days before the last day of the month. The Church Council meets on the 3 rd Monday of each month. This Messenger and monthly calendar can be found on the St. James website: Click on news and calendar to view them. Mike Stewart Kimberly Dees Carl Simpson Tim Tidwell Curt Caulkins Susan Wild Janet Turner Betty Harvin David Armstrong Outreach/Care: Janet Turner Youth: Kimberly Dees Finance: Bob Bessel Worship: Tim Tidwell Property: Carl Simpson Education: Betty Harvin Stewardship: Susan Wild Evangelism: Janet Turner Mutual Ministry: Karen Hesselbart Spiritual Growth: David Armstrong Church Officers President: Curt Caulkins Vice President: Mike Stewart Secretary: Kimberly Dees Treasurer: Glenn Hesselbart

4 Prayer Needs If you have a prayer need and would like it in the next Newsletter, please me at stjamesoffice@sc.rr.com Pray for our Homebound Members, Ed Hart and Don & Jean Hoyt (161 Lakeview Ave. Lakewood, NY 14750) ( ) Pray for our Members in Nursing Homes: Mary Sigmon, and Betty McClimas Loving Father, we pray for all those in need of comfort in sickness of body, mind or spirit: Health and Related Issues: Denise Copeland, Prudence Roos (Lois Heal s sister), Dot Barrineau, Serena Loney, Rena Morin (Shirley Veins sister), Nola Geddings, (Hazelee Hallman s sister), Daniel Edwards, (son of Lynn and David Armstrong), deployed in Afghanistan, Deb Forke, Betty McClimans (mother of Marsha Geddings), Karl Harbath, Nit Cohen (Kim Strange s sister) Tom and Margaret Taylor, Stan Schaetzle, Ernie Reed, Debbie Galligan (friend of Nancy McElveen), Darlene Deinhart, Tom Bennett s mother, Marian Carey (sister in law of Lee Haas), Cecil Downing (friend of the Harbaths), Ed Litteer, Pastor Tim Rutherford, Stephanie Lindstrom (friend of the Getz family), and Mary Ann Reither (Susan Wild s mother). Ministries, Announcements & Upcoming Events THE WORSHIP TEAM will resume meetings on the second Tuesday evening in August (August 14) and the second Tuesday of every month thereafter at 7:00 pm in the parlor. THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND RESPONSE TO THE OPEN DATES on the altar flower calendar. We have donors for every Sunday now until mid-september. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. AS A CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY it is important that we lift each other up in many various ways; therefore, please let us know if you would like to showcase your business or a particular good or service you provide. We will showcase them on the bulletin board and eventually develop a business directory if we have enough of a response. Call the office ( ) or Pastor Keith for more information. DO YOU KNOW THIS MEMBER OF OUR CONGREGATION?? When he was 6 or 7 years old and just before he and his family were posted to Japan, he wrote 3 short stories. On a lark, he sent them to Science Fiction Digest. The stories were accepted and published, though he didn t know until a friend sent him the magazines. The plot of each story revolved around galactic wars with earth. He never wrote another story, however, but, not surprisingly, his grandson is now writing science fiction short stories. The answer will be published in the September issue of The Messenger.

5 ACOLYTE AND CRUCIFER SCHEDULE FOR AUGUST 2012: AUGUST 5: Acolyte: Easton Ward Crucifer: Larkin Simpson Attendant: Vicki Simpson AUGUST 12: Acolyte: Sam Dowd Crucifer: Samantha Wild Attendant: Susan Wild AUGUST 19: Acolyte: Annah Beck Crucifer: Jonathan Beck Attendant: Karen Hesselbart AUGUST 26: Acolyte: Larkin Simpson Crucifer: Caroline Simpson Attendant: Vicki Simpson THE LULA JUNE CIRCLE will meet on August 7 at 1:00pm for their semi-annual luncheon. The luncheon will be held at Simply Southern Bistro on Wesmark Blvd. All women of St. James are invited. For reservations and/or more information, please call Arletta Price at PASTOR S CLASS: During the month of September, Pastor Keith will be leading a class,on Wednesday evenings (5th,12th,19th,26th) at 6:30. The class will be on the catholicity (wholeness/universality) of our Lutheran heritage. The topics are as follows: Sept. 5 th what Luther thought about the crucifix, icons, making the sign of the cross, and Mary, Sept. 12 th the mass, transubstantiation, and the real presence, Sept 19 th saved by grace though faith apart from the works of the law, union with Christ, sanctification, and piety, Sept. 26 the Bible as living Word, telling the story, how to pray, and unity with other churches. Join us for desert, coffee, and fellowship as we return to our Wonderful Wednesdays. Bring a friend, neighbor or relative!! THE ST. JAMES LUTHERAN MEN IN MISSION: The St. James Men will host a Father/Son, Grandfather/Grandson game night and pizza party on Monday, August 13 th beginning at 6:00pm at the party hut at Ray Ziecker s home. There will be outdoor and indoor games followed by pizza courtesy of the St. James Men. Join us for fun and fellowship. Contact John Kinser ( ) or Ray Ziecker ( ) for directions and/or reservations. THE RESERVATION DEADLINE IF FAST APPROACHING for the special summer getaway for married couples! Attend the next Lutheran marriage encounter weekend on August 31-September 2 at Christmount Assembly Retreat Center, Black Mountain NC. You ll communicate on a deeper level, rekindle your romance, and renew your commitment to each other. For more information or to register, contact Ed & Judy Raney at (843) or jermarriageencounter@gmail.com or apply online at: The reservation deadline is August 10 th. IN MY LAST MESSAGE in the newsletter, I neglected to mention all the cards we, Karl, Gary and I, had received. I apologize and thank all of you who sent cards. Barbara Harbath IKE AND MARILYN JENKINS would like to thank all the members of St James for the memorial service, food, cards, and kind expressions of sympathy at the passing of Marilyn s mother, Olga Faye Summy on June 18th, We are blessed to have such a loving and caring church family.

6 CHRISTIAN HOST FAMILIES ARE NEEDED for international students who would like to attend Wilson Hall School this fall. These F-1 visa students speak English, are fully insured, and have their own pocket money. Host families provide room and board, transportation to and from school and receive a generous monthly hosting stipend. For more information please contact Shelayne or THIS IS A PRAYER FOR RAIN IN THOSE DRY AREAS OF AMERICA PLEASE JOIN IN! As evidenced by people living in Colorado, Oklahoma, West/Central/South Texas, New Mexico and ever-increasing areas in other parts of the country, the drought condition is reaching critical status. Cattle are being auctioned off, crops have burned up, and drinking water is becoming a concern. Please join us in this prayer circle. Lets make this one of the largest prayer circles ever. It will be as though everyone is holding hands around the world. For the farmers in Wisconsin, Illinois and this area suffering from the draught also. Dear Heavenly Father, You said whenever any two or more come together and agree and ask in Your Son's name, it shall be given. We come to you, humbly, and ask that you bring down the rain to our parched lands. Our farmers and ranchers need it desperately, as well as our firefighters. We ask this all this in Jesus' name. Amen. You may adopt this prayer and evidence your participation in this gathering by simply passing this prayer request on to your circle of friends! ( from Arletta Price) FROM CHRISTIAN CHARITIES OF SUMTER: The mail carriers held their can food drive for he communities they serve. This drive was the most successful in recent years. We really appreciate their willingness to take on this extra work. They did a great job and went the extra mile. We thank Charles Hodge of Hodge Transportation for providing transportation to carry the collected food from the post office to United Ministries. And, thank you for your recent donation to Christian Charities. It is great to live in a caring and sharing community. Cecil Crayton, Chairperson THE CADET AND SENIOR GIRL SCOUT TROOP #2292 will hold 3 car washes in August at St. James. They will be: Saturday, August 11 th, 18 th, and on August 25 th they will have a combined car wash/ bake sale/yard sale. Help support our St. James girl scouts and get a clean car!! OUT OF THE MOUTH OF BABES: A Sunday school teacher was teaching her class about the difference between right and wrong. All right children, let s take another example, she said. If I were to get into a man s pocket and take his billfold with all his money, what would I be? Little Johnny raises his hand, and with a confident smile, he blurts out, You d be his wife!

7 LUTHERAN CAMPUS MINISTRY at St. Matthews Lutheran in Charleston is looking forward to welcoming students to Charleston this fall. If you know of a student enrolled at College of Charleston, MUSC or the School of Law, please send their name, home address, and to: Pastor Sarah Lang: slang@smlccharleston.org She plans to make contact over the summer and welcome students more fully in the fall. AFTER A WEEK OF NATURAL DISASTER ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, the congregations and ministries of the ELCA are now in the process of assessing damaages and getting to work in the recovery process. In Colorado, where four separate wildfires have consumed over 20,000 acres of land, The Rv. Julie Britsch of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Colorado Springs had to evacuate along with 95% of her congregation. ELCA Disaster Response is in the area assessing the situation, determining needs and the appropriate response. MEMBERS OF ST.JAMES have, in the past, provided items for people in the Northwoods Senior Living facility, owned by Dot Barrineau s son, Steve. We now want to start this ministry again. A box will be available in the narthex for donations of personal products (toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorent, etc.) sheets (twin), pillowcases, towels and wash cloths. Clothing is also needed for both men and women (including underwear, slippers, and socks, for example). AN IPOD WAS FOUND by the scouts in the bathroom off the kitchen. Please call or stop by the church office to identify and claim. Office hours are 8:30-1:30 M-F. AS SEEN ON A CHURCH SIGN: Never give the devil a ride. He will always want to drive! THE AMERICAN RED CROSS will hold a blood drive at St. James on Sunday, September 23 rd from 1:00-6:00pm. Please mark your calendars to give the gift of life. For more information and/or to sign up for a particular time, please call the Red Cross at SAY A PRAYER: Little Johnny and his family were having Sunday dinner at his Grandmother's house. Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served. When Little Johnny received his plate, he started eating right away. "Johnny! Please wait until we say our prayer." said his mother. "I don't need to," the boy replied. "Of course, you do "his mother insisted. "We always say a prayer before eating at our house." "That's at our house." Johnny explained. "But this is Grandma's house and she knows how to cook. ELCA MALARIA CAMPAIGN: By the end of May, ELCA members had raised more than $3 million in cash and another $500,000 in future commitments for the malaria campaign. Another $12 million is needed by June A special appeal during the week of April 25 th brought in more than $250,000 topping the $200,000 goal.

8 Dear St. James Family, Thank you for all your support & prayers during our recent journey to the Southwest Diocese of Tanzania. It was a long and at times difficult journey, but the time on the mountain was very rewarding. Our journey started at Columbia Metro airport & went by way of Dulles in Washington where we changed flights & boarded Ethiopian Airlines and headed for Addis Abibah, Ethiopia, for our next flight change. From Ethiopia, we went to Mt. Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzania. It was about a 33 hour journey of approximately 19,000 miles! From the airport in Mt. Kilimanjaro we travelled in two 8 passenger safari vans to the city of Arusha and stayed in the New Safari Hotel which is owned and operated by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania. After a shower, a nice meal, some sleep and a good breakfast, we once again boarded our safari vans and headed out on a 12 hour road trip to the city of Morogoro to spend our second night in Tanzania. At this point, it is a bit like a repeat again! We ate, showered, slept and had breakfast and boarded our safari vans for a second lengthy road trip to our final destination of the village of Magoye in the Southwest Diocese. We were warmly greeted in Magoye upon our evening arrival to the Bishop s compound. Since we were a small group of only 12 individuals we were able to stay in one house on this trip. Two people shared a room and we had two bathrooms to share between the 12 of us. Shuki, one of the local men, was our cook during our stay and he cooked all our meals and kept us supplied with plenty of thermoses of hot water so that we could have hot tea and coffee throughout the day and evening. Since we arrived on Saturday evening, we spent our time upacking, settling in and relaxing. On Sunday we walked down the road to Magoye Church for Sunday service. Pastor Bolick, our spiritual advisor from St. Matthews Lutheran Church in Charleston, was asked to read the Gospel that Sunday and we were very touched that they included us in the worship service. We also sang as one of the choirs. We dubbed ourselved the Holy Spirit Choir as we only seem to be able to sing what the spirit moves us to sing! Sunday is truly a day of rest in Tanzania, so after the service we ate lunch, relaxed and took a walking tour of the village of Magoye and prepared for VBS which was to take place on Monday. VBS was an amazing experience for me personally (Kimberly) because I had planned it and because we were able to come into a state operated school to provide this one day VBS opportunity for a local village. Instead of having it at the Magoye school, which is one of the nicer schools in the Southwest Diocese, we were allowed to visit some of the poorer schools on this visit. We were greeted by local children and villagers with drums and singing, poems and dancing. We truly felt welcomed and blessed. Our theme was This little light of mine and we taught them to sing the song, made paper lanterns, told them a Bible story (with the help of translators) and played outside games. There was no glass in the windows and the adults from the village were hanging in the windows to see and hear what we were doing with the children. The colorful bandanas we gave to them and the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were quite the hit! Our second trip to this school later in the week to present some orphan children with school uniforms and to presents everyone with school supplies was no less a blessed event!

9 All in all, we visited 3 different schools, 2 primary and 1 secondary, to donate uniforms & school supplies. We visited an orphanage where we provided them with clothing, soccer balls, hula hoops & jump ropes. There were two clinic days where well baby checks and dental work were provided. We visited the future Trinity Teachers College to see what progress has been made toward the building of that facility and met with local leaders about what was needed to proceed with those plans. We attended church every Sunday we were in the village and those services were an amazing God filled experience, despite the language differences! The service our last Sunday in Magoye lasted 3 hours and we weren t ready for it to end! We left the village the next Monday and began our journey back to Mt. Kilimanjaro, with plans for a side trip to visit the Norogoro Crater for a safari tour. It was a very difficult two day journey by safari van that lasted hours each day! We were much appreciative of our 2 day stay at the Beaugan Villa to refresh before getting to the airport to repeat our 30+ hour experience of airplane flights & layovers in airports! For me, (Kimberly) I had a double joy on this trip I got to see Mildred & David renew friendships and see the joy on their faces as they saw the progress made since they have begun to make these trips. I also had the joy of experiencing things as a first timer so it was quite the experience! Please be patient, with us in the weeks to come as we are all excited to share our stories about our journey with you! Thank you for all your support! Blessings, Kimberly Dees

10 St. James Lu heran School Where Jesus is Lord and His children grow in grace, truth, and knowledge 1137A Alice Drive Sumter, SC Phone: Dear SJLS Church Members, Welcome to a new school year. Our first day of school is August 20, A new school year is always exciting. Our focus will be on providing each child with new challenges that will result in a rewarding school experience. Academic emphasis on the core content areas of reading, language arts, science, social studies, and math will remain a priority as well as providing a learning program that builds on each year to reach local and state standards. Instruction in the word of God, foreign language, technology, and physical education complete our program providing each student with the opportunity to walk with our Lord and develop areas of interest and skill. As we begin this year, please remember that this is your school and we welcome your involvement. To increase communication between church and school, we are asking all church members to always check the bulletin for upcoming events. Please mark your calendars for August 19 th. The school will have an open house for all church members right after the worship service. Light refreshments will be provided by the SJLS School Board. I encourage all of you to join us at our school functions. By establishing a strong foundation between church and school and being actively involved our school will grow in God s love and this love for the Lord will be shared throughout the Sumter community. SJLS has Spirit Night with Chik-Fil-A the second Thursday of every month from 5-8. I encourage you to join us for this. It is a wonderful way to raise money for our school and to get mom out of the kitchen. Please utilize the school website at sjls.sumter.org, regularly. The SJLS School Board would like to thank the church council for the contribution towards the new playground. A special thank you goes out to Mr. Ray Ziecker and Emory McElveen for all of their help in keeping things running and putting things together at SJLS. I would like to send a heart full of gratitude and appreciation out to Sep & Betty Harvin for their contribution for the beautification plan for the front of the school. In closing I would like to thank all of the SJLS School Board members for their dedication, service and support in growing God s school. Sincerely, Brandy Mullennax

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12 ST. JAMES LUTHERAN CHURCH 1137 ALICE DRIVE Sumter, SC Return Service Requested Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit 105 Sumter SC Church Office Hours: Monday Friday: 8:30 1:30 Office: Fax: The Reverend Keith Getz, Pastor SERVICES: Wednesday: 10:30 am, Bible Study Noon, Holy Communion Service Sunday School: 9:00 am Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 am Office hours: 8:30am 1:30pm M F ST. JAMES LUTHERAN CHURCH MISSION STATEMENT: called by God, centered in the Word and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we rejoice in the Lord, proclaim His gift of Grace through liturgical worship and service and share Christ s love