St. Andrew Lutheran Church

Transcription

1 St. Andrew Lutheran Church St. Andrew Lutheran Church September 2015 Reverend Ed Filter, Pastor Worship Service Sunday 10 a.m. Sunday School & Adult Bible Study Sunday 9 a.m Kent Street Portland, MI Phone: Pastor s portlandstandrew@sbcglobal.net Office standrew.secy@sbcglobal.net Website: Home of Wee Grow Christian Preschool From The Pastor s Desk Dear Friends and Members of St. Andrew, C. S. Lewis once remarked that God is not the sort of thing that one can be moderately interested in. After all, if God does not exist, there's no reason to be interested in God at all. On the other hand, if God does exist, then this is of paramount interest, and our ultimate concern ought to be how to be properly related to this being upon whom we depend moment by moment for our very existence. In speaking to his Old Testament people, God spoke of his importance as well. He said, "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law My servant Moses gave you, do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go" (Joshua 1:7). In commenting on her relationship to King Jesus, Lillian Hellman said, "I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year's fashions, rather I will commit to following God's Word and allow Him to guide my life." What a life transforming perspective for a runaway world that has a growing disinterest in the things of God. Everywhere we look we are being tempted to leave God's Word behind for a more modern and enlightened approach that focuses in on personal pleasure and doing the things that you think will make you happy. This self-centered perspective seldom leads to a fulfilled and productive life. For Christians this is a unique challenge. Do we build our lives on the living Word or do we cave in to the world's philosophy. A pastor once noted: "Double-mindedness is a common disease that leaves its victims paralyzed by doubt... hesitant, hypocritical, full of theoretical words, but lacking in confident action. Lots of talk but no guts. Insincere and insecure." What an interesting thought! How true! How many times have we not seen good people go down because they thought they could get away with a little lie, a little theft, some small moral indiscretion? But, in the end, the lack of moral commitment brings only heartache, sorrow, and more struggles. Take a few moments and think about how important it is to listen to the Holy Spirit and let Him guide your thoughts, words and deeds. It is always better to what is right. It will make for such a better day. For many of you, your summer church attendance might be a sign of that lack of commitment. We missed you and God certainly forgives you for your lack of commitment as well as every other sin that you confess. Now is the time to think about adjusting that commitment. Many new opportunities to be committed are offered in September. Bible classes, outreach through the corn roast, prayer growth time, and more. Hope to see you more often. Take these words of C. S. Lewis to heart. What God has done in sending Jesus for us is of the utmost importance! In Christ Service, Pastor Filter Page 1

2 September Schedules Acolyte 6 Mya Collins 13 Sadie Veale 20 Cam Roof 27 Jacob Veale Altar Guild Jeanne Bauer Elena Brooks Elder Tom Fryover Fellowship 6 Tracy Kleitch 13 Jack & Mary Sandborn 20 Nita Massey 27 Chris & Laura Roof Greeters 6 Brooks Family 13 Jack & Mary Sandborn 20 Pastor & Nancy Filter 27 Tracy Kleitch Nursery 6 Mary Brooks 13 Hannah Wakley 20 Charlotte Kleitch 27 Karlie Sprague Worship Readers 6 Mark Haworth 13 Tim & Michelle Perry 20 Tom Fryover 27 Mary Sandborn Being found in Human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8 Adult Bible Study The Sunday Morning Bible Study will start to meet on Sunday mornings at 9:10 a.m. the same weekend that Sunday School starts. That will be Sunday, September 20th and the first date may be a mini-concert by Dave Britton. See Pastor to suggest a topic. The weekday morning study will resume in September as well. Pastor has a Circuit Visitor's conference on Wednesday, September 16th so plans are to begin Wednesday, September 23rd at 9 a.m. See Pastor to suggest a topic for that group as well. SAYG Please talk to Laura Roof if you have ideas for our Youth Group. We talked about SAYG at our August Prayer Growth meeting, so watch the bulletin for announcements for news about the fall schedule. Positions To Fill We have three positions that we are hoping to fill soon. Please take a moment and consider if one of these positions might be a good way for you utilize your time and talents for our church. Preschool Treasurer: This person would take the position Nancy Filter has been filling. As Nancy has taken over much of the Sunday morning music position, she is no longer able to fulfill the Treasurer positon. Principal duties include writing checks and keeping the accounts for tuition for the students. Knowing QuickBooks would be a major asset. Talk to Pastor or Nancy Filter if you have questions or are interested in this position. Secretary for Council and Voter's: This person would take the position Mary Eisenhauer filled, until her recent move. The principal responsibility would be taking minutes and doing correspondence for these groups. Talk to Pastor if you have questions or are interested in this position. Preschool Board Member: This person would take the positon Mary Eisenhauer filled. See Pastor for more details on the duties of this position, if you have questions or are interested in this position. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God s grace in its various forms. I Peter 4:10 Page 2

3 Ladies Group Game Night: Game Night returns on Saturday, September 26th from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Bring your board or card game or play one of ours. Bring a snack to share, if you d like, beverages provided by the ladies group. Bring your friends, family and neighbors, Game Night is always a fun time! It is a great way to unwind and relax and enjoy the fellowship of our church family and a chance to meet new folks, too! Mark your calendars, we hope to see you on the 26th! Next Ladies Group Meeting: Our next meeting will be on Sunday, September 27th at 9 a.m. in the Conference Room. All ladies are invited to join us to help plan events and support the ministry at St. Andrew. We have fall and winter activities to plan and prepare for and can use your help! Please consider joining us. Our meetings are very casual, and we d love to see some new faces! Summer Walk & Bible Study: It wasn t just for Ladies this summer, everyone was invited to join our weekly walk and Bible study. The (Ladies) Summer Walk & Bible Study concluded Living A Chocolate Life Bible study on August 19th. Adult Bible study will resume on September 20, see details on page 2. Book Talk: Book Talk is the book club of the Ladies Group at St. Andrew, and we invite all who enjoy reading to read along with us. As of the date of this newsletter publication, the book for September had not yet been chosen. Please visit our Book Talk website at for the title of the book, or talk with Ruth Helmreich or Nancy Filter for more details. Supporting Our Community: On August 4th the Ladies Group provided a meal for the workers that were building the pavilion at the Red Mill. The Ladies, under the direction of Elena Brooks, made and served dinner to over 50 persons in our Fellowship Hall. The meal consisted of fried chicken, baked beans and coleslaw. The meal was prepared by Elena and the Ladies and desserts were provided by members of St. Andrew. Providing a meal to the Red Mill workers was a great way for St. Andrew to give-back to our community. Thank you to Elena for overseeing this project and to our members for supporting this project. Red Mill workers dinner at St. Andrew Fellowship Hall Page 3

4 September Birthdays 1 Megan Kleitch 4 Becky Ruehs 6 Ed Moffatt 10 Sam Beavers Ray Bodak Emily Felzke 12 Steve Bashore Joshua Rutkowski 14 Elaine Hartman Shane Scheurer Ed Sprague 16 Mindy Nowak 17 Becky Ward Kathy Wright 18 Justin Hammond Bruce Kenyon 21 Jarrod Huhn Beau Scheurer Beverly Schneider 23 Dixie May Hartman 24 Kayla Peabody 25 Tanya Marcum 27 Lauren Manzini 28 Liberty Pennington John Simon 30 Elena Brooks Mike Hartman September Anniversaries Happy Anniversary 2 Jim & Mollie Guidi 3 Don & Bonnie Miller 7 Chris & Cali O Neill 14 Dave & Kathy Peters 17 Kris & Kendra Spitzley 18 Bill & Mindy Nowak Jim & Kathy Wright 20 Dan & Darlene Bekins 24 Nick & Julie Lefke 29 John & Jeanne Bauer Stewardship Corner Why People Give and Why They Do Not God s Word speaks quite a bit about the importance of giving. Our giving gives evidence to the depth of our faith and trust in the Lord. God wants us to give cheerfully (2 Corinthians 9:7), regularly (1 Corinthians 16:2), proportionately (2 Corinthians 8:12), and the first portion of our incomes (Proverbs 3:9). Through our faithful and generous giving, we express our thanks to God for His goodness, love, and mercy. By God s grace through Jesus, we are enabled to return a portion of what God entrusts back to Him through our giving to our church and other Christian ministries. In his book, The Power of Pure Stewardship, Rev. Carl W. Berner, Sr. gives the results of a survey on giving. The following are the top six reasons that caused people to be faithful in their stewardship: I want to show my gratitude for all God has done for me. I want to be faithful in my stewardship. I want to live within God s will. I want my life to count for God. I want to be true to God s principle to give as He prospers. I want to lay up treasures in heaven. These same people, reflecting their own struggles before achieving a breakthrough in their personal stewardship, identified some hurdles which had to be overcome. 1. I can t afford to be a good steward. 2. I have to take care of myself first. 3. I intend to give when my ship comes in. 4. I was not taught as a youth to give in proportion to how I ve been blessed. 5. Constant appeals for money led me to hold back in expectation of the next appeal. Possibly the biggest issue that prevents many of us from giving freely is the desire for financial security. The fear is that, if we give too much, we will have too little for ourselves and our future. It is right and reasonable to have a desire for personal security. What is wrong is to think that if we have much wealth we are secure. Without God, none of us can be secure even though we may possess millions of dollars. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will be able to tell the difference between true security in the Lord and the false security that money and possessions of this world try to provide. May God help each of us understand the shortcomings of what the world offers, which leads to failure, and help us to strive for the real security found only in God. Page 4

5 Vacation Bible School In July we were pleased to have 50 children enrolled in our VBS so that we could share the message, Jesus Is My Superhero with them. The children had a great time learning new songs, hearing Bible stories, enjoying yummy snacks, creating fun crafts and playing super fun games! Our VBS program could not have been such a success without our volunteers. We would like to thank our VBS director Laura Roof for all of her time, talent and energy that she gave to make our VBS so great! We would like to extend a very special thank you to all of our wonderful VBS volunteers: Adults: Jeanne Bauer, Amanda Filter, Nancy Filter, Ruth Helmreich, Liz Miller, Tim Perry, Cheryl Pugsley and Mary Sandborn; Youth: Cameron, Emma, Hannah, Liam, Mary, Matt, Olivia, Reese, and Sadie. Page Page 5 5

6 Vacation Bible School Page 6

7 Farewell On June 28th we bid farewell to Frank and Mary Eisenhauer, who sold their home in Portland to move to the West side of the state. After the service Mark Haworth presented a plaque to Frank and Mary, recognizing them for their years of service and dedication to St. Andrew and the Ladies Group hosted a Farewell potluck, which included a cake made by Elena Brooks. Fourth of July Thank you to SAYG (St. Andrew Youth Group) members who attached candy to flyers to be handed out during the Fourth of July Parade. And thank you to the volunteers who decorated the truck and walked in the parade and distributed the flyers and candy that promoted our VBS program. SAYG Members: Cameron, Charlotte, Mary & Megan with Amanda Filter Laura Roof, Mary & Elena Brooks, Pastor, Nancy & Amanda Filter, Jack Sandborn Memorial Dedication A new Candle Lighter was purchased with Memorial Funds donated in memory of Dave Ruehs. The Candle Lighter was dedicated on July 12th, after which it was used for the first time. Dave s wife Sue, sons David and Tim, along with their families, were present for the special dedication. The family of Dave Ruehs Page 7

8 New Member Welcome On Sunday, August 9th St. Andrew was blessed to welcome Jeff Brooks and Diane Sprague as new members after they completed the Adult Inquirer s Class. In addition, it was a great blessing to witness and be a part of Jeff s baptism that day. Please keep Jeff and Diane in your prayers as they seek ways to serve God as members of St. Andrew. PAMA and Thrivent Team Up Again On Saturday, November 7th PAMA and Thrivent will team up for another Kids Against Hunger event. We will collect donations for materials and will need volunteers to package the food that morning. Begin to pray for the event and mark it on your calendar so you can help it be even more successful than last year's 40,000 meals packaged! More details will be coming soon. Altar Flowers There are still dates available to sign up to provide altar flowers. The sign up sheet is in the narthex near the mail boxes. Dates that are still available* are September 13 & 20, October 4, 11 & 25, November 15 & 29 and December 13 & 27. The cost for altar flowers is $24. Please keep in mind that if no one signs up for altar flowers on a particular date, due to budget constraints, there will be no altar flowers that day. (*dates were available at time of publication) October Newsletter The deadline for submitting information for the October newsletter is Sunday, September 20th. Please contact Pastor or Tracy Kleitch with questions or submissions. Camp Concordia Labor Day Weekend at Camp Concordia September 4-7, 2015 Lodging: Family Campground sites with Saturday BBQ OR Bunkhouse Style Cabins with all meals included There is still plenty of space for Family Campground Campers and Bunkhouse Cabin Cambers. Join a simple pleasant weekend of camping. Plus join the Saturday night all camp BBQ. Fee: Varies depending on accommodations. Get more information and register online at or call Page 8

9 am Worship Service am Worship Service Noisy Offering PAMA 20 9 am 1st Day of Sunday Sch. and Adult Bible Study 10 am Dave Britton Worship Service Deadline for October Nwsltr 14 1st Day - 4 year old Preschool :30 pm Prayer Growth Meeting 15 1st Day - 3 year old Preschool September Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 9 am Sunday School Ladies Group Meeting 10 am Worship Service Church Office Closed Labor Day 1 9 am WINKEL Meeting 6:30 pm Preschool Bd Mtg :30 pm Preschool Orientation 7-8pm PUMC Choir Practice 16 9 am Pastor at Circuit Mtg. 7-8pm PUMC Choir Practice 23 9am Adult Bible Study 7-8pm PUMC Choir Practice 30 9 am Adult Bible Study 7-8 pm PUMC Choir Practice :30 am Pastor at Circuit Mtg pm Corn Roast/BBQ/ Dave Britton Concert 26 6:30 8:30 pm Game Night Page 9

10 St. Andrew Lutheran Church Home of Wee Grow Christian Preschool 8867 Kent Street Portland, MI Corn Roast and Dave Britton Concert On Saturday, September 19th from 4 to 7 p.m. St. Andrew will host an Outreach event for the community. Dave Britton will be in concert, Thrivent will be hosting a barbeque, and the church will offer a Corn Roast and the fixings. It will be free to anyone in the community including but not limited to our members. Dave will then spend the night and help us kick off the Fall Sunday School season with a mini-concert during the Sunday School hour and lead worship as well. The Ladies Group will sponsor a potluck after church on the 20th. Watch the bulletin for ways that you can help and start to invite your friends to the Barbeque and Concert, especially those who are un-churched. Talk to Pastor or Mary Sandborn if you have questions. David Paul Britton shares the Message of Christ in Word and song. David has served the body of Christ as a worship leader, musician/ songwriter/producer, radio show host, university consultant, Praise Team and Choral Clinician, Lutheran High School educator and Gospel messenger for over 35 years throughout the US. In a sight-and-sound world, the sight and sound of God s love and Truth brings hope and healing. From sanctuaries to lake-side parks, from convention halls to classrooms, in over 200 engagements yearly, David touches hearts for the sake of Jesus Love and Truth.