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September2011 Newletter

Those of you who know me and my love for sports will think that the title of this article will be the bronze medal given to those who come in third in an Olympic competition. You might think I’m going to encourage people that we don’t have to be first to get to Heaven; or that doing your best is all that counts; or that humility is a good thing; or maybe even, that sports/activities can distract us from worshipping God. All of the above are true--but that’s not what I’m going to talk about.
Actually, the term ‘the Third Place’ was used by a man named Ray Oldenburg who wrote a book called “The Great Good Place”. In the book, he observes that we have a home (the First Place) and our occupation (the Second Place). But to have a well-balance, healthy life and lifestyle, he proposes that we need a Third Place. Third Place is somewhere public were we can interact with our community. It’s a place where we can feel relaxed but rejuvenated; easygoing but engaged; satisfied yet stimulated. According to Oldenburg, it can be a coffee shop, a community center or a social club. I think I’ve got a better suggestion for your Third Place: Church!

In particular Good Shepherd!

Church meets all of Oldenburg’s criteria: open to the public, easily accessible, food and drink available, inexpensive, conversation flows there, upbeat atmosphere, and a mix of new and old faces. Your Third Place recharges your batteries so that you can be better for your family and for your professional life. It leads you to be a better person.

Something to Think About…

We have it Good!

     I just returned from an extended vacation in Eastern Europe. We visited my parents who have been serving as missionaries in the Ukraine, Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria. I’m here to tell you that as Americans, we have it good!
     For example, think about the worst back country road you’ve been on, complete with potholes, ruts, washed-out roads and more curves than wet spaghetti. This is a major highway there. An 82 mile drive on the main highway from Ternopol to Lviv took us a three hour tour (literally). Main highways go directly through tiny villages with barely enough room for two cars to pass by each other. That’s if you can bet by the cars, bikes, pedestrians and cows (you read that right).
     In several of these countries, the entire bathroom was the size of your average shower—and included the toilet and sink…with no shower curtain. You had to remove the toilet paper before you showered.
     Don’t get me wrong. We had a great time, but it feels great to be home. Boy, do we have it good in America.
    I am reminded of how good we are compared to anyone who doesn’t know the security of Jesus by faith. As Christians we have the Gospel… “The power of God for the salvation off everyone who believes.” We have the forgiveness of all our sins—the big ones and the small ones, the ones we remember and the ones we don’t, the public ones and the private ones. We have salvation from sin, Satan, death and hell and the promise of eternal life in Heaven. We have the peace and joy and hope that these promises of the Gospel afford us. We have answers to our every prayer, God’s guidance and direction, his daily presence and protection. We have his Word readily available to us and the Holy Spirit to guide us into and through that Word. The fruits of the Spirit fill us and spill over into our lives. All these come as undeserved demonstrations of God’s love. Jesus earned them by his death on the cross and resurrection from the grave. Boy, do we have it good! While others try to earn love, we have love. All ours free of charge.

A trip like the one we took gives a person the opportunity to once again appreciate the many good things we have and so often take for granted. I pray that you daily appreciate the many good things that are yours day in and day out by God’s grace in Christ. We have it good, brothers and sisters!
Pastor Matt Vogt, Las Vegas

WORLD MISSION UPDATE- South America
-Bolivia
Inquiries from a Lutheran church body in Bolivia desiring confessional Lutheran instruction have been answered by our team of Latin America Traveling Theological Educators (LATTE). Teaching visits have been very well received and are opening up possibilities for future work in Bolivia.
-Brazil
Three missionaries (one a retired volunteer) and two national pastors continue to work in South America’s largest country. Six registered congregations with approximately 460 souls have officially organized a national church body, the Brazilian Lutheran Church. Two seminary students continue full-time studies. The goal is to reach a critical mass of congregations, members, and national workers, which is able to stand on its own as a confessional Lutheran church body. God willing, that will happen in 2012.
-Colombia
Political unrest and economic instability continue to present challenges, but members of the Latin America Traveling Theological Educators team have set up a system to maintain contact with and encourage the Colombian church. Congregations in Medellin and Bogota as using distance learning to train national pastors.
-Puerto Rico
The Confessional Lutheran Church of Puerto Rico was officially accepted into fellowship with WELS, another milestone for this small group.

BIBLE QUIZ… on Absalom 2 Sam 13-18

1. If there was ever a self-absorbed ‘pretty boy’, it was Absalom. (Perhaps he was a body builder too, since his name was ABSsalom). He rarely cut his hair because he was so vain. When he did
     a.    the single girls of Israel waited nearby to get a souvenir
     b.    it weighed two hundred shekels
     c.    it was cut by his own personal royal barber
     d.    It was woven into hair-pieces for all the bald men in Israel.

2. Another demonstration of his ego was that he had
     a.    50 wives and concubines
     b.    50 men run ahead of his to announce his presence
     c.    50 purple sets of clothing
     d.    50 red arrow-proof glass-bubbled chariots with dice hanging from them and rims that spun around when he stopped.

3. David was so angry that Absalom had murdered his half-brother (in response for the rape of his sister Tamar) that David banished Absalom from his presence for several years. Absalom’s friend (a woman from Tekoa) told David a story to help David change his mind. She told David that her husband had died; she had two sons who fought and one killed the other; now the clan wanted him banished. She wanted David to
     a.    fight against the clan because they were cruel
     b.    invoke the name of God against the avengers so they would not harm her son
     c.    shelter him in the palace until the seven year retribution time was up
     d.    Get him an audition to ‘Dancing with the Stars’ so he would be too famous to hurt.

4.    Absalom tried to steal the kingdom from David by
     a.    assassinating David with poisoned food
     b.    telling the people David didn’t care about them and then leading a civil war rebellion
     c.    bribing key officials and rigging the next election
     d.    promising change and appealing to liberals and anti-war activists

COMING IN SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER:
•    Sept. 17th will be the Family Bike Hike along the trails in Livermore. We’ve included a picnic lunch at a park along the way. It leaves church at 11:00.
•    On Oct. 15th there will be a 25 mile adult bike. The time has not yet been determined. Tim Harsch is co-coordinating both bike trips.
•    October 16th features our Anniversary Service/Festival of Friendship/Block Party. We have a special service on that day. Following that 5th street will be blocked off and our block party will begin with food, games and a jump house. All are invited.
•    On the 29th we’ll participate in the Downtown Halloween Celebration (to serve our community and invite people to church). See Patrick or Melody Tesler to help. We need enough candy for about 1000 kids.
•    On the 30th, we thank God for the Reformation. Part of our celebration is our Favorite Hymn Festival that day where you vote for your favorite hymns and we sing the most popular eight that day.
•    Still a possibility is going to see the musical ‘Wizard of Oz’.   Talk to Ron Kerst if you might be interested in that.

     Families are like old quilts; they tend to unravel at times, but can be stitched back together with love

Questions or Comments? Please email the Webmaster skerst@comcast.net

WE CAN BE YOUR THIRD PLACE!

Those of you who know me and my love for sports will think that the title of this article will be the bronze medal given to those who come in third in an Olympic competition. You might think I’m going to encourage people that we don’t have to be first to get to Heaven; or that doing your best is all that counts; or that humility is a good thing; or maybe even, that sports/activities can distract us from worshipping God. All of the above are true--but that’s not what I’m going to talk about. Actually, the term ‘the Third Place’ was used by a man named Ray Oldenburg who wrote a book called “The Great Good Place”. In the book, he observes that we have a home (the First Place) and our occupation (the Second Place). But to have a well-balance, healthy life and lifestyle, he proposes that we need a Third Place. Third Place is somewhere public were we can interact with our community. It’s a place where we can feel relaxed but rejuvenated; easygoing but engaged; satisfied yet stimulated. According to Oldenburg, it can be a coffee shop, a community center or a social club. I think I’ve got a better suggestion for your Third Place: Church! In particular Good Shepherd! Church meets all of Oldenburg’s criteria: open to the public, easily accessible, food and drink available, inexpensive, conversation flows there, upbeat atmosphere, and a mix of new and old faces. Your Third Place recharges your batteries so that you can be better for your family and for your professional life. It leads you to be a better person.	Do you think church (and Bible Classes) matches the description? If it doesn’t, something is seriously wrong. Church should be an essential part of the community. It’s not the first or second places only because we spend so much more time in those two areas, but I hope Church, God’s House, is your Third Place. Certainly other places could meet Oldenburg’s list, but church offers so much more! Where better can you go where you can enjoy caring people, great snacks and also become spiritually strong at the same time?! We meet informally, talk and get to know people like the author says, but our church family also comes together to worship our Eternal Father, to be lifted up by Jesus’ forgiveness and then given a stronger moral backbone by the Holy Spirit. We share our struggles with each other, we encourage each other, we grow stronger with each other. That is what a great Third Place does. It’s not forced, not false, not foolish. How many times didn’t Jesus long for camaraderie and support from his disciples--but so often they were AWOL. All too frequently when Jesus needed his friends most, they were there the least. When they should have been front and center, they were back and cornered. They were caught napping in Gethsemane, fleeing in Kidron, and absent at Calvary. They doubted his resurrection (even after he appeared to them) and needed a shove by the Holy Spirit to go out into all the world. Neither the disciples nor believers are perfect. Only Jesus was. Good thing He was the Lord. I think that is why Jesus could say to each of us, “Come unto me all you who are weary and I will give you rest.” He’s our rescuer and relief. His church is our Third Place. I hope you see Good Shepherd as your Third Place and that I see you there often as we wait to go from Third to Home, to Heaven.


Something to Think About… We have it Good! I just returned from an extended vacation in Eastern Europe. We visited my parents who have been serving as missionaries in the Ukraine, Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria. I’m here to tell you that as Americans, we have it good! For example, think about the worst back country road you’ve been on, complete with potholes, ruts, washed-out roads and more curves than wet spaghetti. This is a major highway there. An 82 mile drive on the main highway from Ternopol to Lviv took us a three hour tour (literally). Main highways go directly through tiny villages with barely enough room for two cars to pass by each other. That’s if you can bet by the cars, bikes, pedestrians and cows (you read that right). In several of these countries, the entire bathroom was the size of your average shower—and included the toilet and sink…with no shower curtain. You had to remove the toilet paper before you showered. Don’t get me wrong. We had a great time, but it feels great to be home. Boy, do we have it good in America. I am reminded of how good we are compared to anyone who doesn’t know the security of Jesus by faith. As Christians we have the Gospel… “The power of God for the salvation off everyone who believes.” We have the forgiveness of all our sins—the big ones and the small ones, the ones we remember and the ones we don’t, the public ones and the private ones. We have salvation from sin, Satan, death and hell and the promise of eternal life in Heaven. We have the peace and joy and hope that these promises of the Gospel afford us. We have answers to our every prayer, God’s guidance and direction, his daily presence and protection. We have his Word readily available to us and the Holy Spirit to guide us into and through that Word. The fruits of the Spirit fill us and spill over into our lives. All these come as undeserved demonstrations of God’s love. Jesus earned them by his death on the cross and resurrection from the grave. Boy, do we have it good! While others try to earn love, we have love. All ours free of charge.	A trip like the one we took gives a person the opportunity to once again appreciate the many good things we have and so often take for granted. I pray that you daily appreciate the many good things that are yours day in and day out by God’s grace in Christ. We have it good, brothers and sisters! Pastor Matt Vogt, Las Vegas WORLD MISSION UPDATE- South America -Bolivia Inquiries from a Lutheran church body in Bolivia desiring confessional Lutheran instruction have been answered by our team of Latin America Traveling Theological Educators (LATTE). Teaching visits have been very well received and are opening up possibilities for future work in Bolivia. -Brazil Three missionaries (one a retired volunteer) and two national pastors continue to work in South America’s largest country. Six registered congregations with approximately 460 souls have officially organized a national church body, the Brazilian Lutheran Church. Two seminary students continue full-time studies. The goal is to reach a critical mass of congregations, members, and national workers, which is able to stand on its own as a confessional Lutheran church body. God willing, that will happen in 2012. -Colombia Political unrest and economic instability continue to present challenges, but members of the Latin America Traveling Theological Educators team have set up a system to maintain contact with and encourage the Colombian church. Congregations in Medellin and Bogota as using distance learning to train national pastors. -Puerto Rico The Confessional Lutheran Church of Puerto Rico was officially accepted into fellowship with WELS, another milestone for this small group.