In my sermon this past Sunday, the Festival of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, I noted that the festivals of the apostles remind us that the Church’s life and work rests on the witness of the apostles to the resurrection of the Savior, the ground of all our life and hope. “I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church” – as we say in the Nicene Creed. In this Church Year three of the apostles’ days happen to fall on Sunday: August 24th is Saint Bartholomew the Apostle’s Day and September 21st is Saint Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist’s Day. And the light we see in their life and witness is the light of the risen Lord. So just as every Sunday is a celebration of the Lord’s resurrection, in the same way every saint’s day is a celebration of the Lord’s resurrection and so, like the Lord’s Day, a day of joy. How we 21st century Christians need to recover that sense of the Lord’s Day as a day of joy! We gather on Sunday morning not to remember some long departed friend, we come to meet our risen Lord and Savior in the Sacrament of His love:

O sacred banquet
in which Christ is received,
the memory of His passion is renewed,
the mind is filled with grace,
and a pledge of future glory is given unto us.

In the prayer that is frequently prayed following the distribution of Holy Communion, a prayer written by Dr. Luther for his German Mass of 1526, we pray that God would strengthen us through the Sacrament “in faith toward You and in fervent love toward one another.” We pray that the love we have received may be reflected in how we live among ourselves, how we live in our families and the people we work with and all the people who come into our lives, especially those who are in need – often in desperate need! So remember to keep bringing food items for the GEDCO Food Pantry and personal items for the Helping Up Mission in its work with homeless men and women. As the terrible wars continue in Ukraine and in the Middle East and other parts of the world, remember that you can help through our Synod’s Contributor Care Line (888-030-4439) or by sending a check to LCMS World Relief and Human Care, PO Box 66861, Saint Louis, MO 63166-6861. Make your check payable to the LCMS and mark the check for LCMS World Relief and Human Care. You can also donate through the secure website lcms.org/givenow/mercy.

And do remember our Free Flea Markets on July 12th and August 9th, 9:00A.M. – 12 Noon. They continue to meet a real need, and we always need help in welcoming our visitors and distributing the items they choose.

I urge you to read and take to heart Gabe Purviance’s Note, which appears at the end of this newsletter. Over the last year or so we have been in the process of converting all (most all) fluorescent lights in the church to LED. This will reduce electricity usage and also simplify maintenance, since we can expect these lights to last a very long time. Our members have been doing this themselves by removing the ballast and old lights from the fixtures and replacing them with LED tubes. The project is now nearly complete with just a few more lights in the kitchen in need of updating. Many thanks to those who have helped with this project including Andy Layman, Merton Masterson, Gabe Purviance, Paul Techau, Gary Watson and Wayne West. We owe them a great debt of gratitude! Our congregation is certainly blessed with willing workers!

We continue to remember in prayer Bridget Bauman, James Bauman, Christopher Bell, Bertha Buchanan, Dana Carmichael, Timothy Doswell, Quilla Downs, Bunny Duckett, Joyce Eaves, Albert Ford, Frank Ford, Iris Ford, Yolanda Ford, Sean Fortune, Thurman Frey, Lynne Funck, Katherine Gray, Sherry James, Gloria Jones, Mary Mokris, Elliott Robertson, Julia Silver, Robert Siperek Jr., Lawrence Smallwood, Paul Swank, George Volkman, Gary Watson; Marvalisa, Sierra, Jonathan and Steven Gibson. Yolanda Ford remains at Future Care, 1046 North Point Road, Baltimore, MD 21224.

I hope that during these summer days you will find time for rest and refreshment. I also hope that you will not take the Church for granted. But it seems that in so many parts of the world – thankfully not all! – there is a deplorable neglect of worship on the Lord’s Day which can in no way be justified or excused. Every Lord’s Day Christ provides a heavenly Banquet for us as we continue on our pilgrimage through this present world to the life of the world to come. Will you ignore His gracious invitation or will you come gladly to the Feast?

Affectionately in our risen Lord,

Pastor McClean

As Christians we know the Church is everlasting. Unfortunately, church buildings are not and require maintenance and repair to weather the winds of time. As members of Our Saviour Lutheran Church we have been blessed with a house of worship that was built with the highest quality and craftmanship of its time! However, that time was almost a century ago. Although she still stands triumphant at the intersection of 33rd & The Alameda, welcoming all to worship, she needs our help!

Mechanical systems and materials have extended beyond expectation, but now are coming to need repair, updating, or replacement. A short while back the heating system blower had to be replaced to maintain warmth in the sanctuary. Unfortunately, we have had a couple of additional significant maintenance issues that have come up:

• First is the roof over the education building, which is mostly slate and in good condition. However, we have had some water leaking in the upstairs hallway. The leak has been traced to the top center section of the roof, which is a flat and needs to be replaced to prevent additional water damage to the church. The replacement cost is $4,500.
• Additionally, the window in Pastor’s study has deteriorated, and is barely functional. It does not open properly, and is not sealed well, making it hot in the summer and cold in the winter. The window needs to be replaced with an updated vinyl window. The replacement cost is $3,282.

Through faithful stewardship the church has been able to advance these repairs, but in order to be prepared for the next substantial repair we need your help to restore these funds as soon as possible! Your contribution will allow us to address needed repairs before they become even more costly catastrophic failures.

Please ensure that Our Saviour continues to stand steadfast and triumphant by making a donation to help defray these costs. Please note your checks memo “Building Maintenance.”

Thank you very much,
– Gabriel  Purviance, Stewardship Director