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Christ’s Ambassador
CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH Preston, Minnesota
December 2016
Love God, Love People, Follow Jesus
Christ Lutheran Church - Preston, Minnesota Telephone: (507) 765-2161
Email: [email protected] Website: www.christlutheranpreston.org
Pastor: Pastor Dan Bredberg (cell: 507-838-1745) (email: [email protected])
Council Members: Jim Keune, LaVerne Paulson, Sandy Amundson, Carol Solberg, Kim Ristau, Diane Carr, Jon Haugan and Deb Ebner. Office Administrator: Amanda Means
Volume 51: Number 11
Church Office Hours: Mon.-Thurs., 9:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.; Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Worship: Sunday morning – 9:00 a.m. Sunday School: Sunday morning – 10:10 a.m.
Worship Assistants Greeters December 4 Craig & Lori Britton and family 11 Jon & Deb Ebner 18 Chuck & Vonnie Aug 24 (4:30) Andy & Gail Bunge Lectors December 4 Jon Haugan 11 Nancy Hengeveld 18 Erik Paulson 24 (4:30) LaVerne Paulson Acolytes December 4 Erin Gossman/Kaleb Arndt 11 Ted Parker/Connor Pikula 18 KJ Corson/Bodey Wright 24 (4:30) Nolan Bremseth/Nick Marzolf Powerpoint Screen December 4 Cadence Jones 11 Keanna Weedman 18 Lauren Mensink 24 (4:30) Marissa Topness Communion Assistants December 4 LaVerne Paulson/Sandy Amundson/Deb Ebner
18 Diane Carr/Kim Ristau/Jim Keune Altar Guild – Diane Johnson/Ann Ott/ Ushers –*Todd Ebner/Darrel Olson/Tony Severson/Kevin Ostern Money Counters 4 Darrel & Bev Olson 18 Harrison’s 11 Sandy Amundson & Ron Laughlin 24
December Service Group Chairpersons: Scheevel, Ron & Pat ............................................. 4756 Schmidt, Dave & Jeanette .................................. 2358 Bremseth, Greg & Kimberly; Marissa ............................................ 5235 Buenger, Jeff & Sheila ........................................................................... 4779 Dempewolf, Jason & Amanda ........................................ 507-937-3158 Grabau, Rhenee ................................................................... 507-259-4615 Hellickson, Betty .................................................................................... 2238 Linden, Eileen ...................................................................... 507-272-6261 Mensink, Craig & Pamela .................................................................... 3384 Nagle, Devin & Dawn Hellickson .................................. 507-272-6606 Neimeyer, Trevor & Sara ................................................. 507-696-1630 Persons, Chad & Megan .................................................... 507-272-4398 Pikula, Trent & Susan........................................................ 507-993-0209 Olson, Brandi; Dawson Schmidt ................................... 507-696-8949 Ristau, Lynn & Kim; Luke, Dilynn ................................ 507-273-6124 Sethre, Jason & Amanda................................................... 507-251-5297 Staupe, Arlene ......................................................................................... 2217 Staupe, Lynn ............................................................................................ 2217 Wojtkiewicz, Bill & Diane ................................................................... 4933 Scheduled Events: 12 dozen cookies +1 block of cheese (sliced) and crackers for each Sunday Sunday school Christmas Program, Dec. 18
Ministerial Acts in October/November Baptisms November 27 Kamrick DeShawn Shumpert, son of Laura Keune and Derrick Shumpert Oakley Thomas Berg, son of Ryan and Becca Berg Funeral October 29 Lyle Frank (1925-2016)
December 12/2 Muriel Hanson 12/3 Robert Conlan 12/4 Lisa Tienter 12/5 Chase Gatzke, Malissa Woellert, Jaidyn Finseth 12/6 Zach Olstad 12/7 Bryce Corson, Merrily Dale; Mike & Lisa Wilhelm – Anniv. 12/8 Judy Johnson, Kurt Reicks, Karen Schmidt, Christy Bakken 12/9 Diem Finseth 12/10 Jaxton Heibel 12/11 Joel Mielke, Barb Mielke 12/13 Marcia Teel; Chris & Kari Mensink – Anniv. 12/14 Steve Soland, Krystal Larson 12/15 Norval Morse, Erik Paulson 12/16 Mike Woellert 12/17 Kaylee Arndt 12/18 Chris Mensink, Kelly Ristau 12/19 Pam Ristau, Carroll Marzolf; Aaron & Janet Klompenhower – Anniv. 12/20 Helen Haugen, Mike Wilhelm 12/21 Sandy Amundson, Violet Hahn 12/22 John Marzolf 12/23 Wayne & Donna Dreier – Anniv. 12/25 Gary Parker; Jeff & Roxie Knies – Anniv. 12/26 Evie Christianson 12/27 Parker Krage 12/28 Rosemary Pikula 12/29 Hannah Grabau; Colin & Jennifer Pickett – Anniv. 12/30 Amanda Dempewolf, Ron Scheevel; Craig & Lori Britton – Anniv. 12/31 Kjerstiana Corson
If you need a ride to church worship service and/or church events, please contact the church office.
Dear Partners in Mission,
As we approach the end of 2016 and look towards the beginning of a new year, I want to lift up an exciting new challenge for our church. Considering all the tensions of our
election process and questions about the future, now is the perfect time to ground ourselves in God’s Word. That’s why I invite all of us to read through the major stories of the Bible
through E100. The E100 challenge will begin on January 8th, 2017. E100 is a Bible reading plan built around 100 carefully selected, short Bible passages — 50 from the Old
Testament and 50 from the New Testament. It is designed to help us understand the big picture of God's Word and get into the habit of reading the Bible on a daily basis. E100 will last
for 20 weeks, with five readings assigned each week. We plan to focus our weekly sermons and worship services on the E100 readings so that our whole church can be immersed in this
journey through God's Word.
A Bible and the E100 reading plan is all you need to participate in the E100 challenge. However, we strongly encourage everyone to take this challenge with at least one other
person or as part of a small group, so that you can process your readings and help keep each other on track. Christ Lutheran will offer several different small group opportunities
throughout the week for people who are interested in taking the E100 challenge. Days and times of these small groups will be posted in Early January. These small groups are a great
way for us to get to know each other better—especially people from different generations. We would also love to make this a community-wide effort to read through the Bible. Please
help us spread the word about E100 and invite your friends, neighbors and co-workers to join us. (They are welcome to worship with us, but can also participate in their homes or other
small groups even if they worship elsewhere).
Our goal is to have at least 80% of the congregation involved in the E100 challenge. Please help us reach this goal by letting us know that you are willing to participate in E100.
You can call the office (507) 765-2161, email [email protected], sign up on facebook or our website www.christlutheranpreston.org, or use the signup sheet in the church
office. Everyone who signs up will receive an E100 reading plan guide that includes a card to track your weekly readings.
If you don't think you have time to join us on the E100 challenge, I pray that you will reconsider. No matter how busy we are, all of us can take 10-15 minutes, five days a
week to spend time with the Lord by reading the Bible. If you are intimidated by the Bible or have struggled reading it in the past, look for a different Bible translation that is easier to
read or check out an audio Bible from the Library (or the youversion Bible app) to listen to the readings. It can also be helpful to join a discussion group so you see that everyone has
questions and struggles, and everyone also has insights as we come together to talk about God's Word. Some of you have mentioned being reluctant to sign up for E100 due to travel
and missing some of the 20 Sundays. If this is you, please know that you are still very much encouraged to sign up, as you can do the readings wherever you travel. You may even want
to discuss the readings with others if you are traveling in a group.
The challenge begins on Sunday January 8th, so please sign up today and invite your friends and neighbors to join us! You will find an E100 reading schedule included in our
December and January Ambassadors. For more information, or to sign up by phone, call the church office at (507) 765-2161.
Trusting in God's Amazing Grace,
Pastor Dan
p.s. Jessica and I have read through “The Essential Bible Guide” and found it to be a very useful tool to enhance the daily readings,
explain Scripture and challenge me to respond to God's Word. I highly recommend people picking up a copy of this book if they want to
get the most out of E100. Information about the book is included below.
The Essential Bible Guide is a great tool to enhance your experience with the E100 challenge. If you are
someone who likes to have background information, guided questions and space for notes, this book is for
you. The Essential Bible Guide takes you through the Old and New Testaments in 100 carefully selected
readings so you’ll see the big picture of the Bible. Each reading includes insightful reflections written in a
warm and inviting style to help you reflect on what the Bible has to say to you today. It also includes
overviews of the major Bible themes and an interactive review journal to record personal insights. The cost
for the Essential Bible Guide is $12.00. If you would like to place an order for the E100 Bible guide, please
write your name on the signup sheet in the church office or call Amanda (507) 765-2161. Once again, this
book is totally optional, but some people may wish to buy
it to help them better understand and process the E100 readings. You will be contacted when the books are
available for pickup.
E100 Bible Reading
Old Testament Jan 8- Jan 15 In the Beginning Stories 1-5 Jan 16- Jan 22 Abraham, Isaac and Jacob Stories 6-10 Jan 23- Jan 29 The Story of Joseph Stories 11-15 Jan 30- Feb 5 Moses and the Exodus Stories 16-20 Feb 6- Feb 12 The Law and the Land Stories 21-25 Feb 13- Feb 19 The Judges Stories 26-30 Feb 20- Feb 26 The Rise of Israel Stories 31-35 Feb 27- Mar 5 The Fall of Israel Stories 36-40 Mar 6- Mar 12 Psalms and Proverbs Stories 41-45 Mar 13- Mar 19 The Prophets Stories 46-50 Great job! You’re halfway there! Keep it up! New Testament Mar 20- Mar 26 The Living Word Stories 51-55 Mar 27- April 2 The Teaching Jesus Stories 56-60 April 3- April 9 The Miracle of Jesus Stories 61-65 April 10- April 16
The Cross of Christ Stories 66-70
April 17- April 23
The Church is Born Stories 71-75
April 24- April 30
The Travels of Paul Stories 76-80
May 1- May 7 Paul to the Churches Stories 81-85 May 8- May 14 Paul to the Leaders Stories 86-90 May 15- May 21
The Apostle's Teaching Stories 91-95
May 22- May 28
The Revelation Stories 96-100
May 29- June 4 Ending Celebration Way to go! You did it! Congratulations!
Unofficial Minutes of Christ Lutheran Church Council Meeting - Wednesday, November 9, 2016 7:30 pm
Present: Pastor Dan, Jim Keune, Carol Solberg, Diane Carr, Deb Ebner, and Jon Haugen. Absent were Sandy Amundson, Kim Ristau, and Laverne Paulson.
Jim Keune called the meeting to order at 7:45 pm
Jim Keune read devotions Acts 22-2-16/Lead by Faith & Friends
Carol Solberg made a motion to approve the agenda. Jon Haugen seconded. Carried.
Diane Carr made the motion to approve the minutes. Carol Solberg seconded. Carried.
Treasurer’s report was approved as written. Jon Haugen made a motion to approve the treasurer’s report. Diane Carr seconded. Carried.
Council Report:
1. Name tag Sunday will be December 4th
2. Congregational bonfire was a fun event
3. Congregational Christmas Caroling will be December 11th from 4:00 -5:30 pm
4. Youth Director- Pastor Rolf from Greenfield revised the job description. He received 2 resumes. would like to form a joint youth board to decide on an applicant
Pastor’s Report:
1. Had a great vacation in Florida
2. Wednesday worship service. Carpeted stage is ready
3. Made visits to Park lane
4. Community Thanksgiving Service is November 20 at 7:00 pm at Methodist Church
5. Pastoral Acts: Funeral-Lyle Frank
6. Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby will be held at the church- November 20th
7. WELCA may be disbanding- They have a meeting Nov 9 for discussion
Team Reports:
1. Property- Scott Wilson will contact CenturyLink
2. Evangelism- Looking into setting up the congregation pictures. Looking into setting up a strength and balance class
Reviewed nominating committee list. Deb Ebner made a motion to approve the 2017 Budget. Carol Solberg seconded. Carried.
Would like to find volunteers for the Pastoral Care Team
Youth communion will be reviewed in the New Year.
Jim Keune proposed a 2% wage increase for Amanda Means, Dan Grabau, and Val Christianson. Deb Ebner made a motion to approve the 2% wage increase effective January 1, 2017.
Jon Haugen seconded. Carried. Employee reviews will be done. Jim and Laverne will do Pastor Dan’s and Jim will do secretary and janitorial.
Decorating the church for Christmas will be done on Tuesday, November 29th at 6:00 pm. The tree will be set up on November 28.
Carol Solberg will contact Thrivent regarding estate planning.
Jim reviewed agenda for annual meeting.
Suggested to look at hiring a part time organist/piano player. Tami and Cynthia have schedule made out until February. Tabled until March.
Jon Haugen made the motion there will be no 9:00 pm Christmas Eve worship service and no worship service on Christmas Day but we will have one service Christmas Eve at 4:30 pm.
Deb Ebner seconded. Carried. The Greenfield Lutheran Church in Harmony will have a Christmas Eve service at 10:00 pm and a Christmas Day service.
No action on employee insurance.
Next meeting will be December 14 at 7:30 pm. New Council members will be invited to attend.
Carol Solberg made the motion to adjourn. Deb Ebner seconded. Carried. The adjournment was followed with the Lord’s Prayer.
Meeting was adjourned at 9:10 pm.
Submitted by Deb Ebner.
DID YOU KNOW?
Christ Lutheran’s worship service was broadcast over KWEB Rochester starting in December 1964 more than two years before KFIL began in Preston. The
first broadcast was announced and began the Sunday before Christmas in 1964 and has continued for 52 years. 1966, the year that KFIL began we had a
special congregational meeting after a Lenten Service in March to decide if we would sign a contract with KFIL which passed. Our first broadcast with KFIL
was to begin the first Sunday in May but the bulletins for a few Sundays reported that KFIL was not ready. The broadcast with KFIL began the last Sunday
in May 1966 sponsored by Dale & Muriel Thauwald and family. The rest is history.
Another interesting bit of information as we prepare to serve the Norwegian Buffet. 50 years ago the Lutefisk Dinner was served on November 3rd from 11
a.m. to 1:30 and 4 p.m. and on. Tickets were 75 cents for children 12 and under, $2.00 for all over 12. The night before the men cleaned fish at the slaughter
house and were told to bring sharp knives and pliers.
Christmas Services at Christ Lutheran Due to difficulties finding volunteers and musicians, council has decided that we will only have one Christmas Eve service at 4:30pm this year. There will not
be a 9:00pm Christmas Eve service. There will also not be a worship service on Christmas Day. We encourage those seeking an evening Christmas Eve service or a Christmas Day service to attend worship at one of our neighboring churches such as Greenfield Lutheran in Harmony which has a 10:00pm Christmas Eve
service and a 9:00am Christmas Day service.
AN INTERNATIONAL ADVENT AT CHRIST LUTHERAN
We will be celebrating an "International Advent" this year as we invite some of our local exchange students to share a bit about themselves, their country and their Christmas Traditions. We will be learning about Ukraine, Italy and Germany from four wonderful teenagers who are kind enough to join us for worship on November 27th, Dec 4th and Dec 11th. There may also be some fun cultural treats during coffee hour, so be sure to join us for
these global worship service.
Adult Classes & Fellowship Groups
Adult Christian Education Class Adult Christian Ed class meets on Sunday mornings after worship at 10:10 a.m. in the Heritage Room. All adults and high school
students are welcome to attend. Please join us!
Men’s Fellowship Group The Men's Fellowship group will meet Thursday, December 15th at 8:30 a.m. in the Heritage Room. All men are welcome!
ELCA Good Gifts – Gifts that keep on giving!
This is the time of year we start planning our gift giving. Check out the ELCA Good Gifts catalogs in the Narthex at Christ Lutheran. Shop the catalog for 50 or more gifts ranging in price, starting from $10 to more than $1,000. Gifts that grow the church, fight hunger here and around the world, and transform lives. These are great gifts for family and
friends. Pick up a catalog today!
Christmas Caroling at Christ Lutheran On Sunday Dec. 11th from 4:00–5:30pm, we will be going Christmas Caroling! All ages invited & music sheets will be provided. We will carol at
Traditions & Park Lane. Weather permitting – we may walk to a few homes close to church as well. Optional - bring a hand held instrument.
‘Name Tag’ Sunday We will be having a "Name Tag Sunday" on December 4th to help us get to know newer members. We ask that everyone fill out a name tag and
wear it during worship.
THANK YOU to all those who helped make lefse and flatbread for this year's dinner! Many hands made light work, for sure. We ended up with 91 dozen rounds of lefse and about six pails of flat bread. Success!
“Did You Know…?” The practice of giving began on the first Christmas when Jesus was born. Everyone in the Christmas story gave of themselves abundantly. This Christmas season let’s all give “a bit of ourselves” (our time, presence, prayer, kindness, laughter, and encouragement). A Christmas that allows us to experience joy through giving back God’s gifts with increase. During this season, people often are more generous, families gather to help neighbors, donations are made to people in need. There are many opportunities to give of ourselves: Christmas in Fillmore County, the Food Shelf, visiting nursing home and assisted living residents, baking extra cookies for neighbors and friends, caroling with our church group, inviting neighbors to Christmas Eve service. What will you do to keep “good will toward men” at the forefront of your family’s holiday? Peace to you and yours this holiday season. Christmas trees are evergreen trees. They do not die in the winter, but stay green all year through. This is a symbol of eternal life.
WELCA GENERAL BOARD MEETING
(November 9, 2016; 6:00 PM)
The meeting was called to order by President Karen Quanrud. Other members present were: Sandy Amundson, Donna Dreier, Diane Johnson, Phyllis Solberg, and
Norma Vogt.
Karen led us in devotions entitled “Delayed Recognition”. The Purpose Statement was read together. The agenda was adopted.
The Secretary’s Report was accepted on a motion by Donna Dreier, seconded by Sandy Amundson. The Treasurer’s Report was accepted on a motion by Diane
Johnson, seconded by Phyllis Solberg. All benevolence donations for 2016 have been given out. We will start 2017 with a balance of approximately $2,100.
Correspondence was read. Thank you notes were received from ELCA (gulf coast flooding), Global Health Ministries, Good Earth Village, Lutheran Social Service of
Minnesota, Mankato Crossroads Lutheran Campus Ministry, Open Hands Midway, and Winona Lutheran Campus Center for our donations as well as a thank you note
from Andrew and Jenna Pederson for Kamryn’s baby quilt.
Announcements
1. Mitten Tree will be set up. This year mittens and socks are especially needed.
2. Norwegian Buffet: December 4, 2016
3. Root River Spring Conference: April 30, 2017 at Highland Prairie Lutheran Church in Peterson, MN (NOTE: There will not be a Lutheran World Relief
pickup as part of this event.)
4. Tenth Annual Triennial Gathering, Minneapolis, MN: July 13-16, 2017
5. Southeastern MN Synodical Women’s Convention: St. Olaf Lutheran Church, Austin, MN 2017
Reports
1. Ministry Fair Update: the event went well; numerous people signed up for various things.
2. Good Earth Village/Good Gifts Gala update: no update available
3. Thank offering update: The service went well; $1,273 collected
4. 3rd Grade Bibles: Bibles were given out to 13 second and third graders; donated by Deborah Circle
Planning – Ending WELCA at Christ Lutheran Church
1. Money – Norma will be the “Account Manager” for the WELCA Accounts; she will take care of the SE MN offering
2. We will not take the $6,000 from the Lutefisk Dinner; all proceeds from the Norwegian buffet will go the church council. We will recommend to the council
that a portion of the proceeds be given to benevolence; a list will be provided to them with the organizations that we have donated to in the past.
3. Service Group Chairperson – Becca Schwingle will continue to be the chairperson; it will be up to her to find her own replacement.
4. Miscellaneous responsibilities:
a. World Day of Prayer- Deborah Circle
b. Ecumenical Service – Lydia Circle (dessert/speaker)
c. Thank offering Service – to be discontinued; but money will still be collected for the Thank offering
d. Bibles (2nd and 5th graders) – Deborah Circle (or turn over to Stewardship Committee?)
e. Baptism Quilts – quilters will still make quilts for baptism but will be given to families when they meet with pastor prior to the service
f. Contact person – looking for an individual to be the contact person for Christ Lutheran Church; this person would communicate important events/dates
by working with the church secretary, etc.
g. Christ Lutheran booklet – church council will take over this responsibility
5. Several members of the current WELCA Board will plan to attend the December church council meeting to discuss these changes.
Old Business
1. Christmas gifts to church staff: This will be the last year that WELCA will provide Christmas gifts to church staff.
New Business
1. 2017 Rummage Sale: There will NOT be a rummage sale in 2017
2. Promoting 2017 Triennial Gathering in Minneapolis
In closing, the Lord’s Prayer was prayed together. A motion to adjourn was made by Donna Dreier, seconded by Phyllis Solberg. The Mission Statement was read.
December 2016
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
1 2 3 8:00am Meatball Bake Day 9:00am Altar Guild
1:00pm Quilters 2:00pm Traditions
4 5 6 7 8 9 10 9:00pm Worship/Communion 9:30am Text Bible 10:30am Gift Shoppe opens Study 11:30am Mary Circle @BI 11:00am Norwegian Buffet 1:00pm Quilters 11:00am Radio Broadcast 6:00pm Confirmation -All Team Night 6:30pm Evang/Stew 6:30pm Education 6:30pm Property 7:00pm Worship 7:30pm Youth
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 9:00pm Worship 9:30am Text Bible 8:30am Men’s Fellowship 10:10am Sunday School/Adult Ed. Study 11:30am Martha Circle @BI 10:15am Coffee/Fellowship 1:00pm Quilters 11:00am Radio Broadcast 4:00pm Christmas Caroling 6:00pm Confirmation
7:00pm Council
18 19 20 21 22 23 24 9:00pm Worship/Communion 9:30am Text Bible 9:00am Park Lane Worship 10:10am Sunday School/Adult Ed. Study 1:00pm Quilters 10:15am Coffee/Fellowship 11:00am Radio Broadcast 4:30pm Christmas Eve Candlelight Service 6:00pm Confirmation
25 Christmas 26 27 28 29 30 31 9:30am Text Bible -no worship services- Study -no Confirmation- 1:00pm Quilters
