Nativity Evangelical Lutheran Church 1079 Bethlehem Church Road Bethlehem, GA 30620-3002 Office: 770-307-4628 Goodnews@nativitylc.comcastbiz.net www.nativitybethlehemga.org Ahhhh - the lazy, hazy days of Summer are with us; days that are long on sun and fun (and maybe a little afternoon shower), spending time with family and friends, traveling to see parts of the country you ve never seen before or time to have a staycation with quiet mornings sipping coffee on the back porch, listening to the birds sing. Whatever your summer is turning out to be - Enjoy, relax and don t forget your SunScreen!! The past few weeks have been busy with Synod Assembly in Chattanooga followed close on the heals by youth ministry and travel to the University of West Alabama - now that s a place I ve never been before (Livingston, Alabama). I spent 7 days as AFFIRM staff with 70+ other adults and 250 young people. Sleep? What s that? Actually, it was as energizing being with them as it was exhausting going from 5 am - midnight. Being with young people with fresh outlooks on faith and God and grace and love gives me a renewed appreciation for God s imagination. They filled my heart with love and hope - these young folks are pretty cool! Just as our Nativity young folk are pretty cool! I think I can add crazy to the list of Summer adjectives in the first sentence. The whole summer doesn t have to be crazy!! If we take care to manage our time in the summer when kids get to sleep longer, you might get a few minutes to yourself on the porch with your coffee. Summer can mean more Sabbath time - time to reclaim your relationship with God in prayer and meditation. I know, having children at home, or grandchildren visiting probably doesn t sound very meditative but all of your time doesn t have to be running pell mell from one place to another. Introduce your young people to God-time; that extraordinary time spent in silence marveling at a sunset or listening to cicadas in the evening or appreciating a spectacular view if you are camping in the mountains. God surprises us on the regular if we pay attention. Kids will learn from you and appreciate your perspective on reclaiming the connection with the One who created us. Summer may give us a chance to slow down, purposefully, and smell the roses. Invite your young people to garden with you or take a drive in the country (if you can get past the eye-rolling) and put down your cell phones or I-pads and look up at everything God gives you to look at. I am delighted that you get to travel and take time for yourselves but don t forget your church family. We miss you when you are gone - to borrow a cliché statement from the movies - you complete us! We aren t fully the Body of Christ when most of us are gone on Sunday. Send a post-card or a message on Facebook. Share your pictures with us and let us know where you are and how much fun you are having! When you come home for a quick break to wash clothes and repack - stop by
and say HI! No guilt! Just let us know you are alive and happy and enjoying abundant blessings as well! If you are home all summer and just chillin, come over on Sunday and hear the faith stories of your church friends. Our summer preaching series, Songs of Life, Stories of Faith allows 12 regular folks in the congregation to preach on a Sunday and share their stories of how God works in their life and what they have learned from God. The stories are great and hearing how my friends find comfort and strength in their relationship with God gives me a surge of hope for the future or a zing of happiness for the present. You can hang out with us at 8 am at Ft. Yargo or at 10:15 in the Sanctuary. WJBB 107.1 FM brings you the Lutheran Power Half Hour every Sunday morning at 8:30 in case St. Mattress calls you to stay at home. You have a bunch of opportunities to stay connected!! Mark Your Calendars for our Annual Picnic & Worship at Ft. Yargo on Sunday, July 30th. Worship starts at 10:15 followed by a cook-out and good times together. Bring a dish to share. The hamburgers and hot dogs as well as ice tea, lemonade and water are provided. Bring your family, friends and neighbors and come make a joyful noise in the Nature Center Pavilion. Pets are welcome too! If your puppy loves to play at Ft. Yargo, bring them along - the more the merrier! God be with you till we meet again!! Shalom! Pastor Patti
Featured Events: o Fort Yargo Service The annual Ft. Yargo Service will be on Sunday, July 30 th at the Nature Pavilion @ 10:30. Bring lawn chairs and come and worship. There will be a potluck lunch immediately following the service. Bring your favorite dish to share. o In July, we will be going around to the neighborhoods near the church to handout lunches to the children. Please see Jean Hunt if you can help. o Church Greeters NEEDED: Help our church be a welcoming place for members and guests Church Greeter Chairman to lead group and ensure we always have a greeter needed o Thrivent Members- (If you have Thrivent product; IRA, insurance, annuity, etc.) you can request Thrivent Action Team funds twice a year -$250 ea. We have upcoming projects that could benefit from this money. If you are willing and able to help please let Pastor Patti know. o Quiet Communion moves to Ft. Yargo for the summer May 7 th 8am Gazebo overlooking the water on Bird Berry Trail All are Welcome! You may need to bring Lawn chairs (only two benches provided) o Care Groups Stay tuned we will be having get-togethers this summer so we can get to know each other better. Please make every effort to attend if you are invited. Project 18+ They have a Thrift Store if you have gently used items, please contact them (Marilou, Steve or Pastor have their number) to donate. They regularly would like donations of canned vegetables (two cans per meal). We have been donating bread and baked goods from Publix. Quilting and Crocheting Every Tuesday from 2-4 in the Quilting Room below the Sanctuary. Come help create quilts that are donated to groups such as the local veterans homeless shelter and Lutheran World Relief. Contact Marilou Chastain or Barb Kelderhouse for more info Adventure Bags For more info please contact Carol Phillpotts or visit www.adventurebags.org Provide kids entering foster care with a backpack of essentials Currently needed items include Stuffed animals (new or gently used)
Kids fluoride toothpaste ****Kids soap / infant body wash (found at dollar tree)*** The infant body wash is the most needed item at this time! There are different needs all the time. Please contact Carol to see what is currently the most pressing need! WELCA Women of the ELCA o Contact Judy Johnson or Judy Aukes for more info o Projects we are committed to include: Days for Girls Prayer Shawls Barnyard animals o We gather monthly for fellowship and Bible Study during the school year. But if you can help with our special projects year-round we are most appreciative. o WELCA Luncheon will be held on Saturday, July 8 at Noon. Bring something to go in a green salad (we have the lettuce) or a fruit salad/prepared salad of some sort OR dessert. Bring your scissors so that we can prepare more Days for Girls hygiene kits to send out. See attached flyer for information. Octoberfest o Octoberfest will be held on Saturday, October 21. See attached flyer for information. Sunday School, Bible Study, Altar Guild, Choir, and Bells Adult Sunday School: Summer topic to be decided. Bible Study: Bible Study will resume on July 12 th Altar Guild: June 26 - July 2 - Team 2 July 3 - July 9 - Team 3 July 10 - July 16 - Team 4 July 17 - July 23 - Team 1 July 24 - July 30 - Team 2
Choir: Will resume on July 20 th working on music for Fort Yargo all the way through Christmas. Practice begins at 7:30 Handbells: Will resume on July 20 th working on music for Fort Yargo all the way through Christmas. Practice begins at 6:30. Children s Sunday School: Will begin again in September Story Time with Grandpa Lamaritz Dear Ones, Long ago there lived three good friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were very faithful followers of God in a time when Israel had been captured by Babylon. These young men were wise and hardworking, and impressed King Nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of Babylon, so much that he put them in charge of the running of the kingdom. This made others who had served the king a long time very jealous. They wanted to get rid of these three young Israelis and take over their jobs. And so, when the king, who was apparently very vain, had a large statue of himself built out of gold, these jealous men saw a way to get rid of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Wise King, they said, in order to prove loyalty to you and you alone, you should make it a rule that everyone in the kingdom, when they hear a trumpet call, should face the golden statue and bow down to it. These crafty fellows knew that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would never bow down to a golden statue. They worshipped only the god of Israel, and would remain faithful to God. Sure enough, King Nebuchadnezzar made the rule, and said that anyone who didn t obey the rule would be cast into a huge fiery furnace. The next day, when the trumpet sounded, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to face the golden statue and bow down. Instead, as was their daily practice, they worshiped the one true God in violation of the King s rule. When the crafty priests and satraps saw this, they immediately told King Nebuchadnezzar about the three refusing to bow down to his statue, and demanded they be put to death. This made the king very sad indeed, because he liked the three young men. Still, he had made it a rule and rules have to be obeyed, so he ordered them thrown into a fiery furnace. All night the fires roared as men continued to put wood into the door and keep the fires hot. All night, the King worried about his three-young friend, and hoped they would be all right. All night, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego stayed in the furnace and prayed to God. The next morning, the King ran to the furnace and ordered the doors opened. Out stepped the three men not only alive, but not a single hair on their head was burned not a stitch of their clothing was scorched. This
made the King so happy that he had the gold statue taken down, declared that the God whom Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego worshipped was the one true God, and should be worshipped. The three men who had remained faithful to God were saved, and given even more authority in Babylon because of their faith and God s mercy. Until the next time, I remain your faithful storyteller, Grandpa Lamaritz Birthdays Jeff Axel 7/2 Dan Allen 7/6 George Graham 7/10 Jeff Helsinger 7/12 Brad Roehl 7/12 Doug McIndoe 7/17 Carol Phillpotts 7/18 Judy Aukes 7/20 Rhonda Conrad 7/22 Loa Gafford 7/22 Clif Crews 7/25 Mildred Duggar 7/25 Elizabeth Aukes 7/30 Picture This Terry Zeimer has graciously agreed to help create a Photo Directory for our church. In order to get started we need a little support from you! 1. Choose a favorite recent family photo and email it to Terry Ziemer - ziemer111@hotmail.com 2. Contact Pastor Patti for her to take your family picture Please help us to get this photo directory created so we can share with all members but particularly when we have new members so they can get to know us!
July Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1. 2. L-Jean H. AM Judy J Story - Jean H G/U Ellen & Blake H Ziemer 9. L- Linda L AM Duane L Story Judy J G/U Brad & Cole H Linnartz 16. L- Jessie A AM Needed Story Karan J G/U Ellen & Blake H Ellen & Blake 23. L - Jeff A AM Delila H Story Jeanne B G/U Needed H Axel 30. Fort Yargo Service 10:15 @ Nature Pavilion L Judy A AM Frank W Story Duane G/U Ziemer H Everyone 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. WELCA Luncheon @ Noon 10. Bible and Brew @ Top Dawg @ 6PM 11. Quilting 2-4 17. 18. Quilting 2-4 24. Bible and Brew @ Top Dawg @ 6PM 31. 25. Quilting 2-4 12. Bible Study @ 10:00am 19. Bible Study @ 10:00am 26. Bible Study @ 10:00am 13. 14. 15. 20. Handbells @ 6:30 Choir @ 7:30 27. Handbells @ 6:30 Choir @ 7:30 21. 22. 28. 29.