January 2015

Newsletter St. Paul Lutheran Church

N4118 Cty Rd AB Luxemburg, WI 54217 Church Office: P: 920-845-2095 F: 920-845-9075

www.stpaullux.org

The mission of St. Paul

Evangelical Lutheran is

to strengthen and

support our members

in their Christian faith

through God’s Word,

the Sacraments,

education, prayer and

fellowship; thereby

preparing them to be

witnesses of the

Gospel in our

community and the

world, so that all who

believe shall receive

the gift of eternal life.

From the Heart of Your Shepherd

Mission Statement

And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him. Then opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” Matthew 2:11 December is a big month in the church. Large crowds come to celebrate Christmas. We are filled with joy at knowing that Jesus came down into this world that He might accomplish our salvation. We rejoice to hear the message of the Savior proclaimed to us by children in the children’s programs. It is quite appropriate to hear the message proclaimed to us by children since Christmas was all about the child Jesus. It’s an exciting time in the church year. But what about January? January often seems like a letdown when compared to the celebrations in December. That’s unfortunate because January also contains a very important event in the life of the church. If I would ask what the church celebrates on January 6, would you know? I suppose the verse at the top of this page might have given many of you a clue, if you didn’t already know. January 6 is the day the church celebrates Epiphany…or at least it used to be. Epiphany is the day when we focus on the wise men, or Magi as they were called, coming to see the Savior who had been born. Epiphany has fallen on hard times in the church today. I suppose part of the reason is because Epiphany doesn’t fall on the same day every year. You don’t see too many churches, including ours, that have special Epiphany services. Unless Epiphany falls on a Sunday, we really just don’t hear much about it. Why does that matter? Well, Epiphany marks something very important for us as God’s people. Epiphany simply means manifestation or revealing. This was God revealing the gift of the Savior. We love the Epiphany story of the wise men following the star from afar and finding the child (even though we frequently lump it together with Christmas when they were two very distinct events in the Bible). We like the story of the wise men bringing their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh (even though we aren’t quite sure what frankincense and myrrh might be). Epiphany used to be referred to as the “Gentile Christmas.” You see what Epiphany really shows us is that this gift of a Savior was for all people. The wise men should not have been there by the standard of the day. They were not considered to be a part of the chosen people (regardless of how many of them there were-tradition tells us three but we don’t know that for sure). They were considered to be outsiders. Epiphany was God’s way of showing us that the gift of the Savior was for all people. What God was saying is that Jesus came that all people might be saved through faith in Him. We see that the wise men were moved to worship Christ and bring Him their gifts. God continues to reveal Jesus to us through Word and Sacrament. We too worship Him and bring Him our gifts. In His service, Pastor Daniel Olson

St. Paul Lutheran School News Excellence in Christ Centered Education for now and eternity

Registration for the 2014-2015 School Year: Registration for the 2014-2015 school year is open. Please spread the word about our great school. St. Paul Lutheran School provides a wonderful opportunity for children to learn in a Christian environment. Our students not only receive an excellent academic education, but they also receive an excellent religious education. Our classes begin each day with instruction in God’s Word and God’s Word permeates every aspect of school life. Our chapel services teach the students the liturgy and hymnody that are used in church so that their worship life is greatly enhanced. Students are given the comfort of knowing that God is with them at all times and nurtured in Christ’s love. St. Paul Lutheran School not only prepares students for their future in this world but it focuses on preparing them for eternity. If you have any questions, you can contact Pastor Olson. Pastor Faulkner’s Visit: Pastor Faulkner visited the students on December 8 and led chapel. He talked to the students about the work that he will be doing as a missionary to Uruguay. Pastor Faulkner was the mission project that the student’s chapel offerings supported for the 2nd quarter. The students are looking forward to having someone from Camp Luther lead chapel on January 19. Toys for Tots: The students of St. Paul purchased over $800 in gifts for Toys for Tots. Sheriff Matt Joske came to pick up the toys and visit with the students. National Lutheran Schools Week: National Lutheran Schools Week will be celebrated the week of January 25-30. The week will begin with the students singing in church on Sunday, January 25th and will have many exciting events throughout the week for the students, including a different dress up theme each day. Open House: As part of our National Lutheran Schools Week celebration, we will have an open house following the worship service on January 25. The school will be open to anyone interested in viewing the classrooms. The students will also have their Social Studies projects on display, and there will be a lunch available for purchase. This is a great opportunity to learn what is going on in the school and show support for our students. Grandparent Breakfast: There will be a grandparent breakfast on January 27 at 8:30 as part of the National Lutheran Schools Week celebration. End of the 2nd Quarter: The 2nd quarter ends on January 22nd. Chapel Offerings: The chapel offerings for the 3rd quarter will be directed to Freedom House in Green Bay.

4K: Whoooo's Wondering What's Happening in 4K?

December was a very exciting month for our class. We were busy working hard on preparing for our Christmas program.

We even sang a song all by ourselves! We also enjoyed decorating our classroom with a Christmas tree and handmade

ornaments. While learning about patterns, we made a huge paper chain that hangs from our ceiling. Of course we made it

in red and green! The most exciting part about the month of December for us was preparing for the birth of Jesus. Each

day, Mrs. Pahnke would do a devotion with us and we would add another piece to our nativity scene we built on our

bulletin board. We also talked about the advent wreath and Ms. Tiffany put a giant one out in the hallway. Lastly, right

before Christmas break we celebrated with our 5th-8th grade B.E.A.R Buddies by having a birthday party for Jesus. We

hope all of you had as fun much as we did preparing for our Savior's birth!

5K: December was filled with all the excitement of getting ready and celebrating the birth of Jesus. We got ready for our

Christmas service, we shopped for Toys for Tots at Shopko, we made Christmas tree ornaments, Christmas crafts, and gifts

for our parents. We did our regular academics also.....graphing, money, learning about freedom, sight words, sentence

structure, learning about the body. But our main focus this month and really our focus always is on the birth of Jesus

Christ and that he came to save us from our sins!

1st and 2nd grade: Happy New Year from 1st and 2nd Grade!! What a wonderful month it has been! We learned that

Advent is the preparation and waiting for our Savior's birth! We lit our Advent wreath every day during devotions as we

heard all about our coming King. We also learned to play handbells! We played "Little Children Can You Tell" for our

Christmas program. Science has been full of fun labs this month. We discovered that to separate a solution the liquid must

be evaporated. In testing this we created some beautiful salt crystals! Our class also tested our hands at baking! We made

and decorated our very own cupcakes and with the characters in our story we had a cupcake party! As we head into the

month of January we look forward to the celebration of Lutheran Schools Week. Watch the calendar so you can join us for

the fun events!

3rd

, 4th

, and 5th

Grade: December was a busy but enjoyable month in 3rd

, 4th, and 5

th grade. The students led an Advent

chapel service early in the month and spent time rehearing for the Christmas program. They did a wonderful job on both!

We also read a bit about the history of the Christmas tree and what reminders it can give us of the true meaning of

Christmas (i.e. The green to symbolize everlasting life, the star leading the way to the Savior, and more.) The 3rd

-4th

graders began a science unit on energy. We looked at a burning match to see how energy can change to different forms

including heat and light. We also did an activity to compare the temperature of sand which had been sitting in a container

at room temperature versus sand which was shaken repeatedly, causing a rise in temperature as heat was given off. The 5th

graders spent December learning about constellations and the Solar System. God's vast universe is truly amazing! They

used an “Earth ruler” to determine the diameters of the other planets compared to that of the Earth’s size. To finish off our

unit on the Solar System, they created a movie maker project on a planet.

6th

, 7th

, and 8th

Grade: December has been a very busy month. The students worked hard learning songs and parts for the

Christmas service, while continuing to focus on their studies.

We explored volcanoes and tested the viscosity of liquids in Science. This completed our Einstein Kit for the year. It was

fun to see their excitement with this unit.

The 7th and 8

th graders learned about poetry and had the chance to create their own poems. They wrote and published

twelve different poems. We enjoyed listening to them. Our students are very creative!

In celebration of ending our unit on the Revolutionary War, we made Firecake. Firecake was given to the Patriot soldiers

for food when the rations were very low. Needless to say, the students learned an appreciation for the delicious food and

blessings God has given us.

So far we have collected 160 books for Pastor Faulkner’s mission trip to Uruguay.

Toys for Tots

5K Preview Day

St. Paul Lutheran is hosting a 5K Preview Day for anyone who might be interested in attending 5K next year.

Preview Day will be held on Friday, February 6th 8:00-11:20am. St. Paul Lutheran is a great place for children

who want spiritual development, strong academics, and character building in a supportive nurturing environment.

Preview Day will give the child some experiences of parts of a normal 5K day. Parents are welcome to join in

Preview Day for a few minutes or for the entire morning. If there are any questions, please call Sherry Byrne at

920-845-2095.

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St. Paul Lutheran Endowment Fund

The endowment fund receives financial gifts and invests them. The principal is kept intact and the interest is used. It is a gift that keeps on giving.

Question: How can life insurance be used to benefit the church? Answer: You may give an existing or a new life insurance contract on your life to the church, making the church the owner and the beneficiary of the contract. At your death, the church will receive the death benefit. If you give the church a new insurance contract, you can treat the amount of the annual premiums you pay to keep the insurance in force as a charitable contribution deduction for income tax reporting purposes. If you give the church an existing contract, you can claim a charitable contribution deduction based on the lesser of:

The cash value of the insurance contract, or

The aggregate amount of the paid premiums Alternatively, you can remain the owner of the insurance contract, but name the church as primary beneficiary. Although you will not receive a charitable contribution deduction for income tax reporting purposes, your estate will be entitled to a deduction for the amount of the death benefit. Endowment brochures and envelopes are available in the narthex. To obtain the Endowment Bylaws or if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact an Endowment Committee Board Member:

Kevin Dahlke 536-0274, Jean Doell 845-5162, Steve Doell 471-7580, Lon Fager 360-6061, Paul Zeitler 845-2500

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Christian Service Guild News: Quilting: Our quilting group will start getting together Wednesday, January 7, 2015 in the church meeting room from 9:30am to 3pm. If you have any questions, please contact Faye Dahlke or Dianne Zeitler. Holiday party: January 3rd at 1pm at Rosati’s in Green Bay.

Bowling and Pizza will be at the Rendezvous on Saturday, January 17th at 3:00. Please RSVP if

you are going to try and make it. If we are unable to have any interested bowlers, the event will

be canceled. Please let Sherry Byrne know if you will be attending, text her at 920-606-2000.

Open Gym

Many are asking about open gym. It will be starting soon. I am looking in to the best day and

time. Open gym usually runs about a hour and a half. We play volleyball for 45 minutes and

basketball for 45 minutes. Please watch the bulletin and Facebook for the dates of Open Gym.

Any questions, please contact Sherry Byrne @920-606-2000.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Thank You! The Sunday School students and teachers would like to the thank the School

Board for the gift of chocolate and the pin.

We would also like to thank Jean Doell for helping with the music for the

Christmas program. We couldn’t do it without you!

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LUTHERANS FOR LIFE SUNDAY PORKIE PANCAKE BRUNCH

When: January 18, 2015 Where: St. Paul Lutheran Auditorium – Montpelier By Lakeshore Lutherans for Life Serving Times: 9:30am – Noon Freewill Offering

PENNIES FOR LIFE COLLECTION This is a way to give to the Lord and Lutherans for Life. There will be a basket located in the narthex on Life Sunday and the following week, to place any donations. The suggested donation is to give one penny for each year of life the Lord has granted you. Thank you and God bless!

BABY CLOTHES DRIVE

New and used baby clothes will also be collected on Life Sunday. These items will be given to area homes for unwed mothers who choose life instead of abortion.

(This was inadvertently left out of December’ s newsletter.)

Stewardship News & Views

CHRISTMAS ---- WHAT A JOYFUL SEASON “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us”(John 1:14). God became man; he took on human flesh, so that men would once again dwell with God. Our Savior, Jesus Christ was born in a manger. He was born so that we would not die, and He died for us so that we would live in Him. He took upon Himself –on that cross—everything that rightfully belongs to us—sin and death—and in exchange He gave us everything that rightfully belongs to Him—righteousness and life. This is what we celebrate in Advent and Christmas. We celebrate the coming of our Lord to save us from sin, death, and hell. We celebrate that God in Christ cared for us in body and soul, for He came not only to reconcile us to the Father by taking away our sin, but also to redeem us from death and hell so that we would live with Him in His kingdom, which has no end. “And this will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”Truly, as St. Paul said, He who was rich for our sakes became poor, for behold the King who must be laid in a manger, no crib for His bed! There in the manger is the very picture of self-giving generosity. What a wonderful gift! Giving to the church is a responsibility given to those who are the church. In giving to the church, we participate in God’s work here in time for all eternity. Let us, then, in this most joyous season of the church year, dwell not on the struggles in giving, but rather on the joy set before us in caring for body and soul as God in Christ has done for us. On behalf of the stewardship committee---we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

Lon Fager, Paul Janda, Sue Heim

Sunday School Christmas Program Day School Christmas Program

Holy Humor One Sunday morning, the pastor noticed little Alex standing in the foyer of the church staring up at a large plaque. It was covered with names and small American flags mounted on either sided of it. The six-year old had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside the little boy, and said quietly, "Good morning Alex." "Good morning Pastor," he replied, still focused on the plaque. The little boy asked, "Pastor what is this?" The Pastor said, "Well son, it's a memorial to all the young men and women who died in the service." Soberly, they just stood together, staring at the large plaque. Finally, little Alex's voice, barely audible and trembling with fear asked, "Which service, the 8:30 or the 10:45?"

Pastor & Principal: Rev. Dr. Daniel Olson: pastorolson@stpaullux.org 4K Teacher: Tiffany Dart: tdart@stpaullux.org 5K Teacher: Sherry Byrne: sbyrne@stpaullux. org 1st & 2nd Grade: Heidi Pahnke: hpahnke@stpaullux.org 3rd & 4th Grade: Ruth Bernau: rbernau@stpaullux.org 6th, 7th, & 8th Grade: Sarah Ludwig: sludwig@stpaullux.org Secretary: Jenny Tenor: jtenor@stpaullux.org Newsletter: Angie Peterson: apeterson0727@yahoo.com Funerals: Tina Peterson – 920-863-5137 Arlene Gruetzmacher –920-845-5048 Prayer Chain: Tina Peterson –920-863-5137 DVD’s are available of the church service. Call the church office at 920-845-2095 and one of our volunteers will deliver it to you. Need a ride to church? Please notify the church office for a ride to and from church services. Newsletter Deadline: the 21st of the month. Join us on Facebook: Search for St. Paul Lutheran Church and School and LIKE us today!

Faculty/Staff Contact Info