February 2021 From Your Congregational President

Posted on February 2, 2021 by Jill Richard

February 2021 From Your Congregational President

Declaring & Teaching – Jesus is Lord !

Well, Lent is quickly approaching, Ash Wednesday is just a short time away on
February 17.

We have much to be grateful for this year, regarding COVID-19, by the Grace of God we are all generally healthy.

The Fish Fry on Ash Wednesday last
year was our last traditional church gathering that we had prior to the shutdown
of 2020.

No real point, just acknowledging it has been a year. I have to say there are many things that I like about the new normal.

Pretty light on the news front for the church, so here is some information about
the letters that St. Paul wrote:
I have often wondered the chronology of these books and was excited when I
found this.

Hope all is well, Blessings
In His Service,
Tim Grace

Preschool Update – Mrs. Prehm January 2021

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Jill Richard

“SENT TO SERVE”

National Lutheran Schools Week

Matthew 20:28: “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”

January 24 – 30, 2021

St. Paul Lutheran Preschool serves as a partner with families in nurturing the faith of their children. Our Preschool serves St. Paul Lutheran Church by being a mission outpost to our community. St. Paul Lutheran Preschool serves the world with the Gospel!

We also serve in the name of Jesus! The last week of January is National Lutheran Schools Week. The theme for 2021 is “Sent to Serve” and is guided by Matthew 20:28: “Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Lutheran schools share the life-changing message of Jesus’ love with more than 180,000 students, their families, and the community. Because Jesus was “Sent to Serve” as our Savior. Jesus’ saving service brings us forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.

St. Paul Lutheran Preschool Events for National Lutheran Schools Week:

Monday: JESUS – Sent to Serve

Tuesday: TEACHERS & PASTORS – Sent to Serve

Wednesday: Serving Together on God’s Team

Thursday: Serving in Home and Community

Friday: Sent to Serve in the World

In His Service,

Mrs. Prehm

A Message from Pastor Don – January 2021

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Jill Richard

S.P.A.R.K.

(St. Paul Church’s Announcements to Read and Know)

January 2021

What a way to end 2020: I bit down on a Good & Plenty candy on Christmas Eve while I was unwrapping presents with my family and I cracked a tooth which caused an infection! I was in horrible pain the following Sunday and by the time you read this I’ll be closer to having the tooth pulled. I’m praying I can start the New Year without pain. I pray those of you who have suffered with pain through the last year will also receive relief and healing from God. I don’t know why some of us suffer for so long with pain. We read in Scripture that our pain acknowledges our need for a Savior, glorifies God, and that at times we receive these things as discipline from the Lord. That doesn’t always make it easier though when all you can think about is your pain. So, Lord willing, here’s to a pain-free, or less-pain 2021!

I want to thank all of you again who participated in our first, Covid-style live nativity on December 19^th. It was great fun even though the weather outside was frightful. I enjoyed seeing many of you drive through whom I haven’t seen since March. And it was a joy to see most of our preschool families drive thru as well, along with lots of other people from the community. I was overjoyed to see and hear how so many of you were happy to do something together as a church. It’s no small matter that our second outreach event this crazy year next to VBS was an onsite live nativity. Many people came to our campus and saw first-hand what we are about—declaring Jesus is Lord. They saw and spoke with friendly people willing to stand outside in poor weather, kids dressed up as angels and shepherds, heard our Praise Team sing carols on the radio, as well as Bible readings from some of you. They received a gift from us and also donated generously to our food bank for the homeless. Praise God!

Another not-so-small matter is the fact that our governor changed Covid safety requirements for faith groups to “recommendations.” What does this mean for our church? It means we can do whatever we want now. The question is, should we? Some of you believe the elders and I have not taken Covid safety serious enough, while others believe we are overdoing it. All this time we have been operating under the state’s guidelines for faith groups and using common sense. God has been good to us as we have not had to turn anyone away from participating at in-person worship because we went over our 25 person limit. Yes, there have been a few Sundays when we were over 25 people in church, but they were in family groups sitting together. This has not been a regular occurrence and it stands to reason that it hasn’t caused a compromise in safety to the point where we are not taking things seriously. Your elders and I will continue to review Covid safety and church operations on a monthly basis. As it stands today, it looks like the best route is to continue Sunday worship under the Phase I guidelines because they seem to balance safety and practicality fairly well in a sanctuary of our size. We will continue wearing masks, have hand-sanitizer available and will clean touched surfaces in between services. Our 25 person limit in marked pews will also continue, but again, if we have 26 people on a Sunday, we’re not going to ask that 26^th person to leave. Once the numbers of Covid cases start dropping in our county, then we will consider increasing our in-person capacity. Until then, please continue participating in the spiritual life of the congregation at home via our online services.

May the blessings from God continue this New Year for you, your entire household, and our church.

Pastor Don

January 2021 From Your Congregational President

Posted on January 5, 2021January 5, 2021 by Jill Richard

Declaring & Teaching – Jesus is Lord!

Come one come all, the installation of Boards and Officers will take place on January 10, 2021, during Sunday church services. We plan to have a catered meal at a later date due to being in Phase 1.

Philippians 4:1-9

Don't worry talk to God

Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved. I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord. Indeed, true companion, I ask you also, help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement as well as the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all people. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things. As for the things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

St Paul has included some additional funds in our budget this year for missions, if anyone is aware of a mission that is in alignment with our purpose and values, please reach out to one of our Pastors, Elders or myself so we can continue to grow and support His body in 2021. Blessings.

In His Service,

Tim Grace

Message from Pastor Kiessling – January 2021

Posted on January 5, 2021January 5, 2021 by Jill Richard

A Note from Pastor Rich – January 2021

Angel Said

The angel said, “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all people.”

Are you overwhelmed by what is going on in your life, the country, the world? Are you tired, frustrated, lonely? Find hope in the Christmas story! Rejoice! Jesus loves you! He came to save us. You can face 2021 with confidence. No matter what the year brings, we have good news. Let the good news put a smile on your face! Share the good news with your family, relatives, and friends. God bless you with great joy.

We will continue having Senior Saints on Zoom. We start again on January 13, 1:30 pm. We hope we can start gathering in person. What a blessing that will be.

Maxine and I pray that 2021 will find you rejoicing in the Good News.

In Christ’s Love,
Pastor Rich

Happy New Year from your church mouse.

It has been a lonely time for me. I hope I can see you in person soon. I have some smiles for you.

Smiles generate happiness, so here we go.

Why should you put your new calendar in the freezer? So you can start the New year in a cool way.
What does a ghost say on January 1st? Happy Boo year!
I was going to quit all my bad habits for the New Year…but nobody likes a quitter.
What do you get if you steal a calendar? 12 months
What is a New Year’s Resolution? Something that goes in one year and out the other
An IPhone and a firework were arrested on New Year’s Eve. One was charged and the other was let off.
An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves

Goodbye for the year. See you next year!
Love, Zeke

Drive Thru Nativity Sherwood Oregon

Posted on December 2, 2020 by Jill Richard

Drive Thru Nativity – Decebmer 19, 2020

St. Paul will be hosting a COVID-19 safe, Drive-thru Christmas Nativity. We ask that you bring a non-perishable item or diapers to donate, but it’s not required.

How this will work – you will enter at one end of our parking lot, and follow the path, seeing the angels, wise men, shepherds, townspeople, and more.

During your drive, you will remain in your car and dial your radio to 87.90 FM. During your drive, you will hear Christmas live music and Christmas readings over your radio.

At the end of the path to the manger, you will receive a family ornament and some goodies. We hope that if this goes well it may become a tradition.

A note from Congregational President – December 2020

Posted on December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 by Jill Richard

December 2020 From Your Congregational President

Declaring & Teaching – Jesus is Lord!

Romans 10:8-13

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Getting closer, closer to the close of 2020 that is. We have all been through a lot this year and Advent is upon us with the start of a new church year and all that it promises. The temptation is to look back because that is sometimes easier, I personally really like November and Thanksgiving in particular as it reminds me of the times my family would all get together no matter what it took, the call would come from Dad to verify that you would be there. Looking back I can’t imagine anyone in the family having something else that was more important or any valid reason for not being there. It seems that going to church has been the same for many of us, we can’t imagine that there would be anything more important than gathering together to worship our Lord and Savior Jesus on Sunday morning.

We all have choices that we make every day, there are other things that we cannot choose, one of those seems to be our ability to meet as a congregation in our Sanctuary on Sunday morning, let that sink in. Who would have thought that would be the case for us and the many other congregations throughout our great land; hard to imagine, yet this is our reality.

With that said, we go on, we acknowledge our blessings and there are many and we continue to look forward to that time when we are all gathered together in worship. I want to encourage everyone to be in the Word and to be reading our Bibles. Sometimes we don’t know what to focus on, I like to use the Portals of Prayer with my study bible. The scripture lesson usually will lead me to just the right place to start and the Spirit takes me the rest of the way. The key is always showing up and being present for His leading and guiding. May it always be the case for each of you. If anyone thinks they would like a new study bible, please let me know. Shawn and Angie Forquer gave me a study bible for my birthday fifteen years ago in July of 2005 and I can truly say that it has changed my life. Blessings to all this Christmas season.

In His Service,

Tim Grace

A Message from Pastor Rich – December 2020

Posted on December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 by Jill Richard

lutheran cross

A Note from Pastor Rich

Welcome to the Advent-Christmas Season. During the Advent season we will meet on Zoom at 1:30pm each Wednesday. We will seek to bring the Light of Jesus into our homes. The Advent season starts out getting darker and darker, as the daylight gets less and less. But as the Advent season comes to a close; the daylight starts its comeback.

At Christmas we celebrate the birth of Jesus who brings light into the world. This is the time to bring the light of Jesus into our lives. During our devotions I encourage you to light a candle so we can celebrate together that Jesus is the light who shines.

In many ways we have experienced much darkness this past year. We are a masked society living under rules. We live in fear of a virus. We have to keep our distance from one another. The list goes on. But rejoice, in the darkness comes Jesus as the light. May Jesus bless you and give you Peace.

Maxine and I pray that your Advent-Christmas time is one of joy, peace and love.

Merry Christmas,

Pastor Rich

A Message from Zeke

Hi gang, Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving. I hope the vaccine comes soon. Maybe we can get back together again. I am ready for PJ cheese. You can stop by the Senior Center anytime and leave off some.

In the midst of all that is going on, we need a smile or two. So get set, smile!

How much did Santa pay for his sleigh? It was on the house.

Why don’t crabs celebrate Christmas? Because they are shell-fish.

Why does Santa always enter through the chimney? Because it soots him.

What do hungry snowmen put on their ice burgers? Chilly sauce.

Where does a snowman keep his money? In a snow bank.

Where would a reindeer go to find her lost tail? A Retail store.

Ho Ho Ho to all, and to all Merry Christmas.

Love, Zeke

Pastor Don’s Message December 2020

Posted on December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 by Jill Richard

And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. (Matthew 2:9b-10)

Can we rejoice with “exceedingly great joy” this Christmas even during a pandemic? Absolutely! We’ve been given the Good News that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. No matter what is going on in the world, Advent and the following Christmas season is a time for exceedingly great joy because our God has come to save us from sin, death, and the devil. No virus can infect God’s Word and make it weaker or kill it. It remains a life-giving Word for us especially when we are weakened by sickness and the troubles of sin. I know the days are short, the nights are long, and we’ve been indoors for far too long; but we still look forward to the return of our King who brings His kingdom into this dark world, giving us hope of an everlasting future with no more sickness, pain, tears, and death.

I may have mentioned before it hasn’t been easy these past several months knowing who has been participating in Sunday worship online. My colleagues in the circuit all agree, it’s been a pastor’s special kind of anxiety during Covid not fully grasping if the people of his congregation are participating in the spiritual and worship life of the Church. If you are a “I’m just waiting until we can all come back into church” person and have not participated in worship online at all since March, I wonder how you are doing spiritually. Are you at least reading the Scriptures at home for strength and encouragement from the Holy Spirit? Are you watching T.V. evangelists or listening to preachers on the radio? I would imagine earlier this year, like me, you thought the virus would run its course for a couple months and we’d be back in church. But here we are, it’s December, and we’ve got a ways to go before it’ll be safe again to congregate in full. I heartily encourage you to find a way to connect with your church’s services online if you haven’t done so already. I know you didn’t ask for this situation to be brought onto you, and you may not feel like jumping through all the hoops to have the technology installed in your home and learn how to use it in order to participate in worship. Nevertheless your church is here to help you remain connected to God’s Word, so please let me, pastor Kiessling, or an elder know you want to get connected with the online Sunday services and we will work on it with you.

May the Holy Spirit fill you with true joy over the gift of a Savior and give you courage and faithfulness in sharing the joyful Christmas message with others.

From my family to yours,

Pastor Don

Advent 2020

Posted on November 12, 2020 by Jill Richard

Worship services for Advent 2020

Advent is the time of the church year that concentrates on the future tense. The overall theme of the series is “Await God’s Future.” It is God’s future we are yearning for based on what God himself has announced. God’s future is our hope, not human-made futures, not human-concocted utopian dreams, not future visions depending on human efforts. The overall goal of the series is to enable us to hear some of the future-tense announcements of the prophet Isaiah so that these ancient words will instill in our hearts and minds repentance, faith, and hope in the coming of The Lord. Isaiah bids us: “Await God’s Future.”

Join us each Sunday this Advent at the 8:30 or 10:45 am service. Sanctuary space is limited to 25-50 people including the pastor and musicians. Families may sit together in pews. The 10:45 am service will be streamed on Facebook Live. The 6^th and 20^th of December are communion Sundays. If you participate in these services at home, you may come in to the church between 12:15 and 1 pm to receive the Lord’s Supper. There will be two services on Christmas Eve, one at 3 pm and one at 7 pm. Both will have us sing “Silent Night” with candles. Christmas morning is one service at 10 am with communion. The 7 pm Christmas Eve service and the Christmas Day service will be live-streamed.