A Long Week..

Beloved in Christ,

What a week! Getting Mikkel settled in his apartment in Cedarburg, Wisconsin and then attending the LCMS Life Conference in Washington D.C. Jan. 22-24. About 300-400 hundred attended. The national March For Life was a joy to participate in as hundreds of thousands from all over these United States of America participated. It was a huge peaceful protest as so many gathered to STAND for life. What struck me was the small amount of media coverage. There was a news helicopter flying overhead. There were some camera crews. But I did not see national news teams there. They may have been there; I just didn’t see them.

The speakers at the life conference were all excellent: including our first presenter, the Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, President of the LCMS. Rev. Dr. James Lamb, Executive Director of national Lutherans For Life preached at the opening Divine Service. His sermon “nailed it” for a Christian perspective on God’s gift of life. He preached on the Parable of the Good Samaritan from Luke 10:25-37. We cannot start out on the road and be like that good Samaritan from the start. No, we must start in the ditch–with the man who had been injured–beaten up. For we are injured by our sins and Christ our Savior stooped down into the ditch to bear our sins and shame–having great mercy upon us. He tends to our infirmities and applies His soothing medicine of the Gospel. Having received His mercy, He sets us on the road to go and be a blessing to our neighbor–to be merciful to them–to help them–to affirm to them God’s great gift of life. For the pro-life efforts, that means we step into the ditch with those suffering because of various and difficult life circumstances: a woman contemplating an abortion, a woman and man suffering from post-abortion syndrome, a person suffering from a terrible and terminal disease, a person seeking to end their life–even in those few states where it may be legal. Stepping into the ditch is to reach out and take a STAND for pro life issues. Stepping into the ditch is to get involved–become active in the front lines of pro-life efforts. Become active in Lutherans For Life. Help and support local Crisis Pregnancy Centers. Become well-educated on the issues. Pray. Send your efforts and your financial support. Support only those political candidates who are pro life. There is so much you and I can do. Much needs to be done.

On Friday night of the conference, Maggie Karner shared some of the many blessings that have been realized through LCMS Life and Health Ministries. And since Maggie has just announced that she is stepping down and resigning as Director, so a special video presentation of her work and her family was shared with the assembly. And now, I share with you a news release from Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, Indiana–printed below. I was there to witness this special honor for Maggie (and Pastor Karner and their three daughters–all in attendance).

On Tuesday, January 27, 2015 8:13 AM, Concordia Theological Seminary <info@ctsfw.edu> wrote:


	CTS–FW Honors Maggie Karner with Doctor of Humane Letters Degree
	For Immediate Release January 27, 2015 FORT WAYNE, Ind. (CTS–FW)—It was a poignant moment when Maggie Karner, outgoing director of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s (LCMS) Life and Health Ministries, was surprised with the presentation of the Doctor of Humane Letters Honoris Causa from Concordia Theological Seminary (CTS–FW), Fort Wayne, Indiana. The conferral took place during the LCMS Life Ministries banquet in Washington, D.C. on Friday, January 23, 2015. The award comes in the midst of a battle Karner is fighting against brain cancer. “As president of CTS–FW I have had the opportunity to serve with many faithful servants of Christ, and Maggie stands prominently among them as a selfless hero of the faith,” commented CTS-FW President Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr. “What a joy and privilege it is to present this honor in recognition of a life well-lived and to acknowledge that Maggie, indeed, is a teacher of the Church.” The decision to confer the honor was approved unanimously by the CTS–FW faculty and Board of Regents. During her decade-long tenure as director of LCMS Life and Health Ministries, Karner addressed many life issues, including embryonic stem cell research, adoption and end-of-life issues. In an October 10, 2014, post in the Reporter Online, Karner spoke with grace and courage about her battle with brain cancer. “I feel blessed that my tumor came later in my life (I’m 51) and I have had the gift of raising three lovely daughters. I want my girls to learn servanthood and selflessness as they care for me. And I also want them to know that, for Christians, our death is not the end. … Christ’s resurrection from that borrowed grave confirms that death could not hold Him, and it cannot hold me either — a baptized child of God!” (Reporter Online, http://blogs.lcms.org/reporter, is the Web version of Reporter, the official newspaper of the LCMS.) Karner is married to the Rev. Kevin A. Karner (CTS–FW 1989), pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Bristol, Connecticut. The CTS–FW community continues to pray for the entire Karner family, asking that God comfort and protect them in the days ahead. Share ### Concordia Theological Seminary exists to form servants in Jesus Christ who teach the faithful, reach the lost, and care for all. Founded in 1846, CTS is a seminary of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). Learn more about CTS at www.ctsfw.edu and the LCMS at www.lcms.org. For additional information concerning educational opportunities and events at CTS, please contact: Jayne Sheafer, CTS Director of Public Relations, 260-452-2250 or SeminaryRelations@ctsfw.edu. If you no longer wish to receive these updates, you may opt-out.
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So, dear Christian friends, we give thanks for Maggie Karner and her great STAND for LIFE.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Due to the storm, there is no Jr. Confirmation Class this evening.

Elders will not meet tonight either. We will meet next Tuesday, Feb. 3rd at 7:30PM.

Wednesday AM Bible Study will meet tomorrow. If the roads are bad where you are, please do not come.

Thursday:

7:00AM Emmaus Walkers Men’s Bible Study at Immanuel Parish Center

10:00AM Father-Confessor District Conference in Enfield, CT (Pastor attending)

6:00PM Bible Study

7:00PM Choir

Friday Evening: Prep begins for the Youth Grinder Sale (adult work crew)

Saturday: 9:00AM Prep for Grinder Sale

Sunday: 9:00AM Divine Service without Holy Communion (Signed Service for the Deaf)

10:30AM Sunday School but no Bible Study

11:00AM Youth Grinder Sale process begins

Annual reports are due in to the church office by Sunday, February 8th.

SERVING THE LORD THIS WEEK:

Ushers: Randy Krampitz

Jeff Sonstroem

Elder: Jeff Sonstroem

Altar: Donna Madonna

Acolyte: Jordan Klepps

Coffee: J/L Sonstroem

Have a blessed week in the Lord!

Pastor Kotila