CALVARY LUTHERAN CHURCH
| Your Weekly E-Newsletter -- Thursday, August 17, 2023 | |
Reflection on this weekend's Scripture reading | |
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As we patiently wait for the pastor God has chosen for us, we will be featuring a devotion or other commentary on a verse or section from the readings for each weekend. Each devotion will note its source.
This weekend, our Old Testament readings include Psalm 67:1-3. This devotion is from Unveiling Mercy (based on insights from Old Testament Hebrew) by Chad Bird.
The Goyim
May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face to shine upon us, that Your way may be known on earth, Your saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You! Psalm 67:1-3
When the Lord gave the so-called Aaronic Benediction, He specified the audience: “thus you shall bless the people of Israel” (Num. 6:23) Notice what happens, however, when the words of this blessing are echoed in Psalm 67. Not just Israel but ”all nations”, “the peoples”, and “all the peoples” benefit and respond in praise. God's blessings, with centrifugal grace, ripple outward to the goyim (“nations”). Though there are exceptions, as a rule goyim refers to non-Israelites, the Gentiles. In the Israelite mind, there were seventy nations of the world. This psalm confesses and celebrates that the Lord of Israel is the Lord of all seventy, God of ”all the ends of the earth” ( v. 7).
At Pentecost, “devout men from every nation under heaven” were there in Jerusalem (Acts 2:5). Not just Jews but goyim who were believers in the God of Israel. All received the same Spirit. All partook of His saving power. God was gracious to all of them, blessed them, and made His face shine upon them. As He’d promised Abram long before, in his Seed “all the goyim of the earth” were blessed. (Gen. 22:18).
“Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol Him, all peoples!” (Psalm 117:1)
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Day of Pentecost
12th Sunday
after Pentecost
August 19-20, 2023
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PRESIDING MINISTER: Pastor Jerry Wittmus
ASSISTING MINISTER: Larry Bonier
DEACONS:
- Saturday: Larry Bonier
- Sunday: Diane Grundman, Pat Foy, George Sedivec
ACOLYTES:
- Noah Ciszewski and Sean Moritz
CHILDREN'S MESSAGE:
USHERS:
LECTOR:
ALTAR GUILD:
GREETERS:
- Bill and Lenny Graffin
- Linda Thorpe
- Maxine Weisbrodt
FELLOWSHIP: Larry and Susie Bonier
FLOWERS:
- Larry and Susie Bonier in celebration of their 50th anniversary
POWERPOINT TECH:
- Cindy Rooks/Saturday
- Sallie Schulz/Sunday
LIVESTREAM:
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New prayers requests or any updates to this current list should be directed to Cindy Zilske in the Church office (office@calvarylc.com).
New Prayer Requests: Edward Hermann (son of Marilyn Hermann); Donna Schroeder
Please continue to pray for: God’s guidance and support for our Call Committee, and that the Holy Spirit is working in the heart of the pastor He wishes to call as the next pastor of Calvary.
Ongoing short-term prayer requests: Wayne Dieck; Bev Lawson; Sue Rowe; Maxine Weisbrodt; Jan Chesner; Grace Gunnlaugsson; Becky (friend of Jane Taufner); Courtney Cook (friend of Lenny Graffin); Dennis Krupa, Nate Kreiter, Matti Beilfuss (friends of Rick Kegel); Laura Burger (Calvary member and twin sister of Linda Richmond); Ron Parker (brother of LInda Thorpe); Sharon Anderson (mother of Deron Anderson); Lou Dangler (friend of Evelyn Ceci); Andy Jacobs (friend of Evelyn Ceci); Paul Mahn (son of Shirley Mahn); Hunter Green (nephew of Andy and Angie Schatz); Tom Schatz (father of Andy Schatz); Susie Barnhart and Amy Clark (friends of Megan Scott); Delores Seel (mother of Keith Pierce); Gary Zikmund (friend of George Sedivec); Tony Shemberger (father of Amy Blobaum)
Serving in the Military: Dan Berger (serving in the U.S. Marines); Kevin Butler (son of Heidi Powers, serving in the U.S. Army); Ben DeYoung (son-in-law of George and Kay Sedivec, serving in the U.S. Air Force); Alex Olson (U.S. Air Force, grandchild of Ardath Olson); Kyle Pierce (son of Karen and Keith Pierce, serving in the U.S. Army); Karmen Thomas (friend of Tony and Krista Dentice serving in the U.S. Army); Nicole Wahlgren (serving in the U.S. Army National Guard); all military chaplains; and all veterans suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
For All Men and Women Serving: Police Officers, Firefighters, EMT's; Health Care workers and First Responders.
Serving in the mission field: Our NALC missionaries and missionaries everywhere bringing the gospel to the ends of the Earth.
Long-term prayer list:
Calvary members: Pat Corcoran; Ron Foster; Shirely Mahn, Nadine Schuelke; Gloria Strei; Pat Treutelaar; Janet Zastrow
Non-members: Mary (sister-in-law of Jane Taufner); Jan Janchan (friend of Jonni Roush); Lauren (granddaughter of Scott and Peggy Langelin); Dennis Reich (friend of John and Mary Lau); Curt (friend of Larry Bonier); Pastor Mark Gehrke (son of Lois Gehrke); Barb Anderson (friend of Lisa Grossman); Gareth George (cousin of Judy Sayas); Monica Barchus (niece of Ernie Kretschmann); Michael Rossa (Lucy Dallman's son); Karen (friend of Lydia Trudell); Susan Petropoulos (sister of Wayne Johnson); Tom Dallman (husband of Lucy Dallman); Laura Lynn (friend of Pastor Jerry and Nancy Wittmus)
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Kim Krause, 8/20
Betty Ring, 8/20
Madeline Voss, 8/20
Maxine Weisbrodt, 8/20
Eleonora Ramthun, 8/21
Olivia Peters, 8/22
Marcella Nelson, 8/25
Jessica Himsel, 8/26
John Schwartz, 8/26
Sara Kalupa, 8/27
Shirley Mahn, 8/27
Jayden Day, 8/28
Kathleen Firzlaff, 8/28
Julie Matthes, 8/29
Bob Jazgar, 8/30
Jan Chesner, 8/31
Joel Richmond, 8/31
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John and LIndsey Peters, 8/22 (14 years)
Bob and Mary Smith, 8/22 (53 years)
Gerhard and Sallie Schulz, 8/23 (48 years)
Ed and Carol Witzke, 8/24 (55 years)
Mark and Diane Knappe, 9/2 (34 years)
Mitch and Beth Foster, 9/7 (32 years)
Joe and Diane Grundman, 9/7 (49 years)
Dave and Carolyn Schuelke, 9/12 (31 years)
Andy and Angie Schatz, 9/23 (23 years)
John and Mary Lau, 9/27 (54 years)
Bob and Caryl Braatz, 9/30 (62 years)
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Congratulations Ben!
Our most recent intern, Ben Blobaum, has accepted a call at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Flanagan, Illinois. Pastor Knappe will be sharing a little more information at Sunday's worship service.
If you'd like to learn more about St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, click here.
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Gemutlichkeit Night!
Saturday, September 23 at 6:15 p.m.
Fellowship Hall
Calvary members who traveled to Oberammergau last September invite you to an adult-only evening of fellowship, fun and some German food, beer and wine!
Photos from their trip will be shared.
No cost to attend; however, a Free Will Offering will be accepted to offset the costs of food and beverages.
Sign up deadline is September 16 - look for the sheet on the Opportunities kiosk in the Narthex.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Ruth Brostowitz.
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We are pleased to announce that Angie Schatz will be serving as our nterim Director of Youth and Family Ministry.
Angie can be reached at youthdirector@calvarylc.com.
Welcome to the staff, Angie!
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Backpack and
Back to School Blessing
Sunday, August 27
9:00 a.m. service
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Please mark your calendar for our
Rally Sunday Fun Day
September 10!
We will be having a fun filled morning with our Calvary Family. There will be a meal provided and fun for all ages. The activities will begin following the 9:00 am worship service. We hope you can join us as we enjoy time together and look forward to another year of sharing God’s many gifts.
If you have any further questions, please contact the church office (262) 786-4010 or email Angie Schatz at youthdirector@calvarylc.com.
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Parking lot repaired and new lines painted
This week the church parking lot was repaired and new parking lines were painted. You will notice two handicapped parking spaces were added along the driveway on the west side of the Sanctuary. Additionally, two spots along that same section are now marked as "No Parking" to enable sufficient space for vehicles to turn south after dropping off at the south side doors. This extra space will also allow space for emergency vehicles to make the turn safely.
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Below are the key bullet points from this week's Church Council meeting.
- Approved the hiring of Angie Schatz as Interim Director of Youth and Family Ministry
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Learned that Faith Formation is organizing the RALLY SUNDAY PICNIC on September 10th, following worship service, so be sure to mark your calendars and watch for sign-up sheets to help make this a successful event
- Learned about Evangelism's service project on Saturday, September 9th (10:30am-12:30pm), helping to build beds for kids currently sleeping on floors - information and sign-up sheets can be found in the Narthex on the Opportunity Kiosk
- Requests for continued prayers for the Call Committee as they diligently work towards discernment of God's plan for Calvary's next pastor
- Preliminary plans are under development for reinvigorating Small Group Ministry
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School Backpack Collection for
NALC Disaster Response
Calvary will again be collecting school backpack supplies. These are distributed to families who have experienced natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods, and fires. The empty backpacks and lists of needed school supplies are in the narthex. If you have a gently-used backpack to fill and donate, feel free to use that as well. Filled backpacks can be placed into the plastic tubs under the tables in the narthex - please put a note on the outside of the backpack indicating ELEMENTARY or HIGH SCHOOL.
The school supply shopping list is shown below and copies are on the table in the Narthex.
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August Mission of the Month | |
To support this important Mission for the Month, you may include it in your weekly offering envelope or designate the donation for Mission of the Month in your online giving. | To learn more about Opportunity International, click HERE. | | |
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Opportunity International is helping to end extreme poverty in our lifetime. They believe that empowering individuals to work their way out of poverty and give their children a quality education is the most sustainable way to transform their lives, their families, and their communities.
Opportunity International serves 10 million hardworking families in 23 countries around the world. They have big plans for the world: A place without poverty where people can live with dignity and purpose. Their clients have ambitious dreams for their futures, but lack the opportunities needed to make those dreams a reality. They go where others won’t to give these inspiring people access to business loans, savings accounts, financial training, and community support—all which empower these entrepreneurs to work their way out of poverty and build a new sustainable future for themselves and their families.
To date, they have created or sustained more than 20 million jobs by giving entrepreneurs the tools they need to thrive. With our support, they will reach millions more clients—and those clients will change the world.
•Vision: Their vision is a world in which all people have the opportunity to achieve a life free from poverty, with dignity and purpose.
•Mission: By providing financial solutions and training, they empower people living in poverty to transform their lives, their children’s futures and their communities.
•Motivation: They respond to Jesus Christ’s call to love and serve the poor. They seek to emulate the Good Samaritan, whose compassion crossed ethnic groups and religions. They serve all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.
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Women's Book Group
September 11, 2023
12:30 - 2:00 p.m.
Media Room
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
(Books are available in the kit in the church office.)
Looking at real estate isn’t usually a life-or-death situation, but an apartment open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes a group of strangers hostage. The captives include a recently retired couple who relentlessly hunt down fixer-uppers to avoid the painful truth that they can’t fix their own marriage. There’s a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else and a young couple who are about to have their first child but can’t seem to agree on anything. Add to the mix an eighty-seven-year-old woman who has lived long enough not to be afraid of someone waving a gun in her face, a flustered but still-ready-to-make-a-deal real estate agent, and a mystery man who has locked himself in the apartment’s only bathroom, and you’ve got the worst group of hostages in the world.
Each of them carries a lifetime of grievances, hurts, secrets, and passions that are ready to boil over. None of them is entirely who they appear to be. And all of them - the bank robber included - desperately crave some sort of rescue. As the authorities and the media surround the premises, these reluctant allies will reveal surprising truths about themselves and set in motion a chain of events so unexpected that even they can hardly explain what happens next.
Proving once again that Backman is “a master of writing delightful, insightful, soulful, character-driven narratives” (USA Today), Anxious People “captures the messy essence of being human….It’s clever and affecting, as likely to make you laugh out loud as it is to make you cry” (The Washington Post). This “endlessly entertaining mood-booster” (Real Simple) is proof that the enduring power of friendship, forgiveness, and hope can save us - even in the most anxious of times.
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Worship Attendance/Giving and Giving Options | |
Giving to the NALC Campaign | |
Just a reminder that contributions to the NALC's 20/20 Vision Campaign need to be designated as "NALC" either on your giving envelope or on your check. If you have any questions, please contact Cindy Rooks at finance@calvarylc.com.
For an update on the NALC's 20/20 Vision campaign, click on the link below to watch an update from Bishop Selbo. This video highlights the work we are doing, the ways in which gifts to the initiative are already being used, and the impact future gifts will have in our shared witness and mission.
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Contributions statements showing pledges and giving through July 31, 2023 were emailed to members on Wednesday, August 2. The email is from automail@360members.com. Please contact Cindy Rooks, Finance Secretary, at finance@Calvarylc.com or 262 786 4010 with any questions. | |
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Online giving provides options!
While cash and checks are always welcome, the “Give Online” button on the Calvary Lutheran Church website provides another option. And, with the expansion of our vendor’s software, the options are now expanded and customized. In addition to giving to the General Operating Fund, Building Fund and Mission of the Month, you can now specify contributions for Altar Flowers, Sunday Morning Fellowship Treats, NALC, etc.
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Please note that contributions to the Mission of the Month are allocated to the organization for the month in which the donation is made
If you have any questions or would like to make a pledge, please contact Cindy Rooks, Finance Secretary, via email at finance@calvarylc.com or (262) 786-4010.
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Weekly Men's Breakfast
Wednesdays at 7 a.m.
Maxim's Restaurant
18025 W. Capitol Drive
Brookfield
The restaurant seating has been reconfigured in compliance with social distancing requirements.
All men are invited to attend!
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Monthly Men's Gathering
Fellowship Hall
Thursday, September 21, 2023
6:00 p.m.
If you have any questions, please contact Ernie Kretschmann at erniekretschmann@gmail.com
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Who is your Deacon? Who is on our Church Council?
Who are the Call Committee members?
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Check out the bulletin board in Fellowship Hall where we have photos of the members of these ministry teams.
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Sanctuary Flowers
A wonderful way to celebrate a special occasion or remember a loved one is by sponsoring flowers at our altar. The cost is $35 and you may take them home following the Sunday morning worship. (If you'd prefer, you can leave the flowers at church to be enjoyed in the church office.)
The sign-up sheet is posted on the bulletin board in the Narthex, near the door to Fellowship Hall.
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We invite you to provide
Hospitality Treats on Sunday
We invite you to stay after worship on Sunday mornings and enjoy fellowship time and a treat/cup of coffee in Fellowship Hall.
If you'd like to provide treats (donuts, bagels, etc.) for Sunday hospitality time, there is a sheet on the bulletin board in Fellowship Hall. You may bring the treats (six dozen) and drop them off in the kitchen, or simply add a “P” behind your name, pay $30 to the church office and the treats will be purchased for you.
The sign up sheet for 2023 has been posted on the bulletin board. Thank you for your support!
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Live Stream Attendance Link | |
If you watch our services via the Live Stream, please take a minute to let us know. There is now a link called "Online Worship Attendance" on the page where you access each week's service.
We appreciate you taking the time to complete this each week. It helps us know that our Live Stream is being viewed and by whom.
Thank you!
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Message from Pastor Jerry Wittmus
The Council's decision regarding supply preaching and congregational pastoral care is deeply appreciated. I will preside and preach the first weekend of every month, and any other time as needed. I will also be providing pastoral care, as outlined below:
- Pray for Clavary, its members, and the mission of the church.
- Call/visit members who request pastoral care, hospitlized, family death, etc.
- Consult with Visitation Committee
- Preside over Funerals, weddings, baptisms
- Attend the monthly Stephen Ministry meetings
- Provide monthly communion to Calvary members at Ruby Commons apartments
- Any other duties/responsibilities as directed by the Council.
If you have any pastoral needs, I am the pastor on call and can be reached in the following ways:
- My cell phone is (262) 818-6792 (call or text)
- My email is nanjer248@hotmail.com
- Through the Church office (262) 786-4010
My motto is "We do ministry together". With the Holy Spirit guiding us, God's work will be done and ministry will continue here at Calvary Lutheran Church. Good communication is the key as we serve and help each other.
Peace and blessings to all.
Pastor Jerry Wittmus
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Do you need a new Church Directory? | |
The Calvary Church Directory is available electronically or in paper format. If you'd like an electronic copy, please send an email to Sue Rowe at communications@calvarylc.com.
There are also printed copies available in the church office.
If there are any changes to your phone, email or address, please advise the Church office. Any updates should be submitted to Cindy Zilske at office@calvarylc.com.
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Facing tough times? Need a Christian Friend?
Stephen Ministry is here to help. Free, just like God's love.
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Stephen Ministers are congregation members trained by Stephen Leaders to offer high-quality, one-to-one Christian care to people going through tough times. A Stephen Minister usually provides care to one person at a time, meeting with that person once a week for about an hour.
If you, or someone you know, could benefit from this important ministry, please contact Scott or Peggy Langelin at 262.853.0018.
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The right side of the Sanctuary (as you face the altar) is equipped with a hearing loop system which transmits an audio signal directly into a hearing aid via a magnetic field. This greatly reduces background noise, competing sounds, reverberation and other acoustic distortions that reduce clarity of sound.
Most hearing aids are equipped with a t-coil and connecting to this system is an easy switch on the hearing aid. If you need assistance during worship with this system, please reach out to an usher or any staff member.
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The church office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until noon. The door that is closest to the office (NW corner) will be open during those hours.
Please check in with the office staff so we know you are in the building.
The office phone number is (262) 786-4010. Feel free to leave a message if you call after hours and we will contact you the next day.
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