Mary, Did You Know?

Join us at Grace Lutheran tonight and tomorrow morning to hear more about this child born to Mary!
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service 11PM
Christmas Day Service of Lessons and Carols 9AM

Christmas Service Schedule

Grace and Trinity Lutheran Christmas Service Schedule

Join us to celebrate our Lord Jesus' birth.

Christmas Eve, December 24
7:30PM - Elgin - Service of Lessons and Carols
11:00PM - Neligh - Christmas Eve Candlelight Service

Christmas Day, December 25
9:00AM - Neligh - Service of Lessons and Carols

The Movie "Exodus: Gods and Kings"

The movie "Exodus: Gods and Kings" just came out.  Here are a couple of reviews you might want to read before seeing the movie.



For a written review from LCMS Reporter Online click the image below.



For Issues Etc interview on the movie click the Issues Etc image below.

Children's Christmas Program, 6:30 Sunday, December 21

The Children of Grace Lutheran Church invite you to hear the Good News of the Christmas message 6:30PM, Sunday, December 21.  Coffee and cookies will follow the program.

Advent Midweek Service - "Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home" (Isaiah 35:1-10)

The Advent of a New Creation

In Genesis 1-3 we read of how creation was destroyed by Adam and Eve, paradise lost.  This year in the Wednesdays of Advent we will hear three sermons based on Isaiah of the Advent of a New Creation.  We will hear how with Christ’s coming Eden is restored and paradise gained for you.

Wednesday, December 17, “Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home” (Isaiah 35:1–10)  

This well written sermon series by Rev Chad Bird will make you look forward to the coming of Jesus and the new creation He brings.

The youth will be serving suppers before the services as a fundraiser on December 3 and 10.

Join us for Christmas Caroling at 5:30PM December 17 where we will bring Christmas joy to the Willows, Nursing Home, and the Hospital.  We will then return for hot chocolate and cookies before the Advent service.

These Wednesday night Advent services will begin with a hymn sing, so come with your favorite hymns chosen.

Baptism - Kyah Reinke

Kyah Reinke was baptized in the service on December 7, 2014.

Christmas Caroling - 5:30PM Wednesday, December 17

Join Grace Lutheran for Christmas Caroling on Wednesday, December 17.  We will meet at the church and then carpool to carol at the Willows, the Golden Living Center, and Antelope Memorial Hospital.  All ages and voices are welcome!  Following caroling we will return to the church for hot chocolate and cookies.  Advent Services will follow at 7:30PM "Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home" (Isaiah 35:1–10) 

Advent Midweek Service - "The Paradise of the Church" (Isaiah 11:1-10)

The Advent of a New Creation

In Genesis 1-3 we read of how creation was destroyed by Adam and Eve, paradise lost.  This year in the Wednesdays of Advent we will hear three sermons based on Isaiah of the Advent of a New Creation.  We will hear how with Christ’s coming Eden is restored and paradise gained for you.

Wednesday, December 10, “The Paradise of the Church” (Isaiah 11:1–10)
Wednesday, December 17, “Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home” (Isaiah 35:1–10)  

This well written sermon series by Rev Chad Bird will make you look forward to the coming of Jesus and the new creation He brings.

The youth will be serving suppers before the services as a fundraiser on December 3 and 10.

Join us for Christmas Caroling at 5:30PM December 17 where we will bring Christmas joy to the Willows, Nursing Home, and the Hospital.  We will then return for hot chocolate and cookies before the Advent service.

These Wednesday night Advent services will begin with a hymn sing, so come with your favorite hymns chosen.

The Gift of Vicars

The recent issue of Concordia Theological Seminary's "For The Life of the World" Magazine has some good articles on Vicarage.  One mentions a Nebraska congregation (Imperial, NE) with a vicar (p. 16).  Another page has a picture Nebraska born vicar Ryan Yanke (p. 6) serving in Iowa.  Click on the image of the cover below to pull up the digital version of the magazine.

Advent Midweek Service - "Mount Eden" (Isaiah 2:1-5)

The Advent of a New Creation

In Genesis 1-3 we read of how creation was destroyed by Adam and Eve, paradise lost.  This year in the Wednesdays of Advent we will hear three sermons based on Isaiah of the Advent of a New Creation.  We will hear how with Christ’s coming Eden is restored and paradise gained for you.

Wednesday, December 3, “Mount Eden” (Isaiah 2:1–5)
Wednesday, December 10, “The Paradise of the Church” (Isaiah 11:1–10)
Wednesday, December 17, “Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home” (Isaiah 35:1–10)  

This well written sermon series by Rev Chad Bird will make you look forward to the coming of Jesus and the new creation He brings.

The youth will be serving suppers before the services as a fundraiser on December 3 and 10.

Join us for Christmas Caroling at 5:30PM December 17 where we will bring Christmas joy to the Willows, Nursing Home, and the Hospital.  We will then return for hot chocolate and cookies before the Advent service.

These Wednesday night Advent services will begin with a hymn sing, so come with your favorite hymns chosen.

The Advent of a New Creation - Wednesdays, December 3, 10, and 17

The Advent of a New Creation

The Advent of a New Creation
In Genesis 1-3 we read of how creation was destroyed by Adam and Eve, paradise lost.  This year in the Wednesdays of Advent we will hear three sermons based on Isaiah of the Advent of a New Creation.  We will hear how with Christ’s coming Eden is restored and paradise gained for you.

Wednesday, December 3, “Mount Eden” (Isaiah 2:1–5)
Wednesday, December 10, “The Paradise of the Church” (Isaiah 11:1–10)
Wednesday, December 17, “Adams and Eves Welcomed Back Home” (Isaiah 35:1–10)  

This well written sermon series by Rev Chad Bird will make you look forward to the coming of Jesus and the new creation He brings.

The youth will be serving suppers before the services as a fundraiser on December 3 and 10.

Join us for Christmas Caroling at 5:30PM December 17 where we will bring Christmas joy to the Willows, Nursing Home, and the Hospital.  We will then return for hot chocolate and cookies before the Advent service.

These Wednesday night Advent services will begin with a hymn sing, so come with your favorite hymns chosen.

Advent

The Season of Advent starts tomorrow.  Here is a short video clip that helps explain Advent.
Grace Lutheran will be having special Advent services on Wednesday nights during Advent at 7:30 on December 3, 10, and 17.  Come join us as we prepare and await Christ's coming.

Thanksgiving Services, 7:30 PM

Join us at Grace Lutheran to give thanks to our God this Thanksgiving Eve at 7:30PM.
If you can't make it tonight, join your brothers and sisters in Christ at Trinity Lutheran in Elgin at 9:00AM tomorrow, November 27.

Christmas Program Practices

Program Practices for the Children's Christmas Program will be 3-4:00PM on the following Sundays:


November 23
November 30
December 7
December 14

All children are welcome.

The Program will 6:30 Sunday, December 21.

Weekday School / Confirmation Schedule Changes

Schedule Changes

Due to changes in the Neligh Oakdale School schedule, Weekday School will be at 1:30-3PM for the next two weeks Nov 19th and 26th.  December 3rd we will resume our normal 4:00PM start.

November 19 - 1:30-3PM

November 26 - 1:30-3PM

December 3 - 4:00-5:15PM

Baptism - Gennedee Kallhoff

Gennedee Kallhoff was baptized in the service on July 20, 2014.

Saturday Evening Services Canceled - November 15, 2014

Church services for Grace Lutheran are canceled for tonight.
Please join us tomorrow at 10:30AM.

Grace's Gracious Giveaway - 8-Noon Saturday - November 8

Once again, Grace Lutheran Church will be hosting Grace's Gracious Giveaway from 8-Noon on Saturday, November 8.  For nineteen years Grace Lutheran and the community gather clothing and other good condition items in the Grace Lutheran Fellowship Hall from Tuesday to Friday.  On Saturday from 8-Noon anyone is welcome to come and take what they can use for free.  The leftover items are then donated to area organizations.

Pastor Kuhfal said "The name comes from the fact that God graciously gives us what we need both physically and spiritually and more.  He gives us more than we need, so that we might graciously giveaway to others."  Through the years, the event has extended more and more to the community, with members of the Neligh and surrounding communities, donating and volunteering for the event.  The hope each year is both to fill the Fellowship Hall with "good extras" and then to empty it all to those who can use those items.  Even what is left is a blessing, for it too goes to those outside the community that have needs.

Unworthy Servants

In case you missed President Matthew Harrison's article in the November Lutheran Witness on the State of the Synod, here it is below.  Very good article! 

The maddening fact is that the Missouri Synod has been in a slow numeric decline since about 1970. The last time a district of the Synod had any increase in its number of baptized was in the late nineties. There was a decrease in membership in 1977, due to the break off of the AELC (which became the catalyst in the formation of the ELCA). But the decline since 2000 has been even more pronounced. (We are down 12 percent in the past ten years.) Why the decline?

On my visitations of each district (First Vice-President Mueller and I have divided the number of districts between us and then taken along the regional vice president), I am sharing my statistical findings. We have analyzed the performance of each district over the past decade. Several factors emerge. The trend line for every district is the same: decline. Districts in the most secular areas of the country have declined most rapidly (down 25 percent or more in just ten years). It is very clear that districts with significant urban populations also tend to

have declined significantly. The top-performing district over the past decade is South Dakota, down only 4 percent. Several Midwestern/rural districts follow at declines of 6–7 percent. Even in districts that have had a significant increase over 40 years in the number of congregations (especially Texas and Michigan), there is still significant membership decline. The total number of congregations in the Synod declined slightly since about 2000, rebounded ever so slightly by the end of the past decade and has remained steady.

It is evident to me that historically the greatest source of growth in the Missouri Synod (and especially following WWII) had been procreation. The single most significant factor causing our decline has been that fact that we have largely adopted the prevailing cultural attitudes toward marriage and reproduction. Our young people are marrying later, if at all, and are having far fewer children. (There are today, for instance, only 48 percent of the number of high school youth who were in the Synod in 1980.) Second, we have not reached out to non-Anglo people to make up for the decline in the number of children among our traditionally Anglo constituency. Thus, while Roman Catholics in America have increased 43 percent since 1970, we are down 18 percent. Why? Because Roman Catholics have benefited greatly by the influx of Spanish-speaking people. Finally, our church planting has not been sufficient. One district president told me recently, “It’s time for repentance. We haven’t started a mission in a predominantly Anglo neighborhood for over 15 years.”

Are we shrinking because of close(d) Communion? Hardly. The places in the Synod that are declining most rapidly are the places one is least likely to find the Synod’s doctrinal position on this matter strictly adhered to. Is the answer simply contemporary worship or more consistent use of the hymnal? I wish it were that easy. Iowa East has few praise bands and much more uniform use of the hymnal. Iowa West is clearly more moderately disposed in these areas. Decline? Both districts are down precisely 12 percent in 10 years. The stats show, I’m convinced, that the reasons we use to beat one another over the head about decline are simply unfounded. They might make us feel good about ourselves or give us the rhetorical advantage, but they are bogus.

How do we compare with other denominations since 1970? Among Christians, the Roman Catholics have fared the best (up 43 percent). The Southern Baptists are up 42 percent. The “old-line” churches have faired the worst: the United Church of Christ, down 48 percent; the Episcopalian Church, down 42 percent; Presbyterian Church USA, down 36 percent; United Methodist Church, down 30 percent; ELCA, down 27 percent. Shockingly, if you believe the numbers for the Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses (and I don’t doubt them), they claim

increases of 218 percent and 254 percent, respectively. The Assemblies of God claims an increase since 1970 of 396 percent. Yet, even the Southern Baptists have in recent years begun to decline.

It’s clear to all of us that Christianity in America is in decline. There is theological atrophy in the mainline/old-line churches, which no longer teach that the Bible is God’s infallible Word. There is rank heresy (as usual) in the televangelists who gather their thousands (and millions of dollars!). But there’s no consolation in this for us. What’s the answer?

First, repentance. While it is true that the Lord promises that the masses will follow false christs and prophets in the end times (Mark 13:14), there is plenty for us to repent of as well. If the false gospels of Mormonism and Jehovah’s Witnesses (who both deny Christ, the divine Son of God, and the blessed Holy Trinity) motivate their evangelists to hit every door in the country, shouldn’t the full freeing Gospel of the Scriptures—sola fide, sola gratia, solus Christus—propel us to become people on a mission? If the cults can canvas a whole town, might

we as individuals be able to invite a neighbor who needs Jesus to church? It’s also time for us to repent of uncharitable language directed toward one another and focus our efforts on speaking about Christ to all around us. Christ tells us that Church will be a “little flock.” Always has been. Always will. But that’s in the mystery of His working, not by our intentions or inventions.

Look to the Gospel. “On this rock I will build my church” (Matt. 16:18). We have Christ’s promises. We have the powerful word of the Gospel. Human nature is the same, but there are times in the history of the world when men close their minds and, like Pharaoh, then God finally closes them for good. We all have the sense that we are entering such a time. Nevertheless, “God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (Tim. 2:4). And Christ’s blessed mandate to His Church (all of us, pastors and laity) remains: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19).

Let’s up our game. First, let us encourage one another (1 Thes. 5:11), not tear one another down. Let’s hit the street (i.e., get visiting). Visitation looks different in different circumstances, but it’s the way of Jesus, the way of Paul, Peter, Barnabas and all the apostles. Read Luther’s preface to the “Instructions for the Visitors of Parish Pastors in Electoral Saxony” of 1528 (Luther’s Works, volume 40, pages 269–320). A bishop or pastor is a visitor! He doesn’t go on “walk about” just for fun or the joy of taking a walk, says Luther. He goes to proclaim Christ, to admonish with the Law, to console with the Gospel, to care, to intercede, to pray, to set things in order, to plant, to return to the church planted, to see “how they are” (Acts 15:36). Let’s encourage our laypeople to own the mission, to be certain of their God-pleasing vocations as the context for sharing Christ and inviting folks to church. Let’s get to work on our preaching, pastors. We can all improve. Let’s hold one another accountable for clear, compelling, biblical and Law/Gospel sermons. And let’s plant churches, looking for opportunities among the people whom God has brought right to us.

Finally, after we have done everything, we must confess, “We are unworthy servants.” (Luke 17:10). We know we shall bear the cross in this life, and as Christianity continues to fade from our nation (even as it blossoms elsewhere in the world), the soil will become harder here. But it still remains that God works through means, and He is even now working through us, and the message on our lips, to bring to Himself the full number of the elect. “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Cor. 15:58).

Reformation Day

Check out this excellent video on the Reformation!

Great Day in Sunday School!

Here is a picture of the kids for Sunday school opening today.  Great to see so many kids.  Sunday School is so important for it lays the foundation for these kids lives.

The Nature of Science

Happy 90th Birthday Donald Reinke!

Donald Reinke, seat with family surrounding him) celebrated his 90th Birthday today in the Fellowship Hall.

Rally Sunday - September 7

Join us this Sunday for Rally Sunday.
Sunday School for children age 3 to Adults at 9:15AM (Adults 9:30AM)
Service 10:30AM where staff will be installed, 3rd Grade students will receive their Bibles, and cradle roll prisms will be given out
Potluck honoring teachers and staff following the service.  Bring a dish to share.

Doxology Grand Reunion

Pastor and Tami attended the Doxology Grand Reunion (a retreat for Pastors and their wives) this past Summer.  Here is video proof they were there.  Watch for them at 0:41 and 1:25 marks.  Pastor and Tami learned a lot and were refreshed by the experience.  More about Doxology can be found here.

‘Be Lutheran,’ Harrison Encourages Collegians in Tweet Chat

By Adriane Heins

People know LCMS President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison as the one who delivered a fiery testimony before Congress or who wove in some of the best jokes at last summer’s 65th Regular LCMS Convention. The side of him they may not often see, however, is that of a dad.

tweet-chat-IN
Synod President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison engages LCMS college students during an hour-long Sept. 3 tweet chat. With him for this first tweet chat with collegians are Synod staff members, from left, Adriane Heins, editor of The Lutheran Witness; Martha Mitkos, director of Campaigns and Special Initiatives; and Becky Cummings, manager of Web Services. (LCMS/Pamela Nielsen)
Addressing LCMS college students through an hour-long “Free to Be Faithful” — an educational and awareness campaign explained more fully here — tweet chat the evening of Sept. 3, Harrison tweeted, “I just dropped my 2 sons off to start the new school year.” Then, “The second one’s a freshman. So I have some idea of what’s going on in your life right now.”

Father to two millennial —usually those born from 1980 on — sons, Harrison connected with college students who were given the opportunity to pepper him with questions about marriage, life, religious liberty and a host of other questions via Twitter, using #lcmspresident.

Questions ranged from what a young man considering the vocation of pastor ought to do if his parents don’t approve to what it means to be Lutheran. Worship, Scripture and apologetics were re-occurring themes.

@singdanceact94 tweeted, “Any advice on how to handle being on a campus where many think Christians are crazy?” Harrison responded, “They thought Paul was crazy in Athens. Acts 17. Be who you are. Be gracious. Rock and roll!”

@christwithy asked, “What advice do you have for people who are required to take classes for their chosen major that teach against LCMS beliefs?” Harrison counseled, “It’s good to be tested and forced to dig in. Lutheran teaching can stand the test. It’s just the Bible!”

When @noahschroeder asked, “What’s the best way for a layman to support his pastor?” Harrison quipped, “Give him keys to the lake cabin. Just kidding! Receive Christ’s gifts. Pray for him.”

Chapters of LCMS U, the Synod’s campus-ministry arm, tweeted pictures of college students tuning in to the event, the first of its kind, and continuing the discussion with their own campus pastors.

Those who want to read the discussion in its entirety can find it on Twitter by going to #lcmspresident or on Twubs by clicking here.

As the night drew to a close, Harrison encouraged the students in a series of tweets: “Don’t be afraid. You are Christ’s own. You’re His baptized children.”

“He will never leave or forsake you.”

“He will never give you a burden too hard to bear. You’re going to have a great year in Christ, come what may. So . . .”

“Be Lutheran.”

Within seconds, the words of comfort were being retweeted by college students who, for an hour, had the undivided attention of a president, a pastor, a Congressional testifier and a dad — all rolled into one.

Adriane Heins is editor of The Lutheran Witness.

September Emphasis - CUS and LCMS U

First Day of After School Care 2014

We had a wonderful first day of After School Care 2014.  Below are some pictures taken by Director Nicole Parker.  The Bible story was Rahab and the Spies from Joshua chapter 2.  For craft the children made shrinky dinks.  For recess they made gigantic bubbles.  Helpers for the day were Kathy Heckert, Sarah Tillema, Tonya Legate, Kendall Wiseman and Brady Legate.  There is a private Facebook Group for the After School Care for information, pictures and the like.  If you would like to be added to the group contact Nicole Parker.  After School Care is free and open to 1st-6th grade children of the community on Mondays from after school to 5:30PM.  A van takes children from West Ward to the church.  Students at Eastward are walked down to the church.  Parents need to register their children for After School Care (forms can be picked up at the Church Office).  Call the church office if you have questions 402-887-4791.

LCMS OKs new grants to fight Ebola in Africa

LCMS OKs new grants to fight Ebola in Africa



By Adriane Heins and Paula Schlueter Ross

LCMS Disaster Response is processing three new grants totaling $51,175 to help people in West Africa fight the Ebola virus.

Hygiene supplies are distributed to villagers in Guinea, with the hope of preventing the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. The LCMS has approved grants totaling $67,729 to fight the disease in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. (Photo: Evangelical Lutheran Church of Guinea)
Soap and other hygiene supplies are distributed to villagers in Guinea, with the hope of preventing the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. The LCMS has approved grants totaling $67,729 to fight the disease in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Guinea)
The grants are in addition to two previous Ebola grants totaling $16,554 that were distributed to the Synod’s African partners earlier this year.

All of the LCMS funds will be used to help prevent new cases of the often-fatal virus, which has taken the lives of at least 1,000 people this year — more than half of the 1,848 people infected in four West African countries, according to the World Health Organization.

The new LCMS grants are $25,000 to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia; $20,000 to Baltimore-based Lutheran World Relief (for work in Liberia); and $6,175 to the Eglise Evangelique Lutherienne en Guinee-Conakry (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Guinea).

Previous Ebola-related grants of $6,554 and $10,000 were sent to the Guinea church body and to Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church — Sierra Leone, respectively, to fight the spread of Ebola.

Ebola cases so far have been documented in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

Liberia’s Bolay gives update

The effects of the deadly Ebola virus are “being suffered and felt in many ways” — including the deaths of two Lutherans who are suspected of having the disease — according to the Rev. Amos Bolay, president and bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia (ELCL).

The Rev. Amos Bolay, president and bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia, demonstrates the pre-Communion hand-washing technique used to help stop the spread of the Ebola virus in Liberia. (Courtesy of Amos Bolay)
The Rev. Amos Bolay, president and bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia, demonstrates the pre-Communion hand-washing technique used to help stop the spread of the Ebola virus in Liberia. (Courtesy of Amos Bolay)
The country is currently under a 90-day state of emergency that began Aug. 6, which has suspended certain rights and privileges noted in Liberia’s constitution with the hope that heightened measures will stop — or at least slow — the virus from spreading.

“Elder Joseph L. Yasseh, former president of the [Lutheran] Church of Guinea, who was now residing in Liberia and serving as a senior elder of Christ Lutheran, an ELCL congregation, died in the provincial district of Foya, Lofa County, Liberia,” Bolay said. “Elder Yasseh became ill, and for fear of Ebola was rejected by health centers in the area and had to die an untimely death. This was the very first death of a Lutheran member.”

Bolay said the death of Alice Solo, a respected member of the Liberian church, also is believed to be the result of Ebola, though it has not been confirmed.

While Bolay remains concerned for the ELCL and its members, he maintains: “Word and sacraments being the very heart of our belief, we cannot stop but [we] continue administering the same to our people.”

However, he urges precautions now as well. When the Lord’s Supper is given, pastors do so “with a consciousness of the prevailing health rules of the country,” he says.

“Hand-washing is being recommended as a major prevention to Ebola. Our congregations have requested the washing of hands with chlorine before administering the sacraments, especially the Lord’s Supper, with the use of individual cups,” Bolay explains. “We have also asked our clergy and congregants to avoid handshakes during worship services.”

Trusting in Jesus Christ, the Great Physician of both body and soul, Bolay urges prayers on behalf of the ELCL and all of the people in the region affected by Ebola.

“We have been comforted by the love and concern shown to us by members and leaders of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod,” he said. “Please continue to keep us in your prayers.”

LWR partnership

Lutheran World Relief (LWR) is working with IMA World Health to support the Christian Health Association of Liberia (CHAL) — an organization of 45 churches, faith-based schools and health facilities. In fact, a CHAL member hospital was the first hospital in Liberia to see an Ebola patient.

LWR and IMA are funding a CHAL project that provides preventive training for health workers as well as religious and community leaders. LWR spokesman Tim McCully said, “With additional funding, CHAL is looking at ways to expand their work and we will be in close contact with them as these additional funds from the LCMS are applied.”

Guinea was first

In Guinea, where the Ebola outbreak was first detected earlier this year, the French-speaking Evangelical Lutheran Church of Guinea is packaging its message of awareness and encouragement for preventing the disease with chlorine, soap and the Word of God.

“The short term [purpose] is to decrease the rate of infection [from] the Ebola virus [among] populations,” note church leaders on the LCMS grant application, and the “long term [purpose] is to allow recipients to feel [the comfort of Christ] and believe in Him for their eternal salvation.”

Combining physical aid with spiritual care is an important part of the Synod’s response to every disaster, notes the Rev. John Fale, associate executive director of LCMS Mercy Operations. And, like those in Guinea, Lutheran church leaders in Liberia and Sierra Leone also are taking that to heart, Fale said.

“That’s a model for why we work with our international partner churches — because they deliver, at the same time, tangible expressions of mercy and relief in the midst of suffering, and words of eternal comfort and care as they proclaim Christ and the forgiveness of sins,” Fale told Reporter.

Workshops in Sierra Leone

Lutherans in Sierra Leone say they hope to reach some 5,000 people in six districts — conducting workshops on how to prevent Ebola, including the distribution of “print materials with simple drawings that will explain about the Ebola disease and give preventive demonstrations.”

Grant monies also will be used to purchase and distribute rice and oil to those living in affected areas.

Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT), based in Aurora, Ill., evacuated two missionary families from Sierra Leone in late July and early August, noting that the “continuing spread of the Ebola virus throughout the region prompted the decision to temporarily withdraw” the families.

“We have been monitoring the situation since the outbreak began in Guinea earlier this year,” said David Snyder, LBT’s director of program ministries. “We closely assessed the progress of the disease and its proximity to our missionaries as it took hold in Sierra Leone. Recent indicators suggested that there was unacceptable risk to our missionary families.”

Watching Ghana

The LCMS has one missionary to Nigeria, who is making support visits in the United States, and none stationed in any of the other three countries reporting Ebola cases. But in Ghana — also in West Africa and home to six Synod missionaries — the Rev. David Erber, area director of West and Central Africa for the LCMS Office of International Mission, is watching the situation carefully.

“I have asked our missionaries to avoid travel away from their stations and maintain a high sense of awareness of the Ebola situation,” Erber said. “If Ebola is introduced into Ghana, it will be difficult to anticipate how the country might respond.”

“We will not,” he stressed, “want our missionaries in undue dangerous situations.”

How to help

Echoing Bolay, Fale asked U.S. Lutherans to “continue to pray for our Lord’s mercy through this critical time in Africa,” and he shared a portion of the “Prayer for the Afflicted and Those Who Are Suffering” from Johann Gerhard’s Meditations on Divine Mercy:

“On behalf of all who are suffering under affliction and hardship, I beg You to uphold them with the consolation of Your grace and to support them with the help of Your might. Clothe with heavenly power and strength those who sweat in the most grievous agony of satanic temptation. Make them partakers of Your victory, O Christ, powerful victor over the devil. May the refreshment of Your heavenly grace encourage those whose bones are dried up by the fire of sorrow. … Be gracious in allowing illness so physical sickness may be a spiritual medicine. … Have mercy on all, You who are the Creator of all. Have mercy on all, You who are the Redeemer of all. To You be praise and glory for all eternity. Amen.”

Added Fale: “May God bless medical professionals and servants of the church who bring words of hope in Christ with their merciful service.”

To contribute online to an LCMS fund for fighting Ebola, click here.

Adriane Heins is executive editor of The Lutheran Witness.

LCMS Provides Opportunities to Help Persecuted Christians

Below is a Statement by LCMS President Matthew Harrison

Making a faithful confession

The world is starting to perk up its ears. Reports of Christians fleeing cities in Iraq; pictures of Islamic militants marking the doors of the faithful as a sign that they must leave or be killed; stories of men being killed, women raped, children beheaded: All are now in the news … and all are for the sake of Christ.

We mourn. We pray. And yet we wonder, “What can I do? What does this matter to me?”

+ Repent. There may well come a day when we face the same suffering that has befallen the Christians in Iraq. And so we learn from them, pray for them and repent for our own lack of faith, for our confidence in passing, transitory things rather than in the holy things of God (2 Thessalonians 1).
+ Remember. Persecution reminds us that the world is not our friend and it is not our home. We are neither Iraqi Christians nor American Christians. We are simply Christians, citizens of a better land, a different kind of country, of heaven itself (1 Peter 2:11).
+ Ready. We are called to vigilance because we know that faithfulness and persecution go hand-in-hand. We prepare now; we do not wait. We have Scriptures to learn, catechisms to study and hymns to memorize so that — if God in His infinite wisdom allows this suffering to befall us, too, one day — we are emboldened by the Word of God, which is in our hearts and on our lips (Rom. 10:9ff).
+ Rejoice. On Aug. 10, the Church remembers St. Lawrence, who kept and distributed the church’s goods and alms. When the prefect of Rome demanded that Lawrence turn over the church’s treasury, Lawrence made a faithful confession, showing the prefect the widowed and orphaned, the blind and lame, saying, “These are the treasures of the Church.” For his fidelity, Lawrence was burned — roasted alive — over a gridiron, cheerfully remarking after some time, “It is well done. Turn me over” (1 Peter 1:3–8).

That is the kind of confidence with which we enter the days ahead, the times of persecution that we know are coming, that are here even now. We face Satan’s attacks and threats head-on, look them square in the eye, because we have been marked — just like the Christians in Iraq — with the sign of the holy cross on our foreheads and on our hearts in the waters of Baptism. In that gift, Christ promised us eternal life, salvation, comfort, mercy, even joy with Him, despite what the world and all its evil send our way. And He always makes good on His promises.

So let us pray and endure, trusting that, like the apostles and the martyrs and the saints before us, our Lord will preserve us too, suffering much but never letting us fall away. Pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ who are persecuted so ruthlessly in Iraq. And then join with me in reading our Bibles, singing the Church’s hymns, praying its catechism, so that we, too, may make a faithful confession, for “everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 10:32).

Let me also note that many of you are asking where you may give to support persecuted Christians. The LCMS is providing funds for those in deep need. This type of work is quite delicate because of our mission and mercy presence in many non-Christian countries. We in no way wish to heighten the risk to our faithful workers. Our reporting on the use of funds in this area will be muted for obvious reasons (2 Corinthians 8–9).

Our new Fund to Aid Christians Under Persecution is a response by the LCMS to impact our brothers and sisters in Christ who are facing death or persecution, primarily in countries where the LCMS does not have an international mission presence through official missionaries and other LCMS or partner church personnel. Donations made to the fund will be bundled into one or more grants that will be disbursed through appropriate* nonprofit human-care and relief agencies. That fund is a restricted account, kept separate from other designated funds, in order to facilitate financial management, reporting and auditing.

May God grant peace for Jesus’ sake.

Pastor Harrison

P.S. Here are a few more resources I hope you’ll find helpful.

- Download the free June/July issue of The Lutheran Witness, courtesy of Concordia Publishing House.
- Pray: Merciful and holy Father, remember in Your unfailing love those who suffer now for the name of Christ. Strengthen them for a good confession, and uphold them by Your Spirit. Look in Your mercy on all who are entrusted with civil authority here and in all places throughout the world. Make them bold to stand against and fight every injustice. Especially bring to an end this widespread destruction of the fundamental human right to worship freely, according to the dictates of conscience. “Grant peace, we pray, in mercy, Lord; Peace in our time, O send us! For there is none on earth but You, None other to defend us. You only, Lord, can fight for us. Amen” (LSB 778). In Jesus’ holy and precious name we beg it. Amen!

*Grant-recipient agencies that have been vetted to determine their capacity for getting aid into parts of the world the LCMS cannot reach directly and in ways that do not conflict with or subvert the Christian faith as articulated in Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.

The Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison is the current and 13th president of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod.

Marked Christians

This article was found at the blog Higher Things "Current Events."  It is on for all Christians to think about.



By: Stan Lemon

"Do not fear any of these things which you are about to suffer." - Revelation 2:10

Recently you might have seen this image on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. It’s the letter “N” in Arabic. Right now there is a lot of conflict in Iraq. There’s a group called ISIS, which is short for the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria and they’re a jihadist group. A jihadist group is following a specific teaching within the religion of Islam that leverage some particularly violent tactics to dealing with infidels, folks like you and me. What’s going on in Iraq right now is both sad and bloody. This past week ISIS told Christians to get out of the town of Mosul in Iraq or convert to Islam. If they didn’t, they would die. The “N” you’ve been seeing all over social media is for the word “Nasrani” (Nazarene) which refers to Christians. ISIS is using this to mark the doors of Christian homes. You can guess as to why.

Our Christian brothers and sisters in Mosul and throughout the world need our prayers. They are being persecuted for confessing Christ, for clinging to the Cross and the gifts which He, the very Son of God delivers to you. Christians are being marked by their enemies with this Arabic letter, but the reality of the situation is that these terrorists are too late. As ones redeemed by Christ, these Christians in Mosul, like you and I, have already been marked. It is not a visible stamp on our front door, but instead it is a sacred stamp upon the forehead and the heart. It’s a stamp that was sealed at the blessed font in the waters of Holy Baptism. A stamp placed upon you when a lowly "infidel" made the mark of the Cross and baptized you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. What’s more is this Arabic N intends to mark Christians for death, but you can’t kill the dead! In Christ your old man has already died, he has been drowned in those waters with that sacred stamp. Out of that death comes life, a life which cannot be taken away from you. A life given to you by the worst of the Nasrani, the Son of God, Jesus Christ of Nazareth. A life delivered to you in Holy Baptism and given over and again at the altar in His body and blood. There is no mark that can be placed upon you because you are already marked. There is no death which can conquer the death that Christ died for you. That is the hope of our brothers and sisters who suffer and flee.

What’s going on right now in Iraq is sad and scary. There is no doubt about that. But in Christ there is hope. There is the certainty that no death can overcome Jesus. And like the saints who suffered for the Gospel in days of old, the saints in Mosul shall bear witness to Jesus Christ and Him Crucified. With all the host of heaven we pray for our brother and sisters in Christ, that they might be spared the hand of their oppressor and that through their suffering they might be comforted by the greatest of Comforters and His very precious body and blood.

Lord Jesus Christ, before whom all in heaven and earth shall bow, grant courage that our brothers and sisters in Iraq may confess Your saving name in the face of any opposition from a world hostile to the Gospel. Help them to remember the long line of Your faithful witnesses who endured persecution and even faced death rather than dishonor You. By Your Spirit strengthen them to confess You before all, knowing that You will confess them before Your Father in heaven; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for persecuted Christians)

Baptism - Cash and Kendall Hamilton

Cash and Kendall Hamilton were baptized in the service on July 20, 2014.

The Wait is Over

President Matthew Harrison says: "Supreme Court Ruling Emboldens Us to Continue to Carry On" to read on, click the picture above.

Dwight Binger Final Call

In case you missed this following the committal service at the graveside, this was the "final call" for officer Dwight Binger.

+ Warren Diedrichsen + Funeral, Monday, July 7, 2014

Funeral services for Warren Diedrichsen, age 68 of Creighton, Nebraska, will be 10:00 a.m. Monday, July 7, 2014, at Grace Lutheran Church in Neligh, Nebraska. Pastor David Kuhfal will officiate, with burial in the Greenwood Cemetery at Creighton.

Visitation will be Sunday, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m., at Brockhaus Funeral Home in Creighton.

Warren Diedrichsen, longtime co-owner of the Creighton Livestock Market died Friday, July 4, 2014, at Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk.

Warren E. Diedrichsen, son of Harry F. and Dora E. (Rodieck) Diedrichsen was born January 25, 1946 at Wausa, Nebraska. He attended Creighton High School.

He was married to Carol Albin on February 6, 1966 and later divorced in 2012. Three children were born to them, Tim, Jill and Brian.

Warren was owner of Diedrichsen Quality Lawn and Garden in Neligh, Nebraska and Co-Owner of Creighton Livestock Market in Creighton, Nebraska. He was a member of Grace Lutheran Church in Neligh.

Warren is survived by his children, Tim and Janet Diedrichsen of Lincoln, Nebraska, Brian and Lisa Diedrichsen of Omaha, Nebraska and Jill Kallhoff of Neligh, Nebraska, Seven Grandchildren, Brady, Devyn, Ethan, Ainsley, Ella, Tyler and Sara, his Sister Betty Oltjenbruns of Creighton, Nebraska and his Brothers Tom Diedrichsen of Creighton, Nebraska and Doug Diedrichsen of Omaha, Nebraska.

He was preceded in death by his parents Harry and Dora Diedrichsen and Brother Harry Lee Diedrichsen.

+ Dwight Binger + Funeral, Friday, June 27, 2014

Funeral Services for Dwight W. Binger age 90 of Neligh, NE will be 10:30 a.m., Friday, June 27, 2014 at Grace Lutheran Church with Pastor David Kuhfal, Officiating. Burial will be in Laurel Hill Cemetery in Neligh.  Visitation will be 5 to 7 pm, Thursday, June 26, 2014 at Beyer Snider Memorial Funeral Home in Neligh. Dwight passed away on Tuesday, June 24, 2014 at his home.  Beyer Snider Memorial Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

Dwight Walter Binger was born on March 8, 1924 to Walter J. Binger and Evelyn (Wagner) Binger at Antelope Creek, NE. He attended school in Neligh and graduated with the class of 1941 from Neligh High School.  Dwight attended State Patrol Academy in Ashland, NE and several other special training schools.  On May 17, 1946 he was united in marriage to Ruth Huelle at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Tilden.  He was a State Patrol Investigator/Law Enforcement for many years.  He started his life long career in 1956 in Central City, NE, then 1969 moved to Grand Island, NE, and then 1979 he moved to Plainview, NE to farm and did butchering.  He then moved to Neligh where he was the Chief of Police in Neligh from 1988 to 1999.  Ruth passed away in 2008.  He liked dancing polkas, fishing, woodworking, butchering, and most of all being a cop.  He was a very active at Neligh Senior Center, a member of Grace Lutheran Church, he was a past elder, and member of LLL.

He is survived by daughters: Evelyn Von Kampen of Norfolk, NE, Julie and husband, Marlin Drobny of Lynch, NE. Sons: Richard and wife, Jeri Binger of New Cambria, KS and John Binger of Seward, NE. 16 grandchildren, 34 great grandchildren, and 1 great great grandchildren. Brother, Darrel Binger of Plainview, NE and brother-in-law, Dean and his wife, Merlene Paulsen of Central City, NE.

Preceded in death by his parents and wife. Sister, Darlene Jones. Daughter, Mary Binger.