Installation of Pastor Ken Mitschke

Recently, our congregation called Pastor Ken to serve as our Pastor. He had previously served as a mission planter through a call from the Texas District. This Sunday, Pastor Ken and the people of Word of Life Fellowship will commit themselves to a partnership to join God in building a bigger heaven and better lives. The pastor is called to mend, equip and prepare the saints. The saints are called to the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ (see Ephesians 4:11-12). Pastor Ken will be installed as our pastor this Sunday, January 17 at 10:45 a.m. 101 Pecan Drive, in Schertz [map and directions].

Rev. Ken Hennings, President of the Texas District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, will be our guest proclaimer for worship. He will share the Message and perform the Rite of Installation. To continue our celebration, we’ll enjoy a special meal together after worship. Make plans to stay after worship!

Building a Bigger Heaven in Brazil

In our prayers this week, we’re lifting up missionary pastor Otavio Schlender and the mission of Esperanca as they reach out to people in Eunapolis, Brazil and beyond. We support their work through the gift of 10% of our Sunday morning offerings to the Brazil Mission Society. To find out more, visit www.BrazilMissionSociety.com

Make Daily Devotions a Habit in 2010

Check the Info Table at worship this Sunday for your family’s copy of Portals of Prayer. Each daily devotion in this booklet features a Bible reading, meditation and prayer in an easy-to-read format. Portals of Prayer is great for personal devotions, and these timeless devotions can be used to open meetings or launch Bible studies.

New!
God Sightings

Tired of relegating God to just one day a week? Want to learn how to experience God every day of your life? Then God Sightings is for you! Join MyGodSightings.com. This vibrant, online community makes it easy for you to experience the power of God’s Word. You’ll read God Sightings: The Complete One Year Bible, grapple with questions in the companion guide, be encouraged by posts in the online forum and share how God is working in your life. To join, go to www.MyGodSightings.com and click on “Sign up now.” Once you have created your profile, use the search box in the upper, right hand corner to search for the “Word of Life Fellowship” group. Click on the button to join our group! It’s free!

Sanctity of Human Life

God’s Word compels us to speak and act on behalf of those who are vulnerable and defenseless. Our society has placed these individuals at risk through legalized abortion-on-demand and the growing threat to the lives of others through legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia. On Sunday, January 24, we will celebrate God’s gift of life. We’ll be collecting diapers and other baby items to give to the Options for Women center in New Braunfels. Bring your donations with you to worship the next few Sundays and share a tangible expression of Jesus’ love. If you would rather make a single donation to the Center, use the “Life Sunday” envelopes. Make your check payable to Word of Life and note “Pregnancy Care Center” in the memo line.

Relief for Haiti

As news of what is being called the largest earthquake to hit Haiti in more than 200 years reached LCMS World Relief and Human Care, the Synod's mercy arm began preparing to reach out in the Caribbean nation with much needed assistance and working in cooperation with Lutheran partners. Your donation will help the effort already ongoing in this devastated country. Please make your check payable to Word of Life and write “Haiti relief” in the memo field or place your cash donation in one of the “disaster relief” envelopes available by the offering box.

If you are a member of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Thrivent will match $1 for every $2 you donate, up to $1 million. To qualify for these matching funds, Thrivent members must make their donation at Thrivent.com/helpinghaiti or by calling 800-236-3736 between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. When prompted, say "directory" and enter ext. 83003.

For updates on the work World Relief is doing, please go to the LCMS World Relief and Human Care website at: http://www.lcms.org/ca/worldrelief/.

More Matching Funds

Recently, the Word of Life Student Ministry received $820 in matching funds from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans is a faith-based, not-for-profit membership organization nearly 2.6 million members strong. They're a Fortune 500 financial services organization with the strength of more than $61 billion in assets under management. They offer financial products and membership activities to Lutherans and provide resources such as the above matching funds to Lutheran organizations. For more information contact our very own Bill Krueger, 734-8007 or go to www.thrivent.com/aboutus/.

Website TEAM

It’s time for a review of the Word of Life website. We need your input on how to update, organize and streamline our web presence. We’re looking for 3 – 5 volunteers to help with this project. You DO NOT have to be a “web expert” to help. We need input from all kinds: young, old; men, women; tech phobic, computer nerd. To volunteer, please contact Greg Peterson, 945-7952 or gpete@sbcglobal.net.

When does $24,000 = $48,000?

Now! For every dollar you give to our Building Fund until the end of 2010, the Texas District LCMS has generously offered to match it up to $100,000. What a great way to double the impact of your contribution! As a bonus your donation will receive a high rate of return in the coming year through our Texas CEF Building Fund which is currently paying 2.53% apy. Just write "Building Fund" in the memo line of your check or place your gift in a Ministry Facility Fund envelope.

Pastor's Cat Funny

Dwight Nelson recently told a true story about the pastor of his church. The pastor had a kitten that climbed up a tree in his backyard and then was afraid to come down. The pastor coaxed, offered warm milk, etc.

The kitty would not come down. The tree was not sturdy enough to climb, so the pastor decided that if he tied a rope to his car and drove away so that the tree bent down, he could then reach up and get the kitten.

That's what he did, all the while checking his progress in the car. He then figured if he went just a little bit further, the tree would be bent sufficiently for him to reach the kitten. But as he moved the car a little further forward .. the rope broke.

The tree went "BOING!" and the kitten instantly sailed through the air ... out of sight.

The pastor felt terrible. He walked all over the neighborhood asking people if they'd seen a little kitten. No. Nobody had seen a stray kitten. So he prayed, "Lord, I just commit this kitten to your keeping," and went on about his business.

A few days later he was at the grocery store, and met one of his church members. He happened to look into her shopping cart and was amazed to see cat food. This woman was a cat hater and everyone knew it, so he asked her, "Why are you buying cat food when you hate cats so much?"

She replied, "You won't believe this," and then told him how her little girl had been begging her for a cat, but she kept refusing. Then a few days before, the child had begged again, so the Mom finally told her little girl, "Well, if God gives you a cat, I'll let you keep it."

She told the pastor, "I watched my child go out in the yard, get on her knees, and ask God for a cat. And really, Pastor, you won't believe this, but I saw it with my own eyes. A kitten suddenly came flying out of the blue sky, with its paws outspread, and landed right in front of her."

Never underestimate the Power of God and His unique sense of humor.

Just a Thought

A brief, simple, but expressive eulogy was pronounce by Martin Luther upon a pastor at Zwickau in 1522 named Nicholas Haussmann: "What we preach, he lived."

We're building a bigger heaven and better lives!