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Salem
Lutheran
Church
9655 Pioneer Trail Greenfield, MN 55357
Paul T. Schuler, Pastor (763)498-7281 (office) (920)284-0172 (cell)
pastorschuler@ salemwels.org
Paul M. Kuehn, Pastor (763)486-3397 (cell)
pastorkuehn@ salemwels.org
Church Secretary Brenda Berkenes
(763)479-9161 (cell) church
@salemwels.org
Salem
Lutheran
School 9615 Pioneer Trail
Greenfield, MN 55357
Principal Ryan Randall
rrandall@ salemwels.org
School Secretary
Tracy Schuler (763)498-7283 (office)
school@ salemwels.org
Faculty
Ryan Randall (7 & 8)
Eric Hahn (5 & 6) Jodi Brandel (3 & 4)
Merry Leerssen (1 & 2) Rebekah Bohlmann (K) Lisa Charlson (PreK)
Shelley Kromschroeder Kari Paul (Band Director)
www.salemwels.org
Volume 23, No. 11 November 2019
“Jesus, Savior, pilot me
over life’s tempestuous sea …
Chart and compass
come from thee:
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.” THE PILOT Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church and School Newsletter
The God of All Generations
Faith isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. Actually, it’s probably fairer to describe it as a marathon relay race. God uses His Word to strengthen our faith in Him and that faith urges us forward through life. As we progress farther along our earthly race, God helps us to look back along our course.
God helps us remember the blessings he has used to refresh us along the way. God reminds us of the challenges he has placed in our path, challenges through which God sustained us, through which God refined us. Trust in God grew. In times of blessing and happiness and times of hurt and challenge, God was always there, our constant companion.
Then we begin to look ahead and realize that the goal is gradually coming into view. Our earthly race will not last forever. Eventually we must cross the finish line and into eternity. Once again, we look for our companion. And there He stands as always. Our Savior urges us forward to trust that He will carry us safely through the finish line as well.
Then the relay race comes in. We begin to look at the other people in the race with us. Our children, our relatives, our neighbors, our friends. Some of them are further ahead of us in the race. Some of them have further to go, their finish line lies beyond our time. God has called us to share the Word with them, to pass on what we have learned about God and His faithfulness and
By Pastor Paul M. Kuehn
Salem Lutheran Church Pastor
“The God of All Generations” continued on page 3
The Pioneers met on Tuesday, October 8th at the Loretto Fire Station. The kids were allowed to try on the fire gear that the Fireman wear and see how heavy the clothing is. They looked around the trucks and learned about all the different tools and how they are used in different calls. If you were unable to join us for the October event, don’t worry there is still time to join Lutheran Pioneers! Pioneers next meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 12, 6:00pm in the Salem Gym.
Lutheran Pioneers-
Join the fun! By Tracy Gutknecht
Lutheran Pioneer Leader
Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
-Psalm 90:1-2
”Pioneers” continued on page 2
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Salem Lutheran Mission
Salem Lutheran Church exists to support, encourage and train God’s people in
Christian discipleship at every age level and ability.
Come - Connect - Serve!
Save the Date— Christmas Services
Take a break from the busyness of the season, and bring your family to Christmas for Family at Salem Lutheran School. This family-friendly event features bounce houses and games to help the kids burn off some energy in the middle of winter. There will be a special 10-minute video showing of the very first Christmas, to celebrate the birth of Jesus. The video will have showtimes playing throughout the event. There will also be light refreshments and a coloring contest! The event will take place at Salem Lutheran School, 9655 Pioneer Trail, Greenfield (just south of Hanover) from 2-4 p.m., Saturday, December 14.
By Liz Hackenmueller
Recruitment Planning Committee Member
Christmas for Family
Sunday, December 8 8:00 a.m. Worship
10:30 a.m. Worship with PreK-K (Salem
School & Sunday School) Christmas
Friday, December 20
8:00 a.m. Salem School Dress Rehearsal
Sunday, December 22
8:00 a.m. Worship Service
10:30 a.m. Sunday School Christmas
Tuesday, December 24
5:00 p.m. Salem School (Grades 1-8)
Christmas
7:00 p.m. Christmas Eve Candlelight
Service
Wednesday, December 25
9:00 a.m. Christmas Day Worship
Sunday, December 29
8:00 a.m. Worship
(No Family Bible Hour)
10:30 a.m. Worship
Tuesday, December 31
7:00 p.m. New Year’s Eve Worship
(with Lord’s Supper)
We are looking for a volunteer or two (can be older youths ninth grade or older adults) to come and help out at the Lutheran Pioneer meetings. You would be helping guide the kids with the activities and crafts. If you are interested please reach out to Tracy Gutknecht for more information.
If you have any questions regarding the Pioneer Program, please contact the office or Tracy Gutknecht @ 763-682-2286 or Scott Anderson @ 612-418-3287.
Pioneers
“Lutheran Pioneers” continued from page 1
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Salem is a member of an association of congregations
supporting West Lutheran High School, located at 3350 Harbor
Lane North , Plymouth, MN. Salem has a number of students
attending West Lutheran. For more information, call
763-509-9378 or visit at www.wlhs.net
Salem is a part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran
Synod. www.wels.net
Run the Race of Faith
“The God of All Generations” continued from page 1
place it firmly into their hands the same way a relay runner passes the baton.
Moses and his generation may have wondered how well they had passed the baton on to the next generation. Psalm 90 is the only psalm written in the book by Moses. Moses wrote it during the marathon 40 years that Israel spent wandering in the wilderness. Think how their earthly race had gone.
They had started fast out of the gate from Egypt, a strong start. They had the wonders God had displayed to the Egyptians and the path God had opened to them through the sea fresh in their minds. “God is on our side. God can be trusted.” Then they slowed down. They stumbled at Sinai and a couple more times on the way to the promised land. “Maybe God’s on our side? Has God brought us out here to help or harm us?” They were almost to the goal when they came to a complete stop. After spying out the strength of the people of Canaan, after all the challenges God had seen them through, they seem to have forgotten where they started. “God isn’t on our side. God can’t be trusted.” The odd thing is that God had never left them. Throughout their journey, God had shown himself in a very visible way as a constant companion. God hadn’t gone away. They had forgotten who they were running with.
The result? Their journey got longer. God told them their generation would finish their race in the wilderness. The next generation would finish their
race in the promised land. The things they had learned about God from their time in Egypt and beyond would need to be passed on to the next generation so that they would know what God had done. But how could they encourage the next generation to trust in God, when they could look back on their own race and see the times they had failed to do the same?
Moses offers such wonderful gospel comfort for all of us in his song, Psalm 90. Yes, there’s certainly Law. Moses reminds us of the death that every person deserves under God’s anger. But think of how Moses begins. Lord, you are and have been our dwelling place, our place of safety. And you have been that not just to us, you promise to be a constant companion to all generations. In fact, before all generations came into being, you were there. You created the world. You are in charge. You will protect. You can be trusted.
That knowledge leads to thanksgiving. Moses and his generation could rejoice, even though they had stumbled and almost dropped the baton, God had His hands on their trembling hands and on their words. He is the God, not just of one generation, but of all generations. God would use His strength to make sure faith was passed from one generation into the hearts of the next.
That knowledge is our comfort too. Do you find yourself worrying or wondering what will happen after you cross the finish line of life to those who are still running the race? Do you wonder about your ability to pass on what you have learned about the Savior and place it firmly in the hands of the next generation? Don’t forget who you are running with.
When you cross the finish line, God will still have his hands on the relay baton of faith. His hands will be on the lives and on the hearts of the next generation through His Word just as they were on
yours. Passing faith on to the next generation didn’t depend on how well Moses and his generation had run the race of faith. Whether you have run the race of faith well or stumbled in your trust in God, it doesn’t depend on you either. Human strength would never be enough. But God’s strength is. God can be trusted to do for others what he has done for you.
With that confidence, we can pray as Moses did at the end of the psalm, totally certain of God’s grace. We pray: “Satisfy us in the morning with your un-failing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen trouble. May your deeds be shown to your serv-ants, your splendor to their children. May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” (Psalm 90:14-17).
Sunday November 3rd
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Board of Elders Jim Dixon
Roland Kromschroeder Tom Bursch
Joe Siers Kim Class
Kevin Schmidt
Board of Education Phillip Class
John Pfotenhauer Scott Anderson
Chad Vik Eric Quist
Board of Finance David Larkin David Lieder Tony Klein John Ritari Doug Beise
Grant McFadden
Board of Trustees Cameron Nystrom
Derek Reinking Kerby Desens
Brandon Jochum Mitchell Anderson
Derek Lieder
S a l e m C h u r c h C o u n c i l
Member News
Baptisms
September 29th — Brynnley Ann Jurrens daughter of Nick and Shannon Jurrens
October 6th — Theodore Merlin Reinking, son of Dan and Chelsea Reinking
October 13th — Oakley Rae Wilczynski, daughter of Brad and Rachel Wilczynski
Funerals
Committal Service for Randy Manthei was held October 6th at the old Methodist cemetery,
Burschville. (Randy went to his heavenly home February 25, 2018).
Transfers
Colton and Rachel Berger (Andrew) to Cross of Christ Lutheran Church & School,
Coon Rapids, MN
Pilot Newsletter editor wanted: Salem is looking for someone to fill the role as the Pilot newsletter editor. The
newsletter editor role requires approximately 5-6 volunteer hours per month and past experience using the Publisher program. If you would like to serve as the editor of the newsletter, please call the Salem Administrative Office (763)498-7283. A sincere note of thanks to Liz Hackenmuller, who after several years of faithful service as the newsletter editor, decided to resign from the volunteer position. We wish Liz the Lord’s richest blessings. (Liz offered to share her tips and tricks of editing the newsletter with whoever takes over the volunteer role. Thank you Liz!)
About The Pilot The Pilot is a monthly newsletter of Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church and School. The intent of the newsletter is to provide members and families of Salem school with information about Salem Lutheran Church and School, as well as highlight pertinent information from the WELS Synod, West Lutheran High School, and other area affiliated organizations. There are many organizations within the Salem congregation and keeping the communication lines open is very important. Information for The Pilot needs to be submitted to [email protected] by the 20th of the month for the next month’s edition. For any suggestions or ideas regarding the newsletter, please contact: Brenda Berkenes at [email protected]. Tired of paper? Prefer to receive your newsletter by email? Contact the Salem Administrative Office (763)498-7283 and request to be added to the Pilot newsletter email distribution group.
SCRIP is an opportunity to purchase gift cards for everyday items that "give back" to tuition assistance for a student of their choice or general tuition assistance fund. Rebates change periodically. You can view a current list of available gift cards with respective rebates either at shopwithscrip.com or paper copies are available in the office. The cards are purchased at face value online, and a percentage of the value "gives back." Once your account is created online, you can purchase a SCRIP NOW card in real
time (which is an electronic card done through your unique online information) or order a physical card on by the 1st and 15th of the month. Payment options: direct withdrawal, check, or Visa / MasterCard credit cards are now accepted for a 2.6% fee. For more information and to create an account, see the attached information, visit shopwithscip.com, or contact the scrip coordinator, Cassandra (CC) Arnold, at [email protected] or 612-501-5080.
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Advent By Candlelight-2019
Ladies, you won’t want to miss this year’s Advent by Candlelight at 3 p.m. Sunday, December 1st in the Salem School building.
Please plan to join us for an evening of visiting, enjoying beautiful music and delicious dessert. The theme is "An Evening with Isaiah". All women of Salem are invited, and are encouraged to invite their friends to prepare their hearts for Advent. Watch for an invitation in your Narthex church member box by Sunday, October 27th with information on how to reserve your seat. Additional invitations will be available on the table in the Narthex by Sunday, October 27th for Salem members to invite female family, friends and neighbors.
We cannot have our Advent by Candlelight event without the amazing Table Hostesses. Would you be willing to help with the event by being a table host? Please sign-up on the sheet in the church Narthex or contact Sarah Kinney ([email protected] or (612)802-0323). An informational sheet of table hostess expectations is available by the sign-up sheet.
For other Advent By Candlight event questions, please contact Deb Beise ([email protected] or (612) 201-4776).
As in the past, there is no charge to attend this event.
Salem School 2019 Fall Sports Update By Eric Hahn
Salem School Athletic Director
Fall athletics have officially come to an end and our young Sail-ors had a very successful year! God has truly blessed our young athletes with successes and adversity along the way. Success in Salem athletics is not just dependent on the result but the process. That process includes some very large obsta-cles. With coaches that guide players through strategies on how to overcome those obstacles, the athletes were able to rise up and face their adversity head on. Although the soccer team had many young players, they end-ed up having a tremendous season. For the second year in a row, other schools have declared the battles with Salem as the best they had all season. The grit and determination of those
players was outstanding. Volleyball had the best season they have had in a long time with one loss in the regular season. The improvement that those girls made in two years was something truly special. Alt-hough the team did not bring home the league trophy this year, they fought for every point in the tournament. Disc golf meets had a change of format this year to count overall points from the three meets to decide an overall league champion. Our four teams performed very well with one of them bringing home the A flight trophy! The other A team placed third overall with our B teams placing second and third overall.
Church Decorating Tuesday, December 3
Your help is needed on Tuesday, December 3rd, to decorate the church and Christmas tree for Christmas. We will start around 5:00 pm Feel free to come and help as your schedule allows. All help is appreciated. Let’s work together to make the House of the Lord ready to worship and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Christmas Caroling December 8 & 15
An adult choir will be Christmas caroling Sunday, December 8th. The Pioneers and Sunday School will be Christmas caroling on Sunday, December 15th. All church members are invited to join one or both groups to share the joy of the season in song with church member shut-ins. The groups meet at the church at 12:30 p.m. Route schedules and song lyrics are provided. Please contact Joe Siers at (763)370-4808 or [email protected] if you would like to carol with the Adult Choir Sunday, December 8. Please contact Tracy Gutknecht at (612)919-1392 or email [email protected] if you would like to carol with the Sunday School/Lutheran Pioneers group Sunday, December 15.
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Unrest in the Government? By Beth Evans
Malawi Nurse in Charge of the Medical Mission
Here in Lilongwe we do get to hear and see the news on television and the inter-net, as long as we have electricity. Power outages are common though, and being the dry season, we’ll probably be experi-encing longer stretches without power. It’s just an inconvenience, really, and we are thankful to have solar batteries to power our vaccine fridge and a generator if needed for light and computer use which would be mainly at night. When we do get the world news, it seems that much of it involves political and social unrest in many countries, including of course the US, England, and recently, Malawi. Malawi has had intermittent demonstra-tions in the larger cities like Lilongwe ever since the Presidential elections in May. People who support one of the candidates who lost to the incumbent president, want to march and voice their opposition to the electoral process which might not have been free and fair. The outcome remains to be seen after weeks of continued court hearings. In the meanwhile, roads can be impassable due to crowds, roadblocks and burning obstacles. Looting and vandalism
has occurred as crowds become out of control, and the protests sometimes became violent, with police intervening with teargas. As I write, we have been told there will be a march and demonstration tomorrow. Organizers urge peaceful protest, but businesses and government offices will have to close as they have before, just for protection of their property and workers. This affects our clinic as it is harder for Gary to do necessary errands in town, and it might be difficult for our staff to travel to where we pick them up on the way to our villages. We may need to make a decision about whether it is safe to travel to clinic at all. But God has been faithful over the past four months, and we haven’t had to cancel a single day. We have been given thumbs up and allowed to drive around road blocks, we are greeted with chants and smiles, and I feel our ambulance is surrounded by guardian angels. We leave early enough that we are out in the village before the demonstrations get going, and they are often finished when we return. To see the lines of people needing our help when we arrive at clinic, and to know that
we’ve saved lives by being there, is cause enough to step out in faith and carry on with the day’s work. We know you are praying for us and see the Lord answering those prayers daily. I am reminded of Isaiah 41:10. “Do not fear, for I am with you: do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Now, please know that there’s been no concerns about our safety. Gary and I had all four of our adult children come to visit us and travel in the country at two different times over the last 4 months and there were no problems. It was wonderful to experience Africa again through their eyes, and such a joy to see them eagerly helping out at clinic with registration or pill counting. Please pray for a return of peace and a stable, effective government in Malawi. Thank God that we are still allowed to live and work here freely to continue this medical mission. And thank you so much for your donations which allow the physical care and love of Jesus to reach Malawians.
“The Great are the works of the LORD; they are studied by all who delight in them. Psalm 111 V2, EHV “The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.” Psalms 111:2 KJV
Deeds can be small and deeds can be large. Some deeds are done in secret and some are done in full view. What drives a person to use their hands for deeds that build up the body of believers? John says, I love because God loved me. God, who sent Jesus, even while my stubborn heart was unwilling. So, this body, a jar of clay, has two natures. The new man lives in faith attached to the vine. Yet, the old Adam, clings to my every
step. Such is life in this world of sin. Each day, this body has needs to fill. God has given me skills, time and a place to earn my bread. I am thankful that God provides these things. God provides for each of us in unique ways. The body of believers is built up as each one shares what God provides. A few weeks ago, Lisa and I took some time to go listen to Stephen Bautista. Stephen travels the country with his family in a 28 ft travel trailer. His talents are song writing, guitar playing and singing. One of the songs he shared with us, 'You Thought of Me', runs through my mind as I go about my day. Stephen's message to each congregation he visits, 'Enlightening the lost, encouraging the found.' For over seven years, God has provided the means for Stephen to keep gas in the van, food on
the table and songs filling the church. Each day, Salem School's teachers open up their class room door and welcome in precious souls. And each day God's word is taught along with math, English, reading and science. Each week our pastors climb the steps to teach us the wonder of God's word speaking to each soul. Each day moms, dads hug their children, make a meal, teach them to pray and sing "I Know that My Redeemer Lives". The deeds (works) of the Lord are great! Let us take time to study what God tells us in His word and to appreciate what He is able to do with such fragile jars of clay.
Deeds By Joe Siers Recruitment Planning Committee Member
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A huge thanks to all who attended and volunteered for the October 5th Harvest Festival! Due to poor weather the festival took place in the gym and classrooms. Various carnival games were played in the classrooms with bounce houses and other activities in the gymnasium. The school was decorated with various harvest
decorations with the main entryway filled with straw bales and enormous pumpkins. The event had close to 100 attendees with about 30 individuals that do not attend Salem Lutheran Church or School. This was a tremendous turnout for the renewal of this event! Without the volunteers and those who donated candy, pop, decorations and other various activities, the festival would not have been a success. As this festival grows in future years and other events are hosted at church and school, please look for a way in which you can help. The more volunteers that are available to help in some capacity, the less time each individual will have to commit to. By doing this, we are sharing Christ’s love not only to one another, but to those in our communities. Thanks be to God for the opportunities he has given us to share that love both now and in the future.
By Eric Hahn
Recruitment Planning Committee Leader
Start Planning Now!
WELS International Youth Rally
June 23-26, 2020 University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN Registration: March 2-May 29
$375 until April 30 $395 May 1-May 29
For more information, wels.net/youthrally
Questions? [email protected]
Hang out with 2,000 peers who share your faith
Listen to speakers with stories of faith and hope from around the world
See yourself through the lens of Christ’s love
Learn how to serve Christ boldly
Experience lifting your voice in worship with thousands
Attend a variety of workshops with a biblical perspective on timely teen topics
Enjoy workshops run by UT recreational staff
Consider excursion opportunities (additional fee): Anakeesta Theme Park, river tubing, paintball, and more.
West Lutheran
Sunday at Salem
November 24, 2019
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Salem Ev. Lutheran Church and School 9655 Pioneer Trail Loretto, MN 55357-9694
Address Service Requested
Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage
PAID Permit No. 20 Loretto MN
Christmas For Family, page 2
Advent by Candlelight, page 5
Youth Rally Information, page 7
Wanted: Newsletter editor, page 4
INSIDE
Paul T. Schuler, Pastor Paul M. Kuehn, Pastor
Salem Administrative Office
(763)498-7283
Congregational Officers: Chairman: Joe Siers
Vice-Chairman: Tom Bursch Secretary: Vacant
Treasurer: David Lieder
Worship Services: Sundays
8 and 10:30 a.m. 9:15 Family Bible Hour
Wednesdays 7:00 p.m.
A member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church and School
www.salemwels.org
Located in the City of Greenfield, 2 miles south of Hanover on County Road 123
Thanksgiving Worship
Wednesday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. Grades K-8 Sing
Thursday, Nov. 28 at 9 a.m. Senior Choir Sings &
HandBells Ring
