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TEXAS MESSENGER

TEXAS APRIL 2017 / 1

From the president

By Rev. Ken Hennings President, LCMS Texas District

Martin Luther understood the value of Easter to the Church and every believer. It was the most important day of the church year during Luther’s time. Christ-mas was becoming something to celebrate and Luther wrote hymns and started traditions that we still use for Christmas today. But it was Easter that Luther recognized as the rock on which faith stood.St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church lays out our sure founda-tion of faith in Jesus based on the resurrection. In 1 Cor. 15:3-5, Paul wrote:

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was bur-ied, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scripture, and that He ap-peared to Cephas, then to the twelve.”

This is how Paul begins this beauti-ful chapter on the resurrection and its importance to faith. To those

who said there isn’t a resurrection, Paul said:

“For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” 1 Cor. 15:16-17

He follows this up a few verses lat-er, saying:

“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” 1 Cor. 15:20

In his sermon on Easter in 1538 in Wittenberg, based on Mark 16:1-8, Martin Luther laid out the significance of Easter. Concerning the Lord’s resurrection, Luther said: “First, the history which re-lates the events as they occurred, together with the different cir-cumstances and how He revealed Himself alive in various manifesta-tions; so that we might have a sure record and testimony of everything as a foundation and support of our faith, inasmuch as this article of faith on the resurrection is the chief one upon which our salvation is finally based, and without which

all others would be useless and altogether fruitless…. The second point, that is more important and necessary and on account of which the narrative has been recorded and is preached, is the power, ben-efit and comfort of the glorious res-urrection of the Lord; and the use we are to make of the same faith.” (Luther’s Works, Vol. 77, p. 22-37)

Luther knew that the doctrine of the resurrection rested on the many biblical texts proclaiming that Jesus was raised from the dead and rules from heaven for the sake of the Church. Scripture gives many examples and proofs of the resurrection. It is the doctrine, as Luther pointed out, on which all of faith stands or falls. Because of the resurrection, Lu-ther knew the “power, benefit and comfort” in which we are to live. It is the resurrection power and comfort that moves us to share this power and joy with others. It is the resurrection that makes our lives, no matter what we experience, lives of hope. We have something important and powerful living in us through faith and we need to share this daily.“Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!”Easter power and joy to you!

Easter joy and power

2 / TEXAS

TEXAS PARTNERS IN MISSION

Called together to serve

By Lanny MooreDirector of Development“After this the Lord ... sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place…” Luke 10:1. In my travels around the Texas District, I have discovered that most of the missionaries seem to have a partner in their ministry. The obvious answer is that the Holy Spirit comes alongside these people, guiding and sustaining them in their call to bring the Good News to those who have not heard. However, what has become clear to me is that most of these mission-aries have a spouse working with them. As an example, I would like to tell you about Nelson and Perla Rodriguez, two called and dedicat-ed workers in the harvest field.Nelson is the pastor of Comunidad De Gracia in Houston. Ordained in 2012, Nelson took his first call to LINC Houston to shep-herd God’s people at Comunidad De Gracia. Perla, his wife of nearly 15 years and a deaconess, serves as the executive assistant to the Mis-sion director at LINC Houston.

Together, they work among the community in the Greater East End of Houston, a multi-cultural area, full of people who know God’s love, along with many still searching to hear about Him.It is uncommon to see two people share such a passion for serving God’s people as I saw with Nelson and Perla. Both have a desire to serve, not only in the capacity as called servants of God, but to make a difference in the daily lives of those in the community. They ex-hibited a true love for one another and a love for the ministry in which they serve.Nelson is from Puerto Rico and Perla is a native Houstonian. They met at a dance in Houston, and Nelson became involved with the church through Perla at San Pablo Church, and later began leading a Bible study at Comunidad De

Gracia. As their relationship grew, so did their faith in God. Nelson was invited to a Bible study lead by the Rev. Mark Junkans, executive director of LINC Houston. Nelson was the only person

to show up at the Bible study, but Junkans was able to point Nelson to becoming a minister of the Gos-

pel. He points to that moment as the “tap on the shoulder” from the Holy Spirit to become a servant of the Word. Through the Center for Hispanic Studies in St. Louis, Nel-son was ordained into the ministry.A series of events cemented Nel-son’s place as the shepherd at Co-munidad De Gracia. Hurricane Ka-trina had devastated the New Orle-ans area and many came to Hous-ton to escape the poor conditions resulting from the destruction. As people came to Houston, the Astrodome became too crowded and people began to look for other areas for shelter. The community center director at Comunidad De Gracia was overwhelmed with the situation and Nelson mentioned that “if we don’t do something to help these people, who will?” The facilities at Comunidad De Gracia were equipped to handle some of those seeking refuge and many people arrived for relief. Nelson and Perla were presented with the opportunity to witness to many people and brought a family to Christ through the waters of Holy Baptism.Comunidad De Gracia continues today to minister to the community in a number of ways. A food pantry, in partnership with the Houston Food Bank, is operated on a regu-lar basis. Classes are offered to the

Mark 9:35 in Spanish is painted on a mural in the food pantry area of Comu-nidad De Gra-cia in Houston.

Rev. Nelson and Perla Rodriguez

See TPIM, page 8

APRIL 2017 / 3

MISSIONS

By Rev. Michael NewmanMission and Ministry Facilitator, Area C

In 1922, Rev. F.W. Herzberg-er wrote: “True Biblical orthodoxy is always full of spiritual life, full of missionary zeal, full of unfeigned helpful, compassionate love, for it is the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of His believing children.” He went on to quote Luther in the fourth article of the Formula of Concord: “Faith is a divine work in us, that changes and regenerates us of God.… Oh, it is a living, busy, active, powerful thing that we have in faith, so that it is impossible for it not to do good without ceasing” (Ebenezer, 446-447).The Rev. Dan Mueller, vacancy pastor of King of Kings, San Anto-nio, commented on how the church is bringing faith that is living, busy, and active for the people in its com-munity:

In Bexar County, one out of every four kids goes to bed hungry ev-ery night. King of Kings Lutheran Church in Northeast San Antonio is doing its best to turn that statistic around with its weekly Food Pan-

try. Sixteen volunteers show up every single week to make it all work. Sharon Sadlon and Becky Domel coordinate their efforts.

Each month, more than 1,000 peo-ple are helped to not go hungry.By partnering with the San Antonio Food Bank, King of Kings is able to buy huge quantities of food for only 15 cents per pound. Every Wednes-day morning, members of King of Kings go to the Food Bank to col-lect basics like bread, canned veg-etables, canned and frozen meat, powdered milk, even desserts and pet food. After six hours of preparation on Wednesday, the distribution is ready for Thursday morning client visits. People often ask, “How do you know people aren’t taking ad-vantage of you?” “We trust people,” Sadlon said. “And the cheaters don’t come back when they see all the people who really need to be here.”It takes very little time to see how committed the congregation is to this ministry. There are six freez-ers, four refrigerators, and 200 square feet of food-storage space. No out-of-date food is distributed. Stock is rotated carefully. Once a month, the congregation collects an offering to support the minis-try. Offerings range from $700 to $1,000 per month. There is a bud-get line item to support the Food Pantry, but so far it hasn’t been

needed because of the generosity of the members.While their Food Bank connection prevents them from speaking open-ly about faith, the Gospel is still shared. The Rev. Juan Diaz serves as the ministry’s chaplain and walks around nearly every Thurs-day, offering free devotional mate-rials in English and Spanish. Two client families have begun at-tending worship and making them-selves at home in the congregation. With such a small return to the congregation, what’s the point of doing this? One of the volunteers, Trish, replies, “Because Jesus said, ‘I was hungry and you fed me.’ ”

In recent years, King of Kings has gone through some hard times. As attendance and membership have declined, it would be easy for the congregation to give in to a siege mentality and to start caring only about itself. And that would be the end. The members know that and that’s why they are more commit-ted than ever to keep the Food Pan-try going and along with it to reach out in every other possible way with the Good News of Jesus, the Bread of Life. It’s a truly spiritual thing and so wonderful: the Food Pantry supplies the physical needs of its clients and doing so feeds the souls of the congregation.How is the Spirit leading you to un-leash the love of Christ?

Community Connections

4 / TEXAS

HAPPENINGS

On Sunday, Jan. 22, 34 new members joined Zion Lu-theran Church. They are, in alphabetical order, Brittany Bartnik-Eddleman and daughter Scout; DCE Bradley Bartz; Hedy Knop; Kevin and Lisa Letz and children, Isaac, Ezra and Lauren; Jason Long and daughters (not pictured) Jennifer, Kimberly and Hanae; Chad and Ashley Over-

ton and children Davaney, Rocco and Reese; Tyler and Kyra Ringwald; Bart and Molly Scherer and children (not pictured) Tyler and Lily; Nolan and Andrea Thompson and daughter Isabelle; Mark and Harmony Truman and children Evan and Ava; and Adam and Elise Ybarra and daughter Noelle.

ABILENE

SEALYThe members of Trinity Lutheran Church, welcomed new members Carl and Carol Wied into their family on Sunday, Feb. 12. Pastor is the Rev. Ken Bersche.

FAIRVIEWImmanuel Lutheran Church welcomed into its membership Nick Smith along with his sons, Gabriel and Billy, and his sister, Samantha Smith, on Sunday, Jan. 15. Pastor is the Rev. Robert Vogel.

On Feb. 5, Bryant Soend-ker was welcomed into the church family of St. John. Pastor is the Rev. Lynn Lubke.

SAN BANITO He isRISEN

HAPPENINGS

APRIL 2017 / 5

CONROE

Texas District

Theological ConvocationTrue Concord: Scripture, Confessions and the body of Christ

To register, go to txdistconvocation.eventbrite.com

PresentersRev. Dr. Robert Kolb International Research Emeritus Professor for Institute for Mission Studies, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis

Rev. Dr. Roland Ziegler Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Confessional Lutheran Studies, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind.

May 1-3 • Crowne Plaza Austin 6121 North Interstate Highway 35, Austin, TX 78752

St. Mark Lutheran Church was blessed to receive 19 new members on Jan. 22. Pictured along with the Rev. David Quail are Floyd and Marion Birt; Kyle Keegan; Ethan Mash; Glen, Debbie and Matthew Piper; Dorothy

Ricks; Ron and Barb Schanz; Allen and Beverly Schultz; Gary, Michelle, Morgan and McKayla Schultz; Tim and Barb Tobeck; and Linda Quada. They were all welcomed with a dinner after church.

SULPHUR SPRINGS

Jon and Sheila Armstrong were welcomed into membership at Our Savior on Nov. 27. Pastor is the Rev. Tim Eden.

Karen Adair also was welcomed into membership on Nov. 27.

6 / TEXAS

HAPPENINGS

DEVINEMaking the good confession of faith, these saints became mem-bers of the household of God at Divine Savior on Sunday, Feb. 19, through adult confirmation and profession of faith. Pictured with the Rev. Randall Wehmeyer are, from left, Donald and Jessica Ornelas and children Bailey and Chloe; Felicita Bohmfalk and Santiago Carrillo Jr.

St. Peter Lutheran Church welcomed a new pastor and new members. Shown with the Rev. John Thompson are, from left, (front row) Ruben Chapa, Irene Chapa, Liliana Costilla, Abigail Duarte, Suzane Costilla, Delfina Perales, Margarita Chavana and Sergio Perez II; (back row) Sergio Perez, Sandra Perez, Christopher Perales, Rosy Duarte, Henry Garcia, Maria F. Garcia and Sebastian Perez.

HOUSTONFAIRVIEWImmanuel Lutheran Church welcomed Ford Elliott Zinn into membership as a baptized child of God on Sunday, Feb.5. Family members pictured are parents, Cynthia and Frank Zinn Sr., sister Macy and brother Frank Jr. Pastor is the Rev. Tab Ottmers.

APRIL 2017 / 7

HAPPENINGS

PLANOKindergarten students at Faith Lutheran School celebrated National Lutheran Schools Week and the 100th day of school by dressing up as if they were 100-years-old. They also had fun with an art project decorating the number 100.

AMARILLOCathryn Warren Grebel was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church on Jan. 29 by the Rev. Brian Hesse (second from left) and Vicar Rick Black. Pictured are parents Erich and Christina Grebel, along with big sister Eleanor. Sponsors are Rick and Sarah Black and Nathin and Julie Seals.

8 / TEXAS

HAPPENINGS

HUNTSVILLEOn Jan. 22, the Rev. Robert Hemsath was installed as senior pastor at Faith Lutheran Church. Brothers participating were, from left, the Revs. Russell Hildebrandt, Dick Wuensche, Don Kasper, Ralph Holbratsch (Texas District first vice-president); Hemsath, James Jennings, David Quail, Jim Maynard and Seth Kunze.

GARLANDThe congregation of Tree of Life Lutheran Church organized the Tree Trot Run — which included a fun run, 5K, 10K and virtual run — held on Oct. 1 to raise funds for families impacted by the December 2015 tornado. On Dec. 6, members attended the Garland City Council meeting to present a check for $8,000 to the Garland Tornado Relief Fund. Members pictured are, from left, Amber Thorson with daughter Aliyah, Ken Warren, Stacey Karlin, Kara Jander, Shannon Murphy, Linda Hill, the Rev. Clint Thorson holding daughter Anja, Amanda Maddox and Ken Nixon.

community using the classrooms of Comunidad De Gracia. An Easter festival is presented each year with help from the students at Lutheran South Academy. The elementary school across the street from Co-munidad De Gracia has also wel-comed Nelson and Perla, allowing them to come in and offer assis-tance to those families in need. Co-munidad De Gracia worships about 60 people each Sunday and offers bilingual services.A true partnership in ministry, Nelson and Perla Rodriguez con-tinue to confirm the words of Mark 9:35:“Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all” (NIV). This verse is painted on a mural in the food pantry area of the church and is a testimony to the servant nature of Jesus Christ. To God be the glory!

TPIM (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2)

APRIL 2017 / 9

HAPPENINGS

AUSTINThese youth of Beautiful Savior were servers at the congregation’s annual stewardship dinner on Feb. 4. They are, from left, Isabel Seguin, Olivia Seguin, Miller Hannusch, Zachary Kleiber and Mikey Hannusch.

AMARILLOOn Feb. 12, all Sunday school and Bible classes at Trinity came together to make Valentine place-mats for the VA Hospital in Amarillo. Words of love and faith messages enhanced these placemats. At left is Vicar Rick Black.

SEALYOn Sunday, Feb. 19, Trinity Lutheran Church welcomed William Monette Ful-len into the family of God through Holy Baptism. Parents are John and Nichol Fullen, who are all pictured with the Rev. Kenneth Bersche.

10 / TEXAS

HAPPENINGS

FRIENDSWOODOn the weekend of Feb. 17, 70 women from Hope Lutheran Church gathered at Camp Allen, Navasota, with the theme, “Joy for the Journey.” Guest speaker Tammy Whitehurst inspired the women to “choose joy,” weaving in stories that led to laughter, tears and food for thought. The Rev. Dr. Jerry Kieschnick, former president of the Texas District and The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, led the Sunday morning worship service, capping the Joy-filled weekend.

SEALYTrinity Lutheran Church youth honored church members age 60 and older with a Valentine’s luncheon of lasagna, green beans, salad, garlic bread — and for dessert, cherry cream-cheese pie. The members enjoyed the luncheon as the youth served them with a smile!

Send us your newsSend photos, stories and newsletters for The Lutheran Witness to:→ txmess@txlcms.org→ Texas Messenger, LCMS Texas District,

7900 E. Highway 290 Austin, TX 78724-2499

Please be sure all photos sent electroni-cally are in color and 300 dpi (high reso-lution). Also, send your news to us well in advance, if possible.The Texas Messenger is now available on-line at txlcms.org.

APRIL 2017 / 11

TIES THAT BIND

These Lutheran friends of yours recently celebrated or will celebrate wedding anniversaries of 50 years or more. All are members of LCMS Texas District congregations.

Serbin, St. Paul Charles and Gladys Arldt 61 years, Jan. 1

Monroe and Verna Mae Becker 63 years, Jan 3

Elmo and Adele Schulze 65 years, Jan. 12

The Grove, St. Paul Orville and Janice Michalk 53 years, April 25

Elmo, Jr. and Peggy Winkler 55 years, April 27

Houston, Gethsemane Bill and Marcia Reed 65 years, April 6

Kermit and Josie Muske 66 years, April 14

Eduard and Zdena Richter 54 years, April 29

San Angelo, Trinity Eugene and Lessie Spieker 57 years, Jan 10

Ray and Elaine Van Stockum 53 years, Jan 11

Roy and Carolyn Vick 56 years, Jan. 22

Congratulations!

Klein, Trinity Don and Sylvia Collins 57 years, April 17

Bruce and Ruth Fritsch 54 years, April 15

Gil and Joyce Hay were blessed with 70 years of marriage Jan. 18. Their church home is Bethel, Dallas.

Curly (H.M.) and Lois Brandt cel-ebrated 65 years of marriage Jan. 19. Their church home is Our Savior, Sulphur Springs.

Royce and Millie Lewis, members of Trinity, Klein, will celebrate 59 years of marriage April 20.

Robert and Sharon Bialas, members of Trinity, Klein, will be blessed with 54 years of marriage April 24.

Rueben and Sherry Sladek cele-brated 50 years of marriage Jan. 28. Their church home is Trinity, Taylor.

12 / TEXAS

SCHOOL MINISTRY

Touching livesBy Dr. Bill HinzDirector of School Ministry

Our Lutheran schools are not only plac-es of learning for our students, they are places where students can grow in their faith and sense of community. Often our schools are an extension of the outreach mission of the church, touching the lives of both the students and their families. I’d like to share the following story with you from one of our schools.

One day I received a note from one of our teachers asking me to visit with a student in her class who was consumed with worry. She worried about the weather, her grandpar-ents’ health and so much more. The teacher shared that the student even got tummy aches because of worrying.The child’s mom thought it might help for her to talk to the school pastor. When I first had lunch with the student, she told me how she worried whenever she heard thun-der or rain. She worried about tor-nadoes and powerful storms. She worried about her grandparents getting sick and her brother’s up-coming tonsillectomy and his safe recovery.The “mental list” of things to worry about was lengthy; one by one she talked about all her fears. As she talked, I couldn’t help but notice her hair pulled back into two neat pigtails. I shared Jesus’ words in Luke 12:7. ‘Indeed, the very hairs of your

head are all numbered,’ and that in all situations, she is never alone. She has a loving God who watches over her and that He cares enough about her that He knows the exact number of hairs on her head. I sug-gested that the next time she felt fearful, that she reach up and grab a few strands of hair as a tangible re-minder that God was with her. She seemed to like that idea … and so we finished by praying, and off she returned to her classroom.About a week later, late one after-noon after school, a woman came in and introduced herself as the mother of the young lady I had spo-ken with. She wanted to stop by and share something that had happened over the weekend.She and her daughter had gone to the store for some shopping. While in the store, they were unaware of a powerful thunderstorm heading their direction. Just as they com-pleted their shopping and were heading out the checkout line, flashes of lightning and numerous claps of thunder shook the building and the rain began to pour. The mom knew this meant trouble for

her daughter, for this was the very situation that would send her into an anxiety attack. She also knew they needed to get to the car and get home before the storm wors-ened. She was trying to figure out how to best calm her daughter’s nerves when she looked down and saw her daughter firmly grasping a large strand of her hair. She asked why and her daughter replied, ‘It helps me remember God is taking care of me!’ She then asked, ‘OK. Are you ready?’ The daughter nod-ded her head, and together they ran to the car, all the while with hair in hand! The mom told me she just wanted to share her thanks for helping her daughter take a step forward in dealing with her fears and knowing that she could give Je-sus all her cares and worries.

I believe the lesson this student has leaned is one for all of us to em-brace.

“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.”Ps. 68:19 (NIV)

A highlight of any school year — students being baptized.

APRIL 2017 / 13

CAN-DO

By Pat FickCAN-Do Director

It was Monday morning and the alarm went off. I was struggling to open my eyes and meet a new day when all of the sudden there was a sharp pain in my right knee. I couldn’t bend my leg. Fear gripped my mind. I quickly asked Steve, who was also just waking up, to pray for my knee. He shook himself awake and started praying.Then I told him to pull my leg. He was really confused, but he could tell from the tone in my voice that this was not a time for joking around, so he got out from under the covers and started pulling on my leg. “Keep pulling, my knee-cap is stuck!” About now you are probably wondering if I am pulling your leg, asking if this really hap-pened. Well, I’m not pulling your leg! (Wordwizard definition time: to pull someone’s leg is to mislead a person harmlessly; to tease, fool, play a joke on or trick in a jocular manner.) After a few attempts at pulling my leg, Steve successfully made room for my kneecap to pop back into its rightful place. Whew! The cause of this frightening fiasco was my 62-pound dog stepping on my kneecap at just the right angle and pushing it into a place where it wasn’t meant to be. I’m not pulling your leg, but Steve had to pull mine to get it out of this predicament!When we think of Jesus’ agape love for us, it definitely sounds too good to be true. But I’m not pulling your

leg! Check out Rom. 5:6-9:“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person — though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die — but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God.”

Jesus doesn’t love us because of anything good in us. Agape love is an unconditional, sacrificial love that is always giving and impos-sible to take or be a taker. Agape love does not hope to gain any-thing from the object of that love. Friendship love (phileo), desire love (eros) and family love (st-orge) all contain an element of us liking what we see in the person we are loving. We are attracted to others and hope to gain some-

thing from loving them. God sim-ply loves because “...God is love.” 1 John 4:8 And once again, I’m not pulling your leg!Thank you Jesus for your amazing, unconditional love that saves sin-ners like me!

God simply loves

Donations for CAN-DO Missions are welcome!Make checks payable to Concordia University Texas, with “CAN-DO Missions” in the memo line.

Send to:Concordia University TexasATTN: CAN-DO MISSIONS11400 Concordia University Drive, Austin TX 78726

Or call 512-313-4332 to donate via credit card. Do-nations may also be made at can-do.concordia.edu

( I’m not pulling your leg!)

Agape love is an unconditional,

sacrificial love that is always giving.”

14 / TEXAS

UPBRING

Every child needs aUpbring is a faith-based, nonprofit orga-nization on a mission to break the cycle of child abuse by empowering children, families and communities. But what does breaking the cycle of abuse look like?It looks like bedtime tuck-ins, cheers from the crowd, family game nights and kisses on scraped knees. It looks like for-giving hugs after big mistakes, bowls of soup to console stuffy noses and splash-ing through puddles on rainy days.Breaking the cycle of child abuse means far more than removing children from harmful situations and providing food, clothing and shelter. Because when the cycle is broken, it means children get to live every moment of every day with every inch of their whole hearts.With the nation observing National Child Abuse Prevention month in April, this is a good time to think about how you can join Upbring in making sure all children know they are precious gifts from God. The harsh reality of abuse and neglect often extends beyond the four walls of a home and into the fiber of our commu-nities. Here are some practical tips you can follow to make your community a place where children dream, succeed and thrive.*

ChampionSTRONG COMMUNITIES NEED:

Parks and recreation facilities that are accessi-ble, safe and inviting places for families.

Social connections

Resources to help families in need; ac-cess to food, jobs, medical care and other resources.

Early educa-tion programs that are easily accessible and welcoming.

Clean air and water

Safe, afford-able housing available to all families.

What can you do?Start by meeting your neighbors, going to parents’ meetings at your child’s school and partici-pating in activities at your local library or community center. From there, you can take further steps to strengthen your commu-nity.▶ Set up a playgroup.▶ Organize a community babysit-

ting co-op. ▶ Volunteer at your child’s

school. ▶ Encourage local service pro-

viders to produce a directory of community services.

Learn more at:childschampion.org

*These tips are courtesy of Build-ing Community, Building Hope, a collaborative effort by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau, the Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, Child Welfare Information Gateway, and the FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention.

APRIL 2017 / 15

LUTHERAN OUTDOORS MINISTRY OF TEXAS

Completing the puzzle

2017 LOMT study theme“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” 1 John 3:16 (NIV)

Upcoming events→ April 3-7

Lutherhostel (senior getaway)→ April 21-23

Lifequest (confirmation age) group registration only

→ June 4-Aug. 4 Summer camp sessions

→ July 30 Annual barbecue/auction

Contact usCamp Lone Star→ 2016 Camp Lone Star Road

La Grange, TX 78945

→ lonestar@lomt.com→ 800-362-2078

Lutheran Outdoors Ministry of Texas→ P.O. Box 457; La Grange, TX 78945→ lomt@lomt.com→ 979-968-1657 → LOMT.com

By Keith LundLOMT Executive Director Your support of LOMT/Camp Lone Star is an essential piece in the puzzle of ministry relationships and spiritual renewal and outreach to many participants! Please accept our humble thanks to each of you — donors, participants, volunteers, full-time, part-time and seasonal staff and any contributor of any sort. Your work and support helps to complete a beautiful spiritual picture for many to see.“Puzzle” really is an appropriate word as God puts so many pieces in play. Stacey, a single woman in La Grange, felt led to foster and eventually adopt a young lady. As sometimes happens, the process moved much faster than expected and suddenly Zerainah was coming and arrangements had to be made. Camp Lone Star had decided to get involved with the La Grange Main Street Association’s annual Schmeckenfest Celebration. This wassail-tasting public event left children wanting for activities and Camp Lone Star offered to provide things kids would enjoy, leading the way for other area camps and churches to join in. Contact through this event was what exposed Stacey

to Camp Lone Star’s sum-mer Day Camp program, so she investigated, deliberated and finally chose to enroll her new ward. Stacey noted that Zerainah really didn’t want to go that first day as they drove down the camp lane, but before long the intentional Christian com-munity atmosphere of Camp Lone Star impacted her. She ended up loving camp and this year Zerainah is regis-tered for the Discovery teen summer session. After fos-tering Zerainah for months, the missing piece of the fam-ily puzzle came when Stacey pursued custody of Zerainah’s younger brother, Jacob, as well. Jacob is now a regular at Day Camp and the Club Connect after school program as a committed camper. Stacey shared: “Jacob loves to read his Bible — there is a real curiosity there. He comes home and he talks about the day’s lesson.”Whether it is a week of Summer Camp, Day Camp, Club Connect after school or a weekend retreat, God uses the staff and facilities at Camp Lone Star to impact lives

and make a difference for children, youth and families. But the puzzle is not complete without your sup-port and gifts. Please take advan-tage of the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of many with a financial gift or commitment to LOMT/Camp Lone Star’s “Forever Thankful” campaign.

Forever Thankful capital campaign informa-tion and pledge forms are available online:lomt.com/ForeverThankful.html

Original pencil drawing by JD Hillberry (jdhillberry.com)

16 / TEXAS

LEGACY DEO

By Rev. Dr. Jerry KieschnickLegacy Deo Chief Executive Officer

April is an awesome month! Here are a few of the many rea-sons:Special women in my life were born this month: wife Terry, daughter Angie, moth-er Elda, mother-in-law Dorothy. (Granddaughter Kayla missed April, arriving in August.)In Texas, wildflowers are either hit-ting or have just passed their peak of profusion, manifesting the mag-nificence of this beautiful feature of God’s creation.Holy Week is observed in the Christian Church this month more often than not. In the past 20 years and the next 20 years, Easter oc-curs in April 30 times.Special Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday worship services are always awesome opportunities to focus on the true meaning of life on earth and the assurance of life in heaven,

a gift of God through Christ our Lord.Annual federal income tax returns are due to be filed this month. While fiscally painful, taxes are a reflection of the privilege and bless-ing of living in America.Perhaps your own list would in-clude other reasons to express af-finity for April. It’s entirely possible that you would delete from your list the last item included on mine. Be-lieve me, I don’t really jump for joy at tax-paying time!Though it’s important for citizens to fund the services provided by governmental agencies, the federal government recognizes the value of charitable organizations in Amer-ica that exist not only for spiritual but also for humanitarian reasons. That’s why IRS regulations include legitimate, legal, moral and ethical ways to reduce the burden of tax liability.That’s also why it’s always im-portant to plan ahead for tax-wise decisions that benefit your family

and your favorite faith-based en-deavors. Giving to the people we love and to the charitable causes we support produces a feeling of joy and a sense of fulfillment!

It’s April — rejoice!

legacydeo.org

800-880-3733

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APRIL 2017 / 17

TEXAS CHURCH EXTENSION FUND

By Bill SiegristDirector of Marketing and Training

Does your congregation have a loan with the Texas District Church Extension Fund? Currently, more than 100 LCMS Texas District con-gregations have loans with CEF. Congratulations to the 112 congre-gations, listed below, that received a 2016 rebate check!

Get a rebate?

Talk with your CEF congrega-tion representative and pastor to find out more about the rebate

program. If your church does not

qualify, there may be a neighboring LCMS congrega-tion in need of

additional support-ing investments.

We love to write rebate checks! We believe your congregation and CEF are involved in a Gospel partner-ship. In a good partnership, there

should be a win-win so that at the end of the day, each are better off as a result of the relationship.

112 congregationsreceived rebate checks in 2016, totaling $537,380

Amarillo, ChristAmarillo, TrinityArlington, GraceArlington, Beautiful SaviorArlington, Holy CrossAustin, Beautiful SaviorAustin, Jesus DeafAustin, Mount OliveAustin, St. Paul Austin, RedeemerAustin, Redeeming GraceAustin, Our SaviorAzle, Good ShepherdBaytown, RedeemerBeaumont, St. JohnBig Spring, Alive in ChristBorger, Good ShepherdBowie, St. PeterBryan, BethelCanton, Holy CrossCedar Park, Good ShepherdCollege Station, Holy CrossCorpus Christi, Lord of LifeCorsicana, FaithCrockett, GraceCypress, St. JohnDalhart, GraceDallas, ZionDallas, St. PaulDenton, St. PaulDeSoto, Cross of ChristForney, Water of Life Fort Worth, ChristFort Worth, RedeemerFredericksburg, ResurrectionFriendswood, HopeFrisco, Waters EdgeGarland, Tree of Life

Garland, ConcordiaGatesville, St. PaulGeorgetown, FaithGranbury, Our SaviorGroves, St. PaulHarlingen, St. PaulHaslet, Holy ShepherdHewitt, PeaceHouston, Christ MemorialHouston, EpiphanyHouston, Family of FaithHouston, GethsemaneHouston, St. AndrewHouston, TrinityHouston, Living WaterHumble, Lamb of GodHuntsville, FaithHurst, PeaceKaty, MemorialKeller, MessiahKerrville, HosannaKilleen, GraceKingwood, Christ The KingLa Grange, Mount CalvaryLa Grange, LOMTLake Jackson, St. MarkLakeway, ACTSLongview, Our RedeemerLubbock, ChristLubbock, HopeMansfield, St. JohnMarble Falls, HopeMidland, Holy CrossMt. Pleasant, Good ShepherdNacogdoches, RedeemerNew Braunfels, CrossNewark, Victory In Christ

Odessa, EmmanuelOrange, GracePalestine, BethlehemPasadena, ZionPflugerville, Point of GracePlainview, St. PaulPlano, St. PaulPlano, MessiahRoanoke, St. PeterRockport, PeaceRockwall, Our SaviorRound Rock, King of KingsSan Antonio, Crown of LifeSan Antonio, Shepherd of the HillsSan Antonio, Mount OliveSan Antonio, Mount CalvarySan Antonio, RedeemerSan Antonio, St. PaulSeguin, GraceSmithville, GraceSpring, ResurrectionSpring, TrinityStephenville, FaithSugar Land, FaithSugar Land, Fishers of MenTaylor, TrinityTemple, ImmanuelTexarkana, FirstTomball, SalemTomball, ZionTyler, TrinityVernon, St. PaulVernon, ZionWaco, St. PaulWalburg, ZionWeatherford, TrinityWichita Falls, Our Redeemer

18 / TEXAS

LONE STAR DISTRICT LLL

‘Lutheran Hour Live’ at Peace, HurstThe Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz, Lutheran Hour Ministries speaker, and his team recent-ly visited Peace Lutheran Church, Hurst. Seltz was the guest speaker at its worship services and also led the Bible study for adults.The next day, the church’s LHM Men’s NetWork group, God’s Team, hosted an evening session with a Texas barbecue. Following the meal, a large group of men from the con-gregation and guests were present for a taping of a sermon for the Lu-theran Hour radio program that is

scheduled to air during the Lenten season.The taping was followed by a ques-tion-and-answer session. Seltz explained to those present to please ask him anything that one might have wanted to ask a pastor. There were some great questions and hon-est answers.This event is one of several “Lu-theran Hour Live” sessions which Seltz is planning to do this year in various parts of the country. It gives the speaker an opportunity to speak

to a large gathering as opposed to a microphone. He said that it is much more invigorating for him to speak to actual people.

Time to workThe fifth annual Men’s NetWork WORK DAY is scheduled for Satur-day, April 29. This event is a chance for men to help in their neighbor-hoods and communities, ideally not on a church campus.Here’s a short list of “why” to branch out into your community:▶ Your group will make connec-

tions.▶ It might be a way to get those you

come into contact with to consid-er your congregation as a future church home.

▶ You might find other projects that you could do later.

▶ It is what the Gospel is all about — serving and sharing the mes-sage with others.

Your group can sign up now at lhm.org/men/workday. Everyone who participates will receive a Men’s NetWork cap to wear the day of the event.Need ideas? Find the non-profit groups in your area (food pantry, nursing home, animal shelter, those helping the elderly). For oth-er ideas, check out suggestions at lhm.org/men/workday suggestions.asp.

Men from Our Savior, Rockwall, trimmed trees and did yard work for a congrega-tion member as a WORK DAY project.

Send information and photos about your com-pleted projects for future LLL District News articles to Rudy Hunger at hungerr@flash.net.

APRIL 2017 / 19

LWML DISTRICT NEWS

y o u r m i t e s a t w o r k

‘One stitch at a time’

FROM THE PRESIDENT OJ

Joyful ly ser ve the LordOpenly confess the GospelYearn to grow in God ’s Word

The Sewing Seeds of Faith (SSOF) program is used by Disciples of the Way Ministries (DOW) to reach refugee women of all nations. SSOF volunteers teach sewing and life skills in a new country, and reach out with fellowship to share the Gospel and show God’s love.Using the generous fabric dona-tions received from LWML groups and partner churches, volunteers teach sewing “one stitch at a time.” These volunteers and the DOW staff develop friendships, conduct devotions in different languages, have pot-luck lunches and make home visits. During 2016, DOW’s mission staff conducted home vis-its to more than 187 Christian and non-Christian refugees.In November 2016, DOW opened the Sewing Seeds of Faith Lead-ership/Development Center. This twice-a-week program is provid-ing jobs and leadership training for the women who have spent at least one year or more with SSOF and now have a marketable skill. The women receive training to go out into their community to teach others and/or return to the SSOF program as teachers. They can also find employment as seamstresses to help support their families. The DOW Women’s Apartment Minis-try in the Dallas Vickery Meadow

community, which has more than 35,000 people from 120 countries, teaches sewing to small groups. Sharing the Gospel through de-votions, fellowship and pot-luck lunches are also part of this min-istry.DOW also opened the new Ref-ugee Service Center (RSC) in an office building about one mile from the administrative office at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church. The Mission of RSC is to help refugees

achieve self-reliance and assimilate into American society. The vision is to build a thriving community of assimilated and pro-ductive refugees in the Dallas area. Job placement is the

primary focus of RSC. The staff and volunteers have a passion to help improve the lives of their new neighbors through programs de-signed to instill the value of hard work, dedication and self-worth. The clients are counseled on the importance of budgeting their monthly income and expenses, planning a career path, next steps to improve their situation, punctu-ality during the hiring process and on the job, and commitment to do the absolute best job they can.

“Go therefore and make dis-ciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And be-hold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matt. 28:19-20

Vice-president of Christian Life, Jan Bruenette presents a $5,000 check for Sewing Seeds of Faith.

Apartment ministry student sewing.

DOW Sewing Seeds of Faith luncheon.

Webster defines commu-nication as an exchange of information. The leadership team of LWML commu-nicates a wealth of infor-mation to our members. We desire to be effective

communicators, reaching as many as possible.

Please go to the websites

(lwml.org and lwmltxdist.org) and sign up to receive informative emails. Then share the ideas with others in your LWML, church and community.

Serving with JOY,Debbie Curry LWML Texas District President

20 / TEXAS

LUTHERAN WOMEN IN MISSION

LWML 37th Biennial Convention

June 22-25 • Albuquerque, N.M.Theme: “Jesus Christ Above All”

Sign up now!

y o u r m i t e s a t w o r k

International Student Ministry at UT ArlingtonThe Rev. Sabir Bashir has been serving as a bi-vocational pastor for the Lutheran Student Center at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) for the last six years. He is very thankful for the help of vol-unteers, which by God’s grace has allowed this ministry to flourish.A large number of international and American students participate in this ministry, which includes various weekly activities. On Mon-day, volunteers serve 80 students lunch and God’s Word. On Tuesday evening, more than 25 students share Bible study and spaghetti. The Thursday Chi Alpha class has 15 students, and an Indian-Paki-stani dish called Biryani is served to more than 150 in attendance, who also share God’s Word. There is even a chess club that meets on Saturday. Most of these students are Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Bud-dhist, and some are Christian.Once or twice a month, a stu-dent-based program is led by one of the students from India. This program draws 50 to 75 students.

Their activities include games, drama, evangelism and prayer. In addition, they host other events such as Concert on the Deck, Great Howdy with UTA, Fall Festival and events for Thanksgiving, Christ-mas and Valentine’s Day. This is a vital mission field that desperately needs awareness among the LCMS community.Where will one find an LCMS stu-dent ministry where God is bring-ing hundreds of Hindus, Muslims,

Sikhs, Buddhists and Atheists to find a home far away from home? They not only get fed physically, but also spiritually with the Word of God. Much prayer and aware-ness is needed for the Lutheran student ministry among students at the University of Texas at Ar-lington. “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Phil. 1:6” This is what is happening at the Lu-theran Student Center.

Volunteers who serve at the Lutheran Service Center at University of Texas at Arlington.

The Grape Vine

Registration is open! There are several resources on the web-site, including registration forms, publicity items, hotel ac-commodations, tour information and much more!

Visit lwml.org/2017-convention and get the word out. Information can also be found in the Winter issue of Lutheran Woman’s Quarterly. Join us in Albuquerque!

Bashir receives a mission grant payment from Vice-president of Christian Life, Janet Brunette.

Student discussion at the Lutheran Service Center.

LWML Texas District 2016-18 mite goal: $362,040Mites received through January: $127,366Mission grants paid through January: $78,300 (including overage and from previous biennium)

Unpaid mission grants: $134,500