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A Newsletter concerning the
Mission and Ministry
of St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, La Porte, IN
Vol. 55 October 2006
No. 9
“As one family, we lovingly proclaim Jesus Christ.”
From Your Pastors
From Pastor Young:
As we begin to celebrate the annual ritual of watching leaves turn and
reform in majestic colors, we are reminded that the end of October brings us
another “reformation.” On October 31, 1517, a German monk named Martin Luther
nailed his 95 Theses to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany, dealing
the symbolic blow that began the Reformation. That document contained an attack
on papal abuses and the sale of indulgences by church officials.
The indulgence being hawked by another monk, Johann Tetzel, worried Luther
because he saw it as misinforming lay people (i.e., non-clerics) about crucial
aspects of God's plan for redeeming fallen humanity - about, in other words, the
whole purpose of history, and about the nature (specifically, the Will) of God.
To be misinformed in essentials about the nature of God means that what one ends
up obeying is a false image of God. The Gospel of salvation was falsely
imprisoned.
But Luther himself saw the Reformation as something far more important than a
revolt against ecclesiastical abuse: it was a fight for the gospel. And at the
heart of the gospel, in Luther's estimation, was the doctrine of
justification by faith--the teaching that Christ's own righteousness is
imputed to those who believe, and on that ground alone, they are accepted by
God.
Our battles may be different this October, but our enemy is still the same.
The Gospel of forgiveness won on the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ is still
under attack by the evil one, “prowling around, looking for someone to
devour” (1st Peter 5:8). In many ways, our battle to re-establish
the Gospel in our world is a battle to have neighbors, friends and loved ones
know that because of the life, death, and resurrection of
Jesus, they have been accepted by God. It is a battle to lead others through
the false images of God that seize the life-giving Gospel and exchange it for
the deceptive shallowness of materialism and autonomy. And it is a battle
against the lies that falsely convince us we can do
“what-we-want-when-we-want” and maintain our relationship with a loving yet
jealous Creator.
Dear friends, do not be deceived! While the demands of the world try to
separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, we believe and
maintain as our forefathers did almost half a millennium ago that we are saved
by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, and trust this is true by what
Scripture alone tells us! These three “Solas” of the Reformation remind us that
God does the work, the love, the giving and the doing for us!
He calls us only to trust and receive his good and gracious gifts and
tells us that they are in abundance whenever two or more gather in Christ’s
name.
Make your life’s’ “Reformation” a commitment to knowing that “since we
have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we
now stand” (Romans 5:1-2).
Sola Dei Gloria!
Yours in Christ’s service,
Pastor Young
From Pastor Brauer:
The Introit Psalm for Pentecost 17 (the first Sunday in October) comes
from Psalm 116. Today we look at these words: “Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you. For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from
death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the
Lord in the land of the living” (Psalm 116:6-8). In a simple way the
psalmist declares our justification (God has been good to us and has delivered
us) and our sanctification (we walk before the Lord).
It’s a ‘both-and’ action. Our being made holy (sanctification) cannot occur
unless we have been made right (justified) before God. We are made just before
God in order to walk before Him in holiness and righteousness all the days of
our lives. When we fail to walk before the Lord (as described by actions
forbidden in the Ten Commandments) we fall into sin. But our Good Shepherd Jesus
would not leave us or forsake us, but will leave the righteous and search for us
and call us to repentance. Cleansed and restored through Word and Sacrament, we
continue to live in the grace of God.
October brings the theme of the Reformation to mind as we remember what
Martin Luther would want the Roman Church to know. He would reform the Church by
bringing back the pure teachings of Holy Scripture. While the Roman Church would
eventually excommunicate Luther as a heretic, he began that movement of reform,
protesting the evil practices of the Church.
Each day, a re-formation must be made in our lives as well. This re-formation
is made when the old evil attitude, the Old Adam, in us is drowned and killed,
recalling the waters of our baptism, and the new man that lives in Christ daily
comes forth and arises. The actions of justification and sanctification are both
GOD’S action, not ours. That’s hard for some people to swallow, for they think
they can do something toward their being made right with God or even living a
holy life on earth. They think God needs a little help from us (as though God
didn’t do enough for our salvation and there’s a little left over for us to
do—And with that kind of theology there’s always doubt as to ‘how much’ we have
to do!) All man is capable of doing is turning away from what God has
established. What God expects of us is to remain faithful by believing in the
One whom He has sent, namely, Jesus Christ. “Abide in Me,” Jesus said,
“for apart from Me you can do nothing.” It stands to reason, that if you are
not abiding in Christ, if you are not walking before the Lord in the land of the
living, then you are in the land of the dead! (That’s Law!)
We believe, teach, and confess that Jesus Christ has done it all. (That’s
Gospel!) Jesus has, in the words above, “delivered my soul from death, my
eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.” It’s a completed action, declared
by Jesus Himself from the cross, “It is finished.” It’s done. It’s
complete. There’s nothing on our part to do lest we come in and boast that we
finished what God was not powerful enough to do. Now, we “walk before the
Lord in the land of the living,” to thank and praise, serve and obey Him, to
be His own and live under Him in His kingdom.
How is that done here at St. John’s? God gives the baptized the Holy
Christian Church in which they gather to receive His blessings through Word and
Sacrament. We serve God in joyful response to His great love to us in all we do,
with all we have. We support those efforts that would help preach, teach,
baptize, and make disciples of all nations, starting with the household and
neighborhood in which you live. Our Ladies’ Circles and our Parish Fellowship
Board endeavor to help our members live in that fellowship within the context of
faith. Our Ladies’ Circles, (and in the history of St. John’s there were around
10 Circles with 30-45 members each!), are looking for addition women to join
them. The Parish Fellowship Board promotes ways for all our members to have
Christian fellowship, such as at the Church Picnic and Hog Roast, Progressive
Dinners (one to be done this month), and Pot Luck meals, and other activities.
What God does to us and for us in the Divine Service through Word and
Sacrament begins that which is lived out in faith the rest of our lives. Our
times of Christian fellowship surround us with ways in which we can “walk
before the Lord in the land of the living.” We know people who need help
because they stumble in life (as we often do), because they also shed tears of
sorrow and pain (as we often do) and they need deliverance from death (just as
we do). The Lord has been good to you. May His grace strengthen you to deliver
the good news of Jesus’ love to those who stumble, weep, or are dying.
Pastor Ron Brauer
Matthew 11:28-30
Principal’s Report
From Mr. Wippich: ..
I. School Calendar Items:
10/1-3 ÎNPEC Conference
10/9 Grade 2-Garwood's
10/10 No bus service
Grade 4 Field trip
10/11 Muffins for Moms 7:00 am
Symphony Concert
10/12 Grades 1,3,5,8-Vision Screening-9:15 am Boston/9:00 am bus
10/17,24,31 BAT (Basic First Aid Training)
10/18 10:30 am Assembly-Indiana Homeland Security Director
Dr. J. Eric Dietz
10/19 No School
Parent Teacher Conferences 12:30-8:30 pm
10/20 No School
10/25 Donuts for Dads-7:00 am
10/25 Wheel of Wisdom-10:00 am
10/27 Fish Fry 4-7:00 pm
II. Enrollment:
131 preschool through grade 8
III Other Items:
St. John’s Lutheran School’s PTL held a meeting and elected the following
officers:
Nicole Schuster-President
Susan May-Vice President
Diane Wilzcewski-Treasurer
Kristin Boklund-Secretary
St. John’s Lutheran School received the Exemplary rating from the State
Board of Education. This is the highest rating they extend. You may have seen
in the newspaper that our rating is higher than the ratings of a number of the
public schools in town. Our school scored:
100% pass in grades 5-8 in math .
93% pass from grade 3-8 in math
90% pass from grade 3-8 in language
100% pass in grade 5-6 in both areas of the test
Muffins for Moms is 10/11/06 in the cafeteria at 7:00 am. and Donuts for
Dads is on 10/25/06 at 7:00 am in the cafeteria.
Chapel follows this event at 8:05 am, all are encouraged to attend.
On 10/18/06 at 10:30 in the gymnasium Dr. J. Eric Dietz, the head of
Indiana Homeland Security, will be giving an assembly for the school children.
All are welcome to attend. Dr. Dietz is the brother in law of Linda Woodruff.
Pizza Hut Fund Raiser days are scheduled as follows: 9/20, 10/25, 11/29,
12/13 from 4-11:00...proceeds will help us finance our grade 6-8 trip to
Washington D.C. next spring. Pizza Hut management requires us to hand a
voucher slip to the delivery person or to the counter person upon purchasing.
We receive 20% of all profits from those slips. You may find these slips in
the school office, church office or in the church...Thanks for your help.
6. The faculty will be attending a conference in Indy on October 2-3. All
costs for this trip will be covered by a grant Mr. Wippich wrote for
professional development for $4610.00. This money allows the faculty to stay
current in topics of educational interest and is money the church does not have
to expend. There is no school on Monday and Tuesday.
Mrs. Martinsen recently wrote a grant through the SOY group to fund
materials for bully education. This grant allowed us to purchase over $500.00
worth of material for instruction and information.
Congratulations are in order to Jan as she successfully completed her
Fulbright Scholarship to Japan. Jan applied for this opportunity to visit and
study the educational environment in Japan and has already presented her
PowerPoint slide show to a few groups in the church and the school. This
scholarship allowed her to travel to Japan for a few weeks with other
scholarship winners. All costs were covered by the Fulbright Scholarship.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
From the Board of Parish Fellowship:
Pastor Appreciation Day: The month of October is designated to
honor our Lutheran Ministers. Sunday, October 8, 2006, we will honor our two
dedicated pastors -- Rev. David M. Young and Rev. Ronald A. Brauer -- for
their tireless work of providing for the spiritual needs of our congregation.
Please join us between services for Fellowship Coffee and Reception to express
our thanks and gratitude for all that they do for us. We are having a
breakfast brunch. Anyone wishing to contribute a breakfast treat should
contact Linda Peters at 393-3496 or Marilyn Sawyer at 362-6069. Gift baskets
for Cards of Appreciation will be available during the coffee hour.
Fall Progressive Dinner: How would you like to enjoy an Ethnic
dinner prepared and served by one of our church members? We have many among us
who are skilled in the culinary art of preparing a German, Chinese, Japanese,
Indian, Cuban, Polish, or another ethnic entree that he or she would like to
share with a group of eight in your home. Now is the time to plan. Mark your
calendars to attend or host one of the Ethnic Dinner parties Friday, October
13, 2006; then complete the enclosed form and place in the offering plate or
bring into the church office no later than 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, October 10. Of
course, we will need to know who the host families are sooner. As usual, the
hors d'oeuvres will be served in the ladies lounge of St. John's Lutheran
School at 6:00 p.m. Then, we'll move on to our host family's home for the
delicious ethnic entree. Following the meal, we'll journey out to the Clarence
Spear home on Fail Road for dessert and other surprises. Doesn't this sound
like fun? Come, join us.
HVAC Fundraiser Fish Fry-Friday, October 27, 2006:
The Board of Trustees, along with numerous volunteers, is having a
Fish Fry to raise money toward the balance of the HVAC Fund. We are looking for
sponsors to offset the cost, and our goal is as follows:
10 Sponsors to donate $100.00 each for a box of fish-Sponsors will
receive 4 free dinner tickets
20 Sponsors to donate $50.00 each to help provide potatoes, baked beans,
beverages, cooking oil and miscellaneous items-Sponsors will receive 2 free
dinner tickets.
If you can help with a donation or services, please contact Linda Woodruff in
the Church Office. Thank you in advance for your support!
More about the Fish Fry: Ticket prices this year are $7.50 in advance
and $8.00 at the door. Tickets for children under 12 years of age are $4.50.
Carry outs will be available and as usual pie will be available at extra cost.
Tickets are available from board members and Linda has them in the Church
Office also.
Much preliminary preparation work must be done, such as filling cups with
cole slaw, scrubbing and wrapping potatoes for baking, wrapping tableware with
napkins, breading fish, ticket sellers, ticket takers and greeters. Finally, we
need clean-up people -- individuals responsible for cleaning tables and folding
them along with the chairs for storage; and last, but not least, vacuum the gym
floor. Set aside some time to help with the above tasks, then call Dawn Crum
at 324-2985, Paul Tibbs at 369-8658 or Linda in the church office at 362-3726
to ask how you can be of help to make this a successful fish fry. We need
many hands! Volunteer today!
We will need pies for dessert. Anyone wishing to donate pies should have
them at the school gymnasium by 4 p.m. the day of the fish fry. If you have
any questions, please call Annette Williams at 326-8017.
From the Activities Committee:
St. John’s will be having their annual Fall Bazaar and Luncheon on
October 19, 2006. The Bazaar will start at 9:00 AM and the Luncheon at 11:00 AM
to 1:00 PM. Mark your calendar and ask a friend to come along. Tickets are on
sale at the Church Office or from any Activities Committee member. Advance
tickets are $5.00 for adults, $6.00 at the door, and $2.00 for children under
12. Carry-outs will be available. For more information call Marilyn Boardman at
362-7256.
Your Invitation to Join Sunday School:
Children in our Day School benefit from learning the lessons taught
in our Sunday School as these lessons build their Bible knowledge. There are
also times of fellowship with special activities during the year. Sunday School
starts at 9:30 AM in the Church basement. Come and join the fun and bring a
friend.
And for the Adults:
Two Sunday Morning Bible classes are available, one on the book of
Job and the other is our Discipleship class. Pastor Young is leading the study
of the life of Job; this class meets in the cafeteria. Come and receive strength
and support for your times of suffering and doubt. Pastor Brauer will lead a
Discipleship class, using Martin Luther’s Small Catechism. If it has been
a couple of years since you studied or reviewed your catechism, then this class
is for you; this class meets in the Ladies Lounge. They both begin at 9:30 am.
Pumpkin Fest:
Sunday, November 12, 2006 is Pumpkin Fest day. Come one, come all to
Fellowship Coffee hour between services and enjoy luscious pumpkin treats before
attending Sunday School, Discipleship Class or Adult Bible study at 9:30 a.m.
From St. John’s Newspaper Committee:
The St John’s Newspaper Committee is now selling Al’s and Kroger
certificates in $20 and $10 denominations. We have undertaken this for a money
making project since we aren’t doing as much paper stuffing as we used to. The
profits from this endeavor will continue to help our church and school. We will
accept cash and checks made out to “St. John’s Newspaper Committee.” Only
checks made out this way will be accepted.
Certificates will be sold by Karen Piper 362-8070, Ellen Heidel 352-5694, and
Linda in the church office. Please contact Karen and Ellen to make arrangements
to get the certificates, or pick them up in the office.
Kroger and Al’s Certificates will also be available for purchase in
the school on Sunday, October 1 and Sunday, October 8 between services.
News from Duneland Lutheran High School:
The 6th annual benefit concert for Duneland Lutheran High School has
been scheduled for Sunday, November 12, 2006. The concert will begin at 3:00 PM
and will be held in the fellowship hall of Immanuel Lutheran Church, 1237 East
Coolspring Avenue, Michigan City, Indiana.
This year’s concert will be “cabaret” in style. It will feature cabaret music
ranging from medieval times to contemporary Broadway show tunes. Participating
will be the Early Music Consort conducted by Chris Sturgeon, the Duneland
Chamber Orchestra conducted by Dan McNabb, the Duneland Lutheran High Choir
under the leadership of Laurie Rockensuess, and soloists Virginia Oram, Mary Lee
Riley, and Donna Mitchell. Master of Ceremonies for the event will be the
well-known violinist Nicholas Orbovich.
Hors d’oeuvers and non-alcoholic sparkling beverages will be served.
Donations for the concert are $25 per person or $40 per couple. Tables of
eight may be reserved for $200. Those reserving tables may place an ad or a
personal announcement in the concert’s program.
In order to reserve your tickets or a table, visit the school, or contact the
school by phone at 219-874-5103, or email dunelandlutheran@comcast.net.
The fall benefit concert is a major fundraiser for the school. This year’s
enrollment of 35 is “capacity” for its facilities. Therefore, Duneland Lutheran
High School looks to soon move to larger temporary quarters and plans continue
for its permanent campus in the Westville area.
See you at the concert on Sunday, November 12, 2006 at 3:00 PM. It should be
a great afternoon at which a good time will be had by all.
Help Wanted:
The Trustees are looking for a custodian/maintenance person to work
approximately 20-25 hours a week. The job description includes:
cleaning of church and school, setting up tables and chairs, general
maintenance of plumbing and electrical, and snow removal off sidewalks.
Applications are available at the church office. Thanks for your consideration.
The School needs a Pre-Kindergarten Aid and a Day Care worker.
The Pre-K position is for M/W/F mornings, the Day Care position hours are
varied. One person could fill both positions with a total of approximately 20
hours. Please call the school office for more information.
Executive Director of Indiana’s Department of Homeland Security is coming to
St. John’s:
St John’s Seniors are privileged to have J. Eric Dietz, Ph.D.,
the first executive director of Indiana’s Department of Homeland Security,
coming to speak at our October potluck meeting. Recently retired from the U.S.
Army after a 22 year career, Dr. Dietz earned his undergraduate degree in
chemical engineering and Masters of Science from Rose-Hulman Institute of
Technology and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University.
Especially since 9/11 our safety is of importance to all of us, so we are
inviting all members of St. John’s, regardless of age, to come to this meeting
to learn more about Indiana’s preparedness in the event of a terrorist attack or
a natural disaster.
The potluck dinner will be served in the school cafeteria at 11:30 am on
October 18, 2006. If you would like to join us for the dinner please bring your
own table service and a covered dish to share, but if you prefer to come just
for Dr. Dietz’s message please be in the cafeteria by 12:30 pm. You’ll be glad
you came!
Join the Seniors for a show and lunch:
There are a few spots still open to see Forever Plaid
on November 30, 2006 at Drury Lane-Oak Brook Terrace.
“1950’s Pop Music is alive! Four young men who missed their chance at fame
due to a deadly car crash are sent back to earth and given one chance to perform
the big concert they never made it to. Get ready to tap your toes and laugh till
it hurts. You’ll leave the theatre smiling and humming one of your old
favorites.”
Cost for the show, lunch and transportation is $65.00. Make your
reservations and payment now! Please call Tour Director, Eunice Wright, at
219-362-7947 for more information.
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