CHURCH in the WOODS Newsletter

Transcription

1 Faith Lutheran Church, Swanburg County Rd.1, Pine River, MN Address Service Requested 2017 United We Stand "We Serve God by Serving Others" Faith Lutheran Church, Swanburg Co, Rd, 1 Pine River MN Church (218) faith@uslink.net Web Site: Pastor: Rev. Joan Gunderman Web Master: Steve Braker Editor: Janis Allen For Prayer Chain call CHURCH in the WOODS Newsletter Catch the Spirit, come worship with us!

2 Reformation Milestone: Celebration and Repentance October 31, 2017, marks the 500 th anniversary of the start of the protestant Reformation, when Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on a church door in Germany. This wasn t an unusual act at the time; Luther was simply welcoming scholarly debate. But his ideas opposing certain teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church led to a monumental shift in Christianity. Along with other reformers, Luther taught that Scripture is the supreme authority for the believer; that salvation comes by grace alone, through faith alone; and that baptism gives all full access to God in Christ ( {the priesthood of all believers ), so there s no need for an intermediary such as a pope, priest or saint. Initially, the reformers intended not to leave the Catholic Church but to reform it. But those who protested church practices became known as Protestants, and eventually, multiple denominations arose Lutheranism, Presbyterianism, Anglicanism and others and did, in fact, separate from the Roman tradition. Sadly, woven amid the good intentions to rightly teach and live the faith were sins on all sides: Luther hurled insults with the best of them ; the pope excommunicated him and had other reformers executed; the beliefs and faith of theological opponents were regularly disparaged. As Heinz Josef Algermissen, a present-day Roman Catholic bishop in Germany, states: In commemorating the Reformation, we cannot just see it as a jubilee, but should also admit our guilt for past errors and repent on both sides for the past 500 years. From one Pumpkin to Another!! A woman was asked by a coworker, What is it like to be a Christian? the coworker replied, It is like being a pumpkin. God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. Then he cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, and greed. Then he carves you a new smiling face and puts his light inside of you to shine for all the world to see. Women of the Reformation Although the names most often associated with the Reformation are male, women also played key roles in maintaining the integrity of the church. Most were wives and mothers, professor Justin Holcomb writes. Some were also authors, apologists, exnuns and queens. All were faithful servants of Jesus. Women who made notable contributions include: Katherine von Bora, the former nun who married former-priest Martin Luther Argula von Grumbach, a Bavarian noblewoman who published letters and debated with university faculty Olympia Fulvia Morata, an Italian scholar who lectured on the teachings of Luther and Calvin and was persecuted and imprisoned Jeanne d Albret, queen of Navarre and a leader in France s Huguenot movement, who tried to peacefully resolve tensions between Catholics and Protestants Marie Dentière, an aristocrat who left an Augustinian monastery to speak in public even on street corners! about church reform Who was Luther? Did you realize Martin Luther was not born a Lutheran? In fact, he was no different than you and I. He learned as he went. He received a typical education and, because of his intelligence, was put on a path to becoming a lawyer. But as the story goes lightning struck and he changed course; deciding to become a monk instead. He excelled in that life, and had no desire to do anything more. His superiors had other plans for him, however, and he soon found himself a professor at the University of Wittenberg: a start-up university in an unknown shabby little town. But soon, the name of this school and the town in which it was located would be known throughout Europe.

3 I am writing this on the afternoon of September 23 and, so far, the world has not ended as predicted after all the hurricanes, earthquakes, and fires. If you are reading this, then September 23 continued and ended without distinction; just another Saturday. The last two months have been more than a little alarming with the number and intensity of the natural disasters which have destroyed so much and disrupted human community and life in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico, Florida, Texas, Mexico, and the fires in the northwest. Many like to attribute such devastation to God, describing them as acts of God, even as punishment from God for a particular sin. How many end of the world dates have been announced over the centuries by those who spend their lives calculating disasters, doing some mysterious mathematics, and ending up with a particular date and time only to be proven wrong? And yet, such announcements keep coming, almost as if there was a yearning for the end of all things as we know it to actually come. A few problems: 1) In the Jewish/Christian Old Testament story of the flood, God promises never to destroy the earth/people/creation again. God even creates the rainbow as a seal on that promise, and a reminder to us of that promise when we are afraid. God/Jesus allowed himself to be brutally murdered instead, in order to save us. All of Scripture testifies that God doesn t break promises; God s promises are sacred, and God goes to great lengths to keep them. 2) As with other issues, we target certain verses in Scripture and lift them up as proof that our particular point of view is correct; but at the same time, we ignore other Scriptural verses/stories/texts which contradict it. In this case, from Romans 8: All creation is eagerly waiting for God to reveal who God s children are. Creation was subjected to frustration but not by its own choice. The one who subjected it to frustration did so in the hope that it would All of Scripture testifies that God doesn t break promises; God s promises are sacred, and God goes to great lengths to keep them. also be set free from slavery to decay in order to share the glorious freedom that the children of God will have. We know that all creation has been groaning with the pains of childbirth up to the present time. However, not only creation groans. We, who have the Spirit as the first of God s gifts, also groan inwardly. We groan as we eagerly wait for our adoption, the freeing of our bodies from sin. 3) In our rush to blame God as the bad guy, we forget that our sin affects not only other people, communities, nations, but the whole of creation as well. It has been made clear now by scientists working independently all over the world, that human activity aggravates and worsens what is otherwise normal climate change which, through most of history, has been slow, gradual, triggered by natural earthly events. Genesis says God put us in charge of creation to till it and keep it more specifically to reverence, respect, protect it in the Hebrew. Perhaps, our time would be better spent, and our faith better lived out, if we focused on that, rather than on finding someone to blame. Blaming solves absolutely nothing. Neither does living in fear of the end. Moving forward in biblical faith as cocreators with our loving and gracious Creator and Redeemer will do more to ease both peoples and the rest of creation s groaning and suffering, giving glory to the One who loves it, and died to save it, all. Be ye fishers of men -- you catch them and He'll clean them. 3

4 Please continue to pray for these persons who have ongoing health problems: Pat Welf, Don Peterson, David Satherlie, Brian Busby, Bub Moser, Mona Nesnick, Shirley Anderson, Eddie Gard, Chuck McCausland, Nancy Godfrey, Carol Carlson, and Michael Edman. Bill Bergman, Bob s brother, has been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Tammy Carlson Bacon, daughter of Bubby and Arlyn Carlson, had back surgery in Alaska on September 19. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery. Annette Petschl had an infection but is now home and doing much better. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers for a total recovery. Dorothy Potz had some tests done and is awaiting the outcome. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Josh Baron, Grand-son-in-law to Carol Buchite, has a brain tumor. An operation is very risky, but he is losing his sight. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Rita Walton, Bonnie Schlapkohl s sister, had open heart surgery. She is home and doing well. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery. Janis Allen had another bladder surgery to scrape the cancerous tumor site. No more cancer cells were found! She will be having an autoimmune therapy. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Area Youth who recently lost two classmates. One to a car accident and another to suicide. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Anniversaries October 02 Al & Loni Porta 17 Kevin & Joann Swanson Treasurer s Report: August 1-31, 2017 General fund Income: $3, General fund Expenses: $2, $ October Birthdays 04 Hope Anderson 11 Leonidus Anderson 12 Travis Erickson 15 Harley Erickson 15 Shelby Zimmerman 16 Shirley Anderson 16 Laurie MacInnes 17 Helen Landholm 18 Pastor Joan Gunderman 18 Eileen O Brien 18 Cory Fornell 21 Terry Fornell 23 Rod Johnson 23 Marilyn Olufs 26 Emily Pratt 30 Autumn Schmidt Door A door symbolizes our invitation to engage in prayer and a personal relationship with Jesus: Knock and the door will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7, NIV). Conversely, a door represents Jesus desire to be invited into our lives and hearts: I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me (Revelation 3:20, NIV). 4

5 BY HEART: Conversations with Martin Luther s Small Catechism Lifelong Learning opportunity! Weds. evenings, Oct. 4 - Nov. 22, 6:00PM (Please notice date change. No class Nov. 8) As we celebrate the 500 th Anniversary of the Reformation this year, I will be teaching this course that promises to be lively and fascinating. This is for adults who have never encountered the Small Catechism, and it is for adults who studied and memorized it as adolescents or teens. Perhaps now, as adults, you re not exactly sure what you actually learned way back then. (book is bright red & white) It is for those who assume that the catechism requires no further explanation and that we should simply pick it up and start reading or memorizing; and, it is for those who find scripture to be an inaccessible forest of words, the Creed and Lord s Prayer to be rote exercise, the sacraments (what are they again??) to be obscure rituals, and Martin Luther and his innovations to be largely irrelevant. It is for Lutherans; and, it is for everyone else no matter what denomination, or even none. We begin each session with a short DVD presentation, and then open for conversation with what we have heard and read. Readings from an awesome, top quality study/reference book, with beautiful color photos and illustrations -- $13.00 and worth every penny! (Due at first session) There is a sign-up sheet at the back of the sanctuary, or contact either the office or myself ( ) if you are interested. This will help assure we ll have enough books. (Couples can easily get by with one book). Brainerd MN The following Brainerd Lakes Area Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) congregations will gather for worship to celebrate the 500 th Anniversary of the Reformation at 11:00 am on Sunday, October 8th at Tornstrom Auditorium in Brainerd: Bethel (Brainerd), Bethlehem (Brainerd), First (Brainerd), Trinity (Brainerd), Lord of Life (Baxter), Lutheran Church of the Cross (Nisswa), and Crosslake Lutheran (Crosslake). Bishop Tom Aitken (ELCA Bishop of the Northeastern Minnesota Synod) will be present to preach and preside during communion. The service will include a mass adult choir from members of the seven congregations under the direction of Brian Stubbs, a mass children's choir from members of the seven congregations under the direction of Patricia Lundeen, the Bethlehem Lutheran bell choir, the Trinity Lutheran flute choir, and a joint procession of retired and active clergy along with other lay leaders. We give God thanks and praise as we celebrate and seek to engage God's ongoing mission in the world through Jesus Christ in the power and promise of the Holy Spirit. While I tried to get the Teen Challenge Choir in November, they're already booked almost to January. However, they had Dec. 17 available (Sunday before Christmas Eve) so I grabbed it. I think it will be a lovely time to have them and their witness, especially since it can be a particularly difficult time of year for so many dealing personally or within family with substance abuse and/or recovery. They asked about a potluck afterward (pretty standard), and I said yes. Minimal work/time for kitchen crew compared to providing them a formal meal. Pastor Joan 5

6 We express out Christian sympathies to Les Peterson and his family on the death of his wife, Bev. Les grew up here at Faith and he and Bev were great friends and supporters of this congregation. We express our Christian sympathies to the family of Jerry Endrizzi, who passed away following a long and hard battle with cancer. We express our Christian sympathies to Art and Marilyn (Peterson) Launer on the death of Art s sister. Marilyn also grew up here at Faith and she and Art have been great friends and supporters, too. Blessed are they who mourn for they shall be comforted. With another October approaching, the choir is working on two new anthems. The first is an Advent song, a lovely ballad called, "Is Your Heart Prepared for a King". The song for Christmas Eve is an energetic piece, "Glory to God in the Highest". We're having fun learning these challenging songs and hope you'll all want to hear us sing them at Christmas. We could sure use some additional singers, however. Even if you just come and sing with us until Christmas, it would be wonderful. Please give it some thought (and prayer). I usually sign off, "See you in church", but now I'll just add: "See you on Wed at 5 for choir"!! In Harmony Julie Moser Bergman August 2017 Pastor s Report Notes: 1. No luck hearing back from Teen Challenge but will keep trying. 2. Pastor will research options for viewing the new Martin Luther movie: in-house and in-theater. Synod has promotional materials. 3. Ordered Bible study materials By Heart Small Catechism. Will offer this seven-session course to end just prior to Advent (start date TBD). Will be held Wednesday evenings from 6:00 7:00. General Notes: The Bishop is available to preach at our church after the first of the year. Old Business: 1. Bill is currently working to update the Faith Lutheran Church constitution. 2. Next steps for the congregational mission project is to host a second discussion with the congregation during the annual meeting on September 17. Loni Porta and Pastor will write something for Carol Buchite to deliver during the meeting. 3. Loni will contact Crow Wing County to see if they have a program offering child safety and drug prevention education materials, as well as materials about bullying, identify theft, internet safety and senior citizen safety like the Cass County Sheriff s program. She will also explore whether Crow Wing County has a Faith-in- Action type program, like the Cass County program. Supporting such programs is something we may consider proposing to the congregation as part of our missions efforts. 4. Pastor will provide sermons to add to the Faith Lutheran website, and we will add a link to the constitution when that is completed. Music is what feelings sound like! 6

7 New Business 1. The annual meeting will be held on September 17 and will include a potluck. No desserts are needed since we will also celebrate anniversaries and birthdays on that date and Jo will supply cake. 2. Bill will research removing our Sunday school advertisement from the free Crosslake television ad. 3. Pastor will prepare a presentation on her Honduras trip to honor Global Church Sunday and will deliver it on November 5, 2017, during or after the regular church service. Respectfully submitted, Loni Porta, Secretary 5K & 1 mile Run/Walk for Suicide Prevention Saturday, October 28 Registration 9:00-9:45 a.m. 5K & 1 Mile 10:00 a.m. Silent Auction 9-11:30 a.m. at Cuyuna Range Elementary School in Crosby. As a family that was directly affected by suicide, we want to raise money in an effort to prevent this from happening to anyone else. All proceeds will go to our local Crisis Line and Referral Service. For more information & to register visit: For additional information and to volunteer contact Ann Raph at or SavingHearts12@outlook.com To make online donations please visit the web site listed above. Lunch Ladies go out to lunch the first Wednesday of each month at 12:00 noon! The Fifty Lakes Area Ladies will be at Billy s in Breezy Point, on October 4. Come and join the fun! All are welcome. Heartland Conference Fall Gathering Thursday, October 12 at Crosslake Lutheran Church 8:30 a.m. coffee and treats 9:00 a.m. Holy Communion Worship followed by Brunch & Program. Cost is $8.00 (Bring items for the Silent Auction.) Mind, Body and Spirit Strategies to increase happiness and reduce worry. By Gail Smith, RN BSN, CCRN, Parish Nurse Crosslake Lutheran Nurse clinician, Minneapolis Heart Institute. Powerful Tools for Caregivers Class (6 sessions) starting October 3 rd from 1 to 3 pm at the Lifehouse Coffee Shop in Pine River. Caring for someone with a chronic illness such as Alzheimer s Disease, dementia, diabetes, heart disease, Parkinson s disease, chronic pain, or stroke can be stressful physically, emotionally and financially. Powerful Tools program is designed to provide you with the tools you need to take care of your caregiver self. This event is free and open to the public. Call Faith in Action at to register or for more information. 7

8 Church Needs List: Decaf Coffee Sturdy pie plates 8 oz cold cups Paper towels Maureen and Betty Two 90-year-old women, Maureen and Betty, had been friends all of their lives. When it was clear that Maureen was dying, Betty visited her every day. One day Betty said, "Maureen, we both loved playing softball all our lives, and we played all through high school. Please do me one favor: when you get to heaven, somehow you must let me know if there's women's softball there." Maureen looked up at Betty from her deathbed and said, "Betty, you've been my best friend for many years. If it's at all possible, I'll do this favor for you." Shortly after that, Maureen died. A few nights later, Betty was awakened from a sound sleep by a blinding flash of white light and a voice calling out to her, "Betty, Betty." "Who is it," asked Betty, sitting up suddenly. "Who is it?" "Betty -- it's me, Maureen." "You're not Maureen. Maureen just died." "I'm telling you, it's me, Maureen," insisted the voice. "Maureen! Where are you?" "In heaven," replied Maureen. "I have some really good news and a little bad news." "Tell me the good news first," said Betty. "The good news," Maureen said with joy and enthusiasm, "is that there's women's softball in heaven. Better yet, all of our old buddies who died before me are here, too. Even better than that, we're all young again. Better still, it's always Springtime and it never rains or snows. And best of all, we can play softball all we want, and we never get tired. " "That's fantastic," said Betty. "It's beyond my wildest dreams! So what's the bad news?" "You're pitching Tuesday." Life is uncertain - Eat dessert first!!! 8 Voices of the Reformation There is not nor can there be! any reason for tearing oneself away from the church in schism. Rather, the worse things become, the more one should help her and stand by her, for by schism and contempt nothing can be mended. Martin Luther, German pastor who s 95 Theses sparked the Protestant Reformation Our confidence in Christ does not make us lazy, negligent or careless, but on the contrary it awakens us, urges us on and makes us active in living righteous lives and doing good. There is no selfconfidence to compare with this. Ulrich Zwingli, Swiss leader of early Reformation movements A dog barks when his master is attacked. I would be a coward if I saw that God s truth is attacked and yet would remain silent. John Calvin, French reformer who fled to Switzerland; father of the Presbyterian Church You cannot antagonize and influence at the same time. John Knox, a staunch follower of Calvin who brought Presbyterianism to Scotland A prayer for neighborliness O God, we pray for a broader vision of the needs of humanity, and a deeper compassion to fill those needs; for a planting of the seeds of concern for all humanity in our hearts; for a tapping of the wells of generosity. May we live together as people who have been forgiven a great debt. May we be gentle, walking softly with one another. May we be understanding, lest we shall add to the world s sorrow or cause to flow needless tears. May we be as anxious for the rights of others as we are for our own. May we be as eager to forgive as we are to seek forgiveness. May we know no barriers of creed or race or sex, that our love may be like Yours a love that sees all people as Your children and our kin. May we be ministers of humanity. Peter Marshall

9 Isn't he always there when we need him? Come with me to a third grade classroom... There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened. It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they'll never speak to him again as long as he lives. The boy believes his heart is going to stop, he puts his head down and prays this prayer, "Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat." He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered. As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy's lap. The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, "Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!" Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else - Susie. She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. "You've done enough, you klutz!" "FOR WE 9 Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Susie whispers back, "I wet my pants once too." May God help us see the opportunities that are always around us to do good. NOW THAT'S TELLING EM! One day a 6 year old girl was sitting in a classroom. The teacher was going to explain evolution to the children. The teacher asked a little boy. TEACHER: Tommy do you see the tree outside? TOMMY: Yes. TEACHER: Tommy, do you see the grass outside? TOMMY: Yes. TEACHER: Go outside and look up and see if you can see the sky. TOMMY: Okay. (He returned a few minutes later) Yes, I saw the sky. TEACHER: Did you see God? TOMMY: No. TEACHER: That's my point. We can't see God because he isn't there. He doesn't exist. A little girl spoke up and wanted to ask the boy some questions. The teacher agreed and the little girl asked the boy: LITTLE GIRL: Tommy, do you see the tree outside? TOMMY: Yes. LITTLE GIRL: Tommy do you see the grass outside? TOMMY: Yessssss (getting tired of the questions by this time). LITTLE GIRL: Did you see the sky? TOMMY: Yessssss LITTLE GIRL: Tommy, do you see the teacher? TOMMY: Yes LITTLE GIRL: Do you see her brain? TOMMY: No LITTLE GIRL: Then according to what we were taught today in school, she must not have one! WALK BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT"

10 October Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Worship Schedule Worship 9:30 a.m. Holy Communion Hunger Offering 2 A.A., Alanon 7 pm at Crosslake Lutheran Church, Crosslake 3 Caregivers class 1:00-3:00 at the Lifehouse Coffee Shop Pine River Class is free 4 Fifty Lakes Lunch Ladies Noon at Billy s, Breezy Point Choir practice 5: Choir Sings Worship Schedule Worship 9:30 a.m. Coffee Time Hat Day 15 Worship Schedule Worship 9:30 a.m. Intinc. Communion Council meets 22 Choir Sings Worship Schedule Worship 9:30 a.m. 29 Worship Schedule Worship 9:30 a.m. 9 A.A., Alanon 7 pm at Crosslake Lutheran Church, Crosslake 16 A.A., Alanon 7 pm at Crosslake Lutheran Church, Crosslake 23 A.A., Alanon 7 pm at Crosslake Lutheran Church, Crosslake 30 A.A., Alanon 7 pm at Crosslake Lutheran Church, Crosslake Choir practice 5:00 17 SCC meets 2:00 at the church Janis Allen Hostess 18 Choir practice 5: :00 Newsletter Assembly 31 Choir practice 5:00 12 Heartland Confer. Crosslake Luth. 8:30 Register 9:00 Worship $8 Brunch/program Newsletter Deadline!! 26 Senior Foot Care 10:30-1:30 at The Warehouse in Pine River. Cost $25 Deacon: Art Feierabend Altar: Janis Allen Ushers: Jan Goldenstein & Buzz Busby Coffee Time: Jan Goldenstein & Buzz Busby Saving hearts Run 5K & 1 Mile Registration 9-9:30 5K/1Mile run 10:00 Silent Auction 9:00-11:30 In school you re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life you re given a test that teaches you a lesson