Gaudete Sunday
Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent, is unique among the Sunday’s of Advent. Though part of Advent, it stands out from it. The pink, or more correctly, the rose candle symbolizes joy in the midst of darkness, mourning and sadness and so this week is set apart from all the other weeks of Advent, which focus on things like repentance and Christ’s coming. Gaudete Sunday gives us another perspective and a glimpse of the joy that awaits us.
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Advent - Come, Lord Jesus, Come!!
The word “Advent” means “coming” or “arrival.” The entire season is one of heightened awareness and longing for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The advent wreath reminds us of God Himself, His eternity and endless mercy, who has no beginning or end. The green of the wreath speaks of the hope that we have in God, the hope of newness, of renewal, of eternal life. The candles symbolize the light of God coming into the world through the birth of His Son. Each week a different candle is lit. The four outer candles represent the advent themes of hope, peace, joy and love. The rose candle is unique among the outer candles in that it symbolizes the joy at the Advent of Christ. It is lit on the third week of Advent. The progression in the lighting of the candles symbolizes the various aspects of our waiting experience. Finally, the light that has come into the world is plainly visible as the Christ candle is lit at Christmas, and we rejoice over the fact that the promise of long ago has been realized.
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The End of the Church Year and Christ the King Sunday
With this weekend’s Gospel reading focusing on Signs of the End of the Age, we are we reminded how quickly we are moving to the end of the church year. Next weekend we celebrate the Festival of Christ the King. With this festival we are plunged into the Passion. Jesus is alone; the crowds who sang ‘Hosanna!’ as he entered Jerusalem just five days previously are now shouting, ‘Crucify him!’ He now stands before the most powerful person in the land on a falsified charge.
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Thank you Jeffrey Blersch
What a fantastic All Saints' Day Worship. It was a day filled with thanksgiving for "All the Saints'" and gratitude for Dr. Jeffrey Blersch and his service to Pacific Hills over the last year. He will be missed. We wish him all our best!!
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Why the Reformation Still Matters
This is a post by Peggy Pederson found at lutheranchurch.ca and was published in the magazine The Canadian Lutheran for Sept/Oct 2012.
On October 31, 1517 Martin Luther nailed 95 Theses on the door of Wittenberg Cathedral. If that hammer could have announced the seismic changes to come in Europe and the Christian Church, its echoes would have shaken the world. Today, however, it is hardly more than a whisper.
For many Protestant churches, it has been like the “telephone” game, where a little was added here, a little changed there, a little taken away somewhere else. The general population has now moved into a post-Christian era, where differences in Christian theological tenets matter less than choices on the restaurant menu.
So is the Reformation still relevant today?
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Quiltoberfest
The Dorcas Quilters of Pacific Hills hosted a sew-in event in Acker Hall on Saturday, November 19, 2019. The group's 4 members made up 24 kits with instructions to be pieced and quilted for Project Hope.
12 machines were loaned by Ellen Lessmann, all circa 1940's-1970's in perfect working order. Remember the machine your grandma sewed on? One just like it was probably being used on Saturday.
A delicious lunch was provided by Joann Stastny; she even fed the clean-up crew that was working outside.
Eight ladies joined in to finish 12 tops, 2 of which are completely finished and 4 more ready to be tied. One young lady pieced a top all by herself with very little supervision.
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The Gideons Visit
The Gideons International visited Pacific Hills Lutheran Church recently and presented their mission of sharing God's Word. We thank the Gideons for their visit and sharing God's Word through distributing the Bible.
Millions of people are living their lives with no access to the Scriptures. The Gideons, with your help and prayers, can get God's Word into their hands.
Once such story is from prisoner-to-pastor John Krainer
I left home at 16, and by 21, I was out of control. I shot into a car and was arrested. I had no hope, no friends, and no family. However, there in my jail cell, I saw a Gideon-placed Bible. I had never read a Bible before. I learned about Jesus and His love. I prayed for the first time, and I was forever changed in one instant. I vowed to follow God and give my life to Him.
After my release, I became a pastor. My life has been transformed from pain and suffering to joy and service to the King. Daily, I thank God for his unrelenting love in that jail cell - as he spoke to we through His Word.
-Pastor John Krainer, Colorado, February 2015
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Mission of the Month
In a greater effort to encourage the congregation to be involved with our Board of Missions and Social Ministry, we are introducing the concept of “Mission of the Month” to the congregation. The way this will work, is that the default on the envelope for “Missions” will go to the Mission of the Month.
There are 12 months and so there will be 12 “Missions” of the Month. Some, however, may repeat like Mission Central and Gary Thies and our support of missionaries in the LCMS. What this does is allow you, as an individual member, to know exactly where your mission dollars are going every month and allows you to participate in a general way every month; or you can pick and choose months based on the ministries presented that are important to you. During October, which is National Pastor Appreciation Month, the Board of Missions and Social Ministry is sending $6,000 to Mission Central to sponsor the mission work of Pastor Walter Steele who will be serving in Kenya; Pastor Becker teaching at the LCMS Seminary in Ethiopia; and Pastor Steven Oliver, a friend of Pastor Drebes, teaching at the Chinese Lutheran Seminary in Taiwan. Additional Mission dollars, collected this month, will be sent to Concordia Seminary, St Louis for scholarships for the education of future pastors.
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Laudamus Choir Visits Pacific Hills
Pacific Hills Lutheran Church was blessed to have the Laudamus Choir visit us for our Sunday, October 13th, 2019, 10:30 am service, as part of their Fall 2019 tour. Laudamus is a select choir of pastoral ministry students at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, under the direction of Dr. James Marriott. The choir sang a capella and accompanied hymns, beautifying our worship. The Worship and Music Committee was happy to host the choir and provide a hearty lunch for them before they continued their tour.
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Reformation 2019
As we enter into October we are mindful, as Lutherans, that Reformation Sunday is just around the corner. We are no longer celebrating milestone Reformation years, but perhaps in 2030 our church body will once again celebrate with gusto the 500th Anniversary of the Presentation of the Augsburg Confession. The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, Confessio Augustana, is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant Reformation. June 25, 1530 is the date when the Augsburg Confession was presented to Emperor Charles V by the German Princes. Many Reformations will pass between now and then, so, we’ll see what happens.
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The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
W
hen the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them.
- Acts 2:1-4
