September Newsletter
ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH 924 Bridge Ave. Albert Lea, MN 56007 Phone: 507-373-8609 Fax: 507-373-7114 E-mail:
[email protected] We’re on the web! www.zion4jesus.org
Memorials In loving memory of: John Schultz Anna Marie Tibodeau (Barb Rehmke’s Mother) Keith Roberts Beverly Boone
If you have anything you would like to have published in the Zion Newsletter you can send it to Anna Otterman at:
[email protected] ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH 924 BRIDGE AVE ALBERT LEA, MN 56007
September Issue Newsletter 2016
September Issue
From the Pastor
Inside this issue: Ladies Society & Thank You
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Otterman Update
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Upcoming Events Readings for Sept.
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Leadership Boards
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Letter from an Elder
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Serving in September
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Zion Calendar
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Memorials
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As you know, it is about time for school to begin the Fall term. It is also time to start thinking about sending your school age child[ren], or grandchildren, to Sunday School and Bible Class, as well to our midweek program JAM and Confirmation Class. The words of command to God’s people of the Old Covenant apply to us today. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children. (Deuteronomy 6:5-7) You can’t argue with that because it is God talking through His prophet Moses. We know we can love God with our hearts because our hearts have been cleansed by faith in Jesus Christ, who died for us and rose again. That’s the good news we believe and that’s the good news we are to share with our children. After all, they are the future of the Church. You’ve probably heard this before, but I think it is worth repeating. If we don’t share our faith in Christ with our children, the Church could disappear from the world in one generation. God does not want that to happen. So the good news is that we are saved by faith in Jesus Christ and we grow in that faith and are strengthened as we use and learn God’s Word and receive His sacraments. But just as Luther begins the explanation to the commandments with the words. “we should fear and love God…” so we need to hear God’s law when children are not taught God’s Word. Our Savior Jesus Christ said: Whoever receives one such child in my name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believes in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. (Matthew 18:5-6) Causing children to sin can be the result of not teaching them the Word of God. It is your serious responsibility to teach your children the Word of God so they are not lost in sin. To help you with your responsibility, the church stands ready to assist you in this job with our various teaching opportunities: Sunday School and Bible Class, JAM and Confirmation Class. Please heed the words of our Savior and bring your children to class regularly and faithfully. God will love you for it and so will your children as they greet you in heaven. (check the church calendar in this Newsletter for dates and times of these classes) 1
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September Issue Newsletter
Ladies Society The Women’s Bible Study will be held Oct. 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th at 9:00 am. We will continue to study “MIRROR, MIRROR” by Susan Seneschal. The lessons focus on looking at ourselves as God, our Creator and Redeemer, sees us. God sees us through the filter of the cross, in the reflection of his Son, with the eyes of love.
Hannah Circle Sept. 6th @9:30 am
Martha Circle Sept. 6th @ 1:00pm
Ruth Circle Sept. 6th @ 7:00 pm
A sign up sheet will be posted on the bulletin board. You do not need to have attended the Spring Bible Study. Everyone is welcome.
Ladies Executive Board Meeting Sept. 26th @ 3:30 pm
Look for more information for the upcoming Bakeless Bake Sale ! LWML Fall Rally is September 24, 2016 at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Owatonna, MN @ 9:00am.
What a great job to those who helped out with VBS. We all worked together and made it a success. A big thank you to all. Deb Viktora
We would like to thank everyone who joined us in celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary by attending the open house, sending us cards, prayers and gifts. We are so blessed!
I want to thank everybody for all the prayers and get-well cards I received after my accident. I will be starting therapy in the next week on my shoulder. Thanks again for all the prayers! Elaine Mucha
Dwight and Joy Meyer
Thank you for all the gifts, visits, cards and prayers while I was recovering at Good Samaritan. Marie Carlin
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September Issue
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Otterman Update Dear Zion Family, Our summer is coming to a close, although a high of 90 degrees today makes fall feel a long way off. We have been busy. I finished three courses this quarter: one normal length class and two condensed four week classes. I also started working part time at the campus store. Anna is still doing full time day care here at home while also writing and editing for Lutheran Hour Ministries. She is also the Event Coordinator for the seminary’s Student Wives Association. Together with a friend, she will be planning and executing several big events throughout the year, starting with Field Day, which is the kickoff to the new school year. One of the new events at Field Day this year is called ‘Pie the Prof’, which is exactly what it sounds like. A lot of professor’s have volunteered to have pies thrown at them to raise money for Lutherans for Life, which just goes to show the giving hearts of the faculty here at Concordia. Anna has had some health concerns the last few months but was finally able to get the help she needed and with a diet change she will be able to manage her recent diagnosis. Please pray that she continues to feel better and better. Ender is busy learning and running and talking. All together life is hectic but still a great experience. All three of us are learning and growing through our trials and joys here at seminary. We were happy to be able to come up and visit family for about a week earlier this month. Unfortunately, time did not permit us to see everyone we wanted to see. Our next visit will probably not be until Christmas. I’m sure that time will come sooner than we expect. Anna is looking for opportunities to take on another child for daycare and other freelance writing and editing jobs. I am preparing for the next fall quarter, which starts right after Labor Day. I will be taking four classes: Systems I, Pastor as Educator, The Synoptic Gospels, and Theological Latin. It should be a busy but fun quarter. Ender will continue growing big and strong. He likes to remind us that he is growing by helping us bring in bags of groceries and saying, “I have really big muscles!” As always, we will be praying for all of you. Thank you so much for your prayers and support. We always love hearing from you! Blessings, The Ottermans
If you have any questions or would like to reach us: 3 Founders Way Unit D Clayton, MO 63105
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September: 11th — 14th — 24th — October: 2nd — 17-21st — 30th —
September Issue
Rally Day @ 9:15 am JAM / H2H classes resume LWML Fall Rally in Owatonna LWML Sunday Church Cleaning Confirmation
Readings for September: Sept. 4th Sixteenth S. a. Pentecost Deut. 30:15–20 Philemon 1–21 Luke 14:25–35 Sept. 11th Seventeenth S. a. Pentecost Ezek. 34:11–24 1 Tim. 1:(5–11) 12–17 Luke 15:1–10 Sept. 18th Eighteenth S. a. Pentecost Amos 8:4–7 1 Tim. 2:1–15 Luke 16:1–15 Sept. 25th Nineteenth S. a. Pentecost Amos 6:1–7 1 Tim. 3:1–13 or 1 Tim. 6:6–19 Luke 16:19–31
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Zion Leadership Boards 2016 President:
Roger Panzer
Secretary:
Robin Pettit
Treasure:
Wayne Prudoehl
Board of Assimilation:
Natalie Nelson
Board of Education:
Deb Viktora
Board of Elders:
Keith Kemkes—Head Elder Glenn Houle Roger Oberg Keith Kemkes Rick Ashling Dana Nelson Dick Mucha Dustin Meyer Tim Kasper Bill Morris
(Aase – Carlin) (Chapman - Gardner) (Gehring - Hausman) (Hayden - King) (Kirsch – Morkrid) (Morris - Rehmke) (Reicherts – Sorenson) (Sosebee - Walton) (Wangen - Zenk)
Board of Evangelism:
Elaine Mucha
Board of Stewardship:
Randy Sternberg
Board of Trustees:
Bruce Bakken
Board of Youth:
Kirsten Meyer
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Thoughts from an Elder September thoughts, and other musings: September is here, which means fall is near. September has always been one of my favorite months; as a student, as a teacher, and as a Christian. Even when I was young and September rolled around I found it exciting. Summer was ending and school was starting. Another normal, expected transition that was exciting; new classes, seeing kids I hadn’t seen for a while, football season getting into full swing. The same feeling carried through to my teaching years. I was always ready to ‘get back at it’, meet the new classes, joke around with my colleagues, and to get into my extracurricular responsibilities again. It was time to fire up once more. To begin again. The same is similarly true in our Church lives. In September our education programs get revved up, meetings and gatherings seems to take on more urgency, attendance swells somewhat, and the seasonal changes remind us again about the power and blessings of our God. As Zion prepares again this September to help with God’s work on earth through education, outreach, member support, and other worship and support areas, we must keep the love and forgiveness of our Redeemer in the fore. The word of the Lord and the love of our Savior will keep us strong and lead us through our continuing prayerful search for a Pastor and the decisions that must be made concerning that quest. We are a community of believers banded together to worship, witness, educate, and serve. In that is our strength. The strength of a community founded upon faith in the living God. No matter the problems, no matter the ups and downs in our church lives, in our personal lives, we know we are under God’s protective umbrella. God will sustain us during September’s new beginnings and our time spent in a pastoral vacancy. I’ll leave you with the following words from a pastor addressing his congregation during some trying times: “ ‘ Jesus says, “Come and eat.” Jesus joins the broken, the hungry, the lonely and the outcast and feeds them love and salvation from his very being, Jesus says, ‘O, my God is here for you to love you, to heal you, to forgive you and to feed you’ So worship is an OMG moment. For it’s about God as God gives to us abundantly. It’s about God as God reclaims our dignity. It’s about God as God connects us to others. It’s about God as God feeds us the love and salvation revealed in Jesus. OMG, worship is a God thing, and certainly a thing that should make a congregation fearlessly see their glass as at least half full, and never as half empty.” See you in church this September and throughout the year. Bill Morris - Elder
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Sunday
Sept. 4
Sept. 11
Sept. 18
Sept. 25
8:00 am
10:30 am
8:00 am
10:30 am
8:00 am
10:30 am
8:00 am
10:30 am
Acolyte
L. Stadheim
J. Heller
B. Heller
S. Prestholt
J. Heller
L. Stadheim
S. Prestholt
B. Heller
A/V Team
R. Panzer W. Prudoehl N. Golde
J. Hedin
J. Viktora C. Olivier W. Olivier
D. DeSart D. Kelly
W. Olivier C. Olivier R. Panzer
J. Hedin
J. Viktora R. Panzer W. Prudoehl
D. DeSart D. Kelly
B. Podratz
B. Hayden
R. Timm
J. Brown
R. Panzer
K. Weitzel
J. Domes
D. Johnson
D. Nelson
R. Ashling
D. Nelson
R. Ashling
D. Nelson
R. Oberg
D. Nelson
Communion Assistant Elder Greeter
M&D Helgeson
P. Doss
C& W Olivier
K&T Weitzel
J&J Domes
G. Keithly
R&N Timm
D&S Johnson
Roamer
M&L Janowitz
G&L Houle
J&D Viktora
B&P Bonfy
L. Aase
B &D Drescher
R&B Ashling
B&J Hayden
Lector
A. Estes
L. Palmer
K. Schultz
D. Meyer
H. Johnson
C. Studier
A. Estes
H. DeSart
Ushers
J. South J. Domes M. Helgeson F. Rennpferd
Du. Meyer D. Mucha
B. Bakken O. Willmert L. Aase B. Podratz
J. Brown D. Nelson
C. Miller C. Olivier J. Wenzel B. Haseman
N&D Nelson
R. Timm J. Viktora T. Gullord D. Meyer
D. Johnson T. Kasper
Thursday
9/1
9/8
9/15
9/22
9/29
A/V Team
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
Communion Assistant
K. Dollum
K. Dollum
K. Dollum
K. Dollum
K. Dollum
Elder
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
K. Kemkes
Flower & Altar:
Rebecca Dollum / Arlene Murray Elaine Warner, Dawn Drescher
Financial Assistant:
Elaine Nelson and Helen Johnson
Zion Lutheran Church 924 Bridge Ave. Albert Lea, MN 56007
Sun
September 2016
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Phone: 507-373-8609 Website: www.zion4jesus.org Email:
[email protected] Find us on Zion Lutheran Church Albert Lea
Fri
Sat
1 6:45 pm Mid-Week Service
Sixteenth S. a. Pentecost
4
8 am Traditional Service 9:15 Education Hour 10:30 Contemporary Service
Seventeenth S. a. Pentecost 11
Labor Day OFFICE CLOSED
5 9:30 am 1:00 pm 6:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:00 pm
18
25
19
8 am Traditional Service 9:15 Education Hour 10:30 Contemporary Service
3:30 pm Ladies Exc. Board Meeting
9 am Quilters
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9
10
6:45 pm Mid-Week Service
9 am Quilters 6 pm JAM / H2H
9 am Joyful Noise Practice
15 6:45 pm Mid-Week Service
21 9 am Quilters 6 pm JAM / H2H
27
8
14
20 2 pm Cheer & Comfort
26
7
13 6:00 pm Board of Ed 6:45 pm All Boards Meet 7:30 pm Church Council
8 am Traditional Service 9:15 Education Hour 10:30 Contemporary Service
Nineteenth S. a. Pentecost
Hannah Circle Martha Circle Girl Scouts Ruth Circle Elder’s Meeting
12
8 am Traditional Service 9:15 Education Hour 10:30 Contemporary Service
Eighteenth S. a. Pentecost
6
2 5:30 pm Joyful Noise Practice
16 5:30 pm Joyful Noise Practice
22
23
6:45 pm Mid-Week Service
28 9 am Quilters 1:30 pm BINGO @ Good Samaritan 6 pm JAM / H2H
24 9 am Joyful Noise Practice
29 6:45 pm Mid-Week Service
17
30 5:30 pm Joyful Noise Practice