Author: admin

    When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seeemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

     Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound,  a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites: residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygiaand Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs — we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues! Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

    Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

    Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what wass spoken by the prophet Joel:

     “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood the coming of the great glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Acts 2:1-21

O Lord, how manifold are your works! In  wisdom you have made them all!

Psalm 104:24

     “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world , but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father protect them by the power of your name — the name you gave me — so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one deemed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

     “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any morethan I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

John 17:6-19

     At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.

     The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”

     But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk'”

      So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?”

     The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.

John 5:9-13

     Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.

     But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he miditates day and night.

     He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.

    Not so the wicked! They are life chaff that the wind blows away.

     Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

     For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Psalm 1

    In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) and said, “Brothers, the Scriptrure had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus — he was one of our number and shared in this ministry.

     Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been whith us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”

      So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which  Judas left to go  where he belongs.” Then they cast lots, and they lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

What a fabulous Easter we had. Easter Jubilee had over 105 children and their adults on top of that. Hits were Daniel Ropar as Bunny, live bunny from Gary Shannon’s daughter, ChaCha the clown, facepainting by the Standleys, crafts, and all those Easter egg hunts. The community certainly supported us. Thanks to Karen Olomua for heading this event and all the volunteers. Thanks from me personally for all those who helped build our floral cross: Diane, Christie, Candace, and Shannon. Apologies if I missed someone. We did it quickly and oh so much better. Thanks to all those who decorated and prepared our breakfast. Our service was spectacular.
We are blessed,

Sherry

We continue to do well fiscally for our mission at St. Timothy. We have missed Cathy and look forward to her tax free return in May. We felt blessed as we met to pray for Ernie Rippe for surgery the next day after our meeting. All committees have been busy and would love to have any member willing to volunteer to help.
The Synod business meeting is May 19th and will be at Gethsemane. We have two representative positions and have one volunteer, Greta Christensen. If interested, please let me know. Blessings to all
Sherry Willmschen, President

    With the councils blessing we are proceeding to provide ½ of costs for camp to member children or those close to members. We may have as many as 6 young people attending. They are in middle school or high school. All of those attending are busy doing fundraising. Planned fundraising assistance at St. Timothy include:
1. Quilt Raffle of two beautiful quilts by Christine Lutz.

               Tickets will be on sale until June 30th when the drawing will be                  held.
2. On June 30th there is a plan for a music afternoon. See                                   information in bulletin as well as newsletters.
3. We continue to collect bottles/cans. You can bring any                                     redeemable items to St. Timothy.

    Thanks to all for your support and prayers for these young people.

     What is the big deal about Pentecost? It’s just another church day, right? There are arguments that Pentecost is more important than Christmas. The pecking order being: Easter, Pentecost, Christmas. The rationale being that without Pentecost there would be no church. Without Pentecost, the message of God’s immense love and the sacrifice Jesus made would not have been spread to the far reaches of the world. Pentecost is extremely important because that is the day the disciples put aside their fears and anxieties and started to live into their calling: to spread the good news of Jesus Christ.
Pentecost is derived from the Greek word, pentekostos, meaning fifty and began long before the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples. Pentecost (also known as the Festival of Weeks or Shavuot) was actually the second most important Jewish holiday. Originally it was a harvest festival but after the temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. and people could not bring their harvest offerings, Pentecost turned into a day to commemorate the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai. The disciples were gathered in Jerusalem with Jews from all over to celebrate the Jewish holiday Pentecost. At this time, there was no church. They had not begun to tell anyone about Jesus. As promised, though, the Holy Spirit descended upon them. The prophet Joel prophesied: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions” (Joel 2:28).
The Holy Spirit came down, the disciples finally broke their silence, the crowds understand them in their own language, and thousands believed and chose to follow Jesus. The church was born! On Pentecost we celebrate the birth of the church, the coming of the Holy Spirit, the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit, and the church living out its calling in the world. We decorate the church and ourselves in red to symbolize the presence and work of the Holy Spirit. We will turn out the lights and light a fire to symbolize the power of the Holy Spirit. We will celebrate together over red desserts the power and might of the Holy Spirit in guiding us and our church in the world. Is Pentecost just another day of worship? Absolutely not. It is a day to remember that the spirit has led us and continues to lead us out into the world
to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

By Pastor Jennifer Biel