Church Blog

Stewardship Minute

Posted on Mar 23, 2020 in Stewardship |

Whether you worship in-person or online, you can make your offerings via:

1. Online giving (credit card or bank)
2. One time or recurring electronicdeposit from your bank (contact the office)
3. One time or recurring credit card donation (contact the office)
4. US Postal Mail (6600 Black Rail Rd, Carlsbad, CA 92011)

Our expenses continue even during the Coronavirus shutdown and restart. We thank you for your faithful and continued generosity.

Please email Rachelle if you have questions about any of our giving options or would like to setup recurring giving.

Mar '20

Solutions for Change Collection

Posted on Mar 18, 2020 in Missions |

Mar '20

Thank you to everyone who donated items for the Solutions for Change drive! There were lots of Sheets, Pillows, Diapers and Baby Wipes. Contact Kerry with questions.

Stewardship Minute 2/16/2020

Posted on Feb 18, 2020 in Stewardship |

Stewardship

“Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer deserves his wages.’” (1Tim. 5:17 -18)

“We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and, are over you in the Lord and admonish you, to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.” (1 Thess. 5:12-13)

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” (Heb. 13:17)

We can see that the Lord commands hearers to support the work of the ministry with the gifts God endowed them – their time, their presence, their prayers, and their possessions. This is the means by which God blesses His people with His gifts: the ministry with the support of those whom they serve, and the hearers with the work of the ministry.

St. Paul expounds upon this further in his letters to the church at Corinth. He instructs them to give regularly (1 Cor. 16:1-2), proportionally (1 Cor. 16:1-2; 2 Cor. 8:12), and generously Cor. 8:20) of our first-fruits (1 Cor. 16:2) with a spirit of eagerness (2 Cor. 9:2), earnestness (2 Cor. 8:7), cheerfulness (2 Cor. 9:7), and love (2 Cor. 8:23).

All of this teaching is set forth squarely within the context of stations to which God calls us. This is always appropriate for the church to speak because it instructs God’s people in how they are to live out their faith as His stewards under those who are created, redeemed, and sanctified by Him.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.

Noreen

Stewardship Chairperson

Stewardship Minute 2/2/20

Posted on Feb 6, 2020 in Stewardship |

Stewardship

Stewardship shouldn’t be the kind of teaching that comes up only when there is a financial crunch. It should be part and parcel of the ongoing instruction of Christians as they live out their faith in their vocations – members of their family, their society, and their church. This teaching touches upon every facet of our lives; it stakes a claim upon our time, our presence, our prayers, and our possessions.

Stewardship begins with the acknowledgment that we are stewards. A steward is a manager of someone else’s possessions. In Christian stewardship, we recognize, according to the Apostles’ Creed, that God is the owner of all things as the Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifies. And in His fatherly divine goodness and mercy, He gives us what is His to manage here below.

The principal virtue for stewards is faithfulness. As St Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth:

“Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.” (Cor 4:2)

Stewards must manage that which belongs to the owner according to the owner’s wishes. That is what it means to be faithful in stewardship.

Mark your calendar for February 9th – Volunteer Appreciation Day. Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.

Noreen
Stewardship Chairperson

Stewardship Minute 1/21/2020

Posted on Jan 21, 2020 in Stewardship |

Wallflower
. . . . a person who feels shy, or awkward, or excluded at a party.

Did you ever go to a party where you didn’t know anyone except the person who invited you; but you couldn’t spend the evening with them because they were ‘mingling!’

When you are a wallflower at church, you go to your same seats and don’t talk to anyone other than those directly around you. After service, you might say ‘Hello’ to a few friends and then dash to your cars. What happened to ‘mingling’ getting to know your fellow members?

Wouldn’t you like to come out of your shell and join the ‘party?’ You may have things in common with other members of the congregation.

A good way to meet members is to ‘serve Christ’ as a volunteer for Redeemer By the Sea. Once you join a team, you are no longer a ‘Wallflower’, you are a participant in your journey with Christ.

As a member of various teams, and once a ‘wallflower’, I found I made many friends who call me by name.
It’s a good feeling! This is something a family can do together.

Mark your calendar for February 9th –Volunteer Appreciation Day. We will have tables set up outside the church for you to meet the leaders of the various groups. Please stop by and get some information on the groups that might interest you.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.
Noreen
Stewardship Chairperson

Stewardship Minute 1/13/2020

Posted on Jan 16, 2020 in Stewardship |

Time and Talent

Every week I have been writing about the importance of serving Christ. The need is great. You get a wonderful feeling when you know that you are serving to help Christ’s family.

Serving is not just for adults! It’s a family affair. Just look at it this way. You come to church on Sunday and mom and the children can be greeters and dad could be an usher, or mom can be an usher (yes, women can be ushers) and dad a greeter. The point is, the whole family can serve in one day.

Someone in the family can also be a reader, prepare communion, arrange flowers or be an acolyte. It’s good to show the children how to serve Christ as a family.

There are also other ways. We have people In our congregation who can’t attend church but would love to have people visit them. Church is their family, and when they can’t come they don’t get to visit with their family. They get very lonely. We need people to help in this area. Ralph and I visit members and we enjoy meeting with them. Companionship is very important to one’s emotional, physical and spiritual health.

I give thanks to my God always for you . . . Because of the Grace of God that was Given you in Christ Jesus. 1 Cor. 4-5

Mark your calendar for February 9th – Volunteer Appreciation Day and Volunteer Fair. We will have tables set up outside the church for you to meet the leaders of the various groups. Please stop by and get some information on the groups that might interest you.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.

Noreen
Stewardship Chairperson

Stewardship Minute 1/9/2020

Posted on Jan 9, 2020 in Stewardship |

Epiphany

From Sunday’s Bulletin written by Pastor Augie:

“Have you ever felt like some-thing’s missing? Are you longing for a

clearer sense of purpose in your life? You were created for significance…”

Are you using your gifts (Time and Talent) to their full potential?”

Have you had an epiphany – your ah-ha Moment? When you realized that being a ‘servant’ of Christ gives you peace and the feeling of being needed. How you grow in your faith and you become an active member of our Redeemer By the Sea family.

I was asked to read the Psalms on Sunday because they had nobody to read! We need Readers! I was nervous to do this but, I was asked, and I knew I would be serving Christ. We need to put our fears aside. Our fears are self-imposed! We think we can’t do something so, we don’t do it. When forced, we realize, oh, that wasn’t so bad!

Of course, I’m not going to force anyone, but would you please think about offering your ‘Time and Talent” and “serve” at Redeemer by the Sea.

We need people in many areas.

Mark your calendar for February 9^th – Volunteer Appreciation Day. We will have tables set up outside the church for you to meet the leaders of the various groups. Please stop by and get some information on the groups that might interest you.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.

Noreen
Stewardship Chairperson

Stewardship Minute 12/31/2019

Posted on Dec 31, 2019 in Stewardship |

Happy New Year!

Have you made your New Year’s Resolutions?

We all make them:

I am going to eat healthier
I am going to exercise more

Do you ever make a resolution that you are going to serve Christ? Why not make 2020 the year you serve!

There are many groups that you can join. Please check www.redeemerbythesea.org website and see all the groups that are available. You can serve as little or as much as you want. Your help is needed. Once you join, you will see how many friends you have made. Redeemer by the Sea is your church family and your family needs your Time and Talent.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea with your Time and Talent.

Stewardship Team

Stewardship Minute 12/23/19

Posted on Dec 23, 2019 in Stewardship |

NUCLEAR FAMILY OR CHURCH FAMILY

What is a family? A group of people united by the ties of marriage, blood, or adoption, constituting a single household and interacting with each other in their respective social positions, usually those of spouses, parent, children and siblings.

Family means having someone to love you unconditionally (Christ) in spite of you and your short comings. Family is loving and supporting one another even when it’s not easy to do so. What does family mean to you? Respect and appreciation of others. Family extends to community, sisterhood and brotherhood. Family is your foundation. Includes all the people in our lives who commit to love and support us unconditionally.

Who’s your Family?

Some people argue we should see our church as our “first family.” Jesus certainly refocused membership in God’s family: Now anyone can join the family not by bloodline, but by faith in him through the spread of the gospel. Accordingly, belonging to the “household of God” means more than just spending quality time together. It means people of all generations working shoulder to shoulder in the family business: sharing the love of Jesus in both word and deed.

Church Family

In most cases, the church won’t replace our family. Instead we must let the gospel reorient our family relationships – and in turn, these new priorities will strengthen the church.

You’re part of the whole family of God. “The one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family” (Heb 2:11) This is no dysfunctional family, with family members estranged from one another. It’s a fellowship. When God “called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor 1:9), he also called you into ‘fellowship” with the whole family (1 Cor 5:2). As Paul said to the Corinthians, “The eye cannot say to the hand ‘I don’t need you! And the head cannot say to the feet, I don’t need you.” (1 Cor, 12:21)

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another.

Theologian Alastair Roberts describes family this way:

The language of “family” for church very much depends on the church being made up of natural families. What gives the church Its backbone of community is often the families that are opened up to the kingdom of God. That’s what gives the church so much of its capacity to function as an extended family.

Family helps family. If your “blood family” calls and says: “I need your help,” you run to their side. No questions! You are there for them. Your church family is reaching out and calling for your help.

Review the redeemerbythesea.org website and see all the groups that you can join. Be a part of the family. Don’t be on the outside looking in!

Stewardship Team

Stewardship Minute 11/10/19

Posted on Nov 15, 2019 in Stewardship |

We are embarking on a new Campaign, Time and Talent.

For most people the word volunteer implies that serving is optional: As people created, equipped, and called by our Lord to serve, we can’t opt out of the work He has given us. (Ephesians 2:10) the Bible doesn’t use the word “volunteer”, instead God’s word calls us “servants”.

Every congregation needs the Vital Few. Pareto, an Italian economist observed that a minority of people (about 20%) have the majority (80%) of influence and control.

As the body of Christ in a given context, each congregation is a body made up of many members which, though different in function, are of equal importance to the body. (1 Cor. 12:12-27)

Instead of trying to get more people to become part of the vital few, I encourage you to be one of the “helpful many.” The helpful many can make smaller yet significant contributions to the congregation’s work as members of the body of Christ.

The Gospel, not the Law (guilt) motivates us to do good work. Trust the Holy Spirit to use the Gospel to move you to do the work that He is calling our congregation to do. Stewardship Steering Team

Stewardship Minute 11/3/19

Posted on Nov 15, 2019 in Stewardship |

Thank you all for your generosity with our ‘Grow In to Our Future’ campaign. It was very successful. You showed how you believe in our church and want to make it a wonderful place to worship.

We are embarking on a new non-financial campaign. This campaign is For your Time and Talent.

Through your Baptism and God’s Gospel, you are asked to participate in the growth of God’s church. When God asks you to tithe 10% of your Firstfruits, he also asks that you give 10% of your time. He wants your whole self to contribute to the church. God gives us: time, talents and treasures.

There are many positions within the church that need to be filled and, many groups that need assistance. You can go to the Redeemerbythesea.org website and see the list of service groups and growth groups available.

The church runs on servants (volunteers). We are all servants of God. We need your help. There is an old expression, “Many hands make light work.”

You can sign up to be an Usher, a Greeter, a member of the Alter Group and prepare communion, you can arrange Alter Flowers or help the group that serves coffee and cake. Since you are at church on Sunday, why not help these groups. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Many friends are made when you join a group. Stewardship Steering Team

Stewardship Minute 10/27/19

Posted on Nov 7, 2019 in Stewardship |

Whole-Life Stewardship

Another way to approach the concept of whole-life stewardship is to pick up the thread of Baptism and vocation that run together through the Scriptures.

The first principle was formulated in these words:

God’s stewards are stewards by virtue of their creation and their recreation in Holy Baptism. Therefore, they belong To the Lord.

This statement was attempting to build the giftedness of each individual at birth and the dynamic that the Holy Spirit adds at Baptism. The Creator entrusts gifts so that the people of God are able to accomplish His purposes. Paul’s language in Romans 12 about giving our bodies as a living sacrifice, or response to God, connects everyday life to worship and service. This is what we are called to be and do. As such, it encompasses all of life. It knows no limitation to only certain aspects of daily living.

Stewardship is but a synonym for the life of a Christian who is living rightly with all of his relationships: before God as well as before his fellow creatures. Stewardship is the Christian life and Christian life is stewardship.

In Our Calling, a classic essay on the relationship of the Christian faith and Christian living. Einar Billing writes:

My call is the form my life takes according as God Himself organizes for me through His forgiving grace. Life organized around the forgiveness of sins, that is Luther’s idea of the call (vocation).

Our calling is the sum of all those tasks that God daily gives us along with the forgiveness of sins until the end of life.

So often we equate vocation as employment, a job . . . This language has a way of undermining our common baptismal vocation to be the people of God.

Stewardship Minute 10/20/19

Posted on Nov 7, 2019 in Stewardship |

Whole-Life Stewardship

The traditional trio of tithing time, talents and treasure was unbiblical and counterproductive if it implied that after giving 10 percent to the Lord, the faithful were free to do what they wanted with the remaining 90 percent.

Stewardship is an all-encompassing word, not subject to our usual limitation to what is placed in the offering basket on Sundays. Andrew Lincoln contends in his Commentary on the Gospel of John that the fourth Gospel was written as a mission-training manual. It begins with the Father sending the Son into the world as His agent to live among us so that we see our salvation. The Gospel ends with Jesus telling His followers, “As the father has sent me, even so send I you. “These three words about God’s mission – servant, apostle and steward – are a full-time responsibility for the people of God. And for each of us, that means the call (vocations) God has given us in home, church and society.

Stewardship Minute 10/13/2019

Posted on Oct 17, 2019 in Stewardship |

“We are all beggars. This is true”

On account of Christ’s death and resurrection, the Father forgives you, save you, and is pleased with you. And you receive. You receive His love, His righteousness, His holiness, His acceptance, and His inheritance. We are all beggars. This is true.

This is the heart and soul of Christianity and the life-blood of the Christian Church. God justifies us, and He declares us innocent and righteous by His grace received through faith for the sake of Christ. This is not because of our works; this is because of His work on the cross. We, who once were enemies of God, are reconciled to Him and made to be His children.

This is what Luther would point us to when He took up his pen for the last time and scribbled “We are all beggars. This is true.” We are beggars. But we are beggars of God who does not ignore us, who doesn’t pass by us on the other side. We are beggars of the One who descended from heaven to make His dwelling with sinners.

We are beggars of Him who deigns to dwell with us, among us, and – yes – even in us by grace for Christ’s sake. For in the bread and cup that we bless, we share together with Christ and each other the riches of God’s grace.

So inexhaustible are the riches of this grace – the Gospel in sermon and absolution in Baptism and Holy Communion – that our cups overflow. We, who are God’s beggars, are not only inexhaustibly satisfied but have something to give back in thanksgiving and praise.

Stewardship Minute 10/06/2019

Posted on Oct 7, 2019 in Stewardship |

Martin Luther penned his final words: “We are beggars. This is true.”

And this is the truth that our Lord says makes you free. Ironic, isn’t it? That, in order to be free, you must be a beggar; you must be utterly dependent and reliant upon God. This makes us uncomfortable – the way we’re uncomfortable when someone gets us a Christmas or birthday present when we haven’t gotten them one. We feel we owe them. And we don’t much like being in someone’s debt.

But what Luther would remind us is that we are all indeed beggars. But we’re not just anyone’s beggars. We’re God’s beggars. And this is His legacy to the Christian Church. Christ came for sinners. He came to seek and save the lost. He came to heal the sick and raise the dead. He came for sinners, and He dwells only with sinners.

And, if we are to be where He is, we must be willing to be counted among the lost, the sick, and the dead. We must be willing to be beggars. We must cry out for mercy, for grace, and for his undeserved love and kindness. We must be dependent solely on Him and what He gives.

And here’s the beauty: He gives us everything. Everything – forgiveness of sins, salvation from death and the devil, and eternal life. This is not because of any worthiness or merit in us, but it Is because of His divine goodness, mercy, and grace.

Stewardship Minute 9/29/19

Posted on Oct 3, 2019 in Stewardship |

Matthew 18:3 – “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Children trust their parents. They look to their parents to bless them and care for them. We are children of the heavenly Father, and He invites us to trust Him. He has given us proof of His trustworthiness by sending His son to save us. Children delight in giving their parents gifts. Parents delight in receiving these signs of love and thankfulness. Can you see how this applies to us giving gifts to our heavenly Father?

Stewardship Minute 9/22/2019

Posted on Sep 20, 2019 in Stewardship |

Luke 16:8 – “For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.” The sons of this world know that they should use their wealth wisely to provide for their future. Shouldn’t we “sons of light” know that the wealth God has allowed us to manage should be managed for God’s purposes in the roles He has given us in Church, home and society?

Stewardship-August 2019

Posted on Jul 31, 2019 in Stewardship |

Have you ever noticed the subtle ceremony of receiving the offerings during the Divine Service? The offerings are collected in plates or basket, and they are brought forward and given to the pastor or an assistant. The pastor turns toward the altar, and, as he bows his head, offerings are raised slightly to the Lord and placed on the altar or an adjacent table.

Originally, this ceremony included more than simply bringing forward what was collected in the offering plates. The elements for the Holy Communion – the bread and the wine – were brought forward with the offerings. The offerings and elements were lifted toward the Lord and placed upon the altar. The altar, now made a table, would be set for the Lord’s Supper.

For what is offered to the Lord from the sweat of His people’s brow – the bread of anxious toil – comes back to us as the bread of life. The bread comes down from heaven that whoever eats this bread and drinks this cup will receive life through the forgiveness of their sins.

What a blessing! God provides for us in all things. He provides bread from the sweat of our brows. He receives this from us in the first-fruits offerings we give to Him in thanksgiving and praise, and He turns these into spiritual bread. He gives this heavenly bread – the bread of eternal life – back to us so we might have joy.

– Stewardship Steering Team

Birthday Group-August 2019

Posted on Jul 31, 2019 in Birthday Group |

On THURSDAY, July 11, we celebrated the birthdays of Bobbie and Jerry Ankenbrandt, Jim Brunner, BJ Lahr, Mary Ann and Ed Meinardus and Patricia Sax at Clara, a restaurant in Carlsbad Village. Our group took up an entire wall which had no impact at all on the fellowship throughout the group. We contributed one hundred ninety-nine ($199) dollars to Birth Choice.

We’ll celebrate the birthdays of Pastor Augie, Gary Reiswig, Dave Taylor, Ken Voertman and Gary Wilson in our first all-male birthday celebration on THURSDAY, August 29 at Dini’s Bistro, 3290 Carlsbad Boulevard at 11:30 a.m.

Lunches range from ten to eighteen ($10-18) dollars. In addition to your lunch, we request a one dollar contribution per celebrant which will go to Del/Mar Solana Beach Optimist Club for their Rady’s Children’s Hospital project.

Everyone is welcome to join us but you do need a reservation with the Birthday Coordinator, Jo Voertman, jvbytheseaagain@gmail.com, 760-721-6674.

Free to be Faithful-August 2019

Posted on Jul 31, 2019 in Free to be Faithful |

Free to be Faithful (a.k.a. Salt & Light) is dedicated to raising awareness within our Christian Community that we have a responsibility to be informed and to participate in the Civil arena; most importantly to vote for candidates that share our Christian beliefs. As individual Christians this responsibility must be taken as seriously as any other duty in our lives. How can you love your neighbor and yet vote for someone who will pass legislation allowing your neighbors daughter to have an abortion without parents’ consent?

A recent article on the Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty website (part of the LCMS Free to be Faithful program) talked about a specific legislation that deals with public funding of abortions. Their guidance is this: “Now is the time for us to speak as a moral people, refusing to incentivize a procedure that, even though legal, should be sparingly used. The debate about the Hyde Amendment won’t let us hide anymore!”. The Church, for their part, must encourage members to get informed and be involved.

Hyde Amendment: A legislative provision barring the use of federal funds to pay for abortion except to save the life of the woman, or if the pregnancy arises from incest or rape. First passed in 1976

Isaiah 5:20: “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” – Dan Bitner