Immanuel Lutheran Church
Immanuel Lutheran Church Website:luthwash.org facebook.com/immanuellutheranwashington Pastor Howard's home phone (319)333-7758 1226 East Washington St. - Washington, IA “ The LORD redeems the life of his servants” November,2014 Service Times 8:00AM & 10:30AM worship Education for all ages 9:15AM Dec. Worship One Service 9:00AM Children’s Christmas Program Sunday December 21 at 9:00 AM Inside this issue: Monthly Updates p2 Annual Meeting November 23 p3 Needed College p3 Student’s Address Worship Leaders p4 Milestones p5 Harvest Altar p6 Update from Chris Jewell p8 Nov Calendar p9 Nov Birthdays p10 319-653-3950 by Peter J Weller In Psalm 34, from this month’s lessons, David writes, “I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. “I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Look to him and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed. The poor soul cried and was heard by the LORD, and was saved from every trouble. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. O taste and see that the LORD is good; happy are those who take refuge in him. . . . Those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. . . . The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” (Psalm 34:1-10, 22) Unquestionably, David’s strong, active, and visceral faith in the Lord certainly comes through in his writing. He was a brave and fearless warrior and a confident and decisive leader. But, he sinned on many occasions and on many different levels. Thus, he speaks from experience when he advocates taking refuge in the Lord. In the final verse above, he proclaims, “The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” In saying this, David sounds so much like John the Baptist who declares Jesus as the Lamb of God who will take away the sin of the world. The gospel writer John put it this way: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. . . . Those who believe in him are not condemned. . . .” (John 3:16, 18) Psalm 90 is generally accepted to be a prayer of Moses, wherein he writes, “Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, you are God. “You turn us back to dust and say, ‘Turn back you mortals.’ For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night. “You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning; in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers. “For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance. “For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh. The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty if we are strong; even then, our span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you. So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart. “Have compassion on your servants! Satisfy us . . . with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. . . . Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us and prosper for us the work of our hands. . . .” (Psalm 90:1-17) Moses, here, wrestles with the fact that human beings, individually or collectively, are not always morally correct. We do not always listen to our conscience. We do not always do the right thing. Pursuing our own self interest often brings us into conflict with God’s laws or our own human laws. And when, as human beings, we stop and consider the ramifications of our thoughts or decisions or actions, then we can see how “devilish” these really are and can begin to understand why God is angry with us. We can see how God has “set our secret sins in the light of [his] countenance,” and we can see why he has every right to be angry. Even so, Moses asks God to have compassion on his servants. David fervently believes that “The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” And, Paul writes to the Christians at Thessalonica, “For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that . . . we may live with him.” (I Thessalonians 5:9-10) Through these three writings, we can see that in God there is redemption and forgiveness, and especially through his Son, Jesus Christ. Monthly Updates Sept. 28 8:00 a.m. 53 10:30 a.m. 48 Oct. 5 8:00 a.m. 40 10:30 a.m. 61 Oct. 12 8:00 a.m. 43 10:30 a.m. 45 Oct. 19 8:00 a.m. 52 10:30 a.m. 61 Oct. 26 8:00 a.m. 45 10:30 a.m. 52 I was a stranger and you took me in. Thank you for sending much needed help when I could not do the chores that Tom and Mary Gail Lyons did. Bev Crandall (Tom and Mary Gail went and helped Bev on Sunday, September 7 for part of our “God’s Work Our Hands” Sunday.) DECEMBER Service Change ~ 9 a.m. Worship Our Sunday worship services in December (7th, 14th Choir Cantata, 21st Children’s Christmas Pageant, and 28th service of Lessons and Carols) will be held at 9 a.m. One service during December will give us the opportunity to worship together as a church family during the holy days of Advent and Christmas. We will resume on Sunday January 4, 2015 to our normal schedule: 8 a.m. worship, education at 9:15, and 10:30 worship. General Fund Gifts - September Sept. 7 $ 1,182.00 Sept. 14 1,745.96 Sept. 21 1,483.61 Sept. 28 2,900.22 Simply Giving 2,560.00 Sept $ 9,871.79 Aug $ 10,430.00 Building Fund Gifts - September Sept. 7 Sept. 14 Sept. 21 Sept. 28 Simply Giving $ 415.00 1,765.00 75.00 660.00 615.00 Sept $ 3,530.00 Aug $1,755.00 Simply Giving monthly fee— Aug.$ 6.80 DEBT REDUCTION: The loan at Washington State Bank is: note 3/28/11-$249,000.00. As of 1/1/14 the balance was $154,459.35. Current balance $127,052.24 This is the balance after the September payment was made. Thrivent Leaders 2014 Chapter Board : Ray Poe, Judy Venzke Advocates: Oscar Hernandez, Al Olson, Carolyn Schmidt, BJ Wetherell Continuing Funds available for designated contributions : Luther League Endowment Fund Maintenance/Repair Fund Membership Assistance On behalf of Ted, Allen and myself, thank you to everyone who provided and served the wonderful lunch following Evelyn Witthoft’s funeral service on Friday, September 19. While the reason for the gathering was sad, the lunch was a joyful affair that helped put life and it’s changes in perspective. To everyone who was involved– Thank you very much– you are appreciated! Sincerely Tom Witthoft In Christian sympathy we acknowledge the death of Debbie Weeks who’s funeral was held at Immanuel on Friday, October 24. May God give her family the strength in the promise of everlasting life through Jesus Christ. Please make sure that you are aware of the location of the AED at the church. It is located above the mailboxes on the north wall in the hallway. Signs posted. First Aid kits are located in the kitchen, the nursery, the west bathroom and the kids’ Sunday School rooms. Please make a note of this information in case anyone needs any First Aid. Council Members for 2014: Debbie Jewell 653-4778 (Ed/Youth); Carrie Lueck [Sect’y] 319-646-2573 (Ed/Youth); Vicki Rebling 653-2605 (Ed/Youth); Jane Kruse 653-2614 (W/E); Mary Gail Lyons 657-6721 (W/E); Karen Heineman 461-9767(W/E); Tom Gaughan 863-3885 (B/G); Stan Jones 653-6795 (B/G); Aaron Six 653– 7342 (B/G); Gary Fischer [Pres] 461-9487 (Stew/Fin); John Harris [VP] 653-7511 (Stew/Fin); Kate Glinsmann (Stew/Fin) 461-9873. Page 2 Immanuel Lutheran Church Wandering Worshipers Mary Gail Lyons United Trinity Church Hamburg, IA September 28, 2014 ******************** Sara & Larry Bartlett First Lutheran Church Detroit Lakes, MI September 28, 2014 ******************** Yaro & Mary Chmelar Coralville United Methodist Church Coralville, IA September 21, 2014 ******************* Sara & Larry Bartlett Carmelites at Holy Hill North of Milwaukee, WI October 11, 2014 ******************* BJ Wetherell Trinity Lutheran Church Shumway, IL July 13, 2014 Faith Lutheran Church Shumway, IL July 20, 2014 Annual Meeting: November 23rd The date for the Annual Meeting has been set for Sunday, November 23 following the second worship service. We will be having a luncheon previous to the meeting so we are asking everyone to bring a dish to share. Table service will be provided. Annual Reports will be available by November 9 so everyone has an opportunity to look the reports over before the meeting. CHURCH PHONE RECORDING 319-653-3950 If you are ever unsure what times church services are going to be held, please call the church phone 653-3950. We try to keep the hours on the answering machine recording updated. There is also information about getting in touch with Pastor Howard. Page 3 Ladies’ Nights Out The Ladies’ Night Out Group that meets on the third Tuesday of the month will meet November 18 at Labowski’s at 6:00 PM. Attention parents of all Sunday School children: The Children's ChristChristmas Program is December 21st during the 9:00am service. If your child will be unable to attend on December 21st, please let Linda Linda Brown know as soon as you can, as she is planning the program for the children. PracPractices for the program will begin on November 16th during the Sunday School timeslot. We hope all children will be able to participate. participate. Goodie Bags for the Children Christmas will soon be upon us, which means we need volunteers to donate Goodie Bag items for the Children's Christmas Program. Signup sheets are located on the table in the hallway. All items will be needed by December 14th. Please sign-up for any of the following: Granola Bars, Hot Cocoa Mix, Clementines, Apples, or Microwave Popcorn. College Student Address Immanuel and the Education/Youth committee would like to stay in touch with our college kids - parents, please submit current addresses to Kathy Ebert in the office. Phone 653-3950 or email [email protected] Immanuel Lutheran Church Worship Leaders November 2014 Greeters Please arrive 15 min prior Sun Nov 2 8:00 am Deidra Baker Sun Nov 2 10:30 am Mike & Virginia Jorgensen Sun Nov 9 8:00 am Vi Kruse Sun Nov 9 10:30 am Ushers Hagensick McAvoy Readers Communion Assistants Communion Setup/ Cleanup Acolytes Linda Brown Brad & Tricia Kroll Jane Kruse Mary Gail Lyons Jane Kruse Y&M Chmelar Sara & Larry Bartlett Margie Runaas Mary Gail & Tom Lyons Marty Westen Diane Morgan Corrine Martin Ajay Six Tom Gaughan Ray Poe Gary Fischer Tom Gaughan Bill, Kathy, Jodi Ebert Jane Kruse Ray/Alta Poe Audrey Wubbena Carrie & Brian Lueck Family Mike Howard Dave Steele Mike Jorgensen Lee Buchholz Lee Buchholz Jon & Margie Runaas Doris Moore Katie Lucas Sun Nov 16 8:00 am Kathy & Bill Ebert Rich & Deidra Baker Family Kathy Ebert Jane Kruse Kathy Ebert Ray Poe Larry/Sara Bartlett Susan Baker Catrina Sells Sun Nov 16 10:30 am Jeff & Sharlene Soper Family Peg & John Harris Brian Lueck April & Aaron Six Linda Six Peg Harris Avery Six Sun Nov 23 8:00 am Don & Sandy McAvoy Stan & Kristin Jones Family Kristin Jones Tricia & Brad Kroll Tom Gaughan Jane Kruse Cody Jones Sun Nov 23 10:30 am Yaro & Mary Chmelar Marty Westen Dale Venzke Ron Andersen Mary Chmelar Sandy Weller Yaro & Mary Chmelar Judy Venzke Barb Matheson Allison Rebling Sun Nov 30 8:00 am 1st Advent Rich & Deidra Baker Family Steve Vetter Ray Poe Rich, Deidra & Maggie Baker Mary Gail Lyons Jane Kruse Sun Nov 30 10:30 am 1st Advent Marty & Joyce April & Aaron Six Westen Family Mike Howard Larry & Sara Bartlett Sherry Ives Diane Morgan Corrine Martin Sun Dec 7 9:00 am 2nd Advent Yvonne Buster Ray Poe Jane Kruse Maggie Baker C.Tanner Mary Gail Lyons Doris Moore Hagensick McAvoy Mary Gail Lyons Deidra Baker Lucas Kroll Caitlin Kroll Addison Six Emma Lueck Please trade if you can’t serve. ^ DECEMBER Service Change ~ 9 a.m. Worship Our Sunday worship services in December (December 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) will be held at 9 a.m. only. We will resume on January 4, 2015 to our normal schedule: 8 a.m. worship, education at 9:15, and 10:30 worship. One service during December will give us the opportunity to worship together as a church family during the holy days of Advent and Christmas. Adult Choir will give God glory through their singing of the cantata during worship Sunday, December 14th. The children will give God glory through a Christmas pageant during worship Sunday, Dec. 21st. Immanuel Lutheran Church Page 4 Women’s Cluster 7 The fall cluster gathering was held on October 11th hosted by Immanuel women. The event was not well attended but the program was great. Pastor Maureen started us off with a Bible study entitled “Out on a Limb”. Can you guess what little tax collector she was talking about? It was very well received. Margie Runaas played classical piano pieces by Chopin (Mazurkas Op 17) and Deb Bodensteiner informed us about ONEighty Degrees Ministry (formerly Hamakua). Deb had a personal call from God several years ago to start activities for teens after school. One woman, a supporting husband, and a volunteer committee made God’s call come true. Now there is also an upstairs with rooms for women and children who need an emergency place to stay. Kids Against Hunger THANK YOU to everyone who gave to the Kids Against Hunger campaign. Immanuel Lutheran was able to contribute $1,096 to the purchase of food that was packaged on October 5th. WOW, your generosity overflows! Praise God that God is moving through us to eliminate hunger throughout the world. In a 90 min. time span 120 people packaged 18,700 (the goal was 18,000) meal packages for the hungry. Each boiled package will feed six people and consists of: high-quality vitamin-fortified crushed soy; dehydrated blend of six vegetables; Vitamin & mineral powder; and white, long-grain rice. The fellowship with our Christian brothers and sisters from the other Washington’s churches was fabulous. Another witness to: God’s Work. Our Hands. Christmas Eve Services Join us for Christmas Eve Candlelight Services, Wednesday, December 24th at Immanuel Lutheran Church. The Christmas Eve Candlelight Holy Communion services begin at 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. (note time change of the later service). Let us come together to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Milestones Reached! CELEBRATE WITH US Join our family at Immanuel Lutheran in the ministry of recognizing the Milestones in our lives. These milestones are a way to recognize our journey with God both at church and at home. The idea of celebrating faith milestones is nothing new. God often directed the people to build up stones to remind them of God's place in their lives. Upon crossing into the Promised Land, God spoke to the people: "Take twelve smooth stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan...and lay them down in the place where you camp tonight. ....when your children ask in time to come, "What do those stones mean to you?" then you shall tell them..." Joshua 4 For the month of October, these are our Milestones: Sophie is taking good care of her baby brother Alex.-Sophie Wittmayer Got a $4,000 academic scholarship to the University of Iowa next year! – Maggie Baker I’m in 3rd grade. – Caitlin Kroll Write your milestone(s) on a paper rock and post it on MILESTONES board in the hallway. Take a colored rock as a tangible symbol of the occasion being marked, as well as a reminder of God’s presence in your daily life. The Sunday School Christmas Pageant will be held on Sunday, December 21 9:00 Worship Service “The Birth of Jesus” Salvation Army Bell Ringing Immanuel Lutheran will once again participate in the Bell Ringing for the Salvation Army on Saturday, December 6 at Wal-Mart. Please sign up at church for your time slot. Page 5 Thrivent Southeast Iowa Chapter The Annual meeting of Thrivent customers was held at the Marr Park Conservation Center near Ainsworth on October 16. The excellent meal was catered by Sherry Horak and her crew of two. Harry Ebbeson III, a piano player out of Cedar Rapids played keyboard. He had three of his tapes available. Harry performs at nursing homes and spreads his love for God and his personal experiences as he plays old time hits along with his own creations. The first three door prizes were the choice of one of his tapes. There were also $10 gift certificates for HyVee or Caseys as prizes. Women’s Circle Women's circle will meet at Halcyon House in the Sitler room on Tuesday Nov. 11 at 1:30 p.m. Enter by the front door, immediately turn right and walk down the hall. You'll see the Sitler room to the right. Enid Tweeten is the hostess. Car pool if you can. Parking in front is limited. We're starting a new series about peace. All women are welcome to attend and this would be a great time to start the study with us. We are going to the Halcyon House more because we have two church members living there who enjoy attending circle. Questions? contact Judy Venzke 653-3820. FOOD FOR HACAP Immanuel Lutheran is joining with several other churches in the community by becoming a place to drop off food for for HACAP year around. Please place any nonnon-perishable food items in the grocery cart in the hallway. Think about those not having anything to eat every time you go to the grocery store and pick up an extra item. Every little bit helps! Page 6 Harvest Altar in November The chancel will be decorated with the fruits, vegetables, and homemade canned goods of the harvest. Please donate pumpkins, apples, ears of corn, oranges, homemade canned goods, etc. for Immanuel’s harvest Altar by Friday, November 7th. The chancel will be decorated for Sundays November 9th, 16th, and 23rd. You may claim your donated items after the 10:30 worship service on the 23rd. We give God thanks and praise for the bountiful harvest and the abundance of food the Iowa Community Thanksgiving Eve Service Join your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as we worship God in praise and thanksgiving for the blessings that we have been given. Join us at 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, November 26th, at Assembly of God Church, as we worship the Triune God and give thanks for all of God’s blessings. What a wonderful opportunity we have to worship ecumenically and stand unified as one Body of Christ. After the service a dessert social will follow. Please sign up, in the hallway, to bring a dessert to share. The Washington Municipal Band will be performing a Holiday Band Concert at Immanuel Lutheran on Sunday, November 30 at 3:00PM. Please come and enjoy the music and get into the Holiday Spirit. Decorating for Christmas At 5:00p.m Sunday, November 30th we will gather for a potluck and fellowship. We will begin to decorate the sanctuary for Christmas. Helpers of all ages are welcome and needed. Join us as we prepare for the birth of Jesus through decorating our holy space with symbols of Advent, Jesus, and Christmas. All Saints’ Sunday is November 2nd We will observe All Saints’ Sunday, during our morning worship on November 2nd. We will remember those of our church family and their parents who have departed from this life to life eternal since All Saints’ Sunday, 2013. The Disciples and parents of Immanuel Lutheran Church who have departed from this life with the promise of life eternal since All Saints’ Sunday, 2013 are: Christ Triumphant The Church Triumphant +Marilyn Dennis +Donald Tisor +Ted Kruse +Nita Lovick +Mary Bruty +Dora Erlenbush +Stephen Messinger +Wes Ebert +Wendel Guy +The Reverend Gerald Brown +Elsbeth Reinert +Peggy Moss +Bill Koehler +Evelyn Whitthoft +Debbie Weeks Welcome New Members We would like to introduce you to our newest members Scott and Chelsey Danielson. You might recognize them when you see them with their twin sons Luke and Noah, who were born on April 1. Scott grew up in Dayton, IA and went to college at Simpson in Indianola. He received the position of Behavior Interventist at Lincoln and they moved to Washington. Currently he is the Dean of Students at the High School. He enjoys hanging out with his family and mowing and plowing snow. Chelsey grew up in Algona, IA and also attended Simpson College. She moved to Washington with Scott and they have been in Washington for four years now. Chelsey is currently a Special Education teacher in Mt Pleasant. She enjoys family walks and vacations with family. She also enjoys quilting and watching sports. Christ the King Sunday The liturgical year, or church year, ends November 23rd as we observe Christ the King Sunday. We end the year acknowledging that Christ is our true King; “he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords” 1Timothy 6:15. The following Sunday begins the new church year; Advent. As we enter into the Advent season, let us submit to the Lordship of our Savior Jesus Christ in our lives. H.O.P.E. Report for Quilts & Kits Saturday, Oct 18, a large shipment of Lutheran World Relief goods was sent off. HOPE workers have met since April for this round, and have compiled 81 quilts, 116 Personal Care Kits, 125 School Kits and 72 Baby Care Kits. Our members are to be commended for supporting this endeavor with their prayers, money and goods. It has taken hours of manpower to put this all together, but without our members' donations it would not have happened. A special thanks to Pr Maureen and the youth of the church for assembling the school kits. The HOPE workers are looking to continue God's work in this way, and ask for continued support from the congregation. Page 7 Dear Immanuel Lutheran Church, I wanted to thank you for all of the support that you have given me in these last six months. It means a lot to see the church that I grew up in, support me as I went out to further God’s kingdom. I want to fill you in on my experiences and everything that happened when I was away. To start off, the lecture phase of the school was amazing. I learned a lot more about God’s love for us. I also learned what it means to truly forgive and to let go of old hurt and weight that had been on my shoulders. We learned multiple things about witnessing to people. I ended up going to Uganda for our outreach portion. The majority of our time in Uganda we did children’s ministry in multiple orphanages and schools. A section of our outreach was focused on village ministry. We went into remote villages to share the Gospel and pray for people. Multiple Ugandan people ended up deciding to follow Jesus. We prayed for many people which we saw results for. There were many people who were healed, from not being able to walk, to people who couldn’t see well. God is so good and he loves and he wants to care for our every need. After outreach we went back to New Zealand to prepare to return home. Currently I am in Lancaster, PA helping once again with the ministry Spiritual Revolution Group. Besides that, I am preparing to head off once again. During school, the Lord was speaking to me about doing longer missions work. In December I will be leaving to go volunteer as a staff member with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) Townsville in Townsville, Australia. I have committed to two years on staff there. I will be helping train the students in multiple schools to go out and tell the world about Jesus. I will also be helping with the upkeep of the base in Townsville. Therefore, I would love if you would join me in prayer for my finances for this opportunity. If you would like to support me, my address is 163 E Main St, Leola, PA 17540 https://www.youcaring.com/ChristopherJewell and support me online. You can make checks out to (SRG) Spirit Revolution Group or Chris Jewell. If you have any questions you can reach me at [email protected] With Love, Chris Jewell God’s Global Barnyard During the month of November our spare change will be collected in ELCA World Hunger God’s Global Barnyard boxes (shaped as a barn!). Our donations support the animal projects of ELCA World Hunger. The children of Immanuel want to raise enough money to purchase a cow ($500) for a family in need. Just one dairy cow can produce as many as five gallons of milk each day. Nutritious, calcium-packed milk from a cow helps ensure that children grow up healthy and strong. Extra milk can also be used to make cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products to eat and sell for a steady source of income. With food and funds — not to mention fertilizer — a cow is a total package for a family in need.* If you did not receive a collection barn, we still have boxes available for you. The children have set the bar high; let’s exceed their hopes! We will begin collecting your money filled barns in mid December. *community.elca.org/GoodGifts-Animals?&nccsm=21&__nccspID=1027 Page 8 Birthdays for NOVEMBER 2014 1 Pam Green 1 Kael Johnson 3 Cody Soper 6 Kelsey Sievers 7 Lynette Sievers 8 Tammy Virizi 9 Teresa Todd 10 Elaney England 12 Sharon Boner 12 Steven Howard 12 Alta Poe 13 Cyndi Kindred 14 Alan Olson 16 Amy Black 16 Steve Vetter 16 Allison Rebling 18 Robert Seubert 18 Jane Ann Croft 20 Jeff Talbot 21 Lucas Kroll 22 Richard Humston 22 Clayton Bartholomew 23 Francis Johnston 25 Katie Gaughan 27 Shari Bond 30 Vickie Gonterman 30 Jess Fields ANNIVERSARIES 1 Janette & Peter Edwards 5 Alan & Vicki Rebling 10 Peg & John Harris 12 Charlane & Tom Tanner 19 Gary & Helen DeWolf 20 Sandy & Don McAvoy 22 Brandon & Amy Statler 26 Dr Mike & Virginia Jorgensen Page 9
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