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 SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

September 19, 2021

 

O God, whose strength is made perfect in weakness, grant us humility and childlike faith that we may please You in both will and deed; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, 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, September 19, 2021    8:30 a.m.   SS School/Adult Class                       9:30 a.m.   Divine Service    Tuesday, September 21, 2021   10:00 a.m.  Morning Prayer    Wednesday, September 22, 2021   6:00 p.m.   Christian Catechesis   7:00 p.m.   Elders Meeting     Thursday, September 23, 2021       3:00 p.m.   Titonka Care Center Service

Sunday, September 26, 2021        8:30 a.m.    SS School/Adult Class         9:30 a.m.    Divine Service            THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR         September 21, 2021       Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist        September 22, 2021       Commemoration of Jonah

 

ST. JOHN’S NEWS

 

Organist Today:  Marcia Hanna       

Elder for September:  Tony Hatten   

Acolytes:  Breckin and Brayton Borchardt

 

Hymn of the Month devotions for September are available on the lectern in the back of the church. You can also view a digital version of the Hymn of the Month devotion at: trinityalgona.org/blog/2021/09/01/o-god-my-faithful-god

 

New Resources Available - Take a look at the several new booklets in the pamphlet rack in the back of church.  New titles include, from the A Simple Explanation series: Angels, the Bible, and Church Symbols, and from the A Biblical Response series: Suicide, Addiction, homosexuality, Transgenderism, Divorce, and Abortion. Feel free to take as many of these booklets as you’d like. 

 

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.

 

Greeter 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. We have several opening spots for you to fill in.  Of course, hand shaking will be optional.  

 

Usher Sign-up - 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. 

 

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.  You can access a pdf of the service bulletin for the livestreams on YouTube by clicking on the link found under the title of each video.  Here is an example: 

 

 

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. 

SYNOD, DISTRICT & PARTNERSHIP NEWS

 

Haiti Relief - If you would like to donate toward Haiti earthquake relief, you can do so online by going to ministryinmission.org and clicking the “donate” button.  You can also learn more about the situation in Haiti at this website.  You can also donate by sending a check to either: 

     Iowa District West-Haiti Relief, 409 Kenyon Road Suite B , Fort Dodge, Iowa 50502; or: 

     Ministry in Mission, Jackie Rychel, 13442 Shady Lane, Chesterland OH 44026  

 

Ida Relief - If you would like to provide financial support for Hurricane Ida disaster relief, you can make a check to “IDW - Ida Relief” and send to:  Iowa District West, 409 Kenyon Road Suite B, Fort Dodge, Iowa 50502

 

LWML Fall Rally for the Northeast Zone will be held at Trinity in Algona on Sunday, September 26 at 2 p.m. Monetary in-gathering offering will go to Lotus Community project, a women’s and children’s shelter at Vincent, Iowa. Speaker will begin right after the opening devotions and before the meeting. This is to accommodate any additional congregational members who may wish to come hear about the work at Lotus.

 

Trinity, Algona Resources - Visit trinitalgona.org or search “Trinity, Algona” on YouTube and Facebook to view Trinity’s several digital resources for your faith. 

 

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. 

 

Omelet Brunch - Camp Okoboji’s final Omelet Bruch of 2020 will be held on Sunday, October 3 from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. with a free will offering held in the Ginny DeWall Dining Hall. Join us and enjoy good food and good fellowship!

 

Building Healthy Families - 10,080 is the number of minutes that we are given every week. How can you use a few of those minutes this week to help others? Maybe it’s an elderly neighbor, a single parent, or widow, or someone in your own family who needs you to stop what you’re doing and listen to them. All have needs that we can help to meet. “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2 Lutheran Family Service - www.LutheranFamilyService.org.

 

LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Proper 20)

Old Testament: Jeremiah 11:18-20

“I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me they devised schemes, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living.”

 

Epistle:  James 3:13-4:10

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.

 

Gospel: Mark 9:30-37

Jesus places a child in the midst of the disciples and says: “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

 

FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS

“Observe a tree, how it first tends downwards, that it may then shoot forth upwards. It fastens its root low in the ground that it may send forth its top toward heaven. Is it not from humility that it endeavors to rise? But without humility it will not attain to higher things.” - Augustine, The Gospel of John, Sermon 38, qtd. in ACCS: Mark, 126-127. 

 

LESSONS ON THE LITURGY 

The Cassock and Surplice

The black gown that Pastor wears is called a cassock.  The white garment on top of it is a surplice.  There is a long and complicated history as to how pastors came to wear the cassock and surplice, but these vestments also teach two simple lessons.  Notice how the white vestment covers the black, just as the righteousness of Christ covers our sin in Baptism.  Notice also that when Pastor is wearing his vestments you can only see his head and his hands.  In this way you are drawn to focus on his head (particularly his mouth) which proclaims God’s Word to you and his hands which deliver God’s Sacraments and blessing to you. 

 

FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD

The Power and Primacy of the Pope, paragraphs 7-9

We will show from the Gospel that the Roman bishop is not above other bishops and pastors by divine right.

     I. Christ clearly bans lordship among the apostles. This was the very question: When Christ spoke of His passion, the apostles were disputing over who should be the head of the others, and, as it were, the vicar of the absent Christ. Christ rebukes this error of the apostles and teaches that there shall not be lordship or superiority among them. Instead, the apostles would be sent forth as equals to the common ministry of the Gospel. So, He says, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves" (Luke 22:25-26).

     II. When Christ, places a little child in their midst, He is teaching the same thing by parable. Just as a child neither takes nor seeks sovereignty for himself, so this shows that there is not to be sovereignty among ministers.

     III. Christ sends forth His disciples without any distinction . He says, "As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you." He says that He sends them individually in the same way He Himself was sent [John 12:44-50]. He grants no one a privilege or lordship above the rest.