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 TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

August 15, 2021

 

Almighty God, whom to know is everlasting life, grant us to know Your Son, Jesus, to be the way, the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow His steps in the way that leads to life eternal; 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, August 15, 2021   8:00 a.m.   Adult Class    9:00 a.m.   Divine Service    Tuesday, August 17, 2021  10:00 a.m.  Morning Prayer     Sunday, August 22, 2021   8:00 a.m.   Adult Class    9:00 a.m.   Divine Service   12:00 p.m.  Baptism of Amelia Cowell

THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR       August 15, 2021     Feast of St. Mary, Mother of our Lord      August 16, 2021     Commemoration of Isaac     August 17, 2021     Commemoration of Johann Gerhard, Theologian     August 19, 2021     Commemoration of Bernard of Clairvaux,        Hymnwriter and Theologian     August 20, 2021     Commemoration of Samuel

 

ST. JOHN’S NEWS

 

Organist Today: Marcia Hanna    

Elder for August:  Boyd Shipler  

Greeters for Today:  Boyd and Rosann Shipler

 

New Schedule - Beginning Sunday, September 12, Sunday School and adult class will begin at 8:30 a.m. and the Divine Service will begin at 9:30 a.m. 

 

Amelia Opal’s Baptism Day - The congregation is invited to witness the Baptism of Amelia Opal Cowell on Sunday, August 22nd at 12:00 p.m.  Lunch in the church basement will immediately follow the Baptism.  

 

Partnership Rally Day at Smith Lake - The entire congregation is invited to our Partnership Rally Day at the east shelter at Smith Lake Sunday, August 29, at 10:30 a.m.  We will begin with a brief prayer service including the installation of Sunday School teachers and presentation of Bibles and Catechism, followed by lunch and games. Bring a lawn chair or blanket!

• Note that we will have our regularly scheduled Divine Service at St. John’s at 9:00 a.m. on this Sunday as well. 

 

Partnership Potluck and Hymn Sing - Join us Wednesday, September 8 at St. John’s for our Partnership Potluck and Hymn Sing!  The potluck begins at 5:30 p.m. in the church basement. Bring a main dish, side, or desert if you’re able.  (Feel free to come later if work prevents you from arriving at 5:30.)  Then, join us at the outdoor altar at 6:30 p.m. for a hymn sing; we'll be taking requests!  Please label your serving dishes if you’d like them back. 

 

St. John’s T-Shirts - If you missed your opportunity to purchase a St. John’s T-shirt a year ago (or you would like a second one!), we now have T-shirts available in the church office. The cost is $6.00 and can be picked up any time.

 

Stained Glass Windows have been installed! Take a moment and view our newly installed windows at the east entrance of the church.  Thank you to everyone who generously supported this project, especially Esther Christensen and Helen Smith families for their memorial donations.  Also, special thanks to Pam and Randy Reimers for coordinating with Bogenrief Studios out of Sutherland, Iowa in the designing and installation of these beautiful windows. 

 

Greeter and Usher Sign-up - We're excited to reintroduce greeters to our Sunday mornings at St. John's!  Your family or you and a friend are welcome to sign up for a Sunday to greet on the back table.  Of course, hand shaking will be optional.  Also, we'd love to have at least one usher per month to help Jeff with duties as needed.  You can sign up for this on the back table as well. 

 

Parish Messenger Articles are due to Linda Kerkove for the September/October edition by Sunday, August 22.

 

Pastoral Care On Demand - Pastor Cowell would love to serve you Communion at church or at home, pray, read Scripture, offer Christian counsel, and/or just visit any time that works for you!  Call or text him any time at 319-464-5548. 

 

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. 

 

SYNOD, DISTRICT & PARTNERSHIP NEWS

 

Trinity, Algona Resources - You can find a variety of digital media for your faith, including service livestreams, at trinityalgona.org or by searching Trinity, Algona on YouTube and Facebook. 

 

Lutherans in Africa Updates - Great things continue to happen at the Lutheran School of Theology in Kenya and throughout the surrounding area for the good of Christ’s Church.  Lutherans in Africa publishes very informative monthly newsletters which you can find at lutheransinafrica.com/updates or by searching @LutheransInAfrica on Facebook.  The lutheransinafrica.com website is also updated regularly and is a great way to stay up to date on the work our mission dollars are supporting. 

 

Building Healthy Families: School starts soon! How can you prepare your child for a successful school year? Setting routines such as selecting outfits, getting homework completed and papers signed the night before makes for a smoother morning. Additionally, daily prayer for your child and involving him/her in family devotions are great choices! “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:4   Lutheran Family Service - www.LutheranFamilyService.org.

LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Proper 15)

Old Testament: Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18

Joshua says to the tribes of Israel: “choose this day whom you will serve [...]. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

 

Epistle: Ephesians 5:6-21

Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 

 

Gospel: John 6:51-69

Jesus says: “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” 

 

FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS

[Speaking on Ephesians 5:16b: “...the days are evil.”:] “When Paul says ‘the days are evil,’ he does not mean that they are created evil or that they are by their very nature evil. Rather he says this of the troubling events that occur in time. We are in the habit of saying, ‘I have had a terrible day.’ But that does not imply that the day itself is intrinsically terrible. Rather it refers to what has occurred in the day. Some of the things that occur in it are good, as they are enabled by God. Some are bad, because they are brought about by evil willing. Therefore it is we humans who are the authors of the evils that occur in time. Only on this basis are the times called evil.” - Chrysostom, Homily on Ephesians 18.5.15-17, qtd. in ACCS: Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, 180. 

 

LESSONS ON THE LITURGY 

A Brief History of Communion Frequency

There are two reasons why Lutheran churches in America have not celebrated the Lord’s Supper every Lord’s Day.  The first reason is that back in the days of the American frontier not every church had their own pastor. This means congregations would have to wait until a pastor made his circuit to their church to celebrate the Sacrament.  The second reason, which pertains to present-day Lutheranism, is the wide acceptance of rationalism and other philosophies born out of the Enlightenment which favor the rational thoughts of the mind over the unexplainable mystery of the Sacrament. These unbiblical worldviews have produced a fear among Christians over receiving the Sacrament too frequently, lest it lose its “meaning”.  On the contrary, the Church unanimously celebrated the Lord’s Supper every Sunday and feast day for the first 1,500 years of her history, as did Martin Luther and the first few generations of Lutherans.  Only later in the history of Lutheranism did many Lutherans succumb to the worldviews of secular society and other Protestant denominations and miss out on the joy and benefit of receiving this gift of God on a weekly basis. 

 

FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD

Large Catechism, Apostles’ Creed, Article III: The Holy Spirit, paragraphs 40-45

What do you mean "I believe in the Holy Spirit?" Answer, "I believe that the Holy Spirit makes me holy, as His name implies."

     "But how does He accomplish this, or what are His method and means to this end?" Answer, "By the Christian Church, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. For the Spirit has His own congregation in the world, which is the mother that conceives and bears every Christian through God's Word. Through the Word He reveals and preaches, He illumines and enkindles hearts, so that they understand, accept, cling to, and persevere in the Word."