40

1 S

Ma

in

PO

Bo

x 6

0

Co

nco

rdia

MO

64

02

0

Pro

claim

mo

nth

ly n

ew

slet

ter

July 2020 St. Paul’s Lutheran Church

Concordia, MO

“Praying for Our Nation and Its Leaders” The Bible has much to say about prayer. It assures us God will hear our prayers (Jeremiah 29:12-13). We are encouraged to pray in times of trouble (James 5:13).

Our prayers need not be overly wordy (Matthew 6:7). Maybe we do not receive what we ask for in prayer because we have wrong, self-serving motives (James 4:3).

The Bible even gives us a model prayer—the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13).

The Bible also urges “that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way” (1 Timothy 2:1-2 ESV).

We hear a lot about what goes on in Washington D.C. Every word, every action is

put under the partisan microscope. It’s fodder for prognosticating and pontificating pundits. It’s the bread and butter of mainstream media. Aside from cat videos and

pictures of the food we eat, how else would social media continue without political posts and the acerbic comments they so often generate? Pray for our leaders. They need it.

Pray for our president, senators, and representatives. Pray for our governor. Pray for judges and all who adjudicate and administer our laws. These are human beings like you and me. They have gifts, talents, and training, yet they also have human

shortcomings and sinful guilt. Their work is hard, and what they do will always displease someone. Especially now, in an election year, especially now, as our

county faces social and economic turmoil, our leaders need our prayers. Pray for our leaders. We need it.

As each citizen takes an informed and active role in our political processes, the

place to start is prayer. Prayer recognizes our life and times are not in our control. Peter Marshall, Chaplain of the United States Senate from 1947-1949 once prayed, “We confess, our Father, that we know in our hearts how much we need Thee, yet

our swelled heads and our stubborn wills keep us trying to do without Thee.” On our knees, head bowed and hands folded, we cannot continue under the delusion

that our political positions, political activism, and the actions of our leaders—those I agree with and those with whom I disagree—are the determining factor in our

shared future. Rather, it is God in His limitless wisdom, who leads, guides, and

directs according to His supreme grace in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Perhaps the news coming out of our nation’s capital highlights yet another lesson the Bible teaches about prayer: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV).

Pastor Michael

____________________________ 1Catherine Marshall, ed., The Prayers of Peter Marshall (New York: Guideposts, 1954), 120.

2

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching Family Life Ministry

Where Do I Start? Sometimes the words flow easily when I write, and sometimes they do not. Sometimes I have an idea months before the looming

Proclaim deadline, and other times I have no clue until hours before it is due. Sometimes God puts situations or ideas before me

that I know are not a coincidence that I feel compelled to write about, and other times I procrastinate. I tend to write about things

I read, people I come into contact with, conversations that I have had, things that I have heard people say, situations I observe, personal experience, and the words that the beauty of nature

inspire within me, linking these everyday experiences together with the promises found in God’s Word. I don’t have it all

together and I don’t get it all right. Writing is sometimes an

overwhelming task because I don’t always know what to say, and

I feel like I owe the reader something that is worthy of their time. I want to engage my audience, but sometimes I don’t feel very engaging. I want to write so the words flow smoothly across the page, but sometimes my mind is a jumble. I want my writings to be easily understood, but words are not always

adequate. I don’t always follow grammar rules, and I am no bible scholar. To be quite honest, I don’t always feel like I am qualified, and once my words are out there on a printed page, there’s no taking

them back. Once I have given a glimpse into my soul, there is no hiding it again. I imagine that what some people take from my writings is not at all what I intended. Maybe they misunderstood something

in the way that I wrote my words, maybe I didn’t connect something correctly historically in the bible with my writings, maybe I took the words out of context and tried to apply them to something else....maybe this, maybe that. So where do I start?

I’ve learned that when my mind is racing or when I fell less than able, I need to start with what I know. I know that I am a loved and redeemed child of God. I know that Jesus died for my sins upon that cross

because He loves me with an unimaginable and incomprehensible love. I know that because Jesus rose, I will

one day live with Him eternally in heaven. I also know that I am a sinner and deserve nothing but death,

but because God sent His one and only Son to die for me, I know that He has a plan for me to live with Him eternally in heaven. I know that my Savior promises to be with me each and every second of every

day even though my thoughts and feeling may some days tell me differently. When I start to feel the gnawing feeling of inadequacy, or stress and fear seek to unravel me, my God is near. I know that Jesus has His hand outstretched for me to take hold of even when, and most importantly when, the journey of

life takes me down into the deep valleys that I never volunteered to travel. I also know that while I am here upon this earth, my Lord has a job for me. That job is to proclaim His name to all I come into con-

tact with whether it is through written words on a page, through spoken words that cross my lips, or simply through the actions that I exhibit. My prayer is always that the words of my mouth and the

meditation of my heart be acceptable to my Lord and Savior and bear witness to Him. That is my motivation. If my heart is in the right place armed with the promises of God, then I know that my God will equip me along the way as He leads me to do His will.

So where do I start? I start with what I know. Dig into those promises of God. They are meant for you! Yes, we are sinners in need of a Savior. Of course we don’t always get it right, but we are redeemed

children through the blood of the Lamb, living under God’s umbrella of grace to do His bidding daily. “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks

to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

~Gina Martens, Family Life Director

3

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching Congregation News

Lutheran Women in Mission

Members of the LWML Missouri District originally planned to gather in Springfield, Missouri, June 12-14, 2020, to celebrate the theme, “20/20 Faith Vision.” A virtual mini-convention was held Saturday,

June 13, 2020. Rev. R. Lee Hagan, Missouri District President tied current events to the theme verse based on 2 Corinthians 5:7: for we walk by faith, not by sight. Attendees enjoyed Bible study and teaching

by Deb Burma and DCE Mark Kempff. Rev. Michael Pottschmidt of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in

Concordia, Missouri, was elected the new junior pastoral counselor. A mission goal of $355,000 was adopted. President Sally Handrick reminded members “As we move onward into the next biennium with

our 20/20 Faith Vision, we walk by faith not by sight.”

Time to Submit Mission Grant Proposals for the 2021 national LWML Convention in Lexington, Ken-

tucky. Electronic submission is requested by August 15, 2020, and the final hard copy submission is to be postmarked by September 30, 2020. Proposal information is available at www.lwml.org under the Mis-sions tab.

Confirmation Rescheduled for August 23

Aid members are reminded to continue praying for their confirmand partners. May the Spirit keep them

faithful and trusting in Jesus.

Ladies Aid #1 will meet July 7, at 7:00 p.m., in the Parish Office. Yvonne Mitkos will lead the devotion.

The evening’s program will be a report on the Missouri District Convention.

1912 Ladies Aid plans to meet July 14, at 1:30 p.m., in the Parish Office Building. Norine Block will

lead the Bible study. For roll call, members will answer, “What are your favorite walking shoes?” Aid

members will be helping to sort at Orphan Grain Train on July 28, at 1:00 p.m.

LWML Missouri District Holds Mini-Convention

Check out www.missourilwml.org to view the speakers,

Bible studies, & election results.

What are

your favorite

walking

shoes?

[when walking by faith]

4

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching Congregation News

“The Book was Better” As you may know, I enjoy reading. So far in 2020, even in the midst of much of the other chaos (COVID-19, accreditation, etc), I found time to read fifteen books. I just

finished reading an excellent research book called “Relationships Count: Engaging and Retaining Millennials”.

Currently, I am reading the “Father Brown” series written by G. K. Chesterton between 1910 and 1936.

The stories tell the fictional tale of a Roman Catholic priest who regularly implants himself into local crime investigations. In 1974 and again since 2013, the BBC produced a “Father Brown” television series. While I enjoyed watching many episodes of “Father Brown”, I cannot help but think, “The

book was better”.

Many bad or inaccurate movies about The Bible have been produced. The movie “Noah” quickly comes

to mind. If you have not watched “Noah”, heed this advice, “Don’t!” “The Ten Commandments”, “The

Prince of Egypt”, and “The Passion” were all (according to some) enjoyable movies about The Bible; however, even still, I cannot help but think, “The book is better!”

While movies seek to entertain, the Bible displays God’s unending, unconditional, perfect love for mankind. While movies have some big-name actors (Heston, Crowe, Watson), the Bible has the name-

above-all-names (Jesus). While the movies show some great special effects, The Bible tells of the effect of sin and salvation through faith in God. The Bible was, is, and will always be the one true message of

faith and salvation for all mankind yesterday, today, and forever. What a great joy it is to me to share this message with the children of St. Paul’s Lutheran School!

~Nathanael Poppe, St. Paul’s Elem School Principal

Tails From Jessy the Comfort Dog Happy summer! I hope you are all enjoying this beautiful weather sent by God.

Church is open again! Praise God! I was able to go back to church to greet people this past Sunday. Everyone seemed so happy to be there. So many people were there. I don’t sing, but it was awesome to hear everyone sing “A Mighty Fortress” in

their best singing voices. It was a Sunday to remember!

Good news from my friends in Lake Ozark, MO. They are a congregation “in wait-ing” or “expecting” their Comfort Dog. They are going to be traveling next weekend to be trained as

handlers and caregivers, and they will finally get to meet their dog. The wait was long and hard at times. But they will soon be able to do all things that Comfort Dogs do. I wonder which dog it will be. I am the dog closest to Lake Ozark, so I think we will be good friends. God’s blessings to them on their new

endeavor.

I went to a wedding a couple of weeks ago. The son of one of my handlers, and brother of another was married in our church. I enjoyed getting to greet the guests as they came into church. It was a sunny day,

but I decided to stay indoors for the reception because my fur tends to make me hot on days like that. As more things open, I hope to be out and about more too. I hope to see you soon.

Love, Jessy

5

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching

The Bees of God It’s happened to many of us. Your email didn’t go through. It could be a matter of just one letter or symbol being incorrect in the address. One

mistake prevented your message from being received.

Several years ago, the Nsenga New Testament translation team in Zambia discovered that one wrong letter is enough to make a huge

difference in the meaning of a Bible verse. While proofreading they

discovered that Romans 8:14 said ‘Wonse otanguliliwa na Nzimu wa

Mulungu ni wana a Mulungu.’ It’s supposed to say ‘Mzimu wa Mulungu.’ (For those who are led by

the Spirit of God are the children of God.)

What’s the problem? Mzimu means spirit. Nzimu are bees. Being led by the bees of God might seem

humorous to us—we can figure out what it’s really supposed to mean. But what if you were totally

unfamiliar with Scripture, knew nothing about Christianity? God gave us Holy Scripture so that we might know His plan

for our salvation. He tells us who we are, where we came from, how to live. Further, He commands that we share this

Good News so that others might believe. It is essential that the integrity of His Word is not impaired. That is why

missionaries serving through Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT) are highly trained. It’s the reason mother tongue speakers serve on translation teams on the field and why

draft portions are painstakingly checked and tested for accuracy.

Bible translations into the major European languages

began over 500 years ago. The Nsenga received the New Testament for the first time in their language just 4 years ago. Today, millions of people still remain without one word

of Scripture in their languages.

God’s Message must be sent, received, and understood by people everywhere. And to be understood, it must be

accurately translated—every word, every letter, every nuance. Thank you for supporting Bible translation through your prayers and gifts!

Mission News

6

John & Jan Beerman

Paul & Jean Frerking

Andrew & Jennifer Jones

12 Beth Maggert

Lily Petty

Steve & Christy Frerking

13 Bradley Meineka

Linda Meineka

Ann Wolters

14 Colleen Gerdts

LaVern Meyer Mary Nierman

Gail Tieman

Nathan & Ann Beissenherz

Charles & Betty Bishop

15 Linda Anderson

Julie Bickle

Joshua Brown

Barb Eckhoff

Truman Eckhoff Carolyn Flandermeyer

Thomas Kirchhoff

Gordon & June Durand

Todd & Annette Kanoy

16 Chloe Brown

Abigayle Hartwig

Hope Mehl

Marta Pitsch Rustin Strobel

Jake Tagtmeyer

Dennis Tieman Walter & Judy Loeber

17 Barbara Alewel

Wilbert Schlesselman Carl & Julie Bonar

Mark & Melissa Grass

Brad & Judy Roepe

18 Donna Deterding

Larry McGinnis Craig Poese

Ben & Katelynn Stuenkel

19 Joanna Peuster

Braylon Wiskur

20 Kelly Frerking

Nathan McCaslin

Phyllis Mieser

David Rehmsmeyer Larry & Grace Grass

21 Kayla Clouse

Susan Jaster

Faith Moore

Kaleb Virus

Randy & Sandra Hinck

William & Angela Ivie

Brad & Sarah Meineka

Dennis & Susan Petty

22 Violet Kirchhoff

Todd Martens

Roger & Vicki Kirchhoff

Tracey & Pamela Werths

23 Karen Bauer

Sarah (Jeff) Heins Norma Iserman

Stephanie Luetjen

Jennifer McCaslin Eric Ritzma

Mark & Susan Oetting

24 Arleen Fiene

Brayden Frerking

Curtis Meyer

Marie Meyer Harland & Phyllis Mieser

25 Brenda Frerking

Jameson Oetting

Rose Sortore

26 Sherry Graham

Lee Harrington

Robin Kerksiek

Darlene Meyer Logan Muehler

Jeffrey Schlueter

27 Ava Denton

Jesse Flandermeyer

Nathan Gerdts

Debra Kirchhoff Noah Rankin

Charles Snider

Darl & Geri Fuhrman

Ronald & Karen Heins

28 Melanie Dittmer

Karrah Rehkop

Krista Rehkop

Stephen & Tina Bredehoeft

29 Thomas Bennett

Lyle Freund Marlene Lange

Tiffanie Schuette

Connie Tebbenkamp

30 Robin Graves

Mark Heins

Victoria Pottschmidt Breawna Woods

31 Judy Krause

Matthew Rankin Joseph and Lori Connell

1 Rachel Lange

Roman Strobel

Omar & Gracie Bredehoeft

Mark & Patty Schnakenberg

2 Betty Bishop

Gina Butler

Ruby Dean Frerking

Rebecca Heath Steven Kirchhoff

Donna Maddox

Rod McCaslin Rick & Diana Stumbaugh

3 Linda Kammeyer

Kayla Muehler Christine Murray

Daniel Reith

Brett & Debra Brackman

Chris & Amy Gerdts

John & JoAn Jacobsen

4 Herbert Aversman

Steven Knight

Mary Krause Kim Roepe

5 Breana Rolf

6 Hayden Brandt

Julia Peuster

David & Alyssa Pfannkuch

7 Carolyn Graham

Rebekah Grass Jesse Palmer

Tim and Hope Mehl

Todd & Rachel Martens

8 Wil Ivie, Jr

Russell Kruse

Sara Nierman Kim Strobel

9 Loetta Flandermeyer

Leticia Kruse

John Kuecker

10 Omar Bredehoeft

David Meyer

Harry Rehkop IV

Adam Roepe Chris & Abbie Wasson

11 Alicia Heimsoth

Johnie Meyer

James Peuster

Andrew Self

Rebekah Self Cynthia Stuenkel

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching July Birthdays and Anniversaries

7

Preaching...Teaching...Reaching

Serving this Month - July

Elders - Eric Ritzma;

Paul Brandt; Don Schlesselman

Sound System - Bill Ivie 8:00am

Jon Haase 10:30am

Ushers - Chad Nuelle;

Tyler Frerking; Matthew Rose

8:00am: Randy Mahnken, Capt.;

Rusty McGinnis, Alan Vogelsmeier, Jeffrey Heins, Roger Luedeman, Kevin Hemme, Neal Hinck,

Kent Petty, Mark Schelp, Pat Inman, Hayden Brown,

Carter Brown,Mark Petersen, Chris Maggert, Gerry Stauch

Altar Guild - Rachel Lange;

Norine Block; Alice Strobel

Dial-A-Devotion - Rev. Michael

Pottschmidt

10:30am: Ben Lange, Capt.; Greg Schmidt, Andrew Oetting,

Stan Kirchhoff, Greg Brown, Kyle Borgstadt, Aaron Frerking,

Allan Hentges

8

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

1

2

3

4

5

8 (

C)

& 1

0:3

0 W

ors

hip

Serv

ices

6

7

7pm

Ladie

s A

id #

1 (

PO

)

8

9

10

11

12

8 &

10:3

0 (

C)

Wors

hip

Serv

ices

13

7pm

Wors

hip

w/C

om

munio

n

14

1:3

0pm

1912 L

adie

s A

id

(PO

)

15

16

17

18

19

8 (

C)

& 1

0:3

0 W

ors

hip

Serv

ices

9:1

5 a

m -

B.C

.

9:3

0am

- G

SC

C W

ors

hip

20

21

22

23

24

25

8am

Youth

Easte

r E

gg

Colo

r R

un

26

8 &

10:3

0 (

C)

Wors

hip

Serv

ices

27

28

29

30

31

St.

Pa

ul’s

Eva

ng

eli

cal

L

uth

era

n C

hu

rch

4

01

S.

Ma

in

Co

nc

ord

ia,

Mis

so

uri

6

402

0

Chu

rch O

ffic

e:

46

3-2

29

1

Ju

ly 2

020

- C

hu

rch

Cale

nd

ar

CC

- C

onfe

rence C

ente

r

PO

- P

arish O

ffic

e

GS

CC

-

Good S

hepherd

Care

Com

munity

S.S

. –S

unday S

chool

B.C

. -B

ible

Cla

ss

(C)

- C

om

munio

n