Message from the Pastor

Transcription

1 Message from the Pastor When I was a girl, I would spend a week or so each summer with my grandparents. Every morning began with oatmeal and orange juice (mixed with Pepsi, because that was the only way grandpa would drink it and as kids we thought it was a treat, drinking pop for breakfast, no matter how bad it tasted), and then breakfast was followed by devotions. Each and every morning, grandma would pray for each and every one of her children and their families by name without fail. And whatever was going on, wherever I was -- that was something I could count on while I was growing up. I always knew I was prayed for. I knew grandma and grandpa had brought me before God that day. I don t know what difference it made in how my life went or what happened to me after all, I still had my share of screw-ups and hurts and lousy circumstances. But, I know it did make a difference in how I thought about myself in the midst of it all. You see, I knew I was somebody that mattered. I was somebody that someone cared enough about to remember at the start of every single day. And I was somebody that God knew about because my grandmother made absolutely sure of it. Prayer matters. We send out prayer concerns regularly for folks in the church and I hear from many of you that take time to lift them up. There are some who take a moment when reading the s and others who faithfully lift them up each day of the week. Thank you for your prayers because, on the other end, I have been told over and over by those who are going through difficulty that it makes a huge difference to know that people are praying for them. I know it makes an immense difference to me when I ve been told that I pray for you every day, Pastor. Prayer matters. I don t know how it changes things I don t pretend to know how God answers prayer or what that looks like. But I do know it changes me. It changes me when I know I am prayed for. And it changes me when I pray for others. It keeps me connected to God and to others. I m not a solo act, it seems. Rather, we re in this together. Prayer matters. When I visited the oldest monastery in the world the Monastery of St. Anthony in the desert of Egypt some of us awoke at midnight and 3 am and 6 am to be present for the prayers. At St. Anthony s, they faithfully observe the liturgy of the hours, gathering for prayer every few hours, around the clock (7 times each day). I have never had such peace as I sat there and reflected on these monks who, for the last 1750 years, have been holding the world in prayer around the clock. Just think about that we are all being prayed for each and every day by the Coptic Orthodox monks at St. Anthony. Prayer matters. Sometimes I hear from folks who can t get around like they used to and can t work like they used to so they start to feel like they have nothing to offer. But that simply isn t true. You can pray. You can always pray. And prayer matters. It truly does. Somehow, God made this universe in such a way that when we hold one another in our thoughts and prayers things happen. Holiness happens. The power of the Holy Spirit touches our lives. We cannot understand it or explain it. But it s true. Prayer does something. It matters. So, dear friends thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your prayers that bind us together and redeem the world. And continue to pray always and do not lose heart. (Luke 18:1) In the love of Jesus Pr. Janine 1

2 Ministering Volunteers who share their gifts September 4, 2016 Greeters: Tim & Kayla Dowdles Ushers: Marva Heckathorn & Nancy Thome Reader: Steve Cawelti : Scone Bender s Group Nursery: Racine Balow & Myriah Stenvers September 11, 2016 Greeters: Mark & Scone Bender Ushers: Greg & Nicole Seeber Reader: Marva Heckathorn : Gail Johnson s Group Nursery: Chloe Jones September 18, 2016 Greeters: Mark & Scone Bender Ushers: Jason & Monica Jones Reader: Jean Oxrieder : Peggy Smith s Group Nursery: Kari Goodrich September 25, 2016 Greeters: Ashley Scribner & Theresa Watson Ushers: Val Samson & Carol Bourassa Reader: LeRoy Leland : Vicki Richter s Group Nursery: Lia Goodrich & Brooklyn Hastings October 2, 2016 Greeters: Marva Heckathorn Ushers: Les & Blanche Wall Reader: Emmie Leland : Val Samson s Group Nursery: Lilly Hughes & Kendall & Elise Hinchliff October 9, 2016 Greeters: Valeie Samson & Fay Grant Ushers: Dick Bockemuehl & Sandy Ellersick Reader: Don Comins : Sandy Ellersick s Group Nursery: Cydni Lewis October 16, 2016 Greeters: Sip & Bonnie Crotteau Ushers: Carol & Brian Hood Reader: Bonnie Crotteau : Jean Oxrieder s Nursery: Racine Balow & Myriah Stenvers October 23, 2016 Greeters: Les & Blanche Wall Ushers: Toby & Gail Johnson Reader: Val Samson : Chris Shaver s Group Nursery: Chloe Jones October 30, 2016 Greeters: Joe & Darlene Evans Ushers: Steve & Sharon Bateman Reader: John Gertenbach : Jaci Stevens Group Nursery: Kari Goodrich 2

3 Our 4 th Second Harvest Food Giveaway for 2016 will be October 20 th. Please pray, mark your calendar, and plan to help feed our community. Anna Circle Resumes on September 13 th. We re looking forward to visiting with everyone again. All our church women are welcome. Our hostess is Gail Johnson. We have a website! Americanlutheranchurch.net is ours! Please sit in front of your computer for a short time and explore the beautiful results of our many hours of planning and preparation. You can see our newsletter and check out the calendar some fun pictures too. Welcome to our new members this year: Timothy & Kayla Dowdle and their family -- Aubrey, Gwendolyn, Bianca, and Willow. Carolyn Tat Blesch. Glen and Mary Bug Smith. Birthdays Celebrate their Birth SEPTEMBER Karen Rucker Joe Evans Dale Chamberlain Deegan Jones Nicholas Morey Jon Hinchliff Russell Balow Ryan Tafoya Donna Franck Peggy Smith Shirley Engen Jeffrey Pierson Kari Tafoya Vicki Richter OCTOBER Wyatt Jones Larry Sauer Jeff Bell Jorden Pierson Wes Blore Chris Shaver Michael Tafoya Gene Reed Jeremy Lewis LeRoy Leland Harold Peterson Bjarne Engen DonRabe Don Comins Kristapher Morey Don Gumenberg Lia Goodrich Jeanne Gerke

4 Special Thanks Appreciation for God s blessings in action To Jean Oxrieder, Gladys Gerow, Jan Gleason, Nancy Thome, Thelma Richter, and Blanche Wall, Now that our newsletter is coming out electronically and it seems to be going very well; we pause to take a breath and send our thanks to everybody who volunteered their hours every month to prepare the paper newsletters. For many years these ladies have been folding, taping, labeling, stamping, sorting, and counting the newsletters. They have also stuffed the offering envelopes with the receipts. That s a lot of hours, numerous paper cuts, and much appreciated labor. God bless your hands and dedication! Thank you! We already miss your visits to the church, and we hope you all enjoy your retirement. Thank You! We would like to thank our church family for the wonderful surprise to honor our 58 th wedding anniversary last Sunday. We were truly surprised and couldn t imagine a better celebration. Thank you seems to be an inadequate word for such a wonderful day. The great tribute on the wall was the first of many surprises. The potluck luncheon was delicious. And the floral arrangements are beautiful, we are still enjoying them. Our deep and sincere thanks to everyone involved. May the peace of the Lord be with you all, Tom and Hazel Bauer. Thrivent and American Lutheran Church sponsored our 3 rd Second Harvest food distribution on Thursday, August 18 th, We gave 11,500 pounds of food to 200 families with a total of 575 people. We had 37 volunteers that packaged and gave the food to people in need. A HUGE Thank You to all the volunteers and to the people who prepared and brought food to the volunteers luncheon. Thanks to all who made the food give away a success!. Mark Bender Church Council President Thanks to Dave Olson for serving as Treasurer. Vicki Richter is the new treasurer because Dave has accepted a call to Otis Orchards. 4

5 Church Contacts Serving God by serving all people Pastors... Matt & Janine Goodrich... Church office Parish Nurse... Valerie Blake Secretary... Patty Leiser... Church office Youth Ministers... Kari & Mike Tafoya Mutual Ministry Committee Members... Annie Frederick... Elaine Petersen... Vicki Richter... Lee Shaver... Shannon Hurd...Greg Seeber Church Council 2016 Serving God by serving the church President... Mark Bender Vice President... LeRoy Leland Treasurer... Vicki Richter Secretary... Roberta Clausen Evangelism... Theresa Watson... Sylvia Post... Marva Heckathorn * Education Monica Jones...Robert Balow* Property... Steve Cawelti... Ralph Blake... John Gertenbach * Worship... Karla Olson... Larry Sauer *... Elaine Petersen Stewardship... Val Samson... Val Urbat... Vicki Richter* Mission/Social Concerns... Bonnie Crotteau... Nancy Thome... Annie Frederick * * church council member 5

6 September SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY am Worship Backpack blessings am Worship am Worship Newsletter Deadline am Youth Pastors 9:30am Anna Circle 7pm Church Council am Youth Pastors am Youth Pastors am Men s ALC 15 6pm FFF 22 5:30pm BBB 29 6:30pm WWW October SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY am Men s ALC :30 Anna Circle 7pm Church Council pm FFF :30am Anna Circle am-noon 2 nd Harvest Food Dist 5:30pm BBB Newsletter Deadline 30 Reformation / Confirmation Sunday Pastors out at Bishop s Convocation in Walla Walla :30pm WWW

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