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Dear friends,
God blesses so that we can be the blessing to someone else. In this month’s newsletter article, I’d like to list Peace’s activities into two categories: 1. God blesses! 2. Be the blessing!
Six people attended the LCMS National Youth Gathering in Minneapolis, MN. (God blesses!) And by the way, they will be sharing with us about their experience on Sunday, September 1 during fellowship time in the Fellowship Hall.
The youth and adults at the National Youth Gathering accomplished much. (Be the blessing!) A total of 1,003,014 meals were packed for Feed My Starving Children. 1,013 kits were built of the homeless. 926 inches of hair were donated, and 463 units of blood were contributed.
Two of our youth were Confirmed and two of our seasoned veterans gave inspiring messages to them. (God blesses!)
Vicar Dollar and Svenja have been assigned to Peace and have now safely arrived. (God blesses!) Mark your calendars for Sunday, August 4 for Vicar Dollar’s induction as our vicar for the year. You are welcome to attend and bring an item for the potluck after the service in the Fellowship Hall.
A total of 120 freezer meals were made by the Freezer Meal Ministry Team. (Be the blessing!)
Thrivent has blessed us with monies through the Thrivent Action Card program. (God blesses!) These monies were the resource for many of the prizes, decorations, and treats for the Moongazing event. This is also how we will cover costs for the Blackberry Jam event at Peace on Thursday, August 8 at 7 pm.
An Event Planning Team has organized some special music events for August. (Be the blessing!) The first will be the Blackberry Jam event on Thursday, August 8 at 7 pm. Bluegrass music will be played on the patio with berry pie being served. A free will offering will be collected. All proceeds will go to Philomath Community Services. Mark your calendars too for Thursday, August 22 at 7 pm as Bryson and a few of his band members will come and entertain on the patio.
An Incident Response Team has been meeting monthly and is preparing some fabulous information so that you can better prepare for an emergency. (Be the blessing!) Be on the look out for the Incident Preparedness Pamphlets that will be shared at church.
Daily God reminds us of His promises, His love and forgiveness through His Son, Jesus. (God blesses!)
Daily members of Peace care for one another through cards, phone calls and simple conversation. (Be the blessing!)
God blesses so that we can be the blessing to someone else. God is behind both activities. How special life becomes when we stand back to recognize God’s work in our lives!
Have you considered taking inventory of your own life’s activities? Take a moment after reading this article to do so. It will undoubtedly lead you to greater levels of gratitude and recognition of God’s work in your life.
Peace be with you,
Pastor J
Peace by the Numbers
Philomath – Music in the Park
Thursday, August 15, 2019 at 6:00-8:00 PM City Park at 299 S 23rd Street. Cost? FREE! I can’t think of a better price than that!!
Fun for the whole family! Bring your lawn chairs
and enjoy the music of Ludicrous Speed. The
Lions Club will be flipping burgers and hot dogs
to purchase. The Book Mobile will be there with
children’s activities. Local art will be on display and for sale. JOIN THE FUN!
Sponsored by: Pioneer Telephone, Peak Internet and the Philomath Park Advisory Board.
Holiday Bazaar
The Holiday Bazaar is coming fast! November the 9th is the date we will be open in Peace’s Fellowship Hall. Ladies Guild has sponsored this event for the past several years. Members of the church contribute handmade items to be sold. Please consider how you can help. The monies collected go to local charities, camp Lutherwood supporting a seminarian and several other organizations. If you craft, knit, crochet, embroider, sew, quilt, woodwork, make jewelry (you can see the list is endless) this is the time to get started.
If you are unsure about what kind of craft to do or just want to help someone else with their craft; stop by the fellowship hall at 10:00 AM on the second Monday of every month for “Pieces by Peace” and learn, assist, teach, visit or just get inspired by the group project.
As the time grows closer there will be more information on the basket donations, cookie corner, and Granny’s Attic.
Update Parking Lot Capital Campaign
Sometime in late August our Engineer will mark where the parking lot expansion will be built. Marking may be stakes, flagging-ribbons, and/or writing on the pavement. Please see that your children and curious husbands disturb nothing. If you fail to restrain them, please fess up to Mal Miner, who will take the beating he might then expect from our Engineer for delays. Construction is scheduled to start the first week of September. Thank you from Mal Miner
TOPS Support Group
TOPS is now meeting every Monday A. M. In the fellowship hall. If you’re curious to what it is, here’s a little blurb about it. Tops stands for: “take off pounds sensibly”. It’s a support weight loss and Health Organization. Members learn about nutrition, portion control, food planning, exercise, and hear a program. They don’t endorse any diet plan or sell food.
Incident Response Team
The Incident Response Team met this month on July 2nd. The meeting started with a discussion of the feasibility of getting a comfort dog (like Rueben) at Peace. Much more work needs to be done to see if we want to take on this responsibility collectively. We are tentatively planning on holding disaster preparedness training for anyone interested after services on September 15th. This training will be a week after the Emergency Services Preparedness Fair hosted by the Benton County Sheriff’s Office on September 8th. The next meeting of the Incident Response Team will be on August 6th in the Fellowship Hall at 1030. Please come if you are interested in participating.
Preparedness Tip of the Month: Within the past month, we have all watched the earthquakes in California, flooding in Washington DC, and a hurricane in Louisiana. We are blessed to live in a region with minimal natural disasters. However, that’s not to say we won’t have one. What are some of the things we need to consider and prepare for in and around Philomath? Severe Weather (Cold/Heat), Floods, Fires, High Winds, Landslides, Earthquakes, Volcanos, Tornados, Electrical Outages, Road Blockage, Contaminated Water/Air, Loss of Communications, Disease Outbreak, and Refugee Influx to name a few. It’s probably not realistic to plan for every scenario, but you should at least start thinking about what you would do if something should happen. A resource to help you with your planning is available on the Oregon Office of Emergency Management website. This site provides some interesting information on how some of these disasters could occur here in Oregon. The web address is:
https://www.oregon.gov/OEM/hazardsprep/Pages/Hazards-in-Oregon.aspx
Confirmation
On Sunday, June 30 Nicholas Abele and Ingrid Hellesto were confirmed in the morning worship service. Psalm 145:4 says, “One generation shall commend your work to another.” The Rite of Confirmation service is an opportunity to witness how God is working in the hearts and lives of a new generation. Praise the Lord! Thank you to all who brought cards and well wishes. Your prayers and encouragement will continue to help our young people step out in faith!
Ingrid Hellesto’s Statement of Faith
My faith in Jesus is my foundation. I know this foundation is strong and I can keep building up on it. It is a sense of relief to know that the Lord has a plan for my life and He will never leave my side, even in the darkest times. I know that when life gets tough, and I feel myself falling, I can step onto that firm rock and learn from the experiences God lays before me. I’ve had times when I was frightened, anxious, tempted, and confused, but the Lord comes through and gets me back on track. Sometimes I find myself afraid of what might come next in my life and what type of future is in store for me. But God reminds me that He has it all under control, and if I have a firm foundation on the Lord’s teachings and lessons for me, I will live a successful life, all coming from God’s loving grace and mercy.
By God’s mercy, I haven’t experienced much hardship in my life, but the Lord is teaching me that I can help others with their troubles. I have a friend whose great-grandmother is in the hospital with cancer. She is sad and scared because her great-grandmother doesn’t have a lot of time left. I feel like God is encouraging me to uplift my friend, so I have been trying to share about the Lord’s love with her during this time. She recently told me that she wants to accept the Lord into her life. This encourages me so much and I hope to bring more people to God in the near future.
As a closing I’d like to share a passage from Philippians 4:4-7 that is special to me:
Always be happy because you belong to the Lord.
I will say that again, ‘Be happy!’ Be kind and patient
in a way that everyone can see. Remember that the
Lord is near. Do not worry about anything. Instead,
pray to God about everything. Ask him to help you
with the things that you need. And thank him for his
help. If you do that, God will give you peace in your
minds. That peace is so great that nobody can
completely understand it. You will not worry or be afraid,
because you belong to Christ Jesus.
They fundraised, they filled out the forms and they got on the plane. The four youth and two chaperones from Peace went to Minneapolis, Minnesota to experience and take part in the incredible National Youth Gathering. An LCMS event geared toward keeping our youth connected to God and faith in Him.
Through this experience the group not only got to see how alive God is in the lives of thousands of people, but they also got to serve the community they were worshiping in. Showing God’s love to a part of the community that may not have experienced it at any other time.
Ryan Guenther, Grant Hellesto, Ingrid Hellesto, & Nicholas Abele, along with George and Janice Abele served, on July 12 at “Hospitality House” a facility in the poorest and one of the more dangerous areas of town. Janice reported back saying, “We found out that one of the kids (at Hospitality House) lost his father to gun violence last night.”
Because of the work and love Hospitality House shows in the community the gangs in the area largely leave them alone. Making the house a place where children can learn and grow in a safe environment.
Of course, it wasn’t all work and no play. The gathering also involves worship events and they were Massive. When you put thousands of young Lutherans together to lift up their voices in praise you get an experience that cannot be described in words. This is one event you have to see to believe.
Come to bible study Sunday, September 1, 8:30 AM to hear about their experience and the spiritual impact this event had on all of their lives.
