The St. Olaf Caller

February 2009

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From the Desk of Pastor Matt

And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” (Mark 8:29 )

 There’s a story about a congregation facing a painful change. It came up every year at the annual meeting. Some said the change was inevitable. Some said it was not and church should be the one place where tradition decides. Every year the decision was to put it off one more year. Finally, one year it seemed the day had arrived. Speaker after speaker at the congregational meeting conceded that, yes, it was time to change the way they did worship. Until finally, one pious elderly lady, deeply respected by everyone in the congregation, rose shakily to her feet and, with as much force as she could muster, declared, "If Norwegian was good enough for Yesus and the disciples, it ought to be good enough for us."

Of course, it's easy to understand how she thought Jesus and the disciples spoke Norwegian. Every morning when she got up, she read her Bible. Every night before she went to bed, she read her Bible. And there, in her Bible, were all the stories of Yesus and the disciples, speaking Norwegian. And yet, for all her faithfulness and piety, there was something about Jesus that she didn't quite understand.

The disciples knew a bit about Jesus. They spoke his native language. They knew the sound of his voice. They knew what he looked like. They had heard him teach. They had seen his miracles of healings, casting out demons, and mass feedings with little food. And if you had asked them, they would have said they had a pretty good idea who Jesus was. But every time they thought they had Jesus figured out, he did something so spectacular and unexpected, they ended up looking at one another asking, "Who is this guy?"

One day the disciples got caught on the sea in a storm and thought they were going to die until Jesus woke up and told the storm to calm down--and it did.  They said, "Who is this guy that even the wind and waves    obey him?" Finally after raising a little girl from the dead and feeding the five thousand, Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" Lots of things. "Who do you say that I am?" And Peter answered, "You are the chosen one, the Christ." Peter knew who Jesus was--or thought he did until Jesus told him he was going to die on the cross. There was always more to Jesus than Peter understood.

And there is always more to Jesus than we understand. We may chuckle at people thinking that Jesus spoke Norwegian--or King James English--but most of us develop our own comfortable little pictures of Jesus, typically a Jesus who blesses what is familiar to us and loves what we love. I suppose it's a human thing, to seek understanding and convince ourselves we've found it. But it's also very dangerous, because there is something about Jesus that defies our understandings and our efforts to grow comfortable with him. Jesus is always more than we think of him.

And there is good news in that. Jesus is not limited by our limited notions of who he is. He loves people we do not love. He blesses things that are unfamiliar to us. He constantly surprises us with his grace and mercy, forgiving us of sins we would count unforgivable, freeing people from demons beyond their power to control, making us whole when we had grown comfortable with our brokenness. Over and over again, we find Jesus to be more than we thought of him--more loving, more forgiving, more powerful, ... and more willing to die on the cross for our sins.

Jesus comes to us fresh over and over again through his Word, through his teachings and the stories of his life. That's where we experience Jesus--listening to him. If we neglect worship and the Word of God, all we end up with are our own little pictures of who Jesus is, pictures that soon grow tattered and stale. But the Word of God, if we listen to it, invites us into a living, vital relationship with the Beloved Son of an almighty God. God does not want Jesus to be someone you know something about or even someone you understand. Jesus is someone for us to fall in love with, with enough complexity and surprises to keep eternity interesting.

No, we will probably never be able to get our minds around all the glory and power and majesty of Jesus, any more than Peter ever did, not in this life. But, if we listen, we will come to know his love and his grace and his forgiveness--and we will fall in love with a Savior who still manages to love us more than we know.

 God’s Peace,

        Pastor Matt

February Anniversaries
14    Dan and Cynthia Coffey                                  
15    Randall and Mary Buth                                   

February Birthdays
1          Gwen Downing
2         Chandler Voight
3         Abbey Fick, Laura Lee
4         Kelly Bates, Dave Johnston
6         Eric Borden, Andrea Roth
7         Braden Bohen
8         Julia Benson, Susan Gleckman
9         David Becker, Doris Bohen, Ronelle Christenson
10       Marilyn Carlson, Christopher Dauss
11       DeAnn Slade
12       Blondie Green
13       Steven Portz
14       Patricia Winter
15       Dawn Christ
16       Scott Rohlffs
17       Ronald Egelseer, John Roth
18       Randall Bates, Caleb Christel, Gregory Reed, Christine Schultz
19       Aldon Schlieve, Joseph St.George, Carter Voight
20       Pamela Eggert,   Donald Freiburger
21       Brian Solveson
22       Alyssa Berryman, Eric Kraft
24       Hannah Roraff
25       Sandra Koziatek
26       Donald Henninger, Garrett Monis, Patricia Warnecke

Women’s Ecumenical Breakfast
Everyone’s invited to the 29^th Annual Women’s Ecumenical Breakfast on Saturday February 14^th at St. John’s Lutheran Church, W334 N6990 Stone Bank Road.  Breakfast will be served in the downstairs fellowship hall at 9:00 a.m.   A program follows upstairs in the sanctuary featuring Tom and Mary Holman, missionaries and Bible translators.  Please RSVP by February 11^th to St. John’s office at 262-966-2034 with your church name and the number of ladies attending.

Oconomowoc Crop Walk Results
A big thank you to everyone who made this year’s crop walk a success.  This includes walkers, people and businesses that donated, and volunteers who helped us.  St. Olaf had 18 walkers and brought in $881.  THANK YOU!!

Cemetery Plots Available
The church has two cemetery plots for sale in Wisconsin Memorial Park on West Capitol Drive in Brookfield .  The gravesites are $1695 each and are in a valued part of the park which is almost filled. If you or someone you know is interested in these plots, please call the church office.

To Our Friends at St. Olaf 
Phylliss, Aldon and family would like to thank you all for your prayers during my illness.  I appreciate them.  I still have a long recovery, so please continue to keep me in your prayers.  Thanks also to Pastor Matt for his visits.

Phylliss Schlieve

February Lay Ministry Schedule

Altar Guild: Jon Evert and Kathie Howell
Counters:  Mark/Linda Fredrick & Al/Pat Davies
For questions regarding the following, please call:
Acolytes:   Robyn Cowell 262-673-9693
Assisting Ministers: Gwen Downing 262-673-6717

Taking Faith Home
The Gift of Church Family
By Marilyn Sharpe 
(www.youthandfamilyinstitute.org)

Paul was six years old when his Sunday school teacher asked all of the children in the class to draw pictures of their families.  When he finished his picture, he carefully rolled it up and placed it in his bag to take home and show to his parents. 

Imagine his mother’s surprise when Paul carefully unrolled his pictured and smoothed it out on the table to display it to her.  His picture of a family of five had six figures in it!  Mom identified the two parents and three children.  Quizzically, she turned to Paul.  Pointing to the sixth figure, she inquired, “Who is that, Honey?”

“Mom, you know,” replied Paul.  “That’s the guy who’s always happy to see me at church.  He knows my name and stops to talk to me every week.”

Twenty years later, Paul’s mom still remembers and shares this story with me in her congregation in Peoria , IL .  I had spent the weekend with church professionals and parents and grandparents, talking about passing on the faith.  I had let them know that every Christian adult is called to be a faith parent, and not just to their own children.  God’s call to all of us is our baptismal vocation of passing on faith to all the generations.  No one is exempt because they’ve already done that or they don’t have children or they don’t feel comfortable around children.

No children have too many adults who love them with the love of Christ and help them follow Jesus.   Search Institute research asserts that all kids need at least five non-family adults to love and know and nurture and care about the children, to help them successfully navigate childhood and adolescence, to grow into the people they have been created to be.

Yes, that means that we as parents need to give our children time and opportunities to get to know and be known by other adults.  Cross-generational experiences in worship, fellowship, learning, and serving together are perfect opportunities.

And, yes, that means that all of us adults need to become those caring, attentive non-family adults to children to whom we are not related.

This is how church families are formed.  May you show up in Paul or Paula’s family picture!  They need you. 

FAMILY ACTIVITIES

1. Ask your child, “Who are the adults outside our family who care about you?”
2. Encourage your child’s relationships and time together with non-family adults who love and care about them.  You get to know them, too, to keep them safe.
3. Encourage your kids to stay in touch with these adults.  Your kids might want to draw them a picture, send a card, or invite them to join your family for lunch.
4. Welcome your child’s friends in your home and get to know them, to be that non-family adult for them.

At church, befriend five kids who aren’t yours.  Call them by name.  Ask questions, then listen.  Get to know what they’re good at, concerned about, and proud of … and let them know you care.

 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!!!
For the six Sundays in Lent, we will be doing a short service of “Diminishing Lights”.  This is similar to what we do when we light the Advent wreath; however, with this service, we start with the six (6) candles and the Christ candle lit and extinguish one candle each Sunday of Lent.  Just as we had families light our Advent wreath, we would like families to participate in the “Diminishing Lights”.  There is a short reading (supplied), prayer (supplied) and then a family member extinguishes one candle.  We are all family at St. Olaf’s so anyone that would like to volunteer for this short service is welcome – i.e. can be one person, friends, or a family unit.  Please advise Clara Birkel, 920-474-7246, by Wed., Feb. 11, if you would be interested.

Siegmann Family Performs
Remember the Siegmann Family who performed here at St. Olaf a few years ago?  They will be at the Cedar Lake Campus Theater in West Bend from 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 7, 2009 .  This family of 14 reflects Christ’s love on stage and off when running their family farm and organic food store in Rubicon.  This will be a fun afternoon filled with good old bluegrass gospel music, some favorite traditional hymns and a dash of country gospel. Cedar Lake Campus * 5595 Cty Z, West Bend .

EASTER CHOIR
It was decided at Music and Worship that we would again like a choir to participate in our Easter service(s). 

Clara will accompany and Gwen will direct if we have practices on a week night.   We would like to have rehearsals scheduled to begin at the start of Lent. We, again, are requesting to have at least twelve (12) people commit to attending ALL (unless an emergency) rehearsals and sing on Easter.

If you are interested, please contact Clara Birkel, 920-474-7246, and also advise her what night would work best for practice for you.  Please advise by Feb. 11, 2009 .

Lake Country Cluster 2009 Assembly – February 21^st 8:00 a.m.

St. Matthew Lutheran Church

Palmyra , WI

“Going Green”

Local Shelters Need Our Help!
It has been announced that our local homeless shelters are in dire need of supplies!  These shelters are currently over capacity and have been getting the help of a church in Waukesha just to be able to house some people.  Washington and Dodge counties are also in need of help.  

HERE’S WHAT WE NEED IMMEDIATELY!

TWIN SIZED, FLAT SHEETS
(The goal is 60 sheets!)
NEW TOOTHBRUSHES
PILLOWS IN GOOD CONDITION
PILLOWCASES

Anything you may be able to donate to supply everyday living needs of these people is appreciated! Look for the bright orange emergency bin in the gathering area.

Sponsored by the Parish Life Committee.

Bid on Inscription Rights
            Have you seen the beautiful new oil painting of the churches of St. Olaf's in the church foyer?  Friend and neighbor of St. Olaf's, Ron Kadolph, was the artist who painted it for our Heritage Weekend celebration last October. 

The painting depicts Pastor O.I.M. Wilhelmsen greeting members to their new church building on a Sunday morning in the late summer of 1875.  Why 1875?  Both the first church building, built by the church founders in 1848, and the current church, which was finished in 1874, could be shown in the painting.  The first church building was removed in 1876.  The detailing in the buildings is as accurate as possible based on translations of the old church records. 

Consider making a bid for the inscription rights to the painting. An engraved plate, donated by Karl Scheife, with the highest bidder's choice of inscription will be attached to the frame.

Have you noticed the empty picture frame on the wall in the church? The painting with inscription will be hung there permanently. The amount of the highest bid will go directly to reducing the principal on the building loan.

Enter your bid and date of your bid on the bidding sheet located on the table across from the office. You do not have to enter your name on the bidding sheet.  Then call in your name and the amount and date of your bid to Roger Johnson at 920-474-3168.

Watch the bidding sheet. If someone bids more, you can increase your bid. 

At the conclusion of the auction, the name of the highest bidder will be announced and the painting with inscription hung in the church with ceremony. 

Schedule for Lent & Holy Week

Ash Wednesday
6:30 a.m.     Meditation service with distribution of ashes.  This service will be ½ hour in length so please join us before you go to work.
7:00 p.m.      Worship service with distribution of ashes and Holy Communion.

Ecumenical services will begin at 7 p.m.   This is the same rotation that we have had in the past and if it would change, we will advise you accordingly.

Wed., March 4    St. Catherine’s Catholic Church, Mapleton

Wed., March 11   St. Olaf’s (we will be responsible for finger foods, etc. following the service)

Wed., March 18   St. Paul ’s Episcopal Church, Ashippun 

Wed., March 25   Zion E.L.C.A. Church, Ashippun

Wed., April 1       St. Paul ’s E.L.C.A. Church , Sugar Island

Holy Week Schedule  

Maundy Thursday, April 9, 7:00 p.m. Worship Service with First communion for 4^th & 5^th graders

Good Friday, April 10, 7:00 p.m. Tenebrae Service

Easter Sunday, April 12
    7:00 a.m.   Worship service with Holy Communion
    9:00 a.m.  Worship service with Holy Communion

St. Olaf Constitution
During the 2009 Annual Meeting, it was noted that the Constitution’s index referred to a “Chapter 20”, but no such chapter appeared in the document.  In the model constitution provided by the Synod, Chapter 20 was included to cover the process of hiring a pastor for a multipoint parish.  Since we are not a multipoint parish, it did not apply and was correctly deleted.  But, it was not deleted from the index.  My thanks go out to Pat Harmon for finding this problem.  The corrected version that was sent to the Synod has deleted the reference to Chapter 20 in the

St. Olaf Sunday School presents

Abraham and Sarah         

February 1 - February 22

This month we will be focusing on God’s promises to Abraham. God repeats His promises to Abraham at least four times (Genesis 12, 15, 17, and 22).  Sometimes we have to hear things many times before it sinks it!  God promises to make Abraham the father of a great nation. He would be blessed and, in turn, become a blessing to others. His descendants would be like the stars in the sky or the sands of the sea – too numerous to count! God would maintain this covenant with Abraham’s descendants, and He would give them the land of Canaan .

God was making a covenant, or a contract, between Himself and Abraham. The terms were simple: Abraham would obey God; God’s part was to give Abraham heirs, property, power and wealth. Most contracts are even trades: We give something and in return receive something of equal value. But when we become part of God’s covenant family, the blessings we receive far outweigh what we must give up.

God’s plan from the beginning has been to make Himself known to all people. Abraham was to follow God and influence those around him. People’s lives would be changed as a result of the faith of Abraham and his descendants. Through Abraham’s family tree, Jesus Christ was born to save us all. Through Christ, people can have a personal relationship with God and be blessed beyond measure. It is then our responsibility to be a blessing and to influence those around us! When God blesses us, His blessings are intended to overflow to others.  Let’s follow Abraham’s example and share God’s blessings with everyone we know!

 Sunday School Classes

• In the Oasis Café we will enjoy sand pudding which will remind us of God’s promise to Abraham.
• In Colors of Faith we will look carefully at sand and stars and see how incredible God is to every single one of us.  God keeps all the promises He makes! 
• In Creation Exploration we will see how we can learn to trust God with some  awesome experiments.
• In Jammin’ with Jesus we will laugh like Sarah and follow like Abraham.    

Our focus verse:

I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore.”  Genesis 22:17

Listen to Grace Matters on Sundays at 7:00 a.m. on 104.9 FM or 1540 AM
Click here for Grace Matter Radio Broadcast information.