Soaring with Spirit - St. John Lutheran Church

October 2012
Soaring with Spirit
ST. JOHN LUTHERAN CHURCH
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Americans. It’s important to express in the one culture the
values and priorities of the other. “How does God's love
How many times have you heard that in the past few
weeks? And do you want to guess how many times you’ll hear
it again before Election Day, November 6th?
Yet, as irritating as the campaign commercials are, they
are important. The election is important, because that’s how
our society and culture chooses our leaders and the direction
we want to go as a society, as 300 million people who live
together in this nation. We choose which direction we want
our culture to go and we choose the leaders we believe will get
us there. And ultimately, if our personal individual choices
don’t win, we, all 300 million of us, still try to get along with
each other until the next election cycle when we’ll again discuss
and sometimes argue about the goals and leadership of our
nation.
abide in anyone who has the world's goods and sees a
brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?” (I
John 3:17).
In this way, as we inform the values of this world with
the values we have been given as Christians. We participate in
God’s redemption of our world, in Christ’s salvation of the
world. St. John stated it this way, “Indeed, God did not
send the Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through
him.” (John 3:17)
Let your “citizenship” in God’s Kingdom reflect in your
choice of leaders for “this” world, the U.S. Study the issues and
each candidate’s stance on those, make your choice, and VOTE.
It’s a good way to express your Christianity, and your faith.
So, educate yourself, encourage everyone to vote,
engage the candidates, and most especially, pray for God’s
However. (You knew that was coming, didn’t you.)
guidance and support that “God’s Kingdom come” even more
However, as Christians, as followers of Christ Jesus, our into focus through the people we elect.
Lord, we have dual citizenship. We actually have passports
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from two countries, two societies and cultures, two completely
separate, and sometimes contradictory, realms. One citizenship For more help, visit Bread for the World’s website http://
www.bread.org/ol/2012/elections2012/
is by virtue of our birth, the other is by virtue of our re-birth in
It’s important that you vote!
Baptism wherein we become heirs of God’s Reign.
Our ultimate allegiance and loyalty is to the one, even
as we acknowledge our patriotism and allegiance in the other.
Our citizenship as Christians takes priority over our citizenship
in the United States. We are “in the world, but not of the
world.”
or Ky Council of Churches http://
kychurches.capwiz.com/election/home/
“Now we have received not the spirit of the
world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may
understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.” is St.
Paul’s way of declaring our dual citizenship.
(I Cor. 2:12).
At the same time, we are encouraged and even
commanded to express our Christian citizenship, values, and
priorities in the context of our secondary citizenship as
Serving Christ, Serving Others, Serving You
Diana Ziegler and David Pleiman will be joined in Holy
Matrimony on Saturday, September 29th. May God richly
bless them as they begin this new life together. We’re so
happy for you, Diana and David!
Toys for Mid Ky Community Action Partnership are
being collected. Please bring new or gently-used toys to
the basement entryway so they can be sorted and stored.
They’ll be repaired if needed, then taken down to the
“hills” following Thanksgiving with the trailer. Please
continue to fill up the trailer with clothing, especially
winter coats and clothing to help those less fortunate in
our commonwealth.
An Automated External Defibrillator (AED) was
donated to St. John and is a proven life-saving device.
Several members of the congregation are already certified
with the units. We’re in the process of setting up a
First Communion was celebrated by two young ladies
training class for it, and will also attempt to offer CPR
this past month. On Sunday, September 2nd, Heritage
classes at the same time. If you’d like to be included in
the training, please watch for an upcoming announcement. Sunday, Hannah Jo Heiert, daughter of D J Heiert and
Tera Heiert, celebrated her First Communion. On Sunday,
September 23rd, Rebecca Richardson celebrated her First
Children in Worship and Wonder is the program we’re Communion. The heart of worship is what God does and
gives. We rejoice with Hannah and Rebecca as we gather
implementing to help our children grow in faith and
around Word and Sacrament. May the truth of God’s
relationship with the Lord. Our launch of the new
program will begin in January. In the meantime, we need Word grow strong in your heart and may the gentle love
of Jesus fill your heart now and always.
volunteers to help with the story characters and to learn
the program. It’s important that two people work with the
kids each Sunday. We’d like to get enough volunteers
trained so no one has to miss regular worship often. If
you’d like to help, please contact Pastor Phil or Kelly
Leisring.
Heritage Sunday provided us an opportunity to worship
in the liturgy and style that was used for decades here at
St. John many years ago. It brought back memories and
deep feelings for some, and reminded us all that we are
passing on our connection to the Lord of Life himself,
even though through a context and pattern that is specific
to each generation. As the psalm states, “Our Lord God is
the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.”
Our Annual Picnic was a great success! Thank you to
Judy and Chuck Heilman for hosting such an enjoyable
event, and thank you to everyone who pitched in. There
were almost 60 people who attended, with tables
overloaded with food, Pop-a-Shot basketball, cornhole,
hiking around the lake, enjoyment of God’s awesome
creation, a beautiful day to celebrate. Everything went
well, except for the fishing. The fish won.
Annual Election & Budget Congregation Meeting is
coming up in about nine weeks. It’ll be here before you
know it. Would you be willing to help on the Nominating
Committee? Or with the Budget Committee? See Ron
Beiting or David Pleiman to let them know you’re
interested. This is a very vital and faithful way to offer
yourself to the Lord, and support God’s work among us
and through us.
"All creatures great and
small invited to Blessing
of the Beasts”
October 6th 10:00am
"We are at our best as
humans when we are
recognizing all of God’s
creation for the beauty
and love that it is.
Animals
are
such
awesome gifts to us.
Companion animals bring
so much love, and I
believe that’s God’s love
being brought into our
lives.
Anyone who has had the
experience of having a
bad day then had their cat
come curl up in their lap
or their dog nuzzle their
hands
knows
that
fantastic joy that these
little four-legged
characters give to us."
Kroger’s Community
Rewards Program:
Support St John’s
Ministry with your
Kroger Purchases
Kroger’s Community Rewards
Program is now tied to the Kroger Plus Card that is swiped at checkout.
We hope you will support our church by following the instructions below to enroll your card in this program. Please do this as soon as possible, because it will take 7-10 days for your purchases to begin to accumulate rewards for St. John. You can also encourage friends and family
- even people who are out-of-town but shop at a Kroger, to follow the
steps below. The more people who participate, the more rewards St.
John will see.
If you are not able to access the internet, please ask a friend or family
member to help you enroll with the steps listed below. You will need to
have your Plus Card with you when you enroll and you need to have an
e-mail address.
If you have any questions you think I can answer, please call Nancy
Enzweiler at 635-2925.
•
Go to krogercommunityrewards.com
•
Be sure to have your Kroger Plus card handy
•
If you do not yet have a Kroger Plus card, they are available at
the customer service desk at any Kroger.
•
Click on Sign In/Register
•
Most participants are new online customers, so they must click
on SIGN UP TODAY in the ‘New Customer?’ box.
•
Sign up for a Kroger Rewards Account by entering zip code,
clicking on favorite store, entering your email address and creating a
password, agreeing to the terms and conditions
•
You will then get a message to check your email inbox and click
on the link within the body of the email.
•
Click on My Account and use your email address and password
to proceed to the next step.
•
Click on Edit Kroger Community Rewards information and input
your Kroger Plus card number.
•
Update or confirm your information.
•
Enter the number 82289, select organization from list and click
on confirm.
To verify you are enrolled correctly, you will see your
organization’s name on the right side of your information page.
•
REMEMBER, purchases will not count for your group until after
you register your card(s).
Do you use your phone number at the register?
Call 800-576-4377, select option 4 to get your Kroger Plus card number.
•
Members must swipe their registered Kroger Plus card or use
the phone number that is related to their registered Kroger Plus card
when shopping for each purchase to count.
Food Pantry Needs for October:
4 Pack Toilet Paper
Want to join St. John as an official
member? For those who have not
Camp Springs
Herbst Tour
formally joined St. John, there will be
three Inquirer’s Classes on October
7th,14th and 28th. Please contact
Pastor for more information.
is a self-guided auto
tour that shows off the
beauty and heritage of
our community.
Halloween Party will be held at 5-7pm on
Sunday, October 21st.
For children – A Parade, fun, Treats, Games and
Prizes for Costumes
For adults -time to see old friends
and make plans for future events.
Please bring a side dish or
dessert; Potluck Dinner and
drinks will be provided. Come on
Saturday at 10:00am to help
decorate and bring your own
pumpkin to carve!
“Bread of Life” Food Pantry”
There will be a Special
Thanksgiving Distribution in
November.
Bread of Life Food Pantry is looking for
Thanksgiving donations of Whole Small Chickens
(2-3lbs), Whole Turkeys (8-11lbs), Stuffing mix,
gravy, instant potatoes.
80% of the families we will be providing for consist
of 1-3 household members and our Special
Thanksgiving Distribution is on Tuesday, November
20, 2012 11am until 1pm.
Again, we thank all the Volunteers who serve so
faithfully at the Food Pantry, and to the
congregation and friends for their designated funds
to this vital ministry.
People get a chance to
visit working farms,
vineyards, wineries,
see stone houses and
connect to the history
of our area. St. John
is participant, offering
refreshments such as
coffee, lemonade and
desserts to our guests.
We’ve had many
people come to visit
the cemetery, update
their family heritage
records with our
Parish Registry, and
just get a chance to
see our beautiful
sanctuary.
Join us to welcome
our guests from noon
to 6pm, and donate a
dessert to share.
Choir Rehearsal for October
October 3, 7 p.m.
October 17, 7 p.m.
October 21, 11:15 a.m.
October 25, 7 p.m.
October 28, 11:15 a.m.
Those reading for the month of
October are:
10/ 7 Nancy Enzweiler
10/14 Rhonda Wells
10/21 Glenda Conner
10/28 Vera Stuck
“And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory as a father’s only son, full of
grace and truth” Jn 1:14
St. John Lutheran Church
5977 Lower Tug Fork Rd.
Melbourne, KY 41059
859.635.5013
www.tugforklutheran.com
Join us for these special events:
Bread of Life Food Pantry, Monday, October 1st and 15th 2pm-4pm
Young@Heart Seniors, Wednesday, October, 3rd 11:00am
Modern Lutheran Women, Sunday, October 7th 11:15 am
Inquirer’s Classes Sunday, October 7th-14th-28th 11:30am
Council Meeting, Tuesday, October, 9th 7pm
CSI Herbst Tour, Sunday, October, 21st 12pm to 6pm
Halloween Party, Sunday, October 21st, 5-7pm
Emmelhainz Scholarship Bake Sale, Sunday October, 28th
Breaking Bread Bible Study, every Wednesday 6pm
AA Meetings, every Friday 7pm