The Chimes November - Zion Lutheran Church

Monthly Newsletter of Zion Lutheran Church
The Chimes
November
2014
Giving, an Obligation or Opportunity
As the Apostle Paul traveled to churches, he collected offerings for the Christians in Jerusalem who
were experiencing hard economic times. When Paul
was speaking to the Corinthians, he used these believers as an example of people who, in spite of their
own economic troubles, gave joyfully to the people in
Jerusalem. Their love for Christ and their concern for
their fellow believers in Jerusalem moved them to give
beyond their ability. They excelled in the grace of
giving! The Corinthians gave themselves first to the
Lord, and then, Paul said, they “urgently pleaded with
us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the
saints” (2 Corinthians 8:4). In Christ, they saw their
giving as an opportunity to help other believers in
need.
Does someone who views giving as an obligation
plead for the opportunity to give? Probably not. When
giving is an obligation, we will give, but giving as an
obligation will not give us the joy or the attitude of
pleading for the privilege to give as the Corinthians
had. As God’s people, we have both an obligation AND an opportunity. Scripture is clear that we
are called to give. Paul said, “On the first day of every
week, each one of you should set aside a sum of
money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so
that when I come no collections will have to be made”
(1 Corinthians 16:2).
continued on page 2
“One is not rich by what one
owns but by what one can do
without.”
Page 2
continued from page 1
Giving is an obligation, but, just as God changed the hearts and minds of Paul's followers, God changes us so we view our giving as an opportunity rather than an obligation. As renewed and transformed people, our attitudes toward giving change from a “got
to” to a “get to” attitude. We stop giving grudgingly, and we start to
excel in the grace
of giving by giving willingly and cheerfully. We want to give, because giving is an expression of our love and gratitude to God for who God is and what God does for us. The
more we give of ourselves and our gifts, the closer our relationship with Christ becomes
and the more we want to give. “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be
generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to
God” (2 Corinthians 9:11). We thank God that the Holy Spirit fills us daily with love so that
we as the church see giving as a privilege and an opportunity to praise and thank God.
Note once again the 9:15am Sunday classes that will be held on November 16, 23 & 30:
“Why Christians Give” “Outrageous Giving” “Principles of Giving”
All Saints Day
We remember the following on All Saints Day!
Nov 1, 2013—Oct 31, 2014
The Raised in Christ:
LEONARD PHILIP LOTT, Jan 26, 1923—Dec 18, 2013
HELEN IRENE W EISS, Feb 4, 1921—Dec 27, 2013
MAX STRACKBEIN, Oct 13, 1927—April 12, 2014
JO JOYCE MCBRIDE, April 13, 1935—May 15, 2014
DEVON LORETTA VELA, Nov 10, 1972—May 28, 2014
MARVIN ERNEST JANDER, Dec 24, 1929—June 1, 2014
REINHARD HERBERT ZIMMERMAN, Aug 25, 1918—Jun 13, 2014
ETHEL RUTH MIKESKA, Dec 21, 1919—Aug 3, 2014
DOROTHY ANN SCHROEDER, Sept 7, 1942—Sept 3, 2014
The Baptized:
EASTON VELA, March 2, 2014
Page 3
Thanksgiving Eve Worship
Wednesday, November 26
at 12noon & 7pm
Council
Highlights
Received reports about:
•
•
•
•
Six bibles being presented to children on October 26
The sign-up has begun
for the National Youth
Gathering to be held in
Detroit on July 15-19
Mark Your
Calendars
Saturday, December 13 at
5pm will be the Children &
Youth Christmas Program
and Potluck for all!
Sunday, December 14 at
both worship services (8am
& 10:30am) will be the
Adult Cantata & conclusion
of the “Diaper Drive.”
The upcoming Stewardship Program
The progress of the
Nominating
Committee
Office Closed
Thursday, November 27
Friday, November 28
Special
Concern
In addition to the
November 2 Temple Talk (see
page 6), we will welcome a
speaker from “Food for the
Poor,” Lutheran Pastor
Bob Berger on November
9.
On November 16, 23, 30 &
beyond, we will be doing a
“Diaper Drive.”
Stay
tuned for more.
December’s Special Concern is the Little Lambs
Angel Tree.
“You’ll never
miss what you
give away.”
Chimes Deadline
Monday, November 10
Thankofferings
November 16 is Thankoffering Sunday at Zion.
Please use the enclosed envelope to support
Women of the ELCA with your Thankoffering.
Thankofferings help Women of the ELCA to
thrive as a responsive and mission-driven organization. To date, Women of the ELCA has
delivered more than $3.1 million in grants to
domestic and international organizations, and
more than $630,000 in scholarships to Lutheran
women. Your Thankofferings support the total
outreach of Women of the ELCA to live out its
mission—mobilizing women to act boldly on
their faith in Jesus Christ. Together, we do
more than we could ever do apart. In gratitude
for all God has given to us, and with hope for
all that is to come, we collect our Thankoffering.
For more about the churchwide ministries of
Women of the ELCA, go to
womenoftheelca.org.
John 6:35
“And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of
life: he that comes to me shall never
hunger; and he that believes in me shall
never thirst.”
Page 4
Dedications
♦ New
member
Bee Troxell and
husband, Richard donated this
lovely concrete
bench placed in
front of the
church (shown
in picture).
♦ New Choir Risers/Staging were given in
memory of Carl & Elsie Mazinke by Julia
Siedensticker Hahn and other memorial gifts.
♦ New Altar Rail Cushions were given in memory of their grandparents by Dave and Audrey
Mayer.
Please Welcome
our newest member,
Bee Troxell, who affirmed her baptismal vows on
September 14, 2014, her birthday! She was born
in Houston and has been married to Richard
Troxell for 65 years. She has 4 children, 2
of which live in Fredericksburg. She has never
been a member of a Lutheran Church, but has attended church all her life. Bee has a number of
ideas to help make Zion grow, and we are
glad to have her here!
Congratulations
...to Marlin and Laurie
Hartmann, who will celebrate 30
years of marriage on
November 24.
Page 5
Little Lambs News
Page 6
The Little Lambs Fall Festival (Halloween Party) will be Friday, October 31 at 1:45pm in Elijah’s Cave. All church members are
invited, and you can even dress up in a costume if you like!
You can dress up as a witch or whatever, we are going to
have food and drinks for everyone.
The children are decorating pumpkins and we will have a
contest to select the winners. The parents and teachers are invited
also, we’re going to have a great party!
Lutheran World Relief News
We’re so thankful for your partnership, and for your energy and enthusiasm as we roll out the new Quilt and
Kit Tracker. You may already have spotted in your online Tracker record that your Mission Quilts went to
Burkina Faso last month, departing our warehouse on August 26, 2014. LWR partners with the Catholic Organization for Development and Solidarity (OCADES) in Burkina Faso. On average, families living in these
communities earn around $3 per day. To help improve income and quality of life, OCADES programs include training and resources for agriculture, clean water, emergency prevention and response, empowerment
of women and access to microfinance. As a component to this broader work, OCADES also receives and
distributes Mission Quilts, Personal Care Kits, School Kits, Baby Care Kits and Fabric Kits. These items
help to improve living conditions, ensure access to school for orphaned children, and provide basic hygiene
tools to help keep illness at bay in these vulnerable communities. Quilts and Kits provide important resources for families that then allow them to spend their limited income on other necessities, such as food and
medicine. This specific distribution last spring served over 87,500 people!
~M.Gibbons, Quilt & Kit Ministry Manager
November
November 2 is All Saints Sunday and the month of November is National
Organ Donor month!!! A “Temple Talk” during each worship service on
November 2, highlighting the tremendous need for organ donation, will
be presented by Audrey Mayer, Dorcella Sunday and Kris Vandenberg,
representing The Ultimate Gift Foundation. They will be sharing
information on the great need for organ donors and how YOU can be a
donor. They will be ready to sign-up individuals in the Fellowship Hall
right after both worship services. Age makes no difference!!! You just
might give a person waiting on a transplant list the “Ultimate Gift of
Life.”
Page 7
Monthly Concern Update
SEPTEMBER
SEPTEMBER—
—Alms Fund $825
OCTOBER
OCTOBER—
—Meals on Wheels (to
(to--date) $245
SHUT-INS
Home:
NESBITT BENNETT
Knopp Healthcare & Rehab—
1208 N Llano:
FLORA BURRER
MARLENE ERNST
LUCYLLE KUNZE
MARGARET WILKE
Morning Star—106 Heritage Hills Drive:
FLORA CRENWELGE
Paige House—2230 N Llano:
JESSIE MITCHELL
Windcrest—210 W Windcrest:
DAVE MAYER
FBG Nursing—1117 S Adams:
HARRIET SCHLAUDT
IRENE SPENRATH
Austin:
CORA DEIKE
Oct Statistics
Attendance:
Sept
28
October 5
October 12
October 19
—Winston Churchill
Late
87
88
71
60
General Fund Offerings:
Sept
28
October 5
October 12
October 19
Total
$ 3,986.62
$ 6,444.00
$ 5,220.00
$ 3,085.00
$ 18,735.62
Building Fund Offerings:
Sept
28
October 5
October 12
October 19
Total
$
$
$
$
$
56.00
21.00
206.00
50.00
333.00
$
670.00
245.00
October’s Totals:
Ebola Disaster Relief
Meals on Wheels
“We make a living by what
we get, but we make a life
by what we give.”
Early
40
35
51
46
$
Gen Fund Rev & Exp for SEPT.:
Gen Fund Revenue Total $ 20,604.12
Gen Fund Expense Total
$ 24,478.74
2014 YTD Deficit
($37,191.21)
Zion Lutheran Church
(830) 997-2195
www.zion-lutheran.com
426 W. Main Street (church location)
415 W. AUSTIN ST (OFFICE)
Fredericksburg, TX 78624
SUNDAY WORSHIP
8AM & 10:30AM
Worship Service with
Communion
9:15am Sunday School
9:15am Adult Bible Study
(no classes Memorial Day through Labor
Day)
Childcare provided at every
service
November
Zion Lutheran
Office Hours
Monday—Friday
8am—3pm
PASTOR
RICK HARTMANN
830-383-9310
(day off is Friday)
Council Members
Cong President, Glenn Koennecke
Cong Vice President, Susan Otto
Cong Treasurer, Jill Minshew
Cong Secretary, Laurie Hartmann
Dwayne Beyer
Brett Beyer
Denise Hawkins
Evelyn Wells