The Arising News F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7 V O L U M E 2 : I S S U E 2

WORSHIP

TIMES

Traditional

Sunday

8:00 am

& 10:30 am

Contemporary

Saturday

5:30 pm

Devotional

Wednesday

6:30 pm

Adult Bible Study

Sunday

9:15 am

Youth School

Sunday

9:15 am

February Sermon Series

A Light to Shine In the same way, let your light shine be-fore others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Epiphany is the season of light. During this time of the church year, we celebrate that God the Father sent His Son Jesus into the world to be the Light of the World, the Light that no darkness can overcome (John 1:5). Jesus dispersed the gloom of sin and darkness through His perfect life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection. Now, as Christ’s ambassadors, Jesus commands His Church to let His light shine! On February 10, we have an opportunity to shine God’s light by hosting Night to Shine, a night to celebrate the love of Jesus. May God strengthen us through His Word so that we continue to reflect Christ in everything we do!

Feb. 4-5 A Light to Shine Feb. 11-12 What is Perfection? Feb. 18-19 Loving Difficult People Feb. 25-26 The Light of the Wor(l)d Transfiguration Sunday

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

Inside this issue:

Dates to Remember Sunday Morning Bible Studies Wednesday Worship Schedule Lutheran Service Book Financials LWML Library News Youth in the Word Kids Connection Little Blessings Church & Community Events Worship Servants Membership Changes Member Notifications Wall Calendar

4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15-22 23-25 26 27-29 30

Church Staff

Senior Pastor Rev. Kurt Larson

Pastor of Youth & Family

Rev. Isaac Johnson

Business Manager Mrs. Barb Grosskopf

Communications Coordinator

Mrs. Becky Van Nice

Secretary Ms. Carrie Reese

Little Blessings Daycare Director

Mrs. Terrie Burkey

Children’s Ministry Director Mrs. Leslie McCoy

Organist

Ms. Marilyn Luebbe

Music Director Mrs. Maria Klein

Maintenance Angela Stickel

Office hours:

Mon-Fri 8:30-4:00

Business Manager Office hours:

Mon, Wed, Thurs

11:00-3:00

Pastor Larson is off on Tuesdays

Pastor Johnson is off on Fridays

February - Dates to Remember 2/2 Thurs. 6:00 pm Praise Team Practice - weekly

6:30 pm Elder’s Meeting

2/4 Sat. 7:00 am Workout - weekly

9:00 am Youth Bottle/Can Drive

11:00 am Klein - Baby Shower

2/6 Mon. 6:15 pm Choir Practice - every Monday pm

2/9 Thurs. 3:00 pm NTS decorating at Trinity Gym

2/10 Fri. 6:00 pm Night To Shine Prom

2/14 Tues. 6:30 pm Evening Crafters

2/16 Thurs. 10:00 am Quilters

6:00 pm Church Meeting Night

7:30 pm Church Council Meeting

2/18 Sat. 7:30 am Men’s Bible Breakfast

2/19 Sun. 1:30 pm Youth Group - SnowStar Tubing

2/21 Tues. 9:30 am Mugs & Muffins

12:00 pm Thrivent Workshop (#1)

7:00 pm Thrivent Workshop (#2)

7:00 pm LWML Zone Meeting

2/23 Thurs. 5:00 pm Christian Care Men’s Shelter Dinner

2/24 Fri. 11:45 am Fellowship Friday

6:30 pm Euchre Game Night

2/25 Sat. 9:00 am LWML Mountaintop Breakfast

2/26 Sun. noon Family Fellowship - Potato Bar/Skating

2/28 Tues. 7:00 am Pancake Breakfast

9:00 am LifeLight

3/1 Wed. Ash Wednesday

8:30 am Power Prayer Group - weekly

5:15 pm Confirmation/Kids Ablaze - weekly

5:30 pm Lenten Meal

6:30 pm Ash Wednesday Service

P A G E 4

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

Sunday Morning Bible Studies

Praying the Psalms In The Library

The Psalms are the Hymnbook of the entire Bible and are the only songs and poetry that we have which are truly inspired

by God and inerrant. In this Bible study we will all grow in the wisdom of these holy prayers. We will learn from God himself more about His nature, our nature, and how He wants us to pray. This class will last for several weeks, and all are wel-

come.

A Man Named Martin Video Bible Study in the Sanctuary

We are celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Refor-

mation all year here at Risen Christ! We begin this year of celebration with a new video Bible study about Martin Lu-

ther, A Man Named Martin - The Moment. This Bible study examines the events that led to the Reformation and the

struggle Martin Luther fought for the truth of the Scriptures!

“14But as for you,

continue in what

you have learned

and have firmly

believed, knowing

from whom you

learned it 15and

how from child-

hood you have

been acquainted

with the sacred

writings, which

are able to make

you wise for sal-

vation through

faith in Christ

Jesus. 16All scrip-

ture is breathed

out by God and

profitable for

teaching, for re-

proof, for correc-

tion, and for train-

ing in righteous-

ness, 17that the

man of God may

be competent,

equipped for eve-

ry good work.’ 2

Timothy 3:14-17

P A G E 5

Lent Worship Schedule

Ash Wednesday

March 1

Youth Dinners 5:30 pm

Ash Wednesday Service 6:30

Lent Services each Wednesday at 6:30

Prior to services each week, youth will

be serving a meal each week prior to

services.

“On God

rests my sal-

vation and

my glory; my

might rock,

my refuge is

God.” Psalm

62:7

P A G E 6

In our explo-

ration of our

hymnal, the

LSB, we

have looked

at the

Psalms, ser-

vices and

background

in order to

understand the various uses of

this devotional tool. And that’s

just what it is: the hymnal is a

tool which is crafted from the

Word of God to put that Word

into your life, both in public

worship and in private devo-

tional life.

In that same theme we

will take a quick look at some

home resources which make

this tool very useful for your

private use.

Beginning on page

295, the LSB contains tem-

plates for daily prayer “for in-

dividuals and families”. There

are short orders for morning,

noon, early evening and the

close of the day. There are

many ways to use these devo-

tions, but they can be as short

or as long as you need. They

start with a Psalm, move into

Scripture, and end with prayer.

If you are not sure how to form

a devotional life or are simply

looking for some structure, this

is a fantastic place to start!

On page 299 you will

find a “daily lectionary”. These

pages contain a list of Scrip-

ture readings for every day of

the year to help you be con-

sistent in your reading of the

Bible. After that (page 305),

the hymnal has a long list of

example prayers for various

circumstances. Sometimes we

have a hard time finding good,

scriptural words for prayer,

and these can help get the crea-

tive juices flowing.

Next we have the Ath-

anasian Creed. This important

confession of faith that we

stand by attests to the nature of

the Triune God and the two

natures in Christ. Take a look

if you can’t remember! It is a

bold and refreshing confession

of the truth.

Finally, the LSB also

contains Luther’s Small Cate-

chism printed out in full. If you

can’t remember the page num-

ber, just remember “3… 2…

1….” That’s right, the cate-

chism starts on page 321. This

is an excellent resource for

keeping yourself sharp in the

faith and for training your kids

in the faith. Start ‘em young

and use the hymnal to do it!

Use it so often that, when you

pull out the hymnal, the kids

know it is time for devotions.

Use it so often that, if you try

to do devotions without it, your

kids complain that you haven’t

gotten out the “red book” yet.

Again, I don’t say this

because the LSB is something

spectacular in itself, but be-

cause it contains the Word of

God, formatted well for use in

the home; and the Word of

God is most definitely spectac-

ular!

Next month we will

finally discuss the hymns con-

tained in the LSB. Till then!

In Christ,

Pastor Johnson

Lutheran Service Book: To Know a Treasure When You See it

Part 3: Home Resources

FROM THE DESK OF

PASTOR JOHNSON

P A G E 7

P A G E 8

W e’ve all heard that stew-

ardship is giving to the

church of our time, talents, and

treasure. This alliterative trinity

helps us see that giving is not

just about money, but about our

whole lives. For God has given

us everything we have and en-

joy as we confess in the mean-

ing to the First Article of the

Apostle’s Creed. And what we

confess first among those is that

God gives us “our body and

soul, our eyes, ears, and all our

members, our reason and all our

senses.” Only then do we con-

fess that he gives us material

things. Thus the time, talents,

and treasure trinity places before

our eyes the fact that we are to

give something of all of these

things toward the mission of the

church in thanksgiving for what

God has provided. For every-

thing we have and indeed every-

thing we are comes from God’s

fatherly divine goodness and

mercy.

The problem with this

alliterative trinity comes when

we replace one little word with

another little word—when we

replace the word and with the

word or. It is always written

with the and, but when we read

it, we read it with the or. Thus

this quite helpful trinity, which

extolled that everything that we

have and are is a gift from God

and which is to be pressed into

the service of God in His

church, turns into a trinity that

we can pick and choose which

of the trinity we use into the

service of God. The giving of

our time, talents, and treasure

turns into the giving of our time,

talents, or treasure.

Then the question aris-

es: Can we give of our time and

talents instead of our treasures?

Or perhaps it is the other way

round: Can we give our treasure

and not of our time and our tal-

ents? But these are the wrong

questions. The right question is,

can we give of our time and our

talents in addition to our treas-

ure? Yes, indeed, we are called

to give of all three. The things

that God gives us are not to be

pitted against one another. They

are given to us and we are to

press them all into God’s ser-

vice for benefit of His church

and our neighbors in need.

Thus we give all three.

We give our treasure in the form

of a generous, first-fruits, pro-

portion of our income. We give

of our time in generosity for the

benefit of Christ’s holy church.

We give of our talents in the

same manner. Since God gave

us all these things, we are called

to give generously of all these

things in faith toward Him and

in fervent love to our neighbors.

For God has provided

all these things to us. Out of His

fatherly, divine goodness and

mercy, He gives us each time,

talents, AND treasures as a

means to bless those around us.

We serve our neighbors with

these things, blessing them with

the blessings in which God has

blessed us. We give of our time,

talents, and treasures to our fam-

ilies, our society, and to our

church, our local congregations.

And we do this because we

know that we are not our own.

Rather, we belong to God. We

have been bought with a price—

with the holy precious blood

and innocent suffering and death

of our Lord Jesus Christ. He

gave everything—His time, His

talents, and His treasure,—to

have us as His own and to live

under Him in His kingdom and

serve Him in everlasting right-

eousness, innocence and bless-

edness. We have these things as

gifts and blessings from God.

Let us then press them all into

service for the sake of His

love—time, talents, and treas-

ures together.

BIBLICAL

STEWARDSHIP

“Every tithe of

the land,

whether of the

seed of the

land or of the

fruit of the

trees, it is the

Lord’s; it is

holy to the

Lord.”

Leviticus 27:30

P A G E 9

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

CHURCH FINANCIALS

JANUARY 2017

Submitted by: Barb Grosskopf

P A G E 1 0

The Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) is the official women’s auxiliary of

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. For almost 75 years, the LWML has focused on

affirming each woman’s relationship with Christ, encouraging and equipping women to

live out their Christian lives in active mission ministries and to support global missions.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy ladened and I will give you rest. Take my

yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find

rest for your souls.” Matt. 11:28-29

The January gathering of “Mugs and Muffins” was opened with prayer and devotion

lead by Heidi Iltis, with the above reading from Matthew 11, focusing on God’s assurance of

His Word to give us rest and surround us with His love, never alone, as we sometimes feel, es-

pecially in this generation of high technology, causing some to isolate themselves from the

world around them.

During the brief meeting, discussion focused on the upcoming winter event, Mountain-

top Experience breakfast for the ladies of the congregation, slated for Saturday, Feb. 25, at

9:00a.m., plus hosting the Zone Spring Rally on Saturday, March 18, with devotions and Bible

study to be conducted by Pastor Johnson, to focus on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

Ingathering for the Rally will be financial gifts for the work of the Rev. Micah Glenn of Fergu-

son, MO.

A special note: the next gathering of “Mugs and Muffins” will be held Tuesday,

Feb. 21, a week earlier than usual, please note change of date.

For the mission event, the ladies assembled 50 school kits, wrote cards for the in-

fusion care kits for the Cancer center at Genesis West Hospital, and wrote special greet-

ings for those attending the “Night To Shine” event on Friday, Feb. 10.

NOTE: At this time eight ladies from Risen Christ, are planning to attend the National

Convention in Albuquerque, NM, June 22-25, ’17.

Devotion books, Portals of Prayer, etc., for missions continue to be collected, and

can be placed in the white box, West coatroom. Also containers for tab tops, Swiss Valley

milk lids and Box Tops for Education are in the West coatroom. Thank you for your do-

nations.

LUTHERAN WOMEN’S

MISSIONARY LEAGUE

Submitted by: Paulette Waech

Submitted by Brenda Ross

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

P A G E 1 1

C ome check out the Inspirational Fiction

titles in our collection. Some new ones

have been added to the library, including

works by Terri Blackstock, Dee Henderson, Ju-

dith Miller, and Tracie Peterson.

LIBRARY NEWS

“I am not ashamed

of the gospel, for it

is the power of God

for salvation to

everyone who

believes.”

~ St. Paul,

Romans 1

Middle School

High School

Youth in the Word P A G E 1 2

BIBLE STUDY: We continue to grow in God’s Word together at 9:15 in the youth

room with Mr. Emory and Mrs. Sacrison. They continue on

their Journey though the Bible. Please support them with your prayer!

SERVICE EVENT: “Night to Shine” is on February 10th! All of the youth are

teaming up to participate and help give these people with special needs a night full

of Christ’s love that they will never forget. We need you there, so please clear your

schedule! We will plan on meeting at Trinity Lutheran Church between 5:00 and

5:30.

ACTIVITY: The youth are going snow tubing at Snowstar on Feb. 19th! $15 per

person and a signed waiver (pick one up at the church office) are due by Feb. 5th

(that’s right away!) so we can get the group discount. We hope you can come!

BIBLE STUDY: Our High Schoolers will continue their journey through St.

Paul’s letter to the Romans at 9:15 AM in Pastor Johnson’s office. All senior

youth are welcome! Bring a friend!

SERVICE EVENT: “Night to Shine” is on February 10th! All of the youth are

teaming up to participate and help give these people with special needs a night

full of Christ’s love that they will never forget. We need you there, so please

clear your schedule! We will plan on meeting at Trinity Lutheran Church be-

tween 5:00 and 5:30.

ACTIVITY: The youth are going snow tubing at Snowstar on Feb. 19th! $15 per

person and a signed waiver (pick one up at the church office) are due by Feb. 5th

(that’s right away!) so we can get the group discount. We hope you can come!

P A G E 1 3

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

Kids Connection submitted by Leslie McCoy

S unday school stu-

dents will sing on

Sunday, February

5th at both the

8:00 and 10:30 services.

They will sing “Pharaoh, Phar-

aoh” and “Pass it On”, led by

Mrs. Maria Klein.

Nursery Attendants: Feb. 5:

Katie Ehrke & Gayla Kelly Feb. 12:

Justin & Lori Mann Feb. 19:

Halie Dodd & Rachel Luebbe Feb. 26:

Maddie Peters & Leslie McCoy Mar. 5:

Kaite Johnson & Lois Kundel

Jesus said, “Let the

children come to

Me; do not hinder

them, for to such

belongs the king-

dom of God.” Mark

10:14

P A G E 1 4

“Proclaiming the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ to children and their parents through a high quality child care program.”

Little Blessings Day Care

This August the daycare will be opened for 20 years. When it first opened, the center was mainly for single parents that needed assis-tance with childcare. A few years lat-er it was opened for all families in need of childcare. For the past fif-teen years, the majority of the time, the center has been full with a waiting list. What a wonderful blessing the Lord has given to this church. The first week of February, the chil-dren will be learning about the color brown and when the paralytic’s friends helped him see Jesus by low-ering him through the roof. The chil-dren will also have their Valentine parties on Friday. We try to have parties on days that all the children will be in attendance. The second week, the theme is about Valentine’s Day and the Good Sa-maritan. This week the children are encouraged to show appreciation and affection to others. The third week, the children will be celebrating President’s day and dis-

cussing important leaders of the Bi-ble. The last week of February is about blue and Jesus calming the storm. The term “true blue” means that someone is completely trustworthy. This is an important lesson for chil-dren to know whom they can trust. The center will be having school age children on February 20

th. If any fam-

ily is in need of care for the 20th,

please contact us. We are still looking for an energetic, kid loving adult to work in the class-rooms in the afternoon. Please spread the word, or contact us if in-terested. Have a great month in Christ, Terrie

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

Risen Christ Lutheran Women in Mission Winter Event

Mountaintop Breakfast

Saturday, February 25

9:00 am

Please join us for Breakfast

Fellowship Bible Study

Planning for the LWML Zone Spring Rally

Ingathering: Monetary donations to be sent to Rev. Micah Glenn, LCMS Missionary to Ferguson, MO

Jesus on the Mountain Peak

Stands alone in glory blazing;

Let us, if we dare to speak,

Join the saints and angels praising.

Alleluia! LSB 415:1

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

P A G E 1 8

Our next blood drive will be held Tuesday

March 14, 2017

Sign up sheets and more information com-

ing soon!

Meeting monthly on the second Tuesday at 6:30 pm.

Please join us if you can. You can help assemble quilts,

stitch new member bookmarks or bring your own craft

project. If you have questions, please contact either Rachel

Luebbe or Sharon Tannahill.

Next meeting: February 14

March 14

Tatar sauce

anyone?

P A G E 1 9

February 24 @ 11:45

Everyone is invited to share a luncheon

meal (NO RSVP required!). Bring a dish

to share and invite a guest.

Contact Kay Petersen for additional

information

DAYTIME QUILTERS

D ay Time Quilters

meet the third

Thursday of the

month. Join us anytime

between 10 and 3 and

stay as long as you

like. Bring a lunch if you will be with us

at noon. No sewing skills are required. We

will be layering and tying quilts

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

P A G E 2 0

Christian Care Men’s Shelter Meal Service

Where: 2209 3rd Avenue, Rock Island, IL

When: 4th Thursday of the month from April through October

2016. Arrive at the shelter between 5:00-5:30pm, depending

on meal prep time required.

What: We provide a meal for 40-60 people. Meal items can

be prepared ahead of time and heated up at the shelter. They have 2 big ovens that

we can use. They provide serving dishes, utensils, plates, drinks and clean-up. We

provide a tasty nourishing meal (main dish, side dishes, dessert.). Thrivent mem-

bers can apply for Thrivent Care dollars for each date they help in order to defray

the costs.

In a nutshell: sign up for a date, plan a meal, prepare it an serve it with love.

Available Dates:

February 23: Art & Kay Johnson, Van Nice family

March 23: RCLC Youth

April 27: AVAILABLE

May 25: AVAILABLE

June 22: AVAILABLE

July 27: AVAILABLE

August 24: AVAILABLE

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

Creation Museum and Ark Encounter Bus Trip

Sunday, July 16, 2017-Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Plan to ride on a deluxe motor coach to the Hyatt Place Hotel in

Florence, KY. Enjoy the large suites that include breakfast, pool

and bar.

Spend a full day a the Ark Encounter and 2 days at the Creation

Museum For details including

registration and fees,

contact Gary Larson,

563-676-7279

P A G E 2 1

P A G E 2 2

Soup, Potato and

Roller-skating!

After church services on February 25,

join us for a lunch of potato bar and soup.

After our bellies are full, we will go to Eldridge Skate Park to

burn off the calories.

Sign up at the kiosk to attend and bring a

potato topping.

Euchre Game Night

Join your friends for an evening of cards on

Friday, February 24 @ 6:30 pm

Bring a snack to share!

IF you don’t know how to play, and are wanting to learn, NOW is your chance.

We will have a “novice” area so you can join in the fun too!

Sign up at the kiosk later in the month of

February.

Sunday Morning Cookies P A G E 2 3

2/5: (8:00) Angie Franzenburg & Rachel Luebbe (10:30) Christ Pinkerton & Sandy Sievert 2/12 (8:00) Van Nice family (10:30) Barb Schwenneker 2/19 (8:00) Erma Hill & Margaret Brodale (10:30) Carlyn Lesch 2/26 (8:00) Dawn Luedtke & Marilyn Luedtke (10:30) Jessica Welch & Linda Larson 3/5 (8:00) Vicki Dalton (10:30) Kristi Manley & Angela Dodd Please sign up to provide cookies. Everyone enjoys treats and fellowship after Sunday morning worship services.

Altar Flowers: Beautify our Altar with flowers. Sign up at he kiosk.

ALTAR ORGAN

2/5 Terry & Michelle Warner

2/12 Jerry & Linda Rogers

2/19 Dave & Rachel Luebbe

2/26 Heidi Iltis Lynn Bell

3/5 Gary & Linda Larson Tim & Dawn Curtiss

When you have signed up to provide flowers for a certain date, please fill out the pink

Altar Flower instruction sheet and turn it in to the office. The cost for a bouquet is $38

(slightly more if you wish to add special flowers). Please make checks payable to RCLC

Altar Guild. --OR-- please let the office know if you choose to purchase and deliver a

flower arrangement of your choice to the sanctuary by 4pm on the Friday preceding your

chosen date.

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S

February Worship Servants

Elders: 8:00 10:30 5:30 6:30

2/4 Ron Borcherding

2/5 Ron Gruenhagen John Riedel

2/8 Jim Wegener

2/11 Mike Botz

2/12 Craig Tannahill Reynold Waech

2/15 Scott Sievert

2/18 Gene Sperry

2/19 Rich Emory Gary Hentze

2/22 John Riedel

2/25 Ron Borcherding

2/26 Ron Gruenhagen Tim Welch

3/1 Craig Tannahill

3/4 Mike Botz

3/5 Reynold Waech Jim Wegener

Acolytes:

2/5 Carter Atkins Carter Wichelt

Marc Pfeiffer Dana Johnson

2/12 Kaedyn Burkey James Queen

2/19 Logan Rall Julian Charley

Jackson Franzenburg Justin McCarley

2/26 Grant Van Nice Katelyn Bell

3/5 Elizabeth Mann Marissa Terry

Casey Krager Patrick McCarley

P A G E 2 5

Greeters:

8:00 10:30

2/5 Lee & Florence Reedy Kerry & Kali Gruenhagen

2/12 Dan & Trish Speth Chris & Gary Pinkerton

2/19 Reynold & Paulette Waech Tim & Jessica Welch

2/26 Joe & Carol Brophy Travis & Heather Schwenneker

3/5 Bill & Karen Faris Stan & Cindy Stan-

field

Ushers:

2/5 Ross Bergen Gil Linenberger

Joe Brophy Ian McCloud

Bill Faris Larry Niebuhr

Jason Franzenburg Rick Ehrke

2/12 Garry Gruenhagen Roger Dodd

Harlan Kundel Allan Elias

Dan Kloppenborg Tim Welch

James Luedtke Travis Schwenneker

2/19 Dave Luebbe Brad Johnson

Andrew Pfeiffer Andrew McDowell

Dohn Pfeiffer Craig Tannahill

Marv Reimers Brody Welch

2/26 Steve McCoy Scott Sievert

Jim Wegener Gary Larson

Terry Warner Gary Pinkerton

Todd Mensendick Gil Linenberger

3/5 Jason Werning Ian McCloud

Mike Vieger Larry Niebuhr

Ross Bergen Rick Ehrke

Joe Brophy Roger Dodd

Altar Guild

February:

Kelly Roehm

Pam Dittmer

March:

Erma Hill

Karen Farris

April:

Lori Lakey

T H E A R I S I N G N E W S