Christian Education News

Trinity Lutheran Church

VOLUME 4, ISSUE 7 JULY 2013

5758 M36 West

Pinckney, MI 48169-9716

Phone 734-878-5977

www.trinitypinckney.org

Glad Tidings

Other

opportunities to be in

God’s Word

Tuesday Morning

Bible Study at 10:00 a.m. This group has been using the

magazine “Good News”, which is published by Concordia Mission Society. The editor is the former

LHM speaker Wallace Schultz. There are several editions available in the

pastor’s study/office for anyone who would like to review a topic or use one

for a personal Bible study.

Wednesday morning

Wednesday Ladies Bible study: will be starting a new book July 3, From nail

biting to cell phone addiction, procrastination to overspending, bad habits seem to outnumber the good

ones. Unfortunately, we pay a price for bad habits that outweighs the

immediate gratification that they bring. In this book, Joyce Meyer starts

by examining the nature of habits.

If evenings are better, join us

at the Cottage Meetings the last Friday of the month at 7 p.m. hosted at a members home. July will be hosted

by the Eppler’s

Pastor Snider’s Sunday Adult Bible

Study will be stepping us through the book of Isaiah. Join us for this

insightful study of this important work of this prophet.

We hope to see all of you at one or more of these Bible Studies.

8 Days left until VBS!! We will explore 5 great Bible stories that all take place on top of mountains! We appreciate your prayers for Tell It on the Mountain, our Vacation Bible School being held on July 8th-12th. Ask God to bring children to our program so they can know and grow in Jesus, our Savior! Ask God to provide leaders and helpers for this important mission. Pray that families that don’t know Jesus will learn about him and join us here at Trinity.

You are invited to our VBS closing celebration! Please join us Friday, July 12th at 6:00 pm for dinner and 7:00 for our closing worship. You won’t believe how exciting and amazing it is to have our church packed with kids singing at the top of their lungs and I don’t want you to miss it!

Please check our mountain in the narthex for any tags left for items needed. Each tag will say “Borrow” if we only need to borrow the item. We need snacks for 60 kids and 30 helpers for 5 days so that is a lot of food!

The board of Education held our quarterly meeting on April 15th. Our

next meeting is scheduled for July 15th at 7:00 PM. Please plan to come if you have any ideas or input for us. We’d really appreciate your thoughts.

Don’t miss the cottage meeting Friday, July 26th at 7:00 pm at our house. We are hoping to have a fire out back if the weather permits. We hope you can make it!

Summer Sunday school is in session! This is a really fun time for our kids as we all learn together and have a more relaxed Sunday School pro-gram. Would you be willing to teach a day this summer? There is a sign-up sheet on the board. The lesson plan and materials are provided, we just need willing volunteers. We collected Sunday School offerings of $62 in the month of June to buy baby kits for the LWML convention. Thanks kids and adults for contribut-ing to this cause. In Christ,

Elizabeth Eppler

PAGE 2 GLAD TIDINGS VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7

Pastor ’s

Page

of implied promises. When we bring a child into this world we know that for a number of years we are committed to caring and pro-viding for them both spiritually and physically.

There is a difference however be-tween a promise and a contract. The promissory note that was men-tioned earlier is a hybrid that bridges the gap between promises and contracts.

Contracts bring into play the forces of the legal systems but promises don’t normally carry this formal process. In contracts there are terms and considera-tion and conse-quences, which are

not part of a promise given freely out of love.

Promises might be made for other reasons. Selfish reasons that are made to mislead. We hear occa-sionally about scams. These are planned deception, which lead a person to feel a promise was given but in the end there were illusions of truth.

So why all this talk about prom-ises? Well as was mentioned ear-lier at the commissioning of the leadership team there were prom-ises made by the team and by the congregation.

In September we will install the new officers for the congregation. They have been elected and are willing to serve Trinity but have not yet made it official. In each of these cases the promises are freely given and the one to whom they are given does not feel the need to go through a long and legal process to insure the legality of such a promise.

It is actually through the example that Jesus provides that we learn the intensity with which we are to keep promises made to each other. In a marriage the promises are made until death we do part. In Christ it was a promise that in

Anatomy of a Promise

By Pastor Snider

What are these things that we make to each other that we call a promise? What is the real make-up of these things? There are any number of reasons why any one of us might make a promise.

On June 23 and 30, we made several promises to each other and to our God regarding a Capital Funds Campaign. These had to do with God’s work in this place and support for each other according to what we are taught when we read His word.

It seems there are several different levels of promise that we as Chris-tians can make to each other. There are those, which are spoken, written and even some that are taken for granted. Probably the most com-mon would be the promise to pay money. This is usually in the form of a “promissory note” which we sign and exchange for a value.

The other common promise is the wedding vows that those who are married have taken and given. These are usually spoken before wit-nesses but there is usually no con-sideration given in return. These promises are freely given and freely kept.

As a members of a congregation in the LC-MS there are several times when we make a promise to remain faithful before the congregation. These promises are usually concern-ing service or commitment to sup-port an organization prayerfully or financially. These are part of the volunteer system, which is so impor-tant in keeping a congregation alive and growing.

There are many other times when we make commitments in the form

“...the intensity with

which we keep our

promises should be equal

to the example, which

Christ has shown us.”

death, His death, He would join all of us together. It is through His promise that we are able to expect others to follow the pattern of self-imposed commitments.

God promised to send a Savior. Many times people gave up and turned to other forms of gods but our God kept his promise—He sent His Son, Jesus Christ. Then Jesus made promises that He would teach us, that He would heal us, and that He would save us by dying on the cross.

It is not this level of commitment that we expect from anyone who is a promise maker but the intensity with which we keep our promises should be equal to the example, which Christ has shown us.

What a joy it is to join with work-ers in a congregation that has been blessed and because we are lead by the Holy Spirit to serve each other. It is my prayer that you will make and keep promises to each other and that you will intend to keep them with more intensity than a legal document following the ex-ample set by our Lord Jesus Christ.

PAGE 4 GLAD TIDINGS VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7

Praise and thanksgiving

Gracious God and Father, we humbly magnify the wisdom of your ways and in childlike trust commit ourselves to Your fatherly guidance. Uphold us, we pray You by Your right hand, guide us with Your counsel, and receive us at last into glory. We pray for those among us who are in special need of your guidance and healing:

Continued healing strength for Pastor Snider

For John and Diane Menning give them comfort, peace and strength.

Prayer List

Georgia Rydzewski --strength and health

Carolyn Benkovsky and Lee Clacher -- strength and healing

Betty Jean Sigro and Cathie Snider relief from pain

George Lasko, Janice Lasko’s father--hospitalized with pneumonia

Richard Parks, Kenny Cadle, Terry Kaczmarek, in their battles with cancer

For the soldiers overseas who are still protecting freedoms, our own and others in the world: Matt Hall

in Korea, Ken Alton and Anthony Chapman who are serving in Afghanistan. Keep Brandon Snider and family safe in their move back to the US.

Guidance and strength of faith and strength of spirit for the members of our congregation to help Trinity to send out the message of Christ.

Pray for our Missionaries in other countries that they remain safe in Your care as they spread Your Word

Happy Birthday!!

A very Happy Birthday from the members of Trinity Lutheran Church:

Patrick Gray 7/8

Brianna Polenz 7/8

Mathew Schultz 7/8

Emily Stadleman 7/12

Grant Stadleman 7/12

Robert Brumm 7/16

(Elizabeth) Meyer 7/16

Ellaina Beauchamp 7/22

Mikayla Forgette 7/23

Janet Salla 7/25

Laura Groeller 7/27

Andrea Buurma 7/29

James Dugan 7/30

Luke Eppler 7/30

Bryan Bickel 7/31 Ecclesiastes 11:8

However many years a

man may live, let him

enjoy them all. (NIV)

Anniversary wishes go out to:

Becky and Tyler Martin 7/31

Colossians 3:14

And beyond all these things

put on love, which is the

perfect bond of unity.

July 12

6:00 pm 7:00 pm Potluck

Trinity Lutheran Church

PAGE 5 GLAD TIDINGS VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7

Every three years LCMS households, congregations and organizations are invited to participate in a synodwide gathering of financial gifts called the National Offering. Leading with a collection received in worship services during the 2013 Regular Convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in St. Louis, this triennium’s National Offering gives participants five choices through which they can share Christ’s forgiveness and mercy both at home and abroad. It also affords LCMS congregations and their members an opportunity to demon-strate their commitment to our life together as the world’s leading confessional Lutheran body.

For the 2013-16 triennium, five gift designations cover a range of Wit-ness, Mercy, Life Together efforts, all of which happen only with broad

support from LCMS congregations and households. Baptized for this moment, you are free to join with your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ in sharing His forgiveness and mercy in a world desperately in need of it. Please join with others in support of this triennium’s National Offering.

2013 National Offering

Christie making Braille books for the

blind in El Salvador. We also stuffed

backpacks for kids, made coloring books

for orphan kids in Africa and highlighted

bible verses for people in prison.

(Gretchen Wick)

From Barb Yek: “Convention is awesome. Hope u can

come with us sometime. U would love it.

200 in choir!”

Snippets from LWML Convention

COMMEMORATIVE

CONTRIBUTIONS

In Celebration of Tom & Kay Wick's

50th Wedding Anniversary - a Build-

ing

Fund contribution was given by Greg

& Elizabeth Eppler

In Remembrance of Marie Haab

- a Building Fund contribution was

given by Barb Yek

In Memory of Jeanette Fansler -

Building Fund contributions were

given by Carole Clatcher, Barb Yek,

Greg & Elizabeth Eppler, Betty Van-

gorden, Deb Dugan and Tom Voltat-

torni

POSTAG

E

GLAD TIDINGS VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7 PAGE 6

As we mark the completion of one of the most significant membership votes in our organization’s history, I want to thank you for being a part of our vibrant Thrivent Financial community. Compared to previous votes, nearly twice as many members voted on the extension of our common bond from Lu-theran to Christian—that’s extraordinary participa-tion. An independent election services firm tallied the results. I’m pleased to report that almost 425,000 members voted and the extension passed, 72% to 28%. Extending our common bond will allow us to help more Christians be wise with money and live generously. Thank you to everyone who had a voice in this important decision, no matter how you voted. And thank you for being a member. We value you and are strengthening our organization to better serve you and your family for generations to come. Warmly,

Brad Hewitt

President and CEO

TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH

5758 M36 West

Pinckney, MI 48169-9716

8:45 am

Adult and Children’s Bible study

10:00 am

Divine Worship

Trinity Lutheran

Church

5758 M36 West

Pinckney, MI 48169-9716

Phone 734-878-5977

www.trinitypinckney.org