NATIVITY NEWS APRIL 2018

Transcription

1 NATIVITY NEWS APRIL 2018 Pastor s Ponderings The 1517 Legacy Project is a website of sound Lutheran teaching. I highly commend it to you. The following article was written by contributor Donovan Riley who, as we continue in this season of Easter, helps us to reflect on what Jesus has done for us. Enjoy! Holy Math and Divine Foxiness However much we hate our inability to live up to what we imagine God demands of us, and the impossible heights He commands us to climb to achieve personal holiness, we are more afraid of grace. Grace announces freedom to us. But, God-given freedom comes only in the way of forgiveness, and forgiveness comes only in the way of Jesus. No Jesus, no grace. No grace, no freedom. No freedom, we go right on fantasizing about what God demands of us who has earned his just rewards, who deserves which punishment at what time, and which one of us God likes best. Therefore, God's grace cannot win the day until our fantasies about what He demands from us are shut-up. There is no way for us to see our Christian freedom clearly the freedom to which Jesus as our Good Shepherd drives us, until our daydreams about right and wrong, good and evil, moral and immoral are bound, gagged, and stuffed in a trunk so Jesus may be "all in all" for us. But, here is the twist. God in His divine foxiness sends us a preacher to give away grace and freedom in Jesus Christ in such a way that God Himself seems to forgive the immoral and reward the wicked. This is just wrong according to our way of doing holy math because it throws our fantasies in our face and exposes them for what they are: our sad attempts to protect ourselves from God. God's grace is not fully revealed until the Prodigal's father orders the killing of the fattened calf and the elder brother correctly sees that for all his years of goodness he never even got a goat. The grace of the Vineyard Owner isn't fully revealed until those who worked one hour are paid the same as those who worked all day. The Good Samaritan is just an insult to Jesus' Jewish audience because there's no such thing as a "good" Samaritan. So, to make him the hero of the story stands good old-fashioned values on their head. God's grace and freedom announces the truth to us about ourselves. We need a real Savior a Savior who isn't a figment of our twisted, sinful fantasies about right and wrong. We need a Savior who does not judge us based on merit or demerit, whether we are worthy or unworthy, if we are good enough or just plain trash. Grace and freedom do not cause us to run away from comfort and relief. They drive us into the fold, like two sheep dogs, to Jesus. Once we are returned to the fold, when the Son says we are free, then we are free indeed. Free to trust Jesus to take care and satisfy all our needs of body, soul, and mind. Free to love our neighbor, even free to love our neighbor in the way of God's actual commands, not our twisted fantasies about what God's Law demands from us, especially now that Jesus has lifted the weight of judgment off our shoulders and nailed it to His cross.

2 The weight of carrying our fantasies about God and His judgment has been lifted off us by Christ Jesus. So now, when someone asks, "If God declared to you His grace and freedom in Christ Jesus, what would you do with that freedom?" you can answer, "Enjoy everything as a gift from our gracious Giver God, and get used to being forgiven, even when I am afraid of grace and prefer to believe that my personal holiness matters more to God than Jesus' bloody suffering and death for me." NATIVITY VISITS OLDEST CHURCH Members of Nativity Lutheran Church in Brandon recently took a road trip to Sallis to visit the site of the first Lutheran church in Mississippi Still active today; New Hope Lutheran Church was organized by the Rev. G. H. Brown in 1846 with 8 charter members who came from Lexington District, S.C. The first church was a small log house. The present one was erected in the 1950's. Other pastors came from South Carolina and the church grew which led to the organization of the Mississippi Synod of the Lutheran Church here on July 22, 1855 with the following congregations: New Hope - Sallis, Betheden - Winston County, Macedonia - Attala County, Zion - Scott County, Providence - Smith County, Luther Chapel - Smith County, Mt. Carmel - Smith County. On the eve of the Civil War, the state of Lutheranism in Mississippi was looking up but there is little information on how it survived the war and the following ten years of reconstruction. Since then, while the Mississippi Synod has grown, it has always found itself among the smallest synods or districts within larger synods. Through over 170 years of history Mississippi Lutherans have faced many hardships and struggles with very little aid from elsewhere. There is much between the names, dates, places and figures which demonstrate that a zealous building up of Zion has been accomplished even through little flocks. Today with eleven Evangelical Lutheran Church congregations, Mississippi is part of the ELCA Southeastern Synod with over 62,000 baptized members and 171 congregations in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee. Take a Flower for CVP! It s spring time and flowers are blooming, just as the flowers share their beauty with us, let s share our bounty with others in need. Please take a flower for the Center for Violence Protection women s and children s shelter from the table in the narthex. Nativity is one of the shelter s few resources for day to day paper/laundry/cleaning supply needs. Please bring the needed item listed on the flower to church by Sunday, April 29 th. Thank you for your generosity!

3 April & May Birthdays Anniversaries Bud Weisser 4/01 Barb Balsley 4/02 Joe & Renate Hunt 4/06 James Thatch 4/02 Dan & Jan Behringer 4/22 Carol Gallagher 4/04 Kellon & Wendy Ketchum 5/01 Kathy Lewis 4/10 Pastor & Susan Landrum 5/18 Makaila Gregory 4/11 Jerry & Kathy Peters 5/21 Olivia Halverson 5/01 Boyde & Carol Bergum 5/27 Tommy Templeton 5/02 Heather Stevens 5/08 Florence Phillips 5/09 Bart Bettiga 5/15 Katie May Rials 5/18 Norma Swanson 5/20 If you wish to participate, please look for Julie Thatch 5/20 the sign-up sheet on the table in the Keith Bayless 5/21 narthex and provide your birthday Kellon Ketchum 5/22 and/or anniversary, month & day only, Ed Van Cleef 5/25 by your name so we can wish you a Happy Day! Happy Birthday & Anniversary to All!!!!! Battle of the Sexes - Cake Bake Just a little twist on our traditional Men s Cake Bake Fundraiser. This year, we will pit the Ladies of Nativity against the Men of Nativity. This promises to be entertaining for all. Men, you are on your own this year- NO help from the Women. The event is scheduled for Sunday, April 15 at 6:00 pm. Everyone is asked to bring their favorite appetizer to share with the group. Please note, that a formal meal will not be served. So, keep this in mind as you are preparing your appetizer. A sign-up list is posted in the Narthex..

4 CALENDAR OF APRIL EVENTS April 1 April 4 April 8 April 11 April 15 April 18 April 22 April 25 April 29 Easter 8 AM & 10:30AM Holy Communion services Bring flowers to decorate the exterior cross Adult Bible Study at 9:15 8 AM & 10:30AM Holy Communion services Sunday School & Adult Bible Study at 9:15 Service of Healing & Anointing of Oil 8 AM & 10:30 AM Holy Communion services Sunday School & Adult Bible Study at 9:15 Battle of the Sexes Bake Sale 6 PM 8 AM & 10:30 Holy Communion services Sunday school & Bible Study at 9:15 8 AM & 10:30 Holy Communion services Sunday school & Bible Study at 9:15 Council Meeting Bring items for Center for Violence Prevention Bring Brown tables from shed into fellowship hall ANNUAL RUMMAGE and BAKE SALE Each year our gently used clothes, toys, furniture and other household items turn into dollars that are used to support activities of social ministry outreach including Harbor House, Grace House, Hope House, The Center for Violence Prevention, Stewpot, and Camp Funshine, among others. Baked goods are also popular at this event. Simple, modestly priced food items do best. This year s sale is Sat., May 5 th from 8 am to 2 pm. It is very helpful if you separate and label boxes/bags by categories such as home décor, kitchen, jewelry, soft goods, toys, etc. Clothes should be separated and labeled: children s, women s, men s. This will save us hours of time when we place and price the items the nights before the sale. Bring items to the church after Sunday, April 29. Lots of volunteers are also needed to make the sale happen. Please look for the sign-up sheet in the narthex and volunteer to set up, help at the sale and most importantly with the pack up/clean up.

5 NLC April, 2018 Volunteer List 10:30 Service April 1 - Easter April 8 Greeters Debi Poole Greeters Kathy Peters Ambassador Joe Hunt Ambassador Mitch Leavell Ushers Tony Caldwell /Kathy Peters Ushers Bettiga Family Lector Joe Hunt Lector Ruth Burgess Comm. Asst. Joe Hunt Comm. Asst. Hack Walston Nursery Lynn Templeton Nursery Pamela Kirby/Katie Rials Counters Cindy Braatz/Kathy Peters Counters Renate Hunt/Sue Caldwell Acolyte Vivien Stevens/Matthew Templeton Acolyte Cameron Kirby Altar Care Pamela Kirby/Cindy Braatz Altar Care Pamela Kirby April 15 April 22 Greeters Meade Entrekin Ambassador Lynn Templeton Ushers Keith Anderson/Tommy Templeton Lector Mitch Leavell Comm. Asst. Mitch Leavell Nursery Hannah Poole Counters Lynn & Matthew Templeton Acolyte Dane Stevens Altar Care Pamela Kirby Greeters Clyde Hatten Ambassador Linda Tucker Ushers Hunt Family Lector John Halverson Comm. Asst. John Halverson Nursery Sue Caldwell Counters Boyde Bergum/Mitch Leavell Acolyte Wade Caldwell Altar Care Pamela Kirby/Cindy Braatz April 29 Greeters Renate Hunt Ambassador Meade Entrekin Ushers Mitch Leavell/Rick Kirby Lector Keith Anderson Comm. Asst. Keith Anderson Nursery Lynn Templeton Counters Keith Anderson/Norma Swanson Acolyte Matthew Templeton Altar Care Pamela Kirby If you cannot serve on the dates shown, please try to swap with someone and let the office know of the change. Thanks. Nativity Prayer List Please pray for: Florence Phillips, Ellie Halverson, Norma Swanson, Carl Shedd, and Bari Vaeth