Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church Newsletter
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Strengthen Faith, Build Hope, Share Love in Christ Our Savior
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Pastor Andy Writes... First Things
| | Pastor Andy Keltner | |
My first two years of college I attended Concordia Lutheran College in Austin Texas. I was recently baptized and confirmed into the Lutheran faith and I thought it was cool that each day there was a chapel service. I got into the habit of going to daily chapel service. The problem was that, in the latter half of the seventies, there was a lot of other cool things to do in Austin. Also, as a college student there was a fair amount of studying had to be done. Many days I struggled whether an investment in chapel was worth my time.
Matthew, chapters five through seven, are known as the Sermon on the Mount. Since I was a recent convert, I assumed that to be Lutheran I should memorize Bible verses. From the Sermon on the Mount, I memorized Matthew 6:33. "Seek first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." This became my default reason for attending chapel. I thought that if I put God first everything else would work out. This was my simple plan for surviving college.
I still recognize that this is an important way to live in the world today. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is teaching His disciples not to worry. He asks them, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" If I focus on all the chaos, the violence, and turmoil in our world it is easy to be paralyzed by worry. Jesus says: "Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well."
I know this sounds simplistic, but Jesus tells us that this is what He offers those who believe in Him. God seeks us. He puts us first. He sends His Son to atone, pay the price, for our sins. God comes to us and through the suffering and death of His Son we are declared righteous. We are saved from death and eternal damnation. We have life eternal in the name of Jesus. We are part of the Kingdom of God. Not only are we part of the kingdom we are the children of the king.
When we put God first, He fills us with His peace and His presence. Please note we will still face hardships and challenges, but we do not face those challenges alone. God promises to be with us and lead us in the paths of righteousness for His names' sake.
Ash Wednesday this year is February seventeenth. We will have Wednesday evening services through the end of February and March. This will provide opportunities to gather with other believers and worship the Lord. Jesus teaches those who follow him to, "Seek first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all things will be given you as well." We repent and ask for forgiveness and God forgives. God always answers our prayer for a stronger faith. Seek first the Kingdom of God and may God fill you with the peace that surpasses all understanding.
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We are resuming Advent Dinners! Are you as excited about this as I am? This is going to be my first "official" act as Care Committee Chair, so be nice to me.
- Due to Covid things are going to look a little different. It will be imperative that those attending the dinners, sign up in advance. See the sign up sheet in the Narthex.
- I will need volunteers to help serve and clean up. If this sounds like something you can do please email me at office@christoursaviorlouisburg.com
- I am also looking for individuals/families to sponsor the meals.
- Otherwise it's business as usual. Dinner from 5:30-6:30 PM with an Advent service following at 7 PM.
Schedule--
02/17 Ash Wednesday
Menu: Pulled Pork sandwiches and sides.
02/24 Lent
Menu: Soup and Salad
03/03 Lent
Menu: Italian
03/10 Lent
Menu: Breakfast for Dinner
03/17 St. Patrick's Day
Menu: TBD
03/24 Lent
Menu: Mexican
04/01 Maundy Thursday
Menu: Brisket and sides provided by the LWML.
---I hope to see you there!
Becca
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Worship Word...
| | Council President Janie Ott. | |
The COS Council kicked off 2021 in January in all our glory! We started reading and studying a book together. We are reading Built on the Rock by Ted Kober. The first chapter was very powerful in many regards. Over the next year, I plan to share some of our insights.
A few "ah-ha" moments are below:
- The importance of studying together is vital for church growth and maturity. When we are not in study together, we are not growing and encouraging each other.
- The council members are all committed to building a strong foundation, expanding our knowledge and as we grow in spiritual maturity, our living faith in Christ will give us wisdom and direction.
- God sent His Son into the world to cover our sins, including our failures as church leaders.
- Taking time to be in God's word, pray, and mediate on learnings is something that is often at the bottom of our busy list. Yet when we put God first, put study first, we often realize that we have more than enough time for everything on our list.
- Above all, love each other, we will make mistakes, not everyone will agree on topics and at times we will feel anger. It is vital to forgive and always love one another.
- God's peace will be with us, as we pray and learn together.
My hope is built on nothing less
Then Jesus' blood and righteousness
No merit of my own I claim
But wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
(LSB 575-1)
As we mature, engage with each other and find ways to learn from each other, we will grow as a church. If you are interested in a Bible study, please let me know. I am happy to facilitate finding groups that have the common interest to "be in the word" together. I was thinking of what we could call these micro Bible studies, and "Members like Me" came to mind. We like to learn from others that share like experiences. If you are interested in leading or joining a study group contact us! There are many ways to meet, zoom or skype meeting are popular. In person is always an option in small groups.
February is Heart month; Valentine's day is a fun time to show our expression of love. We can use this month to expand our spiritual heart. Open our heart to learning about God's love, then share that with others.
Blessings!
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Care Package Update
Allison Walania said "Thank you" for the care packages. She shared and everyone appreciated the items that we sent. She should be heading home the beginning of February!
James Keltner also said "Thank you"! He will have another month or so of deployment. The Kcups are very much appreciated by all. There is time to send another box or two if anyone is interested in bringing Kcups and snacks to church. If anyone has a son or daughter deployed and they would like a care package let the church office know. Thanks for your support!
Debbie
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Council Update--New-ish Faces
Hi my name is Mindy Bell, I have been asked to chair the education program. I have been a Sunday school teacher for three years now. I have two children that attend Sunday school, Ashley is 14 and Allison is 11. We have been attending church since Allison was a baby. We love spending time with family and friends. I enjoy hiking, kayaking and swimming in the summer. We do a lot of outdoors activities when the weather is nice. I hope to make the children's program enjoyable for the students as they learn about the Bible. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello I'm Stacy Grove and I am the new council secretary. I've been a member of Christ Our Savior since 2007. I've taught Sunday School for a couple of years now and I'm a medical scribe and coder. I have two sons, Isaac and Eamon and I'm married to Aaron Grove. My family and I enjoy spending time with our extended family in Iowa and heading to the lake every chance we get. I'm very excited for the opportunity to serve the church in this way. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm Susan Flanery and I'm a life long Lutheran. My husband Brian and I raised three sons to be strong Christians and during their formative years I chose to work and serve the church by being a teacher's aid, a lunch lady and the church secretary.
As a professional, I have worked in banking, insurance, real estate, retail sales as the CFO, and investment property. I am currently retired from most of my jobs so that I can be a stay-at-home Nana.
Brian and I enjoy being with our 8 grandchildren on a weekly basis "babysitting", helping out their parents and watching them grow not only size but also in their studies and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is a blessing now, to be able to serve at Christ Our Savior as treasurer. |
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