Zion Lutheran Church

“When King Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men.” Matthew 2:16

One of the first things that happened after the birth of Jesus is the people in charge were threatened by the news. King Herod sent soldiers into Bethlehem where Jesus and his family were living. Unable to be sure which of the toddlers was the coming king, Herod ordered all the boys under age two to be killed. The story is troubling enough to bother many of us – even today after all these years. So often, children pay the price for the struggles of the adults in their lives. The birth of Jesus triggered anxiety in many – it was not received as instant good news. And as a result, children were killed. Traditionally, the Sunday after Christmas is in remembrance of these children and is named “The Slaughter of the Innocents.”

That may be why this week’s concert with the Asante Children’s Choir from Rwanda in Africa seems so appropriate. To see the choir’s web site click here. With short notice, we have only a few days to get housing together and get the word out to the community. But these kids grew up in Rwanda – living in the aftermath of war and genocide in our own time. If you saw or heard about the movie Hotel Rwanda then you know some of the horrors of the place where they are from. But these kids have somehow emerged with hope and life and will share that with us on Sunday night.

So hear is our plea:

1. We still need at least one more family to house 3 or more people in order to make the housing work smoothly. If you have a double bed and any other place to sleep someone, then three works since two kids of the same gender can share a double bed. You’ll most likely have a chaperone plus 2 kids with you on Saturday and Sunday nights starting with supper on Saturday. If you can help then please call the church at 847-888-2882 or email pastor Dave at dtothe3rd@wowway.com to let us know.
2. We need people to both come to the concert and invite friends and family to come as well. There is not time for a media PR campaign with advertising – this will have to be word of mouth!
3. If you have Facebook or Twitter, go to bottom of this blog article and click the appropriate share button to post this on your account page. That will help get the word out!
4. Pray for this event and the people involved. With God’s blessings, even a short notice scramble may produce some amazing things.

We want this to be a great event. The concert is FREE and a Free Will Offering and a table of items you can choose to get will be ways you can support the choir if you choose. The proceeds from this tour will all go to help build schools for children in east Africa.

Throughout the world, children continue to suffer for the sins of the generation before them. This is nothing new. The “slaughter of the innocents” was but one example. But in a serendipitous way this year, the Sunday after Christmas for us also includes a chance to participate in hope for children.

Finally, this is our Thursday Thought for 2013. If you’d like to make an online year end donation via PayPal, you can do so by clicking the “donate” button at the bottom of this web page. Thanks and have a blessed 2014!