Messiah

1 Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church _____ Answering God s call to love _____ Messiah ENewsletter for October 3, 2018 Messiah Events & News On the go to for more information about our congregation and like us on Facebook to receive updates and information there. _____ Messiah Lutheran Church seeks to be a welcoming community for all people. This includes people of every race, ability, sexual orientation and identity, ethnic background, economic grouping, religious affiliation, and political persuasion. We do this simply because God created all people in God s own image and Christ Jesus came so all people might have abundant and eternal life. We may not always be as welcoming as we should be, but this is our intention all are welcome! _____ Sharing the Harvest Many people wonder why churches usually plan their stewardship pledge campaigns for October or November.

2 The usual answer is that it ties into the budgeting process for the coming year. While true, that's not the entire answer. The "rest of the story," as Paul Harvey used to say, is that stewardship is a year-round opportunity; indeed, a daily one. As beloved children of God, we live each day knowing that life itself is a gift. Everything we are, everything we have -- our time, talent, and treasure -- was first given to us by our loving Creator. In our communal agrarian past, the time of year that abundance was most evident was at the harvest. So, we have our Thanksgiving festivals and our pledge campaigns at harvest time. And there's more. We see in the Bible and in the history of the Church, that our offerings aren't given at the end of the year, from whatever scraps might be left over. No, our gifts come from the "first fruits," that which is new and fresh.

3 We give to others first, confident that what is left will be "enough." That's an interesting word, isn't it? "Enough." What's interesting is that it is entirely subjective: is a $5 meal enough to fill me, or must it cost $50? Is a $10 coat warm enough, or must it cost $100? Is my income today enough, or do I need more to be satisfied? As I've been with you all at Messiah these past 6 months, I've noticed a spirit of "fearless generosity" that I've rarely seen in other congregations. You are generous, willing givers -- living out of a sense of God's abundance -- not hoarders clinging to some sad last scraps. Trusting in a loving God, you are fearlessly generous with your time, talent, and treasure; trusting that God will always provide "enough". So, let's celebrate all the wonderful opportunities of this season outlined in the pages of this newsletter. And, please prayerfully consider the opportunity for "fearless generosity" in pledging your time, talent, and treasure as we move through the harvest into the new year.

4 --Pastor Don Ludemann _____ Blessing of the Pets Messiah s Blessing of the Pets will be held at 4:00 pm Saturday, October 6 immediately before the 5:00 pm service. Please note the change in time for this special service, which will last about 30-45 minutes. All pets are invited to come with their owners and families and receive a blessing. _____ OWLS Events in October Please join us for a tour of the Marquette Maritime Museum on Wednesday, October 17 at 1:00 We'll meet at the museum which is just north of the Coast Guard Station. If you are able to walk a bit more, may I suggest that you park near McCarty's Cove (across from Lakeshore Bike), and walk the path to the museum. There is parking at the museum, too; however, I don't believe there are very many spaces. Sign-up is requested so that the folks at the museum can prepare. The deadline for signing up is Thursday, October 11, and the sign-up sheet will be at church, or you may e-mail me.

5 I will be out of town until October 12, but Linda Berry has agreed to assist with questions, too. You may contact her at 906-360-6168. Don't forget to invite your friends to join us!! There is no attendance limit for this activity. We are getting a special rate of $8 each for both the lighthouse and museum. If you would like to see just one of these two, the cost will be $5. Please note your choices on the sign-up sheet. _____ Lutheran Confessions Begins October 16 This fall s Lay School of Theology Lutheran Confessions class will be at Messiah , on Tuesday evenings for six weeks, 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm starting October 16. So, what is this about? The Lutheran Confessions are the documents which Lutheran churches throughout the world affirm as a summary of what we teach. They begin with the Creeds, which we share with most Christian churches throughout the world Lutherans insist that we are not a new church or a new religion but are rooted in the heritage of one holy catholic and apostolic church and have no intention of departing from it.

6 Our Lutheran Confessions are our attempt to declare that faith. The Confessions all come from the fifty years during which the Lutheran movement was hammered into some sort of shape. They include Luther s Large and Small Catechisms, written to help congregations teach simple Christian faith in a time when much of that teaching had been neglected for generations. At their center is the Augsburg Confession, which lays out the main points Luther and his partners believed we needed to insist on. The Creeds, the Catechism, and the Augsburg Confession are the core of Lutheran teaching throughout the world. The rest of the Confessions help us see how all of that worked out in practice, at the time of the Reformation. All of the Lutheran Confessions are collected in a volume called the Book of Concord. That s readily available, in print and on-line. If you have a copy, in any of the translations available, I encourage you to bring it.

7 If you don t have a copy, don t let that discourage you. I ll bring print or on-line resources for the most important bits. We ll start with the Creeds and the Catechisms, then in following weeks work with the Augsburg Confession. Later in the class we ll do a quick survey of the rest of the book. I m looking forward to this, and I hope you ll be able to join us! --Allan Johnson, Interim associate pastor _____ Prayer Partners We need children and adults to participate in the prayer partner program. It is a lot of fun and the adults get to know a child in the church better. There is a sign-up sheet on the welcome table in the narthex. Parents, please sign up your child. The first meeting is October 28th at 9:55 am. We will be doing activities and time for the prayer partners to talk. The partners will pray for each other. This is to teach the child about prayer.

8 Thank you, --Faith Formation _____ Transition Task Force Your Transition Task Force has completed its work! A three-month sprint, meeting every other week, resulted in recommendations to the Church Council on future pastoral leadership as well as a draft Vision statement for Messiah . The process, which involved study, prayer, interviews, and lots of conversation, was both exhausting and productive. One Task Force member described it as "one of the most rewarding experiences I've had at church," while another remarked, "I left the meetings with my head spinning with new ideas and my heart filled with thanks for such dedicated colleagues." New friendships were made, as the group of almost two dozen representing diverse segments of the congregation, met to discuss their hopes and dreams for Messiah . The Church Council is using the Task Force recommendations as they begin interviews for our next Senior Pastor.

9 Plus, the draft Vision Statement will inform the Council's work in an upcoming Asset Mapping mini-retreat. Please be sure to express your thanks to the Task Force members! _____ Noisy Offering - October 13 and 14 Boy oh boy, did we make some noise!! Our Noisy Offering on Rally Weekend resulted in $ raised for the ELCA's Global Barnyard Project! In case you missed it, you'll have a chance to participate on the second weekend of October (13/14) by simply bringing your loose change to worship. Our congregation's kids will collect your coins and "make a joyful noise to the Lord" as they proceed around the sanctuary. These offerings go directly to buying goats, chickens, pigs, fish, and other animals to help families in developing countries through sustainable agricultural projects. So, keep collecting those coins. We'll continue at least through the second weekend in December.

10 Every penny literally makes a difference! _____ Bible Study Only A new Bible study group will meet at Messiah for the first time on Wednesday, October 10, at 6:30 pm. The study will use the materials developed by WELCA and published in the Gather magazine. Judy Quirk will be the leader as this group begins. She will bring the materials, but participants may wish to bring their Bibles. Judy says she always liked the WELCA studies, but they were too detailed and time-consuming to fit with the service projects of most Circles. By having a separate Bible Study Only group, more people are invited to participate. All are welcome - women, men, youth, or mature. Contact Judy at 228-6729. _____ Grief Support Group Continues The Grief Support Group has been such a blessing for those in attendance that they have decided to continue the program through October. They will continue to meet on Tuesday evenings (October 9, 16, 23 & 30) at 6:30 pm in room 103 at Messiah .