DECEMBER 2021
Strengthen Faith, Build Hope, Share Love in Christ Our Savior
Voters'
Meeting
Voters' meeting is Sunday, December 12th at 10 AM. Please plan on attending. Pick up a copy of the proposed budget in Narthex or review it online.
Education News
Wednesdays
The last Confirmation class of the year was November 17th, but Confirmands are encouraged to attend the Midweek Advent services. Confirmation resumes in January!
 
Sundays
Sunday School
 Ages 3-Adult
9:15 AM - 10:15 AM
The LWML invites all women in the church to attend the meeting on Monday, November 8th, at 7 PM.

  • The LWML is interested in making some changes!
  • Please be a part of that and take this 5 question survey.
Counting Our Blessings... And Giving Thanks!
Many were instrumental this month and deserve our heartfelt thanks.  

To: Debbie Keltner for all the YEARS of service to the church. Thank you.

To: Joe Gregar for "repaving" the parking lot--one bucket at a time. Thank you.

To: Pastor Andy for all of the extra hours that December requires. Thank you.

To: Janie Ott for re-upping for another term as Council President. THANK YOU!

To: The Congregation for the generous Pastor Appreciation gift. Thank you.
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Altar Flowers
12/05 Michaela Eickhoff's 21st birthday!!
12/12 Don and Linda Newman's 56th anniversary!!
12/19 Ellen Madrid's birthday
12/26 Poinsettias 
12/31 Poinsettias 
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Poinsettias for Christmas 
Anyone wanting to purchase Poinsettias to decorate the
church may sign up in the back. $8.00 each. Make checks payable to Sandra Barsh.
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Those who have signed up for flowers have two options:

  1. You can provide your own. They must be at the church before the 8 AM service.
  2. Sandy can get them for you for $20. (Make checks payable to Sandy Barsh.)

Flowers may be taken home after the 10:30 AM service. Please return vases to the church when flowers are done. You may contact Sandy Barsh at 913-548-9588 for questions or to fill and open date.
December Birthdays
12/02 Micaela Eickhoff
12/03 Declan Marsh
12/06 Robin MacClymont
12/09 Brock Varns
12/13 Steve Mynsted
12/14 Doug Strubbe
12/15 Kara Helms
12/15 Samantha McDaniel
12/16 Kalen Gregar
12/16 Heidi Wolf
12/17 Jacob Bell
12/18 Ellie Wolf
12/20 Ellen Madrid
12/27 Allison Bell
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December Anniversaries
12/11 Don & Linda Newman
12/29 Steve & Kate Sweyko
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In the Military
Military members and friends of our congregation include:

Colin Alexander
Dylan Ash
Jim Buckman
Garret Cline
Mark Edgar
Maurissa Glick
Megan Honeywell
Jeremy Howard
Zac Howard
Freddy Hurt
Greg Jeffrey
Tyler Jordan
James Keltner
Tom Moore
Danny Myers
Austin Nicholes
Rob O'Bannon
Garrett Rausch
Lindsey Rausch
Allison Walania
D.J. Weaver
Worship: 8 AM, 10:30 AM
& 7 PM

Sunday school at 9:15 AM.

Office Hours:
Monday-Friday
10 AM- 2 PM
Please contact us if we missed your birthday or anniversary so we can update our records.
Christ Our Savior newsletter is published monthly and produced in email and print versions.
Pastor Andy Writes...
Advent
Advent is the first season of the church year. Advent is a season when we repent and prepare for the coming of the Lord. Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead. When Christ comes again, there will be no healing. When Christ returns there will be no teaching. When Christ returns there will be no time to get ready. When Christ comes again He will destroy everything that is evil. Everything that is stands against God will be cast into eternal darkness. Those who do not bear fruit will be cast into the eternal fire. The Lord will make a new heaven and a new earth for all who call upon His name.

Jesus entered Jerusalem on the Sunday before His crucifixion. He rode in on the unbroken colt of a donkey. He rode in before an adoring crowd. He rode in to pay the price for our sins. He rode in so that He might become sin. He came to suffer and die, so that we would be declared holy and blameless. 

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” --2 Corinthians 5:21

Jesus comes. He is God incarnate. The eternal Word of God made flesh. Jesus taught. He healed. He showed us what it is to be prepared for His second coming. He imposes Himself on this sinful world. He brings life to all who call upon His name. He brings salvation. He completes His act of saving the world, on the cross. He dies so that we might live. He rises from the grave and ascends into heaven.

Jesus is coming again. He has accomplished our salvation. When He comes again, He will come as judge. He will separate the sheep from the goats. He will destroy everything that is evil. He will cast the wicked into the flames. They will be eternally damned. Those who are righteous will be saved.

The righteous will be those whom are washed in the blood of the Lamb. Their sins will be covered by the righteousness of Christ. A new heaven and a new earth will be prepared. They will live together praising and worshipping God. There will be no sorrow, suffering, weeping, or tears.

During the season of Advent, we remember that Jesus will come again. We prepare for His coming by remembering that we are His chosen and redeemed children. We repent and humbly bow before the cross. We rely solely on the promises of God. This gives us hope.

We look at our world and we see chaos and evil all around. We cry out for Jesus, our Lord to come. Jesus will come again. His return will be proceeded by a last-ditch effort by all that is evil to turn us from the Son of God. God is faithful. He will keep His promise to deliver us. God’s Word teaches us to be faithful. During Advent, we repent and prepare for the second coming of Christ.
Agape Food Pantry
The Agape Food Pantry assisted over 30 families in need this past Thanksgiving. The need is expected to rise as the temps drop. The following items are sorely needed to restock the shelves.

  • Assorted dried pasta 12-16 oz. sizes
  • Assorted jarred pasta sauces
  • Macaroni and Cheese
  • Assorted varieties of Hamburger Helper
  • Canned Tuna and Chicken
  • Single serving soups
  • Boxed cereal (no bulk bags, please)

Donations can be dropped off at the United Methodist Church.

COS will man the pantry on Wednesday, December 15th from 8-11 AM. Volunteers need to contact Joe Gregar.
5th graders Hailey Marsh and Reagan Varns receive their bibles from Pastor Andy, during Sunday School.
Advent Season Schedule
12/01 Dinner 5:30 PM Worship 7 PM
Menu: Stuffed shells/lasagna, salad, roll and dessert

12/08 Dinner 5:30 PM Worship 7 PM
Menu: Chicken and noodles, mashed potatoes,
vegetable and dessert.

12/15 Dinner 5:30 PM Worship 7 PM
Menu: Sloppy Joes, salad, pasta salad and dessert

12/24 Christmas Eve 7 PM, Candlelight at 11 PM

12/25 Christmas Day Service 10 AM

*12/26 Worship at 10 AM and 7 PM only

To help, call Becca in the office at 913-837-4502 or email her at office@christoursaviorlouisburg.com.
Council Updates
The last council meeting we took an inventory of open

positions on the council. We have two positions that need leaders. Keep in mind you don’t need to do all the work if you volunteer for this Board position, you coordinate the work. You will create a team and then lead the team to accomplish the goals of the committee. The two open positions are the following:

Board of Worship: The basic objective of this Board is the planning of worship services that lead the members of the congregation in the deepening of their personal worship experiences and in regular participation in corporate worship.

The responsibilities of this Board include:
  • Selecting hymns for the worship services;
  • Arranging for organists and/or pianists for each service;
  • Aiding the choir director in providing special music for services;
  • Exercising care over the music and instruments used in worship, including but not limited to the tuning and care of the organ and piano;
  •  Investigating new forms of worship and make recommendations to the Administrative Council.
  •  In the absence of a pastor, help the Board of Elders to make arrangements for services to be conducted.

Board of Facilities: The Board of Facilities basic objectives is the proper maintenance, repair and improvement of the buildings and grounds.

We want to thank the leaders stepping down, Debbie Keltner and Richard Fauss. Both served and accomplished many things for the church that are invisible. They are behind the scenes church workers. 

I also want to thank Joe Gregar for stepping in to keep our building and grounds in order. He has worked hard and really had a positive impact in keeping our grounds neat. 

I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works: and the last to be more than the first. --Revelation 2:19
The Worship Word
Trusting not Seeing
The past year the council has made a strong effort to tithe to the Kansas District and we have seen that the fruits of our labor have been rewarded. We have been able to pay our bills and make all the provisions for the church. This is an incredible blessing.  We trusted without seeing the outcome. As Christians we hear these words and believe in the Word of God. Often though we get caught up in thinking we are in charge. If we truly trust without seeing God will provide in glorious ways.

I recently had lunch with a friend who shared the birth story of her newest Grandbaby. She received a message from her son that they had gone to the hospital and the labor was real, it was not a false alarm. She and her husband had a bit of a drive to reach them. As they traveled, they were kept up to date on the progress. At a point she realized they were not going to arrive in time for the birth. She was heartbroken. She quietly prayed to God and asked for a safe delivery and safe travels to meet them. When she arrived, she approached the Mother/Baby ward of the hospital. She opened the double doors and the first image she saw was her son standing at the window watching his newborn baby. She said she was humbled, overwhelmed with gratitude, joyful and there aren’t enough words to describe the image she saw before her. She quickly gathered herself and thanked God for such a glorious site that she would never forget. She looked at me and said, “All I know, is when you trust God he makes things better, I missed the birth, but I saw my Son adoring his baby. All I know is God just makes it better. If I had been there for the birth, I wouldn’t have seen my son adoring his new baby.”

As we approach the new year and celebrating the birth of Christ. We are thankful and incredibly blessed. As a council we don’t know how our open positions on the council will be filled and we don’t know what our contributions will be. But we pray together and trust together without seeing. We know that God provides, and we must trust.

Blessings!
Janie Ott
The PLAN
At November’s Church Council meeting, we discussed the importance of God’s children (that’s us) reading His word, the Holy Bible, on a daily basis. For those that have a Bible Reading Plan that works for you, great! Don’t change what you’re doing! But I’m guessing that most of us have struggled in our reading of Scripture – I know that I have. I’ve tried a number of approaches to reading the Bible over the years, but until this year failed to find a Bible Reading Plan that worked for me. What usually
did me in is the amount of reading in the Old Testament, as it’s nearly 3-1/2 times longer than the New Testament. As a result, the Old Testament took up nearly all my Bible reading time. Plus, for me, a lot of it was hard to understand. So, I got bogged down. I suppose that many of you may have had
the same problem.
 
I’d like to suggest a PLAN, a modified approach to Bible reading, that might help. I know that it has helped me. The PLAN simply has us read through the Old Testament once a year, Psalms and Proverbs twice a year, and the New Testament three times a year. I can imagine your reaction, “Whoa! This sounds like a LOT of reading!” But it averages just 5-1/2 pages a day – obviously a manageable amount. So, what’s the benefit? We spend more days in the New Testament than the Old Testament. Which psychologically, for me, is a big help. Hopefully, it will be a big help for some of you as well.
 
Color copies of the PLAN for 2022 will be made available in the back of the church for those who would like to give it a try. Also available is a sheet of Bible study ideas.
 
As this is the start of a new church year, perhaps some of you might be inclined to jump in immediately with a new approach to your Scripture reading. For you folks, color copies of the PLAN for the remainder of this year will also be made available!
 
The PLAN was developed as a 2-page Excel spreadsheet. It can be printed on a single sheet of paper, providing a convenient way to not only indicate what is to be read, but also to indicate that it has been read. The title, God’s Word Stands Forever, comes from Isaiah 40:8, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”
 
God’s Blessings to you as you consider how to be more faithful in the reading of His Word.
Howard Meyer
Board of Elders
The December Council/Book Club Meeting
is Tuesday, December 7th at 7 PM.
Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church 913-837-4502
| 5 S. 8th Street Louisburg, Kansas 66053