Herald. Special Services in November

Transcription

1 Gathered to Grow, Sent to Serve Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 November 2013 A publication of Hosanna Lutheran Church Rochester, Minnesota Always being made New Special Services in November November 3 All Saints Sunday There will be a time of remembrance in prayer for all the saints who have gone before us. November 10 Stewardship Sunday We make our commitments as a Christian family of faith to give generously to God through the ministry of Hosanna Lutheran Church. November 17 First Communion Sunday Four of our young people in Grade 5 will receive their First Communion. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Thanksgiving Eve Service with Communion November 27 7:00 p.m. A pie social will follow the service. Bring family and friends! Discipleship Ministries Fellowship Ministries Music Ministries Outreach Ministries Worship Ministries Council Page President s Message Pastor Meiers Page

2 Page 2 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Discipleship Ministries gathered to grow PASTOR S BIBLE STUDY Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. WEEKLY STUDIES NOVEMBER ADULT FORUMS Sundays at 9:15 a.m. November 3 Food and Faith What is the relationship between our Christian faith and food? Food is a means to living the faith by caring for the hungry. We will explore this crucial outreach as guided by the June, 2013 cover story in the Lutheran magazine. November 10 A Vision for Mission 2014 What are our priorities for mission as a congregation in the coming calendar year? As estimate of giving cards are presented, how those gifts will be put to work for the sake of God s kingdom will be the topic of our discussion. November 17 The Sacrament of Holy Communion Why did Jesus establish Holy Communion prior to his returning to his heavenly Father? The importance of the real presence of Christ will be our focus on this fifth grade First Communion Sunday. November 24 Movie with the Minister Movie with the minister is moving to Sunday morning. The Pastor s pick will be a showing of Music Box. This humorous and insightful movie will help us understand the importance and the depth of the gospel as we share it with a world hungry for good news. This adult Bible study meets every Thursday at 6:30 p.m. with the exception of the first Thursday of each month when the Women s Evening Bible Study meets. The study explores the New Testament books of Philippians, Colossians, 1st and 2nd Thessalonians, 1st and 2nd Timothy, Titus and Philemon in a thirteen week course. Themes include: Christian obedience, faith and action, relationships, endurance and the life of grace. All are welcome to join at any time. LITTLE LAMBS Parents and Pre-Sunday School Children Sundays at 9:15 a.m. The Little Lambs is a group of parents and pre-sunday School children that meets every Sunday during the Sunday School hour beginning at 9:15 a.m. They meet in the nursery. The group meets to share fellowship and learning activities as new parents or those with older children in Sunday School. You may contact Mandi Mora at mandi@morasbooks.com for more information. TWICE A MONTH STUDIES HANNAH BIBLE STUDY November 13 and 20 at 1:00 p.m. This is a daytime women s Bible study which normally meets on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month from 1:00 2:30 pm. This month, due to the Thanksgiving holiday, meetings are on the 2nd and 3rd Wednesdays of the month. The study uses the Women of Faith series, Discovering God s Will for Your Life. It covers ways to discover God s will and what it means for our lives. Psalm 143:10 is quoted in the introduction: Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing. New members are always welcome. Call with questions.

3 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Page 3 Discipleship Ministries gathered to grow MEN S BIBLE STUDY BREAKFAST November 15 and 29 at 6:30 a.m. Men of Hosanna meet the 2nd and 4th Fridays of each month at 6:30 a.m. All men are invited to share a Bible study, fellowship and a hearty breakfast. Men take turns making breakfast and Karl Dirksen leads the study which this fall is on the book of Hebrews. Everyone is on their way to work or back home by 7:30 a.m. Contact Paul Anderson at barbpaul@charter.net for more information. MONTHLY STUDIES THURSDAY BIBLE STUDIES November 7 at 10:00 a.m. or 6:30 p.m. The Morning Women s Bible Study uses the Gather for Faith in Action magazine. Copies are available. Each month there s a different focus to the issues that women face in their life of faith. Women meet at 10:00 a.m. and take turns leading the study and bringing treats. Contact Joanne Larsen, sewlikeme@msn.com with questions. All women are welcome. The Evening Women s Bible Study is using the DVD series, Real Women, Real Faith: Life-Changing Stories from the Bible for Women Today. It s not easy being a woman in today s world. The demands and expectations we face can be overwhelming, and deep within, we long to meet with God and be changed. This six session video study describes how God moved in the lives of 6 influential women of the New Testament, and how the struggles they faced long ago are not unlike the struggles we face today. The November session focuses on Mary of Bethany who had a sister named Martha. This is open to all women. Call the office, , with questions. BOOK DISCUSSION November 16 at 9:00 a.m. The book discussion group meets at 9:00 a.m. on the third Saturday of the month. Coffee is on and members take turns providing treats. Join in the discussion of this month s classic novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway. "In 1937 Ernest Hemingway traveled to Spain to cover the civil war there for the North American Newspaper Alliance. Three years later he completed the greatest novel to emerge from "the good fight," For Whom the Bell Tolls. The story of Robert Jordan, a young American in the International Brigades attached to an antifascist guerilla unit in the mountains of Spain, it tells of loyalty and courage, love and defeat, and the tragic death of an ideal. In his portrayal of Jordan's love for the beautiful Maria and his superb account of El Sordo's last stand, in his brilliant travesty of La Pasionaria and his unwillingness to believe in blind faith, Hemingway surpasses his achievement in The Sun Also Rises and A Farewell to Arms to create a work at once rare and beautiful, strong and brutal, compassionate, moving, and wise. "If the function of a writer is to reveal reality," Maxwell Perkins wrote Hemingway after reading the manuscript, "no one ever so completely performed it." Greater in power, broader in scope, and more intensely emotional than any of the author's previous works, it stands as one of the best war novels of all time. Get an early start on your reading during the holidays. Here are the books selected for 2014: January Giants in the Earth by O.E. Rolvaag February Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier March The Good Earth by Pearl Buck April Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern May The Half-Stitched Amish Quilting Club By Wanda Brunstetter

4 Page 4 Fellowship Ministries Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 gathered to grow sent to serve EMPTY NEST SITTER SERVICE November 8 Hosanna s Empty Nest Sitter Service gives young parents a monthly date night during the school year and it s been a great experience for both kids and sitters. The next date this fall is Friday, November 8 from 6:00 10:00 pm. Just fill out a registration form at the Welcome Center and place it in the basket provided. Note: We take a break during December so the next sitter service will be January 10, We re also looking for new empty nesters to help with the children each month. Please consider sitting once or twice a year. Lots of fun is shared with the children and there s great fellowship with the empty nesters too. Please contact Paul Anderson if you re interested in helping at or barbpaul@charter.net. HILLTOPPERS November 12 The monthly gatherings for those who are retired or over 55 meets on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 12:00 noon. Lunch is catered by Ron Machacek and the staff plans the programs. November is our annual Thanksgiving feast, so invite friends they re always welcome! Contact the office at if you need a ride. SCRAPBOOKING November 15 & 16 The scrapbookers meet on the 3rd weekend of the month which is Friday, November 15, from 5:00 10:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 16 from 9:00 a.m. 6:00 p.m. Come any time during those two days. Bring any leftover scrapbooking materials along to share. Feel free to bring a snack to share. Bring friends and enjoy the fellowship! Contact Kelly Gangelhoff at or kellyg@smmpa.org with questions. LEFSE MAKING November 23 1:00 p.m. or 5:00 p.m. Uff Da! Are you interested in making some lefse? Then you can come to Hosanna Lutheran Church on Saturday, November 23rd, the Saturday before Thanksgiving! You ll have some delicious lefse to serve with your Thanksgiving feast. Although, to qualify lefse as delicious, you will need plenty of butter and sugar. The times will be at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. There are two times to accommodate overflow crowds. Take your pick or come to both. Need equipment? We have it. Need a recipe? We also have those. Need instruction or training? You ve come to the right place. This year we will again sell excess Lefse between services on Sunday morning with the money going to ELCA World Hunger. So come and practice making perfectly round Lefse, without tracing around your spouse s head. Uff Da, it is so simple! There are sign-up sheets and a lefse recipe at the Welcome Center. If you need additional information you may contact Karla Weis ( ), Stephanie Stevens ( ) or Paul Anderson ( ). CHRISTMAS COOKIE EXCHANGE Coming in December Calling all bakers! We will be having our second annual Christmas Cookie Exchange and Bake Sale during the Advent Season. This year the money collected will go to support our missionary in Papua New Guinea, Ann Klavano, and our seminary student, Carol Strand. All who are interested are invited to bake Christmas cookies to donate. Watch for upcoming bulletin announcements with details about when to donate your cookies and when the first cookie sale will be.

5 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Page 5 Music Ministries gathered to grow November 3 November 10 MUSIC SCHEDULE Grace Team Senior Choir Exodus November 17 3 year olds Grade 6 November 24 Senior Choir Rochester Area Chapter of the Choristers Guild Presents CHILDREN S CHURCH CHOIR FESTIVAL for all of Hosanna s Children in Grades 1-6 Saturday, November 16, :00am - 3:00pm Bethel Lutheran Church Clinician is Amanda Smith Director of Children s Music Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City Cost: $20 per person (includes lunch, T-Shirt, and festival) There will be a closing worship service at 2:00 pm which the public is invited to attend. Hosanna students are encouraged to participate in the festival and congregation members are welcome to attend the worship service. Questions? Contact music@hosannalutheran.org or CHILDREN S CHRISTMAS PROGRAM 3 Year Olds Grade 5 Hosanna s children s Christmas program will be held on Sunday, December 15 at the 10:30 am service. Signup sheets were handed out to the students and should be returned by November 3. Practices will be held on the following dates: Sunday, December 1 Saturday, December 7 Sunday, December 8 Saturday, December 14 9:15-10:15 am 9:00-11:30 am 9:15-10:15 am 9:00-11:30 am Sunday, December 15 9:15 am only grades 1-5 practice 10:00 am 3 yr old - Kindergarten arrive 10:30 am program presented at worship IHN BENEFIT CONCERT November 22 Interfaith Hospitality Network will present their Annual Benefit Concert on Friday, November 22 at 7:30 p.m. This year the concert will be held at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church. The public is invited to attend the concert. A freewill offering will be received. The evening of music will feature individual church choirs, and a mass choir which will sing several selections. Contact Nancy Wales at , or music@hosannalutheran.org, if you would like to participate.

6 Page 6 Outreach Ministries FROM OUTREACH ADVOCATE BARB ANDERSON We re deep into fall and soon we ll see snow and the approaching holiday season. Hosanna s outreach into the community continues to be a blessing to those in need and we ll see even greater needs as the holiday season approaches. During November we ll also focus our giving on ELCA World Hunger. Thank you to all the families who donated winter outerwear to the annual United Way drive. We donated 26 coats, 8 sets of boots, 33 sets of gloves/mittens, 31 hats, 16 scarves and 4 snow pants. What a great first response! Our Hosanna s Pantry has completed it s 3rd month of operation and we re already serving 20 families who come to us for their monthly food from Channel One. November will be an exciting month for the Pantry because we ll be teaming up with the Youth Sent to Serve students and Thrivent to provide turkey dinners to 25 families for Thanksgiving. Members are encouraged to join in serving at Hosanna s Pantry once a year or once a month. It s a great way for families to serve together to meet the food needs of those who are hurting in our community. Have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday! PRAYER SHAWLS November 11 and 22 The Prayer Shawl team meets twice a month on the 2nd Monday at 6:30 p.m. and the fourth Friday at 1:00 p.m. This team meets at church to knit or crochet prayer shawls for children or adults; anyone in need of the comfort of prayer due to an illness or death of a loved one or any difficult life transition. All are welcome to join this caring ministry at any time. Contact Carolyn Dahl at crdahl25@charter.net to learn more. Members may also stop by the office to pick up a prayer shawl for a family member or friend in need of prayer or comfort. NEWS FROM ANN KLAVANO Herald Volume 34 Issue 11...sent to serve Malaria and other Diseases I understand that the youth at Hosanna have raised money to fight malaria through their "Roll Over Malaria" campaign. Thank you for your help in combating this disease. I especially appreciate your effort, because I developed malaria during my first year here in Papua New Guinea. As in Africa, malaria is a chronic problem here in Papua New Guinea. The coastal areas are especially bad. Parts of the Highlands are high enough in elevation that they don't have the disease carrying mosquitoes. However, between climate change and the strengthening malaria virus, more and more areas are susceptible. The malaria in this part of PNG has become resistant to most drugs, but, fortunately, some still work. There is frequently someone on campus ill with malaria. Students are usually out of classes for around three days. So far only one case has not been cured by the common medications. He ended up needing daily shots for a week Since one can get so sick so fast with malaria, I carry malaria medication with me when I travel. That way I don't have to wait to get to an aid post or pharmacy to start treatment. I did get sick recently while attending a missionary retreat. I started taking my anti-malarial drugs immediately. It helped, but I had to cancel of some of my plans. Some of the other diseases here, such as diabetes and HIV/AIDS, we have in common with the US. While others, such as TB and leprosy, are less common in the US. Deaths during childbirth are more common here. The local hospital has a program whereby women in their last week of pregnancy can come stay at the hospital. That way there isn't the need for long trips while in labor. I thank you again for your prayers and support. Pastor Ann Klavano Senior Flierl Seminary, Papua New Guinea

7 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Page 7 Outreach Ministries...sent to serve YOUTH SENT TO SERVE NEWS FALL PLANNING MEETING Eight youth participated in a fall planning meeting on October 13 including: Jonathan Bauer, Lizzy Bauer, Kristina Johnson, Sam Johnson, Kaitlyn Maidl, Andrew Neshem, Kia Schepp, and Julie Wall. The main agenda item was to plan this year s Thanksgiving Dinner event. Details are below. PREPARING 25 THANKSGIVING DINNERS! All students in Grades 6-12 and their friends are invited to help prepare, assemble, and distribute this year s Thanksgiving dinners. This year the team will be preparing 25 dinners that will be distributed during the monthly Hosanna s Pantry food distribution. Thank you to Thrivent for providing part of the funding for the food. Meals will include: one frozen turkey, one container of homemade frozen mashed potatoes, one jar of turkey gravy, one homemade pumpkin pie, assorted fruit, a large can of corn, dinner rolls, and a table prayer. Preparation days and times are as follows: November 21, 3:30-5:30 p.m. November 22, 3:30-5:30 p.m. and 5:30-7:30 p.m. Distribution will take place on: November 23, 9:30 a.m. 12:00 p.m. Sign-up sheets are located on the Youth board. You may also sign up by contacting Kristina Johnson at youthsenttoserve@gmail.com or DECORATING THANKSGIVING BOXES Are you ready to have fun and to be creative? All students, age 3 to Grade 12, are invited to help decorate the 25 boxes that the Youth Sent to Serve Team will be using to pack the Thanksgiving dinners in. All boxes will have a number on them and a random drawing will be held to determine a winning box! The winning person/class receives a special treat! Work as a class, in pairs, or by yourself! Take the box home if you want to. Completed boxes must be returned to the Education office no later than Thursday, November 21. Teachers and students, p l e a s e e - m a i l K r i s t i n a J o h n s o n a t youthsenttoserve@gmail.com to reserve your boxes; boxes will be delivered to your classrooms starting on November 3. Each class may reserve up to four boxes and each individual may reserve up to two boxes. HOSANNA QUILTERS November 21 Hosanna s quilters meet on the 4th Thursday of each month from 9:00 a.m. 2:00 p.m. in the gathering area. (Note the date change due to the Thanksgiving holiday) Coffee and treats are served in the morning and everyone brings their own lunch. Interested members are welcome to join at any time. You don t have to be an experienced quilter to participate. Quilts are pieced and sewn and tied together. They re given to families in need of warmth and comfort and to others in need around the world through Lutheran World Relief. Contact Sharon Dunford, shed14@charter.net, or Darlene Brandt, dwbrandt@gmail.com, with questions. RED CROSS SHELTER TEAM DISASTER DRILL VICTIMS NEEDED November 9 Do you want to help the members of the Hosanna Red Cross Shelter Team keep their skills sharp? You are invited to role play for a Red Cross disaster drill on Saturday, November 9, from 9:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. at Hosanna. Under the guidance of a Red Cross volunteer, you will be given a scenario to act out. Past participants have had fun with this! All ages are welcome. No acting experience is necessary! Refreshments will be available. Please contact Jane Johnson at kgjjej@charter.net or if you can help. You may also sign up at the Welcome Center.

8 Page 8 Worship Ministries NOVEMBER WORSHIP SCHEDULE Sundays at 8:00 & 10:30 a.m. November 3 All Saints Sunday (Commemoration of the Saints wear black and white) Liturgy: Service of Word and Song/Communion Theme: Rejoice in God s Saints Text: Luke 6:20-31 November 10 Stewardship Sunday Liturgy: ELW Setting 2 Service of the Word Theme: Blessed to be a Blessing Text: Luke 12:32-34 November 17 5th Grade First Communion Liturgy ELW Setting 2/Communion Theme: Given and Shed for You Text: Matthew 26: November 24 Christ the King Sunday Liturgy: ELW Setting 2 Service of the Word Theme: Be Careful Who You Follow Text: Jeremiah 23:1-6 November 27 Thanksgiving Eve (7:00 p.m.) Liturgy: Service of Thanksgiving/Communion Theme: Remembering the Giver of Gifts Text: Deuteronomy 26:1-11 HANGING OF THE GREENS December 1 Hosanna will be decorated for the Advent and Christmas season, on Sunday, December 1 after the second service. It takes about an hour depending on the number of people who help. After decorating, a light lunch will be served. Come join in the work and fellowship. YOUTH GREENERY SALES Through November 3 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 gathered to grow Hosanna s High School youth will be selling Christmas greenery as a fund raiser between services in the narthex through November 3. Stop at their table to place an order. Orders will be delivered to Hosanna for pick up the week of November 18 for your holiday decorating. Contact Barb Schepp, schepp@charter.net. STEWARDSHIP INGATHERING November 10 Members should receive their Estimate of Giving cards in the mail in early November. Please prayerfully consider your response to God s precious gifts as you plan your Estimate of Giving for An ingathering of the Estimate of Giving cards will be on Sunday, November 10th. The Estimate of Giving is an important tool for church leadership in planning Hosanna s 2014 budget and programs. The spiritual life and growth of our congregation through worship liturgy and music, the growth of discipleship through the education of all members, pastoral care in times of joy or sorrow, and our outreach to the local community and globally, through ELCA benevolence; all are made possible through your generous tithes and offerings. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7) ADVENT DEVOTIONAL BOOKLET Advent is coming soon, and with Advent comes Hosanna s annual devotional book. We hope you ll consider joining this congregation wide effort and write a devotion for us all to enjoy. The theme and Bible verses will be available at the Welcome Center in November along with instructions for writing your devotion. Please sign up at the Welcome Center by Sunday, November 10. your devotions by Sunday, November 17 to secretary@hosannalutheran.org. You may contact the office, , with questions.

9 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Page 9 gathered to grow sent to serve Council Page Council Summary October 8, 2013 The 409th Council was called to order by President, Noel Sederstrom at 7:00 pm, October 8, In attendance were: Noel Sederstrom, Keith Johnson, Lisa Nordman, Alice Kub, Paul Anderson, Karla Weis, Rachel Gray, Barb Anderson, Chris Johnson, and Dave Wall. Also present were Nancy Wales, Sinde Finnegan and Barb Schepp. Lisa Nordman led devotions using the passage Matthew 24:14-30 on The Parable of the Talents. The Council Minutes from September were approved. The Pastor s Report from September was approved. The Financial Reports from September were approved. Sinde Finnegan from Personnel and Barb Schepp from the Youth Team came and talked about the youth team concerns. They are concerned about the current situation of having volunteers help out with the youth program. They feel there should be staff to help with the middle school through the high school youth as some things are being dropped. They talked about needing to find someone to not only organize activities, but to mentor and empower parents to help out. It is important to have the ability to recruit and bring out the talents of the parents. There was also discussion about reaching out to the other ELCA churches for activities. They feel the position should be an administrator to communicate and then find others to do the work. They put together a job description for the council to review. Thank you to Sinde and Barb for all their time and dedication to the youth here at Hosanna. Barb Anderson talked about the small food pantry that is available at Hosanna for anyone in the community that is in need. We discussed the need to continue to have congregation members bring food to keep it stocked. This is something separate from the Channel One satellite food shelf that s once a month. Chris Johnson gave a Properties report. They are close to making a decision on where the metal cross that Arnie Mork made will be mounted. They are looking at a spot on the east wall near the Memorial Garden. Noel Sederstrom gave an update on the Child Safety Training taking place. Mark Ingebretson will be the trainer and the information from the background checks will be stored off site. Training for Mark will be coming up this month. Keith Johnson gave a stewardship update. The team is getting ready to send out the information to the congregation for the in-gathering which will be November 10. He is also going to see if anyone is interested in being on a committee to look at electronic signage at the church. Paul Anderson gave an update from Business and Finance and indicated that things are looking good this year. Work is still being done on the 2014 budget projections and what can be looked at for additional staffing options. Right now there is $10,000 added to staff in the budget as a starting point for a new position. Noel Sederstrom led a discussion on staffing options. The council needs to give direction to personnel and right now Hosanna only has money for a part time staff member. It is important to get someone to help out with some of the youth related administrative work as right now it is being done by the current staff. The council is thinking it we would need some type of Faith Formation Minister or Youth position. It is important to have seamless programming so that we do not have gaps in any of the groups. The position would be someone to engage the youth and empower the parents. We will be reviewing the job description from the youth committee and then give suggestions to personnel. More discussion will happen at the November meeting. The meeting closed with the Lord s Prayer and adjourned at 9:22 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa Nordman, Council Secretary

10 Page 10 President s Message Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Turns out I have a few things in common with Ashley Olson. Growing up on a farm southwest of Litchfield, our family was just a stone s throw from Beckville Lutheran Church, so we would walk there most of the time just like Ashley and her family walk to Hosanna. When I was her age, our family had a faithful dog that liked to play with cats (so do the Olson s). And I have always been able to get up in front of people. Ashley is wired like that too. A couple of years ago, Roxanne Darnell had talked me into being a part of the Hosanna musical What s up, Zack? I remember being stunned watching Ashley stand up there with Terri Ashworth as the musical opened, delivering her lines with poise and charm. I remember observing to Dave Wall she s stealing the show! She sparkled just the latest star shining on Hosanna s stage. I love to act and sing and dance, Ashley told me in a kitchen table interview. I kind of like being in the spotlight. I love to do the musicals. She s 11 now, in the 5th grade at Sunset Terrace Elementary. Her brothers Brandon and Zach and her mom and dad and the family dog Cody are a big part of her world, of course. But so are her friends. I have lots of friends, most are in my class at school. Cecilia lives across the street and we ve been friends my whole life. Isabelle and Grace are in my class. The leaders of Hosanna s Sunday School and youth programs are the parents, and they are keenly aware of the huge importance of including our children s friends in activities. Ashley s mom Jolene has been one of the leaders of the Sunday School team; both she and Amy Johnson are planning to step back from their leadership roles this coming January. New parents will be needed to answer the call and help Mandi Mora lead the team into the future. But they won t be alone the church council is budgeting to add a new part-time Faith Formation staff person to help inspire parents and coordinate their efforts and cheer them on. So what does the future hold for Ashley Olson? You ve seen her in musicals, and singing in the children s choir ( it comes naturally ) and now you might have noticed that she is the youngest member of the King s Ringers bell choir. ( There was a shortage of adults. ) Like the musical cast, this has become an inter-generational group with old and young intermingled. It s one thing that makes Hosanna unique, and it s something Ashley likes a lot. A lot of the time, some of the older people become friends, she confided. At practice, we use the time wisely. The afternoon we talked, Ashley was focused on one immediate project; she had been on the computer using Power Point to come up with alternatives for her parents to review. I want to re-arrange my room! she said. The Olson Family Jolene and Brian, Brandon, Ashley and Zach As we chart the future at Hosanna, we re busy re-arranging things too. Our children and grandchildren are the most precious parts of our lives. Let the little ones come to me, said Jesus, and so we ll be clearing the path for faith to grow, with plenty of friends young and old along the way. Peace, Noel Sederstrom

11 Herald Volume 34 Issue 11 Page 11 Pastor Meiers Page Dear Members and Friends of Hosanna, Offering our thanks to God as expressed in the New Testament is found in our response to the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, whose life is given for the sake of the world. Jesus presence is the crowning glory of all of God s deeds on our behalf. Understanding blessing as God engaging with us through Jesus life, death and resurrection is central to our faith. In our western Christian church the Greek word for stewardship is oikonomia which we translate as economy. However, to our brother and sisters in Eastern Christianity, oikonomia has an exclusive meaning, a meaning that captures the essence of the entire journey of the people of God in the Bible. For Eastern Orthodoxy the meaning of oikonomia is the chief act of stewardship for all time God s giving us his Son. This term refers specifically to the incarnation of God in human form. Jesus is God s gift to us. Jesus is the reason we respond and bless God through singing and giving and serving. If Jesus is God s stewardship, what then is ours? We are, first of all, stewards of the gospel, the message of good news that Christ has come to us. We are also stewards of the image of God in which we were made, and we are stewards (caretakers) of God s creation. We also serve as stewards when we return to God a portion of the blessings God has given us. Finally we are stewards when we bless the Lord in word, song and action. All of us will have the opportunity to offer our tangible thanks back to God for blessings given. You will be receiving a letter early in November that shares the vision your church leadership has for Hosanna in Also included in the mailing is your estimate of giving card for Please prayerfully consider what your support will be for the mission of Christ s church next year. Estimate of giving cards will be received on Sunday, November 10 during worship as we celebrate the privilege God has entrusted to us: the oikonomia, the economy of God s love for all the world found in the person of Jesus. Yours in Christ, Pastor Bill Meiers TREASURER & FINANCIAL SECRETARY REPORT Budget/Contributions Comparison Receipts/Expenditures Comparison Account Balances - September 2013 Respectfully submitted, Paul Anderson General 2013 Sep YTD Budget 33, ,547 Contributions 37, ,009 Difference 4,521 1, , ,449 Difference 12/ ,560 Capital Appeal 325 4,841 General Capital YTD Appeal Receipts 301, ,638 Expenditures 266, ,313 Difference 34, Account Name Balance General 18,598 General Reserve 25,018 Special Gifts 18,387 Endowment 42,177 Mortgage 478,404 PASTORAL ACTS Baptism October 26, 2013 Elizabeth Marie Bauer O f f e r i n g envelopes for 2014 can be picked up in the gathering area.

12 Hosanna Lutheran Church th St. NW Rochester, MN (507) Gathered to Grow, Sent to Serve ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED NON-PROFIT ORG. U. S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 603 ROCHESTER MN God s work. Our hands. SUNDAY WORSHIP TIMES 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. EDUCATION 9:15 10:15 a.m. Hosanna Herald Writers: Hosanna Staff & members Editor: Barb Anderson Want to receive Hosanna s E-News updates? Send your address to: secretary@hosannalutheran.org Check out Hosanna s Facebook fan page! OFFICE HOURS 9:00 am 4:00 pm Monday Friday STAFF Pastor Bill Meiers Nancy Wales Barb Anderson Charlie Bohlke COUNCIL OFFICERS Noel Sederstrom, President Keith Johnson, Pres. Elect Lisa Nordman, Secretary COUNCIL ADVISORS Alice Kub, Treasurer Paul Anderson, Financial Sec. COUNCIL ADVOCATES Karla Weis, Discipleship Rachel Gray, Fellowship Barb Anderson, Outreach Chris Johnson, Support Dave Wall, Worship seniorpastor@hosannalutheran.org music@hosannalutheran.org secretary@hosannalutheran.org custodian@hosannalutheran.org president@hosannalutheran.org president-elect@hosannalutheran.org councilsecretary@hosannalutheran.org treasurer@hosannalutheran.org financialsecretary@hosannalutheran.org discipleship@hosannalutheran.org fellowship@hosannalutheran.org outreach@hosannalutheran.org support@hosannalutheran.org worship@hosannalutheran.org