Breaker Rock Beach
June 24-27
VBS began at Breaker Rock Beach on Monday, June 24th. Dinner was served nightly and there were classes for all ages! God’s voice was heard – “Truth comes from me. My plan for you is even better. Everyone sins and needs a Savior. Jesus is the only way to get to heaven.” Fun and fellowship was enjoyed by all.
Thanks to all our VBS 2024 volunteers! YOU make VBS happen! Many thanks from the Christian Education Team.
Bible Study Archive
VBS
Posted July 3, 2024 By adminPastoral Devotion for July – Worship Him Who Saves
Posted July 2, 2024 By adminRead: Mark 14:1-11
The chief priests and the scribes supposed him a threat, so they conspired to arrest him and have him killed. Judas Iscariot turned traitor and arranged to betray him, receiving a handsome reward for his dubious effort. Such is the backdrop of today’s text; Jesus will soon be handed over and crucified. Yet, one person stands out, showing her love and devotion for her Lord. Rising above the stench of sin, the sweet fragrance of perfume danced through the air as she anointed the one who came to save her.
Her devotion is unmistakable. She lives, as we do, in the midst of a world refusing God’s mercy and grace. Such a world does not stop to acknowledge the Creator of all that is seen and unseen. It does not receive the one through whom salvation comes. Yet, like the woman who anoints Jesus’ feet, even today, the Church offers Christ the sweet fragrance of her worship and thanksgiving.
Sing praises to the one who gives his life for you. Bow down and worship the God of your salvation. For in the midst of a fallen and sinful world, he continues to offer his mercy and grace.
Prayer: May the worship we offer be pleasing in your sight O Lord, for through you only do we have life everlasting. Amen.
From the Pastor’s Heart
Posted June 21, 2024 By admin“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17
Everyone wants to be loved. Everyone needs to be loved. Sadly, not everyone feels they are loved. We hear so many stories these days about kids who have run away from home because they feel unloved or unwanted. We hear even more stories about people who, for one reason or another have fallen out of grace and become shunned for something they’ve done. The sad truth is, the world is filled with people who perceive themselves to be misfits, outcasts and undesirable. “If only I were good enough, someone would love me.”
Have you ever tried to convince someone who fits the above description that they truly are loved? Have you ever been faced with the difficulty of giving someone the assurance of God’s love? It isn’t as simple as it sounds. People who are convinced they are undesirable have built up walls surrounding them that are nearly impenetrable. Breaking down the barrier of doubt and low self-esteem is a dauntless task. Change is needed; transformation must take place for both, the unloved and the community that shuns them.
Several times in my reading this morning I have come across a commonly used sentence that always seems to give me trouble. “God loves you just the way you are.” This sentence gives the connotation that, even though I am not good enough for people, I am good enough for God. Now on the surface of this statement there is an element of truth, God does love us unconditionally. But simply telling someone that God loves them just as they are does not tell the whole story.
Ever since Adam and Eve bit the forbidden fruit, a barrier has existed between God and humanity. Sin is the great separation, the deeply driven wedge breaking the relationship between God and people. There can be no mistake, God hates sin and we are sinners. God does not love us just the way we are. God does not love us as sinners continually turning away from the relationship he established with creation in the beginning. This is a difficult message to hear and even more difficult to accept.
Certainly, God loves us. After all, we are people created by his hand in his image and likeness. But God does not love us just as we are. God does not love our sinful human condition. In order for God to love us just the way we are, change is needed. Transformation must take place. The deeply driven wedge between God and people must be removed and the wounds of sin healed forever. This is why God sent his Son into the world.
One of the aspects of the Lutheran Church I cling to is our emphasis and focus on the cross of Christ. Even as Jesus was fully human, subject to the same temptation, hunger, and pain we feel, he did not surrender unto sin. Jesus accomplished what humans cannot; he remained obedient to God even unto death. God loved Jesus just as he was; sinless, blameless, perfect.
As we are baptized into the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus, change occurs, transformation takes place. God receives us into the one true body of Christ Jesus and forgives us all our sin. God sanctifies us with his Holy Spirit, claims us as his own and gives us the assurance of his love forever. It is in this truth that humans can rightfully say, “God loves us just the way we are.” In Christ, no longer lost, no longer broken, we sinners who are washed in the waters of Holy Baptism and redeemed by the blood of Christ Jesus can honestly say God loves us just the way we are.
Grace and peace,
Pastor David Nuottila
More Youth Group News
Posted June 17, 2024 By adminJust as the Carolinas Mission Region Convocation had an emphasis on Youth Ministry, this edition of our newsletter focuses on the activities of our St. Jacob’s Youth. Our youth are certainly a busy and active bunch. They enjoy providing music for our congregation, engaging in mission events, and leading worship on the last Sunday of those months with a fifth Sunday. Our Youth members will lead worship again on June 30th. Please support our youth members with your prayers and congratulate them by commenting on their dedication and love for the ministry here at St. Jacob’s.
Worship at Generations
Posted June 15, 2024 By adminOur worship services at Generations of Chapin continue to be a welcome time together with our neighbors down the road. St. Jacob’s has several members residing at Generations and several who are on the Generations staff. Residents include Lucy and Stanley Slice, Shirley Nuottila, and Ramonia Lindler and they enjoy having members of their church family present for this time together. Many of the long time residents have also made this a regular part of their faith life, and several of the newest residents have found it to be a welcome time of prayer and worship.
St. Jacob’s offers worship with Holy Communion at Generations every other Sunday. Thank you to regular helpers Tommy Faulk and Angela Nuottila for your ongoing support and participation. Our Youth Hand Bell Choir has also come along to provide music. Of course, we would always enjoy having more members of our church family join us. Please plan to attend and share some time with those who have adopted St. Jacob’s as “their church.” Our worship opportunities for June are on Sundays, June 9 and June 23 at 1:00P.M.
VBS is Coming
Posted June 13, 2024 By adminLet’s meet at Breaker Rock Beach! VBS begins on Monday, June 24. Dinner will be served at 5:45 and we will enjoy some VBS beach time starting at 6:30 PM.
There will be classes for all ages as we hear God say – “Truth comes from me. My plan for you is even better.
Everyone sins and needs a Savior. Jesus is the only way to get to heaven.” You don’t want to miss the fun and fellowship. Mark your calendars now and join us June 24-27!
Pastoral Devotion for June – Be Content
Posted June 11, 2024 By adminRead 1 Timothy 6:6-10 Songwriter Harry Chapin spun a tale of a man named Mr. Tanner, a dry cleaner who was very good at his work. He was content with his chosen profession and loved his customers. Tanner was also a baritone who loved singing. Chapin said of Tanner, “He did not know how well he sang, it just made him whole.”
As the song goes, Tanner’s friends convinced him he should give up dry cleaning and pursue fame and glory. He would be able to leave the dry cleaning business, become famous and enjoy a life of great prosperity. Yet, it was not to be; his debut proved that, while talented, public performance was not his calling. Dejected, Tanner gave up singing and his life was never the same.
God blesses his people with many gifts and talents. Used for God’s purposes, our gifts and talents bring joy to others. Humbly sharing these for the sake of others glorifies our God through whom such gifts come. Of course, there is always the temptation to seek glory, fame and fortune for ourselves, especially when swayed by others.
Just as Jesus teaches there are people of the world who would lead us astray, so too Paul teaches us that we are to be content with all God’s provides. Worldly influences may tempt us to seek glory for ourselves, but loving God and using our gifts to his glory brings joy and makes us whole.
Prayer: Holy God, make us content with all you have provided, that it may be our joy to serve others. Amen.
Vacation Bible School
Posted May 22, 2024 By adminVBS, Breaker Rock Beach, is coming in June! Our dates have been set! They are Monday, June 24 through Thursday, June 27. A meal will be served at 5:45 pm and VBS will be from 6:30-8:00 pm. Classes for all ages! If you are interested in helping out with VBS, please contact Sherrie.
May Pastoral Devotion – The Second Day of the Week
Posted May 12, 2024 By adminRead Luke 24:36-53
The Easter narrative makes us fully aware of what happened on the first day of the week. Women went to Jesus’ tomb and found he was not dead; he was raised. The news spread throughout that first day of the week with Jesus appearing to his disciples and two people on the road to Emmaus. Easter changes lives, but for our world today, what are we to make of Easter on the second day of the week?
On Easter Sunday, churches were filled with worshipers. On the second day of the week, with the chorus of Jesus Christ is risen today!” fresh in its ears, the world returned to work. With images of the resurrection still vivid in the minds of believers, how long is it before doubt once again creeps back into the forefront?
Throughout the succeeding Sundays of the Easter season, the daily struggle of earthly life has returned in force. For so many, worry returns, grief remains, relationships are still broken, and death looms on the horizon. Living in the midst of brokenness, some forget that because of Easter, these things no longer have power over God’s people. In the face of such sin and death, we have the promise of life in God’s kingdom.
The events of the first day of the week set the tone for life in the face of death, forgiveness in the face of sin and certainty in the face of doubt. We are several weeks beyond our Easter Sunday celebration, but one thing remains true and certain: through his death and resurrection, Jesus conquered the powers that defy God. On the first day of the week, and everyday here after, God’s people are witnesses to these things. To quote an Easter hymn, “Christ is alive, let Christians sing!”
Holy God, as we worship you on the first day pf the week, fill our hearts with Easter joy all the days of our lives. Amen
From Your Pastor’s Heart
Posted May 9, 2024 By adminWhen the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4
On the day of Pentecost, the church celebrates God’s gift of the Holy Spirit. We also celebrate the birth of God’s Church. In our worship, our learning, and our serving, we see God’s Spirit in action. We feel the power of God’s love as the Spirit comes like the rush of a violent wind, stirring our hearts and minds to faithfulness. Such is the theme of Pentecost; it’s the power of God’s Spirit blowing through the lives of His people.
It isn’t about wearing your red dress or shirt to church on Pentecost Sunday. It’s about the mighty breath of the Holy Spirit, rearranging the furniture of our lives and filling us with all the confidence, strength, excitement, and assurance the disciples had in order to share the good news of God’s redemption.
Think about the world around you. Think about the things you have heard and seen. Think about all the times in your life when you thought you were at your wits end. Don’t’ you think the world needs to hear this good news of great joy? In so many ways and in so many instances, God makes his presence and power known in ways so clear that no matter what, people can know and understand His mercy and grace are real and that His love lasts forever.
This is exciting stuff folks. This is the stuff movies are made of…good movies!
The gospel of our Lord is the best news you are ever going to get in your lifetime. The times you first realized God’s grace is for you, that you have been rescued from the consequences of sin forever, well, these are as good as it gets.
When you are young, prom is a big moment. Some of us know kids who have recently gone to or will soon go to their first prom. Guess what, as good as prom is, God claiming you to be his child is better. When you get older, graduation comes with all its pomp and circumstance. Guess what, it can’t compare with all the glory of heaven. There are still bigger moments ahead in your lives. College, your first real job, engagement, marriage, the purchase of a home, and the birth of a child. You know what? All of these are blessings from a loving God, yet because of Christ Jesus, the best is still yet to come.
People of God, all these are wonderful events; they are milestone moments, times of great joy. But if these are the most important times in your life, you’ve missed the boat. None of these can even compare with the fact that through Christ Jesus, God has saved you from sin and death, made you holy in his sight and prepared for you a heavenly home. Nothing can compare with the fact that through Christ Jesus, God has saved your life for all time. That’s good news, that’s exciting.
At Pentecost, as we celebrate God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, let us pray that God stirs us into such faithfulness that we cannot help but tell others the good news of salvation through Christ. As we strive to follow the example of our Lord Jesus, may we continue to love others as we are loved, feed the hungry, care for the sick and minister to those who are least of all.
Come Holy Spirit, kindle in us the fire of your love!
Grace and peace,
Pastor David Nuottila
