First Sunday of Advent; November 30, 2008

Liturgical Color: Blue

Order of Service - Matins LSB p. 219

Venite LSB p. 220-1

Office Hymn - LSB 332 Savior of the Nations, Come

Reading Isaiah 64:1-9 
Reading 1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Reading Mark 11:1-10

Te Deum LSB p. 224ff

Closing Hymn - LSB 350Come Thou Precious Ransom, Come

The December Edition of the Chimes is Now Available!

 

The December Edition
of the Chimes Newsletter
is available at

December Chimes (pdf format)

"Chimes" is the monthly newsletter of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Creston, IA for subscription information please contact the Chimes Editor

Thanksgiving; November 25, 2008

Liturgical Color: White

Order of Service - Divine Service 5 LSB p. 213

Processional Hymn LSB 837 Lift High the Cross (text unavailable)

Old Testament Reading     Deuteronomy 8:1–10
Epistle     Philippians 4:6–20

Hymn of Praise LSB 790 Praise to the Lord, the Almighty  

Holy Gospel     Luke 17:11–19

Creedal Hymn LSB 954 We All Believe in One True God  

Distribution Hymns
  LSB 528 Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing   
  LSB 809 Great Is Thy Faithfulness (text unavailable)   
  LSB 797 Praise the Almighty  

Post Communion Hymn LSB 617 O Lord, We Praise Thee     st. 1

Recessional Hymn LSB 895 Now Thank We All Our God

Newsflash! F.L.O.C.K. has Thanksgiving Fun!

F.L.O.C.K. has a great evening making a "candy" Thanksgiving Meal, and practices the Christmas program.

Sunday Morning Adult Bible Study; Every Sunday 10:15am

Continues Each Sunday
10:15am

"The Sign of Jonah."

A study of the Book of Jonah

What did Jesus mean when he said, "No sign will be given except the sign of Jonah?"

Follow the prophet as we read the account of his "fish" tale.  We'll ask these questions... and more.

What really happened to Jonah?  What is "Typology?" What is Sheol? What is repentance?

Please stop by and have a cup of coffee a doughnut and fellowship around God's Word.

27th Sunday after Pentecost; November 16, 2008

Liturgical Color: Green

Order of Service - Matins LSB p. 219

Venite LSB p. 220-1

Office Hymn - The Day Is Surely Drawing Near LSB 508

Reading Zephaniah 1:7–16
Reading 1 Thessalonians 5:1–11
Reading Matthew 25:14–30

Te Deum LSB p. 224ff

Closing Hymn - We Give Thee But Thine Own LSB 781

Twenty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost; November 9, 2008

Liturgical Color: Green

Preparation

Processional Hymn - Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise LSB 802

Service of the Word

Old Testament Amos 5:18–24
Epistle 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
Gospel Matthew 25:1–13

Hymn of the Day - Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying LSB 516

Service of the Sacrament

Distribution Hymns
The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns LSB 348
Soul, Adorn Yourself with Gladness LSB 636
When Peace, like a River LSB 763

Recessional Hymn - How Great Thou Art LSB 801

Host a Bible Study in Your Home

Share God’s Word with your friends and neighbors

Commitment: 5 Sessions

When should I have it? You pick the time and dates. (Subject to Pastor’s availability)

• Mornings
• Evenings
• Afternoons
• your choice

No training necessary! Pastor Watt will lead the study

Who do I invite? Up to 10 people

• Friends
• Neighbors
• Relatives
• Members of Trinity
• Members of other churches

What topics are available? Many, you choose...

• Baptism
• Justification
• Sanctification
• The Lord’s Supper
• The Word
• Prayer
• Faith
• Kingdom of God
• Law & Gospel
• Revelation
• Creation
• In Christ
• Heresy
• Repentance
• Heaven
• Holy Spirit
• Forgiveness
• God Our Father
• Christ in You
• Abiding in Christ
• The Devil
• Teaching
• The Office of the Keys
• See pastor for more…

What do I provide? You make all the necessary arrangements and provide a place for the study. Don’t forget the food!

Cost:

• Materials: total $25 (all study materials included!)
• Fellowship: Free.

More questions? Contact Pastor Watt

(605)579-0005 or Pastor@TrinityCreston.org

Pastor's Page - November 2008

Dear members of Trinity;
This month we are continuing our series on Worship. Last month we talked about the invocation, and how it reminds us of our Baptism. Isn’t it wonderful that we have such a strong tradition that we are often reminded of the time when God reached out and touched us, and made us His very own children?
This month we are going to talk about confession / absolution. In reality the confession and absolution are not part of the “Divine Service” at all. Really they are something we do to prepare for worship. The worship service properly begins with the Introit (which we’ll talk about next month). In the old days there wasn’t a “public” confession, because everyone who was going to come to the Lord’s Supper attended a private confession. But as private confession became a less used part of church life in the United States, public confession was added to the corporate worship of the church. There are some very strong disadvantages to public confession. First and foremost is that it is general. “Most merciful God we confess that we are sinful and unclean.” It’s a one-size-fits-all phrase. The confession does describe our state before God very accurately; we have indeed sinned against Him in all the ways we say here. And it accurately spells out what we deserve, death and hell. And the forgiveness we receive is just as sure as if you received it privately. The disadvantage comes in if we are burdened by a particular sin. Sometimes a particular sin may not want to leave us alone. Sometimes, we are plagued with guilt from some action we’ve done that hurt someone. In cases like this it may help to hear that God forgives that sin. “Dear Pastor,” the private confession begins, “I have sinned against God in these ways…” and the pastor answers, “…in the name of Jesus, and by His command you are forgiven for those very sins!” It’s not a matter of the sureness of the forgiveness; it’s a matter of our needing to hear it in a very specific way. I am available for Private Confession, just stop by and talk any time.
Why do we confess our sins? We do it because God calls us to do it. We even repeat the command from God’s Word to remind ourselves why we do it. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:8-9) Confession is about God’s promises. We confess because God promises to forgive. We need forgiveness because we are sinful people. But, it’s also important to remember that God doesn’t forgive us because we confess, He forgives us when we confess. You might say that when we “keep on confessing,” God continues to forgive. It is a way of saying that as long as we continue to have faith, God continues to forgive. As long as we continue to look to Him for forgiveness we are forgiven. You see God’s forgiveness is His gift to us because of what Jesus has done, because Jesus was born, lived, died and rose again. He has done everything necessary to earn our forgiveness. All we do is look in faith for that forgiveness, because we know that we need it. That’s what faith is all about; trusting in what God has done, not depending on what we have done, or do. As the passage says; If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and don’t know the truth. God forgives us because of Jesus when we trust that He will do so.
God’s richest blessings as you worship this month.
Pastor Watt

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