DECEMBER, 2007
This is what the Sovereign Lord,
the Holy One of Israel, says:
"Only in returning to Me
and resting in Me will you be saved.
In quietness and confidence is your strength.
But you would have none of it." Isaiah 30:15
Even so long ago, in Isaiah's time, the message was about grace,
the hesed of God. Salvation,
says the Mighty One, is found in simply returning and resting in Him not in our
efforts to win the approval Christ has already won for us. The question for us today remains, Will we
have anything of it?
Michael Card
Last
week, I walked into my office to find a sandwich bag on my desk containing three chewy, tasty, homemade chocolate
brownies. Some thoughtful
and anonymous person who knew my love for tasty homemade brownies had placed them there, along with a hand
written short story. I immediately sat down and began eating the first chewy,
tasty, homemade brownie as I read the following story:
Two teenagers
asked their father if they could go the theater to watch a movie that all their friends had seen.
After reading some reviews about the
movie on the Internet, he denied their request.
Come on dad,
why not? They complained. The movie is rated PG-13, and we are both older than thirteen!
Dad replied:
Because that movie contains nudity and portrays immorality as being normal and acceptable
behavior.
But dad, those
are just very small parts of the movie! That's what our friends who've seen it have told us.
The movie is two hours long and those scenes
are just a few minutes of the total film! It's based on a true story and good triumphs over evil, and there are other
redeeming themes like courage and self-sacrifice. Even the movie review
websites say that!
My answer is no
and that is my final answer. You are welcome to stay home tonight, invite some of your friends
over, and watch one of the good videos
we have in our home collection. But you will not go and watch that
film. End of
discussion.
The two
teenagers walked dejectedly into the family room and slumped down on the couch. As they sulked, they were
surprised to hear the sounds of their father
preparing something in the kitchen. They soon recognized the wonderful aroma of brownies baking in
the oven, and one of the teenagers said to the
other, "Dad must be feeling guilty, and now he's going to try to make it up to us with some fresh
brownies. Maybe we can soften him with
lots of praise when he brings them out to us and persuade him to let us
go to the movie he
refused to let us see."
About that time I began eating the second brownie from the
sandwich bag and wondered if
there was some connection to the brownies I was eating and the brownies in the story. I kept
reading...
The teens were
not disappointed. Soon their father appeared with a plate of warm brownies, which he offered to his
kids. They each took one. Then their
father said, before you eat, I want to tell you something: I love you
both so much.
The teenagers smiled at each other with knowing glances.
Dad was softening. That is why
I've made these brownies with the very best ingredients. I've made them from scratch. Most of the
ingredients are even organic.
The best
organic flour. The best free-range eggs. The best organic sugar. Premium vanilla and chocolate.
The brownies
looked mouth-watering, and the teens began to become a little impatient with their dad's long
speech.
But I want to
be perfectly honest with you. There is one ingredient I added that is not usually found in brownies.
I got that ingredient from our own back yard. But
you don't need to worry, because I only added the tiniest bit of that ingredient to your
brownies. The amount of the portion is
practically insignificant. So go ahead, take a bite and let me know
what you think.
Dad, would you
mind telling us what that mystery ingredient is before we eat?
Why? The portion
I added was so small. Just a teaspoonful. You won't even taste it.
Come on, Dad; just tell us what that ingredient is.
Don't worry! It
is organic, just like the other ingredients.
Dad!
Well, OK, if
you insist. That secret ingredient is fresh organic...dog poop.
I immediately
stopped chewing that second brownie and I spit it out into the wastebasket by my desk. I continued
reading, now fearful of the paragraphs that
still remained.
Both teens
instantly dropped their brownies back on the plate and began inspecting their fingers with horror.
DAD! Why did
you do that? You've tortured us by making us smell those brownies cooking for the last half
hour, and now you tell us that you added dog poop!
We can't eat these brownies!
Why not? The
amount of dog poop is very small compared to the rest of the ingredients. It won't hurt you. It's
been cooked right along with the other
ingredients. You won't even taste it. It has the same consistency as the brownies. Go ahead and eat!
No,
Dad...NEVER!
And that is the
same reason I won't allow you to go watch that movie. You won't tolerate a little dog poop in
your brownies, so why should you tolerate a
little immorality in your movies? We pray that God will not lead us unto temptation, so how can we in
good conscience entertain ourselves with something
that will imprint a sinful image in our minds that will lead us into temptation long after we first
see it?
I discarded
what remained of the second brownie as well as the entire untouched third brownie. What had been
irresistible a minute go had become detestable. And
only because of the very slim chance that what I was eating was slightly polluted. (Surely
it wasn't...but I couldn't convince myself.)
What a good
lesson about purity! Why do we tolerate any sin? On the day of the Passover, the Israelites were
commanded to remove every bit of leaven
from their homes. Sin is like leaven - a little bit leavens the whole lump (1Corinthians 5:6, 7). Faith and sin, don't mix.
received via email
As a
pastor of several large churches I often had members ask the following
questions:
•Why
should I forgive my boss for what he did to me?
•Why
should I give to the church?
•Why
should I serve ungrateful people?
•Why
should I give of my time?
There is
only one compelling answer to these questions.
It is “thankfulness” to Jesus for what he has done of us! There is no other reason. After we come to faith in Jesus every
motivation, every action for good, every attitude is to be a response of
thankfulness for the death, resurrection and love of Jesus. Nothing else compels us. Nothing else has the power!
We thank
God for 109 years of Grace
Our beginning
On
November 6, 1898, das Alten und Waisenheim—the Aged and Orphans’ Home—was officially
dedicated in Belle Plaine. Mrs. Sophie Boessling, an 83-year-old widow,
envisioned a new type of home providing care for the body and soul.
The home
really began during the Civil War. Sophie’s only child, Ernst, had volunteered
at age 15 to serve with the Minnesota troops. When he died in 1863 in service
to his country at Vicksburg, Mississippi, his mother received government death
benefits. She donated this money ($4,500) and her family’s farmland to begin
the first Lutheran Home.
Her
local church, Trinity Lutheran, and others joined forces for the project.
Ground was broken on July 10, 1898. On November 6 the home officially opened.
Two days later, Sophie, now a resident, was called to her eternal home, having
seen her dream become a blessed reality.
Our services today
Our
ministry has expanded in ways that Sophie Boessling could never have
imagined:
A campus
in Belle Plaine serving the needs of active seniors, those needing skilled
nursing care and rehabilitative therapies as well as persons with developmental
disabilities through a variety of care and housing options.
We also
have homes and services in Mankato, Minnesota, and in River Falls, Cochrane,
Fountain City, and Watertown, Wisconsin.
Jesus
Cares Ministries (JCM), our outreach program to persons with developmental
disabilities, serves more than 1,000 souls each month, primarily in the upper
Midwest. We are working with the ELS to develop nine new JCM programs over the
next three years.
The “New
Friends” Youth Leadership Initiative works in partnership with WELS and ELS
college campus ministries. New Friends encourages youth to follow Jesus’
example to serve others by actively reaching out with the Gospel to people with
developmental disabilities, sometimes referred to as a “hidden community”.
The
Lutheran Home Campus in River Falls, WI is entering a period of transition.
Based on a growing demand and market analysis, we plan to significantly enhance
its programs and services for seniors. Ultimately, this campus will be solely
for retirement living and will offer a continuum of services and care for
seniors.
Save the date: TLHA
annual meeting set for January 15, 2008
The date
for the annual meeting of The Lutheran Home Association is Tuesday, January 15,
2008. The meeting will be held in Belle Plaine, Minnesota. Lunch will begin at
noon, followed by a worship service and business meeting.
I am
pleased to report, that for the fourth consecutive year, our ministry had a
positive net income. Thank you for your congregational prayers, volunteerism,
support and gifts to help make this possible!
Caring about the Care of the Soul,
Michael R. Klatt, President and Chief Executive Officer
All are
invited to attend the Women’s Guild Christmas Party on Thursday, December 6th,
at 7:00pm.
There will be food, Christmas
carols, Christmas message, and program.
Mark your calendars early and
celebrate the Advent and Christmas season together as a congregation with us.
The Committee
Christmas
is coming and so is our annual cookie exchange. Set aside Thursday, December 13th
at 7:00pm and bring 3 dozen cookies to exchange and 1/2 dozen to taste. Feel
free to invite friends, neighbors and relatives to join us in the exchange. The
more the merrier - and the better the variety of cookies. It is also a
non-threatening way to bring people to the church building. Coffee, hot cider
and tea will be provided.
We look
forward to an evening of tasting and exchanging. Mark your calendar and join
us!!
Sunday
School Christmas Practices:
Saturdays,
Dec. 1, Dec. 8, and Dec. 15, from 9:30am to 11:30am. Snack break included.
Please
be prompt!
Sunday
School Service: December 16th, 9:00am. (Children practice at 8:35 in
the Sunday School wing.)
The service
will be followed by a Birthday Party for Jesus and Sunday School.
There will be Sunday School on December 23rd, but NO Sunday School on December 30th.
Linda Henkel, superintendent
Paraments
The Altar Guild would like to
replace the paraments in our church (the liturgically colored pulpit, lectern,
and altar hangings and the accompanying pastor’s stole) and therefore announce
the formation of the “Parament Fund” to receive your contributions.
If you
would like to make a special gift to this fund, checks may be made out to the
Mt. Olive Altar Guild, with “Parament Fund” written on the memo line.
If you
would like to give a gift in memory of loved ones, please note that also. Thank you.
I realize
that I’m slowing down somewhat but I’m glad that Joel is doing great in my old
job as Property & Grounds Chairman.
I also
enjoyed the songs and stories by Chris Driesbach, especially his stories about
his life of trouble and grief, and how the Holy Spirit entered his life and
gave him a way to serve the Lord with his songs and stories. I also got a kick out of when he mentioned
that the acoustics were excellent in the church because of the insulation in
the ceiling. Now this was my last
project as Property & Grounds Chairman.
I believe that the insulation will pay dividends for years to come
because of better acoustics, and help us with the cost of heat and keep us cool
in the summer months.
This
Report again ends with more outflows than inflows. This time is different than past months when we showed a deficit
because we have used up the “cushion” we had started the year with. Although we made our synod commitment for
November, there was not enough to cover the SCLHS pledge of $883. December has five Sundays this year so we
should be able to catch up by the end of the year. If this December is equal to last year, we should again end the
year with a positive balance.
The
trust receipts were quite high this month because of the two special offering
envelopes. The Reformation offerings
are designated to WELS Kingdom Workers and the Thanksgiving envelope is for the
WELS Committee on Relief. The
Thanksgiving offering has not yet been sent out, thus the difference in Trust
Receipts and disbursements. Property
and Grounds is somewhat higher this month because of a $758 right-of-way
maintenance assessment. The
non-budgeted disbursement of $722 is the application for Thrivant matching
funds for the Keystone Community Services Food Shelf. We will get that back with the $.50/dollar match soon. That should be somewhat more than $1,000
going to the Food Shelf.
The
November 18th Congregational Assembly discussed the 2008
budget. The proposed budget shows a
decrease from this year of $6,504 or 4%.
This budget will be considered for approval at the December meeting of
the Coordinating Council.
As we
approach the Christmas season and recall the blessings of the Savior’s birth,
may we in response, give generously of the material blessings we have received
from God.