Come for food (burgers), worship (short), music, and more. Bring a blanket for a special concert with Kat’s Pajamas (including Tommy Polzine) in Trinity Hall. Bring your teddy bears, too, and be ready to bounce to fun music for the whole family.
Supper will be served from 5-6pm and the concert will be from 7-8pm. See you there!
This month the Buffalo Community Theater will be performing The King and I and the Buffalo High School Performing Arts Center. Cast members include Kacy & Josiah Crawford and Molly Kwakenat, and Michael Walsh, Zion’s Coordinator of Music, is the conductor. Performances will be on July 17, 18, 23, 24, 25 at 7:30pm and July 19 at 2pm. Tickets are available at Buffalo Books and Coffee and by phone through the BCT Hotline at 763.682.9454. More information and full cast list are available on the BCT website.
CCLS is announcing that for the coming school year, tuition for their all day, every day Kindergarten will be reduced to $1700. The CCLS Board of Directors wants families in Watertown and our surrounding communities to have an opportunity to enjoy a smaller class size and receive an outstanding education for their kindergarten age child. Tuition assistance is available for all qualifying families from Preschool-8th grade. Enrollment forms are available online. If you have questions regarding CCLS or any of their programs, please contact the school office at office@ccls.net.
Jon Huston and Family
You may remember that Jon Huston, one of our 10:30 head ushers, was featured on Good Morning America last winter after he located and reunited with his Korean birth mother.
In July, Jon will be one of 23 Americans at a conference in Korea for 100 Korean adopteees from around the world. This conference is an opportunity for adoptees to experience Korean culture, and is funded by the Korean government. Jon will also have an opportunity to spend some more time with his birth mom on the day’s he’s not at the conference.
Strategies, Opportunities & Support
The volatile economy and increasing number of job losses are tough on all of us, both financially and emotionally. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans recognizes that these issues are heavy on the minds of our members and our community, which is why they are offering this FREE seminar:
Tuesday, July 14 6:30-8:30pm at Zion Lutheran ChurchAlleviate your distress by learning simple, actionable strategies from industry expert Catherine Breet-Byers (www.changeyourstripes.net) on how to:
You’ll also find opportunities to take these strategies and customize them for your individual job hunt. You will leave knowing that you have support from your faith community and your Thrivent Community.
There is no cost to attend, and no products will be sold at this event.
On August 5th, Jake Swanson’s military service to his country officially ends. He is moving back to Minnesota and will attend Ridgewater Community College in Hutchinson this fall. I would like to thank my Zion family for their prayers and support, especially during his deployment to Afghanistan. When asked by a former teacher what she could send him, he replied “You don’t have to send me anything but your prayers. I know the only reason I am getting through this (the deployment) is because God has lifted me up and is carrying me.” Your prayers do make a difference in the lives of these soldiers. Please continue to pray for all of our military.
Kathy Swanson
Sunday, July 5 (and Monday, July 6 at Marysville)
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost
Mark 6:1-13
Pastor Judy preaching
Sunday, July 12 (and Monday, July 13 at Marysville)
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
Mark 6:14-29
Pastor Judy preaching
Sunday, July 19 (and Monday, July 20 at Marysville)
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
Mark 6:30-34, 53-56
Pastor Chris preaching
Sunday, July 26 (and Monday, July 27 at Marysville)
Eighth Sunday after Pentecost
John 6:1-21
Pastor Judy preaching
Dorothy passed away on Sunday, June 21.
The funeral will be at Zion on Friday, June 26 at 11 am with visitation at 10am, and lunch after the service.
Remember, the Minnesota All-State Lutheran Choir will be performing at Zion on Wednesday, June 24 at 7:30pm in Zion’s Sanctuary. 
by Arnold Rude
Were we like the person mentioned in James 2:14b, “Though a man says he has faith and not works, can faith save him?” or were we a witness to our faith like the person mentioned in Proverbs 14:21, “A true witness delivers souls”?
A Christian layperson has a unique position as a worker and witness for Jesus Christ; Read the rest of this entry »
Over the past year some of the area churches have been meeting in an effort to start a Love INC (Love In The Name of Christ) branch in Buffalo to help those in need in our community. Love INC-Big Woods, serving Buffalo, Maple Lake and Hanover is now an affiliate member of Love INC with the minimum six different denominations. The Development Committee consists of Buffalo Covenant, St. Francis Xavier, Spirit of Joy, Buffalo Presbyterian, Buffalo Evangelical Free ad Bethlehem United Church of Christ.
Please pray for the development of the Love INC in Buffalo, Maple Lake and Hanover. For more information you can contact Cindy Nelson (612)201-0888. Anyone interested is invited to their next meeting on June 30 at the St Francis Xavier Library. Representatives from Zion will be attending this meeting but we are not an official affiliate church at this time. Zion also continues to work closely with Love INC-Heartland which serves the Delano and Montrose area.
By Pastor Judy Burgett-Winzig
The week of SonRock Kids Camp, this year’s Vacation Bible School, was great! Lots of kids, lots of excitement, lots to do, and lots of volunteers! I was absolutely “blown away” by the number of volunteers, 150 to be exact. Thanks go to all those who helped—from greeters and runners, to the blue Jell-O makers, to youth who helped lead worship, to all those who came in the weeks before to decorate and make name tags, and to so many more. SonRock Kids Camp could not have run without their help! As I experienced the volunteers, I was reminded of the work of the church in Nigeria.
It can be easy for us to think about what we might be able to share with our new partners in the Shelleng congregation in Nigeria. We have so much and we want to give. What can we receive from them?
One thing that we can receive from the whole Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria is their approach to outreach and evangelism. Yes, they train and send evangelists and catechists to live in remote villages to share the Good News about God’s love and mercy lived out in Jesus. However, the evangelist is never expected to do the job alone. People from the sponsoring congregation go out to those villages to share their stories and share their faith. The men go to talk to the men, the women go to talk to the women, and the youth go to talk to the youth; not just one or two either, but large groups, and they will go out and stay for a period of time. People of the villages are impressed and excited that people from a larger town or city would come to be with them and share. That’s the kind of evangelism we can copy and grow into our own!
The late Sri Lankan missionary, D T Niles said of evangelism:
“Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread.”
It is being present with others and sharing the story I know to someone I know is also looking. The energy I was a part of during the SonRock Kids Camp week was evidence to me that Zion has the people, has the energy, has the stories and the faith to go out and share the Good News and not just one week of the year. We share it with those we know and with whom we have a natural connection.
Let’s pray for God’s guiding hand as we share the gifts we have been given here at Zion.
How is God at work in this world through your ministry?
Grab a video camera, tell your story in a short video and you could win up to $5,000!
The “God’s work. Our hands.” Video Contest invites members and congregations of this church to compete for great prizes:
The contest runs from June 15, 2009, to July 15, 2009.
To find out more about the contest, enter and rate videos, visit www.elca.org/videocontest.
Good luck! We can’t wait to see your story.
The Global Mission Team received permission to set up a task force to pursue a partnership with the Lutheran Church of Christ #1 Shelleng, a congregation in west central Nigeria.
Committees were reminded to coordinate any fundraisers through the office.
Memorial Committee disbursements were approved for nursery equipment, for communion kits, organ chime replacement, and large print devotionals.
Expense of up to $25,000 from the Roof/parking lot credit line to repair the parking lot this summer was approved.
There was discussion on viability of putting together a rotating group of Monday morning counters.
Communication Guidelines were approved outlining how council members should handle congregational feedback that may be received and processes to insure a variety of methods for regular and open communication between the council and congregation.
Pastor Becky’s resignation letter to the congregation was read and discussed.
Complete council minutes are available at zionbuffalo.org/council once they are approved at the following meeting.
Christopher Brophy will be leaving for Ft Benning, GA on July 8.
by Arnold Rude
Were we like the person mentioned in James 2:14b, “Though a man says he has faith and not works, can faith save him?” or were we a witness to our faith like the person mentioned in Proverbs 14:21 “A true witness delivers souls”?
A Christian layperson has a unique position as a worker and witness for Jesus Christ; having to spend our working day among our fellow men and women. Here there is no effective pretense. There for all to see, and our true, uncovered reaction to our work and its relationship to God.
To be a witnessing Christian in our daily life doesn’t mean Read the rest of this entry »
As their mission project this year, the VBS SonRock Kids’ Camp participants have started to collect supplies for military personnel overseas.
A complete list of suggested items can be found on the VBS page, and items should be brought to Zion by Sunday, June 21. They will then be be distributed amongst military personnel who have some congregational connection to Zion and the surrounding community.
And lastly in the words of Pastor Steve:
Homemade cookies/bars that are vacuum sealed or at least heavy duty zip locked are HUGE here. Thank you for doing this, you are going to make a lot of good people that you will never meet very happy.
Greetings from Northern Iraq. Currently I am located in Kirkuk – a city of about 1,000,000 people. So far I have been here just over one month, and have settled into the routine of life on a forward operating base. Attached is a picture taken the other night of a co-worker/friend from my Minneapolis reserve wing, who is here doing security work. He is a former Marine, now working for the Air Force and if there is a way to operate safely in a war zone, it is with him. We went out the other night on mid-watch to visit troops on the perimeter. The stuff in the picture that looks like snow is actually dust – it is very heavy here. Also very dry and very hot.
We have a vibrant chapel culture here on base; I have responsibility for one of eight different service offerings here, working with the contemporary worship service at 1000 and 1900 every Sunday. Between both services the contemporary serves 100-150 each week, and we have the best combat praise team in the CENTAF AOR. We work very closely with our Army Chaplain counterparts and have a great relationship with them.
 | Lee Kjesbo on Christopher Brophy |
 | Fran Juliot on Christopher Brophy |
 | Joan Halderson on Destiny Johnson |
