FROM THE DESK OF . . .
Sunday, January 19 and Monday, January 20, 2025
From the desk of Linda Gerlach:
THE CHOSEN, Season 4 – At St. Paul, in our Bible classes we have been studying the video series THE CHOSEN since 2023. In this series, we see the life of Jesus Christ from the point of view of those who met him. It tells the “backstories” of Jesus, his disciples and other people that interacted with Jesus. For many of us, it has opened our eyes and hearts to the story of Jesus and has brought us closer to Him.
In the first 3 seasons, those of us who have viewed and studied THE CHOSEN in Bible classes or at home, have used a study guide that was developed by Christ Lutheran Church in Lincoln NE, which I tweaked for our use.
When I started working on the study guide for Season 4, I found a new study guide that was developed by Come and See Foundation, which is part of THE CHOSEN ministry organization. The guide was then expanded by Victory Lutheran Church. I have also added some new information to the study guide, which is at the front of the study guide in red.
Here are some updates in the study guide which I want to make note of here:
- The new study guide was written specifically for churches to use. THE CHOSEN organization has not published anything like this before.
- Pertinent Bible passages are mentioned in the study guide but are not written out in the study guide as they had been in Seasons 1 – 3. We will use our Bibles to study any passages that relate to the studies.
- I edited the section about how to view THE CHOSEN “at home”. It is ALWAYS available on THE CHOSEN app, which you can view on your smartphone, tablet, Roku or Amazon Firestick, or computer. This is the easiest way to view it. I updated the other places that you can view THE CHOSEN including DVD and Amazon Prime.
- Main Character Photos (page 4 in study guide) – I found a new source that has photos of the main characters. This is more complete than previous versions and helpful to use as a reference when you view THE CHOSEN.
Our Season 4 study of THE CHOSEN begins the week of January 26 and continues through the week of May 18. Adult Bible Study classes continue to meet on Sundays at 9:30am and Wednesdays at 11:00am in the Bible Study Room in the Upper Education Building. Study guides will be available at class or at The Information Center. Seasons 1 – 3 study guides are now available in a vertical plastic stand on the table under the TV in The Gathering Place.
God Bless your study of God’s word! +Linda Gerlach, Dir. of Adult Christian Education+
All are welcome at St. Paul Lutheran – Please allow God’s love to work in and through you to brighten the lives of members and visitors alike.
+ PRAYER CONCERNS for our St. Paul Family +
HEALING: Bill Baessler, Paul Baessler, Carol & Richard Carney, Lorraine Carroll, Karen Cowell, Zachary Dawson, Elijah Desouza, Joyce Dolpp, Neil Doucette, Dean Durow, Maureen Finch and her sister Colleen, Amy and David Fleischman, Charlie Grant, Pastor Green, Anne Gross, Margie Hadsell, Bonnie Haskell, Amanda Hughey, Loraine Jensen, Steve Keller, Pastor Dennis Krueger, MaryBeth Lee, Sue & Jeff Licht, Connie Maerten, Jackie Malinowski, Eunice & Jim Manth, Ric McClure, Jason McNair, Mel Miller, Mike Mueller, Kathy Nagel, McKenna O’Neil, Gloria & Bill Pittler, Doris Rae, Joy Rohring, Wayne Reichert, Jane Ruppert, Joe Sarzyniak, Leni Schofield, Randy Scott, Chris Thomas, Audrey Truax, Deb Tyler, Kathy Warriner, Frank Wendt, Mark Wurl, and Shirley Wurl.
AT HOME: Marlyn Gross under Hospice Care
HEALTHCARE FACILITIES: Mary Jo Bishop and Marilyn Rumbold.
MILITARY: Matthew Daugherty, Eric Davis, Aaron Fix, Zachary Kijowski, Joe Kloc, Joshua Lindsley, Christopher Manth, and Kyle Rae.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
LUTHERAN WOMEN IN MISSION (LWML) NEWS:
The Planet Green Recycle Fundraiser accepts ALL brands of ink cartridges. You can drop off ALL your empty cartridges in the labeled bin in the Gathering Place.
See the bulletin board in the Gathering Place for the most current Mite and Mission Grant Reports or go to the national web site lwml.org and the district web site east-distrlwml.org. Your continued prayers and support is greatly appreciated.
- For questions on any Lutheran Women in Mission news, you may contact either Bea Hapeman (716 -327-2400) or Marge Stoelting (716-693-7555).
***Mite boxes, Eastern District Newsletter, The LINK etc. can all be found on The Information Center in The Gathering Place.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Confirmation Class Assignments – Thursday, January 23, 2025
First Year Class – Read “The Apostles’ Creed; The Second Article” Question 125 pages 127– 130 from Luther’s Small Catechism. Read Chapter 16 from “The Story,” “The Beginning of the End; (of the Kingdom of Israel).” Attend church and complete a Worship Report Form.
Mentor question: Who has fallen short of the glory of God?
Second Year Class – Read “The Apostles’ Creed; The Second Article” Question 125, pages 127- 130 from Luther’s Small Catechism. Complete Lesson 17 “The Two Natures of Christ; The Office of Christ.” from “Exploring Luther’s Small Catechism: Attend church and complete a Worship Report Form. Mentor question: Who has fallen short of the glory of God?