ANNUAL ROAD RALLY

“Pizza/Pasta Parade”

Sunday, September 7, 2008

“Pizza/Pasta Parade” is what we are calling our Fourth Annual Road Rally at Arndt’s. It will be held on Sunday, September 7, 2008, beginning at 4:00 p.m.

We will meet at the church and divide into teams. Each team will have a car and a driver and will receive their first clue. The clues will direct each team to various pizza parlors and/or restaurants around the area in search of their next clues. The last clue will direct each team back to the church, where we will meet for a light supper of delicious pizza and pasta dishes.

This is an intergenerational event for everyone—invite your friends and family for this afternoon of fun!

AUGUST PRAYER CALENDAR

Each day you are asked to say a prayer for the member listed on that day. All of the members of our church family will be prayed for many times throughout the year. Members are listed alphabetically. If someone is missed, please contact the secretary in the church office.

August 1 – Betty Mellwig

August 2 - Christopher Mertz

August 3 - Charles and Mickey Miller

August 4 - Logie Miller

August 5 - William and Linda Miller, Liza and Jenna

August 6 - Ralph and Dorothy Millheim

August 7 - Shirley Morris

August 8 - Scott and Anne Bennett-Morse, ZJ, London and Addison

August 9 - Helen Moskol

August 10 – Ken and Karen Muller

August 11 - John and Celena Nelson, Olivia and

August 12 - Bonnie Nicholas and Colin Panovec

August 13 - Ed and Natalie Nicholas, Joseph and Valerie

August 14 - Mike and Yvonne Osmun

August 15 - Ruth Paff

August 16 - Carl and Darlene Pagano and Carl, Jr.

August 17 - Howard and Marj Paul

August 18 - Bob Pellen, Jr.

August 19 - Bob Pellen, Sr.

August 20 - Carolyn Phillips

August 21 - Grace Piperato, Amber and Charles Heimbach

August 22 - Tom and Cindy Pursel, Jennifer, Katie and Shannon

August 23 - Mackie, Punia and Sahima Rasul

August 24 - Clayton Resh

August 25 - Joyce Resh

August 26 - Bill and Melodie Ritter, Jenna and Joshua

August 27 - Dave and Joseph Rose

August 28 - Dale and Jean Ruschman, Becky and Robert

August 29 - Kevin and Tammy Russell, Samantha, Sarah and Stephanie

August 30 - Richard, Brita and Jennifer Sam

August 31 - Bruce and Debbie Sandt

MEALS FOR RESIDENTS OF SAFE HARBOR. Thank you to members who donated food for the June and July meals at Safe Harbor. Arndt’s continues to prepare dinner on the fourth Thursday of each month. Our next scheduled meal will be Thursday, August 28th. Use the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the hallway to volunteer.

MEALS ON WHEELS- Meals are delivered to the homes of Easton Seniors every second Wednesday of the month. We are always looking for new volunteers to help deliver on our assigned day. Call Logie Miller at 610-253-3868 if you would like to become a part of this rewarding ministry.

Mark your calendars -

The CROP WALK is coming! Join us on Oct. 12 at St. John’s Lutheran on Ferry St. in Easton. Locally, we support families in crisis through ProJeCt and around the world in self-help development through Church World Service. www.cropwalk.org

Hunger has a cure – walk with us to end hunger in our world!

FOOD BANK DONATIONS FOR

AUGUST

instant potatoes

canned pasta

cereal

jelly (12 oz. jars)

can openers (hand operated)

Other non-perishable food items are always welcome. All items may be placed in the shopping cart. Thank you to everyone who supports this ongoing community project. and to Logie Miller who delivers our donations to the Food Pantry at St. John’s every month.

PROJECT OF EASTON is now accepting local grocery store "gift cards" to supplement purchases of fresh produce, to be distributed to those in need. Cards can be given in any denomination.

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2008 Congregational Council Representatives

Tom Walters, President ‘09

Joan Kocher, Secretary ‘08

Jim Bialker, ‘10

Steve Bueker '10

Scott Lewis, Vice President '09

Laura Smestad '09

Yvonne Osmun ‘08

Tim Donbar ‘08

Denice Adams, ‘10

Interesting Items from

June Council Meeting

Ø Council voted to change oil companies from Field’s to Lessig because Lessig will guarantee a price cap for the year of $3.99 per gallon.

Ø $900 profit was made at the Lawn Social. We applied for matching funds from Thrivent for this money.

Ø All graduates were honored during the worship service on Sunday, June 22.

Ø With all the donations and matching funds received for Nerisa Guevara and her family, over $4,000 was given to them by Arndt’s members and friends.

Ø There will be no council meeting in July.

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SUMMER WORSHIP SCHEDULE

Continues through Labor Day.

Saturday Service – 6:00 p.m.

Sunday Service – 9:30 a.m.

CLUSTER MEETING HOST

Arndt’s will be hosting the Fall Bethlehem/Easton District Cluster Meeting this year. The meeting will take place on Monday, September 22, 2008 from 4:00-7:00 P.M. The attending congregations will bring sandwiches and desserts to share, the host church is responsible for salads and beverages. The topic for this meeting is Identity Theft. More information will appear in next month’s newsletter as well as bulletins. I’ll be seeking out volunteers for the salads and beverages.

If you have any questions please call Yvonne at 610-253-1665 or e-mail at creedak@rcn.com

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Bethlehem/Easton Mission District

Christmas Ingathering - 2008

Our congregation has been asked to contribute 100 cans of shaving cream and 100 disposable razors. You may place your donations in the box in the narthex. This annual project, sponsored by Lutheran Congregational Services, gathers personal care items for distribution to ten local agencies. This year’s Ingathering will be held at New Jerusalem Lutheran Church in Saucon Valley on December 3, 2008.

Women Of the Word

[Second Monday of the month]

WOW meetings will start again, beginning on Monday, September 8^th, at the church, at 7:00 p.m. Many interesting things are planned for the upcoming year. Join us to be a part of this women’s ministry.

All women are invited to join with us for discussion topics and to participate in various church projects and events.

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LOOKING FOR A . . .

CROP WALK COORDINATOR

The Easton Crop Walk will be held on

Sunday, October 12^th and will begin at St. John’s Lutheran Church. Arndt’s is looking for a person to be the Crop Walk Coordinator.

The job involves recruiting walkers and then distributing pledge materials. Talk to Pastor Jean if you would like to volunteer.

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ATTENTION ALL GOLFERS – The 2^nd Annual Arndt’s Golf Outing will be held on Sunday October 5, 2008 at 1pm at the Green Pond Country Club and Golf Course in Bethlehem Township. All proceeds from the outing will go towards the construction of a picnic pavilion on our church grounds. Last year we raised $2000 and we hope to better that this year. Hole sponsors and prize donors are still needed. Golf registration and hole sponsorship forms can be found in the church Narthex

MARK YOUR CALENDARS -

YANKEE PEDDLER DAY IS COMING!

Yes, September is in the future, but plan ahead for our Third Annual Yankee Peddler Day on Saturday, September 27, 2008.

The event this year will be “Rain or Shine, Be Prepared”, and spaces will again be sold for selling your antiques, collectibles, garage sale items, etc. Arndt’s members or Arndt’s groups can reserve a booth with Nancy Walters (610-253-0726) by giving her a check for $10.00. Non-member booths this year will be $20 with an advance registration. We will have approximately 55 booths. This year the church will not have a rummage tent, and we will expand our food offerings to include more “Harvest Home” products such as jams, jellies, pies, pumpkin items, etc. Most of the work is needed the day before for set up and the day of the sale, so please plan to attend and help, it is a lot of fun and a

great opportunity for Arndt’s to extend our “outreach”!

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RALLY DAY CELEBRATION

Sunday School Begins

Sunday, September 7^t^h

We’re celebrating the first day of Sunday School and Grandparents Day with a special Rally Day event. Children and their grandparents are asked to join us at 9:00 a.m. for special activities and light refreshments.

See you at Sunday School on

September 7^th!!!!

Justice Rolls Down…..God Around Town

The first Youth Day Event – Justice Rolls Down….God Around Town was held June 30-July 3 with youth from three local Lutheran churches attending. Each day began with a Bible study of some sort exploring Creation, Violence, Hunger and Poverty. In the afternoon, the youth did some hands-on work relating to the topic of the day. To take care of creation, they cleaned up the Bushkill at Penn Pump Park. Learning about violence and gangs in Easton encouraged them to clean up a local park in downtown Easton. Visiting the Third Street Alliance for Women and Children and Safe Harbor provided them with an opportunity to interact with people different from themselves. On Thursday, all of the adults and youth went tubing on the Delaware River. It was a very good week for everyone. Hopefully, this will be a yearly event.

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Heifer Project – 2008

Sunday School classes collected $358 (including matching funds from a congregation member) for the Heifer Project. This money will help purchase animals, plants and seeds for people in developing countries. Thank you to everyone who participated.

“God’s Good Earth…Caring for Creation”

(A Wrap-Up)

Over 60 children attended “God’s Good Earth...Caring for Creation”, and what an amazing week it was! About 30 adults and youth volunteered many hours to present a wonderful program for the children. The children learned the Bible stories about creation, Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and Noah and the flood. Crafts and activities were centered on environmental issues as we all must work to care for this creation. The children learned how to use the sun to dry fruits and vegetables and made solar ovens out of pizza boxes to cook their own pizzas. They learned how to mix an earth friendly and economical cleaner out of vinegar and water. The children were encouraged to eat healthy snacks, mainly healthy fruits and vegetables. Crafts used recycled materials; orange juice cartons were made into birdhouses and plastic containers were decorated and used to plant herbs in. Quilt blocks cut out of donated fabric were marked with the names of all who participated or volunteered during the week. They have been made into a beautiful wall hanging to commemorate this year’s VBS. The children also participated in a “Simple Quilts” mission project and were challenged to donate money to send quilts to Peru. Every $2 donation would send a quilt to Peru. They donated enough to send 88 quilts! A highlight of the week was to have Carol and Percy Valiente, SIM missionaries to Lima, Peru, visit and talk to the children about their missionary work and what life is like for the people of Peru.

So many people were responsible for making this week possible, and we would like to mention just a few of those who were in charge of special areas: Pastor for her daily children’s messages, Nancy Walters for her environmental education, Steve Bueker for music, Marj Paul for organizing and sewing the quilts all week, Marjorie Leuschner and Diane Smestad for leading up the pre-school division, Janet Herr for publicity, Louise Hawk for photography and all the group leaders and volunteers in crafts, snacks and other areas. Thanks also to those of you who donated items for the week. We thank you for your passion and involvement in this important youth ministry. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Jean Ruschman and Karen Beverly, Co-coordinators

BOOK

CLUB

August

The book club reading for August is The Twentieth Wife: A Novel by Indu Sundaresan. It is an enchanting seventeenth-century epic of grand passion and adventure, this debut novel tells the captivating story of one of India's most legendary and controversial empresses -- a woman whose brilliance and determination trumped myriad obstacles, and whose love shaped the course of the Mughal empire.

She came into the world in the year 1577, to the howling accompaniment of a ferocious winter storm. As the daughter of starving refugees fleeing violent persecution in Persia, her fateful birth in a roadside tent sparked a miraculous reversal of family fortune, culminating in her father's introduction to the court of Emperor Akbar. She is called Mehrunnisa, the Sun of Women. This is her story.

Growing up on the fringes of Emperor Akbar's opulent palace grounds, Mehrunnisa blossoms into a sapphire-eyed child blessed with a precocious intelligence, luminous beauty, and a powerful ambition far surpassing the bounds of her family's station. Mehrunnisa first encounters young Prince Salim on his wedding day. In that instant, even as a royal gala swirls around her in celebration of the future emperor's first marriage, Mehrunnisa foresees the path of her own destiny.

One day, she decides, she too will become Salim's wife. She is all of eight years old -- and wholly unaware of the great price she and her family will pay for this dream. Skillfully blending the textures of historical reality with the rich and sensuous imaginings of a timeless fairy tale, The Twentieth Wife sweeps readers up in the emotional pageant of Salim and Mehrunnisa's embattled love.

First-time novelist Indu Sundaresan charts her heroine's enthralling journey across the years, from an ill-fated first marriage through motherhood and into a dangerous maze of power struggles and political machinations. Through it all, Mehrunnisa and Salim long with fiery intensity for the true, redemptive love they've never known -- and their mutual quest ultimately takes them, and the vast empire that hangs in the balance, to places they never dreamed possible.

Shot through with wonder and suspense, The Twentieth Wife is at once a fascinating portrait of one woman's convention-defying life behind the veil and a transporting saga of the astonishing potency of love.

Please join us on Monday evening, August 25 at 7:00 pm in the lounge.

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Autographed Book Purchasing Opportunities:

Debi Wahl will discuss her book, I’m Coming, Jesus, at the 10/27 meeting of book club. Advance copies are $5 with our group discount. Give the money to Janet Herr, or to the church office, by August 17^th.

Mary Hill, author of The Gift, will visit the WOW meeting on 11/10. Her book can also be ordered for $5 with our group discount. Give the money to Janet Herr or to the church office, by August 17^th.

We will have another author join us this season. The Rev Jeff Butz will discuss his book, The Brother of Jesus, on 11/24 at the book club meeting. . His book can be purchased at bookstores or through Amazon.com.

Read the books prior to the discussions or join us and purchase them that night. Another idea is to have these books autographed and give them as gifts all through the year.

Arndt’s

announcements

Please submit any special information you may want to share with the rest of the membership to the “Arndt’s Announcements” page of

The Messenger.

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CONGRATULATIONS

To Zach Leuschner and teammates William

Trinker and Justin Gamble, members of the Easton Area High School Future Business Leaders of America team who placed first in Network Design at the National Leadership Conference held in Atlanta, Georgia on

June 29, 2008. The competition was part of a 4-day program for FBLA members from around the nation.

WEDDINGS

Tiffany Weaver and Adam Gary

July 26, 2008

BAPTISMS

Ireland Ann Christine Larsen

Daughter of Troy Larsen and Melissa Obser

June 1, 2008

Matthew Shi Mack

Son of James and Michelle (Xiaohui) Mack

June 21, 2008

Abigail Rose Haffner

Daughter of Mike and Becky Haffner

June 22, 2008

NEW MEMBERS (Received June 29, 2008)

Irma Lacey

Donald, Donna, Andrew and Kaitlyn Koch

Thank you to . . .

Jim Siegfried for chairing the Arndt’s Lawn Social. Despite the searing hot weather that day, a profit of over $900 was realized and

those who attended had a great time. Thanks, also, to everyone who participated in any way.

Thank you from . . .

Third Street Alliance. On behalf of Third Street Alliance for Women & Children, I would like to thank Arndt’s Lutheran Church for its contribution of $166 to our agency from your Mother’s Day drive. Your gift will help us to provide services all year round. We are honored to be the recipients of this special drive and truly appreciate your generosity. Judy Matthewson joins me in expressing our sincere gratitude for your support of our mission.

Betsy Walker, Director of Development

Heifer International. Thank you for giving through our Gift Catalog in such a generous manner! You are helping families lift themselves out of poverty by supporting them with gifts of livestock and training. On behalf of Heifer International participants throughout the world, I sincerely thank you for making a difference. Together, we will continue to provide sustainable solutions and restore hope to families in need around the world.

Jo Luck, President and CEO

Note: A water buffalo and goat were purchased with the monies sent by Arndt’s Sunday School.

DATES TO REMEMBER

Mark Your Calendars

August 9 - Quilting Day 9:00 – 5:00

Sept. 7- Rally Day – Sunday School Begins at 9:00 a.m.

Sept. 7 - Road Rally, 4:00 p.m.

Sept. 22 - WELCA Fall Cluster

Sept. 27 - Yankee Peddler Day

October 5 - 2^nd Annual Golf Tournament

October 5 - Blessing of the Animals

October 12 - CROP Walk

October 12 – PB&J Lecture Series Begins

October 17 - Women’s Retreat-Trout Lake

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WORSHIP AT ARNDTS

Sunday, August 3, 2008 –Time After Pentecost – Holy Communion

In today’s first reading God invites all who are hungry or thirsty to receive food and drink, without cost. Jesus feeds the hungry multitude and reveals the abundance of God. At the eucharistic table we remember all who are hungry or poor in our world today. As we share the bread of life, we are sent forth to give ourselves away as bread for the hungry.

Sunday, August 10, 2008 – Time After Pentecost – Service of the Word

Elijah finds the presence of God not in earthquake, wind or fire but in the sound of sheer silence. When the disciples face a great storm on the sea, they cry out with fear. Jesus says: “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Amid the storms of life, we gather to seek the calm presence of Christ that soothes our fears. In comforting words of scripture and in the refreshing bread and cup of the eucharist, God grants us peace and sends us forth to be a sign of God’s presence to others.

Sunday, August 17, 2008 –Time after Pentecost – Holy Communion

In Isaiah we hear that God’s house shall be a house of prayer for all people and that God will gather the outcasts of Israel. The Canaanite woman in today’s gospel is a Gentile, an outsider, who is unflinching in her request that Jesus heal her daughter. As Jesus commends her bold faith, how might our church extend its mission to those on the margins of society? In our gathering around word and meal we receive strength to be signs of comfort, healing and justice for those in need.