Month: April 2018

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Reign in My Heart

I spent Friday, Saturday and Sunday attending the LWML Gulf States District Convention in Birmingham, Alabama. This is one of the most enjoyable things I do as an LWML President. I get to attend several of our district conventions that meet between April and October.

Outgoing District President, Judy Lessmann, chaired the convention. Judy and I go way back. She and I were on the LWML Board of Directors as presidents of our districts and our time overlapped during two of those years. She was president 2002-2006 and I was president of LWML Oklahoma 2004-2008. We then served together during my time as Vice President of Christian Life. She served on our Christian Resource Editors committee and our Christian Life Committee. It was great to be at her district convention. I got to meet her two granddaughters who served as pages during convention!

Their theme was “Reign in My Heart” from Colossians 3:15, 17. By the end of convention we were all rejoicing that the peace of Christ reigns in our hearts.

This district is one of the hosting districts for the Mobile convention next summer, June 20-23, 2019. They are excited and are starting to work on their parts of convention. They are looking forward to showing us all some great southern hospitality. Start saving and planning now so you can attend!

They elected a new LWML District President. Gwen Marshall is from Mobile. She has already been a key helper when we have had questions about Mobile. She will be there to welcome us all. In May the Convention Programming Committee and the Executive Committee of LWML will be meeting in Mobile to get the lay of the land and make some connections with the convention center.

It’s hard to believe it’s the month of May already! My goodness, where does the time go! I hope you are not as far behind in getting things ready for summer as I am! I have a sign in my office that says, “The sooner you fall behind, the more time you have to catch up.”

Vice President Kaye Wolff, Junior Counselor Rev. Mitchel Schuessler and I get to attend the Multiethnic Symposium at Concordia Seminary St. Louis this week. I’m really looking forward to it.

Please attend your district convention and spend some time with women who love mission outreach! It’s very encouraging!

Patti

 

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Grandma’s China

This Easter I set the table for dinner with my grandmother’s china. It’s not particularly stylish or an expensive set but it is rich in associations. My grandmother like many of yours lived through the Depression and moved from place to place with my grandfather and father as they sought out jobs to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.

When we got it, it was still kept in a wooden, slatted, crate with sawdust for packing. It was in really good shape. I like to use it in the spring because it has so much pink and pastel colors in it. I’m pretty sure most of you have something like this that you cherish.

Just think of the depression and the shortages of WWII. There may not have been a lot to put on these plates but I know they were used for Sunday dinners and celebratory occasions. There was a little extra effort put out whether the feast was big or meager. I look at photos of my grandparents and father during those years and note how remarkably thin they were. Did you know that one of the main reasons for rejection to serve in the Armed Forces in WWII was poor dentition? Bad teeth? Most likely from poor nutrition during the Depression.

I think of some of these things when I use these dishes. About how my grandparents endured much more than I have had to. How they didn’t blame God or give up going to church. Also, how they practiced hospitality, enjoyed beautiful things, and had family meals every day.

I hope you, too, have something that evokes memories of inspirational people who have gone before you. Let’s thank God that He gives us examples of living and loving both here, now, and in His book, the Bible.

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three, but the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13

-Patti

China Dishes

Patti’s Easter table

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Sorry to Interrupt!

This past Friday and Saturday I spent a wonderful two days with my LWML Oklahoma District friends celebrating our 90th Anniversary of LWML organized in Oklahoma. We had past LWML presidents Virginia Von Seggern and Linda Reiser there who presented on LWML history. We had 17 descendants of the original women organizers come to be recognized. Cindi Steinbeck led Bible study on our theme, “Great is Thy Faithfulness” and Rev. Dr. Brent Smith spoke on missions and missionaries.

The first Lutheran Women’s League (LWL) society was established at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Apache, under the direction of Ida Hrbacek, President on January 17, 1923. This led to the establishment of the first district, the Oklahoma District LWL to be organized on February 8, 1928, at Zion Lutheran Church, Oklahoma City. 

In honor of the LWML Oklahoma District’s 90th Anniversary, our members were invited to assemble a replica of the first OK District Mite Box and fill it with a special 90th Anniversary offering to be divided between five different missions. Their goal was to unite to further mission work, particularly in Oklahoma. In 1942 they became one of the 15 original charter members of the national Lutheran Women’s Missionary League. Since that time Oklahoma LWML has grown to include women of 74 congregations and a membership approaching 1450. 

I attended an interest session with Rev. Dr. Brent Smith from Mission Central. He was speaking about several missionaries and missions. We got to laughing in the room because I raised my hand about five times to interrupt and relate how LWML grants had significantly helped the missions he was talking about!

 He graciously acknowledged the key role LWML plays in mission work and said he should have done more homework before he came!

Don’t hesitate to interrupt! Let your district and national speakers know when they are talking about something that your LWML mission offerings have helped finance! God has been faithful to the Oklahoma LWML for 90 years, providing women who want to serve the Lord. He is faithful to our national organization for 75 years! Give thanks for His faithfulness, mercy, and love.

Christ is risen, He is risen indeed! Patti

 

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Great is Thy Faithfulness!

Oklahoma Convention logo LWML Oklahoma District Convention is this weekend! My district! We are celebrating God’s faithfulness in the lives of Oklahoma Lutheran Women in Mission for 90 years! Our LWML district president, Dianna Just, will preside over this anniversary convention. We have around 20 descendants of the original organizers attending! It’s even taking place in the area of the first organizing churches, the Lawton Zone.  

The Lutheran Women’s League of Oklahoma, organized in March of 1928. Women from six cities—Apache, Chickasha, Norman, Shawnee, Lawton and Oklahoma City—gathered at Zion Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City to start a district organization to further mission work, particularly in Oklahoma. In 1929 they held their first convention. First mission projects included money to purchase bed linens for St. John’s College, Winfield, Kansas and a canning project for the Lutheran Home Finding Society, an orphanage at Winfield, Kansas.

Those attending have a wonderful group of speakers and Bible study leaders to get to know. Many of you will recognize the names of past LWML Presidents Virginia Von Seggern and Linda Reiser. Bible study will be lead by Cindy Steinbeck, who also led our study at our 80th Anniversary convention. Brent Smith from Mission Central will also bring news from the mission field.

Also taking place this coming weekend is the LWML New England District convention in Enfield, Connecticut. President Barbara Lis will be leading her district women with the theme of “God’s Jewels”.

I hope you will go to your LWML district convention if at all possible. God gives us these opportunities to be equipped and encouraged— to worship, work, listen and learn along with your sisters in Christ!

Please remember these district conventions in your prayers this week.

Patti

Lutheran Women in Mission

An After-Easter Card

Happy Easter! Christ is Risen! Alleluia!

At Christ the Redeemer, Tulsa, Oklahoma we had a beautiful, inspirational day of worship and a fun day of family activities. We got to see children and grandchildren of our friends who came to town to visit. So many cute babies and kids dressed in their best! Lots of visitors and members who can’t come every Sunday. I pray you had a great day, as well.

I got to thinking. Maybe I should pick one of the visitors and write a note to them telling them that their attendance added to the joy of my worship. Nothing long or theological, just a “glad you came and worshiped” kind of note. I think I will do that!

What if all of us, Lutheran Women in Mission, took it as our mission this week to write a note to a visitor from Easter services? That would be thousands of people contacted even if we all wrote just one. You could ask your church office for the name and address of someone who came. If you saw someone you know, but who has been coming infrequently, you could write them.

If you have some Mustard Seed Devotions, put one in the note. Let’s see if we can contact thousands of people who were in our churches visiting this Easter Sunday!

We are heading out to Los Angeles tomorrow for the week to visit our son. I’m going to write my note now! Don’t wait, write yours as soon as you read this!

Now, shall I write with purple ink?

Patti

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