ALC Alert JANUARY 2016 VOLUME 25 NUMBER 1

Transcription

1 ALC Alert American Lutheran Church Smith Center, Kansas JANUARY 2016 VOLUME 25 NUMBER 1

2 FROM PASTOR LORNA Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, The word advent means coming. Advent is the first season of the church year. It is meant to be a time of hope and longing. But it s not about hoping Christmas will hurry up and come and longing for the season of Advent be over. For what are we hoping and longing? Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, God s people (Israel) were attacked by the powerful nation of Babylon. The king, the religious leaders and the skilled laborers were forced to leave their homeland and travel across a vast wilderness to the land of Babylon. They were forced into exile. They would never be allowed to return to their homes. A few years later, the city of Jerusalem, including the beautiful temple that Solomon had built, was destroyed. Stone buildings and the walls around the city were knocked down. The rest was burned. The people of God were devastated. Like the victims of disasters in our own time, they lost everything. They were not allowed to try to rebuild what was lost. It seemed like there was no one to help them. Out of that crisis came some of the most beautiful scripture passages in the Bible. The prophets of that time had beautiful words of hope for the people of God. They spoke of a Messiah, a Savior, - someone God would send to save his people from their distress. (Read Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:2-7, Isaiah 11:1-9. There are many others.) The people of God hoped for and longed for that Messiah. Their Advent season lasted hundreds of years. The advent (coming) of the Messiah finally happened when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, though many of his people refused to accept that he was the promised one. We will celebrate that first advent of Jesus with great joy at Christmas. But that first advent of Jesus is not what our Advent season is about. Advent isn t about the past, it s about the future. As followers of Jesus and children of God, this world is not our true home. Our life in this troubled world, where wars never cease and terrorists strike fear in our hearts, is a kind of exile from our heavenly home. As St. Paul says in Philippians 1:23, my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. As the old hymn says, I m but a stranger here, heaven is my home. Our true home, where Jesus has prepared a place for us, is where we long to be. We place our hope in the promised second advent of Jesus, the second coming of Christ, when all the troubles of this world will be put to rest and the eternal reign of God s peace will begin. In the meantime, God calls us to do what we can to fight against the evil in our world and try to minimize the pain the innocent suffer due to the reality of sin all around us. That task can seem overwhelming at times. But God does not expect us to do the impossible. That is God s job. We simply share his love and peace wherever we go and leave the rest in God s hands. We serve as

3 God s peacemakers even as we continue to live in hope and longing for our Lord to come again. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen Have a very blessed Advent and Christmas season Message from Pastor Lorna Oh, come, of come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God Appear Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel, Shall come to thee, O Israel! The name Emmanuel means God with us, and that can be important, for there are times, even at Christmas -perhaps especially at Christmas- when we can feel terribly lonely. Holidays have a way of emphasizing that kind of loneliness. How do you suppose Mary and Joseph felt as their first Christmas approached? Mary was soon to deliver her first child, a time when any woman would need the support of family and friends. As they travelled far from their home and family in Nazareth for the census, did they feel a kind of lonely exile as though they were captive to circumstances and events beyond their control? It would have been good for them to know that they were not alone in what they were experiencing; that God keeps his promises. By faith, Mary and Joseph knew that even in their loneliness; God s great promises were being fulfilled through them. God was with them. And the same Jesus who was given to them, is also given to us. Emmanuel, God with us, crucified for our sins and raised from the dead to be with us forever -to assure us that we are never alone! No matter who else may fail us or let us down, no matter how forsaken we may feel, we have this assurance: in Jesus Christ we have God with us always and forever!* May Emmanuel fill your hearts with the assurance of God s tender regard for you this Christmas season. Emmanuel has come so we are never alone.

4 Grace and Peace, Pastor Lorna *Adapted from Repeat the Sounding Joy! Advent Meditations on the Great Carols of Christmas by Arden Mead From the Desk of Pastor Lee January an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him. The decorations are coming down if they have not been taken down already. Christmas music is no longer broadcast and props for Christmas pageants are now in storage. We are now firmly in winter and we have begun a new year. For much of the world, Christmas is done and put away. Technically, however, the season of Christmas is not over until the celebration of Epiphany on January 6th. Epiphany is the festival of Jesus being revealed to the wise men. In some places in the world, Epiphany is emphasized more than Christmas as the day to give presents in remembrance of the presents given to Jesus by the wise men and in remembrance of the gift of Jesus revealed to the entire world. The joy of this event is soon overshadowed, however, by the atrocities of King Herod. Instead of welcoming the gift of Jesus that was being revealed to the world, he worked to destroy him; and, King Herod would stop at nothing, even to the point of massacring children. The Holy Family had to flee to Egypt as refugees to escape this slaughter until it was safe to return to their home in Nazareth. The greatest gift that the world has ever been given was rejected by the powers of this world, and it would not be the last time. Eventually, on the cross, a rejected Jesus would die. Even in our day, the reality of God breaking into our world is often ignored or rejected. Christmas is only tolerated as long as the traditions of popular culture will allow. Christmas, however, goes far beyond what is merely tolerated. It is the gift of God radically breaking into our world. And the more the world rejects it, the more God comes, even to the cross. The love of Christmas, the love of God with us, does not stop merely because we have put the decorations away and it doesn t stop even when the world actively rejects it. It keeps coming; it keeps breaking into the world; and, it will never stop because the love God is even stronger than death. Even the finality of the grave is not final. The miracle of Christmas is not that Jesus is revealed to the world when the world is ready for him to be revealed; the miracle of Christmas is that Jesus is revealed even when the world is not ready or even hostile to him. God is with us and we must learn to live, ready or not, in this reality. As this Christmas season comes to a close, our Christmas gift does not go away. God is with us, with you, and nothing can change that fact, not even

5 death. As winter gives way to spring and then eventually to summer and autumn, we will still be unwrapping God s great gift. Even though the world will long want to have this Christmas as a memory, the miracle of God with us continues to break into our world anew. No, Christmas is not over; it is just beginning. May we all share the joy of God with us and may we spend the rest of our lives learning how to unwrap this most precious gift. Many blessings and merry Christmas to you, Pastor Lee American Lutheran Church Council Meeting November 2015 The American Lutheran church council met in the parish hall on November 8, Council members present were Dennis Lehmann, Ken Jacobs, Marcia Bose, Theron Haresnape, Jenifer Ratliff, and Pastor Lorna. The meeting was called to order by presiding president Dennis Lehmann. Lorna opened with a devotion and led the Council in prayer. Minutes Marcia moved and Ken seconded to approve the minutes of the October meeting. Motion carried. Treasurer s Report (See attached.) Ken moved and Theron seconded to accept the report as presented. Motion carried. Pastor s Report Lorna shared her updated calendar into early January. (See attached.) Council Committee Reports Worship and Music: The Cantata is scheduled for December 13. Outreach: No report. Parish Ed: No report. Luther League: No report. Facilities: No report. Mutual Ministry: The committee started studying a Lutheran Ministry book. Old Business 1) Trees: Tree trimming and removal have been completed. 2) Handicap Pad: Still waiting to hear about grant approval.

6 New Business 1) Dennis will order candy for bags to give to Sunday school kids after the program on December 13. 2) New Christmas Tree: The Council decided to purchase a new pre-lit Christmas tree at Menards. 3) Lucy VanderGiesen: Lucy asked to speak to the congregation about YWAM. The Council approved, suggesting January would be better than December. 4) Christmas decorating will be done on November 22 following the Thanksgiving potluck. The next meeting will be Wednesday, December 16, 2015, following the Advent service. Theron moved and Ken seconded to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed and the meeting was adjourned with The Lord s Prayer. Church Council Secretary, Theron Haresnape DISCIPLES OF THE PLAINS Parish Council Meeting Nov. 23, 2105 Unapproved The Parish Council met Nov 23 rd, 2015, at Emmanuel Stuttgart. Members present were: Paul Merklein and Mark Conn from Emmanuel at Stuttgart; Jeff Griffy from Zion at Phillipsburg; Linda Miller and Sam Rice from St. John, Kensington; Dennis Lehmann and Jerald Ratliff from American at Smith Center. Pastoral team members present were Robert Lee Bennight and Pastor Lorna Paulus. Devotions were led by Pastor Lee Bennight. The meeting was called to order by Chairman, Dennis Lehmann, at 7:30 P.M. Mark Conn moved to approve the agenda for the meeting. The motion was seconded by Jeff Griffey. Motion carried. Chairman Dennis Lehmann asked if there were any additions or corrections to the Sept. 21 st meeting minutes. Mark Conn moved to accept the minutes as amended. Jeff Griffy seconded the motion. Motion carried.

7 In the absence of Russell Dettmer, Sam Rice presented the Treasurer s report. He reported that all expenses are current. Linda Miller moved the treasurer s report be approved. Mark Conn seconded the motion. Motion carried. A copy of the report is attached. There was no report from the Communications Coordinator. Pastor Lee Bennight and Pastor Lorna Paulas gave their monthly pastors reports. Copies are attached to the minutes. Mileage reimbursement clarification for pastors was discussed by the council. It was decided that pastors will not be reimbursed for mileage on pulpit exchange or any Disciples of the Plains parish meetings. A reminder was given to each council member to get the dollar amount received by each congregation for Mission Festival. The council is interested in getting the total amount received from the offering that day. In order to allow each congregation to receive benevolence credit from the Synod, a policy for distributing future joint service offerings, i.e. a joint advent service or Mission Festival, was discussed. Jerald moved that the offerings be handled as follows: (1) The Parish Council shall designate the recipient(s) for the offering. Before the joint service, if time allows, the designated recipients shall be published in each church bulletin, along with a reminder to make checks payable to each congregant s respective church. (2) Checks from congregation attendees should be payable to their respective church. The checks will be sorted, along with any designated cash, and given to respective Treasurer to disburse for each congregation. (3) Any loose cash or checks made out to DOTP will be deposited to the parish account and then distributed to the designated charity by the joint parish treasurer. Mark seconded the motion. Motion carried. In the event any of the four congregations wishes to sponsor other mission projects (other than Mission Festival), that congregation will be responsible for distributing the funds raised. The joint parish will not be involved.

8 Reconciliation of the Parish Council Treasury was discussed. Mark Conn moved to have the Council records reconciled on an annual basis by one representative of each individual church council. Linda Miller seconded the motion. Motion carried. A household expense allowance was discussed by the council. Linda Miller moved to designate one hundred dollars per month of each pastor s salary for furniture and/or household expenses. The motion was seconded by Mark Conn. Motion carried. Pastor Lee Bennight requested eight days of vacation beginning December 26 th through January 2 nd. The request was granted. Pastor Bennight has the services covered for the two Sundays in his absence. The next meeting is scheduled for February 29 th 7:30 P.M. at American is Smith Center. Respectfully Submitted, Jerald K. Ratliff Secretary

9 JANUARY BIRTHDAYS 2- Jim Bush Joseph Wiehl 3 Dorothy Hommon Charlene Meyer 5 Kathy Frieling 7 Nathan Baumann 10 Jessica Phillips Aubrey Neussendorfer 12 Annastasia Muckenthaler Dennis Ratliff 13 Joe Barnes Lucas Jones 15 Pam Hutchinson 16 Connor Barnes Brock Baxter 17 - Doug Rippe Jolan Richardson 21 Alyssa Hobelmann Caden Jacobs Chalon Suchsland 23 Trever Haas Connie Ortgies 24 Betty Caspers Jerald Ratliff Larry Wilson 25 Jess Jacobs 26 Beverly Wiehl 28 Marilyn Hughes Gladys Lehmann 31 Alex Hobelmann JANUARY BAPTISMAL BIRTHDAYS 1 Josh Barnes 4 Jordon Hommon 6 Tracy Suchsland 7 Kathy Frieling Austin Hobelmann 9 Brad Timmons Eric Standley 12 Vance Cornwell 15 Dave Hommon Gerald Caspers 16 Kayla Haas 17 Kyle Cornwell 20 Jeremy Jacobs Rhett Kingsbury 22 Michael Baumann 23 Kristen Phipps 25 Connor Barnes 26 Lucille Herman Gracie Myers 27 Betty Caspers JANUARY WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES Cherie & Stan Herredsberg 01/26/2008 Vernon & Roberta Reinking 01/07/1995 SOUND ACOLYTE CANTOR LECTOR 3 Tim Colton Allan Brad 10 Jolan Barb W. Della 17 Trace Irene Barbie 24 Cauy Allan Marcia 31 Shelby Barb W. Allan ALTAR GUILD: Marcia Bose, Barbara Lehmann, Linda Robinson,??? USHERS GREETERS OFFERING COUNT Allan/Sharyl Robinson Marcia/Arlene Dennis R/Marci Sharyl Marcia/Shirley Terrills B. Hermanns Theron/Sharyl Bouchers T. Boses Theron/Gloria R. Haresnapes DH/Corrina Ken/Pam COMMUNION ASSISTANT: Brad KITCHEN CHAIRPERSON: Jenifer

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