Plymouth Lutheran Church, Pastor Joel Baker September 2016 11015 County Road 15, Plymouth, MN 55441 Telephones: 763-544-7248 & 763-544-9170 Luke records Jesus' Words in Scripture, chapter 14:25-35: Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions. “Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Jesus wants us to be His disciples and to be followers of Him. He says that the first relationship we are to value is with Him, above and beyond all else-above family and friends. Time with Him and getting to know Him is to be a top priority. (Philippians 3:7: But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ; Hebrew 11:24-27: By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen). Paul and Moses both thought that gaining Christ was of utmost importance, more than anything else in the world, and by faith obtained that goal. Then He tells us to carry our own cross daily-Moses and Paul also had to endure hardship, anger, ill- treatment, etc, for considering the reproach of Christ greater than the sins and passing pleasures of the world. Daily we are to put off the fighting old nature in us, asking the Holy Spirit to help us in that battle and to have victory in our lives even now, and to remember God's grace and mercy as we struggle. He says we are to obey Him, imitate Him, show love to our family and neighbors, and even our enemies. The result will be that we will be the salt of the earth rather than being salt less, tasteless, deserving to be thrown out and trampled upon. Are you salting the earth today-seasoning it with the Word of God both in what you say and what you do? Being able to be salt means a solid relationship with Jesus, growing in the Word and struggling against personal sin in your life rather than indulging as the world does. I pray that you are. Keep our church in prayer for God's leading in the direction we should go- or not go. Please direct comments to the Board-they are interested in hearing from you and will respect your opinion, bringing those opinions to our meetings for prayer and consideration. This should especially be a time of seeking the Lord on blended knee for what would please Him the most and bring honor and glory to Him. Shalom2u from Pastor Joel Pastor Baker’s e-mail: [email protected]Church website: www.plymouthapostolic.org Church e-mail: [email protected]Prayer Chain: 612-554-6823 or [email protected]If you would like to receive this by email please send a message to [email protected]1Thessalonians 5:13-15 13 and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another. 14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people. …from the Pastor’s Office
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Plymouth Lutheran Church, Pastor Joel Baker September 2016 11015 County Road 15, Plymouth, MN 55441 Telephones: 763-544-7248 & 763-544-9170
Luke records Jesus' Words in Scripture, chapter 14:25-35:
Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them,
“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife
and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My
disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My
disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he
has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to
ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, when he sets out to meet another
king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one
coming against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for
terms of peace. So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.
“Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? It is useless either for the
soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Jesus wants us to be His disciples and to be followers of Him. He says that the first relationship we are to value is with
Him, above and beyond all else-above family and friends. Time with Him and getting to know Him is to be a top priority.
(Philippians 3:7: But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ; Hebrew
11:24-27: By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to
endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ
greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of
the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen). Paul and Moses both thought that gaining Christ was of utmost
importance, more than anything else in the world, and by faith obtained that goal.
Then He tells us to carry our own cross daily-Moses and Paul also had to endure hardship, anger, ill- treatment, etc, for
considering the reproach of Christ greater than the sins and passing pleasures of the world. Daily we are to put off the
fighting old nature in us, asking the Holy Spirit to help us in that battle and to have victory in our lives even now, and to
remember God's grace and mercy as we struggle.
He says we are to obey Him, imitate Him, show love to our family and neighbors, and even our enemies.
The result will be that we will be the salt of the earth rather than being salt less, tasteless, deserving to be thrown out and
trampled upon.
Are you salting the earth today-seasoning it with the Word of God both in what you say and what you do?
Being able to be salt means a solid relationship with Jesus, growing in the Word and struggling against personal sin in
your life rather than indulging as the world does. I pray that you are.
Keep our church in prayer for God's leading in the direction we should go- or not go. Please direct comments to the
Board-they are interested in hearing from you and will respect your opinion, bringing those opinions to our meetings for
prayer and consideration. This should especially be a time of seeking the Lord on blended knee for what would please
11:30am Coffee fellowship 11, 18, 25 9:00am Morning Bible Study
10:30am Worship Service 11:30am Coffee fellowship
11 11:40a.m. Prayer in Sanctuary 18 10:30 am Communion Service 25 11:40am Abbreviated communion
Tuesdays: 13 5:45pm Mission Committee Meeting
6:30pm Board of Trustees meeting
Wednesdays: 7 9 a.m. Men’s & Women’s Breakfast at
Perkins 6:30pm Bible Study for everyone 14, 21, 28 9:15am Ladies Bible Study
9:30am Men’s Bible Study 6:30pm Bible Study for everyone
Thursdays: 15 9:30am Senior outing to Candy Store
Fridays: 16 7:00pm Movie night at the church “God’s Not Dead 2” 23 5:00pm Fall Youth Rally at Spruce Grove ALC
Saturdays: 24 9:00am Ladies Saturday morning Bible Study
Looking ahead
October is Pastor Appreciation Month
Celebrate Our Congregation September Birthdays:
Roy Saari 9/2
Jenny Haataja 9/2
Tom Madison 9/5
Peter Pelto 9/5
Jane Johnson 9/9
Brian Bartell 9/10
Brad Aho 9/10
Natalie Bartell 9/13
Sarah Siirtola 9/19
Addison Ellis 9/21
Terri Bloomquist 9/28
September Anniversaries: James & Elise O’Neill 9/13
Ryan & Jennie Rintala 9/22
Bill & Joan Graunke 9/27
Sweet, Sweet Senior Outing! Minnesota’s Largest Candy
Store.
But wait! Minnesota’s Largest… is much more
than candy store. It is a place of nostalgia. This is an outing packed with memories of your own youth.
Jordan, MN is located less than an hour south on highway #169. The plan is to tour at your leisure and afterwards enjoy lunch at a local restaurant.
This is the Kick-Off of the 2016-2017 Senior Season. Thursday, September 15, 2016. Sign up now. Questions? Check with Lorraine Besonen.
Oink – how about that pig!?
Reads return to East Asia Prayer Requests:
1. All the last minute packing and goodbye details to get completed well and on time,
given our Aug. 18-20 departure day.
2. To quickly find a new home to rent, close to the girls’ school, near a university and
convenient to the subway.
3. For God to lead us to the students and working professionals that He wants us to
develop relationships with and for their hearts to be open to hearing the good news.
4. For a good transition back to East Asia. We desire to find a community of believers for
support and for the girls to find likeminded friends.
The Reads began sensing God’s plan for them to return to East Asia. They prayed and meditated on Scripture passages in daily devotions. God in miraculous ways cleared hurdles and provided storage for furniture, a car and miscellaneous other items that can’t make the journey to East Asia.
A letter from a friend of a friend of a friend announced employment for Phil so that he could apply for a work visa. Via friends who had connections in the city where the Reads are to live, temporary but immediate housing has been provided. The list goes on; truly they serve (and we serve) a God of miracles. God has a plan.
By the time you are reading this newsletter, the Reads have reached their destination. A pilot friend provided four stand-by tickets. The Reads’ commitment is to serve for five more years. Pray for them. Pray beyond the requests mentioned above. Pray that the Joy of the Lord may be their strength!
Phil, Megan, Sarah and Cindy Read Carla (Cindy’s sister), Lorraine and Aunt Elaine (Lorraine’s sister)
House Number 11: Maryin
Nicole the gringa
Two weekends ago I was a part of a unique house build. Instead of a full house, we built an extra room onto a family’s already
existing house. This was special also because YWAM already had a relationship with this family because we had met them through our kids’ ministry called Circulo Andante.
During the two days we were building, I spent a lot of time with the older daughter of the family, who is called Maryin. She is six years old and has a wonderfully innocent heart. She is sweet and caring. She wants to be with you and know you.
Little girls like her are part of the reason that I love building houses. I hope this post helps you experience a little bit of why I love doing