1 THE MESSENGER of Zion Lutheran Church 402 East Charles St. Oelwein, Iowa 50662 319-283-1207 Email address: [email protected]A Church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (the ELCA) Pastor Josh Schunk Pastoral Assistant – ChyAnne Jha ++++++++++ Worship Schedule: Saturday – 5:30pm, Sunday – 9:00am - Sunday School & Bible Study 10:10 ZOWe (grades 5-6 at 5:30-6:30pm – Confirmation 7-8pm At Zion we desire to be: “The Welcome Place, Reaching Out with the Love of Jesus” Website: zionlutheranoelwein.org Facebook: Zion Lutheran Oelwein Page God Is with Us April 2020 in All Things Zion’s Mission Statement “As people of God, called and forgiven by Jesus Christ, we understand God’s mission through us, to be reaching out in love to the community, nation and world. To do this we will share God’s Word of salvation through witnessing, teaching and the sacraments, and build opportunities for growth in Christian life and service. Friends in Christ, Greetings to each and every one of you from God our loving heavenly Father and our living Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I hope and pray that this newsletter finds all of you safe and healthy in the midst of our current state of life. Speaking of our current state of life, we are in a new and different place than many of us have ever been in during our lives. We are in a state of constant unknowns. We do not know if we or if someone we love has been exposed to COVID-19. We do not know what the next news conference from our President or our state leaders is going to bring. We do not know what businesses will be closed next. We do not know if our congregation is going to be together for Palm Sunday, Holy Week, or Easter. We do not know if our children are going to go back to school after Easter. Living in the unknown is never easy. It is a struggle to watch more news conferences. It is difficult to live with questions about whether or not it is safe for us to go to those places we enjoy going and to interact with people we know and love. It is challenging to wonder what items will be in stock at the grocery store or department store when we go shopping. It is
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1
THE MESSENGER of
Zion Lutheran Church 402 East Charles St. Oelwein, Iowa 50662 319-283-1207
Email address: [email protected] A Church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (the ELCA)
Pastor Josh Schunk Pastoral Assistant – ChyAnne Jha
++++++++++
Worship Schedule: Saturday – 5:30pm, Sunday – 9:00am - Sunday School & Bible Study 10:10 ZOWe (grades 5-6 at 5:30-6:30pm – Confirmation 7-8pm
At Zion we desire to be: “The Welcome Place, Reaching Out with the Love of Jesus”
Website: zionlutheranoelwein.org Facebook: Zion Lutheran Oelwein Page
God Is with Us April 2020 in All Things
Zion’s Mission Statement “As people of God, called and forgiven by Jesus Christ, we understand God’s mission through us,
to be reaching out in love to the community, nation and world. To do this we will share God’s Word of salvation through witnessing, teaching and the sacraments, and build opportunities for
growth in Christian life and service.
Friends in Christ,
Greetings to each and every one of you
from God our loving heavenly Father and our
living Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I hope and
pray that this newsletter finds all of you safe
and healthy in the midst of our current state of
life.
Speaking of our current state of life, we
are in a new and different place than many of us
have ever been in during our lives. We are in a
state of constant unknowns. We do not know if
we or if someone we love has been exposed to
COVID-19. We do not know what the next
news conference from our President or our state
leaders is going to bring. We do not know what
businesses will be closed next. We do not know
if our congregation is going to be together for
Palm Sunday, Holy Week, or Easter. We do not
know if our children are going to go back to
school after Easter.
Living in the unknown is never easy. It is
a struggle to watch more news conferences. It is
difficult to live with questions about whether or
not it is safe for us to go to those places we
enjoy going and to interact with people we
know and love. It is challenging to wonder what
items will be in stock at the grocery store or
department store when we go shopping. It is
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hard for the members of our family of faith to
journey through Lent when we are not together
for our Wednesday evening meals and worship
services.
Going through this problematic time can
also have many effects on our bodies, on our
emotions, and on our spirits. The other night,
Kelli and I looked at each other and said, “This
is tiring.” Even though there was no place for us
to go, and we were not doing anything, we felt
the fatigue of not going about our normal
routine of taking our kids to school and then
following them to all of their usual activities.
How do we get through this difficult
time? How do we reenergize ourselves when it
seems like there are so many things around us
such as social distancing and isolation and
COVID-19 are full of what my kids would call
“fun-sponges?”
One way we get through this time is by
remembering that we are not alone right now or
ever. In Matthew 28, Jesus tells His disciples
and us that He will be with us always. There is
never a time when Jesus walks away from us or
abandons us. As we sit in our homes alone for
one more day, we are called to be reminded that
Jesus is sitting there with us. He is there to talk
with us, to listen to us, and to live life with us.
Another way we get through this time is
by staying connected to one another. There has
never been a better time for us to pick up our
phones and call one another or take a few
moments to send a text or e-mail message to
each other. Just last week, I received a text
message just asking how I was doing. I cannot
tell you how much that made my day. I have
been having moments when I have been feeling
disconnected from things right now because I
am not in the office, and when I do go to the
church, I see the empty pews (which I
mentioned on the video Sunday). That short text
message reminded me of the connection we
have as a family of faith. Even when we are not
physically together, we are joined to one
another as members of the body of Christ. That
bond cannot be broken by anything this world
tries to throw at us.
Finally, we are called, during this time,
to spend time reading God’s Word and praying
together. It is important for us to be nurturing
our faith right now. When we are in our homes
and with our families or by ourselves, God
wants us to open His Word to hear what He has
to say to us during the day and in the midst of
the situations we are facing. When we read
God’s Word, we receive the comfort we need to
have the strength to retain our energy during
this difficult time.
As we read God’s Word, we are also
called to respond to that Word. We are called to
pray and to tell God our deepest feelings, our
deepest wants, and our deepest desires. As I
said in my sermon a couple weeks ago, God
wants a relationship with us that is living and
growing. For our relationship with God to grow
and flourish, we are called to have a two-way
conversation with God. God speaks through His
Word, and we respond through our prayers.
This month, as we continue through this
time of unknowns, I pray that all of us would
take the time to grow our relationship with God
and find ways to stay connected with one
another. We do all these things looking forward
to being together in worship, in Bible Study, in
Confirmation, and around tables in fellowship
again soon.
Just a thought…
Pastor Josh
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ZION EVAN. LUTHERAN
CHURCH MINUTES
March 10, 2020
Meeting called to order @ 6:35 PM by Pres.
Michelle
Attendance: Pastor Josh, Joe Bahe, Gary
Goeller, Charter Leete, Michelle Mulfinger,
Roger Westendorf, Twyla Larsen
Excused: Brad Brown, Justin Duffy, Kris Rex,
Julie Williams, ChyAnne Jha
Opening Prayer: Joe
Approval of Agenda/Additions: Motion by
Joe/Gary to approve as printed. Carried.
A. Motion by Joe/seconded by Roger to
appoint Charter Leete for Council until next
Annual meeting (Feb. 2021). Carried. Pastor
Josh installed him.
B. Secretary’s Feb. Minutes: Motion by
Joe/Charter to approve as printed. Carried
C. Treasurer’s Feb. Report: Motion by
Charter/Roger to file treasurer’s report for end-
of-year audit. Carried.
Feb. Income: $ 12,050.51
Feb. Expenses: $ 19,715.03
Net Income: (Minus) $ -7,664.52
YTD Income: $ 22,472.90
YTD Expenses: $36,062.25 YTD
Net Income: (Minus) $ -13,589.35
D. President’s Report: Council members
serving Walking Taco’s March 18 Lenten
supper.
E. Pastor’s Report - Action Item =
Communion Age: Motion by Gary/seconded by
Charter to change the age for First Communion
to 3rd grade, starting in 2021. Carried.
F. ChyAnne’s Report handed out.
G. Unfinished Business: None
H. New Business:
1. Volunteer Day for church repairs set for
Sunday, April 26. Council members will serve
noon lunch in appreciation to all the Zion
volunteers.
2. Replacing office computer: Gary will get
info on cost; Pres. Michelle will send out an
email to council with the info and ask for a
motion and approval to purchase.
3. Bank Signatures for Fidelity Bank,
Community Bank, and Thrivent: Motion by
Joe/seconded by Charter to remove Brad Brown
and add Michelle Mulfinger along with Bob
Meihe and Roger Rueber as Zion account
signers for Fidelity Bank, Community Bank,
and Thrivent. Carried.
4. Celebration Service will be May 3rd for
the new worship and fellowship items
(televisions, popcorn machine, etc.).
5. Thank you to ChyAnne for joining our
team - she has been able to make it to the
nursing homes; here in town twice this month,
has made home visits and has been able to help
with a few services already - she is doing
amazingly well!
I. Committees and Organizations reports:
1. Building and Grounds - Roger, Justin
a. Having someone come to find/fix where
water is getting in NW corner of church
b. See: H1
c. LED light bulbs have been purchased to
replace non-working bulbs in Sanctuary
2. Constitution Comm.-Brad
a) Corrected/Updated 2019
Constitution/By-Laws sent to Synod office Feb.
28, 2020 for their approval
3. Fellowship/Outreach Comm- Julie
a. Finalized the Lenten Suppers
4. Sr. Head Usher-Kris
5. Parish Ed: Joe
6. Roepke Scholarship: Pastor Josh
a. Waiting for applications
7. Stewardship & Finance: Kris
a. Parsonage sale monies: 6 CD’s were
purchased (3 at Community Bank and 3 at
Fidelity Bank). Transferred $24,000 from the
Edel Thrivent funds to Zion’s general fund.
8. Technology: Gary
9. WELCA:
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10. Worship & Music - Charter/Michelle/Roger
a. Palms ordered for Palm Sunday
b. Singing The Lord’s Prayer will start in
May
c. Recognizing Seniors May 10th.
d. Rogation Sunday is April 26
Closed with The Lord’s Prayer
Adjournment at 7:54 PM.
Respectfully Submitted, Twyla Larsen, Council
Secretary
** Subject to approval at next month’s meeting
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Early bird discount through January 6, 2020.
Registration materials are online only.
COMMUNITY KITCHEN CUPBOARD
If you would like to help people of our
community who are short of food, please bring
the food items to the church and place them in
the collection box located in the entry of the
church. They will be taken to the Cupboard.
Our assigned item for months of April and May
is Muffin mixes.
BIBLE STUDY –
WEDNESDAY MORNINGS
Zion Lutheran Church has an awesome Bible
Study every Wednesday morning at 7:45 to 9.
It is based on the Gather magazine. Maxine
Losen leads this study and with her knowledge
of the Bible, we always end up learning
something new every week. We have
interesting conversations and lots of laughter
and even sometimes, tears.(There are treats
involved too)
Please come and join us, everyone is welcome!
KCRG, KWWL, KGAN Cancellation of Church service or Office