Thursday, September 20, 2018

Let's begin a new season

Hello, Friends.

Did you know that Saturday is the first day of Autumn? Fall festivals are always a lot of fun. This weekend Main Street in Carmel is the place to be for the International Festival. There are a number of Oktoberfests sponsored by cities on Friday. I hope to see you at these events.

We had another very successful week, but not without some hiccups and glitches. I got home tonight and went to upload the latest pictures from our classes only to have my iPad try to activate. It could not activate, so I'm afraid I will need to take a trip to the Apple store. Even if they can get it to work, I would guess that all my pictures are lost. Bring your lipstick next week. I will be taking pictures again.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:00-10:00, Room 100.
What a wonderful session we had on Tuesday discussing John 1:19-34! John the Baptist (Jesus’s cousin) was creating quite a “hubbub” preaching in the desert on the far side of the Jordan River. People came all the way from Jerusalem and other cities to hear John explain their urgent need for repentance. He told them that the Messiah was coming! When the church leaders asked him if he was Elijah or another prophet, John said “no”! When they asked him if he was the Messiah, he emphatically denied that idea. He constantly turned their focus off of himself and toward the coming Messiah. He testified that this Messiah would be the Lamb of God, who would take away the sins of the world. And then one day Jesus was there at the gathering. He asked John to baptize him, not because of any sinful condition in him, but to fulfill the traditions of the Jewish faith and to show that he was a righteous man. God the Father spoke aloud as Jesus was baptized, declaring him to be God’s beloved Son. The Spirit also descended on Jesus in a visible form like a dove. John the Baptist saw confirmation of the messages he had been given from God about his mission to prepare the people for Jesus’s arrival!

We talked about the differences between the traditional baptism John performed with water to show repentance and the baptism Jesus’s disciples performed later (and even today) that give believers the gifts of forgiveness of sins and faith fueled by the Holy Spirit.

September 25: Please join us. Read John 1:35-51about how people were called by Jesus. We will talk about this. We will also read about Jesus' first miracle!

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:00-12:00, Room 100.
We met in the parking lot to celebrate that wonderful sports party tradition of tail gaiting. Thanks to everyone who had tables to bring! 

September 25: Let's go to the apple orchard! Join us to depart church by 10:00 sharp if you are carpooling and caravanning. Otherwise, meet us at the farm:

Tuttle Orchards
5717 N 300 W, Greenfield, IN 46140

Tuttle provides you with the bags, and you can pick your own apples. Bring your appetite! They have a great restaurant on site.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:40-6:00, Room 100
We practiced greeting each other. John shared that he went to the Biltmore Mansion and saw a Chihuly exhibit. You can take an informative tour via this video. We talked about volunteering and philanthropy. There are many ways to help others. We heard about collecting bottle caps to get donations. People collect pop tabs and donate them to different organizations like the Ronald McDonald House (a hotel that is available for little or no cost for families to stay in while they have critically ill  children in the hospital) to help off set costs. 

September 26: Join us as we continue our conversation. We are expanding our vocabulary phrase by phrase. 

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:00-11:30, upstairs classrooms.
We are so happy to have so many mothers and children this year! We tested the nursery today with so many children. The nursery can only accommodate 15 children at one time. This means that some children may be turned away when the space is full. As children are picked up, space once again becomes available. We have a room up by our classrooms for you to spend time with your children or for them to play under the watchful eye of some of our volunteers. Children are always welcome in our classrooms, also. Sometimes they just need to sit on Mom's lap and study English, too!

Meet up and Beer Club: Oktoberfest at Cornerstone Lutheran Church
Friday, September 28 4:00-10:00

Join us as we celebrate Oktoberfest at the church. Old and new friends and all the family are welcome.

hiccups: when small inconveniences happen
glitches: when something doesn't go as planned
upload: move from a computer to the internet or another place
activate: I don't know what this means! My iPad won't work and I just keep getting this message! I looked on line, and there is no help there either. 
hubbub: a loud, confused noise; uproar
Messiah: the promised and expected deliverer of the Jewish people
repentance: deep sorrow for a past wrong-doing
tradition: the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation
righteous: morally correct or justifiable
confirmation: something that supplies evidence or corroboration of a statement or belief

orchard: fruit tree farm
sharp: on time
via: by way of
tested: challenge
accommodate: hold
watchful eye: supervision
orchard: fruit tree farm
pop tabs: the little metal tab on the top of a beer or soda can
critically ill: very sick

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