Announcements

St. John’s Lutheran Church

109 Maple St. Burt, Iowa|Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Pastor: Rev. Thomas Cowell                

Secretary: Rosann Shipler

Pastor’s Cell: 319-464-5548                

Church Office: 515-924-3344  stjohnsburt.org

Pastor’s Email: pastor@stjohnsburt.org 

Church Email: churchoffice@stjohnsburt.org

 

THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER    

May 24, 2020 

 

O King of glory, Lord of hosts, uplifted in triumph far above all heavens, leave us not without consolation but send us the Spirit of truth whom You promised from the Father; for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. 

 

THIS WEEK AT ST. JOHN’S Today, May 24    9:00  a.m.      Divine Service (Easter 7) (C)               Sunday, May 31    9:00 a.m.        Divine Service (Pentecost) (C)

THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR   May 24     Commemoration of Esther     May 25     Commemoration of The Venerable Bede

ST. JOHN’S NEWS

 

Organist Today:        Marcia Hanna            Elder for May: Tony Hatten

 

Get Well Cards - Joel Smith is continuing his recovery from a brain aneurysm at Pearl Valley Rehab & Nursing, 2001 1st Ave. North, Estherville, Iowa 51334.  Feel free to send a card and let him know he is in your prayers.  

 

Masks - Adult masks and children masks are on the table in  the back of the church.  If you need an extra mask to keep in your car when you travel to various places or go into stores or doctor offices, please feel free to take one.  

 

Carefully consider your return to church - We rejoice that those who are able can attend the Divine Service at St. John’s once again. However, we urge you to take personal responsibility for determining whether or not it is best for you to be coming to church Sunday morning.  If you do decide it is best for your own health or the health of others for you to stay home, you should feel no judgement from God or your congregation for taking these precautions.  We at St. John’s are happy to support you as you make the best decision for your own unique personal situation. 

 

Pastoral care available - Pastor Cowell continues to be available for pastoral care.  He is happy to hear your confession and absolve your sins or to give you Holy Communion individually at any time.  If you are not comfortable visiting or being visited, he is happy to talk with you on the phone.  His cell phone is 319-464-5548.  

 

New Weekly Announcements Email - St. John’s has started emailing our weekly announcements through Flocknote.  If you would like to receive these weekly announcements in a computer or smartphone-friendly format, contact the church office and we can add you to the list.  You can also contact the church office to update any of your Flocknote preferences. 

 

New Online Resources from St. John’s - Be sure to check out the two new additions to stjohnsburt.org.  The first is a link on the homepage to the “St. John’s Kids” Youtube playlist (“kids” of all ages!).  The second is the “Pastor’s Corner” tab at the top of stjohnsburt.org. This tab will include reflections and lessons from Pastor Cowell on a variety of topics of the Christian faith such as sacred art and music, the  liturgy, the Lutheran Confessions, habits of the Christian life, and Bible studies.  If you have any recommendations for content for either the Youtube channel or Pastor’s Corner, feel free to let Pastor Cowell know!

• Note that Pastor Cowell is currently adding content to the Pastor’s Corner tab at stjohnsburt.org.  Check back in the coming weeks to see more new entries.  

 

Resources for your faith at home - For the next few months St. John’s will continue to offer all of the resources online and in the back of church that we have been since March.  We pray this will be of benefit to those who are not yet comfortable returning to church as well as those looking to develop habits of prayer and reading Scripture at home.  

Offerings and alms during our time away – We thank God for blessing us with the tools and resources to continue the distribution of His grace at St. John’s, and we thank God for blessing us with faithful Christians to fund our ministry and operational expenses.  Keep up the good work! Also note that if you or your family has encountered any financial hardship during this time, don’t hesitate to contact Pastor Cowell to see if our congregation can help in any way. 

 

St. John’s T-Shirts! - St. John’s decided to take advantage of a great deal on bulk-order T-shirts from Threads in Algona.  Below is a design.  They are dark blue and are available in all standard sizes (and fit according to standard sizes).  Call or text Hannah Cowell at 712-294-4962 by June 15th to order.  All sizes are $6.  You can pay Hannah either when you order or when you receive the shirt near the end of June.                                                                                       

               

 

SYNOD, DISTRICT, & PARTNERSHIP NEWS

 

Trinity, Algona Schedule - As Trinity, Algona plans for their return to worship in their church building, note that they will continue their livestreamed service and other online resources in the coming months. You can find all these resources from Trinity at: trinityalgona.org/corona.  

 

Camp Okoboji has cancelled summer programs, but is still renting out the Family Ministry Cabins. See campokoboji.org for more information. 

 

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis has extended a call to Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr., president of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind., to serve as the 11th president in the school’s 181-year history. The call was extended after electors completed interviews with the final slate of six candidates and selected Rast in a unanimous decision. Rast, who would assume the presidency July 1 upon formal acceptance of the call, will succeed Dr. Dale A. Meyer, who retires June 30 after serving 15 years as president.

 

COMMUNITY NEWS

 

The VFW Memorial Day Service will be held at the Burt Cemetery at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, May 25th. We will do the Roll Call and fire the 21 Gun Salute. Those who feel comfortable and practice social distancing are welcome to attend. There will be no service or lunch at the Burt Complex.

 

LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Seventh Sunday of Easter)

First Reading: Acts 1:12–26

The Apostles choose Matthias to replace Judas among the Twelve. 

 

Epistle: 1 Peter 4:12–19; 5:6–11

Peter instructs us how to suffer in a Christian way.

 

Gospel: John 17:1–11

Jesus prays to His Father on behalf of His disciples. 

 

LCMS MEMORY VERSE CHALLENGE

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. - Galatians 2:20

 

LESSONS ON THE LITURGY 

What do we call what happens on Sunday morning? 

When most people go to church on Sunday morning they say they are going to worship.  This is true; on Sunday mornings we worship our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier.  However, there are even better words than that to describe the Sunday morning gathering.  One is Divine Service.  The main reason we go to church on Sunday is for God to serve us with His Word and Sacrament.  It is fitting, then, that we call that thing that happens on Sundays the Divine Service.  The Germans have any even stronger word for Divine Service: Gottesdienst - God’s Service.  We can also refer to the Divine Service as the Liturgy.  Liturgy comes from a Greek word that means public service.  On Sunday mornings God provides a public service to His people by providing us His gifts of grace. 

 

FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD

Augsburg Confession, Apology, Article V: Love and Fulfilling the Law, paragraphs 241-243

We have stated clearly that good works do not fulfill the Law, that we need God's mercy, that through faith we are accepted by God, that good works—even the works of St. Paul himself—cannot bring rest to the conscience. We are to believe that we receive eternal life through Christ by faith, not because of our works. But what do we say of the reward that Scripture mentions? If the adversaries will admit that we are regarded righteous through faith because of Christ, and that good works please God because of faith, we will not afterward argue much about the term reward. We confess that eternal life is a reward; it is something due because of the promise, not because of our merits. For the justification has been promised, which we have previously shown to be properly God's gift. To this gift the promise of eternal life has been added, according to Romans 8:30, "Those whom He justified He also glorified." Paul says, "There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me". The justified are due the crown because of the promise. Saints should know this promise, not that they may labor for their own profit, for they ought to labor for God's glory. But saints should know it so they may not despair in troubles. They should know God's will: He desires to aid, to deliver, and to protect them.