There are many great days we celebrate in our world. The United States has a great day celebrated on July 4, every year. Of course this is the day that we celebrate the beginning of our country. Other days of importance include November 11; it is now called Veteran’s Day it was once called Armistice Day. This was the day Germany and the Allies signed the armistice and thus ended the First World War.

Another important day is May 8. This was the day Germany signed its unconditional surrender thus ending the Second World War in Europe. This is also known as V-E Day, Victory in Europe.

Then there is V-J Day, Victory in Japan. This is either August 14 in the US, or August 15 in Japan because of time zone differences. This was the day the Japanese government announced their surrender thus ending the Second World War.

There are some other days that you may consider important, Martin Luther King Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, and Thanksgiving.

The church has its special days also; Christmas Day is when we celebrate the birth of our Savior in the flesh who has come down from heaven for us. We also celebrate Pentecost Day when the Holy Spirit came upon his disciples and began the church that would preach Christ crucified. We also have Epiphany where Jesus takes three of his disciples and goes up on the mount. There is Ascension Thursday when we celebrate our Lord, Jesus Christ returning to his Father.

We also have Ash Wednesday which reminds us of our need for a Savior. This Day coupled with Lent help us to focus on our need for forgiveness that only comes through Christ and his suffering on the cross.

And then we have one week that brings us thee great days in Christianity. First we have Maundy-Thursday. This is the day of the new mandate to receive Holy Communion. This Jesus gives us when he has the Passover meal with his disciples in the celebration in the upper room.

The next day is Good Friday and what a good day it is. Jesus fulfills his mission by taking up our sins and dying on the cross. We remember this day the importance of this death. It is by his death and his death only that we are forgiven by the Father.

And then we get Easter. This is a great day in that we see that death could not hold Jesus. He rose from the dead! Our hope which had seemed been dashed to pieces is now lifted back up again, raised up, like Jesus was raised from the dead if you will.

This day is by far greater than any great day of our nation. This is the day that we know that nothing, nothing at all, can keep us from God. And we can live in that hope no matter what is going on in our lives. We need not despair of the world. We come back to the resurrection of Jesus in our moments of despair. We see our hope and we get the peace that only God can give. This peace only comes through Jesus.

All of these days whether they are American holidays or church days are for us to remember. And the church’s great days are far more important than our nation’s great days. The great church days are so we can remember what God has done for us through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Let us all celebrate this Great Day of Easter and remember God’s work for us in Christ. Come and celebrate with your family. Come and be fed by your Lord the forgiveness you need.

Come and proclaim with the rest of us, Alleluia! He is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The peace of Jesus be with you all,

Pastor Bob

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It’s only January and I am talking about Easter already. We will be on a journey. We are journeying with Jesus to the cross and along the way we see the need for someone else to save us for we cannot save ourselves. This Lenten Season we will hear the words of Christ while he is on the cross and a few more after his burial.

Ash Wednesday is February 17th this year. The ashes remind us that our sin had left us forsaken by God. We hear Jesus say these words Matthew 27:46b “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” These words speak to the panic we would feel if God had abandoned us. We would have been forsaken.

Our next words are from Luke 23:28b “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.” Our disobedience of God causes us a great lament. We cry for our savior who tells us not to cry for him he is going to the cross of the Father’s will and his will.

And then we will hear some comforting words. Luke 23:34a And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them.” The one we were crying over is forgiving us. We, who should be in his place, not him in ours, are not paying the consequences of our defiance against God. His suffering and death appease the Father and we are forgiven.

We hear of the trust the Son has in his Father and the trust we have in faith in the Father. Luke 23:46a Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” This trust is above all trust. He knows his Father will sustain him even though things are bad, he is going to die. The Father has promised him life and he will rise again.

And we hear of even more trust. John 19:26-27a When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” Jesus entrusts the care of his Mother to his disciple. He entrusts the church, his bride, our mother, with his gospel message and the people of the church to take care of her. He trusts us with his message of the gospel.

And then we will hear about the promise of life eternal. Luke 23:43a And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” What an awesome promise! In spite of who we are God forgives us for the sake of his Son. He restores Paradise to us.

On Maundy-Thursday we will then hear Jesus ask for nourishment with only two words. John 19:28b “I thirst.” When we sin, we thirst of the one thing we need day-to-day. We thirst for forgiveness. We want to know that we are forgiven. We need to know that we are forgiven. And we will partake of the Holy Supper and be forgiven by the eating and drinking in fellowship with one another and all Christians that day.

On Good Friday we will hear Jesus claim that the job entrusted to him is done. John 19:30 “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. God’s wrath is finally appeased. We no longer need despair. God’s wrath over our sin is finished.

And then he tells us after he has risen from the dead. John 20:19b, 20b, 26b “Peace be with you.” We have peace now. We know that our Lord who was crucified has risen from the dead. Three times we hear these words of peace in John’s Gospel, chapter 20. This emphasizes the fact that we are at peace with the Father, with God. The Son has accomplished his task. The Son has been raised back up.

Come and journey with us to the cross. Hear the Words of God for you, Words that bring comfort and peace, Words of love and care.

Your Servant in Christ,

Pastor Bob

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We move into 2010, a new year and a new beginning. 2009 was not the best of years for most people. Unemployment is at an all time high of about 10% across the US. And because of that purse strings are being tightened in order to be able to afford the essential things, like food, clothing and shelter. I think there are quite a few people who will be happy to say goodbye to 2009. In the movie “The Lion King” Pumbaa said, “You have to put your behind in the past.” I think with all the food I have been eating over the holidays I would like to leave my behind and also my stomach in the past. Pumbaa was actually quoting Timon who said, “You have to put your past behind you.”

Isn’t that what we need to do? Put our past behind us. Paul told the Philippians in his letter to forget the past. Philippians 3:13-14 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Isn’t that what God wants for us? Here is the way it should work. I commit a sin. I in faith confess that sin to God acknowledging that I did it. And then I truly repent of my sin. I then know the forgiveness from God. It is in the cross of Christ. And then I forget it, I strain on. For what? I strain for the prize and upward call of Christ Jesus.

Mind you it is easy for us to think that we can obtain perfection. Sometimes that is what our New Year’s resolutions are about. We need to learn from our failures of the past and then forget them and move on.

What have I learned? I have learned that I need to have a vision in mind of where Saint Paul Lutheran Church is going. I need to paint that picture so that all of us know where we are going. And that picture helps us to know when we get there because we have seen the picture of the way it will look.

And so we need to make plans about the future. What changes do we make this year if any? What new things can we try? How do we become better Disciples of Christ? How do we help grow new disciples with God’s help? These are only a handful of the questions that we need to ask. And the others are important too. Do you have any ideas that you would like to submit to the church? Please bring them along.

There is so much that we need to do. Enjoy the New Year. Forget about the old one. Come and hear the most important words you will ever hear from God. Yes they are ‘I love you.’ Yes they are ‘I forgive you.’ And let us work so that we can move into the future letting the world know these words of God for most of them do not.

And whether you ‘put your behind in the past’ or put your past behind you, always remember God’s love for you through Christ Jesus.

A Blessed New you all,

Pastor Bob

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The “Happy Holiday” season is here that is if you have been listening to the radio or watching TV. I even heard on the news that if you want to buy the most popular games or toys for your children this Christmas and you have not already ordered it; you are already too late to get the item in time for Christmas. Of course this speaks to the commercialism of the holidays.

I labeled the season the “Happy Holiday” season on purpose. It is a holiday for the US. It is also Christmas time in the church. And for those of us who start shopping on “Black Friday” we want Christmas tunes almost every day. We want to get in the mood for Christmas. If we aren’t in the mood it seems like Christmas will not be as special as it really should be to the world as it is already to us. We want the carols to be sung in and outside of the church.

This year the Advent series is going to be about 1) Waiting 2) Preparing and 3) Arriving. (See the schedule in this newsletter for days and times.) We are waiting for Christ to come into the world to save it in our celebration of his birth on Dec 25. We are also waiting for him to come again. We are preparing for his coming. The preparation that we are doing for Dec 25 is the shopping for gifts, food, and whatever else we feel will make the celebration meaningful to us. We should always be preparing for Jesus second coming. And then the day arrives. We celebrate with family and loved ones. We are grateful for our Savior who came and died for us. We are grateful that he will come again.

In the meantime we listen to carols. These carols are full of meaning for us. I have included here a little information form “Portraits of Christmas” by Kremer Publishing (italics below) about a hymn writer and what was being taught in her hymns.

Many of the hymns enjoyed by adults today were originally intended for children. That was the case for the popular Christmas anthem “Once in Royal David’s City.” Mrs. Alexander was a devoted Sunday school teacher in the mid-1800s. One day she noticed a student struggling with the concept of the Apostles’ Creed, which gave her a brilliant idea: Why not write songs that will explain the various parts of the Creed? This was the beginning of three very famous songs that we still enjoy today.

Mrs. Alexander wrote a beautiful song titled “All Things Bright and Beautiful, All Creatures Great and Small” that was based on the Apostles’ Creed phrase “maker of heaven and earth.” She then wrote the popular Christmas carol “Once in Royal David’s City” based on the Creed’s statement that Jesus was “conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary.” And it was with the phrase “[Jesus] suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried…,” that became the wonderful Lenten hymn, “There Is a Green Hill Far Away.” Although these three hymns are still her best-known songs, Cecil Alexander has been credited with writing over four hundred other hymns. Most of her songs were written especially for children. One great exception is the stirring hymn, “Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult.”

“ONCE IN ROYAL DAVID’S CITY” is a favorite of my former Pastor. It also has become a favorite of mine. What a wonderful gift this woman gave us in helping learn God’s word through words and music. Let us all listen not only to the music but also to the words in all of the carols we hear. Let us all be reminded of Jesus first coming and His second coming that we are waiting for, preparing for and cannot wait for Him to arrive.

A Blessed Christmas to you all,

Pastor Bob

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Luke 24:46-47 and [Jesus] said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

Here we have the words of Jesus calling us to witness to his death and resurrection. And he takes it even further - he tells us that repentance and forgiveness are to be proclaimed to every nation. We are to bring the gospel of forgiveness to those who need to be forgiven. A person who comes to us knowing their sin and desiring forgiveness needs to hear that Jesus' death means forgiveness of sins for them.

When a person is aware of the hurt he has done to someone and feels the guilt for that hurt, this is the first part of repentance. He is sorry for his sins. He wants to be forgiven. This is the absolution part. And then he never does that hurtful thing again with the help of the Holy Spirit. This the second part of repentance. The same goes for us when someone has hurt us, and we know they truly are guilty and know of their guilt. We are to proclaim the forgiveness of sins to them in Jesus Christ.

In today's world it seems we need this now more than ever. Rather than tell the people who don't go to church that they are heathens, and if they continue their lives in the way they are they are going to hell, why not tell them of the forgiveness of sins? If we are going to add a whole bunch of rules, then why would they want to part of the church? They have rules in the world. We have so many laws that we have obey today in the world that most of us don't what they are.

If, on the other hand, we proclaim forgiveness of sins, they are more likely to want to be in church. Here is an example. Have you ever been in the position to apologize (ask for forgiveness) to someone? And have you ever hurt them so badly that you felt they would never forgive you because of what you did? And yet when you said, "I'm sorry", they responded with a big hug or handshake and the words, "It's OK"? Doesn't that amaze you? Doesn't that make you realize just what this person has given you? They have give you love.

And that's what God did for us also. He loves us. He sent his Son to die for all of the hurts that gone on in the world. His Son rose from death to new life. And this is a life God wants for us, a life that lives in love and forgiveness, and a life that is sustained by Him.

So, a disciple is a person who proclaims forgiveness to those who have the guilt of the sins laid on them. What an awesome way to serve the Lord!

Your Servant in Christ,

Pastor Bob

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So here we are in June already. The kids are soon to be out of school for the summer. I imagine that those who will be taking vacations this summer have already planned them. My summer already has a few things planned out for me. On June 25-26 I will be attending the Indiana District Conference. There will be a lot of discussion on important issues facing the church today.

On June 29 through July 2 we will have our VBS. This is a great opportunity to reach out to the community and teach them about Jesus Christ and what he has done for them. The church will be bustling with children and adults excited about learning about Jesus and his salvation. It's exciting to me because of the blessings that get poured forth in this event. If you are one of the children you will be blessed. It will be four days of Wonder; Mighty Wonder; Water Wonder; Growing Wonder; Risen Wonder.

If you are one of the teachers, leaders, servants, etc. you will be blessed to see these children in their wonder and awe of the work of Jesus.

On July 8 we will have our annual Blueberry Social. If you like blueberries this is the event that you should attend. It's not all blueberries though. I have seen other desserts (cherry pie and cream pies to name a couple) at the social. This is a time to come and fellowship with the community. It is a time to share the Gospel message with those in the community.

The next event is the Porkfest on August 22. Our youth will again run a booth. They will be raising funds for the Youth to go to events like Youth Gatherings, servant events, etc. They also raise funds to provide a speaker to the youth. One event we had in the past was The Dating Game about the complications of teen dating. Porkfest is also a chance to be among the people of Kouts and other areas and talk to them about God's saving grace through Christ.

I would also like to encourage the Youth to go on a servant event abroad. LAMP = Lutheran Association of Missionary Pilots has summer events up in Alaska where a church can go and teach VBS to the Inupiag (Eskimoes). It is a five day VBS with a couple days in Fairbanks and the commuter airline trip to the reservation. This again is work for the Lord, and I know that there can be some great blessings in serving other while serving our Lord, Jesus Christ.

As you can see there are many things going on, and things in the planning stages that need our attention. We also need to plan to hear God's Word and learn God's Word. Our Sunday Bible Study of the Gospel of Saint John will continue through the summer. We may even finish it and start a new one! Why not come and hear the word of God?

Yet we also need to come and hear about and along with eat and drink of his forgiveness. Come to church during the summer and be forgiven. Find a Lutheran church when you are on vacation and attend there. Listen to what God tells us in the letter to the Hebrews: Hebrews 10:24-25 And let is consider how to stir up one another to good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Let us all meet together in the love of Christ everywhere we go.

In the Love of Christ,

Pastor Bob

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How many times have you watched your favorite movie? Television show? How many times have you read your favorite story? Or even repeated it to others? I don’t think there are enough times that we can hear or see our favorite things or even tell them to others.

Our Lenten journey will end this month of April. We have seen Jesus overcome temptation for us. We have seen him correct our view on who he is and by him we now know who we are. We have seen him clean up the temple. We learn that he does not come to condemn the world but to save it. And finally we will see that our identity is not in what we think is important but that it is in the service of Christ to us, his coming to be a ransom for all.

Our Lenten journey will come to its high point when Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday with shouts of Hosannas to him. The shouts will change to jeers quickly and his life will be brought to an end. On Maundy-Thursday he will sit with his disciples and eat with them the Last Supper. He will say, “Take eat, this is my body, take drink this is my blood.” And thus Holy Communion for us and his presence evermore will be ours. He gives freely of himself and serves us to this day with his body and blood for forgiveness. And then comes Good Friday. The worst day in the history of the world for on it Jesus dies. And yet it is also the greatest day because on it your sin and the sin of the entire world were forgiven.

Then comes Easter Morning. The women are sad because Jesus has died. And they go to the tomb. They expect to find a stone in front of the tomb and a dead body. But instead they find the tomb empty. They do not know where Jesus is, for he is gone, (this is there thinking). He appears to Mary Magdalene and says her name. She cries with out with delight. He directs her to go back to the disciples to say to them, 'He is risen!'

And Jesus did more than that for he walked with them for forty days after his resurrection. And before he left he reminded them that they were to tell the world everything that he had taught them. Mark 16:15-16 And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. He went back to heaven lifted up before the eyes of the Apostles. The angels came and told the apostles that as he promised he would return. And first from the apostles throughout history the story of Jesus life, death, resurrection and ascension has been told ever since. And the story never changes. It is the same year-end and year out. This story is the greatest story every told. It is true and real story. It actually happened many years ago.

Children love to watch the same movie over and over again. They love to have the same stories read to them over and over again. I was told that this is because it gives them stability in life. It is something that never changes. Mom and dad might change but the movie or the story stays the same. It always ends the same.

It is the same with the Easter Story. It is the same year in and year out. Some may consider this boring. And yet this gives us children of God stability. It is what we all need to hear. Form the ones who only attend on Christmas, Easter, Baptism (our own) and our own funeral to the ones who are at every service the church offers and everyone in between. The death and resurrection of Jesus gives us stability in life. It comes from God the Father, by the Son, and through the Holy Spirit.

We rejoice that the story stays the same for by it we know we are forgiven and that our Redeemer Lives. This Easter let’s remember the story of Jesus when we proclaim to one and all: ALLELUIA! HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! ALLELUIA!

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Hauter

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Who are we? What is our purpose in Kouts, IN or wherever we live? How do we serve our communities where we live? These are questions that we want to start asking ourselves.

Why? Because we need to know why we were here, why we are here now, and where are we going, and finally what will we look like when we get there. You see, as a church we do something unique in Kouts. We do it better than any other church, and we need to find out what that is. We need to know so that we can see the future and then get there.

There are many factors that tell us what we are to be about for the Kingdom of Grace, the church, wherever we are. Come by my office and tell me the history of Saint Paul Lutheran Church. Or don't be surprised when I ask you to join me for lunch or dinner. This can be a great opportunity for you to tell me your history at Saint Paul. You can answer questions like:

• Why do you come to Saint Paul over any other church in this area?
• What are the positive things of Saint Paul?
• Is there anything you would like Saint Paul to do?
• Do we need to be clearer on what we are doing?

These are just a few questions. I can come up with many more. We have a future that has been laid out for us. Jesus has put us all in Saint Paul Lutheran church for a purpose. We all have gifts that serve that purpose. We are to be his hands in this community and to whomever we come into contact with in some way, shape, or form. What is the will of the Lord for us in this world? Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. We are to be his witnesses to the end of the earth. We are to tell the world of Christ.

In the next few months or more we are going to find out what we do best that makes a witness about Jesus Christ in our church to the world. And then we are going to build on that to show us a vision of the future. That vision will be what we look like when we arrive there. We will be constantly looking at ourselves and possibly adjusting our vision in order to achieve the future vision.

Let us work together to bring Jesus Christ to the people so that they may know their Saviour and have eternal life that only comes by God's grace through faith.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Hauter

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February is around the corner and this year Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on February 25. This is a blessed change from last year when Lent came upon us about three weeks earlier February 6. We have a little more time to prepare for Lent after the celebration of Christmas.

What is Lent all about? It begins on Ash Wednesday and then lasts 6 ½ weeks until Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday. What are we supposed to learn during this time of the church calendar? Do we have to do anything since the real Easter Day happened long ago? What do I need to focus on during Lent? Let’s look at Ash Wednesday and go on from there.

Abraham mentions that he is but dust and ashes. He says this as he pleas to the Angel of the Lord for Sodom and Gomorrah to be spared of their destruction. He says in Genesis 18:27, Abraham answered and said, "Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.” Abraham calls himself a creature, created by God, made from dust and ashes. We are like Abraham we are but dust and ashes. This has more meaning when we look back at the curse that Adam received for his disobedience of God’s command. Genesis 3:19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return. This was the penalty for Adam’s, and our disobedience of God the Father. We shall return to the dust that God had created us from.

Ash Wednesday starts off Lent correctly by reminding us that we are ashes and dust and have all disobeyed God; that is we sinned and needed his forgiveness. This year our Midweek Lenten series is titled Sacred Head Now Wounded. And during our midweek services following Ash Wednesday we will see some of our sins each week played out in the following themes:

The Wound of Denial

The Wound of Mockery

The Wound of Abandonment

The Wound of Betrayal

The Wound of Apathy

These are all of our sins. Lent focuses on these and all other sins we commit. It’s purpose is to show us our sins so that when Good Friday, the death of our Savior comes, and Easter the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ we see our Savior in Him. We needed him to come. We needed the hope of being reconciled to our Father in heaven through means not of our own. Thank God because our own ways would never be enough.

Let us all approach Lent with a willingness to learn our own sins. Let us approach Lent with a focus on the cross. Here and only here do we find what we truly need from God, forgiveness.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Hauter

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Happy New Year! The slate from last year has been cleaned. The pounds gained last year are all erased. The New Year’s resolutions are here, the 2008 resolutions are gone. This year I will have to make at least one resolution. I need to lose at least ten pounds. This is from the doctor’s orders. I would rather lose fifteen to twenty but the first goal is to get ten pounds off and the sooner the better.

Although January 1st is no more special a day than any other day, except for Christmas, Good Friday, Easter and the Ascension of Jesus, (at least in my mind), there is still a feeling that everything is new. As I said above the slate has been erased. The old is gone the new is here.

Jesus told his disciples after his resurrection. Mark 16:17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues. They will speak in new tongues. We are speaking in a new tongue. We speak in the church of the salvation of mankind thorough the death Jesus. This was new to the world in Jesus day. It is still new today.

Paul tells us that we are in a new relationship with God. He tells us that we have been created new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. We have been in Christ because of his work outside and inside of us. His work outside of us was his work of Holy Baptism. And then the Holy Spirit dwells within us working inside of us to help us do the works of God. Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Baptized and forgiven and also receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit we are a new creation speaking in new tongues. And so there are some more special days that I need to mention that I didn’t mention above. The day of our Holy Baptism for forgiveness of our sin, every day we receive Holy Communion for the forgiveness of sins. And for that matter every day that we read the Word of God and hear of the forgiveness of sins. So every day of every year is a special day.

At Christmas we received many new things, a tie, clothes, video games, a new waffle iron, gift cards etc. We can enjoy these things as they bring us some pleasure throughout the year. We have more than this though; we have the new creation in us. The work of God by Word and Sacrament forgiving us, and aiding us through a new year, newly created.

Therefore remember on January 1st and every day of 2009 that you are new creations by the work of your God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Remember everything he has done for you to bring you into his kingdom.

The Lord bless you all year,

Pastor Hauter

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What is it about Christmas that makes us think warm fuzzy thoughts? Is it the dashing through the snow in a one horse open sleigh? Is it turkey dinners and family gatherings? Is it jingling bells? Are they silver bells? Is it chestnuts roasting on an open fire? Is it the whiteness of it? Is it the presents? Is it happiness or is it the hope?

Luke 2:7-11 And [Mary] gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."

In the familiar Christmas Hymn, O Little Town of Bethlehem, LSB 361, we sing these words in the first stanza:

O little town of Bethlehem,

How still we see thee lie!

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by;

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting light.

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are meet in thee tonight.

The last sentence makes it seem like it is hope that makes Christmas a warm fuzzy season. Our hope is in the everlasting light, Jesus Christ himself. On Christmas Day we find our God incarnate, come down from heaven, in a lowly stable. There is no fanfare in the city of Bethlehem announcing his birth and arrival from heaven. And except for a few shepherds, only his mother and adopted father know who he is. He is the One who has come to save us. He is our only hope for salvation. And our salvation is already done. We have been saved by this child in his death and resurrection that happens later in His life.

This year I am looking forward to celebrating Christmas. In previous years I had gotten tired of the world’s view pushing me into Christmas much earlier than I wanted to be there. The constant nagging about finishing the Christmas shopping had gotten to me. Not this year, “a right spirit has been renewed in me.” I want to remember Christ’s first coming because I want to remember my salvation. And I look forward to his coming again. And it is not only I but also all Christians who want to do these things, remembering and looking forward.

Join us in December for Advent and Christmas Services. The schedule is available on this month's calendar. This Christmas let us all celebrate the hope we have together. The hope we have in the gift of God in His Son, incarnate.

A blessed Christmas to you all,

Pastor H

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Happy Thanksgiving! Let’s get together with our families and have a celebration. Let’s eat turkey and watch football or at least have the game on while we are chatting with each other.

I remember getting up on Thanksgiving morning and smelling the turkey roasting in the oven. I remember watching my mother working in the kitchen to prepare the meal. I don’t remember offering to help her. Although there were times I was asked to set the table or get out the plates and bowls etc. What a sad thing, I had to be asked to help.

Thanksgiving was a special time in my youth. I always had a smile on my face. One selfish reason was because I didn’t have to go to school for four days. Okay, maybe that was the big reason. I could get up and play and have fun. I would watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade on TV. I loved all of the balloon floats they had. And then I would get ready to go to church. Mom usually took most of the kids with her. Dad usually went early. I didn’t really understand what Thanksgiving Day was all about back then. It was just a holiday to me where I didn’t have to go to school. I was much older when I realized that I should be thanking God for all of his blessings to me and my family and friends.

On Thanksgiving Day we thank God for all he has done. And we have a lot to be thankful for. Earlier this year I challenged you to pay off your loan to yourself. And you did. We started the Parable of the Talents project and it went very well. It was going so well that in the September newsletter I wrote that the Loan Repayment was going to be paid off by the end of October. I am happy to say that I was wrong. It was paid off before the end of the October! The Parable of Talents was a big success. And we are still reaping benefits from it.

There are many other things to be thankful for. One of them is the fact that the work that was needed to be done on our bell tower (tuck pointing and caulking) could be done. And even more thankful was the fact that we could pay the bill without asking for a special offering.

There are other things to be thankful for and the most important one is the forgiveness of sin we have in Jesus Christ. We have life, that is eternal life in him. Romans 5:21 (ESV) So that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. This is what we are thankful in our life. So on Thanksgiving Day as you reflect on the things that you are thankful for, family celebrations, roasting turkeys, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie etc., thank God that through Christ you have eternal life.

And don’t forget we have a Divine Service the day before Thanksgiving, November 26 at 7:00p. Come and receive the sacrament of Holy Communion and be forgiven of your sin. And then go be with your family and celebrate and give thanks to God for all that he has given to you.

Paul gives thanks in his letters, Philippians 1:3-5 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, [4] always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, [5] because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I thank you for all of the blessings you bring to me through Christ.

God bless,

Pastor Hauter

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John writes in the book of Revelation words of encouragement to the church in Philadelphia, Rev. 3:7-13 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.’

'I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet and they will learn that I have loved you. Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

It is a pleasure to give you this good news. As of the August council meeting we are now under $4,000 we owe back to the organ fund loan. We challenged you. And you, motivated by the work of the Holy Spirit in you, are answering the call. We still have Thrivent matching dollars coming in from the Blueberry Social that have not been subtracted from this amount. It won’t cover the whole amount, but I believe that we will have ourselves paid back by the time November comes. You are doing a great job - keep up the good work!

This is truly a statement that there is nothing too big that Saint Paul’s cannot handle. We have shown in this challenge that we can step up to any need the Lord asks us to fill because he is there with us, helping us. It is time for all of us to start thinking about what we need, to draw in those who have no church. It is time for us to make plans for the future of our children and grandchildren. We really do want our church to last into the future until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. How many of us would be upset if we knew our grandchildren did not have a place to know the Lord? How do we help them know their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?

One way is to encourage them to join us in all that we do here at Saint Paul’s. There are many things that we offer here. Worship service on Saturday and Sunday. Sunday School and Confirmation classes which will begin on September 14. Sunday School will start with the opening at 10:20a this year instead of 10:30. Let’s not forget Bible Studies. There are also plenty of fellowship events throughout the school year.

I am sure you can think of some other things that need to be done. Let us know so that we can get it started. I know by your answer to the organ loan challenge that any challenge that comes up, you, with the help of the Holy Spirit of Christ, will be able to answer.

In His service,

Pastor Hauter

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Psalm 136:1,4 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. [T]o him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever.

What an awesome statement Psalm 136 starts out with and continues to the end of the psalm. We are to give thanks to God because his steadfast love endures forever. His steadfast love never ends. His steadfast love does all things for us. He works great wonders.

When we look at the people in the Bible we notice one thing. Almost every person mentioned in the Bible has a sin that they have committed reported. Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. Cain slew Abel. Noah was a drunkard. Abraham did not always trust God. Joseph, with the many-colored coat, was arrogant. Moses took credit for God’s work by hitting the rock rather than speaking to it. King David took another man’s wife. The apostles scattered when Jesus was taken to protect their own lives. Peter denied Jesus. And Paul killed many Christians before coming to faith in Jesus Christ.

Many people say the Bible is the book of life. They say it is an example of how people should live. It is the rulebook for everyone. If it is than maybe we should, disobey God, kill each other when we get jealous, get drunk, stop trusting God, be arrogant, take credit for something God did, take another man’s wife, deny Christ and scatter when he is being attacked to protect our own lives. And we should kill anyone who does not agree with us.

The Bible instead is the story of salvation. The Word of God shows us our need to be saved. His word shows us that there is nothing we can do to merit worthiness. What an awesome work God did in becoming incarnate in our flesh. His Son Jesus Christ came down and died for us. In spite of who we are he still died for us. This is the steadfast love of God.

His love, his faith, makes all of us want to shout out like Paul, Romans 11:33-36 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

[34] "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?"

We do not know why he loves us so much and we are even more surprised when he shows that love to us. Whether we know why or not does not matter. What matters to us is that he does. His love was shown by his Son on the cross and his resurrection afterwards. His love is shown in the ascension of Jesus to his right hand.

Let us give thanks to God for he has shown us that his steadfast love endures forever.

United in the mind of Christ with you,

Pastor Hauter

Vocation, if you read that first word as vacation look at in again. Vacation is something I take during the year (maybe) to get rest from my work, and it usually costs me money.

Vocation on the other hand is something I may do to make a living that I get paid money to do. Vocation is a calling in life. I am called to be a pastor, a father, a son, a brother, an Uncle, a cousin, etc. Some of you are called to be sisters, aunts, mothers, grandmothers, grandfathers, steelworkers, secretaries, etc.

A vocation, a calling, truly comes from God. We are called to be Christians in our world. We are called to live the Christian life in everything that we do.

What is the life of a Christian? John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. This is the life of a Christian, to love one another. This is what we should be doing in this world. Do Christians of all churches today love one another? Does the world see love in the church? If you answer yes to these questions then I ask you to think again. The world that sees bickering in the church does not want any part of it. One of the worst comments about the church can be, “I don’t like to go to church because they are all a bunch of hypocrites.” Besides the fact that is where a hypocrite is by definition the truth in this statement lies in what the person sees. He sees that the people of the church do not love one another. He sees the church acting like people outside of the church. And if that is the way the church is going to act he might as well stay out of the church and sin as boldly as he wants.

So if we are acting like the people of the world how do we expect to change them? We go back to having the same mind as Christ. 1 Corinthians 1:10 I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. It is our calling to have the mind of Christ. We are to work together for the gospel of Jesus Christ. This gospel is meant for all. This gospel changes the world and us. It brings us under one mind to serve those in need. And we do this having the mind and love of Jesus Christ and therefore we love one another.

We have a special event coming up this month. It is our annual Blueberry Social. This is an awesome event that reaches out to the community and shows that that there is the love of Christ flowing from Saint Paul Lutheran Church. As we serve our community and even those from further away let us be of one mind in Christ. I know there are people we have to listen to who are coordinating the whole event and we all can work with them united to bring this special event to all who wish to come.

So we are called to be Christians in everything we do which emanates from the church and family. Let us love one another united in his mind as we have been called to do.

United in the love and in the Mind of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

Pastor Hauter

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Last month I talked about being of the same mind of Jesus Christ. And this month I would like to talk about it some more. Here I mean working together in the mind of Christ. I got to thinking about the Parable of the Talents that we did last weekend after church. How can you take your talent of money given to you in the envelope and work together as a church that will bring glory to God?

We have a great opportunity to show the mind of Christ working thorough his church. First I think we can use the Talent money to bless our community, Saint Paul and Kouts. Let’s get together on some ideas. Let’s use these ideas for the use of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The more of us who get together the greater the rewards will be. And our mind is not only on reaping in more cash. It is on the fact that we will get to share the Good News with others. God works through us. Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. We are the ones who walk and talk the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Why? Paul answers it in the two verses before the one above, Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. We walk this way because we have been saved by his grace. This is the one mind of Christ. He is one with the Father so that we all might have eternal life. His death is God’s grace. His life is God’s good work for us. Our work is in response to his love for us.

So we work together for this common good. Everyone comes and works together. We have all heard the saying, “many hands might like work.” We can make our work easier by working together. Washing a car is done faster with more people to help wash and dry the car. Serving a meal could be done better with more people serving together. Mowing and trimming lawns go faster when there are more people to separate the mowing and trimming areas. Again let’s take this chance to work together and do just that, work TOGETHER.

And let us remember we are never alone. Jesus is always with us. We heard this on Holy Trinity Sunday May 18. Matthew 28:20b “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” You could say He is with us “all the days until the completion of the age.” Christ didn’t do his work alone. He was always with the father and he also called upon his disciples. We are called to be a part of his church. We are called to bring his Gospel to the entire world, not alone, not by ourselves but with each other and more importantly with him.

If the Gospel and the work of it was strictly about me and only for me it would fail. But it is not about me; nor is it only for me; it is about him. And since it is about him we must work together to make it a success. And with him we will never fail.

Working with you and the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

Pastor Hauter

We are a church called Saint Paul Lutheran Church. So what does this mean? It means that we confess that Jesus Christ is God, Lord and our Savior. It means that we confess this and live according to his commands. It means we love our neighbor as our self. Matthew 22:39b [Jesus said] You shall love your neighbor as yourself. We as Saint Paul are working with the heart of Christ shining in all our service to the Kingdom and loving our neighbor outside of our church. The Ladies Aid serves Bethesda every Tuesday. We have a social ministry that helps others in times of need with rent, heating bills etc. And there are other ways that we help others outside of our church.

But what about our love for our neighbor inside the church? Do we work with each other or against each other? Do we believe that “I” am the only person who can get this work done or do we let others help? And if we let others help do we thank them for their effort? Or are we critical of their work because it doesn’t live up to our own standard?

We need to be reminded that we are of one mind. Our mind in the church is not a group of 200 plus individuals all thinking that their way of thinking is better than anyone else. Saint Paul tells us in his first letter to the Corinthians these words 1 Corinthians 1:10 I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. That same mind is not any individual human being that did not come down from heaven. It is not an individual who did not die on a cross. It is Jesus Christ’s mind. It is true obedience to his will. It is living in the promise of grace for everyone. It is working together as a church.

Paul tells us the encouragement we have is being in the mind of Christ. Philippians 2:1-4 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Jesus died for all. Jesus loved all. He did not start the Christian church with twelve different individuals thinking and doing what they want. They were all of the same mind. They had the love of God and the love of the neighbor in the mind just like Christ.

We as the church now united with the mind of Christ have many things that we need to start working toward. We need to serve the community of Kouts better. But we not only want to serve Kouts we also want to serve each other.

We have some great opportunities to start working together this month. We will be challenged. We will be called to work together for the Church of God on earth. We will go out and be bold and begin to do things that we have not done in a long time. Come to church on the weekend of May 17^th and 18^th to find out our first challenge.

Faced with all of our challenges inside of our church and out let us unite with the mind of Christ in order to bring his saving Gospel to all people everywhere.

In the resurrected Lord’s love,

Pastor Hauter

It’s Holy Thursday in Holy Week. I wasn’t sure what I was going to write about because I have been focused on Easter since the beginning of Lent.

This morning I was watching Dragnet on TV. Sergeants Joe Friday and Bill Gannon were talking to three young men about their values. These three young men, who were part of a much larger gang, had decided that they were going to start a country of their own. So they robbed and trashed a grocery store to get the food and other things they needed. Joe and Bill wanted the names of the other people involved.

It was during the talk with these young men that Joe says, “Okay so you are dissatisfied with the way things are going in this country. You don’t think that people should go to war and die. But what about the thousands of people who die in auto accidents every year in this country? Where is your indignation over those deaths? Why not do something about this and make the country better?” There were other questions of course but this one stuck out for me.

In today’s world I think there is some wisdom in those questions I heard this morning. Where is our indignation over the young men and women who lose their lives from drug overdoses? Where is our indignation over those who lose their lives over alcoholism? Where is our indignation over those who die over careless maintenance of semi trucks and other vehicles? What are we going to do about it? I am sure you could think of other questions that I haven’t thought of or expressed above.

Here is another question, “Where is our indignation that there are some people who have yet to hear the saving message of the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?” Why are we so afraid to tell others about Jesus? It seems that each and everyone of us have decided that we cannot push our religion upon others, Christian or non-Christian. It seems that if we do talk about Jesus Christ, and his crucifixion, burial and resurrection that we will offend others. And in this world sharing Jesus Christ has turned into a bad thing.

A great thing will have been celebrated by the time you receive this newsletter for April. We as the church will have celebrated Easter. Our joy will have been fulfilled. And then most of us will keep the message of salvation to ourselves and never tell anyone about Jesus Christ. We all have our reasons why we do not talk to people about Christ.

As we go through the readings of the Easter season in the church we will see Jesus teaching his disciples. We will see the action of the disciples as they go out and spread the word to all nations. The first reading every Sunday will be from the book of Acts. In essence the disciples were told to spread the word by Jesus. Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

The same is true for us. We are to spread the news. We add to what we say on Easter Sunday, “He is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia;” we tell the story of his ministry and the saving Word. Let us all spread the Word.

In the resurrected Lord’s love,

Pastor Hauter

What are you doing for Easter this year? Does your family get together and invade one of the homes of your family members? Do you have ham? What other foods do you prepare and eat? Do you play card games, board games etc.? What I am asking is, “What are your traditions?”

Traditions are important in a family. They give the family stability. They create order out of something that could turn into chaos. In my family there was always lots and lots of food at Easter. We would be eating leftovers for a few days. They would last longer in a smaller family. One of our favorites was mashed potatoes with lumps. This item usually didn’t make it to being leftovers except every once in a while.

Does your family all go to the same Divine Service at church (Divine Service means God’s service to us) to celebrate Easter? Do you make it a point to get all of the family together to worship or is it left up to each individual? In other words, what are your worship traditions for Easter?

Traditions are important for building community. A community has a common set of beliefs, traditions if you will. The community works together as a unit. Saint Paul is a community for all of you. It is a place where you can come and receive the gifts of God’s forgiveness. It is a place where you can have fellowship with your extended family.

The tradition of Lent is penitential. We look in sadness on our need to be forgiven. Throughout our Lenten season we have been looking at how the Tears Tell the Story. It has put me in a mood of sadness. But in one sense I should be sad. I along with the Jews and Romans crucified my Savior. You along with the Jews and Romans crucified your Savior.

The church has its traditions too. We have been celebrating on Sundays because that is the day that Jesus rose from the dead. So when you think about it every Sunday outside of Easter Sunday is an Easter celebration or what I like to call, (I got this from my pastor years ago), “a little Easter.” This month we celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the head of the church and we are his servants. We work together as a community to bring the joy of God’s love to all. We bring the joy of his forgiveness and reconciliation by work of His Holy Spirit in and through us.

On Good Friday, the first day of Spring this year we will be in bitter tears over the death of Christ on the cross. When we leave the church on Good Friday in silence and in a somber mood we will again wait until Sunday to find out that we can rejoice. And we will say, “ALLELUIA! HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! ALLELUIA!” Our tears and somberness will turn to joy.

We members of Saint Paul celebrate Easter as a family. Come and join us and be a part of our church family on Saturday March 22 for the Easter Vigil at 5:30p. Or join us on Easter Sunday at 6:30a or 9:00a.

In the resurrected Lord’s love,

Pastor Hauter

This month of February Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, is on the 6th. So I have a little over two weeks before my schedule gets very busy again. There wasn’t much of a break from Christmas to Lent it ended up being about five weeks.

We will start our Lenten journey with Holy Communion on Ash Wednesday. Our Lenten theme will be Tears Tell the Story. And each Midweek Lenten service will focus on the tears of Jesus and the faithful in his ministry.

The shortest verse in the bible is John 11:35 "Jesus wept.". He certainly did. He wept over Jerusalem as he longed to bring her salvation. He wept over those who were unprepared and would not heed his warnings. He wept tears of joy when he promised that grief would turn to joy. He wept a bowl of tears when Judas betrayed him. Peter wept tears of guilt when he realized that he had sold out his faith for his own protection. Mary his mother wept tears as she watched her son die on the cross. Judas wept tears of remorse, a remorse which led him to take his life. And the women of Jerusalem shed many tears as they mourned the Savior.

All of this can make us weep also. As we look at our own lives we realize the truth, we do not love God. Luke 10:27 And [the lawyer] answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." We know the command we just do not love with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind. We fall far short of the men and women God has called us to be. And thus we are sad and weep. But this is not the whole story.

There are more tears on Easter Sunday. They are tears of sorrow and tears of joy when the risen Jesus greets Mary Magdalene. Joy fills us and sadness disappears. Our Lord has risen. Our tears have changed from tears of sorrow to tears of joy. Psalm 30:11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness. The story told to us is now complete and it is the story of salvation for all.

Here is the Lenten worship schedule for this year.

February 6: Ash Wednesday with Holy Communion
February 13: Midweek I – Coming Tears
February 20: Midweek II – Impossible Tears
February 27: Midweek III – Bowl of Tears
March 5: Midweek IV – Garden Tears
March 12: Midweek V – Guilty Tears
March 16: Passion Sunday/ Palm Sunday – A Mother’s Tears
March 20: Maundy Thursday – Remorseful Tears
March 21: Good Friday – The Way of Tears
March 22: Easter Vigil – Tears of Sorrow, Tears of Joy
March 23: Easter Sunday – Tears of Sorrow, Tears of Joy

So come and join us on our Lenten Journey this year and let the Tears Tell the Story.

Pastor Hauter

As we get ready for 2008 it is a good time to reflect. There are many who think of things that they would like to do better next year. We call them resolutions. We could also call them promises. One of the most common promises that are made at this time of year is of course the vow to lose weight. After the Happy Thanksgiving stuffing of ourselves to the gills followed by sweets galore until Christmas Day and beyond, there are many who would like to go on a diet to lose the extra pounds they have gained. There are other resolutions that we might make at the beginning of the year. Some vow to do a better job next year. Others may vow to give more to the church, or go to church more often, and still others even vow to stop smoking, etc.

Another tradition I ran into was the family that celebrated New Year's Eve in this way. A dinner was served followed by one person reading from a book. The day I went to this New Year's celebration he read a chapter from Winnie the Pooh, and the reader of the story did a perfect voice for Eeyore. His reading of the book brought back fond memories for me - when my brothers and sisters would all sit in the Living Room and my mom would read to us, Alice in Wonderland, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, etc. She even used to read the poem T’was the Night Before Christmas, every Christmas Eve.

Back to the New Years Eve Party I attended. After the reading of Winnie the Pooh everyone talked about the year just past (although you didn’t have to if you didn’t want to). They could mention anything they wanted, good or bad. They could talk about their hopes for the new year and even their promises/resolutions.

There was a promise made to all of us long ago. Genesis 1:3 And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. God said, “Let there be.” And he already knew that we would sin in the garden. After Adam and Eve had sinned and did not confess their sin to God, God told Adam and Eve, Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. These words were a promise of a Savior who would come to redeem them of the sin they had committed.

That was fulfilled many years ago at Jesus death on the cross. As you enter into your New Year, remember the promise God made to you long ago - the promise he fulfilled long ago.

The Lord bless your New Year with his reminders of his promise to you,

Pastor Hauter

By the time you receive this month’s newsletter you will have received so many reminders of the fact that Christmas is coming that you may be sick of it. I hope not. But this may be true if you still have to go to the mall to buy the gifts that you still have not bought from the store.

You will have heard for the entire month of November the advertisements on television of all the special sales for Christmas. The names will be changed to, Veterans Day Sale, Thanksgiving Day Sale, etc. Some of you will have fought through the Friday after Thanksgiving crowds and purchased some gifts. And maybe even some of you will have asked the question, “why do I torture myself year after year with this? Yes, some of you will save the hassle by ordering on line and having it sent to your home to be delivered on the day your family or friends will meet to celebrate Christmas. Others will save the hassle and have it sent to the recipient of the gift.

But all of this is part of the celebration of Christmas. It is a special day that must be prepared for so that it will go off right. Everyone is to be happy. Everyone must have the right gift. Everyone must have enough to eat (gaining less than five pounds is just unacceptable).

The church is the opposite of the secular world. She does not celebrate Christmas until the December 25. She does not have the Christmas hymns of the hymnal sung until Christmas is actually here. She tells you about the eminent coming of Jesus. She sings Savior of the Nations, Come. She is in such need of him that she longs for his coming. She is told that his coming is near as she hears this message in the words of John the Baptist, On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry. She cries out with joy that he is near, Hark! A Thrilling Voice Is Sounding. And she calls to him to ransom her from her debt of sin, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. This is the church’s way to prepare for her celebration. She is preparing for His Coming in the flesh. And then the celebration begins.

And through all of this Jesus is here with us in the preparation and the celebration. He is here when we pick out the gift. He is here when we purchase it. I think all of us would like him to pay for it also. He is here when we wrap the gift. He is here when the meal is prepared, cooked and eaten. He is here when we celebrate Christmas at Saint Paul Lutheran Church. The truth is Jesus is always with us.

Isaiah told us all about this in his prophesy of Jesus’ birth. Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. We all know that the name Immanuel means “God is with us.” He never left us. He will never leave us. He came so that we would be with him forever. It is through the death and resurrection of this child, our Lord Jesus Christ, that we can be with our God forever.

As you prepare through the Advent season for your Christmas celebration remember he is with you, and will always be with you, forgiving you, loving you. The Lord bless your celebration of His birth this and every year.

In His peace,

Pastor Hauter

Should we pray for others? Is prayer for the unfaithful fruitless or wrong? Is prayer for the repentant wrong? 1 Samuel 7:5 Then Samuel said, "Gather all Israel at Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you." Here Samuel the prophet offers to pray for Israel after they had abandoned God. He tells them to get rid of their idols and then come to Mizpah. He tells them to cry out to God for rescue. Samuel cries out to God on their behalf and the Lord answered him (1 Sam 7:9-10). Yes it is okay to pray for others to God. We pray for others because of the love for others that is in us through the work of the Holy Spirit.

But why am I talking about prayer? I was at an event recently and was talking with someone about praying. The point she was making was that Protestants are wrong when they say you should not pray to the saints in heaven. Her reasoning was this, “Do you ask others to pray for you?” Yes! So her reasoning is that now I should pray to Mary, the mother of God and all the saints in heaven.

Is it okay to ask others to pray for you? Of course it is okay. There is no one in the invisible Church of Jesus Christ that would ever tell you that you should not ask others to pray for you.

Saint Paul in his letters to the Colossians tells them to be in prayer always and even requests that they pray for him and his companions. Col. 4:2-3 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. [3] At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison... — He is praying for the advancement of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For it is about God’s grace in Christ. He is asking them to do the same, pray for grace.

But if we say that we can pray to the saints in heaven we are missing something very important. Have you ever stood at the grave of a loved one and asked them to pray for you? Maybe you have. But, would you ever stand at the grave of Walter Maier I, of the Lutheran Hour and ask him to intercede with God, the Father, the Son or the Holy Spirit for you? Would you stand at the grave of someone you do not know, but who is a Christian and ask him to pray for you? I suspect not. We ask the still living fellow Christians on earth to pray for us. We ask the one who died and rose, and lives to die no more in heaven to pray to God for us, His name is Jesus Christ. You just don’t need to ask the dead to pray for you. You can ask the one who is living.

Jesus is the one who with the Father sent the Holy Spirit to us. You can talk directly to God. You don’t need someone else, in heaven, who is not God, to speak on your behalf. The Holy Spirit intercedes for you. The Holy Spirit reminds you of the love of God, for He is God. For God is the one who forgave you by the death of His son. So go ahead and ask others here on earth to pray to the living God for you. And even better yet, go ahead and pray to the living God yourself.

In His peace,
Pastor Hauter

What time is it? Do you have the time? Could you tell me what time it is? These are all questions that we hear when someone needs to know the time and does not have a watch. My watch does not have numbers on it. I have found that there are some children who look at my watch and cannot tell the time because there are no numbers on it.

We are people who are controlled by time. We eat at certain times of the day whether we are hungry or not. We leave for work at about the same time during the work week. We watch television programs on a time schedule. We even worship at a certain time, 5:30 p.m. on Saturday or 9:00 a.m. on Sunday. And if you ever change the worship time it will probably cause a few people to be too late or too early. And this is even if you publish it in newletters and send a special mailing to make sure everyone knows. By the way, we are changing the time for Sunday worship on September 9th from 9:00 to 10:30. Why? So that we can burn the mortgage for the parsonage which has been paid off and have the church picnic right afterwards. And now that you know of this one time divine service change you will not be way too early for church on the 9th. Right?

Time can also be chaotic. We can have too much to do in a given period. We can even feel that we are controlled by time. Time is something that we have to deal with in the created world. Time is part of the created world. Genesis 1:14-19 14And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. 16And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. So we see that time is a creation of God, and is measured by the Sun, the Moon, and the stars.

God worked in time for our salvation also. He sent Jesus to us at the right time. It was not too early or too late. He did this for us to save us from condemnation. Galatians 4:4-5 4But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And so in time we are adopted as sons. We are made sons in His baptism. We are given life, salvation, and forgiveness. Therefore we live in a special time, one where God has forgiven us by His Son's death. It is by His grace that we are not condemned.

So what time is it? It is the time of favor. It is the time of grace. 2 Corinthians 6:2 For he says, "In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. It is the time of salvation.

We thank God for His work of favor, His work of grace, His work of salvation, His Son.

Go in peace,
Pastor Hauter

It is good to be back from vacation. I was getting tired of living out of a suitcase after awhile. But it was also very relaxing. I got to do one thing I had never done before, White Water Rafting. And what was even better was that I came back rested and ready to start up again. We all need a change in our routines from time to time and this was the time I needed a change also.

We need rest from the heavy burden of guilt that we carry around. Sometimes that guilt is made by our own fears. It is not guilt of something we actually did that we should not have done. Nor is it guilt of something we ought to have done but failed to do. This guilty feeling is sensing we are guilty when we are not. We need rest from these fears but there is a heavier burden that we carry.

That burden is the guilt for the sin that we committed. We are guilty and this separates us from God. Sin is like turning your back to God so you don’t have to listen to him or worse yet face him. But the weight of that sin and guilt oppresses us. It pushes down on us. It causes us to have many problems and some of them are physical. Psalm 102:3, 5 For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace. . . . Because of my loud groaning my bones cling to my flesh. While others are mental. Psalm 102:7 I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. The weight of guilt can be too much to bear. We need relief from it.

Jesus tells us that we can be eased of that burden. Matthew 11:28-30 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. We are not eased of the burden of guilt by what we are able to do but we are eased of it by what he has done for us. He has come to us from heaven to take up the cross for our salvation. He died for our sin, our guilt. No longer are you under the heavy burden of your guilt.

It is through his word that we hear of this. It is in his word that we hear of forgiveness. It is through his word that faith is created in us. And by faith we trust in him. He has lifted our burden and made it easy. He also gives us the sacraments. In Holy Baptism we are forgiven by water and the word. In Holy Communion we eat his body and drink his blood for the forgiveness of sins. Our burden of guilt has been lifted.

Before my vacation I needed rest from my burdens of my work here at Saint Paul. But everyday I need rest from the heavier burden of sin and guilt. I receive rest from God for Jesus’ sake.

So I encourage you to come in faith and hear God’s word and have your burden lifted. Come and receive his forgiveness in his sacraments. His yoke is easy, his burden is light and you will find rest for your souls.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

The blessings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ be unto all of you. This month I decided to talk about weddings and feasts.

And you may ask why? So go ahead and ask . . . Well, I will tell you why. On July 7th I will be in Colorado presiding at my niece Sara’s wedding. Her and her husband to be, Jason, have gone through Pre-Marital counseling and of course have been ready to be married for quite some time now. Sara and Jason will be confessing their love to each other in the sight of God. Sara and Jason by bringing Christ into the center of their relationship are taking a great step toward an everlasting union of bride and groom here on earth.

Following the ceremony of the wedding will be a feast. We all have gone to weddings and then attended the reception afterwards. There is food and drink, singing and dancing. Everyone at the feast is celebrating the union of one man to one woman. It is a very joyous occasion. A man and a woman who have met and have love for each other are now finally brought together as one to live their lives for Christ and each other.

We are one with Christ. We as members of His Church are married to him. John tells us in his Revelation:

Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; Rev. 19:7

And we do rejoice. We rejoice because the bride is the Church, the one that has been purified and made ready by the blood of the lamb. Yes, the Lamb was slain but he rose and lives to be the Church’s husband forever. In him we have protection and peace. In him we find forgiveness and love.

And of course there is the marriage feast (banquet). Luke 14:15-16 --- When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, "Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!" But [Jesus] said to him, "A man once gave a great banquet and invited many.” Later on Jesus tells us that Jesus will have a great banquet. Luke 14:24 --- “For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet."” This may be a negative statement for those who refuse to believe but for the faithful, the ones God has blessed with faith in the death and resurrection of Christ, it means victory.

As you think about your marriage and all weddings you have attended and will attend in the future remember the relationship between Christ and his bride the church. This is why we pray for the wedding anniversaries at Saint Paul with this prayer:

Heavenly Father, we pray for all husbands and wives, for those who celebrate wedding anniversaries this week, that God would grant them gladness and joy in their marriage(s), and that their love for each other may be a sign of the joyous relationship between Christ and His bride, the Church.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

June is here. And many things come to mind. Summer is here. The weather seems to get nice for our children; well, at least they may feel that way. Gone for three months are the days of getting up early to go to school. Gone are the nights of doing homework to meet homework deadlines. And now they can go out and play with few responsibilities. For them life is good.

In June we will once again have our Vacation Bible School. This year we will follow the story off Moses from his birth, to his calling from God, and then to his leading of his people out of Egypt and the receiving of the Ten Commandments.

June also has a day set aside for fathers to be honored by their children. Many children buy gifts for their father. Most fathers when they are pressed to tell what they would like to receive as a gift on this day don’t really know what they want and have not thought about it either. I suspect that if you ask your father what he wants for Father’s Day he will tell you something like, “peace and quiet”, or rest, or maybe a juicy steak grilled to perfection with a baked potato and corn on the cob, or just the knowledge that you love him. Since Father’s day is a secular holiday the church does not celebrate it.

Our Father in heaven is the only Father that deserves true honor and glory. And for that matter every day should be his Father’s Day. He who sent his Son to redeem us is better than any earthly father here on earth; still he gives us earthly fathers. But, our Father is the one who takes care of us. He is the one that gives us all we need including fathers. He disciplines, teaches and forgives us. When we confess the words of our Apostles, Nicene, or Athanasian Creed, we are confessing that our Father provides everything we need for eternal life. Luther in his Small Catechism tells us this in his explanation of the first article of the creed.

What does this mean?

I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.

He richly and daily provides for us it is not the other way around. There is nothing we can give to our Father that he truly needs for all comes from him. St. Paul put it best in Romans 11:33-36 - Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

As you bless your earthly fathers with your gifts this month, thank God and give glory to God, for all of his gifts to you. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. Especially thank him for his love in Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection for your sins; for your thanks and praise, service and obedience are all your heavenly Father needs from you on his Father’s Day.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

“April Showers bring May flowers.” If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say that I might be $10 dollars richer today. But we hear it often and we think it in April and May all the time. The rains of spring remind us of new growth. It is when the trees begin to bud and sprout leaves; the grass turns from the brown of winter into a lush green. What a joyous time that spring is for all of us. For with the rains we know that nicer days are not too far away.

It is the Lord who causes the rain to come down. He waters the earth with rain in order to produce food for our nourishment. Leviticus 26:4 -- I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. As we see the rain we remember the First Article of the Apostle’s Creed and what Luther taught us:

What does this mean?

"I believe that God has made me and all creatures . . . He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, . . . and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. . . . This is most certainly true."

And so we see that all that we have is for this body and life. He also makes those May flowers grow. These flowers serve more than one purpose. One of which is to beautify the earth. It is much more pleasant to look at beautiful flowers, than to look at an unadorned house. Another purpose is the pollen that bees use to make honey. But first the flowers must be watered and nourished so that they may grow.

We also need to be watered. We need nourishment from God himself and we find this in His Word and Sacrament. We meet together to celebrate this growth and nourishment and forgiveness of our sins. We have many times where we can receive growth and nourishment from our Lord. There is of course the regular attendance of services on each weekend. We will also have an Ascension Day service on May 17th where will we join our fellow brothers from Prince of Peace, Valparaiso, and Saint Paul, Chesterton and celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ going back to His Father in glory. Our Lord continues to nourish us to this day with His everlasting body. On Sunday May 27th we will witness the affirmation of faith of three of our confirmands that have been taught the past two years as they confess their faith in Christ as they are confirmed and receive Holy Communion for the forgiveness of sins.

As God has provided for our confirmands he has also provided for us and he is the one who waters and nourishes us and causes us to grow. 1 Cor. 3:6-7 -- I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. So, as you look upon the flowers and the crops in the fields surrounding Kouts that are brought about by the April showers God has provided, always remember that as we continue to be in God’s Word and Sacrament we will grow by his watering and his nourishment.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

Easter is almost here and our Lenten journey is almost over. We have been hearing about our suffering Savior throughout Lent. We started out by asking the question “Who has believed?” We were amazed that at first the disciples didn’t believe what was about to happen. But even in this, when faith is created in us, we wonder why we didn’t believe in the first place either.

Next, our Lenten journey talked about how “Appearances Can be Deceiving.” Our Lord and Savior didn’t come as we expected him to come. He came as one of us. He was in our flesh and so we didn’t recognize who he was, that is our beautiful Savior.

Then our journey led us to his wounds. It was for us that he was stricken, smitten, and afflicted. It was by these life-killing wounds that we were healed from our sin.

Then we were stray sheep. We were sheep that had strayed so far away we began to do things as we pleased. And we also heard of how Jesus became a sheep to take up our sin and die for us. We have been drawn back to him and are no longer stray sheep. Our Shepherd, the one who became a sheep like us, calls to us by name, he draws us by his word and we follow him.

Our journey through Lent then talked to us about “When to Keep Quiet.” There are times when we open our mouths and let words flow out as if we weren’t thinking about what we were saying. Well that is because at the time we weren’t thinking correctly. And we saw how Jesus kept quiet when he could have condemned the whole world. But what he truly did by his silence atoned for our sinful talk. For he was quiet as a lamb is before his shearers.

And just before Holy Week we asked the question “Is There No Justice?” We heard how criminals get away with crimes we felt they should have been punished for. We heard about how others get punished for a crime that they never committed. And then we heard how Jesus suffered the greatest injustice of all. He was innocent and yet he died. We were guilty and yet we are saved.

Now we are in Holy Week. On Maundy-Thursday we will be talking about the Bloodbath. As we already know sin requires the shedding of blood to be forgiven and that is why the Old Testament atonements included the shedding of animal blood. But these sacrifices were only a foreshadowing of the perfect sacrifice of our Lord on the cross. His blood was shed, a bloodbath if you will, and our sin was forgiven.

On Good Friday he will be buried. He is a man that is considered poor but will be buried with the wicked yet in a rich man’s grave. We who are in Christ by God’s saving work will have a rich burial, for we all will have his Father’s priceless riches in Christ his Son. We will leave our Good Friday service in silence and sadness, realizing that it was our sin that put Jesus on the cross and it was our sin that nailed him to the tree.

The gospel for Easter Sunday is from Luke. Here is part of it. Luke 24:5-7 - And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” Therefore on Easter Sunday we will be shouting out in exclamations of joy, “ALLELUIA, HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED, ALLELUIA! AMEN!” And even though without Christ we have no guarantee of God’s satisfaction with us we do know that he is satisfied with his Son. God is satisfied with Christ’s suffering. Jesus is satisfied with his suffering, for he is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World. And Christ’s resurrection guarantees our satisfaction. Isaiah 53:12 - Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors. God has already made good on his promise today. We receive the promise of forgiveness in God’s word, and His sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion. And because God is the One who made the promise, and God is the One who died for the promise, and God is the One who rose again, His satisfaction as well as ours is guaranteed.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

The champagne cork pops and people shout, “Happy New Year!” Husbands kiss their wives, and boyfriends kiss their girlfriends because the year of our Lord 2007 has begun. This of course is for some of you on New Years Eve. If you are like me you will be asleep when the clock ticks past midnight December 31, 2006 and becomes January 1, 2007. Your wishing others a “Happy New Year!” will come in the morning when you see loved ones, etc.

We like new things, we like starting over with no problems facing us. We like it when we start a new job, we like it when we get a new car, or a new TV. Everything works well, nothing is wrong. Of course that is unless your new car should be named after a fruit, you know . . . “a lemon.”

When we get a new car, that is not named after a fruit, we hop into it, start it and go on our way. The problems we used to have with our old car are gone. We no longer wonder if the tires will last another year. We no longer wonder how much more money will I need to put into the car in order to keep it running. The new car starts up, it goes and it only requires routine maintenance in order to keep going. In essence the problems of the old car have been erased.

And this is what happened. God in the death of his Son erased that blackboard for us by forgiving those sins and all that we have committed and the ones we have yet to commit..

We have just celebrated the birth of his Son in our flesh. This was the beginning of our salvation. The child, Immanuel, God with us, would go to a cross for us to die for our sins. This same child was baptized. On January 7th we will celebrate the baptism of our Lord. He was baptized even though he was sinless!

We needed to be made new. We needed our sins to be erased and remembered no more. The Lord did this for us by making us new. 2 Cor. 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. It is in God’s baptism of us that we are made new. We are made a child of God. We have our sins forgiven, we have eternal life and we have salvation in baptism. We have this because we are baptized into his death and resurrection. Romans 6:1-4 - What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? [2] By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? [3] Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? [4] We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Let us always remember throughout the year of our Lord, 2007 that we have newness in him.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

December is here and you know what that means the world has begun its annual celebration of Christmas. Soon it will be Christmas Day and we will exchange gifts with loved ones and friends. We already have heard Christmas carols and tunes on the radio, and television commercials are promoting the latest gift to end all gifts! The days are getting shorter and colder and celebrating Christmas with our families will be the highlight of December.

Isaiah told us that a little child would come and lead us. Isaiah 11:6 - The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. He has come and he has led us to the cross, not our cross, but his. It can boggle the mind that a child was born to die. A little child was born to take upon himself the sin of the world so that through him the people of the world would be forgiven of their sin and be reconciled to God. Romans 5:10 - For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. This is not the way we look at our children, but it was the purpose of the Christ child. He was born to die for us. He went to the cross and died for our sin.

For the church, December is not only the month of the Christmas season and its celebration it is also the month of the season of Advent. Advent comes from the Latin word Adventus which means coming or arrival. We see not only the coming of the Christ child in his birth in advent, but we also see the second coming of Christ. That is why the first Sunday in Advent begins with the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday the first day of Holy Week that quickly leads to his death on the cross. It is a reminder of his life saving death on the cross for all of us. We look forward to his coming again. We know this because of his promise that he will come again. Because this promise comes from our Lord who has never broken a promise it is already done, that is he has already come back for us, we just don’t have it yet.

And so this year we will celebrate his coming again as we continue our Advent services. We will look at the Hope in and Eden promised. There will be three midweek Advent services on December 6, 13, and 20 at 7:00pm. We will again have a soup and sandwich supper before all services at 6:00pm. If you can’t make it to soup and sandwich, please come to the Advent services. The first midweek service will be about the little child who has led us. The second midweek service will be about rejoicing in the fact that death has been swallowed up in death. And the final midweek service will be about paradise restored in the little child who leads us, our savior and Lord Jesus Christ.

Come and join us as we follow the little child who will lead us. He is the true and only Son of the living God. He brought us hope in the fact that Eden has been restored in his death which swallowed up the death that we owed. Live in that hope knowing that it is already finished for you. For all the faithful will one day “Depart in peace” because their sins have been forgiven.

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

Now that November has begun our minds will be shifting from the beautiful colors of the Fall season to the celebration of Thanksgiving and Christmas I Chronicles 16:8-10 (NIV) "Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice."

We will have some extra opportunities to worship and give thanks to our God, to rejoice and sing hymns of praise to Him. The first one will be on November 1st, All Saints Day. This will be a joint service with Prince of Peace (Valparaiso) and Saint Paul Lutheran Church (Chesterton). It will be celebrated at our church. We will celebrate life on this day. We will remember loved ones who have gone before and are now with our Lord in Heaven. They live because of the life given them by the Father, life creating faith that He gave them in their Baptism into His holy name - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Rom 6:4-5 "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection." We give thanks to God for their faith. We give thanks to God for their lives.

We also will give thanks to God on Thanksgiving Day. This is a Day that the entire United States give thanks. The Congress of the United States approved the fourth Thursday of the month of November as Thanksgiving Day in 1941. It is a day we have set aside to give thanks to our God for the wonderful gifts He has given us throughout the year.

I personally like to reflect on all the things that He has given us, faith in Him even in our trials, forgiveness of our sins through the death of His Son on the Cross, life in Him through His gift of the Holy Spirit, as well as His continued support of us in His Word and Sacraments for life. Therefore, on Wednesday November 22 at 7:00pm, please come and join your brothers and sisters and give thanks to God for His wonderful gifts and receive from Him forgiveness in His Word and the Sacrament of Holy communion.

The following week, November 29, we will begin our Advent series. The services will also start at 7:00pm. We will also have a soup and sandwich supper before the service starting at 6:00pm.

In addition to our Saturday and Sunday service we will have many opportunities to give thanks to our God. We will have many times where we can call upon His name, to sing praise to Him, and to proclaim His wonderful deeds to us all. Why do we do this? God came and saved us from certain death and gave us life, life in Him. And he did this when we were not lovable. Rom 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

And so let us give thanks to God for His love for us. His love is a never-ending love. Ps 107:1 "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Hauter

Stewardship, what is it? Well, when the church talks about it the whole congregation might roll their eyes because it usually means that the church needs more money. In this case it centers on the budget and the fact that the church and her members are not meeting the budget. Okay I haven’t defined it yet and I am not about to define it yet, the reason why is because I have to talk about the budget shortfall first. I like to get rid of the bad news first before I go on to the good news. We are $15,000 dollars behind budget. We truly need to close this gap by the end of the year.

We, the financial secretary and I, looked at our budget over the past ten years and noticed an alarming trend. Saint Paul Lutheran Church has not met the budget in nine out of the last ten years. This fact made us ask some questions, Are we setting the budget too high? Do the members of Saint Paul need a gentle reminder of how much is needed to meet the budget? With all of these questions we came up with a plan for next year. We thought that it might be a good idea to ask you how much you intend to give as a part of your service to the Lord. And then we could put together a budget that better fits your needs.

In this newsletter you will find a Faith Promise form to fill out for 2007 that will ask you if there is an activity that you would like to serve some time and energy to. It will ask you how you can make Saint Paul a more inviting church. It will also ask how much your weekly, monthly or yearly offering intentions are for the year. We do not want your name we only want the information so that we can set a budget that better fits your needs. Again, we want to know, are we setting the budget too high?

The other portion of the form, as stated before, is for your information. Is there an area where you would like to serve Saint Paul but no one has asked you for your help? This is also anonymous we will send this back to you at the beginning of the year as a reminder of your faith your Faith Promise.

It is important to know that Stewardship is management of every good gift that you have from God for the benefit of His kingdom as well as for the benefit of you and your families. It is not about money it is about His gifts to you. All of these gifts combined work for the good of the church. Therefore pray to our God and Savior Jesus Christ and then use your gifts for your families needs as well as to further the kingdom of God and the Gospel of Forgiveness. As Jesus promised in Mark 16:16a - Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. We all have been taught that the benefits of Holy Baptism, 1) it works forgiveness of sins; 2) It rescues us from death and the devil; 3) It gives eternal salvation to all who believe. This is the Word’s of promise we need to bring to others. Saint Paul Lutheran Church needs your help.

Let us all use our gifts to proclaim these words of Jesus’ promise to all of God’s creation.

In Christ,
Pastor Hauter

Teach Your Children Well. This is a song by Graham Nash. It is a good title but I am not so sure the lyrics are worth mentioning. But in this world teaching is very important. We learn from those who know more than we do. They find ways to impart their knowledge into us. We all have had teachers that have been instrumental in our learning.

I have had two especially good history teachers. One taught Ancient History and the other taught American History. They made history sound exciting. These are the teachers we remember. They are the ones who make the subject interesting. We have a good group of teachers at Saint Paul. They are the ones who teach our children the Bible. Our children are taught the basics. And this is part of the teaching we need. We need to be taught about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ so that by the knowledge revealed to us from His Word, the Holy Scriptures, we learn who God is as well as what He expects from us.

The time of year for teaching our children about God’s word is upon us again. Sunday School and Confirmation (Catechism) classes will begin on September 10th. The sixth grade will be invited to attend Confirmation (Catechism) class this year also. It is on this day when our children will start the next year of their learning. Jesus commanded us to teach others the things He taught His apostles. Mt 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” A disciple is a student who is being taught. In the church that student is learning the same thing that Jesus had commanded the apostles to obey. It has been passed down through the ages all the way until today. It will be passed on to tomorrow as time goes by.

Are you a person who would like to teach children? Our handful of teachers can always use some help. If you are interested in teaching call the church and let us know. We can answer any questions you might have and help you get started on teaching the many children of Saint Paul Lutheran Church.

Can you hear the children saying, “I can’t wait until I’m older and then I won’t have to go to Sunday school? I will get to go home right after church.” Learning is not just for the children. You can tell them that the learning never stops. There is always Sunday Bible Study. There is always Wednesday Bible Study. We never stop learning in life and as Christians we can never stop learning from Christ. Now is the time for all parents to learn. Why? So that they can teach their children well.

Now is the time for children to learn. And as parents it is your responsibility to make sure that they get taught so that they may learn. Bring your child on Sunday for Sunday school. And stay for the Sunday Bible Study and you can learn and help teach your children well.

In Christ,
Pastor Hauter

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It was 230 years ago that the forefathers of this nation signed the Declaration of Independence. Since then the United States has grown from thirteen states to fifty. When I was growing up I looked forward to the annual Fourth of July celebration. My family would go and spend the entire day at the pool. We would get there a little before noon and stay until the sun went down, except for dinner, which the entire family would eat together at a nearby restaurant. And then it was back outside to wait for dark and the annual fireworks show. I especially liked the ones that made loud booms.

We have independence here in the United States of America. We are not forced to do things we don't like. Yes, there are some uses of our tax dollars that we do not support, but overall we are not forced to do things that other countries have required of their own people. But, even with this independence, there are times we cannot do as we want. We have what is called "freedom within limits". Why? Because sometimes the freedom we enjoy and use correctly without harming others may be abused by another. So, even in this land of independence, we are still limited in our freedom.

When God created Man and Woman in the world, He placed them in the Garden of Eden and gave them "freedom within limits". He told the Man and Woman that could eat from every tree in the Garden but one. They had one simple rule to follow, and they could eat and drink in the Garden forever. However, we know they didn't obey that simple rule. Mankind's freedom was lost. Man became a slave to sin.

Christ came to set us free, e.g, Gal. 5:1 - It is for freedom that Christ set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Christ, as the incarnate Logos, the third Person of the Trinity, has set us free slavery to sin. We are free to live life in Him. We no longer are burdened with our inability to keep His simple rules, for in Him we keep those simple rules.

We are to use this freedom wisely. We are not to use this to excuse ourselves of evil. We are not to use this freedom to excuse us to do whatever we want. Gal. 5:13-14 - You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Paul tells us that freedom to indulge in sin is not "loving your neighbor." He tells us we are free to love our neighbor. This is "freedom within limits."

We want limits, because by these limits we know how far we can go, and we know we are loved by God. And, we want to know we are forgiven by God.

So, as you celebrate your independence on July 4th, remember the freedom won for you by Christ on the cross. It is by His death, resurrection, and ascension, that we have freedom - a "freedom within limits."

In Christ,
Pastor Hauter

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As we move into April this year there are some events that are interesting and of course there is one great week in church history to celebrate.

My mother always quoted this saying around this time of year, “April showers bring May flowers.” I know many of you hope rain comes not only for flowers but also the crops. The earth could use a good watering.

I looked up April on the Internet and I found out that April is chocolate lovers’ month. This seems appropriate with all of the chocolate candy that is put into Easter baskets. I like jellybeans also. I didn’t find a month that was named jellybean lovers’ month.

On April 2nd we will again move our clocks forward one hour and change the evening to more daylight at the expense of our morning. And this year the rest of the state of Indiana will move their clocks forward one hour. Now, the eastern part of the state will always be one hour ahead of us. My preference is not move my clock at all but that would get confusing with everybody else changing their clocks so I will comply and move my clock up one hour also. These are events in the world.

The church has its own events. In the second week, starting April 9th, we will sing ‘Hosannas’ to the Son of David as He enters Jerusalem on a donkey. Then we will celebrate the Lord’s Supper on Maundy Thursday. This is the day that Jesus gave us the new command to eat His body and drink His blood for the forgiveness of sins. Oh, what comfort the Lord’s Supper gives to us!

On Good Friday we will see our Lord, Jesus Christ, betrayed by one of His apostles. He will be arrested and false charges will be brought against Him. These charges will result in his crucifixion on a tree. We were condemned by eating of a tree and now we are saved by our Lord Jesus Christ dying on a tree. John tells us that Caiaphas said it well, John 11:50 “You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” It was better for you and me that one man, Jesus Christ, perish, so that an entire nation of people, all Christian believers, would not perish.

And then three days later the ‘alleluias’ that had disappeared will return, and we will celebrate our Lord and Savior’s resurrection from the dead. On Easter Sunday the sadness of the crucifixion of our Lord is turned to joy as we hear the angel tell us. Mark 16:6 "Don't be alarmed,” he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.” Yes, the tomb is empty! Our Lord has risen from the dead. The victory over sin is won. God, through Jesus, has forgiven our sin! God, through Jesus, has paid our debt of death! And we are reconciled to God. It is on this day we shout out, “HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!” And this is a great ending to a great week.

The Lord bless all of you as you celebrate His resurrection this Easter.

In Christ,
Pastor Hauter

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The Chicago Tribune had this headline on the front page of the Wednesday, January 18, 2006 edition: “Right-to-die law upheld” This is about assisted suicide. The article quoted Barbara Coombs Lee, President of Compassion in Dying Federation. She said, “This is a watershed decision [that] reaffirms the liberty, dignity and privacy Americans cherish at the end of life.”

So what is dignity? According to Merriam-Webster's dictionary the first definition is “the quality or state of being worthy, honored, or esteemed.” What is liberty? It is being free. And privacy is being apart from others. It seems that what an American cherishes most is the freedom to decide whether he is worthy of life and to decide this on his own without anyone telling him he can’t do it.

Americans love freedom. We say, “It’s a free country.” What they mean is they can do whatever they want. If I want to smoke a cigarette in a building I can because I have a right to smoke whenever and wherever I want. That is how we interpret freedom. It is an individual thing. And it does not matter how it affects others. If my smoking is causing someone else to have a health problem, well then that is just too bad for him because when you ask me not to smoke you are infringing on my rights to do whatever I please.

But even in America this great land of freedom we cannot do everything we please. I cannot decide drive eastbound in the westbound lanes. I cannot decide that a red stoplight means I have the right of way, etc. Even in the land of great freedom, America, I still have to abide by many restrictions to my freedom.

Getting back to the article in the Chicago Tribune, some will argue that it is their own life so what is the harm? But is it really your life? Do you owe somebody else your life? Yes! If I left God out of the picture, of which I can’t, but for now I will, I would have to say that you owe your life to your parents. If they aren’t here, you aren’t here. If their parents aren’t here then they aren’t here and then you aren’t here. That brings this number of people you owe your life to up to six. And it grows at a rapid rate. Adding one more generation, great grandparents, brings the number up to fourteen. That is fourteen people that we owe our life to and we haven’t even begun to scratch the surface. If we keep going back generations we owe our lives to millions of people. So we can come to the conclusion if one of them is not here in history, then we are not here.

The truth is, we owe our life to God. It is God who breathes life into you. Genesis 2:7 - "The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." We owe our lives to God for without Him we are never here.

What about privacy? What does God say about our privacy? He commanded us to love Him and one another. Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus replied: "`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.'" Where are you in this commandment? You are the one commanded to love God and your neighbor not just yourself. And that isn’t private, that is public.

What about dignity? What is our worth when we are so sick we have to be taken care for the rest of our lives? You can always pray for the Church of Christ. You can always pray for others. But more important than that, your worth is not measured by how you feel, it is measured by how much God loves you. John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." He loved you so much that He gave Himself up for you on the cross, so that you might have eternal life. He rose from the dead and gives of Himself to you. You are valued by Him.

In Christ,
Pastor Hauter

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