RE-FOCUS
A Publication of Reformation Lutheran Church
Volume 18 September 1998 Number 9
From the Pastor
While on vacation Anita and I had an opportunity to do
something I rarely get to do--attend church somewhere as a first time visitor. In this
case it was in Ohio, the congregation to remain nameless. Having been to a number of
workshops lately that focused on hospitality to guests and reaching out to non-churched
persons, I have been particularly attuned to what makes for a gracious welcome.
Here is what I encountered: a robot-like usher handing me a bulletin without a word, no
helpful directions on where to sit, worship continually jumping between two different
books with little explanation, a bulletin confusingly laid out, young adults behind me
seemingly bored silly and not opening their worship books at the least. Yet the pastors
seemed like good and personable people, some of the church’s activities listed in the
announcements said this was a church in ministry, and my faith was fed and nourished by
sermon and song (though they massacred the liturgy).
Now this was the clincher: not a single soul, not one person, spoke to us. The
80-100 people were very friendly, chatting with one another and with visiting relatives
and known friends. But the only words spoken to Anita and me were from the younger pastor,
who said, "Haven’t you been here before?" If anything, we were put on the
spot, forced to explain and identify ourselves.
Now if I were a person searching for something spiritually, trying to fill a void in my
life, would I return to this congregation? I wish someone had said something like: "I
don’t think I know you. My name is Frank. What’s yours?" Or, "I think
you are visitors. What brings you to St. John’s?" Or, "You might be members
here, but I don’t know you. My name is Susan. What’s yours?" Then I might
have experienced warmth and gracious hospitality, and maybe even felt invited to return.
We communed at the altar with these brothers and sisters in Christ, but I felt I was
crashing someone else’s party!
What can we at Reformation learn from this?
- Pastor Jerry Mansholt
From the Deaconess
But strive for the greater gifts, and I will show you a
still more excellent way.
-1 Corinthians 12:31
Years ago Rodney Dangerfield became known for his "I don’t get no
respect" line. Many of us have probably echoed Rodney more than once. Perhaps God,
too, has lamented the lack of respect from us.
Pathways to Respect is a step-by-step program that addresses this subject of
respect from the perspective of treating all of God’s creation in a way that is
pleasing to God.
As we at Reformation strive to be Servants of God guided by the Holy Spirit to make
Christ known, we are challenged to look at how we treat each other. The Pathways to
Respect program will be used this year with our LOGOS and Sunday School staffs, as
well as with parents. Together we will stress the importance of respect to all of
God’s creation. While the emphasis will be with the children, all of us will learn to
be more aware of our own behavior.
Throughout the year we will lift up the mission statement of Pathways to Respect:
To lead children to an understanding and appreciation that every person is a child of
God; no one is more important than they are, and no one is less important. We will help
children to identify all inappropriate behavior as an issue of disrespect of some aspect
of God’s creation.
This month we will be reminded that all of life begins with God, and all respect begins
with respecting God. If we look for God’s will in all that we do, a respectful life
will follow. Let us encourage one another to strive to show respect for God by showing
kindness and compassion to others: our co-workers, friends, family members, and even the
people who share the city streets and stores with us.
-Deaconess Doreen Leptien
Thank You!
We wish to extend our heartfelt thanks for your prayers,
cards, and kind words following the death of my father.
- Shari & Paul Ryding and family
* * *
The prayers, cards, expression of sympathy and understanding extended to us at the time
of Alvin’s death are sincerely appreciated. Thank you.
- Donald & Dorothea Rindt
* * *
Thank you so much for the lovely cards, calls, visits, and prayers following my recent
surgery. I am grateful, too, for the helpful support offered by the Pastor and Barb
Lee to help ease and speed my recovery.
- Nora Steg
* * *
I thank you so much for your prayers, calls, cards, and visits at the time of my
illness. They were such a help to me.
- Mateel Borel
* * *
Requests From Evangelism
With the fall season coming and Sunday School starting, we
are urging all members to wear their name tags each Sunday. We have had several new
member classes this year, and wearing name tags would help older members and new members
get to know each other more readily.
Also, watch for announcements about a change in filling out the friendship register
during Sunday worship services. We are asking everyone (all members included) to fill in
your name, address, and phone number. This will set an example for
visitors in the pews to provide us with complete information for follow-up contacts with
them.
Adult Baptism Class
"Shall I be baptized?" That is a weighty question
for an adult new to the Christian faith. Pastor Mansholt is offering an Adult Baptism
Class on Sunday evenings, beginning September 13, 7:00 p.m. The class will explore the
meaning of baptism and call to follow Christ. If you or anyone you know is interested,
speak to Pastor Mansholt.
Yes, You.
A Stephen Minister
Maybe you’ve read about Stephen Ministers
and how they work within the church to support and uplift those who are struggling with
life’s burdens. Maybe you’ve considered the prospect of becoming a Stephen
Minister and thought, "Yes, my heart is there, but I don’t know how to talk to
people who are suffering. What if I say the wrong thing?"
If you’re thinking these thoughts, then you’re just like everyone who has
already become a Stephen Minister at Reformation. Every one of us has wondered if we could
actually do the work of this ministry. Don’t let doubts slow you down. Have faith and
listen. Maybe God is calling you to be a Stephen Minister.
You see, a Stephen Minister is not a psychologist, or a life counselor, or somebody who
always knows exactly the right thing to say. A Stephen Minister is just somebody who cares
very much because somebody else is hurting. God isn’t expecting you to solve your
neighbor’s problems. He asks only that you love your neighbor and be a CARE giver.
God himself will provide the CURE.
To learn more about applying for Stephen Ministry training, call Dallas Cronk
(733-2454).
Community Outreach Events
Mennonite Housing "Paint the Town" Day
will be Saturday, September 26. Please contact Virginia Leikvold (685-7993) if you
would be interested in helping.
The Food Collection item requested for the month of September is Canned Goods
(any kind). Your donations go to the local food bank managed by United Methodist Urban
Ministry.
The annual CROP Walk is coming up Sunday, October 11. Meet at Sedgwick
County Park at 2:00 p.m.
Flu Shots
The Parish Nurses will be available to give flu shots on
Sunday mornings in October. The cost will be $3.00 each. Watch for further details
in the Sunday bulletin.
Women of Reformation
CIRCLE MEETINGS
Priscilla September 8 9:30 a.m. at church
Nursery available with 24-hr. notice. Contact Sandy Muse, 529-1491.
Dorcas September 16 1:00 p.m. at the home of Eva Whetstone
150 N. Ridgewood Dr.
Ruth September 17 7:00 p.m. at the home of Jo Schmidt
316 Pecan Ct., Andover
Sarah September 21 7:00 p.m. at the home of Mary Lou Bengtson
922 Fabrique
Rachel September 24 7:00 p.m. at church
Nursery available with 24-hr. notice. Contact Karen Vlamis, 683-5520
Women of Reformation
RETREAT Saturday, September 26
All women welcome 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Share a day of fellowship & growth with Christian women. Donations of new
children’s socks will be accepted for the Wichita Children’s Home.
BOARD MEETING - September 14, 1:00 p.m.
Since few general meetings are held, it is very important that all circle leaders and
officers attend board meetings so that you can keep your circle informed of business that
may be transacted.
WOMEN OF THE ELCA SYNOD CONVENTION
will be October 9 & 10 in Columbia, Missouri. Have you called Kathy Drake
yet to tell her you want to accompany her? Don’t delay!
CHURCH WOMEN UNITED will meet on Friday, September 4, 9:00 a.m.,
at Calvary Baptist Church, 2653 N. Hillside. Annual Mission Institute. The study this year
is on Indonesia. Luncheon tickets are $4.00. Call your reservations to Jewell Anderson,
685-2666, or Pam White, 684-6569.
THANKOFFERINGS provide medical care for young polio victims in China. In
1989, a polio epidemic swept through several rural districts of China’s Shandong
Province. The Amity Foundation, founded by Chinese Christians, has programs in two areas
providing surgical and physical rehabilitation for 500 young polio victims, now 6 to 8
years old. Work in neighboring Linyi county, which has even more polio victims, will begin
when overseas assistance can be provided. The ELCA Division for Global Mission uses your
Thankofferings to provide medical screening and initial rehabilitation surgery for these
children.
NEEDED: Knitters to make stocking caps for the fall ingathering. For more
information call Reola Lerager, 682-0388.
Best Time of Life
B.T.O.L. will meet Monday, September 14, at 12:00
noon in the Parish Hall for the regular potluck luncheon. The program following the
luncheon will be presented by Richard Crowson, editorial page cartoonist for The
Wichita Eagle. He will give interesting insights on his work for the newspaper. All
senior adults are invited to attend.
Pit Barbecue
Our annual pit barbecue is scheduled for Sunday, September
27, beginning at 4:30 p.m. It will be held here at Reformation again this year.
Sign-up to bring a dessert, salad, or vegetable will begin September 13. Drinks will be
furnished, but you will need to provide your own table service and chairs or blankets for
seating. A freewill offering will be taken to cover the cost of the meat. We need a lot of
WOOD for the pit fire. If you have wood (lumber, firewood, etc.), please pile it just
south of the parking lot, near last year’s pit.
Holiday/Progressive Dinner
Sunday, December 6, is the date set for this year’s
upcoming holiday dinner. If we have at least six houses offered, it will be progressive.
These houses would serve appetizers and salads. If we don’t have houses offered, it
will be held at Reformation Church as it was last year. The dinner will be catered by
Everyday Gourmet for the main course. Contact Shirley Metz, 636-1993, for additional
information or if you would be willing to offer your home for this event
On Our Wish List
A small freezer would be so helpful for food storage for
LOGOS and other church ministries, and it could be placed in the mechanical room in the
church basement. If you have a working freezer to donate or if you would like to
purchase a new one for this use, please call Lotus Gerards, 683-8602, or the church
office, 634-0586.
Usher Schedule
The following are scheduled to serve at the 11:00 worship
service during the month of September:
Don Benton Clarence Koch
Larry Ehrlich Paul Mistretta
Robert Goeller Melvin Swanson
David Johnson
What Is "Dillons Dollars?"
The Dillons Dollars program is a fundraiser that supports
our Senior High Youth Ministry. These "dollars" can be purchased in the narthex
each Sunday morning from our high school youth. Dillons Dollars can be used at Dillons
stores (same as cash) to purchase food, pharmacy items, postage stamps, and video rental.
In turn, four percent of the money received from the sale of Dillons Dollars is earned to
support the youth ministry. Dillons Dollars make great gifts!
Guest Speaker
On Sunday morning, September 20, Melba Bangert, Vice
President, Central States Synod, will speak at both services about the ELCA world-wide
mission work in Papua New Guinea. She has recently visited there with a group from our
synod office. This mission work in Papua New Guinea is a part of the ELCA Stewardship
Program. Ms. Bangert will give us timely information about Papua New Guinea and ELCA
mission work there. Come and learn more about this mission that is supported through our
church stewardship program.
On Saturday Evening, September 19, at 6:00 p.m. a cookout is planned for Church Council
members, Stewardship Committee and spouses. Watch for an announcement in the Sunday
bulletin regarding location and further details. Ms. Bangert will visit and speak about
the various ministries of the Central States Synod.
From the Seminary . . .
Dear Friends,
This summer I was a chaplain for a few days at Children’s Hospital of Austin
(CHOA). CHOA is a regional center that caters strictly to children and their health care.
The hospital offers care for routine needs and for the most complex and difficult
childhood medical problems. The emergency room is geared for kids--with kid-size medical
equipment and supplies. The hospital and staff attend to the needs of the whole
child--social and developmental, as well as medical.
CHOA provides an atmosphere that values and honors children. Halls are color coded, and
the rooms are decorated in child-friendly colors. Nurses’ smocks and children’s
gowns are made of fabrics printed with cartoons. CHOA has three separate playrooms, each
with age-appropriate toys, games, and books. It’s not unusual to be bumped by a wild
child riding a tricycle through the halls.
One section of the hospital is called The Park. The floor is covered in astroturf, and
the walls are covered with murals of trees and flowers. The Park is designated for
children with cancer. Instead of waiting for doctors in waiting rooms, the children play
in their Park, and the doctors come to them and take their hands as they go to the
examining room or lab.
CHOA is more than a child-friendly facility; it is a place of healing. Many of the
children get well and go home. Others are known as "frequent fliers," children
who return to the hospital again and again because of their medical condition. They, too,
experience healing, even if it is fleeting. Sometimes healing means grieving the death of
a child.
Working at Children’s was daunting for me. Some of the children are so fragile,
yet their will is strong. Spending time in The Park reminded me of the Wizard of Oz. None
of the children had complete health, but each had a strength that another did not have.
They shared their gifts freely, and together the sick children negotiated the days, with
intelligence, with courage, and with heart.
In God’s Peace, Dawn Gorges
Friday Bible Study - September 11
"Ten Key Teachings from Paul’s Letters" will be the subject of our
Friday afternoon Bible Study Group. This study contains six sessions which are
approximately one hour in length. The first session is scheduled to begin on September 11
at 2:00 p.m. Paul Scheuerman will be the leader. All who are interested in joining the
group are invited to come and participate.
A Quest for Balance Retreat
Camp Tomah Shinga is holding a retreat for adults on
October 16-18, 1998. The retreat will encourage participants to reflect and focus on four
key aspects of balance in their lives: physical, spiritual, emotional, and relational.
Cost is $45. Registration forms are available in the narthex.
S.S. Teachers Begin the Year
Beginning the Year sessions will be held for Sunday
School teachers on:
- Thurs., September 3, 7:00-8:30 pm
- Sat., September 5, 9:30-11:00 am
- Wed., September 9, 7:00-8:30 pm
All Sunday School teachers are asked to attend one of these sessions to receive their
curriculum materials, go over procedures and watch the video: Pathways to Respect: A
Step-by-Step Program Turning Classroom Discipline into Discipleship.
A workshop for Sunday School teachers will be held on Saturday, September 19,
9:00-10:30 a.m., to talk about how we can use Pathways to Respect as the
cornerstone of our discipline approach.
Rally Day, September 13!
We will come together as a congregation on
Sunday, September 13, to rally our energy in order to nurture each other so that we can
each grow toward the fullness of Christ that is intended for us.
Adults and children and youth will gather in the sanctuary at 9:45 for a 20-minute
celebration focused around our theme and vision statement, Servants of God Guided by
the Holy Spirit to make Christ Known. Then the children and youth will go to their
classrooms and the adults to their chosen class.
Confirmation Get-Together
All 7th & 8th graders and their parents are invited to
a Confirmation Get-Together on Wednesday, September 16, 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the Parish Hall.
We will break bread (pizza!) together and have time for fellowship.
3rd Graders To Receive Bibles
On Sunday, September 13, during the 11:00 a.m. worship
service, the parents of our 3rd graders will present their children with Bibles.
On Saturday, September 12, these parents and children are invited to attend a special Get
to Know Your Bible time from 9:00-11:00 a.m.
Choir Startup
You are invited to become a part of the Parish
Choir and/or the Bell Choir as we begin our fall startup under the direction of Dr. John
Leavitt, newly installed Cantor at Reformation Church. Two dates to mark on your calendar:
Wednesday, September 2 - Worship & Music Committee is hosting an ice cream
social at 7:30 p.m. in the Parish Hall. All current choir members (both singers and
ringers), as well as anyone else interested in the choirs or music at Reformation,
is invited to come.
Wednesday, September 9 - First rehearsals for the choirs back from summer break.
The Bell Choir will meet at 6:30 p.m., and the Parish Choir at 7:30 p.m, both in the
balcony in the sanctuary. Be prepared to work, laugh, and have fun!
Sculpture Garden Update
The fundraising effort for the sculpture garden is
progressing nicely. With around $60,000 in the fund, we are nearing the point where the
project may become a reality this fall. The architectural plans are nearing completion,
and the hope is to send the completed plans out for bid sometime in September. This will
allow us to determine exactly how close we are to having funds in hand to complete this
major addition to our church grounds. Remember to order your bricks soon, as the deadline
for ordering may be just around the corner. Don’t be left out!
Housing Ministry:
Friends of the Carpenter
The September 23-26 Habitat for Humanity housing ministry
with the 16 congregations of Area Ministry 5 is just around the corner. One of five homes
to be completed this year by Habitat for Humanity will be built by ELCA congregations in
September. There is still a great need for both financial support and volunteer labor. The
congregations of Area Ministry 5 have been asked to raise $21,000 to help fund this
housing ministry, with Habitat for Humanity providing another $21,000, and the new
homeowners providing sweat equity. Reformation has raised over $4,000 from various sources
for Friends of the Carpenter. Other congregations have raised varying amounts. We
know there is still a challenge before Area Ministry 5 to raise the monies. Your generous
support is needed and appreciated. Volunteer sheets are on the table in the narthex. For
more information see the bulletin inserts in September.
Housing Ministry:
Paint The Town
Housing Ministry opportunities abound! Last spring
Reformation volunteers did excellent ministry roofing one house and repairing two others.
Those two other houses now need painting on Saturday, September 26, Mennonite
Housing’s Annual Paint the Town Day. This is solely a Reformation
Church ministry at these two houses. Experience tells us that 10-15 people at each house,
ready to go at 8:00 a.m., makes the work load light, enjoyable, and able to be completed
in a few hours. Sign up now in the narthex at church and help support this housing
ministry.
More CHOICES
How shall we organize ourselves for effective mission? What
are the critical shifts facing effective mission-oriented congregations? What can be done
to strengthen intentional outreach?
These questions were talked about by many people in the July offerings of the CHOICES
video series, an interactive video produced by the Evangelism Team of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America. Over 80 people attended one or more the three-part series.
Reformation’s Task Force on Effective Church Structure thinks the conversations
are absolutely essential to the future mission and structure of our congregation. Thus, CHOICES
is being offered again on Mondays in September and, perhaps, Thursdays in October.
Our goal: to engage as many Reformation members as possible in conversation about our
mission. In the Parish Hall, 7:30 - 9:00 p.m.:
September 14, CHOICES, Part 1, Three Difficult Challenges Facing 21st
Century Churches
September 21, CHOICES, Part 2, Critical Shifts on the Journey to
Mission
September 28, CHOICES, Part 3, Identifying and Releasing Gifts
& Recommendations for Reformation
Homebound Communion Training
Training for Communion Assistants to take Holy
Communion to the hospitalized and homebound will be offered on Tuesday evening, September
29, 7:00-9:00 p.m. If you are interested in serving in this monthly ministry, speak to
Pastor Mansholt. Communion to the Homebound will begin on October 4.
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