June is traditionally a month for graduations, weddings, Father's Day, and the beginning of vacations. Perhaps the most wonderful yet oft-neglected way to celebrate these events, milestones and rites of passage is with the gift of prayer. In our prayers, we can and should thank our wonderful God for the blessings these events entail. Our first order of prayers should be thanksgiving for the various graduations this month. We celebrate with all the graduates from our congregation whether from college or university, high school or grade school.

We pray for the Lord' s blessing on each of you as you go forward either in furthering your education or in beginning your career.

We also pray for all those who’ll be celebrating wedding anniversaries this month. Our prayers of thanks and praise to God should be for the strength to remain faithful in your wedding vows and commitments to each other, and petitions that they remain strong and lasting.

We remember fathers this month and thank God for the blessing given to us in having Christian fathers who trained us in the Lord' s grace and love.

Finally, we pray for all those who are going on vacation this month. We are thankful that there is time to have recreation and time away from the hustle and bustle of life and the workplace. But don't forget that you can bring the sacrifice of praise in prayer to God wherever you may go. You know that you can take the Lord with you wherever you go. Find a place to worship when you are away and remember the Lord' s House here when you are home.

As we celebrate the blessings of this coming month, please remember the love that God has for all of us, as demonstrated in the life, death and resurrection of his very own Son Jesus Christ. God sent Him to you personally for your salvation. Without Jesus, all the other milestones and events that we may celebrate in this world are really without meaning.

God expects that you will never graduate from his Word and promise. He wants you to be wedded to Him and His love forever. He is our everlasting, ever caring Father. He never takes a vacation away from us. Jesus and His life and victory over sin, death and the devil is something we can celebrate every moment of our lives!

Enjoy your June and your summer!

Yours in Christ Jesus,

Pastor Young

School will soon be finished for this term and we can breathe a sigh of relief. That breath is only to get ready for the next fury of activities here at St. John’s. So take a deep breath and be ready to plunge into the blessings and activities soon to come.

Volunteers are needed for a variety of things as you will read about our Vacation Bible School program coming the week of July 25-29, “Summer Safari.” Teachers, craft leaders, refreshments, helpers, songs, games—all are needed. Be sure to contact our Safari Leader, Mrs. Rhonda McConnell at 324-7626 and tell her how you will be willing to help out.

Volunteers are also needed for clean up projects around the Church and School buildings during school vacation time. As I have been sitting in with the Trustees, I see projects where many of our members can be involved with cleaning, scrubbing, washing, and painting. It truly brings joy to my heart to see God’s redeemed take care of His house (and that includes the School building, too!)

While there are opportunities to serve God and one another in these ways, it is important to know that God serves you as we come to worship. He nourishes you His Word, which sustains your soul in these times. He washes you at the font of Holy Baptism and feeds you with His Body and Blood in the Sacrament of the Altar. He absolves your sins. All this He does out of Fatherly divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in you. God loves to bless you. Blessing you is what God began to do the day He created man and woman. He continues to do so through His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. These blessings come to you each week as you come to hear God’s Word.

However, we find people who take vacations from God. They miss out on the blessings God gives freely each week. Here is one response: Imagine not going to the grocery store or a restaurant the entire time while you are away from home during your vacation. How long will your body last? You may get tired of ‘snack food’ that was packed in the car, and soon your body will suffer.

The same is true for your soul. It needs to be fed with the Gospel. As Jesus’ redeemed sheep and lambs, your soul needs to hear the language of the Good Shepherd. That good news of salvation causes your soul to rejoice in words that your human feelings find hard to express. And even God gives the words to express that joy through Psalms and the hymns and prayers of the church!

Bible study is another way of hearing the language of the Good Shepherd. Daily personal devotions and group Bible study are ways to keep connected to this life-saving and life-giving Word.

Your volunteering is an act of service to God’s communion of saints here on earth. Yet God would serve you through His Son as He provides all that you need to support and defend your body and soul in this life. He serves you by standing with you in times of temptation, doubt, need, and fear. May you be so blessed by Him now and always!

Pastor Brauer

Matthew 11:28-30

An Update on the Journey-from Mark Jerndt

Well it's all coming to a close, or should I say that a new adventure awaits me. Just the other day I expressed to one of my work associates; "Well the party is almost over". Her response was quite the contrary: "No, the party is about to begin".

In five business days, I will walk off the Sullair property for the last time as an employee.  I will walk away from an employer, who through

more than payment for services rendered, sustained me in so many ways over the past 29 years.  I look upon this as a kind of bittersweet ending.  Beyond leaving an employment that provided me with the monitory means to feed and care for the needs of my family, I also leave a wealth of treasured experiences, and of course the not so treasured.  I must also leave behind many valued friends, some of whom I shall never forget.  Those are the bitter parts if you will.  The sweetness is in the new venture that God has planned out for me through His infinite wisdom and timing, all in spite of my age.  Diane and I have shared and toiled together through thick and thin in all of our years together.  This is truly a new vista for both of us, and we are truly in this together.  She has been a wonderful wife and helpmate, and by the grace and blessing of God, He will allow us many more profitable years together.

I can with all confidence tell you that I am in a state of utter peace.  I just pray that it remains that way through the grueling years of study that await me.  For those of you that don't know "the rest of the story," let me leave with you a brief overview.  I will leave for Ft. Wayne, Indiana on Friday June 10.  I will be living on the campus of Concordia Theological Seminary, in a dorm, for 10-weeks during my summer Greek course.  At the end of those ten weeks, I receive a short reprieve.  I return to dorm activity in September, and begin the fall quarter with a full load of classes.  Through each succeeding quarter it will be my intent to drive home on weekends.  It will not be a weekend of total relaxation though.  I have been assured by the Pastor that I will be able to do my field here at St. John's.  This is a requirement that also earns credit hours.  This will require my involvement in the weekend worship services, teaching Bible class, visitation to the sick and homebound and whatever else is a part of it all. 

Diane will continue to teach at the high school during my two years of on campus schooling.  When I receive my 1-year vicarage assignment at the end of my two years of study, Diane and I will both be moving together and living together.  After that year is over, I then return to the seminary and go through graduation exercises and await a call to a congregation.  Purely by God's plan and His direction, I will then be ordained a Lutheran Pastor in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.  I'm truly excited about it all.  I am also left with a feeling of awe in how God has worked this all out.  The other part of my peace comes in knowing that in spite of the costs involved, the long periods of separation between Diane and I, and keeping things together on the home front, I know that God is in total control.  I take great comfort in the words of Jesus, which are a part of His Sermon on the Mount.  A portion of that is in Matthew 6:26 in which Jesus says; "Look at the birds of the air, they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more than they?" 

For those of you that have supported me with your prayers, your cards, your letters, your well wishes, and your strong words of encouragement, I cannot adequately express my deep thanks to every one of you.  In closing, I only ask that you would continue to remember Diane and I throughout the journey that awaits us both. 

May God's peace and richest blessings be with you

Mark Jerndt

May 20, 2005

VVVVV

A "goodbye" reception will be held Sunday June 5th at 9:30 am in the cafeteria for Mark Jerndt as he prepares to leave for the seminary to study for the Office of Holy Ministry. Please make plans to come and offer your prayers, blessings and well wishes for Mark

The meeting was called to order by Chairman Jim Foglesong and Pastor Young led the assembly in an opening prayer.

The minutes from the February 2, 2005 meeting and the April 24 special meeting were read and approved.

Josh Alexander, Nate Alexander, and Wendy Husmann were received as new voting members.

Pastors’ Reports

Pastor Young discussed the church as a dysfunctional family and the need for all members to take responsibility to be accountable to fellowship around the Word and Sacraments.

Because the principal was on a mission trip with the school children, there was no report.

Dale Fischer reported that $146,926.50 has been collected for the church’s Heating and Cooling Fund. This is an overage of $6362.50.

Dale also reviewed the balance sheet for 2004.

Eunice Wright made a motion that the Library Fund of $917.61 be moved from the Special Purpose Funds to Fund #11, a Library Fund. A second was heard. The motion failed.

A motion to approve the treasurer’s report was made, seconded, and passed.

A motion was made to present the following names for the slate for school board: Ricky Shortt and Josh Alexander. The motion was seconded.

A motion was made by Jim Crum to add the name Nate Alexander to the slate. The amendment was seconded and passed. The motion as amended was passed.

A motion was made to transfer the excess dollars (approximately $5000) in the church’s Heating and Air Conditioning Fund to a fund established for the school’s heating and air conditioning project. The motion was seconded and passed.

A motion was made to transfer $140,564 from the Heating and Air Conditioning Fund to the general fund. The motion was seconded and passed.

A motion was made to change Article 1 of the Bylaws to read: Regular meetings of the Voters’ Assembly shall be held semi-annually, in May and November. The motion was seconded. Following a discussion, the motion was defeated.

The appointment of Linda Peters as Finance Secretary was announced.

Dave Hoeppner made a motion that when a special voters’ assembly meeting between services is called that a specific time be set. The motion was seconded and passed.

Dale Fischer reported a need for swimmers for a local triathlon.

Respectfully submitted,

Penny Nelson, Secretary

St. John’s Annual Parking Lot Sale:

St. John’s Annual Parking Lot Sale will be held on Saturday, June 18 from 8 AM-1 PM. It’s a super garage sale where we do the advertising and you make the profits! Refreshments will be available for purchase. For only $5.00, you may rent a space to sell from your car trunk or bring your own tables and chairs. It is good fun and profitable! To reserve your space, call Imogene Dahl at 324-6668. Even if you don’t have anything to sell, make sure to come shop. There will be lots of garage sale items, crafts, and food.

Don’t forget to save your soda cans. We will be having our next can recycling day on January 18 also. Please bring your cans between 8 am and 11 am. Just drop them off in the grass near the parking lot school entrance.

Mark your calendar! The Sunday School Picnic will be held on Sunday, June 5 from 12-4 pm. This picnic/potluck is sponsored by the Sunday School but it is for everyone! Please join us for fun, food and fellowship. There will be games and activities for all.

The Sunday School is collecting videos and books to start a library for the children. There is a box for donations in the Sunday School opening room. Thank you.

The Board of Public Relations received and approved the final proof of the directory. We expect them to arrive any day. Watch the church bulletin for more information.

July 25-29 are the dates for VBS this year. Would you like to help with this summer’s VBS? Please contact Rhonda McConnell at 324-7626 for more information about our “Summer Safari”.

Experience a trip of a lifetime! “Jesus and the Galilee” Pastor Dan Streufert, pastor emeritus, Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, South Bend, IN and his wife, Donna, author and editor of Lutheran Woman’s Quarterly, are planning a journey to the Holy Land this fall. Join them in visiting the land of Jesus! See Galilee, Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Departure is November 7, 2005. Contact Streuferts at 574-291-8297 or email donnajs@michiana.org.

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