Bethlehem Lutheran Church

In our family, Thanksgiving dinner is served buffet style. Just like at the restaurant "Old Country Buffet" there is something for everyone, even the pickiest eater. Since we don't all sit down together to eat at the same time, we say our prayer together gathered around the food. As a kid, my Dad gave the prayer and it was a job he loved. In fact, he was so intent on sharing what everyone was thankful for that he would go on a pre-prayer fact gathering mission.

How did he do it?

By Heather Roth Johnson, Director of Children's Ministry

As a hobby, I collect Bibles. I like all types: from toddler to adult Bibles, Bibles in other languages, devotional Bibles, etc. During my time as an ELCA missionary in Madagascar, I worked with Wycliffe Bible Translators to help translate the Book of Luke into a Malagasy dialect called Sakalava so that people would have access to the Word of God in their own language. Overall, the Bible fascinates me.

Have you heard that the Bethlehem community has challenged itself to reach 20,000 by the year 2020 with the good news of Jesus Christ?  You may wonder how that's going to happen but be assured that in some ways it already is!  In the first five Sundays of the new year, Early Childhood Sunday School (age 2-Kindergarten) has had one to two new families in class each week. How cool is that! Sunday School teachers and families are living out their faith by inviting friends, neighbors and extended family to church. It is exactly what we are called to do.