NEWSLETTER OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH. September 2017

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1 OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH NEWSLETTER Pastor Al Muck 751 N. Maple Grove Ave. Hudson, MI September 2017 Ladies Guild Ladies Guild will meet Thursday, September 7th, at 6:00 PM with a potluck dinner. There is a sign up sheet on the bulletin board. Church Council Church Council meets Sunday, September 3rd, following the service. Personal items for LWR We are collecting personal items for Lutheran World Relief. Items needed are: 1 towel (light to medium weight for easy drying) size 52 x 27, or 20 x 40 new items 2 bars of soap 1 toothbrush 1 comb 1 nail clippers unwrap, no plastic No USA markings, no plastic, no camouflage. In balance Knowing God without knowing our wretchedness leads to pride. Knowing our wretchedness without knowing God leads to despair. Knowing Christ gives the balance. Blaise Pascal The labor to which we're called In words attributed to Mother Teresa, Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of Jesus. As we celebrate Labor Day, what does such a distinction mean? Vocation comes from Latin for calling. Christians understand vocation as that for which God created you, involving activities you do well, enjoy and feel good about doing, and that serve others. If you re blessed to earn a paycheck doing something that fits those categories, then your profession or occupation your work likely is your vocation. Other people work a paying job because an opportunity presents itself and the income is needed, even if it isn t their favorite thing to do. Perhaps they live out their truest vocation during non-employment hours: singing with a choir, raising children, building houses with Habitat for Humanity. Christians in any capacity, paid or not, can live out Jesus calling to love God and neighbor with our whole being (Luke 10:27). When God is CEO of our lives, it shows in how we treat our fellow laborers Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion. Georg Hegel

2 The Family of Larry Palmer Raelene Prothero strength, chemo for colon cancer Ben Rupley unexplained body pain Kathy Surfew house burned, total loss Eric Lewis healing of his body Jaykob Robinson autism Kylee Claeys lost her third child at birth Karleen Marsh loss of a kidney, due to blood clot transferred from hospital to long term care in Kalamazoo Jayme Lohr the ability to sell house, find a job, a new place, and start of a new and better life John Boehk recovery from triple bypass heart surgery Mike Sanborn heart attack Grayson Rupley sensory disorder Margaret Runnells broken leg complications and cancer Allison Stickel health & anxiety issues Helen Meyer foot pain & problems Shirley Klinger continued strength, cancer gone Roger Sholl cancer treatments Church Council Ladies Guild Our Saviour Lutheran Missionaries Be yourself for God Rabbi Joseph Liebermann describes a dream where he dies and goes to stand before God s judgment seat. As he waits, the rabbi fears that the Lord will ask him, Why weren t you a Moses or a David... or a Solomon? Instead, God surprises him by simply asking, Why weren t you Rabbi Liebermann? When our lives are over, God won t ask us why we weren t a Mother Teresa or another saintly soul. He simply wants us to be who he created us to be. We are his workmanship, St. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:10. In Greek, workmanship means a piece of art. You are God s masterpiece. Life isn t a game of comparison. It s a journey of discovery of how God has uniquely created you to perform specific tasks in this life. Your life is God s canvas. Don t hinder the painting process Mike Paulison A sign of what s to come When God is about to do something great, he starts with a difficulty. When he is about to do something truly magnificent, he starts with an impossibility Armin Gesswein

3 The Reformation was not about anything new, but about returning to the unchanged and unchanging truth. So it still is today. The celebration of the 500 th anniversary of the Reformation is not a time for novelty. It is time to return. Return to the truth. Return to the basics. Return to the foundation. Do you remember the Small Catechism? Many of us were made to memorize the catechism (or at least part of it) during our confirmation classes. Some of us might have even suffered through a public examination over the contents of the catechism. How much to do you remember? Say it with me: I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him. Can you finish? Do you remember where that is found (Luther s Explanation of the Third Article of the Apostles Creed)? It s time to return. Luther wrote the Small Catechism for the instruction of lay people. Luther intended the Small Catechism to be used at church and in the home to instruct children in the faith and to reinforce the faith in the hearts and minds of the adults. There is no better time than in this year of celebrating the 500 th anniversary of the Reformation to review the catechism. Read it for yourself. Refresh the theology in your mind. Pray the catechism daily. Memorize it. But even more, teach it. If you are a parent, teach it to your children. As you have opportunity, share it with your friends and peers. The catechism teaches the fundamentals of the Christian faith: the Ten Commandments, the Apostles Creed, the Lord s Prayer, the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Confession and the Office of the Keys, and the Sacrament of the Altar. This small book is well worth your time and study. May this celebration of the 500 th anniversary of the Reformation be a time when we return to Word and Sacrament, and when we turn to Christ and His love. It s Still All About Jesus. Sunday, October 15, 2017 East Lansing, MI Michigan District-wide Reformation Worship Service Breslin Center at Michigan State University 2:00 p.m. Concourse Displays Open 4:00 p.m. Pre-Service Concert 5:00 p.m. Celebration Worship 20 Free tickets have been reserved for Our Saviour members to attend the service. Busses are being reserved by St. Johns to provide transportation. Space is limited so sign up now in the fellowship hall or contact Pastor Al. Plan to join nearly 10,000 Lutherans to celebrate Our Heritage, Our Faith and Our Hope in Christ Alone! Pastor Al

4 Our Saviour Lutheran Ladies Guild Meeting Aug. 3, 2017 Attending: Helen M., Linda R., Diane S., Mary B., Janice B. Devotions by Mary out of Portals of Prayer Secretary's Report: Motion by Mary to accept report as posted, seconded by Helen. Carried. Treasurer's Report: none Old Business: Discussion on Snacks for VBS. Suggestions were juice, fruit, a cookie, and some crackers. Diane said she would bring cookies. Discussion on collecting School Kits for Lutheran World Relief for this year s project. We will send the school kits we have. Suggestion to collect for Personal Care Kits. Motion made by Mary to collect this year in Sept. for Personal Care Kits, seconded by Diane. Motion carried. New Business: A sign-up sheet will be posted for our potluck Sept. meeting. Motion to adjourn by Mary, Diane seconded. Adjourned. List of Personal items for Lutheran World Relief: 1 towel (light to med. Weight for easy drying) size 52 x 27, or 20 x 40 new items 2 bars soap 1 tooth brush 1 comb 1 nail clippers - unwrap, no plastic No USA markings, no plastic, no camouflage Secretary, Janice B

5 1 Betsy Shaffer Denny Shaffer 3 Judith Minton Dodge Root 4 Katie Moreno 5 Debra Heistan 10 London Lohr 13 Darlene Reuter Courtney Shields 14 Ashley Goldsmith 15 Christy Grimm 16 Tanya Mattison 18 Bryan Gutierrez 19 Judy Kizer 20 David Klinger 21 Eve Root 22 Dale Ryan Goldsmith Dean Houser Donna Klinger 24 Aaron Grimm Julie Perkins 25 Jessica Martinus 8 Dale & Erin Wonderly 9 Eugene & Kristy Gottschalk 11 Bob & Teihlia Rupley 15 Dean & Lynn Henning 25 Bernie & Darlene Reuter GOD'S RICHEST BLESSINGS TO ALL God's left hand A 6-year-old and his grandma went for a walk one autumn day. Look at the gorgeous leaves! Grandma exclaimed. Just think, God painted each one of them just for us! Yep, said her grandson, and he did it left-handed. Perplexed, Grandma asked, Why do you think God used his left hand to create all this beauty? Because, said the boy matter-of-factly, we learned in Sunday school that Jesus sits on God s right one.

6 September 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat th Sunday after Pentecost 10:15 AM Worship Service Church Council meets 4 Labor Day Office Closed Ladies Guild potluck at 6:00 PM th Sunday after Pentecost :15 AM Holy Communion 17 15th Sunday after Pentecost :15 AM Worship Service Newsletter deadline 24 16th Sunday after Pentecost 10:15 AM Holy Communion Special One Offering