All Lutheran Women are requested to attend a brief meeting on Sunday, December 5th at 4:00 PM in the Fellowship Hall.
Reaching Out With Worship
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminBeginning on Sunday, December 5th, Pastor David will be leading a brief worship service in the lobby at Generations. This service will take place at 1:30 PM. every other Sunday. Several St. Jacob’s church family members reside at Generations and it will be good to share a time of Word and Sacrament with them and the rest of the residents. Several have remarked about how much they enjoyed our singing for them in October and are looking forward to Sunday worship. Volunteers to assist in singing familiar hymns and distributing communion would be appreciated. If you would like to help out, please contact Pastor David.
Advent Bible Study
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminOur Advent Bible study will be titled “A Reunion of Grace” and will take a peek into the family history of our Lord. We will see how God chose to save humanity from sin, not through strength, but through humility and weakness. We will look at the lives of four ancestors of Jesus whose scars from human life are important factors for us to know about so that we can become more reliable witnesses to God’s amazing grace. Advent Bible study begins on Wednesday, December 1st, starting at 10:00 AM in the Fellowship Hall and is open to anyone who would like to participate.
Women’s Bible Study
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminAll are invited to join this small group for Women’s Bible study. We meet each Tuesday morning at 9:00 AM, usually in the home of one of our members’. In January, we will begin our study using the book, Sip, Savor, and Drink Deeply by Deb Burma. Copies are available. Contact Susan if you would like additional information or to get a copy of the book and join us! We would love to have you!
Filed in Bible Study, Fellowship
Advent Vespers
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminThe theme for our Advent Vespers will be “A Christmas Journey” featuring four dramatic readings presented by St. Jacob’s church family members. This set of monologues highlights the inner thoughts of four characters deeply involved in the divine drama of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus. Below is our schedule for mid-week Advent services.
December 1st – Joseph: The Stepfather
December 8th – Mary: The Favored One
December 15th – John: The Preparer
December 22nd – The Innkeeper
Advent Vespers will begin at 7:00 PM each Wednesday during the season. We will also receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion at each service. Please plan to attend each week as we anticipate the celebration of Christmas.
Annual Congregational Meeting
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminSt. Jacob’s annual congregational meeting will be held at the conclusion of our service of worship on Sunday, December 5th. The agenda for the meeting includes an election of Council members and adoption of the 2022 annual budget. A list of eligible voting members is posted on the bulletin board in the Narthex. Per the St. Jacob’s constitution, active voting members are those who have a record of at least 12 instances of worship and Holy Communion within the previous liturgical year (December 1st, 2020 – November 30th, 2021).
Filed in Other Happenings
Council Briefs
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminGood Things at St. Jacob’s for October:
• The G.I.F.T. Class had good attendance.
• Caroling on Homecoming went well and was very well received.
Council Briefs:
• We need at least TWO additional candidates for Council for year 2022. Please prayerfully consider offering your talents in service to our Lord and to St. Jacob’s.
• Worship and Music Team needs volunteers to help with putting up the Chrismon Trees on November 27th .
• The Annual Congregational Meeting will be held on Sunday, December 5th .
• The Discipleship Team is preparing for a new benevolence program in the Chapin Community through WE CARE called “Mercy Buckets” to help feed those who need help.
• Pastor has chosen several people from our church family to be “Elders” who will be trained in the communion liturgy; when pastor is away and no supply pastor is available these Elders will preside over the service of Word and Sacrament.
Filed in Council Reports, Other Happenings
Church Office hours
Posted November 30, 2021 By adminThe Church Office will be closed from Thursday, December 23rd through Friday, December 31st , celebrating the birth of our Savior. Hope you all enjoy a wonderful time with family and you all remain healthy and well. Blessings!
Filed in Other Happenings
Pastoral Devotion for November
Posted November 10, 2021 By adminGreatness in Serving Others
Mark 10:35-45
What do you want to be when you grow up? That’s a question that we all faced at one time or another. Some probably wanted to be doctors or nurses. Some perhaps wanted to be a professional athlete. Still someone might have wanted to be an actor or singer. Have you ever noticed few children, if any, say they want to be a garbage collector? Fewer still might say they want to be the school custodian, or the person who makes up the beds in a hotel. When we are young, we want to stand out; we often dream of making it big. We have dreams for our future.
Jesus never asks his disciples about their vision of what their lives might be like once he is departed. Instead, he leads the twelve on a journey of humility and service. Jesus leads and they follow. Our Lord teaches the twelve and us that in order to be counted first in God’s kingdom; we must become last of all and servant of all.
Certainly, we dream about the future. Yet, no matter your vocation or station in life, blessed is the one who puts the needs of others above their own and becomes their servant. Truly this one is counted as greatest in heaven.
Prayer: Holy God, give us the will to follow Christ, becoming as servants of others and inheritors of your kingdom. Amen.
From the Pastor’s Heart by Pastor David Nuottila
Posted November 1, 2021 By admin[Jesus said] “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.” John 17:6-8
A few days into my recent vacation, I received news of the death of my friend and fellow pastor, Brett Collins. I know that several folks within our church family had known Pastor Brett for quite a while and considered him to be very close. This news saddened many people within our Lutheran Churches, both NALC and ELCA. We have lost a friend who was our pastor, a beloved family man, and a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ.
As some of you may know, each Tuesday morning, Pastor Brett would join me and several other local Lutheran pastors online and we would study the Sunday lessons together. When a question regarding difficulties with the text would arise, Brett would often break the silence and offer this advice, “Just preach the Word, that’s what the people need to hear. Just Preach the Word man.” That is exactly what I had in mind when I preached and led worship at Holy Trinity in Little Mountain the Sunday following Pastor Brett’s death.
The day before I was in Salisbury, N.C. to perform a wedding for a former church youth member. I won’t deny, it was good seeing so many former church family members. I hadn’t seen any of them since taking the call to be St. Jacob’s Pastor. I realized that the old saying is true. Once a pastor, always a pastor. Memories from my two previous congregations found their way to the forefront of my mind as I enjoyed the smiles and hugs from people for whom I was their spiritual leader for six years, and again, I won’t deny that I enjoyed every minute.
The next morning (Sunday), having traveled back from North Carolina the night before, I had to stop
by St. Jacob’s on my way to Holy Trinity. It was good seeing folks who were gathered for worship, but it seemed strange that I was not going to be your preacher that particular morning. Instead, my calling for the day was to be Pastor for my friend’s flock. They were hurting and searching for comfort and encouragement and longed for a Word from God for reassurance.
During the prelude, I was seated behind the pulpit where Pastor Brett would have been sitting. The sensation was surreal. I asked myself, who am I that I should be in this place? Even though I had known Brett for a long time, this was his place, but he is no longer here. God called me to be pastor for them on this particular morning, and again the next Sunday. It was an assignment I was more than willing to accept. After all, once a pastor, always a pastor.
I believe I am writing this message to you as a way of peaceful reflection and response to the loss of a good friend. More than that, I believe I am writing this message to you because, as I sat be-hind the pulpit waiting to worship with a congregation that had just lost its shepherd, I realized just how special you all are to me. In the 17th chapter of John, Jesus says praise to his Father for his disciples saying Father, “I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.”
Having worshiped with the folks at Holy Trinity, I can say that without a doubt, Pastor Brett Collins gave them the Word God had given to him. They heard it and they know it’s true. Brett taught them well, and he set a fine example for them to follow. Now, in the wake of his sudden and tragic death, I know there will be more silent moments as I study the texts each Tuesday with my fellow pastors. In such times, I will do my best to take the advice of my friend, Brett Collins. “Just preach the Word, that’s what the people want to hear. Just preach the Word man.” May the Word I give to you on
Sunday be the same truth of the Gospel God gives me so that you may hear the truth concerning Jesus Christ.
I’m sorry for the long message, but I believe this month’s article truly reflects the nature of the title of my monthly column. For certainly, memories of my friend and the joy I find in being your pastor is what is on The Pastor’s Heart.
Grace to you and peace,
Pastor David Nuottila
