May / June, 2004
Why
Is Jesus’ Ascension Important To Christians?
May 20, 2004 is Ascension Day
(We will celebrate the Ascension on Sunday, May
23rd.)
40 days
after His resurrection, Jesus gathers His disciples on the Mount of Olives,
just outside of
First it reveals that He keeps His
promises. He told His disciples in John 16: But I tell you the truth: It is
for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not
come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” So, He kept His Word. He
went away. He also kept His other promise. He sent the Holy Spirit 10 days
later. Jesus kept every promise He made and He will keep His promise to come
back and take us to heaven.
His Ascension is also important because
it visibly shows His disciples where He came from. He wasn’t just some
charismatic human who stumbled onto the stage of history from
His Ascension also reveals that He is
true God. Unaided by any propulsion systems or jet packs He defies the law of
gravity.
What memory did He leave of Himself for
His disciples at His ascension? Was He wagging His finger at them, scolding
them? Was He barking orders to them like George Patton? No. His hands were
raised in blessing. That is the vision that motivates His disciples in every
century to serve Him—the vision of a loving, gracious Savior. “We love Him
because He first loved us.” We serve Him, because He first served us.
Pentecost Sunday -
Happy
Birthday to You!
(We
will celebrate Pentecost
on Sunday, May 30th.)
Peter
replied, “Re-pent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus
Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children.... Those who accepted
his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number
that day. (Acts 2:38,39,41)
There are three great feast days on the
calendar of the Christian church year: Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. All
three of them are birthdays. Christmas is the birthday of Jesus. Easter
celebrates the resurrection of our Lord Jesus, whom the Apostle Paul calls “the
firstborn from among the dead” (Colossians 1:18). Pentecost is often called
the birthday of the New Testament Church. As those tongues of fire came to rest
on the heads of the disciples (Acts 2:3) they must have looked a little bit
like the candles that we put on birthday cakes today.
Peter preached a powerful sermon to the
crowd of pilgrims who had gathered in
In the sacrament of Holy Baptism sinners
are born again. Just as St. Peter urged the people to be baptized when he
preached his Pentecost sermon, so he talks about Holy Baptism in his first
epistle: “Praise be to the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living
hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Baptism now saves
you... by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” (I Peter 1:3, 3:2 1).
We celebrate three great birthdays
during the course of the Christian church year: Christmas, Easter and
Pentecost. We also celebrate three birthdays in our own personal lives. Our
first birthday is when we are born of the flesh. Our second birthday is when we
are born again of water and the Spirit in Holy Baptism. Our third birthday is
when we pass from this life into eternity. The old Latin term for the day of a
Christian’s death was dies natale. The day of
our death is our heavenly birthday.
As we bid farewell to loved ones at
their funerals, there is comfort in knowing that they have received all of the
blessings God promised them in Holy Baptism. Because we are baptized children
of God, we trust that we will see them again when we get to heaven ourselves.
A Wonderful
Pastor
Donald Meier
Greetings!
We pray you all have a blessed Easter celebration. This is always such an
exciting time of the church year when we hear the angel tell us “He is not
here! He’s risen!”
The reason for this letter is to ask you
to consider making us (Open Bible Lutheran down in the Villages in
What we need right now is financial
help. The remodeling will cost about $2,500. Other needs include a TV and DVD
player for viewing
You might be interested to know that on
the first Monday of each month we have a booth and evangelize on the Villages
town square. We give Bibles, tracts and other Christian literature away and answer
questions.
We will be officially received into the
District and Synod at our South Atlantic District convention in June. Already
we are in the Year Book and in the
Above all, we would appreciate your
prayers for our little group, that God would continue
to bless His Word so that man, many more here in this area may come to know Him
who suffered and died and rose again.
In His name,
Pastor Donald W. Meier
Easter Greetings
Everyone!
Yes, I
know Easter was last week, but I finally have a chance to play catch-up after
five days of nonstop go go go.
Whew! Teach all day, come home and change (and take a nap if I'm lucky), meet
with friends for dinner and study, go to bed. It’s an awesome kind of busy!
Summer has come to
We had a little Easter party/brunch for
our friends on Easter Sunday. We decided to invite only friends who had never
been to a party (Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.) before, which was a really good
idea and brought some newness and excitement to the party. The night before
Easter I had my girls’ study group dye 50 Easter eggs, which they did with care
and precision, much like the Christmas cookies. You almost hated to eat the
eggs!
It’s midterm exams time at school. I asked
the teachers if I could give my writing exam in a two-week period—half the
classes one week and half the other—and they said no problem. At first they
wanted me to give an exam in the format of the students’ graduation exam, which
is essentially like this:
Where did you go last weekend? (the seashore)
What did you do there? (a picnic, play, swim)
When did you eat your picnic? (afternoon)
How did you feel?
After looking at the sample exam
questions, I imagined myself reading the same answer 800 times and begged the
teachers to let me think of my own questions that test use of verb tenses and
imagination (as well as sentence structure and a response that is morally
correct—these are things that are tested for on the graduation exam). They
understood my feelings completely! I was a little frustrated because in ESL
writing it’s better to separate mechanics from expression, and I would rather
grade on expression, but when in
Starting April 26, I have TWO weeks of
vacation! One is for exams week and a sports meeting at school, and the other
is for May holiday, which is called Labor Day I think. Lynelle and I are
traveling to
I think that’s about all my news. As far
as little stuff goes, I rear-ended a bus the other day when the brakes snapped
on my bike. No damage done. There’s a Canadian guy (grad student) observing at
my school for two weeks, which makes going to school much more interesting if
you know what I mean. If you don’t, I’m not going to tell you! I invited him to
our student English Corner and then Artie and I said, OK kids, today is
ask-John-questions-about-Canada day. They loved it...he loved it...we loved it.
Once we return to school after the May holiday, there are only five weeks of
teaching left, which is a little sad for me and the students, I think, but it
means one adventure is coming to an end with another one waiting around the
corner. Maybe bittersweet is a good word to use.
I hope your Easter was joyful! Happy
spring!
Love, Keri
Jungle Journal
from
Greetings once again faithful readers!
Juan’s
vacant eyes and overall look of devastation as we met in Yurimaguas
immediately alarmed me. Juan (name
changed to protect his privacy) is a member of our Jungle Evangelism team. He is one of the roughest, toughest jungle
experts I know. He is also a devout
Christian who came to the Lord after working with us and hearing the Gospel
message over many months. We were just about to leave on one of our jungle
evangelism trips. However, Juan took me
aside and said he needed to talk to me. Unable to hold back the tears which
were soon streaming down his face Juan blurted out: “My uncle, my last uncle, was murdered last
week.” Juan paused and than added: “He was a shaman.”
To say that most Amazon jungle dwellers
have a “love-hate” relationship with their village shamans is no exaggeration.
In fact, it might be more accurate to call it a “respect – hate”
relationship. The
village shaman (also called a witch doctor, medicine man or even “male witch”
in some cultures), fills a unique role in a community. Through his
supposed ability to be possessed by spirits or through “soul travel” the shaman
gains access to the spirit world. Once
in communion with the spirits, the shaman is able to: diagnosis illnesses and
formulate cures, place people under spells or curses, or remove curses and
hexes from victims of witchcraft.
For most Amazon shamans, it’s all about
power, and the attendant fame, notoriety and money that goes
with wielding such formidable power.
Needless to say, it’s also about being in league with the Devil. Shamans have assuredly sold their souls to
the Devil, as they have chosen to embark upon a life-long journey towards the
mysterious, alluring powers of darkness and witchcraft. Shamans spend years practicing their art of
accessing supernatural powers. God’s opposition to such activities is as fierce
as anything you’ll find in His Sacred Word:
“Let no one be found among you
who…practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft,
or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to
the Lord…” (Deuteronomy 18:10-12).
I gently asked Juan to explain what had
happened to his uncle. From the story he told that night, as well as
other details that emerged during our week together, the following composite
picture of his shaman uncle’s dark deeds emerged, along with the story of his
violent end.
It was early evening yet pitch dark out
in the jungle village situated on a small, remote tributary of the
However, what came around the back that
night would have elicited a response of pity from even the coldest of
hearts. A man clearly in a panic came rushing by carrying the limp body
of a young daughter in his arms. His thin flashlight beam lit the path as
he frantically sought the shaman for a cure.
Now exactly what the little girl was
suffering from would be hard to say. Often people say “jungle fever” for
just about anything and leave it at that. However, nearly all the
villagers would believe that some malevolent spirit was the real, true cause of
the illness. A spirit could be upset and angry from being unintentionally
wronged in one way or another; - perhaps a taboo had been inadvertently
broken. Or possibly a jealous or vengeful neighbor had ordered a witch to
place an illness-causing curse on the child. Irregardless of the specific
malady, a “spiritual cause” would be at the root of it all. Enter the
shaman, who could consult with the spirits in the next world. With his
supernatural methods, Mario would seek their aid to ascertain the exact cause
of the illness and then perform a healing ritual.
In the case of the unconscious little
girl, it was obvious that she was extremely ill. Mario motioned to have
the girl laid down in front of him. The father took the blanket off her
and set it down, then gently set the motionless girl on top of it. The
shaman gathered the strange products and paraphernalia of his trade and
immediately went to work.
Mario first took out a bag of dried,
crumbled jungle plant leaves and parts (a secret concoction) and added shredded
tobacco. The magical mixture was stuffed into the bowl of a crude little
homemade pipe and lit. Next, the shaman took a big swig of liquor from
the bottle the father had dutifully brought. The liquor (now mixed with
the “powerful” shaman saliva) was held in the shaman’s cheeks. Smoke from the
pipe was then inhaled by the shaman till his cheeks were bulging. Then,
half murmuring, half chanting, Mario leaned over and the liquor-and-smoke was
spewed / sprinkled / spit, - let’s just say expelled from the shaman’s mouth
all over the child.
Moving over her hair, each arm, the
shaman eventually spewed the magical liquid and smoke over every part of the
girl’s body, expertly guiding the smoke with his hands to cover her skin.
Most jungle dwellers firmly believe this process “cleanses and cures” the
victim, saying the smoke and liquid actually “draws out” the malignant forces
that make the victim so ill. The shaman’s work went on for some time, as
the room filled with the pungent, rancid smell of booze and burning
leaves. The pipe was then set down and a feather-draped shaman’s rattle
(gourd filled with bits of bone, teeth or pebbles) picked up. Using his
supernatural powers, the shaman continued in contact with the spirits, asking
that they bring their healing powers to bear. And, just for good measure,
the shaman added his usual blasphemous flourish by inviting Jesus to also bring
his healing powers. Finally, with a long knife the shaman made several
huge, magical slashing gestures in the air over the child. Even the sign
of the cross was thrown in for good measure.
The smoke finally dissipated beyond the
eerie candlelight, and the healing ritual was over. The shaman confirmed that a
successful communion with the spirits had occurred and declared that the child
would soon recover. The hopeful father, duly impressed with the mysterious,
supernatural appeal on behalf of his daughter, gathered the still-limp body in
his arms to leave. The expected sizable
amount of folding money was counted out and given to the shaman.
Early the very next morning, the little
girl was dead. The grief-stricken father was inconsolable and out of
control. However, Mario knew nothing of this, for he had left early in
the morning and gone far down one of the small rivers, stringing out his nets
to trap fish. By early afternoon, Mario was relaxing somewhere on a
riverbank, far from the village. Then, as it began to get dark, Mario
returned to his canoe and was back on the river to check his nets.
As Mario paddled down the remote river
in his dugout canoe, another canoe quietly came up behind his. The father had
waited till the shaman was way downriver from the village, where no one would
see them. Apparently, Mario never saw the father silently creep up behind
him. For at some point, the father quietly set his paddle down in his
canoe and picked up a shotgun. He fired once at the unsuspecting Mario,
hitting him square in the back. Mario slumped forward and fell out of his thin
canoe into the river.
By early evening Mario’s teenage son
knew his dad should have been back home. Having
heard of the little girl’s death, the son immediately expected the worst.
(The fact is, when children die after a trip to the shaman’s, it is not all
that uncommon for distraught fathers to go looking for the inept conjurer.
Often the fathers believe the shaman must have gotten something wrong and
antagonized a spirit, inadvertently causing the fatal consequences.
Frequently, shamans will need to immediately leave the village and set up shop
in a far away village.) After much searching, Mario’s son was able to
locate the empty, overturned canoe, but no sign of Dad. Now in a complete
panic, the son caught the first passing boat on the big river to Yurimaguas, in order to fetch Juan.
The son found Juan, and they immediately
borrowed a small motorboat and set out for the village. After several
hours, they finally arrived in the middle of the night. Juan and the son
started the search for Mario at the first light of dawn. They both feared
the worse.
It took several hours, and the search
covered several kilometers along the banks of the small river. Finally,
Juan spotted it. The dead body of his shaman uncle had caught on a fallen
tree in the middle of the shallow river. By any measure, it was a
horrific sight: Some large fish had gotten to the body before Juan.
(No, none of those ravenous piranhas were around or there would have been
nothing left but the skeleton.) The sight was simply too horrendous the
way Juan described it (choking back the tears) that I’ll spare you the grisly
details. Juan put the remains in a sheet of plastic and placed it in his
boat. Then, along with the son, the traveled for hours
back upriver to Yurimaguas.
Juan had decided to go to the hospital
and, at his own expense had an autopsy performed. The autopsy declared
the truly obvious: The shaman died from a single shotgun wound in the
middle of the back. Juan and the son next went to the police with the
report. It would be several days of unrelenting frustration, (indeed Juan
had little of the expected cash to expedite things) before a couple of the
police roused themselves to make the trip downriver with Juan to pick up the
assassin. It was four days before they
finally got underway. Of course everyone
in the village knew who had committed the murder, and there was little reaction
to the police coming and hauling the father away.
The father was placed in jail, from
where he immediately contacted a well-known Yurimaguas
lawyer. What happened next was as predicable and transparent as it was
utterly abhorrent: The fix went in. For you see, the assassin is a
rather wealthy man, by Amazon village standards. He owns a herd of
healthy cows. The price of the man’s freedom became known to all, when he
ordered from jail that 5 of his cows be put on a boat and brought to
market. That’s right. For five milking cows, the murderer would
walk. The lawyer and the judge would split the proceeds from the sale,
and the assassin would walk in a matter of weeks. He would most likely
return to his village and life would go on as if nothing had happened.
That final bit of miscarried justice
just added more bitterness to Juan. However, the greatest pain of all for
him was feeling he should have more urgently shared the Gospel with his now
departed uncle. I had very few words with which to console Juan. He
is a mature enough Christian to know where his uncle is now.
Well amigos, there are obviously
countless lessons in this bizarre, tragic tale. One point that certainly
stands out: how many lost, evil, corrupt souls were involved in this one
incident: A shaman, a murderer, crooked cops, corrupt lawyer, evil judge,
superstitious villagers… The Devil’s rapacious
appetite for consuming souls is revealed once again. He could certainly revel in a victory dance
over all these people destroyed by the occult.
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be
mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature,
from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit,
from the Spirit will reap eternal life,” (Galatians 6:7-8).
Until next time,
Terry
Eyeglasses
for
(from Missionary Richard Warnke,
The
eyeglass project is off to a good start. At this point, we’re making them
available to our pastors, certified assistants, and their wives. This was done
at the round of four conferences which took place the past two weeks. Even in
our little church body, about 40 pair were
distributed.
The glasses should be a tremendous help
not only for the people who have received them, but also for the church because
more than a few of these men have had difficulty reading fluently in front of
church because of vision limitations.
Soon we plan to make glasses available
to lay people in the LCC also, most likely after worship on a Sunday - or maybe
before worship would encourage the people to come on time - Africans are
notoriously late for everything.
It’s been fun seeing the people come
excitedly to try on the specs. At each conference, we’ve announced the first
day that glasses will be available for the pastors, certified assistants and
their spouses the next afternoon. At the first conference, several women
arrived early in the morning to make sure they would not be late. We limit the
number of people who are permitted to try on glasses to about four at any given
time. Sometimes it’s been hard for those watching to stay back and give the
ones looking for glasses room around the table.
Some who do not really need glasses have
gotten caught up in the excitement and tried to get a pair “for fancy,” as the
Cameroonians call it. As I was driving three men home from the first day of the
second conference, one asked, “Those glasses, are they only for people with bad
eyes?” We used that question as an educational tool at the remaining
conferences to help the people understand this project is to help people see
well, not as a toy for those who want glasses “for fancy.”
All in all, your gift has already been a
blessing for many. God willing, it will continue to help people of God see and
read better than before.
The post office notified us that a
package is awaiting us. I’m presuming it’s a second box of glasses. Because of
the conference schedule, we will not be able to pick it up until Monday - the
post office here is operated on what we Americans used to call “bankers’ hours”
- remember that term?
Please extend our sincere and great
gratitude to the people of God who have contributed glasses. We appreciate the
joy and privilege of being able to be part of this endeavor.
God bless,
Missionary Dick Warneke
(Note:
Harold Brown is our eyeglass collector here at
News
From
This
letter is being sent to inform you of a very important meeting of the Camp
Croix General Board. This meeting will be held on April 25th at 7:00
P.M. at
The upcoming meeting is in concern for
our current lodge which has been serving our need for these many years. The
kitchen area is now outdated and no longer meets with the State of Wisconsin
Board of Health. They have in the past grand-fathered us in but have encouraged
us to update our facilities. We now have over 100 children during each of our 4
weeks of summer bible camp (along with about 30 staff). The current facilities
are no longer equipped to meet such needs. Most weeks during the year are also
reserved with different groups from our member congregations which also use
these facilities. Another major concern is the lack of a safe shelter in case
of severe weather for persons staying at camp.
The Camp Croix Board of Directors has
been looking into this situation for the past 5 years. We feel there is a great need for a lodge and kitchen
addition and upgrade. Enclosed are the plans pending the approval of the Camp
Croix Association Board. Please note the addition of a
kitchen, dining hall, restrooms, cooler/freezer, storage, and laundry area.
Under the dining hall and the kitchen will be a basement we can be used as a
safe area for campers in times of severe weather.
This will be a major undertaking for the
Camp Croix Association. We will need everyone’s support. The cost for this
addition has been quoted at around $650,000. We are asking that you grant
approval and the go ahead of this project. We are asking for your gifts and
pledges to support this project. Our plan is to start construction right after
Labor Day 2004. Construction would continue through the winter and plans are to
have it finished by spring of 2005.
We need your support. Please come to the
meeting on April 25th and give us your thoughts and vote to go
forward. We will need every member of the association’s backing for us to make
this a reality. If you can not make it, please call someone on the Board of
Directors and let them know your thoughts about this.
Thank you,
Camp Croix Board of Directors
Ellery Groth, President
(Note: Harold Rufledt
represented
Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society’s
41st National Convention
June 24-27, 2004
“Fields
are ripe and harvests waiting...” What
inspiring words hymn writer Daniel March used to show the need to spread God’s
Word around the world!
With joy in our hearts, the women of the
Minnekota Circuit invite you to the 41st LWMS National Convention in Sioux
Falls, SD. Learn how our Lord is using the men and women of the WELS to
spread the news of the Savior to fields ripe for harvest.
www.goodshepherdwels.com/lwms
Summer
Night Life for Christian Life Ministries
St. Paul Saints versus
Thursday,
July 1, 2004
6pm
Tailgate Party - 7pm Game
This
summer evening church fellowship event is also a fund raiser for New Beginnings
- Home for Mothers,
Along with your donation you will
receive general admission ticket or reserved seat ticket, plus admission to
grass area where we will have charcoal on the grills and tables for potluck
items. Please bring a potluck item, your own beverage, and meat for the grill
(if desired, and buns), and lawn chair or blanket.
The suggested donation is $10 for
general admission ticket or $20 for reserved seating.
Funds will go toward new windows for New Beginnings’ eight unit apartment building, estimated to
cost $27,000.
Tickets are at a premium so you must
sign up soon! There is a sign-up sheet
in the back of the church.
Women’s
Guild Members and Friends -Please Note
The May Women’s Guild meeting, May 6th,
will be held in the Fireside Room at 7:00pm. The
The June activity is still to be announced. We will have some sort
of an outing. Watch the Sunday bulletins for time, date and details. Have an enjoyable summer.
Marcella
Voss, Guild Chairman
Cleanliness
is Next to Godliness
(and just as difficult to achieve)
I suspect
most of you already know by the improvement in the appearance of our church
that Liberty Belter is serving Mt Olive’s custodial
engineer. Since she has agreed to carry
out this task at a lower cost than Brite, I think
there are a couple of things we should do.
First, if something looks kind of nice, mention it to her. I do not know from personal experience, but I
have heard that people generally like to hear compliments when they think they
have done a good job.
Second, help out on work days. The agreement between Mt Olive and Liberty is
that we, i.e. remaining members and friends, carry out the major cleaning
tasks; for example, a thorough clean before VBS or Easter, refinishing the
floors, washing the carpets, etc.
Third, if you see something that needs a
little bit more cleaning, find a rag and take care of it. If for some reason you are unable to take
care of it as if it were for Jesus, come and see me.
Tim Wiedmann
We will be having our annual Plant
exchange Saturday May 22nd. We are changing the venue and are excited
about the possibilities for outreach to the community. We will be
advertising it in the knock and drop flyers, and in several local newspapers.
We would also like you to take the opportunity to invite your friends and
coworkers. It should be a lot of fun. We would also appreciate it
if you would begin saving any plants you are thinning so that we have lots of
plants available for the exchange. We will have index cards available to
write the name and color of the plant, and a
general description (aggressive, likes sun, etc.). There will be a sign
up sheet in the narthex so that we know how many plants we can expect. If
you have plants you can donate, but won't be able to make it on Saturday, call
Nicole Burkhardt at (763) 862-8009 and we will work
something out.
The morning of
fun will begin at 8:00am Saturday May 22nd. Our gardening club
is coming up with a landscaping plan, so from 8 until 9 we can have fun digging
up weeds and playing in the dirt. At 9:00am, Larry Enter, a
Nicole Burkhardt
We’ll be needing
lots of help again, so please contact Paulette Marschel
and let her know you’d be happy to lend a hand.
Thanks!
Limb
Notes
The
Lenten Suppers were delicious as always.
Thank you for all your work and good food.
Our Limbs are encouraged
to enjoy each other’s company during the summer – maybe having an outdoor
barbecue, picnic, or other fun events.
Also, take time to get to know your fellow Limb members and share the
life of Jesus with each other.
Jill & Brad
Jill Holen and Brad Berg will be married at
Go Twins!
Volunteer Opportunities
Join the HealthEast
Hospice Care Team in supporting terminally ill patients and their families. Bring peace and comfort to others by offering
a helping hand, a compassionate ear or a gentle presence. Six evening training sessions begin at
Give Blood!
Make plans to participate in the blood drive here at
Sunday School News and Notes
Our Sunday School year will end on
June 6th with our annual Closing Program. The Closing Program will begin at 10:30am in
the church basement. The children will
demonstrate what they have learned in the past year in words and song.
We will recognize our teachers and the students in each
class. Following the Closing Program
will be the
Linda
Henkel, Sunday School Superintendent
Church Picnic
Sunday,
June 6th is the date for our annual Church Picnic, beginning at
12:00 (noon). There will be games for
the children, bingo for the adults, and plenty of good times for all. Meat and beverages will be provided, but
please bring a dish or two to pass. Join
us at the Lion's Shelter in
Financial
Report
The following chart shows our weekly
contributions as compared to budget for the first few months of 2004. The straight line, budgeted needs per week,
is $2,882. As you can see, we have
fallen short of the budget for all but three weeks. Year to date, the contributions are $9,133
short of budget. We have
been unable to make our commitments towards synod support – nor have we
repaid any amounts towards our loan to the special funds as a result of our
building maintenance activities from the past years.
Jerry Holen,
treasurer
