Pastor’s message 2019 - Cross of Christ...

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For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Mo-ses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were over-thrown in the wilderness. Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the De-stroyer. Now these things happened to them as an ex-ample, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:1–13 ESV) Perhaps you have heard the saying, “God won't give you more than you can handle.” This oft quoted proverb comes from 1 Corinthians 10:13. However, as you can see from reading the text, this saying is often misapplied. In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul is talking about sin and the temptation to sin. And then he says that God will not let you be tempted (or tested) beyond your ability. Rather, God will provide an escape out of the temptation so that you can endure it. Notice how Paul isn't saying the temptation can be easily handled but that God gives you an escape route because you can't handle it by yourself. You need the escape route, that is Jesus Christ. You need God to provide you help and He is faithful to do so. In this way, you are not tempted beyond what you can handle because you are not alone in handling it. Jesus is pre-sent as your way out. With Him, you can endure the temptation or trial. You can face it and pass through it

no matter how long or difficult it is because He is helping you get through it. It may be a difficult road that you have to endure but God's presence ensures that it can be done. As you can see, this passage, which details the many temptations that the Israelites faced and applied such struggles and temptations to the Corinthians and to us, does not directly comment on all trials or diffi-culties that one faces. Paul narrowly speaks toward the temptation to sin but He does not speak to all trials and troubles in life, as if you should be able to bear all those easily. Paul isn't saying that you won't face trials that are beyond your ability. (In fact, Jesus essentially says the opposite in John 16, which we will look at in the next newsletter.) He isn't saying that you will be able to handle all things that are thrown at you. The truth be told, some of the situations you face will be beyond your ability to bear or handle but, even then, such temptations that accompany those situations or trials will not be beyond your ability to handle. So, as we pass through Lent and reflect on our sins and consider the times of our temptation, we should take our focus and place it squarely on Christ Jesus. He is our escape route. He is the way out. He alone delivers us out of temptation—He is whom we are ask-ing the Father to send in the Lord's Prayer. When we ask God to “lead us not into temptation”, we are ask-ing “that God would guard and keep us so that the dev-il, the world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice... we pray that we may finally over-come them and win the victory.” We are asking God to send the Holy Spirit to help us and to guide us and to strengthen us for the battle and fight and we are ask-ing for Jesus to overcome them by His cross and give us the victory that He has won for us. We need Jesus who has battled the temptations of the devil, the world, and the sinful flesh for us already. We need our Victor to step in and deliver us so that we can endure and re-main standing in the face of such evil and temptation. And what we need, our Lord and Savior does for us. Lord Jesus, You overcame the devil, the world, and the sinful flesh of man in the wilderness, at every turn, and most decisively on the cross. Help us as we face

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Pastor’s message MARCH/APRIL

2019

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Silent Seeds

by Rev. Keith Ellerbrock "Behold, the husbandman (the farmer) waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh" (James 5:7,8). Dear Christian Friend, Working in the Lord's field can be frustrating, whether you're a pastor, a professional church worker, or a layman. The seeds that are sown in His field don't always yield a visible crop. As frail and sin-limited human beings, we're all (including myself) excited and thrilled when we can actually see the fruit of our labors: Big crowds in church, lots of new people coming in, large Sunday school classes and Bible class attendance, lots of activities, people buzzing around the church six days out of seven. But when that kind of visible crop doesn't materialize (and I'm hearing from more and more and more pastors in the last few years who tell me that's the case with their congregations – a sign of the times, perhaps?), we can get discouraged. We can even fall into despair and hopelessness. And yet God doesn't want us to be discouraged or hopeless. He wants us to see things from His perspective in-stead. He wants us to have a heavenly perspective instead of a worldly one, spiritual instead of material, Word-based and faith-based instead of reason-based and sight-based. So what's He telling us through James in the passage above? The same thing He tells us through Paul in 1 Corin-thians 15: "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Cor. 15:58), and also in Galatians 6: "Let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap (a harvest), if we faint not" (Gal. 6:9). In other words, be patient, waiting patiently for God to bring the crop. We should all keep God's words to us in 1 Corinthians 3 in the forefront. Paul writes: "I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase" (1 Corinthians 3:6). So, here are at least three important things we need to take away from this:

• Even though we're privileged to sow and water the seed in God's field, God brings the increase, not us.

• The seed often takes a long time to grow into a full-fledged crop.

• The "crop" will not always be something we can actually see.

Let's go back to the events of the cross. By the time Palm Sunday rolled around, the seeds of faith in Him that Jesus had planted in the disciples' hearts had not only germinated, they'd actually sprung up to be tender young plants. Peter had already declared, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16), and the other disciples were right on board with that confession. But when Jesus' arrest and crucifixion came thundering into their lives, those tender plants were washed away in a torrent of grief, fear, and hopelessness. You and I might have been tempted to trade in our tractors and combines after a washout like that! Three years of hard, painstaking farming washed away in a few hours! But the Son of God didn't give up; He replanted instead. He re-sowed the seeds of faith in the women's hearts at the empty tomb. A small seed of faith was replanted in John's heart when he looked into the empty tomb, saw the collapsed-in graveclothes and believed. Peter got a face-to-face visit from his Risen Lord and the personal assurance of forgiveness, and his faith got a replant, too. Then small mustard seeds were planted in all the disciples' hearts (except for Thomas) on Easter evening, and a week later, Thomas' faith was re-sown as well. Over a dozen followers of the Christ had their faith replanted and growing again. And yet, these days, a lot of Christians might say, "Big whoop! After a spectacular miracle like the resurrection of Jesus Christ, after the procla-mation of that magnificent victory over sin, death, and hell to His disciples, you'd think they'd spring into evangel-action and have the upper room bursting at the seams with people!" Just wait. It all happens in God's good time. Jesus appeared to over 500 believers at once during one of His appearances after His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:6), and as Pentecost drew near, about 120 Christians were worshiping regularly in Jerusalem (Acts 1:15). We're not talkin' mega-church here, but that's still quite a replication of seed in just 50 days! The Word of the Lord was


every temptation to flee away from the temptation and to You so that You would deliver us out of the tempta-tion into true life for You reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and for-ever. Amen.

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moving mightily. Then on the Day of Pentecost, the special outpouring of the Holy Spirit that Jesus had promised during the last supper finally came, Peter uncorked a Spirit-empowered Law/Gospel sermon, and through the power of God in the Gospel (Romans 1:16), three thousand people believed and were baptized in one day (Acts 2:41). The disciples obeyed their Savior's command to wait, and their patience was not in vain. They proclaimed the Gospel, and from tiny seeds God brought a great increase. That was a spectacular day! You could actually see the crop growing before your eyes! But it doesn't always work that way, especially in these last days. While the Gospel is going gangbusters in Asia and Africa, it seems to have gotten bogged down in the mud in Europe and the United States. And in the U.S. certain churches seem to have crowds of people bustin' down the doors to get in, while a lot of other churches are struggling to pull just one person off the streets. But looks can be deceiving! Here's the truth: A crop may well be growing even though we can't see it. What goes on in the hearts of hearers is most often not seen, but it can be just as spectacular as three thousand people being added to the Kingdom on Pen-tecost, or three thousand regularly attending the church down the street. Although God's crop may not take the form of masses of people beatin' a path to the church door, God's still bringing a crop. The Bible says, and our Lutheran Confessions reiterate the truth, that wherever the Gospel is preached in its purity, faith will be created ... and sus-tained, and growing, and bearing fruit. This is often an unseen crop – not satisfying to our fleshly desire to see warm bodies in the pews – but believed in through Spirit-given faith, and just as important to God as the more visi-ble manifestations of the Holy Spirit's work. In the old Jimmy Stewart Christmas classic, It's A Wonderful Life, Stewart's character, George Bailey, having just lost the assets from his building and loan business, facing possible jail time and certain disgrace because of a trumped-up charge that he'd stolen the money, and feeling that he'd wasted his entire life working for practically nothing and making no significant difference in the world, is saved from suicide by a homely looking angel named "Clarence." Using the power of God, Clarence gives George the unusual gift of seeing what George's community, and the people he'd interacted with, would be like if he'd never been born. George is shocked and dismayed to find his town taken over by the resident rich Scrooge, the poor being ground into the dirt and the well-off using their money to fund all sorts of city-sanctioned debauchery. He's especially horrified to see his friends and his wife (none of whom recognize him) in such a bad way. Instead of faith and love, George's town is now characterized by ava-rice and cold-hearted selfishness. He finds out that he really had made a tremendous difference in both the commu-nity at large and the lives of certain individuals in it, particularly his family – his had truly been "a wonderful life." When he gets his old life back, George is ecstatically happy. And all his many true friends, instead of condemning him, pitch in their money to make up for the building and loan's shortfall. Ever feel like George – like all your work for the Kingdom, all your work in the field, all your work for the church, all the effort you put into your family is for nothing – like pouring a bucket of water into the desert sand? Your feeling has no truth to it, friend! Whenever God's Word goes out, it does not return void. It always accom-plishes the work for which it's sent (see Isaiah 55:8-11). You may not see the results right away, and when the re-sults come, they might not have been the ones you had in mine – and furthermore, you may never see the results of some of your seed-sowing this side of heaven – but you do have God's sure promise, you have His Word, that any-thing you're doing for Him, at home, at church, in the community, is not wasted. Even when you can't see, you can believe – God never lies. He will bring the increase He wants to bring, in His good time. So instead of fretting or falling into despair, dear friend, we can relax in His grace – the same forgiving and life-giving grace that brought us into His Kingdom in the first place – and know that He is accomplishing far more than we could ask or even dream of (Ephesians 3:20,21). And when we get to our heavenly home, guaranteed for us by the life, death, and resurrection of our Savior, we'll see with our own eyes the golden crop that came from our hum-ble labors. In Jesus' amazing, pardoning grace, Pastor Ellerbrock 1 Timothy 1:15-17 [Reprinted with permission from the Trinity Trumpet, May 2013. Rev. Keith Ellerbrock is pastor of Trinity Lutheran

Church in Bridgeton, Missouri]


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Why I am a Lutheran By Mike Green

At age seven, I attended Roman Catholic catechism. I also attended a Roman Catholic middle school. During these times, my family attended Mass as much as was required, but by the time I reached 16, I was a spiritual trainwreck. I never really thought I was a great person, merely “good enough.” Or at least good enough at pretending I was good enough. It was about that time that I started dating a Lutheran girl. Being a good Lutheran, she invited me to church, where I sat in on her Bible study, which just happened to be covering the Reformation and some of the great errors of the Roman Catholic Church. The assertions made during this Bible study about Roman Catholicism made me bristle for no good reason. All I knew is that the presenter was attacking Roman Catholics and, therefore, me. It was silly, but it prompted me to ask a lot of questions. These questions were usually directed to the mother of the Lutheran girl I was dating, who was always very gracious and patient. I was confirmed as a member of her church about two years later. Nearly 30 years after that, I was at the Synodical convention, discussing the nuances of Article XIV of our Confession with a pastor, who was part of a task force that was considering the fate of Li-censed Lay Deacons. Nuances is a bit of a joke. AC XIV is the shortest and most straightforward of our Articles, and it leaves no room for Licensed Lay Deacons. A few minutes into our discussion, the pas-tor looked at me and said, “You’re an ex-Roman Catholic, aren’t you?” I confessed. “They make the best Lutherans,” he continued. Why? Before I attempt an answer, I should confess with St. Paul that I am not the “best” at an-ything remotely Christian. I am the worst of all sinners and deserve nothing but God’s wrath. The question, however, deserves examination, and perhaps it should be restated: what do ex-Roman Catholics find so appealing about Lutheranism? I suppose the question is best answered by way of analogy: a man on the edge of starvation would certainly appreciate an all-you-can-eat buffet. Most worldly religions fall woefully short on grace, but the issue is especially pronounced in Roman Catholic doctrine. That shortage is, after all, an issue central to the Reformation. God’s grace had an especial appeal to me, even as a young, under-catechized Roman Catho-lic, because I’d heard so little of it. Private Confession and Absolution became a balm to my soul, ra-ther than a source of terror. I could sin boldly, but believe in Christ even more boldly, to paraphrase Luther. But, to get back to the assertion made by my pastor friend, why do ex-Roman Catholics stick out amongst Lutherans? To support that assertion, I must make a rather pointed assertion of my own. “Cradle Lutherans” are prone to an apathy that converts are not. This is the Old Adam at work in them. I take my ability to read and write for granted, because these are things my parents encour-aged and fostered from my from childhood. They give me pleasure, but not nearly the pleasure ex-perienced by senior citizens who learned these skills in their sixties. The Augsburg Confession and our catechism are treasures, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. If you are an adult Lutheran who has not had a look at them since you were confirmed, please spend an afternoon with them. Better yet, attend one of Pr. Krause’s adult instruction classes. You will not be disappointed.

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Why Do You Go to Church?

by Todd Wilken I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith…

For many Lutherans these are some of the most beloved words from Luther’s Small Catechism’s explanation to the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed. These words teach that saving faith in Jesus is not the result of my reason or effort, but the work of the Holy Spirit alone. These words are a corollary of the Reformation’s central insight that sinners are declared righteous before God for Christ’s sake alone, by Grace alone, through Faith alone. These words teach that even saving faith itself is a divine gift. For many Lutherans, if they remember and can recite anything from Luther’s Small Catechism, it is these words. Less remembered, if not often forgotten, is the rest of Luther’s explanation of the Third Article:

…in the same way as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the last day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ. This is most certainly true.

Here Luther teaches that the Holy Spirit hasn’t given the gift of faith to me alone, but to the whole Church. Here we learn that the Holy Spirit alone keeps me and all believers in that faith in this Church alone. The fact that the first part of Luther’s explanation is so well remembered, and the second part is so easily forgotten may help us diagnose a perennial problem and provide a solution to that problem as well. Years ago we used to do a lot of “open lines” segments on Issues, Etc. I would “lay the table” by introducing the topic, ask questions related to it, and hope for phone calls. We produced three hours of live, drive-time radio every weekday. Frankly, we had a lot of airtime to fill, and open lines helped do that. I have long forgotten most of those segments, but I do remember one in particular. We did an hour of open lines, asking our listeners to answer the question, “Why do you go to church?” As the host, I was supposed to have an answer to that question too. We would take the listeners’ answers, then at the end of the hour, I would wrap things up with my answer. I remember that as I began that hour, I didn’t have an answer. I was a life-long Lutheran, from an every-Sunday church-going family, Seminary educated, and a parish pastor for over ten years, but I didn’t have an answer to the question, “Why do you go to church?” Why did I go to church on Sunday? Apart from the fact that it had been my job as a pastor, why did I go? Why did I get myself, my wife and children into the car every weekend to attend the Divine Service?

Revivalist preacher Billy Sunday is supposed to have said, “Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile.” This is certainly the conventional wisdom in American Christianity today. And no wonder, by and large, American Christianity doesn’t confess the first half of Luther’s explanation to the Third Article, much less the second half. For many Christians, saving faith isn’t a gift given by the Holy Spirit, it is an act of your will and a decision of your mind. So maintaining that saving faith is likewise your action and decision. The Sunday morning service is just a convenient gathering place for like-minded Christians. Attending Sunday services is like eating at Chic-fil-A, or shopping at Hobby


Church Officers Mike Green—President

Zach Hansen—Vice President Cheryll Christensen—Secretary

Sherry McBride—Treasurer Jane Snyder—Financial Secretary

Zach Hansen—Board of Elders Mike Green—Board of Elders

Amy Green—Board of Education Jon Pantke—Board of Trustees

David Gerber—Board of Trustees Luke Hering—Board of Trustees Vacant—Board of Evangelism

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Lobby. It’s just something Christians do to support a Christian organization. It’s encouraged, but not required, and certainly not necessary. Ask the average church-goer, “If you stopped going to church, would you eventually stop being a Christian?” and the answer will be a firm “no.” But is that true? What does the second half of Luther’s explanation to the Third Article say again? “In the same way as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers.” Luther is describing not only what makes you a Christian, but also what keeps you a Christian. Both are the work of the Holy Spirit alone, and both happen in the Church. You might object, “When Luther uses the word ‘Church’ he’s speaking of the Church in a spiritual sense, the invisible Church, not the church I attend on Sunday morning.” I respond, yes and no. Yes, he certainly is talking about the invisible Church. But where does an individual Christian find that Church? Is that Church an intangible idea, a purely spiritual reality, inaccessible to us? Or is that Church actually found in the church you attend on Sunday morning? Be careful how you answer. If the church you attend on Sunday morning is something other than the Church in which the Holy Spirit keeps you with Jesus Christ in the one true faith and richly forgives all your sins, you have no more reason to go to church than to eat at Chick-fil-A. But if the church you attend on Sunday morning is the Church in which the Holy Spirit keeps you in the one true faith and forgives all your sins, then you have every reason to go to church. Thankfully, it was a listener who provided the most important answer to that open lines question, “Why do you go to church?” There were lots of other answers: “I need the company of my fellow Christians.” “I need a spiritual oasis from the world.” “Church is my spiritual family.” “The Bible tells us not to forsake meeting together.” “My presence at Church is my witness to others.” None of these answers are wrong. But none of them is THE answer. Finally, one listener put his finger on it: “I go to church because that is where Jesus has promised to be forgiving my sin. And that is the only thing keeping me a Christian.” The minute I heard it I knew he was right. I go to church because it is the only thing keeping me a Christian. In Matthew 18 Jesus is telling parables about how He finds lost sinners. He is teaching about the forgiveness of sin. He is talking how that forgiveness is distributed in His Church. Right in the middle of all of it Jesus says, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” This is Jesus’ promise to be present forgiving sins where Christians gather around His Word and Sacraments. Luther writes

in the Smalcald Articles: God is superabundantly rich and liberal in His grace and goodness. First through the spoken Word by which the forgiveness of sins is preached. He commands to be preached in the whole world; which is the peculiar office of the Gospel. Secondly, through Baptism. Thirdly, through the holy Sacrament of the Altar. Fourthly, through the power of the keys, and also through the mutual conversation and consolation of brethren, Matt. 18:20: ‘Where two or three are gathered together, etc.’ (SA, II, IV) Only in church—where Jesus has promised to be present forgiving sins through preaching, Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, Absolution, and mutual witness of other Christians—does the Holy Spirit make you a Christian and



Upcoming Worship Opportunities

Lenten Midweek Services Ash Wednesday, March 6, 7 pm

Wednesday, March 13, 7 pm Wednesday, March 20, 7 pm Wednesday, March 27, 7 pm

Wednesday, April 3, 7 pm Wednesday, April 10, 7 pm

Holy Week Palm Sunday, April 14, 10:30 am Maundy Thursday, April 18, 7 pm

Good Friday, April 19, 7 pm Easter Sunday, April 21, 10:30 am

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keep you a Christian. This is why you go to church. If you stopped going to church, would you eventually stop being a Christian? Yes, you would. You cannot remain a Christian without Jesus. And you can’t find Jesus anywhere else than in church. There is no such thing as a lone-wolf Christian. You didn’t become a Christian by your own reason or strength, and you won’t remain a Christian by your own reason or strength. You didn’t make yourself a Christian and you can’t keep yourself a Christian. Stay away from church and you are going it on your own. You are staying away from the work of the Holy Spirit. If you decide to try it all by yourself, you will fail, you will fall from the faith, you will stop being a Christian. This is why a faithful pastor actually cares if you are in church on Sunday. This is why such pastors regularly visit those who can’t come to church on Sunday by reason of health or other circumstance, bring them God’s Word and the Lord’s Supper, and remind them that if they cannot come to church, the Church will come to them. This is why, in the past, such faithful pastors would travel dozens or hundreds of miles on horseback to bring God’s Word and Sacraments to isolated families and villages. This is also why rather than simply “doing evangelism” or “doing mission work” the Church has sent pastors to plant a church—a place of worship with an altar, a pulpit and a font—where no churches exist. This is why the Church has chaplains serving the deployed military and those in prison. One of he most common questions I receive is, “Pastor, my family and I live in _____________, and the nearest Lutheran church is 40, 50, 100 miles away, what should I do?” I used to hem and haw, not knowing how to answer. Now, I simply say, “Drive however far you have to drive. Or, (and this never goes over well)

consider moving closer to the church.” Ask yourself, what if your wife, husband or child had an illness that required them to regularly visit a hospital? How far would you drive? Or, wouldn’t you even consider moving closer to the hospital? We need to embrace all of Luther’s explanation to the Third Article, not just the first half. If all you confess is that you cannot become a Christian by your own reason or strength, you are still a lone-wolf Christian, relying on yourself to remain so. But when you also confess that you cannot remain a Christian by your own reason or strength, then you have every reason to go to Church. You also have the comfort that it is not up to you, but up to the Holy Spirit to keep you with Jesus Christ in the one true faith, to daily and richly forgive all your sins, to raise you up with all the dead on the last day, and to give to you and to all believers in Christ everlasting life. The real reason to go to Church is because Jesus has promised to be there in His Word and Sacraments forgiving your sins, and thereby keeping you in the one true faith. The real reason to go to Church is because Jesus has promised to be there keeping you a Christian. So go to church. You have every reason to do so. [Copied with permission from the Issues, Etc. Journal, Vol. 2, No. 2. Rev. Todd Wilken hosts the Lutheran Talk Radio Show, Issues,

Etc. It airs on several radio stations across the United States. You can also listen to it live on-line or download past shows to listen to when you want at issuesetc.org. He is also an assistant

pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Millstadt, Illinois.]


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FOR THOSE WHO ARE ILL: *For those with cancer: -Ray Johnson (Lisamarie's uncle; recovering from

surgery to remove cancer from kidney; evaluating for further treatment),

-Blaine Walker (Racheal Major's uncle; leukemia), -Suzan Maio (Amy Green's mother; leukemia in

remission; on-going chemo; kidney failure because of treatment),

-Linda Simpson (friend of Janice Oswald; having chemo for cervical cancer),

-Rick Evans (husband of Teresa Baker, friend of Janice Oswald; squamous cell carcinoma),

-Stephanie Taylor (friend of Jon Pantke; doing well; current treatment is to prevent a re-occurance of breast cancer),

-Spanjer (friend of Gail Cheever; diagnosed with pancreatic cancer; for strength and comfort; tumor shrinking; chemo),

-Harold Krause (father of Pastor; pancreatic can-cer, stage 2; recovery from surgery to remove can-cer; heavy chemo starts this week,

-Alan MacDonald (visitor from a sister church out-of-state; in hospice),

-Bobbie Bennett (wife of the vicar at Holy Trinity, Riverton; cancer has spread to her spine; in Hunts-man for treatment), and

-Rodney Bennett (friend of Jon Pantke; melano-ma; recovering from third surgery to remove can-cer; cancer is spreading; treatment options being accessed.)

*For Shannon Myers that her health improves and new medications help.

*For blessings on Donna Hering's monthly infu-sion treatments for relief from the debilitating pain of Lupus (recently the situation has worsened)

*For Isabel Lang regarding her chest pains of yet unknown cause(s) and is having kidney issues.

*For Alexa Hering, who is dealing with early scoli-osis and probable eye sight loss.

*For Tammy Myers back home but dealing with a long-term infection.

*For Kevin Hering, suffering with blood clots. *For Hayden Barton, grandson of Mary and Mar-

ley Green, recovery from surgery and infection. FOR THOSE WITH CHRONIC CONDITIONS OR ON-GOING NEEDS: *For Bonnie Hill, Racheal Major's mom, dealing

with MS and rheumatoid arthritis. *For Sarah Krause dealing with juvenile idiopathic

arthritis *For Elaine Krause, Pastor's aunt, facing wet mac-

ular degeneration. *For Michelle Foil, Lisamarie Morse's sister, suf-

fering from unexplained migraines. *For Arlene Jones, Barbara Kamaski's mother,

whose kidneys are failing but stable. *For Jan Meyer, Angie Metzger's mother, and her

needs. *For Peggy Saylor, friend of Pastor Krause's family,

recovery from stroke. *For Jan Wagner, Rev. Wagner's wife, dealing with

back pain and other issues. FOR PROTECTION: *For those in the armed

forces.

FOR OTHER NEEDS: *For Gene Myers to regain strength. *For help in deciding whether or not to have another back surgery for Christine Ryan. *For Tayjah Griffis, Lisamarie's niece, as she strug-gles with suicidal thoughts. *For Stacey Mayer who has congestive heart fail-

ure. *For those on hospice: the mother of Tammy

Myers and grandmother of Amy Nordquist, that the Lord would do what is best for her.

*For Abigail Maio, niece of Amy Green, needing peace and guidance in her struggles.

*For our former adopted Seminarian, Rev. Pierce Chadburn, as he serves the people at Zion Em-manuel Lutheran Church, Odessa, Washington.

*For Abigail's parents, Tony and Amber Maio, as they try and support and help her.

*For Ann who has called our church requesting prayers for her various needs.

*For Bennett Colby, Jason Major's nephew, that his skin graft would grow with him.

*For Melonie Major's family to heal. *For God to call, enlighten, sanctify and keep Kris-

ten Cawley in the true faith and for Spencer Cawley to return to the true faith.

*For Sandi Long's knees to get stronger. *For Rev. Kurt Hering and Donna Hering as

they seek God's will for their life. Rev. Hering is without a call and awaits another.

*For full-time employment for Kevin Hering. *For peace and strength in families, especially for

Jon and Isaac Pantke. *For strength and guidance for Jon Pantke. *For wisdom and guidance in life for Dustin

Nordquist and for Melonie Major. *For those with large hospital bills: Alexa Hering

and her family. *For peace and strength in the life of Christopher

Oswald, Janice Oswald's son. *For the members of Dustin Nordquist's fami-

ly that have been led astray or fallen away, espe-cially Sadie, Roxanne, and Gary, and for Tiana Moore, the child of a sister in Christ, that they would embrace God's Word and forsake any lies.

*For the needs of Christ Lutheran Church, espe-cially as they seek a new pastor.

*For Pastor Krause's back instability. *For the training and provision for Vicar Paul

Chuol, serving the Sudanese at St. John's.

FOR THOSE RECOVERING: *Christine Ryan (facing continued back pain), *Karen Kirgis (facing continued pain after back

and shoulder surgery), *Mackie Barton (grandson of Mary and Marley

Green; recovery from knee surgery), *Jon Pantke (recovery from hand surgery), *Sarah Krause (recovery from eye surgery), *Roxanne Thomas (Brandon Huff's mom; recov-

ery from heart surgery), *Melonie Major (recovery from surgery for twisted

and broken leg and shattered ankle and from sur-geries for complications; another surgery in March),

*Rev. David Fischer (recovery from surgery for heel),

*Joshua Krause (healing of fractured tibia), *Diana Malone (Rev. Hank Malone of St. John's

wife; recovery from a major infection), *Temmielle Benally (girlfirend of a catechumen;

burned badly), *Tammy Myers (recovery from broken bone in her

back), and *Marley Green (recovery from hip surgery). FOR OUR SHUT-INS: *Merle Hager, *Jennifer

Myers, *Stacey Mayer, *Isabel Lang, and *Sandi Long.

FOR THOSE WHO MOURN: *For Stacey Mayer as

she mourns her son's death. *For the family of Floyd Mundt, grandfather of

Rev. Mark Schlamann (pastor at First Lutheran in Tooele), who died January 30, 2019.

*For the family of Ted Tonn, Pastor Krause's uncle, who died February 8, 2019.

IN THANKS FOR GOD'S MERCY FOR: *Hannah Krause recovered from toe injury. *Successful surgery for Ray Johnson, Lisamarie's

uncle and Harold Krause, pastor's father. *For healing Catherine Hering,Luke Hering's wife,

following her C-section surgery. *Tiffany Hansen, sister-in-law of Zach Hansen,

who appears to be doing better. *The help given Aric Muhlestein, co-worker of Jon

Pantke, who became quadriplegic in an accident in Hawaii, and for helping him and his family adapt to this new condition.

*Brandon Hobbs, Racheal Major's sister's boy-friend, who is once again cancer free.

*For Kaden Hering who seems to be doing well and for healing Alexa Hering's foot.

*For Stacey Mayer being healed and out of the hospital and care center.

*For the recovery from surgery granted to Beau Margaret and Gene Myer's grandson, who had surgery to help his voice after a tumor removal 2 years ago.

*For Trini Vasquez, grandmother-in-law of Chris-tine Ryan, who is doing well.

*For Gene Meyer's recovery from a second proce-dure.

*For the successful surgeries for Marley Green and Hayden Barton.

Prayers for the People of God

know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance… (Philippians 1:19 ESV)

If you have any prayer updates or have more information about one of these needs, please call or e-mail pastor.

The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus

(Philippians 4:5b-7 ESV).

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Who Is Your Elder?

Every member is to be assigned an el-der in the church. Elders serve as as-sistants to the pastor in caring for the people. Each elder is charged with car-ing for specific individuals and is avail-able for you to contact, especially if you cannot get a hold of the pastor. Your elder will check up on you and may come and visit you to see how you are doing (In fact, we are currently in the process of having pastor-elder vis-its). So look below the elder’s to find out who your elder is. The list does not contain every name of every member but members are listed by the head of the household (unless the head of household is not a member) and then spouse, if applicable. Also, those who are over 18 (whether they live with their parents or not) are listed separate-ly from their parents and should expect separate pastor-elders visits. If your name is not on here, do not worry. Speak to pastor as not all members have been assigned an elder yet.

Pat and Sherry McBride 3/17 Jared and Lisamarie Morse 3/21

Lynn and Cheryll Christensen 3/27 Lane and Kathy Adams 4/4

Brandon and Corina Huff 4/22 Jim and Margé Weiss 4/28

March

Luke Hering 3/2 Tanner Myers 3/4

McKay “Mackie” Barton 3/10 Brandon Huff 3/13 Isabel Lang 3/25

Kevin Hering 3/25

April

Lisamarie Morse 4/1 Lane Adams 4/4

David Gerber 4/11 Angela Krause 4/21 Marley Green 4/23

Did we miss your birthday or anniversary?

Please let Angela know! Mike Green Zach Hansen

Barton, Monica Adams, Dallas

Bohn, Brian Adams, Lane and Kathy

Bohn, Joan Baxter, Robert and Bridgette

Cunningham, David and Dawn Cheever, Gail

Fox, Linda Christensen, Cheryll

Gerber, David and Annabelle Christensen, Jason

Green, Marley and Mary Christensen, Karen

Green, Mike and Amy Clay, Ryan

Lind, Paul and Wendy Dalton, Nick and Alissa

Hager, Merle Gray, Jana

Hering, Kevin Gray, Leo

Hering, Luke Gray, Mark

Huff, Brandon and Corina Gray, Alan

Kirgis, Doug and Karen Hansen, Zach

(Oppenheimer) Harrison, Dayna

Kerr, Shirley Kamanski, Barbara

Krause, Jason and Angela Major, Melonie

Lang, Isabel Maxwell, Kip

Long, Sandi Morse, Lisamarie

Major, Byron Myers, Gene and Margaret

Major, Jason and Racheal Myers, Tammy

Mayer, Stacey Nordquist, Dustin and Amy

McBride, Pat and Sherry Oswald, Janice

Metzger, Darrel Peterson, Brad and Linda

Metzger, Darvin Peterson, Justin

Pantke, Jon Phister, David

Poole, Christy Phister, Brian

Ratz, Otto and Marsha Reber, Demi

Ratz, Megan Riedmann, Annetta

Ruiz, Melissa Riedmann, Stephanie

Stewart, Ray and Claudia Ryan, Christine

Stewart, Tyrone Stewart, Lindsey

Thorup, Rhiannon Weiss, Jim and Margé

10

March 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2

3 Bible Study 9:15 Worship Service 10:30

4 5 6

Time of Reflection 6:30 pm Ash Wednesday Service 7 pm

7 8 9


11 12 13

Soup Supper 6 pm Vespers 7 pm

14 15 16


18 19 St. Joseph, Guardian of Jesus

20

?Soup Supper 6 pm Vespers 7 pm

21 22 23


25 The Annunciation of Our Lord

26 27

?Soup Supper 6 pm Vespers 7 pm

28 29 30


THOSE WHO SERVE IN MARCH

Elder Mike Green Ushers Zach Hansen and Brandon Huff Counters 3/3 Kirgis, 3.10 Ratz, 3/17 Pantke/Green, 3/24 Krause/Snyder, 3/31 Kirgis Cleaning 3/10 Ratz, 3/24 Green Music 3/3, 6 Jane, 3/10, 13 Otto, 3/17 Jane, 3/20 Mike, 3/24 OPEN, 3/27, 31 Otto Altar 3/3, 6 Annabelle, 3/10, 13 Amy, 3/17, 20 Lisamarie, 3/20, 27, 31 Jana Snow 3/3 Green, 3/10 Hansen, 3/17 Green, 3/24 Hansen, 3/31 Green

For Snow Removal The day listed is the day on which your snow removing duties begin.

= communion

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April 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3 ?Soup Supper 6 pm Vespers 7 pm

4 5 6


8 9 10 ?Soup Supper 6 pm Vespers 7 pm

11 12 13


15 16 17 18 Maundy Thursday Worship Service 7pm

19 Good Friday Worship Service 7pm

20

21

The Resurrection of Our Lord Bible Study 9:15 Worship Service 10:30

22 23 24 25 St. Mark, Evangelist

26 27


29 30

= communion

For Cleaners The day listed on the calendar is the day by

which the church needs to have been cleaned.

THOSE WHO SERVE IN APRIL

Elder Zach Hansen Ushers David Gerber and Jon Pantke Counters 4/7 Ratz, 4/14 Pantke/Green, 4/21 Snyder/Krause, 4/28 Kirgis Cleaning 4/7 Christensen, 4/21 Nordquist Music TBD Altar 4/3, 7, 10 Annabelle, 4/14, 18 Sherry, 4/19 Amy, 4/21 Lisamarie, 4/28 Amy

12

Cross of Christ Lutheran Church 1840 S. 75 E. Bountiful, UT 84010

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