Trinity Lutheran Church

Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Nashville, IL 62263 tlcnashville.org

Church & Council

Senior Pastor,

Vacancy

Assistant Pastor

Rev. James Miller

Chairman:

Lloyd Meinert

Vice Chairman:

Kurt Elsesser

Secretary:

Andrea Harre

Treasurer:

Martha Polczynski

Board of Elders

Matt Bierman

Board of Trustees

Steve Haertling

Bd of Christian Edu

Matt Meinert

Cemetery Board

Willy Spenner

Bd Family Life Min

Dana Haertling

Membership Board

Carol Woker

Board of Finance

Amy Haertling

Stewardship Board

Lee Suedmeyer

Mission & Outreach

Carol Meinert

CORLHS Board

Phyllis Pick

Endowment Fund

Ron Auld

Board of Ushers

Dave Haertling

Inside this issue

Elder Letter/Meetings…...…….......2 Principal/Serving……….……...…......3 PreK & K Registration………………...4 Fundraising Event ….………………....4 T-SJ News……………...…………………..5 Diapered/Love/Mosaic…………......6 Ash Wed./Lent/Holy Week…….…..7 Committees/Wedding Ann….……..8 Housing Update…………………….…...8 Baptism Anniversaries…….............9 TSJ/Back Cover...……………………...10

A Note From Pastor James Miller

Lent -

“Now on the twenty-fourth day

of this month the people of Israel were

assembled with fasting and in sackcloth,

and with earth on their heads. And the

Israelites separated themselves from all

foreigners and stood and confessed their

sins and the iniquities of their fathers.”

Nehemiah 9:1-2

As Lutheran Christians, we look

to the Bible for many things—certainly to

learn about Jesus and God’s love in Him,

to understand our history as Christians,

to learn about God and what He desires

for us. All that said, we want to measure

up our lives—our thoughts, words, and

deeds—to the scriptures. We strive to be

biblical people. We Celebrate Easter be-

cause it’s in Scripture and because it’s a

very important part of our faith. We cele-

brate Christmas for the same reason, and

Epiphany, and Good Friday, and the list

goes on.

But what about Lent? Nowhere

in Scripture will you find an Old Testa-

ment “Festival of Lent” like you would

find “The Festival of Booths” or whatnot.

(For that matter, nowhere in scripture do

you find the word “Trinity,” but that’s a

topic for another article!) But observing

Lent as a 40-day period prior to Easter

dates back to the fourth century after

Christ—that’s an old tradition! And un-

derstanding the purpose of Lent, the core

practices date back to the first book of

the Bible!

At its core, Lent (which comes

from an Old English word for

“springtime”) is about preparation: con-

fessing sins, mourning our sinfulness,

recognizing our need for a savior, and

prayer. All of those are strong biblical

themes and activities that date back to

the first chapters of Genesis. In the Nehe-

miah passage above, as the People of

Israel have returned from the Babylonian

Exile, as they are rebuilding and rededi-

cating the temple (preparing for their

Lord), they pause to: confess, mourn,

recognize, and pray. They even also wear

special clothes (sackcloth and ashes/dirt)

and do special preparatory things (fast).

So this Lenten season, as we

prepare for Easter—prepare for our

Lord—I encourage you to do some prepa-

ration. Maybe it looks like giving up

something for Lent—but if you do that,

think of why you do it. If you fast, don’t

do it to show off, as our Lord bids us

avoid in Matthew 6. But maybe this sea-

son, read a special Lenten devotion,

spend some more time in prayer, and in

that prayer, confess your sins. Also, we

can take a page from Nehemiah and also

confess the sins of our fathers. Our family

trees and our national history certainly

has a lot of sin. If we don’t confess it,

who will? And if God doesn’t forgive it,

who will?

God bless your preparation for

the Resurrection of our Lord!

In Christ’s service,

-Pastor James

January/February 20201 Volume 1, Issue 25

Meeting Dates:

4th Quarter VOTERS’ ASSEMBLY

MEETING Sun. Feb. 7th 10:45 am

Board of Christian Educa-

tion Wed. .Jan. 06 @ 7:00 pm Wed. Feb.03 @ 7:00 pm

Board of Family Life Min-istry

Wed. Jan. 06 @ 7:00 pm Wed. Feb. 03 @ 7:00 pm

Fellowship Club- January –Winter Break -

No Meeting Sun. Feb 7 @ 4:00 pm

Super Bowl Party TBD

Board of Elders

Wed. Jan 13 @ 7:00 pm Wed. Feb. 10 @ 7:00 pm

Board of Trustees

Wed.. Jan.13 @ 6:00 pm Wed.. Mar. 10 @ 6:00 pm

Church Council Wed. Jan. 220@ 7:00 pm Wed. Feb 17 @ 7:00 pm

Board of Stewardship Tues. Jan. 28 @ 6:00 pm Tues. Feb, 23 @ 6:00 pm

Board of Mission & Out-

reach Tues. Jan. 26 @ 7:00 pm Tues. Feb, 25 @ 7:00 pm

LWML

Sat. March 20 @ 8:30 am TBD

Widow's Group

Tues. Feb. 2 11:30 am Restaurant TBA (Check

the Bulletin)

Willing Helpers Ladies Aid Thurs. April 1st @ 1:30

pm Quilting Room

A Letter from Head Elder, Matt Bierman

Even if you remove the COVID-19 Pandemic from the equation, we have a sad but true trend amongst us—I noticed it while working on the Congregational Self Study recent-ly. Our attendance at church is in a steady decline. This is not an issue with just Trinity but with many churches.

There are many different reasons for this but most are not good reasons. We know that in today’s society certain jobs keep people away on Sundays. This, although breaks one of the 10 commandments (Remember the Sabbath), is one that is easily forgivable as we have to work to put food on the table and a roof over our heads. There are many others, though, that well in my opinion are not as excusable. Sports (an occasional miss is one thing, but not going at all because of this is not an

excuse) Services are not convenient. (too early, too late, wrong day…) “Pastor made me mad” (too many issues here to put in this small article!) We do not need Church as long as we believe, read the Bible, and live life accordingly.

(This seems to be the #1 reason today, next to sports) Children were once raised to go to church and Sunday school at an early age. They

were held accountable by the parents in their later years. This practice is going by the way-side. Children are left to make the decision of what they wish to do, from going to Sunday school to being in the Children’s Christmas program.

Bottom line is that we have a major crisis in churches today and we need to fix this. It’s not just the responsibility of the pastor and/or church leaders to fix it. This responsibil-ity belongs to each and every Baptized and Confirmed member. I would like to leave you with a little story on how important going to Church is. And of course, we need some scrip-ture as well.

‘The Lonely Ember ,‘ by Dr. John MacArthur A member of a certain church, who previously had been attending services regularly,

stopped going. After a few weeks, the pastor decided to visit him. It was a chilly evening. The pastor found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire.

Guessing the reason for his pastor’s visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a big chair near the fireplace and waited. The pastor made himself comfortable but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the play of the flames around the burning logs.

After some minutes, the pastor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burn-ing ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone. Then he sat back in his chair, still silent. The host watched all this in quiet fascination.

As the one lone ember’s flame diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and “dead as a doornail.”

Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting. Just before the pastor was ready to leave, he picked up the cold, dead ember and

placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it.

As the pastor reached the door to leave, his host said, “Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday.” “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one anoth-er—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25

In closing I will leave you with a personal question to contemplate. We all need Church and the Church needs us. Why are you not coming to Church? In His Service, -Matt Bierman, Head Elder

Ushers & Elders: January Ushers Saturday 5:00 pm

Glen Harmening, Ryan Harmening Sunday 9:30 am

Matt Harre, Ethan Engele, Elliott Engele, Jeff Rennegarbe

January Elders Saturday 5:00 pm: Dale Droste

Sunday 9:30 am: Devin Haertling

February Ushers Saturday 5:00 pm

Todd Cox, Brian Thomas Sunday 9:30 am

Greg Rennegarbe, Justin Harre Shawn Kitowski, Steve Martin

Ash Wednesday February 17: Ushers: Ryan Harmening,

Matt Storey Elder: Curt Harre

(See page 7 for other Lenten/Holy Week and Easter Services)

February Elders Saturdays 5:00 pm:

Tom Polczynski Sundays 9:30 am: Curt Harre

Acolytes: (If we have open church) Jan. 1: 9:30 am: Griffin Bochantin Sat. Jan. 2: Hudson Jones Sun. Jan. 3: Ethan Pinski Sat. Jan. 9: Katie Oelze Sun. Jan. 10: Jadyn Dees Sat. Jan 16: Bennett Pinski Sun. Jan 17: Patrick Kozuszek Sat. Jan 23: Sawyer Price Sun Jan 24: Marley Meinert Sat. Jan. 30: Kinley Povolish Sun. Jan 31: Calleigh Dees ************************** Sat. Feb 6: Owen Diedrich Sun. Feb. 7: Sawyer Price Sat. Feb.. 13 Palmer Renken Sun. Feb 14: Elijah Zimmerman Ash Wed. Feb. 17: Hudson Jones Sat. Feb. 20: Katie Oelze Sun. Feb. 21: Emma Kurtz Wed. Feb. 24: Siena Popejoy Sat. Feb. 27: Lexi Welte Sun. Feb. 28: Logan Roesener **************************

EMPOWERED TO SERVE

Praise God that we have been able to have in person learning for the entire first semester! Our teachers, pastors, students, and families continue to work very hard through this pandemic. When a student needs to be quarantined due to exposure or illness, they have been able to "attend" school virtually! I am so thankful that we already had the technol-ogy in place to make this happen, but also to the teachers who are going above and beyond to teach a classroom full of students and students on Chromebooks at the same time! We are constantly learning, adjusting, and praising God for new challenges. How is God empowering us to serve Him during this pandemic? We are uplifted daily through His Word and the support of those around us. We are so blessed to be able to meet together daily to be in His Word. As we continue to serve God at T-SJ this school year, I ask you to pray for us. Pray for health, energy, and that technology would cooperate. Your continued support of God’s ministry at T-SJ is greatly appre-ciated. Since we are not all able to be in church together at this time, I challenge you to send a note of encouragement with a Bible verse to any of our teachers and staff and pray for them daily! This would be a great way for our congregation members to help our staff to recharge as the power through this second semester. Notes can be mailed or dropped off in the school and church office and are greatly appreciated. In Christ, -Mrs. Amy Kurtz T-SJ Teachers and Staff Rev. Tim Mueller Religion & Chapel Rev. James Miller Religion & Chapel Mrs. Dawn Mueller Pre-K & 4

th Grade

Mrs. Jennifer Harre Pre-K Aide Mrs. Dana Haertling Teacher Aide Mrs. Lindsey Langenfeld Teacher Aide Mrs. Janice Lange Kindergarten, Music, Scholar Bowl Coach Mrs. Laurie Eubanks 1

st & 2

nd Grade

Mrs. Amy Kurtz 2nd

Grade Mrs. Deb Lange IT Support and Yearbook Mrs. Diane Backs 3

rd & 4

th Grade & Music

Mrs. Tabatha Wessel 5th Gr. Homeroom, 4

th-8

th Gr. Science

Mrs. Jennifer Kozan 6th Gr Homeroom, 5

th-8

th Language Arts

Mr. Shaun Renth 7th/8

th Gr. Homeroom, 5

th-8

th Soc. Studies & A.D

Ms. Cheryl Zapp Office Administrator Mrs. Connie Kwiatkowski Cook Mrs. Amanda Kozuszek Cook & Librarian Mrs. Michelle Boester Custodian

Watch the bulletin for

information on the

T-SJ Pre-Kindergarten and

Kindergarten

Open House and

Registration

Sunday, February 21st

10:30 am—4:00 pm Sign up for your reserved time

at SignupGenius.com

Join us for an afternoon of

Information and Fellowship.

Light refreshments served.

T-SJ DONATION FUNDRAISER: T-SJ will be ac-

cepting donations of “soft” items for a fundraiser.

Another charitable organization will accept dona-

tions of gently used clothing, shoes, purses, bedding,

towels, curtains, and any soft textile goods. All items

need to be in white 13-gallon trash bags only; no

boxes or bigger bags are accepted. We cannot

accept anything hard or heavy like books, furni-

ture, small appliances or décor items, etc. Donation

deadline is April 21st. Items will be accepted into the

T-SJ Gym. Thank you for your support!

TRINITY - ST. JOHN

LUTHERAN SCHOOL

Congratulations to the following T-SJ 5th-8th graders who earned a level of Honor Roll for this second quarter! We are very proud of their hard work and dedication.

Principal Honor Roll (4.00 GPA)

Fifth Grade

Zhisheng Wen

Sixth Grade Marley Meinert

Seventh Grade

Lucas Dunn Mackenna Wesseln

Eighth Grade Ethan Pinski

Alexandra Welte

Honor Roll (3.50-3.99 GPA)

Fifth Grade

Austin Downey Steven Faught

Sixth Grade Anderson Engele

Jenna Kujawa Bennett Pinski

Seventh Grade Evan Kroeger

Makayla Winka

Eighth Grade Griffin Bochantin

Will Diedrich Savannah Harrison

Bennet Witte

Merit Roll (3.00-3.49 GPA)

Fifth Grade

Estes Bochantin

Sixth Grade Samantha Brinkmann Summer Brinkmann

Owen Diedrich Palmer Renken

Brock Schuessler Alexys Spratt

Elijah Zimmerman

Eighth Grade Rhyse Kwiatkowski

Mission & Outreach

DIAPERED WITH LOVE PROGRAM: The Board of Missions and Outreach would like to ex-press our sincere gratitude to church members who have contributed to the mission of the con-gregation by providing for the daily needs of chil-dren through the Diapered With Love Program in 2020. You have shared the love of Christ with many families and the gratitude they express is heartwarming. This program has been successful as a re-sult of the generous donations of families and by those assisting with Thrivent Action Team grants. Please join us again in 2021 to continue the program as the need continues to grow. You can help in this way: --Thrivent Action Team grants are needed each month of the year. Please contact any member of our Board, or leave a message with Cheryl, if you are willing to help in this way. We can help with the application process if desired. --Donations of diapers can be placed in the cradle in the back of the church. A small container is also available there for monetary donations. --Donations can be made directly to the program by directing funds to Trinity Lutheran Church Diaper Program by mail or during offering collections at church services. We are excited to continue this program in the new year and are thankful to all who assist in any way. Carol Meinert (314-2545), Kate Cox, Sarah Starks, Pat Holtgrewe, Carol Woker, Joe Goodrich

Next diaper distributions: January 23, 2021 and February 27, 2021

Bottles are located in the back of

church. Please return them by

February 14th.

2021 Lent, Holy Week & Easter Services Schedule

Ash Wednesday, February 17 7:00 pm

Elder: Curt Harre Ushers: Ryan Harmening Matt Storey

Lenten Service February 24 7:00 pm

Elder: Matt Bierman Ushers: Brian Jasper Shawn Kitowski

Lenten Service March 3 7:00 pm

Elder: Devin Haertling Ushers: Ethan Engele Alyssa Lohmann

Lenten Service March 10 700 pm

Elder: Dale Droste Ushers: Matt Harre Jeff Twardowski

Lenten Service March 17 7:00 pm

Elder: TBA Ushers: Justin Harre Clint Harre

Lenten Service March 24 7:00 pm

Elder: Tom Polczynski Ushers: Greg & Jeff Rennegarbe

Maundy Thursday Service April 1 7pm

Elder: Curt Harre Ushers: Dave Haertling Brian Jasper

Good Friday Service April 2 7:00 pm

Elder: Matt Bierman Ushers: Steve Lange Todd Cox

Holy Saturday Service April 3 5pm

Elder: Curt Harre Ushers: Wayne Rueter Allen Witte

Easter Sunrise Service April 4 6 am

Elder: TBA Ushers: Dave Haertling

Easter Service April 4 9:30 am Elder: Tom Polczynski

Ushers: Clint Harre Justin Harre Alyssa Lohmann Matt Storey

Ash Wednesday Worship Service Wednesday, February 17, 2021 7:00 pm

An Explanation of the Imposition Ashes for

Ash Wednesday

For more than 19 centu-ries the Christian believer’s Lenten journey has begun with a reminder of our mortality and a call to re-pentance through the plac-

ing of ashes on one’s head (Genesis 18:27, Job 42:6, Jeremiah 6:26, Matthew 11:21). Ashes are a sign of spiritual cleansing and repentance. Thus, the first New Testament believers adopt-ed the use of ashes as a symbol of sorrow and repentance over sin. This has been the normal practice of the Christian Church from the 1st century onward. It is this ancient practice of placing ashes on the heads of the faithful that gives Ash Wednes-day its name. The ashes are a strong reminder of the need for God’s mercy, forgiveness, and the redeeming grace of Christ. Indeed, we re-member well the words from the Christian buri-al service: “. . . earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust . . . ;” words that will someday be spoken over us all. The ashes for this ceremony are taken from the palm branches of the previous year’s Palm Sunday service. These palms are gathered, burned, and then sifted, and placed in a shallow dish for the imposition. After a brief introduc-tion, the minister marks a cross of ashes on each person’s forehead as they stand or kneel at the entrance to the church’s altar area. The Imposition of Ashes will be available for those wishing to receive them in the Ash Wednesday Service. May the Lord bless us this Lenten season as we prepare ourselves for the joyful day of Easter.

http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Genesis%2018.27http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Job%2042.6http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Job%2042.6http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Jeremiah%206.26http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Matthew%2011.21

Committees for January and February

January

01/01 Jerry & Barb Frieman

01/02 James & Aubrey Green

01/04 Josh & Shannon Provart

01/12 Dennis & Linda Whitener

01/20 Josh & Rebecca Fark

01/23 Tim & Peggy Haggerty

01/24 Charles & Kara Blumhorst

January Committees:

Altar Guild:

Joyce Sheridan, Pattie Smith

Flower Committee:

TBA

Cheer Guild:

Suspended Due to Covid-19 Virus

Bulletin Assemblers:

Suspended due to the

Covid-19 Virus

February Committees:

Altar Guild:

TBA

Flower Committee:

TBA

Cheer Guild:

Suspended Due to Covid-19 Virus

Bulletin Assemblers:

Suspended due to the

Covid-19 Virus

Please Pray For… Prayer is a very important part of the life of our con-gregation. We ask that all brothers and sisters in Christ hold up one an-other in prayer before the Lord our God. Each month in the newsletter, we will attempt to list those who cannot regu-larly worship with us and would like prayers. If you know of prayer concerns that should be included, please let Pastor Kotila or Pastor James know.

Shut-Ins: 1. Betty Quirin (Vill. Apt.)

2. Betty Reinkensmeier

(Village Apartments)

3. Norman & Berniece

Roesener

4. Frank Sachtleben

5. Irwin Woker

9.Friendship Manor:

1. Neil Diedrich

2. Dennis Wernecke

Skilled Care:

February 02/06 Dale & Gloria Blohm 02/08 Skip & Jackie Underwood 02/11 Kurt & Susan Kesel 02/20 Brad & Rhonda Thomas 02/24 William & Carol Jack 02/27 Paul & Mary Stegman

Housing Update:

Pastor James and family has moved into the new par-

sonage and their address is now 633 W. Walnut.

Mrs. Kurtz and family has moved into the original

parsonage and their address is 614 W. Walnut.

The Teacherage at 747 W. Vernor Street is being

prepared to be sold.

2021 Altar Flower Chart is in the

foyer. Sign up soon to

save your date!

JANUARY 01/01 Daniel Wolf

Rev. James Miller

01/04 Larry Harre

Ramzey Provart

Kru Hardin

01/05 Christopher Engele

01/06 Jenna Harris

01/07 Gina Boester

01/08 Aubrey Green

Caitlin Kirgan

Garrett Malawy

01/10 Sarah Bartling

Dora Mierkowski

Katherine Baunach

Mason Niedbalski

01/11 Rachel Holtgrewe

01/12 Barb Frieman

Janice Lange

Morgan Groom

Keeghan Ryterski

Alex Lohmann

Madi Reuter

Tricia Figura

Annalee Morgan

01/13 Daniel Harre

Hayden Price

01/14 Seth Dinkelman

Fred Endres

Charlene Rybacki

01/15 Carolyn Stiegman

01/16 Daetynn Droste

01/17 Diane Backs

01/18 Carol Jack

Wade Wilson

01/19 Corine Engele

01/22 Mary Stegman

01/23 Darryll Droste

01/24 Danita Frederking

Barbara Mill

01/25 Karen Droste

Camdyn Buescher

Kyle Rybacki

Baker Wolf

01/26 Kourtney Engele

Lydia Kurtz

01/27 Noelle Shirley

Vaughn Vallett

Richelle Rennegarbe

01/29 Angela Lisk

01/30 Britt Simmons

Tammy Eigenrauch

Seldon Kozuszek

FEBRUARY 02/01 Martha Polczynski Everett Carson 02/02 Merle Darnstaedt Greg Harre Maci Ingram 02/03 Sarah Draves Clarence Harre Sarah Loftin Ashley Wilson Dwayne Brink 02/04 Kanon Povolish Archer Hardin Hadleigh Ryterski 02/05 Kylie Davis 02/07 David Schuette Spencer Schmale 02/08 Karlie Hart Bryar Kurwicki 02/09 Mitchell Holtgrewe Mary Lou Holzhauer 02/10 Glen Woker 02/11 Judy Morgan David Droste Kristine Kollman 02/12 Andrea Renken Ty Aschermann

02/13 Crystal De Fend Brinna Thomas Justin Reinkensmeier 02/15 Alyssa Lohmann Ashlyn Frazier 02/16 Jayleigh Cooley Jocelyn Cooley Jaxon Pflasterer Justin Beckner 02/17 Joshua Povolish Griffin Bochantin 02/18 Kylie Kozuszek Jennifer Kujawa Layla Groom 02/19 Roy Dinkelman Katie Rennegarbe Halle Rueter Rebecca Fark 02/20 Nicole Clark Nathan Decker Greg Engele Mark Funke Steven Faught, III Tyler Haertling 02/21 Tyler Frazier Micah Rincker 02/22 Hanah Grzegorek 02/23 Aaron Dinkelman Carlos Woker John Wesseln 02/24 Brantley Harre 02/25 Eunice Stiegman Britney Thomas Shawn Rennegarbe Jordan Harre Brecken Baum Kellan Kobus Collins Harre 02/26 Sawyer Price Calleigh Dees 02/27 Greg Darnstaedt Cameron Parker Aspen Fark 02/28 George Engele Wayne Harre

This information is what we have on file in the office. If you notice an error, please let us know so we can correct our records. Thanks!

9

JANUARY/FEBRUARY BAPTISMAL BIRTHDAYS

COKE REWARDS: Keep collecting the bottle caps!! Trinity St. John School is now registered to receive Coke Re-

wards. You may go to http://www.mycokerewards.com/ to set up your personal account in your name and donate the points to benefit TSJ! BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION SCAN YOUR BOX TOP AND RECEIPT! Thank you for supporting this project! SCRIP GIFT CARDS: Purchase any gift card at face value and a portion of your purchase comes back to the PTL. Orders with payments (checks made out to TSJ-PTL) are due the 15th of every month. Pre-planning can benefit everyone. Buy gift cards year-round if you frequently shop in a certain store. Scrip is not just for Christmas.

TSJ—PTL FUNDRAISING PROJECTS

Trinity-St. John Lutheran School

Trinity Lutheran Church

680 W. Walnut Street

Nashville, IL 62263

Phone: 618-327-3311

E-mail: trinitystjohn@gmail.com

Address Service Requested

Worship Services:

Saturdays 5:00 pm

Sundays 9:30 am

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. Postage Paid

Nashville, IL

Permit No. 1002

http://www.mycokerewards.com/http://9gag.ro/box-tops-for-education-clip-art.htmhttp://livepositively.com/