THE WEEKLY MESSENGER 1358 South Lake Drive Lexington, SC 29073 Week of February 12, 2017 The Sermon on the Mount The Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Yeah. Right. How do you do that? I want to suggest to you that it is impossible and at the same time not as hard as you might think! Jesus says that God is perfect because he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. In other words God does not stop loving us no matter what. Should we wish to be perfect, we might just want to give up being judgmental!. Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper It s almost that time! Epiphany will draw to a close on February 28 th and Lent will start with Ash Wednesday on March 1 st. We have one last chance to party and to invite our neighbors to join us. Come for pancakes and sausage, fun and fellowship. MARK IT ON YOUR CALENDARS! Tuesday, February 28 th at 6:00pm.
CATECHISM CORNER From Martin Luther s Small Catechism: THE TEN COMMANDMENTS The Sixth Commandment You shall not commit adultery. What is this? or What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we lead pure and decent lives in word and deed, and each of us loves and honors his or her spouse. We know the words from the 10 Commandments above. We also have heard Jesus say, You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. 28But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Adultery, in its simplest terms, is when one person steals the affections of a person in a committed relationship marriage by any other name. Like anger, it breaks people apart rather than joining them together. Jesus adds lust to adultery because lust is not about love. Lust desiring another person, especially sexually is really all about turning a person into a thing. Lust does not take the whole person with their feelings, their relationships, their integrity, into account. Lust takes only a part of a person, magnifies it and fails to see the wonder of what God made in its entirety. Many marriages fail in our society and we know it to be sad. Lust the desire for a person in a way that thinks of them as less than human - can be one reason. Sometimes, spouses treat each other as less than human because they fail to see the whole person, with all their unique characteristics, cherishing even the flaws. John Legend has a wonderful love song, All of Me, that has these words: 'Cause all of me Loves all of you Love your curves and all your edges All your perfect imperfections 2
Love takes all the imperfections and cherishes them. In Luther s explanation, once again, we turn the negative to a positive and seek to honor our spouse and the integrity of the marriages and commitments of others. Bible Study of Matthew Pastor Kevin is offering a Bible Study on the Gospel of Matthew on Thursday nights at 7pm. Matthew wrote his gospel for his community that was reeling from the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. They had been expelled from the Jewish synagogues and were living in exile in Syria away from the Jewish homeland. What does it mean to be the People of God? and How do we reach out to people not like us? were the questions being asked. Perhaps we are asking similar questions. Matthew s gospel maybe a place to start! Thursday evenings at 7pm in the Fellowship hall! Bring your supper! Adult Sunday School Classes John Harmon s class, meeting in the NE Age Room on Sunday mornings will be looking at our Church History during this year of celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. Adam Steele s class, meeting in the Fellowship Hall on Sunday mornings will be studying the Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew. Special Thank You for those who provided breakfast for our committee meeting last Sunday. A special Thank You to those who participated in furthering the ministry here at St. James. 3
Luther: A Rock Opera As all of you know this year brings the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. Dr. Rich Melheim has gathered a team of folks and put together what is entitled "Luther: A Rock Opera" to help celebrate and honor this momentous occasion. We are beginning discussions in the Saxe Gotha Conference about putting together a cast to perform this show Reformation weekend. We are very much open to the idea of including people outside of the Saxe Gotha Conference area as well! If you have anybody in your congregation within traveling distance to Lexington that would like to be involved whether in the organizing and creating of sets, singing, acting, directing, inc., please feel free to contact Pastor Jason Antley at jasonantley@earthlink.net. This is very much in the infancy stage so there's not a lot of information to be shared right now. This inquiry is more to gauge interest and to develop a roster of individuals who would like to be included in future messages. From Lutheran World Relief: Keeping Coffee Farming in the Family Across the developing world, coffee farmers face a dilemma: they re growing older the average age of the coffee farmer is over 60 years old but their children have no interest in taking their place. The younger generation tends to migrate to cities, where they ll have a better chance at making a living. For the coffee farmers in Flores, Indonesia, this is no different. Their coffee is sought-after around the world, but their coffee trees tended to be old and farmers weren t pruning their trees, so they grew way too high so high, in fact, that tall bamboo ladders were required to harvest coffee cherries. Lutheran World Relief coffee expert Rick Peyser said they were among the tallest trees he d ever seen. As a result, farmers weren t growing as much coffee per tree as they should, and their income suffered hardly an incentive for the younger generation to take up coffee farming. LWR Coffee expert, Rick Peyser, listens as Petrus Kadu describes his coffee farm. His trees once stood way too tall to produce enough good quality coffee. With the support of people like you, LWR has been working with Petrus and other coffee farmers in Flores, Indonesia to learn to better care for their coffee trees. 4
But over the past several years, LWR has been working with the farmers and coffee cooperatives in the villages around the mountainside town of Bajawa to improve the productivity and quality of their crop, enabling them to sell it for a higher profit. A key feature of the project was a farmer school where coffee growers learned about best practices for cultivation, including pruning, soil conservation and the use of organic fertilizer. LWR continues to work with the umbrella cooperative organization, Masyarakat Perlindungan Indikasi Geographis (MPIG), to improve its operations and help it to better serve its members. Petrus Kadu, a coffee farmer in his 50s, supports a family of seven from his coffee crop. He has put the knowledge gained in the farmer school to good practice. He bought a farm with towering trees that were 20 years old. Now it s easy to distinguish his farm from some of the neighboring plots. His are regularly pruned and fertilized, resulting in a healthy, productive farm. He also diversified his crops, planting bananas, eucalyptus and pumpkins, and is also raising pigs. He says he appreciates the support he receives from the cooperative, especially the guaranteed price he gets from it. It s better working together, because we can help each other, he says. He now makes sufficient income to support his family and pay school fees for his children, including university tuition for his daughter, Maria, who is studying financial management in the city of Malang, Java. With a twinkle of pride in his eye, he says that when his daughter finishes her degree, she plans to return to Bajawa to eventually run the family farm. 5
THE OWLS ARE PLANNING A TRIP May 10, 2017 7:00am 7:30am 10:00am 1:15pm 2:00pm 4:30pm 8:30pm Meet your fellow travelers at the church and prepare for departure. Depart the area with a rest stop en route. Arrive at A Day in the Country for Shopping and Lunch (included). After lunch, we will visit Van s Chocolate Shop for the group to stop and shop and cure their sweet tooth. Meet the bus and take the short drive to the Flat Rock Playhouse, Mainstage. Smokey Joe s Cafe The music of Leiber and Stoller is sure to have you tapping your toes and dancing in the aisles with such hits as On Broadway, Stand by Me, Jailhouse Rock, Yakkity Yak and I Am Woman. After all that fun, we will make our way to Bloomfield s and enjoy a little shopping before heading back home. Estimated time of arrival back at the church. 6 Per Person Cost - $129 Inclusions: Round trip motorcoach transportation, reserved ticket for Smokey Joe s Cafe at the Flat Rock Playhouse, plus all parking, permits, tolls and gratuity for the motorcoach operator. Final payment due by: March 30, 2017 CANCELLATION POLICY: The cost of tickets is non-refundable once purchased. The remainder of your trip is refundable up to April 10, 2017 Capitol Tours bases the payment / cancellation policies on those imposed by attractions, restaurants and/or the charter department. After the above date, we will work on your behalf to obtain a refund but we cannot refund money that has not been refunded to Capitol Tours. Cancellation insurance is available upon request. Capitol Tours reserves the right to change the itinerary when it is found necessary to do so for the success of the tour. In the event that a replacement is needed, we will try to replace it with one of equal value whenever possible. Capitol Tours is a proud member of the American Bus Association (ABA), the United Motorcoach Association (UMA) and the Motorcoach Association of SC (MCASC). Capitol Tours is fully insured.
Many have asked about the glitches on the north side of our digital sign. We have been told that there has been a water leak that causes a short. New parts have been ordered and we hope to have the sign back in perfect working order soon. In the meantime, enjoy these funny signs! 7
Member Prayer List Pastor Bill Kyzer Doris Sharpe Member Shut-ins Bobby Frazier Frank McLeod Roberta Pound Dollie Pounds Anna Ree Roland Kathleen Smith Joan Leskoske Norma Moore Friends & Relatives of Church Members David Ball - Father of Rosemary Davis Randy Baker - Friend of the Freeman s Pam Crossland - Friend of Cheryl Austin Jacob & Alberta Dooley - Relative of Margaret & Allen Hollis Clarence Davis - Father of Jason Davis Barbara Eckard - Cousin of Mary Hines Donna Florence - Mother of Megan Joyner Gracey Goodman - Great Niece of Henry Poplin Mildred Gunter - Cousin of Anna Ree Roland Lee Hamilton - Grandson of Norma Moore Terri Moore Hamilton - Daughter of Norma Moore Colene Hook - Mother of Kristie Joyner Keith Gossett - Brother of Brenda Poplin Bob Florence - Father of Megan Joyner Ann Addy Friend of Katrina Shealy Michelle Brown Quintans- Cousin of Kim Backman and Tammy O'Quinn Nancy Spinella friend of Cora Nevitt Lanell Hicks - Mother of Miranda West Rick Kyzer - Son of Richard Kyzer Roger Lindler - Brother of Mendel Lindler Billy Long - Brother of Mike Long Sandy Martin - Friend of Janet & Russell Taylor Samantha Molnar - Sister of Carolyn Steele Gerald Roof - Brother of Debbie Kyzer Priscilla Shealy - Sister of Alice Raffa Allie Snider- Granddaughter of the Freeman s Johnny Starnes - Brother of Anna Ree Roland Susan Russell - Friend of Brenda Poplin Corey Taylor - Friend of Mary Hines Hazel Tisdale - Friend of Tracy Shealy Sandra Voelker - Friend of Margaret Hollis Lois Watson - Mother of Debbie Areheart William Watson - Father of Debbie Areheart Julia Shealy Friend of Katrina Shealy The Family of Sam Bailey and Ed Bailey Cousin of Margaret & Allen Hollis Mike and Janet Crumptons family Gene Crumpton Uncle Donnelle Windham Aunt Tim Windham Cousin Michael Anderson - Friend of St. James Dwight Barrs - Grandson Eunice Backman Joseph Brown - Grandson of Bill & Kathryn Kyzer Ryan Caulder - Son of Mot Caulder Military Workers Daniel Herb - Son in Law of Mot Caulder Jeremy Jolly - Grandson of Hazel Rawl Wayne Watkins - Nephew of S. Jeffords 8
This Week At St. James Monday, February 13 7:00PM Cub Scouts Tuesday, February 14 6:30PM Girl Scouts Wednesday, February 15 6:30pm Choir Practice 7:30pm Handbell Choir Thursday, February 16 7:00PM Alcoholics Anonymous 7:00PM Bible Study Sunday, February 19 Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany 9:15 AM All Committees meet 10:30 AM Holy Communion 2:30 PM Cub & Girl Scout Classes 4:00 PM Confirmation Class Birthdays 2/16 Zachary Frye Courtney Rikard Pauline Avent 2/20 Jim Tyner Phyllis Boineau 2/22 Dee Franklin 2/23 Debbie Kyzer Robbie Germershausen 2/25 Brenda Poplin 2/26 Cheryl Austin 2/28 Joyce Zeigler Lutheran Men in Mission Monday, February 20 th 7pm All men in the congregation are invited to come for dinner, a program, and conversation in the Fellowship Hall. 9
Sunday, February 19 Presiding Minister Pastor Kevin Ogilvie Assisting Minister Vicar Shea Berbaum Acolyte Daunte Smith Crucifer WORSHIP LEADERS IN JANUARY Sunday, February 26 Presiding Minister Pastor Kevin Ogilvie Assisting Minister Vicar Shea Berbaum Acolyte Alyssa Long Crucifer Sunday, March 5 Presiding Minister Pastor Kevin Ogilvie Assisting Minister Vicar Shea Berbaum Acolyte Crucifer Sunday, March 12 Presiding Minister Pastor Kevin Ogilvie Assisting Minister Vicar Shea Berbaum Acolyte Crucifer Communion Assistants Cora Nevitt Altar Guild Jan Sharpe Lector Communion Assistants Mary Browder Altar Guild Tammy O Quinn Lector Mary Browder Communion Assistants Cheryl Austin Altar Guild Jan Sharpe Lector Cheryl Austin Communion Assistants Von Goff Altar Guild Jan Sharpe Lector Tammy O Quinn Ushers Larry Kyzer Luke Roland Ushers Larry Kyzer Luke Roland Ushers Larry Kyzer Luke Roland Ushers Larry Kyzer Luke Roland WORSHIP LEADERS NEEDED St. Peter writes: 4 Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and 5 like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:) You are that royal priesthood and all Christians are invited to help in leading worship. We have many opportunities from reading lessons, assisting with communion, serving as an acolyte or in the choir. Please be sure to sign up in the Narthex on Sunday mornings or speak with Pastor Kevin! He is happy to give you instruction in how to do the service you choose. FLOWERS FOR THE ALTAR Would you like to remember a loved one or honor someone special? Please consider a donation of flowers for our altar area on Sunday morning! A sign up sheet is in the Narthex. You are asked to speak directly with the florist or to bring the arrangement yourself. Speak with Pastor Kevin for details. 10
Red Bank UMC Sunday Gospel Concert Series Presents: Philip Hamrick Sunday, February 19 th, 6:00 p.m. Red Bank United Methodist Church 2909 Old Barnwell Rd, Lexington SC 29073 803-359-4031 www.rbumc.com Join the Red Bank UMC youth group and congregation as we welcome North Carolina's Philip Hamrick to our monthly concert series in February. Philip is the worship leader for multiple campuses of The Cove in the Charlotte and Mooresville, North Carolina area. CHURCH OFFICE NOTES ~ Anyone interested in volunteering as worship assistant in one, or more areas, please feel free to call the church office or sign up in the narthex. We are in need of assistants in all areas of worship. ~ Any articles that you would like to have included in the Weekly Messenger need to be emailed to office@stjameslex.com or simply brought by the church office prior to Wednesday of the week you would like to see it in the publication. Thank you! 11
St. James Lutheran Church 1358 South Lake Drive Lexington, SC 29073 (803) 359-2122 or (803) 359-7803 office@stjameslex.com Visit us on the web at www.stjameslex.com CHURCH STAFF Pastor Kevin Ogilvie, PhD. pastor.kevin@stjameslex.com Music Director Martha Caulder SUNDAY SCHEDULE 9:15am Sunday School 10:30 Holy Communion Office Hours Monday-Thursday 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM St. James Lutheran Council for 2017 Cheryl Austin, Adam Steele, Kevin Turner, Jeff Hibbs, Ben Freeman Kim Backman, Mary Browder John Harmon Mary Hines 12 President Vice-President/Cemetery Secretary/Family Life Fin. Secretary/Personnel Treasurer/Finance Christian Education Social Ministry Stewardship Youth Dick Kyzer Property Larry Kyzer Evangelism Katrina Shealy Worship & Music Pastor Kevin Ex Officio