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| December 2006 Newsletter |
“Put an Extra Five in the Plate at Church ” (Abbreviated)Grace, Mercy and Peace to you …I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been encouraged to preach about money. “The Bible is full of talk about money, so why don’t you pastors preach about it?” people have asked. Well, one explanation why pastors, including myself, shy away from the topic of dollars and cents is that preaching about money never saved anybody. And I could, and you could, probably, too, count off on your fingers the number of friends, or friends of family members, who became turned off about going to “church” because they got beat over the head about money. Now, even though preaching about money might have done more harm than good, we might argue on the other side of that coin … that the church’s lack of money, her lack of resources, may have hindered or even prevented her from reaching many with the message of God’s love and salvation. You see, true stewardship of resources is really all about evangelism, reaching the lost … carrying out God’s purpose for His church. So, with that having been said, let’s go back to our title. It comes from one of those songs I’ve heard when my daughter takes over control of the car’s radio … Country Music … a male vocalist, Toby Keith, is singing a song about all the things he wants to get done on his life’s to-do list … and one of those things is his desire to “Put an extra five in the plate at church.” Let’s talk today about “the why” … why do we put anything in the plate at all? Well, there are two, perhaps three, schools of thought on this. One is, and this is one I don’t know that it’s fair to count … is that we put something in the plate out of guilt … or as an effort to assuage our guilt. An attempt to pay God off …to encourage Him to look the other way at our life. The truth is, Jesus already took care of all that. My debt, everyone’s debt due to our sinful lives has already been paid. If that weren’t true, I’d doubt an extra five in the plate would matter very much. Our debt is enormous, no one could pay it … even with 5 million in the plate on Sunday. So, really, for our purposes today …let’s not even count that as a real Christian motivation. So, next one: We give … in order to fund the work of the Church. We fund ministry. And you know?... the church has done an excellent Job of getting us to think that way. Years ago …at most of our churches, a lot of what went into the offering plate went out of the local congregation on to the district and synod, or national level. What’s happened? … Well, more and more of what goes in the plate on Sunday mornings needs to be kept by the local congregations to meet their own needs … and so, less and less is being sent on for the work done by our districts and synod. Our congregation is one of the very few left that still tithes … that is, we send 10 percent of what goes in the plate on to our district and synod. Sad as this is … the real sad outcome is that giving today is seen all too often as just giving to a special need. We see that thinking trickling in to our own congregation as well. Our radio ministry was taken out of the budget a few years back … and now a special request is necessary to fund it as a separate entity. So. What do we learn from this? This fund-raising pattern teaches us to give to a need. So, church, what do you do? You put a need in front of the people, and then ask people to give to that need. Now, there are times when this is appropriate … like Moses asking for the resources from God’s people to build the tabernacle … or St. Paul asking the Greeks for a collection for the need of the Jews in Jerusalem. Or, our congregation doing a special drive to fund the building of our school. Special, one-time requests. But, is that a true Scriptural understanding of stewardship? No. A Scriptural understanding of stewardship is about each of us giving back to God … to God, not to some favorite ministry … but to God, our first fruits of what He has given us. Let’s define that term first fruits. In the Old Testament … that was your first child, the first lamb, the first crops …the first and the very best. Your child? Yes. The whole tribe of Levi, the priestly tribe, served God in place of everyone else’s first son. That giving God your first-son-thing didn’t go away, God just made it a bit more pragmatic. Besides the first son … there was also the tithe … the one-tenth of all you got, your harvest, whatever. Just a tenth. Nine tenths was yours. The tithe gave credit to God for being the one, by whose grace, the whole 10 tenths came into being. In other words, without Him there would have been no seed, no rain, no labor …ultimately no harvest. And THAT’s probably the thing we’ve most lost today. We think that harvest is all our doing. So then, it’s sort of natural to think in terms of giving back to God … whatever I’ve got left over after I take care of all my wants and needs. Now, with the coming of God’s Grace in Jesus Christ … God’s full payment of our debt to Him … guess what? God cancelled the obligation of the tithe. Grace is free. So now, Scripturally, tithing is a matter of Christian Freedom. It’s a way we live out the faith God has put into our hearts. We come to church … we gather around Word and Sacrament. That’s how God feeds and strengthens us. And Scripturally, we give back to Him proportionally as we have been blessed. Again, today that’s perhaps the biggest disconnect. We see ourselves as the captains of our own destiny … the makers of our own wealth and fortunes. As most of us are not working the fields and dependent on rain and weather … we don’t as easily see God’s hand in our prosperity … It’s easy to overlook that from our schooling, to our career path, to our basic innate intelligence … God is the one in charge. Now, there are some who would pull out the Scriptural threats spoken to ancient Israel against their reluctance to keep the tithe and literally cheat God. God doesn’t speak to us that way since His grace has been revealed in Christ Jesus. He speaks in terms of our generosity, not our poverty. Our giving back to Him a portion of what He has given us is a sign of the health of our faith. There are some who would point to the blessings associated with the keeping of the old covenant tithe … they are there … but again, God has never promised that tithing will keep disaster from our door … What giving a tithe, more than anything else, is 1) a demonstration on your part that you do recognize God as the giver of all things. And 2) that you’re willing to trust Him … because tithing usually means making some sacrifices. We show in making those sacrifices we have faith He will work His blessing. So, using accounting terminology, the bottom line is this: If we all tithed, our radio ministry here at Our Savior would be back in the budget and completely funded without the need for a special request, not to mention a lot of other things … including a new youth director. If every congregation tithed ten percent of their offerings back to synod and district … there would be a good chance that our Universities and Seminaries could be funded through synod once again. But, guess which way the trend is going? More and more toward special requests. People tell me: “Pastor, people want to give to things they can see.” You can’t see faith. You can see eternal life. You can’t see forgiveness of sins. You can’t see the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. But, that’s all Scripture really has to show us … God’s amazing and unconditional love for each of us. Our response to that? … “put that extra five or 10 or fifty in the plate at church” … why? Toby Keith got it right: NOT TO GET SOMETHING IN RETURN! It’s about responding to a relationship God established in each one of us … it’s about living out who God has made each one of us … it’s about sharing His Joy in blessing us. Pray about that this week… and don’t be put off by that separate pledge for our Youth. It is a real challenge before us … and at this time, it needs to be recognized as such. It’s my prayer that we’ll eventually see those kinds needs met in the course of our regular stewardship. To Him who is the giver of every good and perfect gift … even to life eternal, Jesus our Lord, In Him. Amen. How Do We Know If We Make a Difference?It’s difficult to know how our school ministry impacts children and their families. Often we have no clue whether the words we say will make a difference. Yet we are reminded that God only asks us to plant the seeds and He will do the rest.From time to time, we are privileged to learn that something we did or said profoundly impacted another. Such was the case this past week after our Open House on Sunday, Nov. 12. On Monday morning we received an email from a family that visited with us the previous afternoon. In part it read, “ We were greatly impressed with the school…I believe that after receiving such a wonderful feeling from the school, the church must evoke these same kind of feelings. Please advise our family on how to proceed [to become members].” My thanks to all who helped make the afternoon a significant one for this family – The Department of Day School Education, our alumni, and student council who gave tours; our PTL, Kitchen staff, and Market Day folks who provided and served refreshment. Our students who entertained under the direction of Scott Kamman; our faculty and staff who visited with the 16 visitor families (some well past the appointed closing time); Mrs. Jones in the office who revised and organized all the paperwork necessary; the parents who took time out of their Sunday afternoon to help us impact others. It takes a multitude of people to make an afternoon like that happen. It takes a benevolent God to shower His blessings upon us so abundantly that we have all that we need to succeed. Of Special Note: Two new students are already registered for 2007-08 as a result of the Open House. Thank God that He continues to send us both workers and prospects to bring into His kingdom. Martin A. Brieschke Golden OldiesJoining together in Christian Fellowship, Education, & RecreationAt each gathering you generally will find: 1. Lunch at 12:00 PM 2. Devotions 3. Speakers on a variety of topics or entertainment 4. Brief business meeting Usually meet the 3rd Monday of each month Occasional field trips or outings The December meeting has been changed to Wednesday, December 13, for a special holiday program and tour at the local public radio stations. We will travel by TARC bus to the new offices of WFPL, WFPK and WUOL radio stations located at 619 S. Fourth Street. We will hear a live program of holiday music in their auditorium, we will go to Masterson's Restaurant for a buffet lunch or you may order off the menu. Be sure to sign up for this trip by Nov. 27 to help us plan for this outing. For additional information, please contact either Norm Kendt or Dorothy Groemling. Please note that this activity will replace the regular 3rd Monday monthly meeting. Please arrive at 10:15 AM as the bus will be departing at 10:30 AM and we anticipate returning at 2:30 PM Cost of the bus will be $5/person. Lunch will be served at noon. Please call either Norm Kendt or Dorothy Groemling for more information. Sunday School in DecemberThank you to all the church members and families who participated in the successful Operation Christmas Child Mission!Children's Christmas Worship: Our preschool thorough 6th grade Sunday School Students will be leading the congregation on a Las Posadas journey, recreating Mary and Josephs quest for lodging prior to Christ's birth. Don't miss this exciting service. A practice will be held Saturday, December 9th at 10:00. Meet in the sanctuary. Christmas Cookie WrapDecember 6 beginning at 9:15 AMFellowship Hall Every year a group of ladies get together and package some home-made baked goods for our homebound. These treats are then delivered by others to those at home to remind them that we are thinking about them at this time of year. We need volunteers to bake, assemble and deliver the treats. If you want to donate treats, have them to the church by 9:15 AM on December 6. If you would like to assemble the packages come to the Fellowship Hall at 9:15 AM. Delivery occurs after the packages have been put together. Maps will be provided. Thank you for making a homebound person’s feel remembered at Christmas. If you have any questions please contact Manuela Kaulitz. “Faith for Dummies”The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the Lord are sure and altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. --Psalm 19:7-11More than a decade ago, a customer in a software store remarked that he needed a basic manual because he knew nothing about computers--"something like DOS for dummies," he said. A publisher overheard the comment and several months later DOS for Dummies hit the bookshelves. Since then, the "dummy" phenomenon has spawned more than 350 titles in at least 40 languages on subjects ranging from lawn care to dating. The sale of 50 million books for dummies is a big clue that people are hungry for practical help and willing to admit their lack of knowledge. Most of us will freely admit that we're dummies when it comes to some things--calculus, auto mechanics, or understanding the opposite sex. So why are we embarrassed to let anyone know we're clueless about what it means to be a follower of Christ? The Bible is basically Faith for Dummies. It begins with the basics about God and reveals Him in a remarkable way to anyone who comes with a hunger for the truth. The goal is to know God and love Him and discover His plan for our lives. And we don't need a Ph.D. to get started. Psalm 19:7-11 celebrates the value of God's Word in making Him known. The Word of the Lord revives the soul, and makes the simple wise (v.7). It gives joy to the heart and light to the eyes (v.8). No previous theological education required. Reading and studying the Bible is a great adventure of discovery and faith. It's a text that can never be exhausted, a guide that takes every honest seeker on an exciting journey of personal encounter with the living God. Ignorance admitted is wisdom begun; knowledge pretended is folly maintained. Faith for Dummies? Why not? The Bible is a great place to begin. ADULT BIBLE CLASS OPPORTUNITIESSunday Morning 9:45 AM Bible Classes1. THE LUTHERAN DIFFERENCE: THE LORD’S SUPPER – Fellowship Hall – Pastor Fausel 2. EXODUS – School Library – Kyle Lohmeyer 3. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS – Faculty Lounge – Caron Fausel 4. THE MASTERPIECE MARRIAGE – 7th Grade Classroom – Paul Nickel Tuesday Morning 10:15 AM Class MATTHEW – Fellowship Hall – Paul Nickel Monday Evening (6:30 PM – Melissa Nelson – Faculty Lounge)/Friday Morning (9:30 AM – Paul Nickel – Fellowship Hall) WOMEN’S BIBLE CLASS Beth Moore’s DANIEL Angel TreeOur Savior Lutheran Church is collecting donations for the NVP Christmas Store through the Angel Tree in the church lobby. Please stop by the church lobby and take an angel from the tree and shop for items on the list below. Shopping for someone who is in need is a great tradition to start in a family at Christmas to teach the real meaning of giving. If you don’t have time to shop for these items PLEASE consider making a donation to EACM and place Christmas Store on the item line. There is a box under the tree in which to place your check or you may turn it in to the church office.Here are suggested items for all ages: sweatshirts and pants, pajamas, gloves, underwear, shirts, turtlenecks, flannel shirts, ball caps, socks, wind suits, jeans, pants. Other items may include personal care items and toiletry gifts. For toys consider board games, dolls, ball gloves, stuffed animals, puzzles, books, trains, cars, toys with imagination, or learning games. For baby items sleepers, baby toys, blankets, and stuffed animals are always nice. General household items may include umbrellas, kitchen or bath towels, sheets, wallets, watches, jewelry, purses, soaps, candles, picture frames, cooking pans, bakeware, and other every day household items. Marriage Series UpdateContinuing This Month9:45-10:45 AM on Sundays 7th Grade Classroom THE MASTERPIECE MARRIAGE: God Has Plans to Make Your Marriage A Masterpiece! The Masterpiece Marriage explores God’s plan for marriage as a reflection of His glory to the rest of the world rather than the world’s view that marriage is the way to happiness and self-fulfillment. The themes of the four sessions are: Great Expectations: God’s primary purpose for marriage The Divine Triangle: The three-way relationship between a man, a woman, and God The Great Adventure: God’s instruction to be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it A Walk In The Garden: How sin has marred our relationship with God and how we can overcome it Upcoming Worship DatesDecember 3 First Sunday in AdventDecember 5 Messiah Sing-A-Long, 7:30 PM December10 Sunday School Christmas Program, 11 AM December 6, 13, 20 Wednesday Evening Advent Services, 7:00 PM December 14 OSLS “Carols by Candlelight,” 7:00 PM December 24 Sunday Morning Worship, 10:00 AM (time change!) Christmas Eve Services: 5:00 PM, Majestic Celebration (led by Praise Team) 7:00 PM, Joyful Heritage (led by Adult Choir and Handbells) 11:00 PM, Liturgical candlelight Service December 25 Christmas Day Service, 10:00 AM December 31 Sunday morning Services as usual, 8:30 & 11:00 AM New Year’s Eve Service, 7:00 PM Messiah Sing-a-LongTuesday, December 5, 2006at 7:30 PM Join us for an evening of the Christmas portion of Handel’s Messiah. The event will feature a stringed ensemble and organ and soloists. The public is invited to sing on the chorus parts. Light refreshments follow. This is a special way to prepare your hearts and minds for the coming of our Lord and Savior. Men’s MinistryPancake Breakfast2nd Saturday of the month SATURDAY December 9th 8:00 – 9:30 AM Bible Study – “Hope Under Construction: Insights Into the Life of Nehemiah” Join Us and Bring a Friend Notes from the Music DirectorDear friends in Christ,December is prime time for teaching our children about all the signs and symbols that are important in our church. Though symbols and signs are a visual reminder to us, they often need a verbal explanation to help young ones understand. Here are some signs and symbols to talk about with your family: Light! – Now that our days are becoming shorter, we begin to long for sunlight and warmth. We begin to push back the shadows by lighting candles, laying fires on our hearths, decorating with sparkling lights and speaking through liturgy and song of a light shining in the darkness. These lights are a sign of the promise of God’s faithfulness. We also light the Advent wreath to count the weeks of the journey to Christmas (see Pop-up Worship Notes). Signs of Faith – The Advent calendar is an excellent way for children to anticipate Advent. They often contain small symbols and signs to remind us of our Savior’s love. The Chrismon ornaments on some church trees are Christian symbols that remind us of the wonders and acts of God. A manger scene is an excellent tool for teaching the Christmas story. Environmental symbols – Discuss and learn about the symbols visible in our sanctuary. Search for symbols in on your bulletin, and in hymnals, Bibles, or other religious books. Explore the legends of the poinsettia, the evergreens, the holly, the yule log, and the Christmas tree. Open the doors of this visual richness for your children. Our task is to help our children be aware of the signs and symbols around us. These religious symbols might be overlooked unless they are revealed by a caring parent or grandparent. Let this December be a time of revelation as you share the wonderful world of sign and symbol with the children whose lives you touch. Yours in Christ, Scott Kamman, Director of Music ChristCare: Groups Teach Prayer, Study, ServiceHere is in the life of one congregation when they got involved in ChristCare Small Group Ministry. It can happen here as well!In 1996, two members and a pastor of St. Matthew Lutheran Church, York, PA, had a vision. They dreamed of a church where prayer, study, service and caring were the pattern for congregational life. After exploring many possibilities, the congregation chose to enroll in the Stephen Ministries Small Group Ministry System: The ChristCare Series. Three members from St. Matthew’s attended the ChristCare Equippers Training Course. These Equippers then selected and trained group leaders in the congregation. Small group members were recruited from the membership. Finally prepared, St. Matthew’s ChristCare Ministry was launched. ChristCare Groups are groups of three to 12 members, including a leader, who meet regularly to pray, study Scripture, perform acts of service, and share in each other’s lives. Group leaders receive fifty-two hours of training to support them in their ministry. They also have the ongoing encouragement and assistance of the Equippers, other group leaders and pastoral leadership. ChristCare is changing at St. Matthews. Today there are 13 small groups involving over 100 members. Group members have grown significantly in their understanding and use of Scripture. Members pray for each other and the ministry of the church. Service projects provide help to those in need both inside and outside of the congregation. A new depth of discipleship is evident at St. Matthew because of ChristCare. Prayer has a much more prominent place in St. Matthew’s life. In many groups, such as the intercessory prayer group, praying is the central act of the group. Groups understand their mission is to pray for St. Matthew, its pastors, its ministries, and the world. Sharing personal concerns is an aspect of praying in each of the ChristCare Groups. Small group members have grown in their understanding and practice of prayer. ChristCare Groups are involved in missional service. Each group engages in an outreach project in the church or community. In the congregation, groups assist in contacting first-time guests to St. Matthew, fold and stuff mailings for the office staff, and provide meals for families in crisis or grief. Outside the congregation, groups help build Habitat for Humanity homes, tutor elementary school students, and assist residents in their wheelchairs to worship services at a local nursing facility. Perhaps the most significant impact of ChristCare Small Groups is the care and love for others exhibited by group members. One group member sent the following e-mail message to her group: “ChristCare has made a tremendous difference in my life. I thank God every day for each one of you. Knowing you are always there makes a world of difference.” The pastors find it a constant joy to arrive at the hospital and find the ChristCare Group members already there, circling the bed of their member or member’s spouse with prayer, support and encouragement. LOOK WHAT WE HAVE TO LOOK FORWARD TO!! Our Savior Music “Notes”NEW! Carols by Candlelight! On Thursday evening, December 14, at 7:00 PM, Our Savior Lutheran School will be performing a new Our Savior Christmas experience, “Carols by Candlelight.” Mark your calendar and invite your friends and family for a night of music, light and celebration.Hymn of the month: The children in our dayschool learn a special hymn or song of the month as part of their worship and religion class experience. For the month of December, they will be learning the hymn, “He is Born, the Child Divine,” a French traditional Christmas carol from the mid-1800’s. He is born, the Child Divine; Play the oboe, sound the bagpipes! He is born, the Child Divine; Sing ye all, He is born today. Prophets from the ages past Have foretold the Savior’s coming; We for more than four thousand years Have awaited this joyous time. Ah! How fair is the Holy Child, And how perfect are His graces; Ah, how fair is the Holy Child; Oh, how sweet is the Child Divine! Chapel Worship: Everyone is invited to worship with the school children each week as they gather for chapel on Wednesdays at 8:45 AM in the sanctuary. It is an excellent opportunity for midweek worship. Come and join us! Dec. 6 and 13 chapel will be presented by Mr. Brieschke and Pastor Fausel respectively. Lutheran Service Book (LSB): Congregation members are invited and encouraged to help Our Savior acquire the new LBS) for worship by purchasing copies of the new hymnal for our pews. This can also be done in conjunction with a memorial or in honor of a loved one or family member. The cost is $20 (that includes shipping and handling). Order forms are available on the display poster in the narthex. Please turn in your order to the church office with checks made payable to Our Savior Lutheran Church. A challenge “match” has been brought forward by a congregation member for up to 100 hymnals. Members may also special order a personal copy of the hymnal for home use or as gifts for confirmation, graduation, or other special events. Special engraving is available at an extra cost. Answer to the November quiz: The hymn that lists the following blessings: “Harvest of sown fields, Fruits of the orchard, Hay from the mown fields, Blossom and wood” is “Praise and Thanksgiving.” (LW 403) December quiz: Which hymn states, “This, this is Christ the King, Whom shepherds guard and angels sing”? Hearing Assist devices: Had trouble hearing well in our sanctuary? These small sound amplifying devices are available from the ushers. Please ask for them! They amplify what is going through our sound system. If you would like to purchase your own personal set of earphones for use with the church sound system, please contact the church office. (These devices do not work outside the sanctuary.) Worship Notes! In an effort to try to help us all learn about our worship life and liturgy, we offer this little “tidbit” of information each month. It can serve as a review for you, an answer to that question, “Why do we do that?”, or as a teaching tool for our children or grandchildren. Please share this with your family. Discuss it prior to worship. If there is something you would like to have answered, let me know. I’ll do my best to find out! Check out this month’s edition of “Worship Notes!” Cedarbrook NewsThe next regular meeting of the Cedarbrook Board will begin with a potluck meal at 5:00 PM on Sunday, December 10 at Pastor Peters home in New Albany. The agenda will include discussion on a long-range plan to enclose the pavilion and the job description for a new Executive Director. The Octoberfest was held with about 75-80 folks in attendance. Hayrides, golf, the bounce houses. horseback riding, hiking and good food were the activities of the day. Many thanks to all who helped, especially Ron Belden and his crew who readied the food and Cheryl Wilcox for bringing her horses out, and all those who braved the cold to attend. Send your contributions for Camp Cedarbrook to Mr. Greg Walts, 1503 Stone Ridge Drive, Georgetown, Indiana 47122.What is Advent about?It begins on the Sunday closest to Nov. 30 and lasts between 22 and 28 days, ending on Christmas Eve. Advent begins the Church Year and always includes four Sundays. Advent means “coming.”It is the season to look forward with hope as we prepare to celebrate Christ’s first “coming” at Christmas, and as we get ready for that future day when He will come again to rule the earth. The traditional color for Advent is royal purple or blue to symbolize Christ’s royalty, our penitence, and hope. The four candles represent each week of Advent, symbolizing hope, peace, love, and joy. The Stewardship Corner Another giving method is through a will bequest at the donor’s death. To create the gift, the donor includes a gift provision in his or her will or living trust document to leave a specific asset, dollar amount or fixed percentage of the donor’s estate to charity. Upon the donor’s death, the donor’s estate representative or trustee is responsible for completing the gift to the charity identified in the will or trust document. Until death, the donor enjoys full control and use of the money. |