www.blcfamily.org 1 offi[email protected]www.blpaloha.com [email protected]December 2019 volume 9 • number 12 The STAR 2 Sermons 3 School News 4 Youth & Children 6 Servant of the Month 10 Service Rosters 11 Calendar 13 Birthdays/Anniv. A publication of Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Aloha, OR Quietly Pointing to Jesus I think it’s amazing—no, more than amazing, fun—how God puts things together. Sometimes, He does this “Elijah and the prophets of Baal” style, so that there’s no doubt what you just saw. But other times, He does things quietly, in that Luke 2:7 kind of way, where you go, “Wait. Didn’t the hopes and fears of all the years just get met and that’s how you’re going to tell it?” Quietly making connections is how our Lord seems to prefer to work most of the time. Theologically, we call that “working through the means of grace” and we categorize those means of grace— because that’s what humans do. Take the Church Year for example. It doesn’t follow the calendar on your wall or in your phone. The Church Year points to Jesus, so it doesn’t follow human conventions or expectations. Our calendar is determined to begin January 1 and to stubbornly end on December 31. Not so, the Church Year as it sort of runs the beginnings and the endings into one another. The Church Year “ends” on Christ the King Sunday and “begins” the First Sunday in Advent. But, Christ the King Sunday can rehearse the entire life of Jesus, connecting Christmas to Epiphany to Transfiguration to Good Friday and Easter to His Ascension. So, the “beginning” and the “end” kind of run into each other. Even the long season of Pentecost (the season formerly known as Trinity), has moments when the Scripture readings suddenly jump up and remind us of Easter or Christmas or Good Friday, so Jesus is everywhere and every “when,” meeting us in the moments. Our worship space at Bethlehem is another of those places where our Lord works quietly, connecting ordinary things together to point us to Jesus. We’ve already talked about the way some of the stones in the wall behind the altar can be seen to resemble a hand, holding everything together underneath the cross. Some folks in the 8:30 morning service have noticed in Spring and Summer how the rising sun shines through the middle window (cross surrounded by the fish) and lights up the chancel area—what we do, outlined by who Christ is and what He’s done. (Remember that the fish symbol points to Jesus because the letters in the Greek word for “fish” form an anagram for Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.) I really like this next one (Continued on page 2) What’s INSIDE Bethlehem Lutheran Church & Preschool Phone: 503.649.3380 BLCfamily.org offi[email protected]Scripture of the Month “ ‘ ’” Luke 2:10 Pastor Youth & Children Worship & Music Preschool Dir. Rev. Jeff Shearier Eric Oswald Kerry Bauer Laiva Hoffman Bethlehem Mission Statement “Building the family of God through relationship with Jesus Christ.”
A publication of Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Aloha, OR
Quietly Pointing to Jesus I think it’s amazing—no, more than amazing, fun—how God puts things together. Sometimes, He does this “Elijah and the prophets of Baal” style, so that there’s no doubt what you just saw. But other times, He does things quietly, in that Luke 2:7 kind of way, where you go, “Wait. Didn’t the hopes and fears of all the years just get met and that’s how you’re going to tell it?” Quietly making connections is how our Lord seems to prefer to work most of the time. Theologically, we call that “working through the means of grace” and we categorize those means of grace—because that’s what humans do. Take the Church Year for example. It doesn’t follow the calendar on your wall or in your phone. The Church Year points to Jesus, so it doesn’t follow human conventions or expectations. Our calendar is determined to begin January 1 and to stubbornly end on December 31. Not so, the Church Year as it sort of runs the beginnings and the endings into one another. The Church Year “ends” on Christ the King Sunday and “begins” the First Sunday in Advent. But, Christ the King Sunday can rehearse the entire life of Jesus, connecting Christmas to Epiphany to Transfiguration to Good
Friday and Easter to His Ascension. So, the “beginning” and the “end” kind of run into each other. Even the long season of Pentecost (the season formerly known as Trinity), has moments when the Scripture readings suddenly jump up and remind us of Easter or Christmas or Good Friday, so Jesus is everywhere and every “when,” meeting us in the moments. Our worship space at Bethlehem is another of those places where our Lord works quietly, connecting ordinary things together to point us to Jesus. We’ve already talked about the way some of the stones in the wall behind the altar can be seen to resemble a hand, holding everything together underneath the cross. Some folks in the 8:30 morning service have noticed in Spring and Summer how the rising sun shines through the middle window (cross surrounded by the fish) and lights up the chancel area—what we do, outlined by who Christ is and what He’s done. (Remember that the fish symbol points to Jesus because the letters in the Greek word for “fish” form an anagram for Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.) I really like this next one
12/4 Christmas Musical 12/5 Bethlehem Book Club 12/11 Christmas Concert 12/18 Food Box Packing 12/24 Christmas Eve 12/25 Christmas Day 12/31 New Year’s Eve
If you stand in the entrance to the nave (the worship space) and look straight in at the processional cross, the red light of the EXIT sign right above you illuminates the center of the cross with red light. This is especially impressive when the sanctuary is dark. As you walk closer to the altar, the light is focused into the center of the cross, reminding you that we have access to God through the cross of Jesus and His sacrifice for us. Often, I park in the north parking lot and exit through the doors past the organ/worship team area. I get to be reminded of John 1:14 every winter evening: “The Light
(Continued from page 1)
Quietly Pointing to Jesus
The STAR volume 9 • number 12
shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” He meets me in the moment of darkness with the light of Jesus. Think about those times when He’s done that for you—met you in those moments of darkness and pointed you to His love, His help, His hope in Jesus. More than think about them, celebrate those moments and give thanks for them. Joy in the journey, Pastor Jeff Shearier
Thank you everyone who has purchased a wreath or poinsettia! I appreciate all the support you, our congregation and community, give to the preschool. The products you have purchased will arrive on Tuesday, December 3rd; and will be available for pick up between 12-7 pm that day.
BY: Mike Schiemann What a joyous time of year we are experiencing at Forest Hills! As the old song goes, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!” There’s anticipation in the air for the celebration of the birth of Jesus, and at FHLCS, we’re in full swing! Once again this year, we’re hosting our annual Bethlehem Walk. In this event, the campus is transformed into Bethlehem itself! We tell the story from creation through the birth of Jesus using student actors in 11 different scenes, which also include live animals! We hope you can come and join us for this event on Friday, December 13 between 5:30-8. It’s an exciting time of year as well as we start planning for 2020-2021. It may seem early, but we are receiving a lot of phone calls and inquiries for admission for next year. We’re doing something new in a short time, partnering with the other Christian schools in the Hillsboro area for our first ever Private School Fair. This will take place on Saturday, December 7 between 9-12 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Hillsboro. Seven different Christian schools will be in
attendance. For both of these events, a post has been created on Facebook, and if you are a social media user, you could really help us out by sharing them on your own social media pages! May God bless you and your family as you enjoy every minute of the Christmas season!
Dear Bethlehem, I’m one month away from completing my new year’s resolu-tions. One was to eat no Funyuns this year. So far so good! The other is one I’ve
worked on and off for the whole year. The goal is to run a 1000km in a single year. I’m currently at 892k and it’s great because it really encourages me to run in the fall when I realize if I don’t run I won’t make my goal. I should do it earlier in the year but that’s not how I work. 3 years ago I completed that task and I hope I will make it but even if I don’t I’ve almost doubled the amount of running I did last year so it’s a step in the right direction. I’m thinking about how much that’s motivated me and yet in my spiritual life I haven’t been good about goal set-ting. I’ve done “Read the Bible in a Year” about 10 years ago but that’s almost too much and hard to track. So here’s my simple goal. Each month I will focus on a dif-ferent book of the Bible. I’m starting with Luke as I’m preparing for the Christmas season- it just makes sense to start there. I’m also telling you so maybe you can create a similar plan or at
least keep me accountable. Faith is a gift that’s given not earned, but a spiritual life if not attended to- easily slips into the background. The gift of faith in Jesus is the best gift I have so I want Jesus to change me, to help me grow and He uses His word to do that. As we’ve gone through this year I’ve noticed how much the Word connects with life and themes keep coming up. I’m hoping by having some variety that will keep me and my ADHD brain on task for the year. We’ve talked about spiritual exercise pledges with our capital campaign- are there pledges and goals in your spiritual life that you’re working on right now? May God give you the power to reach them! May God’s love be with you always, Eric Oswald DCE
Spiritual Goals Children’s Ministry
Youth Ministry
The STAR volume 9 • number 12
Youth & Children
5:30pm come Christmas bowling! $12- and it’s a fundraiser for our youth ministry program- $5 comes right back to us!
Back to the future trivia night: save the date Feb. 22nd at 5:30pm!
The Real Christmas Gift
Dec 4 6:30 pm
Dec 8
10:00 am
Youth Christmas Party: Come join the fun Dec. 15th from 5-8pm! Bring a side dish to share like salad, guacamole, bread, all great things to bring! We will go caroling, make decoration, have a devotional thought, and have a blast! All Church Bowling: It’s the Sunday after Christmas. The presents are unwrapped, the dirty dishes are still in the sink and laundry should be done. What should you do? Leave the mess behind and come bowling at Park Lanes with Bethlehem! Dec. 29th- 3:30-
Our servant of the month for December is Sherryl Boitz. Sherryl is an active member of the Adult Choir, volunteers with Crosswalk, and is part of our LWML. Most of Sherryl's time, however, is spent faithfully sharing God's love with young hearts in our Sunday School and preschool.
Grandma Sherryl as the children affectionately call her, excels at showing patience and is always willing to step into any situation with confidence and a sense of calming. Sherryl, you are a gift to us at Bethlehem. Thank you for your ever present love. We praise God for you!
Servant of the Month–
Sherryl Boitz
The STAR volume 9 • number 12 News
LWML Update Thank you to everyone who supported our Holiday Bazaar with donations and purchases. Most of the monies will be used for mission inreach and outreach. If you are interested in what last year’s funds were used for, check the list on our bulletin board. A special thank you to some of our "Mr. LWML'ers". Kevin Harding for providing the lovely music of the Dulcimer during the morning, Greg Geist for putting up our banner, and Clarence Twenhafel for drying, cracking and shelling the walnuts. Also thank you to Nan Dubberke's two sisters for their donations and helping set up. Just a reminder, if you still need a quilt, they are on display through this Sunday(Dec. 1) We always have some available for purchase during the year. Christmas decorating will be Monday, December 2nd at 9:30 am.
Christmas food baskets– We will contribute a monitary donation toward gift cards for each basket.
Our next meeting will be Thursday, January 16, 2020 at 11:30 am as there will be no November or December meetings.
Advent and the giving season are in full swing. Bethlehem is once again demonstrating our faith by reaching out to reflect Christ’s love for us through love to our neighbors. Bethlehem‘s Christmas food box program is supporting 25 households in need of food for the holiday. Members, who wish to nominate a household, should reach out to Pastor Jeff and provide contact details to the Mary Heck in the office before December 10th. The drive to collect food for the gift boxes is ongoing. Look for our display of “Stars” listing needed items . Please consider donating by picking a pick star and returning the associated item to the church by December 15th. We cannot accept perishable items, open packages or any item with an expired date code. Funds may be donated to assist paying for perishable items. Signup sheets are up in the narthex for people to shop for perishables on December 16th, 17 or 18th, people who want to help with the packing event on
the 18th; and people to deliver the boxes after the event. WeCan do this without the your help, so please consider volunteering. If you would like to help behind the scenes, please contact Barb Bernard, Mary Loseke or Greg Geist. We will hold our Food box packers soiree Wednesday, December 18th in the Community Center. Dinner will be provided. Please come have a meal with us. This is a great
opportunity to do a good deed and break the holiday routine. When it’s done will feel like you have accomplished something reflecting the true sprit of Christmas . Bethelehem will also be collecting clean an servicable sleeping bags for the homeless. Look for a the box in
the Narthex. Those who would like to donate but don’t havespare sleeping bags or blanket can purchase items on Union Gospel Missions Amazon wish list and the articles will be shipped diect to the mission. https://ugmportland.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f3c141c744b54802afcd255b&id=080806fb92&e=fb7550c71e Looking ahead to January, Bethlehem will host a Red Cross Blood drive January 15th. The drive is open for scheduling now and donors may make an appointment online at https://www.redcrossblood.org . As always, bring your questions or suggestions to Barb Bernard, Mary Loseke or Greg Geist. Input from Bethlehem members is always welcome. Thanks once again and merry Christmas to all our volunteers. Peace be with you,
What does it mean to be good? It certainly is the opposite of being bad. Have you ever been told that you are good? Jesus is certainly good therefore, God is good. Do you think that during His life anyone ever accused Jesus of being “good?” I think it is best exemplified in Matthew 7, “If you, then, though you are evil, you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him! Read the passages before and after to see what examples are given.
God is Good
Men’s Bible Study
Men’s Bible Study. In December, we will not meet due to Christmas activities. Our next Bible study will be January 6. As always in the Inn at Bethlehem at 7 pm. Remember all men are invited. Remember to bring your Bible! We hope to see you too, God’s grace and peace. Ron
It is the 6th fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Can we show goodness to God’s standards? There is only one way- using God’s strength. Philippians 4:13 “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength”
Help Love INC Collect Den-tal Hygiene Products! Through the Love INC Restoring Hope Program, neighbors in need are offered classes to encourage setting goals and changing negative patterns. Incen-tives are provided for showing up on time with homework assign-ments completed. These classes are offered in the Fall and Spring so there is an ongoing need for these products. In the past Love INC has given out kits of hygiene, dental, shaving, cleaning, writing items & laundry soap and more. Bethlehem will be collecting dona-tions of Toothbrushes, Toothpaste, Dental floss and Mouthwash. When you are shopping over the coming weeks, could you pick up one or two of these items and bring them to church on Sunday to place in the Blue-topped Bin IN THE NARTHEX? Thank you for considering donating to a program to help improve indi-vidual lives.
COMFORTS OF HOME
“Because of Bethlehem, LOVE is BORN, HOPE is HERE This four session study is written by Best Selling Christian Author, Max Lucado and led by Pastor Bill Hering. “Because of Bethlehem” is an Advent study that will help you prepare your heart to Celebrate Christ’s Coming. Lesson 1: God has a Face, Lesson 2,Worship Works Wonders, Lesson 3 - God Guides the Wise, Lesson 4 - Every Heart a Manger.
Adult Discipleship Class There will be a 15 minute video where Max introduces the lesson, and we will enjoy group and table discussion unpacking the lesson and what it means to get ready for Christ. Advent isn’t just a season, it is an attitude, an approach to life lived in, with, and for Jesus. The study guide provides valuable tools to you refresh and help you put into place some Advent practices in this busy season. Even if you have missed the first two lessons, Now is a great time to start.
Please call your team leader in advance if you are unable to serve on your schedule date. Thanks!
December 4 10:30 am Music– Dwight Siewert Elder– Ivan Weichbrodt 6:30 pm Children’s Musical Elder– Keith Harn Ushers– Rick & JoAnna Refsland
December 11 10:30 am Music– Dwight Siewert Elder– Mark Vosseler 7:00 pm Christmas Concert Elder- Steve Finney Ushers– Brad Loseke, Erik Sandeen
December 18 10:30 am Music– Dwight Siewert Elder– Harvard Isaak
December 24 5:00 pm Music– Phyllis Murken, Worship Team Elder– Keith Harn Ushers– Lee Kauth, Hank Modro Acolyte– Megan & Trevor Hoffman 7:00 pm Music– Phyllis Murken, Worship Team Elder– Bob Baker Ushers– Brad & Mary Loseke Acolyte– Enoch & Isaac Chen 11:00 pm Music– Phyllis Murken Communion– Matt Boelter Elder– Kevin Harding Ushers– Dave Dubberke, Erik Sandeen Acolyte– Analise & Ryan Boelter Altar Guild– Karen Summerall
December 25 10:00 am Music– Dwight Siewert Communion– Brad Loseke, Bob Baker Elder– Mark Vosseler Ushers– Dave & Nan Dubberke Acolyte– Ella Hoffman, Ellianna Bauer Altar Guild– Kathryn Sandeen,
