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 FEAST OF ALL SAINTS
November 1, 2020
Almighty and everlasting God, You knit together Your faithful people of all times and places into one holy communion, the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Grant us so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that, together with them, we may come to the unspeakable joys You have prepared for those who love You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
THIS WEEK AT ST. JOHN’S Today, November 1, 2020 8:00 a.m. Sunday School/Adult Class 9:00 a.m. Divine Service - (All Saints) (C) Wednesday, November 4, 2020 3:00 p.m. Spoken Divine Service (C) 6:00 p.m. Christian Catechesis Sunday, November 8, 2020 8:00 a.m. Sunday School/Adult Class 9:00 a.m. Divine Service (Pentecost 23) (C) | THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR November 1, 2020 Feast of All Saints |
ST. JOHN’S NEWS
Organist Today: Kitty Bierstedt
Elder for November: Jeff Schutjer
Acolytes: Kenna Hatten and Taylor Parsons
THE FLOWERS on the altar have been given in honor and celebration of the 60th Wedding Anniversary of Alfred and Peggy Schadendorf on November 5.
Thank You to everyone for your cards and well wishes for our 65th Anniversary. We are truly blessed to have a church family like ours. A special thanks to our family who made it so special. God bless all of you! -Melvin and Donna Haase
“SHARE THE BLESSING” letter and giving envelope are in your bulletin boxes. Be sure and pick those up!
Pastoral Call Received and Declined - On Tuesday, October 13th, I (Pastor Cowell) received a call to serve as pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Sumner and St. John Lutheran Church in Spring Fountain, IA. On Friday, October 16th, I declined that call, electing to remain serving as pastor of St. John’s and Trinity. The next couple weeks in church we will be praying for our friends in Christ at St. Paul and St. John that God bless them with a pastor to serve Him among them.
Lutherans Engage the World Online - The Lutherans Engage the World magazine has moved to a completely digital format. You can view the current issue at: engage.lcms.org. Of special interest in this issue is an article on the involvement of LCMS Christians with the derecho clean-up in eastern Iowa. If you would like a print copy of this article or the entire magazine we would be happy to print a copy for you.
New “Socially Distant” Divine Service Available - Our midweek spoken Divine Service continues every Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. at St. John’s. Feel free to attend any Wednesday, there will be plenty of room for you to sit at a distance from others. If you need to receive the Lord’s Supper at home or on a different day, Pastor Cowell is always happy to schedule a visit. You can call Pastor Cowell on his cell phone at 319-464-5548.
Adult Bible Study on the Book of Matthew - Adult Bible Class is studying a verse-by-verse study of the Gospel of Matthew. You are welcome to join us at any time!
Midweek Christian Instruction for All Ages - All members of the congregation are invited to join us Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m. for our Midweek Christian Catechesis. Next Wednesday’s lesson we will be talking about how the Creed describes our life in Christ.
St. John’s Live-streamed Service - The easiest way to access our service livestreams and recordings is to click on the links posted on the homepage of stjohnsburt.org.
TLC Quilts Available - Don’t forget that quilts made by the Trinity Lutheran Church Quilters are always available on the “giving pew” by the east door!
Shopping through Amazon Smile - Did you know that Amazon will donate a portion of all of your online purchases to St. John’s if you shop through Amazon Smile? All you have to do is choose St. John’s as your charitable organization by clicking this link: smile.amazon.com/ch/42-0950037 or by clicking on the Amazon Smile button on the stjohnsburt.org homepage. Then, every time you shop on Amazon do not go to amazon.com; instead go to smile.amazon.com to do your online shopping. Everything at smile.amazon.com is exactly the same, except that you will now be donating 0.5% of eligible purchases to St. John’s! 0.5% doesn’t sound like a lot, but in four years Amazon Smile has donated $957 to St. John’s, so your donations do add up to a significant amount! Now would be a great time to get started with Amazon Smile as the Christmas shopping season begins. If you need any help getting started feel free to contact Pam Reimers or Pastor Cowell and they can help you through the process.
SYNOD, DISTRICT, & PARTNERSHIP NEWS
Trinity, Algona Schedule - Here is the weekly line-up of online resources from Trinity, Algona, which you can access at trinityalgona.org/corona or the Trinity YouTube and Facebook pages either live or any time after as a recording:
Sun. 8:00am/9:15am: Worship/Bible Study | Every Weekday: Psalm Devotion (recorded) |
Mon. 8:00pm: Evening Prayer | Wed. 10:00am: “Ask the Pastors” | Thurs. 9:00am: Morning Prayer |
COMMUNITY NEWS
Turkey Dinner - The Lakota Ambulance will be hosting a Drive-by Dinner today (November 1) from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Menu: Turkey with Gravy over Mashed Potato, Dinner Roll and Applesauce. For more information refer to the flyer by the east door.
Hunting with Heroes celebrates Veterans Day on November 11 with Gifts and Full Thanksgiving Meal Kits for all Vets and Widows of Vets! A Drive thru Thanksgiving Meal will be handed out from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Main Street in Lakota. Each Vet or Widow of Vet will receive a full meal to be cooked at home courtesy of Christensen Farms and HyVee.
LECTIONARY SUMMARY (All Saints’ Day)
Old Testament: Revelation 7:2-17
St. John sees a vision of the entire host of saints and angels in heaven and on earth praising God.
Epistle: 1 John 3:1-3
We are children of God, and when Christ appears again we will be like Him.
Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12
Jesus speaks the beatitudes, explaining who is blessed in the eyes of God.
FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS
(On Rev. 7:9 - “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number [...] standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands [...]”):
“By the robes he suggests baptism, and by the palms the triumph of the cross.” - Primasius, Commentary on the Apocalypse, 7.9, qtd in ACCS, Revelation, 111.
LESSONS ON THE LITURGY
The Example of the Saints
Article XXI of the Augsburg Confession states that one particular blessing that the saints in heaven are to us is that:
the history of saints may be set before us so that we may follow the example of their faith and good works, according to our calling. For example, the emperor may follow the example of David in making war to drive away the Turk from his country. For both are kings.
What saint can be a good example of faith and good works according to your calling? Are you a farmer? How about Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob who faithfully tended many flocks. Are you a mother? How about Sarah, Hannah, or the Blessed Virgin Mary? Are you a teacher or leader? How about Moses? Find a saint in Scripture or from among your own friends or relatives and see what in their life of faith and good works can teach and inspire you toward being a faithful and fruitful Christian.
FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD
Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article V: Love and Fulfilling the Law, para. 223-226
The Gospel is properly the command that directs us to believe that God is reconciled to us for Christ's sake. "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him" (John 3:17). Whenever mercy is spoken of, faith in the promise must be added. This faith produces sure hope, because it relies upon God's Word and command. If hope would rely upon works, then it would be uncertain, because works cannot quiet the conscience. Faith makes a distinction between those who obtain salvation and those who do not obtain it. Faith makes the distinction between the worthy and the unworthy, because eternal life has been promised to the justified. Faith justifies.
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