Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
On the Feast of Pentecost, May 15th, three new members were received into our congregation. The new members are Merton Masterson, Scott Jones, and Richard Brown. Scott’s young son, Ted, has become a baptized member of our congregation. We welcome them heartily and pray that we may be a blessing to one another.
June 12th, the Third Sunday after Trinity, will be Vicar Trent Demarest’s last Sunday here at Our Saviour. He has accepted a job offer to teach at a Lutheran parish day school in Wyoming. He will be teaching seventh and eighth grade with emphasis on theology, history, and Latin. I think that everyone will agree that we have certainly been blessed by the presence of Trent and his lovely wife Maritza during this past year. And then there has been the joy of the birth and baptism of their son John and watching him grow.
Vicar Trent has been a tremendous help to me. I am very grateful to him for creating the fine website for our church and for keeping it up to date. This is an important part of outreach beyond the walls of the church building. I am going to miss Trent, Maritza and little John very much, but I am convinced that this new chapter in their lives will be a blessing to them. As a token of our gratitude, we are gathering a collection to give them as they go on their way. You may write a check to Our Saviour clearly marked “VICAR.” On the Demarests’ last Sunday with us the men of the congregation are having a barbecue after Divine Service.
The new Church Council was elected at the May Voters Meeting and will be installed on Sunday, June 19th. The new Council includes Gabe Purviance, president; Judy Volkman, secretary; Mary Techau, education; Paul Techau, property; Jake Mokris, worship; Gary Watson and Lynetric Bridges, members at large. They will be installed during the Divine Service on June 19th. Keep them in your prayers as they take counsel for the work of this congregation. I must also take this opportunity to thank the out-going members of the Council: Frank Ford, Anthony Baylor, James Gray, Cathy Gray, George McMillan, Christine and Donald Watson.
I also wish to thank all those who participated in the spring clean-up day on Saturday, June 4th, and Anthony Baylor for taking leadership in making this happen.
June 19th will also be the Sunday for our participation in the National Offering for our Synod which will be meeting in convention at Milwaukee July 9th-14th. Checks may be made out to Our Saviour Church clearly marked “SYNOD.” Remember the upcoming convention of our Synod in your prayers that the Holy Spirit would guide and direct its deliberations. As I mentioned in the May newsletter, both Pastor Coats and I are pastoral delegates to Convention.
I am happy to note that for some time now there has been a modest increase in Sunday church attendance. It of course remains to be seen what the summer will bring. I am personally convinced that, if we truly understand what Sunday is for and what the Divine Service is, we will be eager when Sunday comes to join our fellow Christians.
Sunday is the weekly celebration of Christ’s resurrection in which is all our hope. In the Divine Service Christ Himself not only speaks His word of pardon and peace but also feeds us with His holy Body and precious Blood, the price of our redemption, the pledge of our resurrection. We do not gather on Sunday to remember an absent Savior: we come to meet our risen Lord and Savior truly present in these Holy Mysteries. The Divine Service is called “divine”— meaning “having to do with God”— because God Himself here serves us by giving out His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation as we hear His Word and receive the holy Sacrament. Ponder these things in your heart— and act!
Let us continue to pray for one another and for those the Lord will send to us.
Affectionately in our Lord,
Pastor McClean
Works of Mercy
Helping Up Mission has a long history of transforming the lives of fallen men in Baltimore. Our Saviour continues to assist the Mission with their fine work. The Mission is in constant need of the most basic items of clothes and grooming products. It has come to our attention that there is an urgent need for new and/or gently worn socks, underwear, tee and undershirts. In addition personal size, alcohol free mouth wash, stick deodorant, body and foot powder are needed. Bar soap and shower gel are also needed. Delivery of collected items will be made in a few weeks. Thank you for sharing and bringing hope to our neighbors who are recovering from homelessness, poverty, and addiction.
And canned food products and package food are always needed for our CARES neighborhood food bank. Many thanks for your gift of food.
– Quilla Downs
Free Flea Market
We have been blessed with a donation from Orphan Grain Train with forty boxes of summer clothes for men, women and children. They are a national organization that sends relief supplies to other countries, as well as within the USA. We came by this bounty through Cricket, our secretary, and the fact that they needed to distribute a number of boxes of items in order to move into their new warehouse. We will also be taking items for the flea market from members of Our Saviour, as we are sharing our gifts, material and spiritual, that God has so freely given us. Flea Markets will be held on the second Saturday of each month, June through September. Join us on June 11th to share those gifts with others in the community.
– Judy Volkman
