AUGUST PRAYER EMPHASIS – STUDENTS RETURNING TO SCHOOL

This month our prayer focus is upon all students who will be returning to school. Ask God’s blessing on all schools that they may be places of learning and safety where teachers and students show mutual respect and care for one another. Pray that the wisdom of God might find a ready reception in the hearts and minds of every student and teacher.

SPECIAL PRAYER NEEDS DURING COMMUNION SUNDAYS On Communion Sundays, prayer partners will be available during Commun-ion to offer prayers for anyone who has a special request. As you return from Communion, prayer partners will be situated near the back of the church with identifying lanyards. They will be glad to lead you to a quiet place for a brief time of prayer with you.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO SERVE AS PRAYER PARTNERS We are gathering the names of members of GSLC who would be willing to be a part of our new Prayer Partners program. Prayer Partners are men and women who are will-ing to pray for individuals and situations of which the church is made aware. Contact the church office 402-880-8864 or one of our staff members if you are willing to serve on this important team!

PRAYER REQUESTS ARE ENCOURAGED We are working on an efficient system to gather prayer requests on Sunday morning. In the meantime, if you have a prayer request, please go to our website, click on Contact Us. You will finds a special page where you can leave a prayer request.

“Do not be anxious by anything, but in everything, by prayer and

petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the

peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your

hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”. (Philippians 4:5–7)

“2021—A Year to Grow in Prayer”

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church (The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod)

Senior Pastor Rev. Gary Werling Vicar Eric Larson

Director of Children and Family Ministry Tara Hess

Director of Youth Ministry Bob Broekemeier

Director of Preschool Lisa Stirtz

Director of Outreach Vern Nemitz

DCE-Specialized Ministry Warren Viehl

Head Organist Sonja Lundgren

Choir Director

Director of Praise Band Andy Hardies

Business Manager Jan Kounkel

Administrative Assistant Cathy Kilawee Sunday Worship 8:00 am (Traditional in Sanctuary) 9:30 am (Traditional in Sanctuary) 10:45am (Contemporary in MAC) Wednesday Evening Worship 7:00 PM (Traditional in Sanctuary)

11204 South 204th Street * PO Box 39 * Gretna, NE 68028 (402) 332-3345 * gslc@gslcgretna.org * www.gslcgretna.org

The 14th Sunday after Pentecost

August 29th, 2021

Welcome to Good Shepherd!

• Thank you for joining us today! We pray that your time in worship will encourage and

strengthen you. We share the greatest hope through the One who loves us the most - Jesus

Christ!

• Altar Flowers are displayed in the Sanctuary and MAC and can be donated by signing up in

the Altar Flower book located on the table in the back of the Sanctuary/MAC entry. The cost

is $40.00 per bouquet. Please make checks payable to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and

place in Altar Flowers mailbox directly in front of the church entry doors of the sanctuary.

For the 8:00 a.m. & 9:30 a.m. Services in Sanctuary

and 7:00 p.m. Service on Wednesday

• Restrooms are located in the hallway on the north side of the sanctuary and at the

southwest end of the educational wing.

For the 10:45a.m. Contemporary Service in the MAC

• Restrooms are located on either side of the kitchen and in the hallway.

MASKS? At this time they are optional. If you feel you should wear one — go ahead.

Good Shepherd’s ministry challenge for all of us this year is that we might grow in

prayer. Though it is too often neglected, prayer is one of the great blessings that God has given to His people. Christ Himself took frequent times to pray to His Heavenly Father. He taught His disciples to pray. The Bible is filled with references to prayer by

which we are encouraged to pray for all sorts and conditions of people. Through our prayers, the Lord pours out so many blessings to so many people and in so many

circumstances!

May the Lord challenge us and bless us as we make 2021: A Year to Grow in Prayer!

“A Year to Grow in Prayer” - Our 2021 Ministry Focus

6.

Stewardship Thought Receiving and Giving There is a phrase that states, “The mind grows by what it takes in—the heart grows by what it gives out.” Interestingly, stewardship involves both taking in and giving out. What God gives us, we are to receive gra-ciously and thankfully. Recognizing that the many God-given gifts we receive can be used to further God’s kingdom, we give generously (2 Corinthians 9:11). God gives so we can give. Thus, the cycle goes: God gives, we receive, we give, and God replenishes.

Prayer: Dear Lord, You are the Lord of Lords, the King of Kings, and the Alpha and the Omega, the begin-

ning and the end. We are so blessed that You have called and chosen us to be Your children. Thank You for

blessing us so richly. We especially thank You for Your Son who became our sin so we can live as forgiven

and redeemed people who will spend eternity with You. Help us to share our blessings with others.

Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

THIS WEEK AT GOOD SHEPHERD

AUGUST 29 —SEPTEMBER 5

TODAY 8:00 am Traditional Worship 9:15 am Christian Education Hour 9:30 am Traditional Worship 10:45 am Contemporary Worship 12:30 pm Wee Lambs Golf Tourney

MONDAY 1:30 pm Staff Meeting

TUESDAY 9:30 am Ladies Bible Study

WEDNESDAY 8:30 am Prayer Group 7:00 pm Wednesday Evening Service 7:00 pm Sr. High Bible Study

THURSDAY 5:30 pm Baptism Class

FRIDAY 7:00 pm Kauss Bible Study

SUNDAY 8:00 am Traditional Worship 9:15 am Christian Education Hour 9:30 am Traditional Worship 10:45 am Contemporary Worship Pastor Werling is on vacation and will be back in the office on Tuesday-August 31.

PILLOW CASES NEEDED Sharon Kauss is in need of pillow cases in which she uses to make dresses for Grain Train. If you have some, please drop them off at the church office.

5.

OFFERINGS REPORT FOR JUNE AND JULY

June 2021 $100,524 June 2020 $74,315 (difference of +$26,209) July 2021 $60,767 July 2020 $67,790 (difference of -$7,192)

Thank you for your stewardship of the Lord’s gifts for the work of His Kingdom!

STEWARDSHIP NEWS

Sunday, August 22 ** 8:00AM - 72 ** 9:30AM – 121 ** 10:45AM – 110 Wednesday, August 25 **7:00PM—11 GENERAL OFFERING $ 22, 286

GivePlus for July $31,902

HARVEST ARTS & CRAFTS BOUTIQUE Mark you calendars !! This year’s craft fair will be held in our Ministry Activities Center (MAC) on Saturday, October 2 from 9-3pm. We have closed registration with over 60 vendors. There will be lots to shop for!!

LCMSFoundation A builder needs the right tools to perform their work. God’s people need the right tools to make the right gifts, the right way, from their estates to family and ministry. Some tools are com-plex. Some are quite simple. Which ones are right for your situation? Your LCMS Gift Planning Counselor can lead you through a process to plan what you want to do, and how to do it. Contact Craig Stirtz at 402-616-0312 or craig.stirtz@lfnd.org.

2.

SERVING TODAY Vicar: Eric Larson Elders: 8:00/9:30-Chris Angland; 10:45-Shaun Nienhueser. Ushers: 8:00–Sieg Ortieb, John Sangimino, Chet Sears, & Darin Ahrens; 9:30-Mark Lindbloom, David Cheleen, John Oetting, & Tim Schnack; 10:45-T.J. Robertson, Kevin Stange, Larry Wendlandt, & Bruce Wrona. Greeters: 8:00–LindaKay Hermesch; 9:30-Sara Rathjen; 10:45-Angie Richland. Acolyte: 8:00-Joshua Dawson. Lectors: 8:00-Sara Rathjen; 9:30-Mikki Nienhueser; 10:45-Josh Richling. Counter: Bob & Bev Boe. Pew Custodian: Amber Soucek. Organist: 8:00/9:30– Sonja Lundgren. Live Stream/ProPresenter: 8:00-Lisa Billman & Charles Hess; 10:45–Reagan Cheleen & Andy Hardies. Sound: 10:45-Loretta Hardies. Praise Band - Singers: Andy Hardies, Stacie Moore, Christal Kuchera, Lauren Madsen; Guitar: Travis Beran; Bass: Keith Niemann; Drums: Dan Madsen.

OUR GUEST PREACHER TODAY is Rev. Mark Rosenau from Lincoln. We thank Rev. Rosenau for sharing God’s Word with us this morning!

PLEASE RECORD YOUR ATTENDANCE WITH US TODAY For the Sanctuary services, please record your information on the blue cards in the Sanctuary pew racks and pass them to the end of the inside of your row to be picked up by the ushers after they deliver the offering. For the MAC service, please record your attendance in the red folder located in each row of chairs and pass the folder to others in your row. The folders will be picked up after the MAC service.

PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION Birthdays: 8/29– Missy Bachman, Craig Cook, Drew Hoeft, Jim Mowinkel, Chuck Peterson; 8/30-Shelley Barber, Tiffany Bronson, Craig Busch, Caleb Cerny, Ronald Ockander; 8/31-Michelle Scholting, Alison Simonsen, Amber Soucek; 9/1-Donna Dudney; 9/2-Arlene Glaser, Kari Milburn, Douglas Deines, Taylor Cascaden; 9/3-Kory Hurtz, Katelyn Kelley, Leslie Jensen; 9/4-Lacey Farmer, David Sullivan, Aubree Broekemeier. Anniversaries: 8/29-Tim & Leigh Ann Gobber, Brent & Jennilee Luedders; 8/30-Jeff & Judy Dittmar, Derrick & Sarah Hehn; 8/31-Jeffrey & Kristy Hadden; 9/1-Patrick & Carrie Prentice, Doug & Eva Hansen, Ben & Amanda Carpick; 9/2-John & Christine Strathman, Rustin & Diane Rogers; 9/3-Reg & Julie Duke; 9/4-Harold & Iris Bolte, Tony & Amy Jones. Health and Strength: Chuck Allner, Catherine Anderson, Mary Antholz, Kerri Black, Eli Brown, Daniel Cate, Bill Kiesling, Amy LaFontaine, Barb Margolis, Barb Nordmeyer, Jarrod Ockander, Michael Phan, Les Schweigart, Lynda Teeters, Gabriel Tegeder, Sue Tomanek, Cathy Werling, & Bob Wood. Peace and Comfort: Pam and Gary Werling on the passing of Pam’s mother, Phyllis Madden. Serving Our Country: Kayla Andrews, Trent Boyer, Valkyrie Cailkison, Jamie Durance, Jeffrey Durance, Jessica Durance, Daniel Ellis, Colton Fickler, Christian Hadden, Brayden Hardies, Joe LeMaster, Corbin Michael, Shay Pippitt, Reagan Reiditer, Alex Ryan, Matthew Schuetz, Ryan Schuetz, Jon Spahn, Jason Vierra, Alan Wineinger. Overseas Servants of the Gospel: The Ahlman family, Alyssa Anders, The Ashor family, The Baker family, The Cima family, The Clausing family, Nichelle Dykema, The Eisold family, The Fay family, Rev. Stuart & Debra Freese, Gail Grieser, The Hosch family, The Kuddes family, The Lehman family, The Lo family, Kendra McNatt, James & Christel Neuendorf, Judy Newhouse, Sharon Owen, The Paul family, Sandra Rhein, The Rickman family, Steven & Cynthia Schumacher, The Sharp family, Douglas & Angela Thompson, The Wildauer family, The Wood family, and The Yang family.

INFORMATION AVAILABLE ABOUT OUR CHURCH Please stop by the welcome table in

N OTES F OR T ODAY ’ S S ERVICE S

the back of the sanctuary or in the front lobby of the Ministry Activities Center and pick up a Welcome Folder of information about Good Shepherd. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to talk with our Director of Outreach Vern Nemitz or to Pastor. They will be happy to assist you!

INVITING FRIENDS Do you know of someone who doesn’t know Jesus, or who doesn’t currently have a church home? Why not invite them to a worship service or to an event at Good Shepherd!

SUNDAY SCHOOL Please join us at 9:15 a.m. when we continue to learn how we are “Simply Loved”. During our “Simply Loved!” Sunday School, we will experience God’s love and how to share it! Social distance guidelines will be followed and face masks are optional. Offered for 3 year old that are potty trained to 5th Grade.

MS CONNECT GROUP (6th-8th Grades) Sunday mornings from 9:15-10:30 in the Middle School classroom. Join us and bring a friend as we dig deeper into the Word.

BIBLE STUDY THIS MORNING Join us from 9:15 – 10:15 a.m. in the education wing and all are

invited – drop ins too! DCE Warren Viehl will lead this on Sundays.

TUESDAY MORNING LADIES BIBLE STUDY! Join us on Tuesdays from 9:30-10:30 AM in the Joshua and Noah rooms of the education wing. We are studying the book of Ephesians. Vicar Eric Larson is the leader for this study. Please come and join us!

BOARD OF HUMAN CARE continues to meet on Wednesday mornings in the church library at 8:30am to pray. You are encouraged to join us! Some of the prayers that we will focus on for the next week will be: Pastor Werling, Vicar Larson; Year to Grow in Prayer ; Students returning to school; Bible Study Groups, esp. Prime Timers; increase attendance; DCE’s and other church workers; Schools, esp. Support Staff; Making and keeping Christian friends; Establishing good study habits; Covid; and “American Idols” i.e. sports, social media. If you have any prayer requests or questions please contact: Renee Boyer at 402-960-7505/rboyermb@hotmail.com, Sondra Harrold at 402-253-2280/harroldw@aol.com, or the church office.

JR. HIGH YOUTH NIGHT We always meet on the 3rd Sunday of each month at 6:00PM till 7:00PM in the MAC for fellowship, games, and fun!

SR. HIGH YOUTH BIBLE STUDY Sr. High Youth at 7 p.m. on Wednesday evenings for a Bible study. Come join us!

MEN’S THURSDAY MORNING ZOOM BIBLE BREAKFAST meets each Thursday starting at 6:30a.m. Pastor Werling leads our discussion on the letters of the Apostle Paul. This is ideal for men of all ages. You may join in the online conversation if you like, or simply listen to our study. The study ends around 7:30 a.m. but you are welcome to sign-off at any time. If you would like to receive an online invitation to our ZOOM study, please contact the church office at 402-333-3345 or gslc@gslcgretna.com.

W ORD & W ORSHIP

3.

STATE FAIR SERVICE TIME The Nebraska Lutheran Laymen’s League will host a worship service at the Nebraska State Fair in Grand Island on Sunday, September 5th at 9:00AM. The service will be held in the Family Fun Zone area located at the north end of the fairgrounds, just south of the 4-H building. Guest speaker will be Pastor Jacob Bobby from First Trinity, Bloomfield, Nebraska and Pastoral Advisor of the Nebraska District LLL. With special music by the Choir from Grace Lutheran Church in Grand Island.

WHAT DOES THE LUTHERAN CHURCH TEACH? Pastor Werling will begin a new

Foundations class beginning Sunday, September 19 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. We will meet in the education

wing (Noah and Joshua rooms). This class is for anyone desiring an introduction to the Christian faith, as

well as an information class for non-Lutherans, as well as a refresher class for Lutherans. Those who

complete the class may join the Lutheran Church if they desire. Please enroll for the class and/or ask any

questions by contacting pastor at gary.werling@gslcgretna.org.

YOUTH GROUP CASSEROLE SALES LASAGNA is the September casserole that the Youth groups will be making! Small size of lasagna that feeds approximately 3 to 4 is $15.00 and the family size that feeds 5 to 7 is $25.00. Orders are due by September 15th with delivery on September 19th . As a reminder, if you are not at church the day of delivery, or if you have any past orders that you did not yet

receive, please check in the MAC freezer. Thank you for supporting our Youth Group at GSLC!!

RALLY DAY SUNDAY will be September 12. On that day, we will “kick-off” our Christian Education

Program. All 3 services will focus on the blessings of growing our faith—for children, youth, and adults.

That day there will be an “inside-outside picnic” following the 10:45 service here at the church. We will

have 3 fun inflatables for the children! Mark your calendars!

MIDWEEK SCHOOL TO BEGIN IN SEPTEMBER Our 2021-2022 Midweek School for all children in Grades 3 – 8 will begin on Wednesday, September 15 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Our Midweek School is offered to help our children understand the Bible with particular emphasis upon God’s plan of salvation in our Savior Jesus Christ. The 7th and 8th Grade combined class will focus on the chief parts of Christian doctrine from the Small Catechism. The 8th Grade class is the Confirmation Class with Confirmation to take place in early spring. Register online at the church’s website—gslc@gslcgretna.org.

PART-TIME CHOIR DIRECTOR NEEDED FOR GSLC We are in need of someone who would be willing to serve part-time (paid position) as our choir director. We would like the position to be filled by September. If you are interested or have questions, please call the church office or contact gary.werling@gslcgretna.org.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SCHEDULE A BAPTISM? Baptism is a special Sacrament of God’s grace for people of all ages. Prior to the baptism, you will need to attend our Baptism Class led by Pastor Werling. The class is offered the first Thursday every other month and meets in the church library at 5:30pm. The next class will meet on Thursday, September 2nd at 5:30PM. Please contact the church office if you would like to attend.

E VENTS & A NNOUNCEMENTS

4.