1Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church825 West Main StreetLead, SD 57754 e-mail : hello@leadshepherd.org

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December 2019A newsletter of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran ChurchSaturday worship service 6:00 pm Sunday worship service: 9:00 amSunday School : 9:30 amRadio Ministry : 11:00 am KDSJ 980AM

FROM THE PASTOR'S DESK

December, 2019

It was two o’clock in the morning and I couldn’t sleep. What to do? The reading I had prescribed for myself in my spare time wasn’t exactly riveting. “Turn on the television,” I told myself. That’s when I saw him; he was telling all of us insomnia sufferers how to find God’s favor. He stared point blank into the camera and said with a stern voice, “release the seed.” He said that by doing this we would find God’s special favor, and if we did it right now, that within the next ninety days we would be blessed beyond measure. He went on to give several example of how the releasing the seed had helped him and several others to overcome life’s problems. It seemed that in order to release the seed, sending him money was required. He said that God had told him there was a select group of 200 people that will heed God’s word and each send him a thousand dollars. I figured that I wasn’t one of the 200 and turned the channel.

The next preacher was sending people some, “Miracle Spring Water.” The lady said all sorts of blessings would come to those that sent her a donation for some water. I then turned to a western and fell asleep in the chair.

Needless to say, these are scams aimed at hurting people in the middle of the night who are plagued with life’s worries, and are having problems sleeping. I say they are scams because not once did I hear anyone preaching the Gospel of salvation, instead, I heard the gospel of giving them money. This is not ministry!

God’s favor is not for sale. It is a free gift to all when we give our lives to Christ. When we want God’s favor, we have a direct line to him in the form of prayer. Sending a television pitch-man or woman a check will not give us God’s favor.

In 1517 Martin Luther wrote his 95 thesis regarding the scam of selling indulgences, or buying God’s favor from a church. It was wrong then, and it is wrong now. We already have God’s favor in the form of forgiveness and an eternal home with him in heaven.

Pastor Will

December Announcements and Activities

December 15 - Potluck Movie Night -- Polar Express

PARSONAGE OPEN HOUSEPlease join Pastor Will and Susan

for an open house

Sunday, December 8 from 2pm - 4pm

December 8th - the youth will be hosting

the service. Join us for Birthday Cake for

Jesus following the service.

NOTICE for ANNUAL MEETING

Mark your calendars for January 26, 2020 for the Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church Annual meeting. The meeting will immediately

follow church services.

Women of the Word Meeting

Women of the Word will meeting following church services on December 8 to determine the 2019 Mission Giving and election of the 2020 officers.

Zilis Sacred Mountain Retreat Center seeks to honor the service and sacrifice of our Nations wounded, ill or injured Veterans, First Responders, & Gold Star families. We are a catalyst for positive change in the lives of these heroes, we help to eliminate the noise of everyday life and encourage healing through exposure to nature, alternative healing methods, and open communication with our brothers and sisters in arms.

Zilis Sacred Mountain Retreat Center brings in people suffering from PTSD, drug, or alcohol abuse for a 5-day program. “As a kid and growing up, we loved the Black Hills,” said Founder and President of Sacred Mountain Retreat Center, Jerrid Geving. “It’s just a neat and interesting place and our slogan is ‘where the hills heal the heroes’ and I feel there’s a lot of truth to that.”“No one gets turned down, military, first responders, and Gold Star Family members. If they’d like to come to the facility, they’ll have to go through a

little bit of a vetting to see where they fit in,” said Geving. “We don’t want to call it high risk is more important but with the suicide rate the way that it is on our home land from our first responders and our veterans, we really want to focus on getting those numbers down.”

Sweet Potato RollsRecipe By:SHERLIE"A flavorful roll, good with hearty soups and stews."

Ingredients 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast 4 tablespoons white sugar 1/2 cup canned sweet potato puree 1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C) 3 tablespoons margarine, softened 1 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Dissolve yeast, warm water, and 1 tablespoon sugar in a mixing bowl. Let stand 5 minutes.

2. Add remaining sugar, sweet potato, butter or margarine, salt, and slightly beaten eggs. Stir to mix well. Stir in 3 cups of flour. Turn out on a lightly floured surface. Knead 2 to 3 minutes, adding just enough of remaining flour to prevent sticking. Do not knead too heavily; when smooth, shape into a ball. Place in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover, and let raise about 1 hour or longer.

3. Punch down, and allow dough to rest for 2 minutes. Divide into 16 to 20 balls, and place on a greased cookie sheet or in a 9x13 inch pan. Allow to rise until doubled.

4. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 12 to 20 minutes. Serve warm.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2019 Allrecipes.com Printed From Allrecipes.com 11/11/2019

Cardamom SpiceIt is a common ingredient in Indian cooking. It is also often used in baking in the Nordic countries, in particular in Sweden, Norway, and Finland, where it is used in traditional treats such as the Scandinavian Jule bread Julekake, the Swedish kardemummabullar sweet bun, and Finnish sweet bread pulla. In the Middle East, green cardamom powder is used as a spice for sweet dishes, as well as traditional flavoring in coffee and tea. Cardamom is used to a wide extent in savory dishes. In some Middle Eastern countries, coffee and cardamom are often ground in a wooden mortar, a mihbaj, and cooked together in a skillet, a mehmas, over wood or gas, to produce mixtures as much as 40% cardamom.