September 2015 Red Oak Grove friends, Here is a little bit of what we know:

+ The people who most influence the faith of children and youth are parents. Any program at church that does not involve the parents (and other caring adults) directly is not as effective as it can be.

+ Sunday School itself was not created originally to teach children faith. Sunday School began in the 1800s to teach the children who worked in the factory during the week. It was the day of the week they learned the things other children learned during the week in school; reading, math, etc.

+ One of the key ways children learn is by modeling. How can we – all of us! - model lives of faith?

+ At one time, the Red Oak Grove Sunday School wing was filled with children! That is great! Sunday School worked in ways then that it is not working now. It’s not that that was wrong; it’s that times have changed and we need to change too.

+ Research shows we need a 5 to 1 ratio. Not one teacher for every five children but five caring adults for every one child. How can we foster relationships of all different ages throughout the church? First step: we need to be together. In worship, in learning, in playing.

+ Sunday School at Red Oak Grove is not working. We’ve tried to adjust Sunday School with many new things in the last years … but those also have not worked. With our children and youths’ faith at stake, we’re ready (and super excited!) to try something completely new.

Keeping those tidbits in our minds, many people have put their brains and passion and ideas together. (And we’re always welcoming new brains and passions and ideas to join us! Talk to me about this education team.) We’re trying something new. We have to try something new. We love our children and youth so much that we need to try something new for the next generations of faith.

And we need your help. We ask you to give this new way of teaching and learning and modeling a try. We ask you to be involved in the lives of our young people. We ask you to model a life of active

faith. In October, we are launching GIFT – Growing in Faith Together. GIFT is for absolutely everyone – our goal is that we all grow in faith together! We are going to plan GIFT events and services through December, at which point, we will evaluate and welcome feedback from all of you.

Here is how GIFT will unfold – First/Third Activity Sundays: On communion Sundays, following worship on the first and third Sundays, there will be inter-generational activities. These will be introduced in worship and seek to involve everyone in the fellowship hall. As they have in the past, these activities will be found on the back tables. Families, come check them out together! Everyone, stop by and see what’s up! All people are welcomed and encouraged to be involved and interact with these activities of faith! Second Sunday worship: Come and worship on the second Sunday of the month! These worship services will aim to connect with all ages in ways that are engaging and interactive and positive. Our goal is to have children and youth involved in ushering, reading, and participating in the service in different ways. GIFT Wednesday: On the first Wednesday of the month, we invite everyone to meet at church for a meal and other activities. For many families, the reality is that Wednesday evenings work better than Sunday mornings. We’re still working out the details of this monthly event. Watch for details in the bulletin and the next newsletter as the first one – October 7th – draws near! Chances are we’re going to need to tweak things along the way. Chances are all the things we plan may not always pan out the way we hope. But we’re going to try and best serve the families and young people of this congregation. We really hope you’ll be on board for this new journey with support, participation, and insight. Thank you, Pastor Lindsay

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Sunday, September 13th: Come by horse or by car to

Red Oak Grove’s Annual Cowboy Worship Service. This outdoor worship service will begin at 10am.

Bring a chair, invite your friends, and stay for the free picnic-style meal that follows!

August 4, 2015 Red Oak Grove Council Meeting

The meeting was called to order by Shad Rudlong. Members attending: Shad Rudlong, Bob Kittelson, Mike Hoffman, Ardell Swenson, Bill Maxwell, Scott Basness, Holly Ille, Pastor Lindsay and Laura Tjomsland. Pastor Lindsay led devotions from Matthew 5. Pastor’s Report included: The Youth Gathering in Detroit was great. The third Day Camp is on schedule. We will have an intergenerational activity on August 23rd. Confirmation is set to begin. The Education Team will meet on Monday, August 10th to plan ideas for educational programs for the coming year. Six campers went to Good Earth Village. Visits for the past two months included; 8 with communion, 1 hospital, 1 internment, 1 baptism, 4 Prairie Manor and 20 other visits. The Secretary’s Report was accepted as read. The Treasurer’s Report was accepted as presented with the following highlights: opening balance was $16,611.18 with deposits the total was $22,866.38, after expenses the remaining balance is $14,472.70. Youth Fund is $3,905.67 and the Improvement Fund is $3,706.66. Welca Report given by Ardell: They will be serving at Prairie Manor and also delivering Meals on Wheels. Deacons had no report. Trustee’s Report included: A bid from Johnson Tree Removal to trim trees, remove stumps was received. A motion was made seconded and passed to have this done. The bid from Christian Brothers was approved for the seal coating of the parking lot. Two garage doors will be replaced. It has been suggested that we keep a maintenance log as items are completed. Old Business: A report was given on the English as a Second Language (ESL) classes that are being held at the church. New Business: The Education Team will meet on Monday, August 10th. Discussion about the fan in the attic, this project will be finished. A budget meeting will be set up before the Annual Meeting. The Nominating Committee will begin to seek members to serve on the Council, please give prayerful consideration when asked to help with these very important positions. Cowboy Sunday will be on September 13th with outdoor worship beginning at 10 a.m. followed by a community meal. Please invite your friends and neighbors to this service. Next meeting will be September 1st. September Eucharist Assistant and coffee hour organizer will be Holly Ille. The meeting adjourned with the Lord’s Prayer. Respectfully submitted, Laura Tjomsland, Council Secretary

WELCA Minutes

The August 5, 2015 WELCA meeting was held in the church basement. There were 17 members present, 5 guests, 3 rabbits and 2 dogs. The meeting was called to order by President Pat Hanson. We read the purpose together. The opening hymn was “Jesus Loves Me” and devotions were from Psalm 37:7. A reading from “Jesus Calling” was given by Nancy Wesely. The Secretary’s and Treasurer’s reports for July were read with a correction to the circles serving at Prairie Manor - August 2nd Rebekah and August 9th Hannah, then approved and placed on file. Correspondence was a thank you from Emma Weikum and Jessica Ferguson for the quilts they received for graduation and from Orene Dennis for a floral arrangement she received for her 90th birthday. No unfinished business. New Business: Fall Convention will be held at Christ Lutheran, Preston, MN, September 19, 2015. A $30 offering will be sent. It was moved and seconded to have the church cleaned before Guest Day, October 7, 2015. It was noted that we need ice cube trays for the kitchen. Nancy Wesely offered to purchase some of these. There were no committee reports. The Worship Offering Prayer was given by Nancy Wesely. We sang the birthday song for Ardell Lindquist and Marlys Peterson. The next meeting will be September 2, 2015 at 1:30 p.m. Naomi Circle will have the program and Rebekah will serve. The program followed the meeting and we were entertained by Ben, Alex and Rachel Riley showing and explaining their fair projects – two puppies and three bunnies. Respectfully submitted, Ardell Swenson, acting secretary

“Jesus is the bread of life.” This was truly the case on Sunday, August 23rd. After we had “Gathered in Grace” members took an active part in Baking Bread Together. Twenty loaves of bread were baked, cards were written and then the loaves of bread were delivered to some of our members that are not able to be at church on a regular basis. This was definitely a part of our mission “To go forth and serve”. A big thanks to all those wonderful helpers that delivered the bread. Signed, One of God’s helpers.

Pastoral Acts: Baptisms – Ryder Owen Anderson Harper Evelyn Prizler Adalynn Seneva Heilemann Funerals – Sylvester Lawrence Thompson Darrin Olen Stemson

Thank you to all of the Meal on Wheels Drivers and to the Red Oak Grove Circles for serving coffee at Prairie Manor during the month of August. Ardell Swenson The WIT Group will meet at church on September 8th at 1:30 p.m. The Southeastern Minnesota Synodical Women’s Organization Convention will be held on Saturday, September 19th at Christ Lutheran in Preston, Minnesota. The theme for the convention will be Building Bridges to Peace.

The Annual Meeting of Red Oak Grove Lutheran Church

will be held after worship on September 20, 2015. A brunch will follow.

 

 

Parents and confirmation youth (7th – 9th grade): We will kick off the confirmation year on Wednesday, September 9th. We will meet from 6:30 – 8 p.m. to distribute information and hear about the upcoming year. Your attendance is very important! 10th grade confirmation students: A mailing is coming your way with information about the fall. We will meet for the first time on October 4th following worship to discuss projects, the confirmation service, and wrap up our learning together. As we prepare to launch GIFT (see pages 1 & 2) in October and because September Sundays are already super full of events, please note that there will be no education hour during September. Families, please worship cowboy-style on the 13th and stick around for the free meal. Come on Sunday the 20th too – the annual meeting will feature pictures and stories of CYF ministry throughout the year. And then stay for brunch!