St. Paul Lutheran Church in East Lansing, Michigan. Member congregation of the ELCA - Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.

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November 2006

This is the time of year when we look and give God thanks for all our blessings. We will gather, those of us who don't have far to travel to be with family, on Wednesday, Nov. 22 at 7:00pm to thank God for all the blessings heaped upon us this year. In a small way we do this too by bringing food for eight needy families to the Fellowship Hall by noon on the 18th. The youth and other volunteers will deliver these meals on the 19th. Volunteers are still needed to drive and assist in packing. Sign-up sheet in the narthex. It is a good feeling to help in this way.

I ask the Lord's guidance for our Annual Congregational Meeting on Nov. 19 at 1:00pm. We have some important questions with which to deal. Do we want to purchase the land? Do we want to build on to the fellowship/education wing of the church building? These are the two biggies but there are a couple others at least: How soon do we need to pay off the roof? ($11,000+ still owed) and, can the congregation afford to pay the pastor synod guideline salary? These are only several of the questions we need to look at and decide upon. These are ones for which we need to ask the Lord's guidance. It has been a struggle for me as I look at our numbers in worship of late thinking we may be biting off more than we can chew.

But on the other hand I don't want to stifle the potential for growth that is ours. We do have a good location to invite others into our Lord's fellowship and many gifts to share with those who do not know Jesus. For this is what we are to be about, sharing the joy of knowing Jesus. So I invite your input at this important meeting. Please pray that the Lord will guide us and that we will listen to the Holy Spirit's leading. And then come and participate in the meeting. I want to thank all officers and committee members for their work during this past year. Without your commitment and support it would be most difficult to accomplish what needs to be done.

Finally, I would like to invite you to join us for an adult class entitled, "A New Look at Jesus." This is from the series "Living the Questions." This is a 12- week video-based series with 20-30 minute presentations by different theologians and scholars followed by our discussion of questions for faith and life. This series will raise as many questions as it will give answers as to how we look at Jesus in today's world. There is no cost for this class. Just bring your questions and an open mind. We start Wednesday, Nov. 8 at 7:30pm.

There are other Adult Christian Education opportunities coming up soon. If you are interested in finding out more about St. Paul's or the Lutheran Church please contact me or the office and we can set up an Inquirer's Class. Have a blessed Thanksgiving season.

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