reflections · september 12 at 4:45 pm. adult choir begins on wednesday, september 5 at 6:00 pm....

12
www.ascensionhsv.org 1 September, 2018 REFLECTIONS 1 Updates 2 From the SW Corner 4 From the Elder 6 DCM 7 Organist 8 Kids’ Page 9 Birthdays & Flowers 9 Missional Outreach 10 Stewardship 11 Music Ministry 12 Calendar ASCENSION LUTHERAN CHURCH, HUNTSVILLE, AL 35811 AMAZING GRACE How often have we sung that song, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound”? Sometimes when we sing our hymns, we don’t pay any attention to the words - unless there’s a different tune associated with the song, and then we think, “What’s that? That’s not the way it sounds!” There was a version of Amazing Grace playing in the background as this was being written, and I had to find out who was singing it and why it was repeating itself over and over, again. Come to find out, it was one of the main groups of Christian bands who had taken their Gospel in Song out on the road and they ended up in - Israel! Now, imagine, if you will, if Jesus had heard these people singing in His day while He was walking in the desert, looking for a place to pray and get away from the crowds. He would have seen people with tears on their faces. Some of the people would have had their hands raised toward the heavens, some would have had their hands fisted by their sides. Others would be praying the song with eyes closed, listening to the words and taking them to heart. And still others would have been statue still, unable to let the words take root in their hearts. Words set to music to praise God, music that can rock the soul and speak to one as nothing else can. After the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, what did they do? Build a bonfire and roast marshmallows because they were low on sugar? No! Miriam got out her tambourine, along with the rest of the women, and they sang and praised God for his amazing grace! (Exodus 14-15) When King David brought back the Ark of the Covenant (2 Samuel 6), did he catch a nap before going out for the evening? No! He gathered up his music men and instruments and danced for joy for God’s amazing grace! I think Jesus would have been right in the midst of His people in Israel during the Hillsong Tour. See if you can find His life in these people. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poYZ84diF44 WHATS INSIDE Worship Schedule Sunday 8:00 & 10:45 AM Monday 6:00 PM Bible Study Sunday 9:30 AM Tuesday 10:00 AM (Ladies) Tuesday 6:00 PM (All) Last Saturday of Month 8:30 AM (Men) BEGINNINGS NEW AND RENEWED Confirmation begins Wednesday, September 12 at 4:45 PM. Adult choir begins on Wednesday, September 5 at 6:00 PM. Ladies Tuesday morning Bible Study - 10:00 AM ALREADY IN PROGRESS: LWML - 2nd Saturday of month Men’s Prayer Breakfast - Last Saturday of Month Young Adult Bible Study - Sunday 9:30 AM Jeremiah Bible Study - Tuesday at 6:00 PM

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Page 1: REFLECTIONS · September 12 at 4:45 PM. Adult choir begins on Wednesday, September 5 at 6:00 PM. Ladies Tuesday morning Bible Study - 10:00 AM A ... It describes a pleasing personality

www.ascensionhsv.org 1

September, 2018

REFLECTIONS

1 Updates 2 From the SW Corner 4 From the Elder 6 DCM 7 Organist 8 Kids’ Page 9 Birthdays & Flowers 9 Missional Outreach 10 Stewardship 11 Music Ministry 12 Calendar

ASCENSION LUTHERAN CHURCH, HUNTSVILLE, AL 35811

AMAZING GRACE

How often have we sung that song, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound”? Sometimes when we sing our hymns, we don’t pay any attention to the words - unless there’s a different tune associated with the song, and then we think, “What’s that? That’s not the way it sounds!” There was a version of Amazing Grace playing in the background as this was being written, and I had to find out who was singing it and why it was repeating itself over and over, again. Come to find out, it was one of the main groups of Christian bands who had taken their Gospel in Song out on the road and they ended up in - Israel! Now, imagine, if you will, if Jesus had heard these people singing in His day while He was walking in the desert, looking for a place to pray and get away from the crowds. He would have seen people with tears on their faces. Some of the people would have had their hands raised toward the heavens, some would have had their hands fisted by their sides. Others would be praying the song with eyes closed, listening to the words and taking them to heart. And still others would have been statue still, unable to let the words take root in their hearts. Words set to music to praise God, music that can rock the soul and speak to one as nothing else can. After the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, what did they do? Build a bonfire and roast marshmallows because they were low on sugar? No! Miriam got out her tambourine, along with the rest of the women, and they sang and praised God for his amazing grace! (Exodus 14-15) When King David brought back the Ark of the Covenant (2 Samuel 6), did he catch a nap before going out for the evening? No! He gathered up his music men and instruments and danced for joy for God’s amazing grace! I think Jesus would have been right in the midst of His people in Israel during the Hillsong Tour. See if you can find His life in these people. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poYZ84diF44

WHAT’S INSIDE

Worship Schedule

Sunday 8:00 & 10:45 AM Monday 6:00 PM

Bible Study

Sunday 9:30 AM Tuesday 10:00 AM (Ladies) Tuesday 6:00 PM (All) Last Saturday of Month 8:30 AM (Men)

BEGINNINGS

NEW AND RENEWED

Confirmation begins Wednesday,

September 12 at 4:45 PM.

Adult choir begins on Wednesday,

September 5 at 6:00 PM.

Ladies Tuesday morning Bible

Study - 10:00 AM

ALREADY IN PROGRESS:

LWML - 2nd Saturday of month

Men’s Prayer Breakfast - Last

Saturday of Month

Young Adult Bible Study - Sunday

9:30 AM

Jeremiah Bible Study - Tuesday at

6:00 PM

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Where is your heart?

If you are like I am, you

perhaps pointed to the left

center of your chest in answer

to the above question. But

there is much more to one’s

heart than the physical muscle

inside our body that circulates

life-giving blood into all our

appendages.

Heart has many definitions that

measure the quality and focus

of a person’s passion and his

character. Heart describes the

nature of one’s interest and the

level of his ability to conquer

obstacles so as to demonstrate

it. It describes a pleasing

personality trait that can be

somewhat elusive. An old song

pops into my mind as an

example of this, “You’ve got to

have heart….miles and miles

of heart.”

The Bible uses the word heart

to command our love for God.

“You shall love the Lord your

God with all your heart.” This

goes fa r beyond an y

quantitative measurement.

Youth gatherings sometimes

sing, “How much do you love,

how much do you love, how

much do you love my Jesus?”

That song somehow misses the

point, however. When God’s

Word commands you to love

God with all your heart, it does

not offer you a “love” gauge or

SW Corner

Reflections September, 2018

measuring device for you to compare your love for God to someone else’s.

“With all your heart” means totally…period.

Scriptures offer a sad commentary on this commandment. The recent Old

Testament selection from Isaiah 29 confronts us with the deficiency of love

we often show to God. Isaiah wrote this of the citizens of the Kingdom of

Judah: “And the Lord said,

‘You draw near to me with

your mouth and honor me

with your lips, but your

hearts are far from me.’” It’s

certainly not easy to love

God with all our hearts, is it?

No, the human heart is not in

tune with God.

In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus

speaks of the human heart as

being the source of evil.

Talking about what one eats

He remarks, “It’s not what

goes into the mouth that

defiles a person, but what

c o m e s o u t o f h i s

mouth…..For what comes

out of the mouth proceeds

from the heart, and this

defiles a person. For out of

the heart come evil thoughts,

murders, adultery, sexual

immorality, etc….. These are

what defile a person.”

The sinful heart is the culprit that erupts with evil of every kind. Though we

understand that, it causes us to wonder and to speculate about God’s ways. If

the human heart is the spring of human greed and evil acts, how can we

accept it when God promotes His people who are sinful and unclean and gives

them positions of high honor? The Bible says of David that he was a man

after God’s own heart. We wonder, how can God say that when He knew the

kind of terrible sinner David would become? David would be an adulterer and

a murderer! How can he be a man after God’s own heart?

It’s not that God disregarded David’s sin. Not at all. When David sinned thus,

God sent the prophet Nathan to David to confront him with his sin in order

that David would come clean, confess it and repent of it. And that is what

David did. David knew his sin and the problem of his heart, so he prays,

“Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a righteous spirit within me.”

The heart of God beats with just two objectives for us. If we choose to ignore

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God and we turn against Him, He will punish us. “But if we confess our sin,

He is faithful and just and He will forgive our sin and cleanse us from all

unrighteousness.” The heart of God with our sin is not to make us holy, but to

forgive us.

So what can we say about the heart of God? We know what is in God’s heart.

God’s heart beats for our life and salvation. Already in the days of Moses, God

tells us how He deals with the sin-stained human heart. He circumcises it in

order to cleanse it. He promised the Israelites, “When you return to the Lord

your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you

today with all your heart, then the Lord your God will restore you and have

compassion on you. And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the

heart of our offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your

heart.”

We know what is in God’s heart. God yearns to forgive us and renew us in

faith. Jesus puts it this way, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only

begotten son, that whosoever believes on Him shall not perish, but have

everlasting life.”

Because we know the immense compassion and forgiveness for you that is in

the heart of God, let me dare to ask you again, “Where is your heart?”

Love, Pastor Bernie

Reflections September, 2018

Amazing Love

I'm forgiven, because You were forsaken

I'm accepted, You were condemned.

I'm alive and well, Your Spirit is within

me

Because You died and rose again.

I'm forgiven, because You were forsaken

I'm accepted, You were condemned

I'm alive and well, Your Spirit is within

me

Because You died and rose again.

Amazing love, how can it be

That You my King would die for me?

Amazing love, I know it's true

It's my joy to honor You.

Amazing love, how can it be

That You my King would die for me?

Amazing love, I know it's true;

It's my joy to honor You

In all I do, I honor You

I'm forgiven, because You were forsaken

I'm accepted, You were condemned.

I'm alive and well, Your Spirit is within

me

Because You died and rose again.

Chris Tomlin is a contemporary

Christian songwriter and has composed

many songs over the years. He is a

worship leader and hails from Texas.

https://youtu.be/qGyo8BZ8T0s

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THE MERCIES OF GOD

I heard this as I was driving to

church one Sunday and thought

it was worth sharing. I copied

it from the web site https://

wordwisehymns.com/2013/08/

07/the-mercies-of-god/. It is a

true story about T. O.

Chisholm, the author of “Great

Is Thy Faithfulness.”

The old man awoke to face

another weary day. His wife

had been seriously ill for a long

time, and it was time to give

her her medicine. But the bottle

was empty, and he had no

money for more. Thinking

perhaps a little breakfast would

lift her spirits, he returned to

the kitchen. But the ice box

was almost as empty as the pill

bottle, and even buying

groceries seemed beyond their

means. Not only that, their rent

was due that day.

A pretty bleak picture. But God

From the Elder RICK HILST

Reflections September, 2018

knew the need even before they did. Nothing takes the Lord by surprise. He

says, “I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the

beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done” (Isa. 46:9-

10). And “known to God from eternity are all His works” (Acts 15:18).

That is why He is able to work through our circumstances, providing in

advance for our needs to be met when the time comes. The word for that is

God’s providence, meaning His before-seeing. It is the divine attribute behind

Romans 8:28, “We know that all things work together for good [or, He works

all things together for good] to those who love God, and to those who are

called according to His purpose.”

Tom certainly believed that. He and his wife had come through many difficult

times, though on this day in 1935, things seemed worse than usual. But see

how the Lord was working!

Two days before, two men were attending to some necessary record-keeping

for the Gideons Bible distribution ministry. They were going over the

membership list for New Jersey. The policy was to remove anyone who had

been contacted twice but failed to send in the registration fee–five dollars in

those days. But just as Mr. Stam was about to cross off T. O. Chisholm, his

friend said, “Jake, don’t you know who that man is? Why, he’s the fellow that

wrote “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” Saying that was his favorite hymn, Stam

responded, “That sure is worth five dollars – I’ll pay the brother’s dues.”

However, that was not to be the end of it. That night, Stam had trouble

sleeping. Tom Chisholm kept coming to his mind. Believing there might be a

need there, he decided to send him a gift in the morning. Then the ringing of

the phone at six roused him. It was his friend from the evening before. He had

had the same experience in the night. Seeing this as the leading of the Lord,

both men wrote cheques, mailing them off with a note.

The next day – the day the burden of the Chisholm’s meager finances struck

with full force, he got that letter. At first, his heart sank to see the return

address on the envelope, Jacob Stam, Attorney at Law! He thought, “All the

trouble I’m in, and now an attorney is after me!”

But when he tore open the envelope, he read, “Dear Brother, we have never

met you, but we love you in the Lord. Thank you so much for Great Is Thy

Faithfulness. Enclosed is a little something the Lord told us to send you.” Mr.

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Chisholm was astonished to see that the “little something” covered not

only the month’s rent and the cost of his wife’s medicine, but provided

enough to restock the pantry.

It was at the suggestion of his wife that the hymn writer penned, The

Mercies of God, in celebration of God’s amazing provision. Truly,

“Great are Your tender mercies, O Lord!” (Ps. 119:156).

The mercies of God! What a theme for my song,

Oh! I never could number them o’er;

They’re more than the stars in the heavenly dome,

Or the sands of the wave beaten shore.

2)For mercies so great, what return can I make–

For mercies so constant and sure?

I’ll love Him, I’ll serve Him with all that I have

As long as my life shall endure.

3) His angels of mercy encompass me ‘round,

Wheresoever my pathway may lead;

Each turn of the road some new token reveals–

Oh! For me life is blessed indeed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k1WhFtVp0o

Reflections September, 2018

Thomas Obadiah Chisholm

Chisholm was educated in a small

country school, and became its

teacher at age 16. At age 21, he

became associate editor of the weekly

newspaper, The Franklin Favorite. In

1893, he became a Christian under

the ministry of Dr. Henry Clay

Morrison (future president of Asbury

College, Wilmore, Kentucky).

Chisholm moved to Louisville at the

persuasion of Morrison and became

editor of the Pentecostal Herald. He

was ordained a Methodist minister in

1903 and served a brief pastorate

at Scottsville, Kentucky. In poor

health, he moved his family to a farm

near Winona Lake, Indiana. He

became an insurance salesman,

moving to Vineland, New Jersey, in

1916. He retired in 1953 to the

Methodist Home for the Aged in

Ocean Grove, New Jersey. Chisholm

wrote over 1200 poems, of which 800

were published, and many set to

music.

h t t p : / / w w w . h y m n t i m e . c o m / t c h / b i o / c / h / i /

chisholm_to.htm

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School is well underway. The

children are getting into the

routine of their new classes and

“new” teachers. We are

working through the process of

becoming a licensed center

with all of the paperwork and

official visits that are required.

We do have a new cook this

school year. Her name is Gwen

Thurman. She is the pastor of a

congregation in Belzoni,

Mississippi, and returns twice a

month to preach. She has

moved to Huntsville to help

out family members.

OU R PTO I S A G A I N

SPONSORING A PANCAKE

BREAKFAST. It will be held on

Saturday, October 13 from 7:30

to 9:30 AM. It will be held at

Applebee’s on north Memorial

Parkway. Tickets are $5.00

each. The classes are having a

contest to see which class can

sell the most tickets. Tickets

can be purchased at the CDC.

Carla Jo will also have tickets

available on Sundays for

purchase. Come out and enjoy

breakfast, and a time of

fellowship! Proceeds will go

towards licensing expenses.

As I was contemplating my

reflections article this line kept

popping into my head: “for

such a time as this”. You hear

Notes from the DCM CARLA JO BRAKHAGE

Reflections September, 2018

this line occasionally when things are tough, I wanted to read it in context

and see how it applies to us today.

ESTHER 4:14

“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews

will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish.

And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a

time as this?”

Why are you positioned where you are? Why do you work where you work?

Why do you live where you live? Why do you go to school where you go to

school? Why do you go to church where you go to church? You do what

you do because God has assigned you there - and here – “for such at time as

this.”

Every now and then, we find ourselves at a moment in time that might be

called a “pivot point” in history. In sports, we call it the time for a big play -

the time when the game is on the line. In the military, it’s “D-Day” – the

battle that will win or lose the war. In business, it’s the sale that will put you

over the top and into the black for the fiscal year.

When I think of what’s happening in our culture right now and consider the

opportunities that lie ahead for our church, then I believe that we are at a

strategic moment in time. You and I are here with the opportunity of a

lifetime.

The challenge Esther received may very well

be the challenge that our Savior has for you

at this point in your life. “Who knows but

that you have come to your position for such

a time as this?” In other words, God has

placed you where you are, not just to enjoy

the benefits of life, but to build His kingdom,

to help His people, to fulfill His purposes.

God created you for a divine appointment - a

unique role to fulfill in your life - just like

Esther! There is something you can do for

God that no one else can do - a God-given

niche only you can fill.

I don’t know what you think of when I say the words “key player in God’s

plan” - probably someone in vocational ministry - but I hope you’ll start to

think of the man or woman in the mirror. Of all His millions of children,

you are the one God has positioned to rescue the people around you.

Like that Jewish girl placed in a strategic spot, you’ve been placed where

you are “for such a time as this.”

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ROCK OF AGES

The Story behind the Hymn

By Robert J. Morgan

“My father, who has given them

to Me, is greater than all; and no

one is able to snatch them out of

My Father’s hand.”

John 10:29.

On November 4, 1740, a baby

in Farnham, England, was

given the formidable name of

Augustus Montague Toplady.

His father died in a war, his

mother spoiled him, his friends

thought him “sick and

neurotic,” and his relatives

disliked him.

But Augustus was interested in

the Lord. “I am now arrived at

the age of eleven years,” he

wrote on his birthday. “I praise

God I can remember no

dreadful crime; to the Lord be

the glory.” By age 12, he was

preaching sermons to whoever

would listen. At 14, he began

writing hymns. At 16, he was

soundly converted to Christ

while attending a service in a

barn. And at 22, he was

ordained an Anglican priest.

As a staunch Calvinist, he

despised John Wesley’s

Arminian theology and bitterly

attacked the great Methodist

leader. “I believe him to be the

most rancorous hater of the

gospel-system that ever

appeared on this island,”

Augustus wrote.

“Wesley is guilty of satanic

Notes from the Loft Crissi Patterson

Reflections September, 2018

shamelessness,” he said on another occasion, “of acting the ignoble part of a

lurking, shy assassin.”

In 1776, Augustus wrote an article about God’s forgiveness, intending it as a

slap at Wesley. He ended his article with an original poem:

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee;

Let the water and the blood,

From Thy wounded side which flowed,

Be of sin the double cure,

Save from wrath and make me pure.

August Toplady died at age 38, but his poem outlived him and has been called

“the best known, best loved, and most widely useful” hymn in the English

language. Oddly, it is remarkably similar to something Wesley had written 30

years before in the preface of a book of hymns for the Lord’s Supper: “O

Rock of Salvation, Rock struck and cleft for me, let those two Streams of

Blood and Water which gushed from thy side, bring down Pardon and

Holiness into my soul.”

Perhaps the two men were not as incompatible as they thought.

AUGUSTUS MONTAGUE TOPLADY (1740 - 1778)

JOHN WESLEY

(1703 - 1791)

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Kids’ Page

Reflections September, 2018

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Reflections September, 2018

Adele Williams 09/01 Eli Jones 09/18 Emily Booze 09/04 Jordan Reynolds 09/18 Burneal A. Fick 09/06 Cory Burhans 09/21 Katelyn Engel 09/07 Tammey Bowers 09/22 Nicholas Burhans 09/07 Donna Stoddart 09/22 Heather Burhans 09/09 Linda Mixon 09/23 Benjamin Burhans 09/10 Norman Stoddart 09/25 Donna Huling 09/11 Mike Pool 09/26 Adam Grott 09/12 Greg Yates 09/30 Lavon Hellebrand 09/15 John Hartwig 09/30 Mary Carder 09/17

Birthdays in September

Missional Outreach

Every week, members of

Ascension join together and

visit two different groups of

people on two different ends

of town. This month, the

groups will visit Regency on

Max Luther Drive on

September 12 and 26 at 10:15

AM. They will visit HHR on

Chris Drive on September 5

and 19 at 10:00 AM.

Everyone is welcome to join

in proclaiming the Word of

God through Scripture

readings and songs. Every

Sunday morning, the group

goes to Regency for a 9:30

AM service.

Welcome - Pastor/Vicar

Song One

Song Two

Scripture Reading - OT

Song Three

Song Four

Scripture Reading - NT

Song Five

Song Six

Scripture Reading - Gospel

Song Seven

Song Eight

There is time to spend one-on-

one with the residents of both

establishments.

Flowers on Altar in September

September 7 September 9 - In honor of Carl and Mary Engel’s 55th Anniversary September 16 - September 23 -

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LABOR

“And the people said to Joshua,

“We will serve the Lord our

God and obey him.” Joshua

24:24

“It is only by labor that thought

can be made healthy, and only by

thought that labor can be made

happy; and the two cannot be

separated with impunity.”

—Ruskin

As we celebrate “Labor Day”

this month, may we, too,

celebrate and honor the labor of

some of our dedicated members

at Ascension. In recognition of

their outstanding services and

contributions, we acknowledge

their hard work. You do make a

difference. Thank you!

Honored Members:

House Beautiful Designer:

Sue Ellen Smith

Maintenance Crew: Harvey

Fischer, Daniel Pate, Larry

Jeziorski

Altar Guild: Donna Stoddart,

Anne Sims

Grounds keepe r : B r i an

Levenhagen

Property Manager: Rob

Rosson (Past), Harold

Lawson (Current)

CDC School Volunteers:

Mary Engel, Betty Fischer,

Barbara Hurst, Roberta

Willenberg, Amy English

Ushers: Bob Mixon, Burneal

A. Fick, Alan King, Harvey

Fischer, Marion King, Todd

Orf, Patrick Hurst, Tim

Hurst, Glen Charnock

Blessing Basket: Marcia Pate

Stewardship Bobbie Scroggins

Reflections September, 2018

Youth Leaders: Jennifer Hartwig, Susann Gehring, Stephanie Lee

June Soiree Crew: Alan King, Shelby King, Judy Burhans, Harold

Lawson, Nancy Lawson, Bobbie Scroggins

In Matthew 25:21, we read: “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and

faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in

charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”

The “help” portion of the Bible states that “Jesus is coming back - we

know this is true. Does this mean we must quit our jobs in order to serve

God? No, it means we are to use our time, talents and treasures diligently

in order to serve God completely in whatever we do. For a few people, this

may mean changing professions. For most of us, it means doing our daily

work out of love for God.”

In Colossians 3:23-24, we read: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your

heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that

you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord

Christ you are serving.”

The “help” portion of the Bible states that “Since the creation, God has

given us work to do. If we could regard our work as an act of worship or

service to God, such an attitude would take some of the drudgery and

boredom out of it. We could work without complaining or resentment if we

would treat our job problems as the cost of discipleship.”

From the Portals of Prayer, July - September, 2018:

Heavenly Father, great Creator, we ask Your blessing upon our

worldly lives. Protect us from dangers to body and soul. Provide

us and our neighbors with all that is needed to support this body

and life. Train us to make faithful and joyful use of the gifts of

creation, without turning them, through gluttony or selfishness,

into opportunities to sin. Instead, where in vocation we are given

to be tools in Your hands, give us faithfulness and diligence and

the confidence that this is the work that is truly pleasing to You.

Father, provide completely for us so we can work wholly for our

neighbors, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen

Note: If there are any missing names from the list, please let me know and

I will make sure your name is included in the list of “updates” in the next

edition of Reflections. To all of those who have volunteered for anything

that needed to be done at Ascension Church or CDC, Thank you!

—Bobbie

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Some of you may not know this, but since I’ve been the choir director, I have

gone to Florida in the summer (usually the second weekend in July) for the

Music Explosion Conference hosted by Kempke Music Company. At this

conference, all the new pieces of music are presented by various companies

and those attending (music directors, ministers of music, some pastors) spend

two days singing through everything - and I mean, everything. We spend eight

hours each day sight reading and singing, and those are the best two days ever!

If we order music at that time, we get 25% discount, so it’s a good deal.

This year, however, I decided to save Ascension the cost of registration for the

conference and just do the online streaming option. For the price of this option,

I would get all the music that would be presented over the two days, and a link

to the conference from start to finish so that I could pretend I was in the same

room with everyone else and sing along. The only thing I could not do as if I

were there would be eat lunch with everyone or try to catch a Kit-Kat bar or

Milky Way bar during the session breaks, or be in a drawing for a free sound

system or lighting equipment.

Unfortunately, none of that happened. My box of music didn’t come, a link to

connect to the conference was not sent, and the first morning of the conference,

Thursday, July 5, started an hour ahead of our time here, but I still had no

connection, so I started calling Kempke’s. Of course, their office didn’t open

until 9:00 AM, the conference started at 8:30 AM (7:30 AM here), and so I left

messages. Then I sent emails. Then I sent texts. Then I put a horrible message

on Facebook. . .Finally, about 11:30 AM, I got a call back from one of the reps

and she said: (1) The internet was not working in the hotel where the

conference was being held, so they could not stream; (2) the music would be

shipped out on Monday (four days after the conference); (3) I would be

reimbursed for the fee we had paid for the online option, which wasn’t

happening; (4) they would send me a link of this conference - after it

happened; and (5) I would still get the 25% discount on all music ordered for

30 days after I received my link to listen to everything.

Well, the music showed up on Monday, July 9, but the link to listen to the

entire conference didn’t show up at all. I started playing the music and singing

myself, but that wasn’t working too well. Finally, I emailed this lady at

Kempke, again, and asked about the link, which she sent immediately after that

call, and then she asked me if I would take down my snarky remark about their

company from Facebook since my comment was hurting their online rating.

She assured me I still qualified for the 25% discount for 30 days starting as

soon as I got the link; I assured her I’d try to delete the snarky remark. All was

well in the world of music, right?

Before I left for Seattle on August 10, I sent in my order for choir music within

the 30-day deadline. I sent an email to the lady rep at Kempke’s, made sure

they were still honoring my discount and made sure I was still within the time

frame, and everything was fine. When I got back from Seattle on August 22, I

came into my office, all excited about looking at the music.

Reflections September, 2018

There was nothing here! I asked

Carla Jo if there were any deliveries

made to the CDC while I was gone,

and were any of them music. She said

“yes” to deliveries, “no” to music. I

waited a couple of days, then called

Kempke’s, asked why the music

hadn’t been delivered, and the rep

said she’d check up on the problem

and let me know.

Did you know there is an Ascension

Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kansas?

That’s where the partial order of

music had gone since some of what I

had ordered was backlogged.

Kempke’s promised to send me the

entire shipment that day and

Ascension Lutheran in Kansas would

send the partial shipment back to

them at Kempke’s expense. Now, all

is right in the music world, right?

Not quite. Kempke’s shipped the

entire order to me, but so did

Ascension in Kansas. I got one more

call from the rep at Kempke’s and she

said, “Don’t worry about shipping

an yth ing back - jus t keep

everything!” So, Ascension in

Huntsville is paying for the one

shipment that included everything,

and getting a lot of copies for no

charge.

Bottom Line:

Won’t you

come and join

us singing all

this music?

We have

enough pieces

for 40. . .

Music Ministry News

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Reflections September, 2018

Church Office (256) 536-9987

Pastor Bernard Ansorge (256) 361-6732

Vicar Tyler Arends (217) 379-1031

Preschool & Child Development Center (256) 536-5245

Carla Jo Brakhage (918) 706-1791

Fax (256) 536-8104