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Apr 27 2012

FAITH STORIES – Paula & Stephen Nierengarten

Published under Announcements,Newsletters

Paula & Stephen

 

Sometimes faith is accepting God’s will at the toughest of times.  For Paula Nierengarten, the realization that she and her husband could not have their own biological children was a true test of faith.

“I won’t say I didn’t say, ‘What did I do wrong? God don’t you love me anymore?’ ” Paula says of those difficult days. “But I never turned away from worship. God will give you what he wants to give you. We figured God had a purpose for us.”

Indeed, God had a plan for Paula and Steve.  Today, the couple has more kids than they could ever count, serving as parents to dozens of youth at Christus Victor. Whether through Spirit Bound – which is how Paula and Steve first got involved with Christus Victor – or at Minnesota Metro Lutheran Teens Encounter Christ, Paula and Steve are ever-present in the lives of many of the congregation’s youth.   “Being involved with Spirit Bound and TEC allowed me to parent without being a parent. It fulfilled a need that Steve and I had in our lives,” Paula said. “I have more youth friends than I do adult friends. It’s a good feeling.”

Today, Paula’s deepened her commitment to the congregation’s youth by serving as a volunteer youth leader.  “I’ve worked with teenagers who haven’t heard of God,” she said. “It puts it on my heart to make sure they get to know Him. I can’t imagine where I’d be without God.”

One of four children – and a twin, no less – Paula grew up in a Christian family. “I just accepted Christ as being part of my life,” she said, crediting her mother and grandmother with giving her a strong faith foundation. “We were of the generation that when Mom went to church to work on the rummage sale, we just went. We didn’t say, ‘I don’t want to go.’ We went and we helped.”

Still, it wasn’t until the ninth grade that Paula truly accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior. That was the year she and her sister were transitioning out of a parochial elementary and middle school into public high school and discovered Chuck Jacobson and Young Life – a nondenominational group that met one night a week at someone’s home to worship, celebrate with music and share stories of faith.

“It was a way for my sister and I to figure out how God worked outside of our little family and our environment,” Paula said.  Paula’s faith has grown even stronger since she married Steve.   “I have an extremely positive husband. I can come home and complain about something and he will put a positive spin on it. That is a blessing,” she says. “Surrounding ourselves with people who love the Lord as much as you do is also important. So is being in a community of believers.”

Paula is drawing on that faith again today as she helps counsel her mother, who is caring for her aging father.  “I find myself encouraging my mom’s faith, which is what she did for me growing up and when I couldn’t get pregnant,” Paula said. “Sometimes bad things do happen, but I think He walks through those bad situations with us.”

Apr 27 2012

VBS is Coming!!!

The thinking, planning and anticipation has begun!!

VBS 2012 is going to AWESOME!!

We will be rocking with Backstage with the Bible by the popular local children’s Christian rock group Go Fish!! Invite your friends, family and neighbors as this will be a VBS experience like no other. The fun will happen July 22-26 with the VBS worship and family picnic on July 29th.

Registration and volunteer sign-up will begin on May 13th.

Apr 27 2012

Confirmation Spring Schedule

May 2 – Regular Large and Small Group Time

May 9 – BBQ Potluck Picnic with parents and kids!

We’ll provide the hot dogs, brats, and buns, families bring a dish to share (salads, side dishes, desserts).  We’ll have some activities and then end the year with a rocking Recharge worship service!

Next Fall:  Confirmation Service of Affirmation of Faith, Sunday, October 28 during the 11:00am service!

Apr 27 2012

Being God’s Children in the World – By Pastor Kent Claussen Gubrud

Published under Announcements

“See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” 1 John 3: 1

“In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another.” 1 John 4: 10-11

 Dear Beloved Children of God, Friends in Christ,

 Isn’t that amazing?  You are a beloved child of God through Jesus Christ our Lord!  Yet, most often we don’t fully believe it, accept it, or live it in our lives.  We are all on this journey of faith, learning, growing, and changing all of the time.  This is not only true of us individually, but as a gathered community of believers, brought together by the Holy Spirit to help us mature as daughters and sons of God, disciples of Jesus Christ.

 The question I want you to ponder is, “how do you most naturally connect with God and grow in God’s love?” 

 In the book 3 Colors of Your Spirituality, Christian Schwarz, through his work with thousands of churches and hundreds of thousands of Christians around the world, identifies nine different spiritual styles of how different Christians experience and connect with God.  Each style emphasizes one aspect of the Biblical message, but in order to grow to maturity, we not only need to grow from our unique style, but learn from the other styles.

 As you look over these styles, which of these seems to fit you the most?

Name & Motto Focus Key Scripture
Sensory: enjoying the works of God beauty & perception Psalm 19:1
Rational: understanding the nature of God logic & science Prov. 3:19
Doctrinal: thinking correctly about God truth & doctrine Col. 2: 8
Scripture: applying the Word of God study & discipleship Col. 3: 16
Sharing: passing on the Grace of God evangelism & service 2 Cor. 5: 20
Ascetic: developing discipline for God sacrifice & inner values  1 Cor. 9: 27
Enthusiastic: celebrating the power of God power & excitement 1 Cor. 4: 20
Mystical: resting in the presence of God mystery & devotion Rom. 8: 26
Sacramental: expressing the incarnation of God liturgy & symbolism John 1: 14

 My invitation to you is to focus on the ways you naturally connect with God, and then learn from others with different styles, so we can all continue to grow into the fullness of God as God’s children in the world.  (If you’re looking for some summer faith reading, let me know, and I will hook you up with this book!)

 In Christ – Pastor Kent

Apr 01 2012

Newsletter April 2012

Published under Announcements

Newsletter April 2012

Mar 30 2012

HOLY WEEK & EASTER SUNDAY WORSHIP

Published under Announcements,Events

HOLY WEEK

Come gather with us to celebrate God’s love revealed and given to us through the death and the glorious resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

Maundy Thursday7:00pm Worship – drama by JIFY, plus 4 of our youth will be receiving their 1st Communion.   We remember that Jesus gives us a new commandment to love one another as he has loved us, and instituted the meal of forgiveness and new life at the Last Supper.  Spaghetti Dinner – 5:30pm before the Maundy Thursday service.   Proceeds benefit WAPO Camperships. 

Good Friday 7:00pm Worship

Service of Light and Dark as we remember Jesus last words to his disciples from his betrayal, trial, and death on the cross. 

Holy Saturday9:00am

The preparations and decorating for Easter begins at 9:00am on Holy Saturday.  We need lots of people, so please come and help. 

EASTER SUNDAY WORSHIP

7:00am, 8:30am, and 11:00am

Join us for the celebration of the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, and the new life we are given out of God’s love for us by grace through faith! 

8:00am-10:30am – Easter Breakfast – waffles, ham, fruit, yoghurt, juice, and coffee – FREE WILL offering will support kids going to Church Camp at WAPO. 

9:45am – Easter Story and Easter Egg Hunt for the kids.  Meet in the Sunday school wing!

Mar 26 2012

A Note from the Property Committee

Published under Announcements

Have you ever asked yourself a question like, “Did you see the broken pew with the blue tape on it??? I wonder
when ‘they’ are going to fix it?”

Well, we’ll fix it when we find out about it!

We have a new Property Committee Work Request and Project Tracking book outside the office in the mailboxes. If you see a property issue or something that needs fixing, please fill out a form and we will get it fixed.

On a separate, but property-related note, we’re getting ready to redecorate/remodel the corner office (Pastor Kent’s
new office) and we could use some helping hands! You don’t need any special skills, just a willingness to “hold the other end of a board” or a brush. Please let us know, either by a note in the Property Committee Workbook or
via email to eodden@frontiernet.net.

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