Page 1 of 6 Confirmation Weekend Pastor Puls; Pastor


Page 1 of 6 Confirmation Weekend Pastor Puls; Pastor...

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Confirmation Weekend May 15, 2016

Pastor Puls; Pastor Lew; DCE Beth Confirmation 2016

Today we celebrate the Day of Pentecost, which is the day that the Holy Spirit descended and people from over the known world heard the good news of Jesus proclaimed in their own languages. It is the day, that in essence, marked the beginning of the Christian Church. According to the Scriptures, over 3,000 souls were baptized and added to the church that day (Acts 2:41). So how appropriate that on this Day of Pentecost, we are welcoming 45 young people as communicant members of the church, who over the past two years have been instructed and have proven to their Pastors, DCE’s, and Small Group Leaders that they are now ready to publicly affirm their baptismal faith. And as special as this day is for our confirmation students, it serves as a reminder for all of us that our spiritual growth does not consist of two years worth of classes. It is a life-long journey that the Lord sets before us. And this journey, for most of us, started the moment we were baptized. Today, with the rite of confirmation, our students will affirm their faith before this congregation that they believe in the Triune God— Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They believe, not on their own, but through the faith given to them at their baptisms and strengthened by His Word. Faith. We’ve talked a lot about that word over the past two years with our confirmation students and what it means in the life of a Christian. But one thing we always stressed is that we could not talk them or teach them into believing in Jesus Christ. As their pastors, DCE’s, and Small Group leaders, we were there to share with them God’s truth and promises found in his Word, but actually believing and confessing that Jesus died for them and rose on Easter morning so that they will live forever in the presence of God is the work of the Holy Spirit. The same Spirit who descended on the thousands as Peter people delivered his powerful message at Pentecost and the same Spirit who came to all of us the day we were baptized. It is the Holy Spirit who creates and sustains our faith and who works through God’s powerful Word. And this is really important because as our confirmation students already know, the world tries to diminish any authority of God’s Word. All of us know this. But regardless of what any person might say, God’s Word has and always will reign supreme. And it is here (holding Bible) that he speaks to us his words of assurance.

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That’s one of the reasons each of our confirmation students is assigned a confirmation verse. Our hope is that they will turn to this verse often as a reminder that God speaks through his Words of Scripture. We want these verses to not just mark a special day, but serve as words of promise throughout their lives. So in an effort to emphasize the importance of these verses, a part of their final confirmation essays, we asked our students to share with us either how their verse applies in their daily life as a follower of Jesus or what God is telling them in their verse about their future as a follower of Jesus. They took this seriously and their answers were truly inspiring— so much so that we would like to take this time to share a sentence or two from each of their answers as they thought about what God was saying to them. 1) “By following God’s word I know he will save me in anyway possible and by letting me struggle through the hard times he is letting me learn through my faith.” Julia Allen (Romans 1:16a) 2) “I think that God is trying to tell me that I can live my life through Him.” Rachel Alvis (Isaiah 41:10) 3)“As a follower of Jesus my verse tells me that we can do amazing things with faith.” Vincent Andrews (Matthew 17:20) 4) “The Lord will guide me continually. He will look down on me all the time to guide me through the good or bad.” Kaitlynne Baker (Isaiah 58:11) 5) “Without God making his presence known in my heart and in my mind, my existence would be terrible. God is the light of my day, life, and mind.” John Bishop (Hebrews 4:12) 6) “My verse is telling me that I should always love God not matter what and always worship Him.” Logan Coyne (Psalm 27:1) 7) “ My verse tells me that I am connected to Jesus Christ.” Lauren Garrett (John 15:5) 8) “God will be there in all of the good and bad moments of my life” Page 2 of 6

James Gonenc (Deuteronomy 31:6) 9) “God shows us that he loves us in Jesus Christ and because of this he wants us to share that love with the world.” Mary Kathryn Hederick (1 John 3:1) 10) “I am so thankful that God created me. Being one of his creations motivates me to be the best that I can be.” Bridget Hoelzle (Psalm 139:13-14a) 11) “Always stay true to your faith and never lose it.” Sammy Hoh (1 Timothy 6:12) 12) “Being a follower of Jesus will definitely take me farther in life.” Lauren Hollembaek (Isaiah 40:31) 13) “In my verse, God is telling me about my future as a follower of Jesus Christ.” Dustin Howard (Romans 8:28) 14) “By committing ourselves to God, we can put our burdens on Him and trust He will carry those burdens for us when we are no longer able to. Jason Iafrate (Psalm 37:5) 15) “I am a sheep in the flock…what this means to my future, as a follower of Jesus, is that I will never listen to a false call from a different shepherd.” Lily Jacks (John 10:27-28) 16) “I know Jesus died for my sins, therefore I am saved and will go to heaven.” Jack Kannan (Acts 16:31) 17) “God is telling me that because I am his child, he will help me with anything…school, relationships, church, weaknesses, and understanding Him. Joanna Kirkendoll (Colossians 1:11-12) 18) “I think God is saying don't be scared to talk to Jesus or trust in him. He will be there through the hard and fun times.” Olivia Lewis (Philippians 4:6)

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19) “I feel God is telling me through my verse that I need to make a commitment to everyday believe Jesus Christ is my true Savior and he died on the cross for my sins.” Cade Lindberg (1 Timothy 6:12) 20) “If Jesus had not died on the cross, I would not have plans for welfare and would have no hope.” Abbey Lockhart (Jeremiah 29:11) 21) “God wants us to believe in him and make sure we know he is with us always.” Jake Marchetta (Joshua 1:9) 22) “God teaches us his Word through the Church. He does not hold grudges.” Emma Markusen (Proverbs 2:6) 23) “Because Jesus is my Savior, I know that He is my way to heaven." Anna Metzger (John 14:6) 24) “My verse applies in my life because when I ask God for forgiveness, I find His love. Cole Meyer (Matthew 6:33) 25) “No matter what, when I need help God is never too busy or distracted to answer me.” Brandon Moran (Nahum 1:7) 26) “Jesus is good. Jesus will leave his peace with us and not let our hearts be troubled. Jesus will guide us though our everyday lives and keep us strong.” Tanner Mrazek (John 14:27) 27) “Christ is telling me to ask for help and forgiveness and to honor Him and all he does for me.” Dominic Piacenti (Luke 24:46-48) 28) “My verse emphasizes how much Jesus loves me and explains how God will always be there to protect me and comfort me.” Jake Pickens (Psalm 18:2) 29) “I think it’s a good thing to show others that Jesus is always there” Taylor Pickens (Matthew 5:16)

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30) “My verse encourages me to pray everyday for God’s will in my life and for his love, strength, and forgiveness for myself as well as others.” Angelina Rebollar (Philippians 4:4) 31) “ God’s grace is the gift of forgiveness when Jesus died on the cross.” Nick Reiss (2 Corinthians 12:9a) 32) “The Lord our God sends believers to heaven where we can have eternal life with Jesus and all the others who have passed long before us.” Taylor Rotosky (Isaiah 12:2) 33) “Jesus has and will always go to extreme measures through his love for me to protect and save me.” Connor Rummel (John 8:12) 34) “God will always be there for me because I believe in him.” Trevor Rush (Psalm 55:22) 35) “God is telling me that my belief in Jesus gives me hope.” Elly Saunooke (Romans 15:13) 36) “I can impact non-believers by talking to them about Jesus and showing them the ways of being a follower of Jesus.” Riley Saunooke (Joshua 24:15a) 37) “Jesus was there right when I was born and once I am at the end of my life on earth I will go to heaven because of Him.” Ashleigh Scheuerle (Revelation 22:13) 38) “Jesus made me realize that I can overcome anything.” David Siderio (Philippians 4:13) 39) “Jesus made it so we can directly go to God.” Ben Strom (Matthew 28:20b) 40) “I know that Jesus wants me to be a good role model for people that need help finding their way.” John Townsend (1 Timothy 4:12)

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41) “My verse tells me that through prayer and repentance, the Lord will forgive my sins and transgressions.” Gannon Turner (Psalm 138:8) 42) “The narrow path is for people with a constant, confident faith.” Marissa Vitrano (Matthew 7:13-14) 43) “What I believe my verse is saying is that all of our sins will be forgiven as long as there is repentance through Jesus’ death on the holy cross.” Dillon Weidner (Hebrews 10:10) 44) “My verse shows me that God made each and every thing for a purpose. This gives me confidence he made me for a purpose.” Katharine Winiewicz (Psalm 104:18-20) 45) “This verse is saying that only the grace of God can save you and that bragging about working hard is not going to save you from your sins.” Maggie York (Ephesians 2:8-9)

There you have it. God’s words of promise and assurance through the words of our confirmation class of 2016. For them, confirmation is not a graduation but the beginning of another journey as they mature as followers of Jesus Christ. It will be a journey where they will encounter many challenges and probably have some doubts along the way. The same is true for all of us. Things happen that will rock our worlds. Our lives and the lives of those close to us can change in an instant. But God’s truth and His promises delivered to us in His Word and Sacraments will never change. Own that truth. Proclaim His promises! And trust His Spirit to keep you in this true faith to life eternal. Amen.

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