FROM YOUR PASTOR, DAVID M. YOUNG

SEPTEMBER 2003

One of the very positive themes that we emphasize as a church body is to “tell the good news about Jesus.” For us, it must be our marching cry to reach out to the lost with the saving grace of the Gospel in love and mercy, as we win souls to Christ.

Sounds simple, right?

Then why do we all have such a hard time doing it? If God has chosen us for salvation before the very foundation of the world (Eph. 1: 4-5), then why is it easy for some to hear the saving message of the Gospel while others don’t and perish? How can we get the Gospel out and why don’t some accept the very simple mandate “repent and believe?”

If you do have the answer to this, please put me down for a copy of your book! Theologians throughout history have called this question the “crux theologorian”; (the cross of the theologian) because of the difficulty (and from the Lutheran perspective, the impossibility) of giving an answer which is satisfactory to our human reason.

Some attempt to answer this question by pointing to man’s “free will:” only those are saved who “choose” to be saved. But the scriptures say that man’s will is “dead” and powerless to “choose” God and his grace in Christ! We are saved not because we “choose” to be saved but because the Holy Spirit works the gift of faith in our heart through the Gospel.

The only answers that we usually draw upon come from our saturated human logic and rationalization. It is always dangerous, especially in our “enlightened age”, to try to apply 21^st century Western thinking to explain or rationalize why God should or should not do something. This applies to our desire to know why we were gifted with saving faith TO hear and trust, while others whom we love and care for don’t accept or believe the promises that God has made for all of his creation. But rather than wasting our time trying to figure out the hidden will of God, we might be better served understanding how and what God desires to reveal to us about his will. We CAN and DO discover his will when and where he promises his revelation; in his Word and in the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

The answers can be found in God’s Holy Word, which He has preserved for us. In the Scriptures, we find the vehicle to impart faith (2 Timothy 3:14-17), hope (Romans 16:25-27), understanding (Acts 17:10-12), and salvation (John 5:39; (Luke 24:27, 44-45). I hope you take the time, for the sake of strengthening your faith, to look these verses up in your Bible.

I am convinced that the biggest reason that we don’t, can’t or won’t tell others “the good news about Jesus” is because we don’t know what we believe.

This brings us full circle to why it is important to grow in our faith. I speak often of the importance of hearing God’s Word. I do because I want you to believe the promises that God has made for your lives! I want you to know these promises, so that you can live lives of victory and peace in this world. I encourage you to come to know your Savior Jesus Christ by coming to church, attending Sunday School and our Bible Class beginning this September in which we’ll be studying Luther’s Small Catechism,, participating in the church activities and events, and fellowshipping with your brothers and sisters here at St. John’s. I thank God that He has blessed me to be part of this loving fellowship!

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Young

Romans 8:31 (a good one to look-up and “inwardly digest!)

The answers can be found in God’s Holy Word, which He has preserved for us. In the Scriptures, we find the vehicle to impart faith (2 Timothy 3:14-17), hope (Romans 16:25-27), understanding (Acts 17:10-12), and salvation (John 5:39; (Luke 24:27, 44-45). I hope you take the time, for the sake of strengthening your faith, to look these verses up in your Bible.

I am convinced that the biggest reason that we don’t, can’t or won’t tell others “the good news about Jesus” is because we don’t know what we believe.

This brings us full circle to why it is important to grow in our faith. I speak often of the importance of hearing God’s Word. I do because I want you to believe the promises that God has made for your lives! I want you to know these promises, so that you can live lives of victory and peace in this world. I encourage you to come to know your Savior Jesus Christ by coming to church, attending Sunday School and our Bible Class beginning this September in which we’ll be studying Luther’s Small Catechism, participating in the church activities and events, and fellowshipping with your brothers and sisters here at St. John’s. I thank God that He has blessed me to be part of this loving fellowship!

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Young

Romans 8:31 (a good one to look-up and “inwardly digest!)

Upon graduation from Ridley High School in June 1981, Rev. Young attended Colgate University, Hamilton, New York on a football scholarship, where he majored in both Education and Sociology/Anthropology. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Colgate in May 1985. After graduation, he married Kathryn Mary Bell on November 29, 1985, and began his career in insurance brokerage sales and management.

After a successful career in the field, he was led by the Holy Spirit to apply to Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana . Accepted by CTS, Pastor and Kathy moved to Fort Wayne with their three daughters, Amy Marie (born April l, 1988), Rachel Virginia (born May 31, 1989), and Hannah Kathryn (born July 11, 1996), and began classes in February 1998. As a seminarian, Pastor Young did his fieldwork at Suburban Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, completed his vicarage at Concordia Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wilmington, Delaware (November 1999-November 2000) and preached at various churches. He received his Master of Divinity degree and graduated from CTS in May 2001. He was called to Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Eyota, Minnesota and was ordained and installed on June 13, 2001, where he served as sole Pastor until accepting the Call as Administrative Pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church in June of 2003.

Hello, my name is Julie Stelter. I have the luxury of teaching the 7th and 8th grade classes here at St. John’s Lutheran School. I teach pre Algebra, Algebra, 6th grade Science, 7th grade Science, 8th grade Science, English, Health, Art, and Physical Education for grades 5-8. Not only do I teach the 8th grade class, I am also the Athletic Director for our sports program. This means that I schedule games for the sports that we offer, set up practice schedules for the teams, recruit coaches, find officials for games, set up a work schedule for volunteers at games to do various jobs, order the concession stand goodies, order equipment/uniforms/supplies for the sports teams and physical education department, and make sure that the equipment room is cleaned. I organize the intramural program for the students after the main sports are finished, set up the gymnasium for games, schedule the free athletic physicals and set up for that.

Outside the classroom and athletic director’s job, I also coach both volleyball teams and the Jr. High Girls Basketball team. I am also responsible for being on the yearbook committee, the National Lutheran Schools Week Activity committee, and the Family Activities Night committee. I also lend a helping hand wherever I can.

I have my Bachelor of the Arts degree in General Education with a Physical Education and Art Minor from the University of Concordia in Ann Arbor, MI. I am Indiana State Licensed and I am working on my masters degrees at Central Michigan University in the are of Physical Education with a Coaching emphasis. I went to grade school at Trinity Lutheran School in St. Joseph, MI and went to St. Joseph Sr. High School in St. Joseph, MI.

I have two sisters, one is a twin . We look NOTHING alike, nor do we act alike in any fashion. The oldest sister, Joyce has two daughters, Melanie and Shannon who are in high school down in Crawfordsville, IN. My brother-in-law is a truck driver by choice. My twin sister, Jill has two children, Stephanie (who by the way has my athletic ability) in 5th grade and Zachary who is in kindergarten. They will be heading down to Elkhart, IN. this summer to reside. My mom and dad are still together, both retired, and in poor health. My father, John, suffers from spina

bifida, a disease that effects the spinal cord and has crippled him in the left leg since childbirth. He gets around with the aid of a wheelchair, outside the house, or crutches/crawls inside the house. My mother has suffered many little strokes, has high blood pressure, a collapsed lower left lung, and is on oxygen full time, which makes it hard for her to push dad. Therefore, I take them to church.

My personal outside interests include outdoor recreational activities. I love to camp, fish, and canoe. I enjoy playing outdoor sports like softball and football. I am actually playing in the NWFA (National Women’s Football Association) for the Southwest Michigan Jaguars. I play defensive tackle, long snap on field goals, and am a back up center and guard on offense. This is FULL contact football with helmets and pads, not the sissy flag football stuff. We play our games from April until June with play-offs just like the “big boys” do! I also enjoy roller-blading, playing ice hockey, bowling, painting, and twiddling on my guitar to relax.

My 8th grade class takes a bi-yearly trip in the spring. This past year we went to Minneapolis/St Paul for our trip. We helped serve at the soup kitchen at the Harbor Light Salvation Army doing many different tasks from serving food to cleaning and organizing the storage rooms to preparing meals for them. It was quite an eye-opening experience! Besides doing service work we also learned some history about the Twin Cities and the Mississippi River.

I consider it an honor to be able to teach God’s word and do God’s work. I believe that God had called me to be a teacher when I was in fifth grade. I knew He wanted me to be His instrument in the classroom and on the athletic fields because connecting with children was always easy for me whether it was helping classmates with new concepts or youngsters learn how to play a game. It just felt right in that it was what God had planned for me. I still feel that way. I enjoy working with young adults and children whether it’s learning new concepts or skills in sports. It is God that has given me this gift to use, I am thankful that I get to use it everyday to glorify Him.

The Giving Plus Program is funded on a year-to-year basis. Since funds

are limited, it may not be possible to fully support all eligible gifts in any given year. This district has $20 million allotted for this calendar year — $12 million has already been used.

We would appreciate your support for this program.

Boxtops for Education coupons are found on hundreds of General Mills products. Each boxtop coupon turned in earns 10 cents for our school. Last year we raised over $700. Our Fall classroom contest will start September 29. Give boxtops to your favorite student or turn them in to the school office.

At the beginning of September, Kroger is having a boxtop promotion. If you buy 12 items with a General Mills boxtop symbol and use your Kroger Plus Card, you will get 100 bonus boxtops which amounts to $10.00.

Recycle your empty ink and laser cartridges and turn them into cash for St. John’s Lutheran School. A receptacle is at the entrance of the school for your contributions.

The school is still collecting Campbell’s canned food labels.

Wells Fargo Bank is collecting school supplies until September 13 for St. John’s School. Help out our kids by donating any new school supply items. A wish list can be found at the bank. All donations will be appreciated.

The third Wednesday of every month is Pizza Hut night — September 17 to be exact —between the hours of 4:00 and 11:00 p.m. only. Identify yourself as a member of St. John’s when ordering (362-3000) your pizza. We get 20% of the profits and all money goes toward the 7th and 8th grade class trip. You may also use vendor coupons.

We praise the Lord for once again bringing us through a successful VBS weekand giving us beautiful weather despite multiple predictions of rain. Sixty-seven children attended our “Jesus Expedition”, traveling to the South Pole, Mt. Everest, South American Jungle, Pacific Ocean and Egyptian Desert. With many helping hands for decorating and donations of supplies and funds, we were well stocked. When a few people had work and school conflicts or medical situations that prevented them from joining us as originally planned , the Lord brought forth others to step in The children were faithful in bringing their prayer requests before the Lord, and in bringing their offerings, which will be used toward next year’s youth mission trips. Mark Moellman, who was one of our team leaders, spoke during one of our opening assemblies and shared his experiences of his recent mission trip to Hawaii. Kids reported throughout the week that they found themselves singing the songs at home, and that they especially enjoyed hearing personal testimonies of how God has worked in some of our lives. The ladies in the kitchen provided daily snacks of kid-friendly food all week — on time, to all five sites! On the last day a special card was prepared and signed by all the teachers, team leaders and students to be given to Martin Vollrath, who was originally scheduled to teach in VBS this year, but could not due to medical problems. I thank everyone involved for working so well together and being obedient to the Lord to give the children a wonderful VBS experience. Submitted by: Sue Rosselli, 2003 VBS Director.

The newly constructed handicap accessible ramp next to the chapel of St. John’s was dedicated on Sunday, June 29, 2003. The volunteers who helped build the ramp were:

Walter Arndt Bob and Brad Keller Paul Shelby

Ed Brettin David Lee Barry Siddall

Dale Fischer Steve Moellman Dan Tarnow

Leonard Gonzale Jim Peters Adam Tharp

Mark, Rachel, Lisa Hill Dwayne Rogers Mary Jo Uebele

Walter Kegebein Matt Schuster Orv, Tom Ulmer

Matt Nelson Jim Woodruff Andrew Vaughn

Following is a letter dated July 25, 2003, which was previously distributed via the weekly worship bulletin or mailed to shut-in service attendees:

Dear Senior Saints at St. John’s,

“I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the LORD!’ (Ps. 122:1) “Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.” (Ps. 30:4) “O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!” (Ps. 30:12a)

If you find it too difficult physically to attend weekly worship services, please phone Pastor Jim or Pastor Young at the church office (362-3726) and request a Pastor or an Elder to visit with you and to bring you Holy Communion.

We want all families (and all in family) to worship the LORD daily in their home. To assist you, Portals of Prayer devotional booklets are available at the church and outside the church office. If you are unable to pick up a copy and would like one, please call the church office and request a devotional booklet. They are available in regular and in large print.

Your Servant in Christ,

Pastor Jim Beversdorf

Mark your calendar now and plan to attend the Outdoor Worship and Fellowship Service September 7, 2003, at 10 a.m. This service will be followed by a guided tour of the Sunday School facilities to introduce the children to their teachers

to share and table service for your family members. Beverages will be provided. This family affair will feature good food and fun, as games will be enjoyed by young and old. This will be the perfect time to renew old friendships and establish new relationships after the Healing and Reconciliation Service of September 4.

Come, join in the fun and fellowship, Sunday, September 7, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. You may bring your delicious potluck food to the kitchen prior to the outdoor service.

October 10 is the next Fish Fry — 4-7:00 p.m. Ticket prices will

remain the same: $6 advance and carry- out dinners; $6.50 at the door and children under 12, $3.50. Tickets may be purchased at the church office or from Dawn Crum at 324-2985.

The help of many will be necessary to make this event a success. Please sign up in the church office or contact Dawn Crum. We will also accept donations. Pie bakers: We need pie bakers for the Fish Fry. Please bring pies to the cafeteria any time before 2 p.m. on that day or call Annette Williams at 326-8017.

St. John’s will be having their annual Fall Bazaar and Luncheon on October 23, 2003. The Bazaar will start at 10:00 a.m. and the luncheon will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mark your calendar and ask a friend to come along. Tickets will be available at the Church office or from Activities Committee members.

Praise the Lord!!! We have raised 75 per cent of the funds needed to repair the organ. The organ will be shut down in October when the work is scheduled to begin. Please continue to provide the faithful and generous

contributions.

Love to sing? Don’t know how, but want to try? Choir rehearsals began Monday, August 11 at 7:00 p.m. in the Music Room of the School. Give it a try! Call Matt Nelson at 326-6999. Come join us.

The Walther League Chorus will perform its 70th Annual Christmas Concert on December 7, 2003 with a little help from its friends — some members of surrounding Symphony Orchestras. We would like to solicit sponsors for this event as it will cost $100 per symphony chair. Any business or individual participating will receive recognition in the program as a sponsor and receive tickets to view and receive the blessings of our Lord Jesus Christ whose birth is celebrated.

Our thanks to Marilyn Sawyer for temporarily serving as church office manager/secretary; and to the many volunteers who help her.  Beginning September 2, Marilyn and Linda Woodruff will share the duties of this position.

The Women’s Care Center (formerly the Pregnancy Assistance Center) will be moving to its new home on Maple Avenue in early September. If anyone is able to help with the move, please call the Center (324-4646) or Monyean Hahn (362-8390).

Because of our support of the Center, St. John’s will be recognized on the Tree of Life at the new Center. Thank you for your prayers and support in this ministry.

In October, a speaker from the Center will be with us for our quarterly Mission Sunday. Submitted by: Monyean Hahn.

A special “THANK YOU” to each and every one of you, Church and School, who donates to our food pantry. It is because of your caring and generosity that we, as a Church/School Family, are able to help those in need in our congregation. May the Lord continue to bless this ministry.

We are especially appreciative of the many volunteers who spent many summer days working on our outdoor property. The long -awaited handicapped ramp is complete, shrubs and trees trimmed, stones added to shrub beds around the church, lawns edged and mowed, weeds pulled, overgrown pines removed, fence row cleaned up; plus general maintenance .Thanks to those who appreciate our beautiful facilities. Our new outdoor sign is to be delivered soon.

When God forgives through Jesus Christ, he uses his Son’s atonement to build a new relationship with those whose transgressions caused separation and estrangement. It is my prayer that this service would be the foundation to building new, forgiven relationships with each other as we bury the sins that have separated us and unite once again as a unified body of Christ that we have been called to be.

Beginning Wednesday September 3^rd, 2003, we will be offering a weekly Wednesday morning Worship Service at 10:00AM (Matins, Morning Prayer, or Responsive Prayer). Immediately following the worship we will have Bible Study in the Ladies Lounge from 10:30 am to 11:30 a. m. We will begin with a study of Paul’s letter to the COLOSSIANS. ALL ARE WELCOME! Look forward to God’s blessings as brings to you His words of eternal life!

Public School 7^th and 8^th graders: If you are planning to participate in Catechetical Classes leading to church Confirmation, please notify the Church office so that you may receive a letter with the guidelines of requirements and instruction for completing Confirmation class successfully. Also, we need to know how many will be participating so that the materials can be purchased. Thank you!

111 Kingsbury Avenue, La Porte, IN 46350

Church—(219) 362-3726 (voice mail) School (219)362-6692 (voice mail)

FAX—(219) 362-2237 TDD (for hearing impaired) (219) 362-4742

Web site: www.stjohns-lpin.org   General email: stjohns@stjohns-lpin.org

Administrative Pastor—Rev. David M.Young— (219) 324-9049

Visitation Pastor—Rev. James Beversdorf - (219) 465-3921 (home)

or email: jim42bon@aalweb.net

Office Manager/Secretary—Marilyn Sawyer and Linda Woodruff

e-mail: churchoffice@stjohns-lpin.org

Bookkeeper - Mrs. Stacy Tharp

Director of Music Ministries—Mr. Matt Nelson

Organist—Mrs. Susan Rosselli

Head Custodian—Mr. Barry Siddall

Assistant Custodian - Mrs. Joanne Lisak

School Principal—Mr. David Wippich

Ms. Mary Fetters (Admin. Asst.), Mrs. Rio Light (Daycare/ Pre-school)

 Mrs. Karla Eigenmann (Kindergarten), Mrs. Marlene Will (1st Grade) ,

 Mrs. Beth Hoeppner (2nd Grade), Mrs. Lois Krider (3rd Grade),

Mrs. Jan Martinsen (4th Grade), Mr. David Hoeppner (5th Grade),

Mrs. Mindy Bremer (6th Grade),

Miss Julie Stelter (7th and 8th Grade).

President—Mr. Chuck Link, Jr.

Vice President—Mr. James Crum

Treasurer—Mr. Jeff Scherer

Secretary—Mrs. Penny Nelson

Elders—Mr. Bill Trowbridge

Trustees—Mr. Mark Hill

School Board—Mrs. Annette Williams

Missions & Evangelism—Elyse Heidel

Parish Education—Trudy Roule

Parish Fellowship—Mrs. Jeanette Darby

Public Relations—Mrs. Delores Keller

Social Ministry—Mrs. Sherrill Lee

Stewardship—Mr. Dwayne Rogers

Youth Board—Mrs. Dana Alexander