• To all that delivered Meals on Wheels in June. Zion will be delivering Meals on Wheels again in November.
• To those that hosted students from the Minnesota All-State Lutheran Choir last week, as well as those that sponsored the concert.

Today, Zion sent off 300+ Hygiene Kits, assembled by VBS kids, to the Demsa Hospital in Nigeria via Global Health Ministries!

Cross-posted here

The Block Club at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Zion’s mission partner congregation, is holding their 2nd Annual Bold Women Quilt Auction (at Redeemer, 1800 Glenwood Avenue Minneapolis) on July 25, 2009 at 10am.

A brunch will be served the morning of the auction, everyone attending is asked to bring school supplies. There will be a live auction of handmade quilts, silent auction baskets and handmade items for sale. Proceeds from the auction will be going to a Women’s sewing project in Mexico, a school in Togo and to Redeemer Lutheran’s Capital Campaign.

The Block Club at Redeemer is an outreach ministry to women, teens and kids in the Harrison neighborhood. The age range of the quilters is 8 to 93. This outreach ministry was formed 4 years ago and has been a blessing to many.

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:

Alleviate your distress by learning simple, actionable strategies from industry expert Catherine Breet-Byers (www.changeyourstripes.net) on how to:

• Differentiate yourself in a tight job market.
• Network for success and interview to win.
• Overcome the obstacles and knock your financial fears out of the way.

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.

Please register here.

Join Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota for these upcoming dates:

Learn about the exciting opportunities and recent changes in adoption.  Discover the tools and support for families who would like a flexible, proactive adoption process, and learn how LSS can partner with you to grow your family.  LSS can help families adopt children locally, and from countries around the world.  6–8pm on Tuesday, July 21, at the Center for Changing Lives, Room 182.

2-day Special Needs Adoption Training Workshop. “Special needs” describes children who have experienced abuse or neglect and now live in foster homes. This workshop is the first step in preparing families to adopt and parent those special children. Topics such as Attachment, Grief & Loss, Impact of Abuse, and Cross Cultural adoption are covered. You will hear from adoptive parents and children who have recently been adopted. LSS offers a tremendous amount of support for children and parents following this type of adoption. 9am–6pm on Thursday, July 16 and 9am to 3:3pm on Friday, July 17 at The Center for Changing Lives, Centrum B.

The Center for Changing Lives is located at 2400 Park Avenue in Minneapolis. For more information, or to register for either of these meetings, visit www.minnesotaadoption.org or call Lynne Haggar at (612) 879-5230 or 1-888-205-3769.

On August 5^th, 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

The Zion Softball Team plays in the Churches for Christ softball league on Friday nights at the fields on the corner of 34 & 134. Come on out and cheer:

• 9pm July 10 v. St Francis Xavier
• 9pm July 17 v. Delano Catholic

Note: There will be no games July 3rd due to the July 4th holiday. The games that were originally scheduled for July 3rd will be played on Friday July 10th & so on. The last game of the season will still be July 17th so the games currently scheduled for that night will not be played. State Tournaments will be July 24-26th in Elk River. Email Rusty at rusty@menoffaith with any questions.

Early in May, Pastor Chris reduced his remaining salary by 10% and challenged the congregation to follow Jesus’ example of sacrificial giving. Since then our contributions to the general fund have increased by nearly six percent over the corresponding Sundays last year. For many contributors who are concerned about their personal finances, this generosity has been a genuine act of faith. We celebrate this financial encouragement and look for God’s continued blessings.

These are a few of the projects that the Harvest of Hands group is working on this summer. They are also looking at making stained-glass business card holders.

Posted in Harvest of Hands ]]> http://news.zionbuffalo.org/2009/06/23/harvest-of-hands-crafts/feed/ 0 Angela P1100904 http://news.zionbuffalo.org/2009/06/22/job-transition-workshop/ http://news.zionbuffalo.org/2009/06/22/job-transition-workshop/#comments Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:55:38 +0000 Angela http://news.zionbuffalo.org/?p=2488 ]]>

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans will be sponsoring a FREE Job Transition workshop at Zion on Tuesday, July 14.

Complete details including RSVP information can be found at changeyourstripes.net.  If that day or time does not work for you, alternate locations are listed here.

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.

If you would be interested in being a part of the Schelleng Companion Team, please contact the office through the website or Pastor Judy, or come to the first meeting at 6:30pm on July 9.

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 we have to stand on a ―soap box‖ on some street corner, or force our convictions on our fellow workers. Jesus indicated how we can best witness when he said, “By their works they shall be known.”

How can we become the kind of witness Jesus was referring to? First we need to live closer to Christ. In John 15:5 Jesus says “I am the vine and you are the branches. He abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit for without me you can do nothing.” To be an effective witness, we must abide in Christ so that people will see in us something to be desired. When we continue to live in that state of abiding in Christ, we all witness by our actions.

Another thing we can do is to read the Bible every day to strengthen our faith ad get direction for each day from God‘s word. President Willson once made this statement: “I am sorry for men that do not read the Bible every day; I wonder why they deprive themselves of the strength and of the pleasure.”

If our faith is real, it should show to others. I am reminded of a statement made to me by a former pastor at St. Ansgars, at Cannon Falls. As a young man he worked in the harvest fields. His witness to his faith had not been very strong. One worker had a habit of being offensive by using foul language. Being burdened by his lack of witness, the young man finally spoke up and objected to the crude language. Here is the answer he got: “Well, I was beginning to wonder if your Christianity was just so many words.” How often have people looked at us and found no witness: nothing.

I think of David in the Old Testament (the Psalms, one of my favorite books of the Bible). David writes in Psalm 1:1, ―Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners. ‖ In another Psalm he stands before God and says, “I have walked in my integrity.” That is what a witnessing Christian layperson has to do in the marketplace.

The world watches us, and their perception is very keen. Abraham Lincoln made this statement, “You can fool some of the people some of the time, and you can fool some people all the time, but you can not fool all the people all the time.” People around us will eventually see how our faith is by the integrity of our lives. And, of course, we cannot fool God at any time.

When we read the Bible every day with prayer for guidance, when we have accepted the admonition of David, then we are ready to be a witness in the marketplace.

Why all the preparation? We are all aware to do a good job in the secular world w have to know what to do, and how to do it, and why. It is the same in the spiritual life. For an example, we need to know God‘s word so when the Holy Spirit opens the door into someone‘s life and they come to us and ask how to believe and change their lives, we can share the answers from God‘s word, and the results of our faith and experience.

Here is a prayer that should be on the mind and heart of every Christian:

(all Bible quotes are from KJV)

By Pastor Kelly Chatman of Redeemer Lutheran Church

This month as we celebrate the 100th anniversary at Redeemer, we give thanks that for one hundred years Redeemer has been blessed to lead people to faith. A congregation is a faith community where people witness to the story of God’s love and inspire others to have lives of faith.

On July 23, 2002, nine miners in Western Pennsylvania became trapped in a flooded mine. The injured and desperate miners tied themselves together so that the stronger ones could sustain the weaker ones as they waited to be rescued. Journalists from across the nation reported the rescue effort, which took five long days. No one could believe it when all nine miners emerged safely from the mine.

On July 30, the people of the small mining community gathered for a worship service to thank God for saving the miners’ lives. At the ceremony, there were ten miners’ lamps set up on the altar, even though there were only nine miners. At that worship celebration, the tenth lamp was to represent the presence of God, which the miners claimed they could feel as they waited to be rescued. It was this “10th Person” they honored as they read Psalm 103: “Praise the Lord . . Who redeems your life from the pit.”

This month we celebrate the 100 year anniversary of Redeemer Congregation in thanksgiving that God has been present in our midst as that “tenth person,” for without God this surely would not have been possible. At Redeemer we believe that there is God who has been the light. God brought us through places and times of darkness and into a celebration of the light of salvation and grace. What a marvelous opportunity this is to look back over the past hundred years and say thank you, for God is good and God has brought us safely to celebrate this new day. The past one hundred years has served to shape and inspire Redeemer to begin the next century as a faith-filled community rooted in the reality of God’s love for the world.

In addition to the opportunity to deepen the faith practices of our congregation, we begin this next period of Redeemer’s history and witness with the vision to transform our building, block and neighborhood. At Redeemer we serve as God’s life line, tying ourselves to the larger church, mission partners, as well as to people who are injured and waiting to be rescued from isolation and separation from God.

We begin the next century as a congregation that seeks to bring faith to life. Redeemer is a witness to the power that a life of faith cares about people. A life of faith involves worship, prayer and support. A life of faith is inter-generational, provides affordable housing, builds relationships, and takes risks on people. A life of faith becomes a place and a people that produce stories. People might never set foot in Redeemer and yet will have heard the stories. A life of faith is discovered in the stories of people who worship with people from another race, continent and culture. A life of faith occurs when a ninety-three year old Swede looks forward each year to teaching neighborhood children how to make pickles, watching adults study the bible, singing in the choir and serving food. A life of faith is a safe place for children to learn and play, using hip-hop to learn the 23rd Psalm, women utilizing their quilting to mentor children, planting a garden, playing chess.

The annual ice cream social that many remember from the past is coming back on Monday, July 27. Come and celebrate the beautiful Marysville Church with some pie and ice cream after the 7pm service.

For those of you who have never attended a historic Marysville service, this is the perfect opportunity to give it a try. A free will offering will support the Marysville Preservation Fund. If you would like to donate a pie for the occasion, please sign up by July 24.

All are welcome!

The Memorial Fund is a way for people to make specific gifts to the church, usually in memory or honor of someone. Gifts to the Memorial Fund are used in total for the cause to which they were donated, and typically are a physical item.

The Zion Foundation is different in two main ways. The Foundation only disperses earnings on invested donations. And the Foundation funds only religious, educational and charitable purposes, not physical items.

The General Fund of the congregation provides for the on-going cost of doing ministry. Those funds are almost entirely received through Sunday offering. Forward in Faith is similar to the General Fund but is restricted to paying for the building‘s cost and some benevolence.

Memorial Fund contributions are received in two categories. Undesignated gifts may be made in memory or honor of someone, but the Memorial Fund Committee decides how the gifts will be best used. Donors may also give to a specific purpose. The purposes for which donations may currently be received are:

• Large print devotional books
• Piano (repair and tuning)
• Organ
• Paraments (altar cloths)
• Hearing enhancement (personal hearing devices)
• Landscaping
• Library
• Sanctuary audio/visual equipment
• Undesignated

In the past the Chapel Line provided daily devotions by telephone. That service has been discontinued because of lack of use. Daily devotions are readily available on the Internet. Also, there are currently sufficient funds in other categories, such as eternal flame candles, flags, and hymnals. The Memorial Fund Committee encourages donors to consider other items.

The Memorial Fund provides items needed for ministry that is not available through regular Sunday offering. Such generosity preserves the memory of past loved ones and honors those among us still.

There are only 4 months left to finish lots of projects for the annual Harvest of Hands bazaar. Volunteers are needed to make this event successful; there are many projects to be completed and coordinator positions need to be filled by September.

July Crafts at Zion

Harvest of Hands volunteers meet on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday morning and Wednesday evening of each month. June’s stained glass class was a wonderful time and the butterflies that were made are beautiful. There are more great projects to come in July that you can help with:

• July 7, 9-11am: Stained Glass & beaded projects
• July 8, 7-9pm: Jewelry & beaded projects
• July 21, 9-11am: Ornaments & Bookmarks
• July 22, 7-9pm: Tree Skirts & Jewelry

Those unable to attend these times but want to help with the projects can call Joy to get the supplies to work at home.

Clean Out Your Junk Drawer: Donations of old custom jewelry, old silver hollow handled silverware, and old dishes are needed for upcoming projects (please bring them to the Wilderness Room).

Coordinators: Volunteers are still needed to coordinate White Elephant, Silent Auction, Baked Goods, Egg Rolls, and Omelets & Crepes. These positions need to be filled so the committee can start putting ideas together.

Harvest of Hands has had so much success over the years. . . Please say you will help make it a success again this year!