Cross 

Words 

Monthly Newsletter of Cross Ev. Lutheran Church 
	Februal"y 2011 	Volume II, Issue 2 
More Than Mere Roses 
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. " 
John 3:16 

"What can I give to prove my love?" 
With Valentine's Day approaching you may want to consider 
this question. Maybe you will give a card-perhaps one that 
plays Shania Twain's "You're still the one" or some other 
song. Maybe you will give flowers-red roses still seem like 
a good way to say I love you. If you're a romantic, you might 
plan something special-maybe a candle-lit dinner without 
the kids or a surprise get-away. 

In the Bible we hear about what God gave to prove his love for us. In the book of John it says, "For God so 
loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have 
eternal life. " 
God didn't just pick out a cute card or buy some roses for us. To prove his love, he gave his Son for us. And the 
greatness of God's love is seen in what he gave his Son to. When Jesus came to earth, he was given to a world 
that hated him; he was given to humiliation and torture, and ultimately, to death on a cross. As a parent, to give 
my child to suffer all of this is unimaginable. It would be nearly impossible to give so much for someone else. 
Can you relate? Yet God willingly gave his one and only, dearly loved Son for us. 
So why did God do it? Because our sins deserve punishment. In the suffering of God's Son we see the penalty 
for our sins. For all the times we fail to love God above everything else and fail to love others as God 
commands, we deserve punishment. But God chose to punish his Son instead of us. 
God did this to prove his love for you. He loves you so much that he gave his Son to die your death. He loves 
you so much that he offers you the gift of faith as you hear his word and are baptized. He loves you so much 
that he will give eternal life to you and all who believe. 
This Valentine's Day please reflect on the One who proved his love by giving more than mere roses; he gave 
his Son. 

Banner Committee 

The banner committee will meet on the 
following dates: Monday, February 7 & Monday, 
February 2l. 

We begin at 7:00 and will be starting to 
work on a new banner for confirmation. We 
welcome your help. 

NEWS FROM WEST LUTHERAN 
HIGH SCHOOL 

From time to time West Lutheran High 
School receives a request from a family outside of 
the US to allow their student to attend our high 
school. West does accept some foreign students but 
we are limited as we do not have housing for these 
students. We would like to compile a list of 
families that may have interest in housing this type 
of student so that when requests come in, we are 
able to encourage enrollment. As a host family, you 
would be asked to provide meals, transportation, 
and a reasonable space for sleeping and studying. 
Students would enjoy taking part in family activities 
and getting to know the culture. They typically 
come with their own spending money and would be 
asked to pay the host family for their housing. A 
reasonable fee for housing would be $100- 
$125/week. If you have interest in this, please 
contact the West office either via return email or by 
phone and we will put you on our list. Currently, 

w e do not have any students waiting for housing. 
Thank you for your consideration. 

West Lutheran Softball Clinic 

This year West Lutheran High School is holding the 
second annual Fastpitch Softball Clinic for girls 
grades 4-8. At the clinic you will have the 
opportunity to practice old skills, learn new ones in 
a Christian environment, and make new friends. 

The clinic will run two Sunday evenings, March 
13th and March 20th from 6-8PM. Sign up for one 
or both dates! Participants will receive a T-shirt and 
Softball with registration. Register by February 
14th! Call Rachel Kionka at WLHS 763-509-9378 .. 

Q: What do you get from an Alaskan 
Cow? 
A: Ice Cream! 

Senior Fellowship 

We will meet in February, on the 17th• 
We start at noon with a Valentine's Dinner. For 
our study we will discuss famous couples of the 
Bible. We will also discuss future activities and 
events. All "seniors" are invited. 

Take note of the special outing on March 
24. See details below!! 

YOUTH UNDER CHRIST 

invites you to our 

Sweet Heart Brunch 

Sunday, February 13 
10: 15 am - 12:00 pm 
Cross Ev. Lutheran Church 
Rockford 

MENU: EGG BAKE, PANCAKES, 
HAM, COFFEE, MILK & JUICE 

SEE YOU ON THE 13TH! 

(free will offering to help defray the cost of 
Y.U.C. activities for the coming year) 

	
Senior Fellowship Presents A Trip 
to the 

Thursday, March 24, 2011 
For lunch and to see ... 
A Comedy 
by Ernest Thompson 
A heart-warming and 
hilarious celebration 
of everyday life, love 
and temitv. 
Cost: $32.25 a person 
(includes play and lunch (including tax & gratuity) 
with a choice of several entrees (see sign-up sheet). 
Leave from church at 11:00 am (car pool) 
Lunch is at 12:00 pm. Play starts at 1:30 pm. 
Everyone is invited. 
Sign up at Church. 
'Where Is My Paper?' 
The irate customer calling the newspaper offices, 
loudly demanded to know where her Sunday edition 
was. 'Ma'am, said the employee, today is Saturday. 
The Sunday paper is not delivered 'til Sunday.' 
There was quite a pause on the other end of the 
phone, followed by a ray of recognition. 'So that's 
why no one was in church today.' 
Pirate Joke 
Once there was a retired pirate so he decides to live 
with his brother. The pirate walks up to his brothers 
house and knocks on the door and his brother answers 

the door and says, "Oh my gosh, what happened to your 
hand!?! " The pirate said, "I lost it in a sword fight, but 
now I have a hook. "Then the brother said, "What about 
your leg?" The pirate said, "A cannonball hit it , but now 
Ihave a peg leg. "Then the brother said, "Well, what 
about your eye?"The pirate said, "I got some dust in 
it ." The brother said, "How could you lose your eye 
by just getting some dust in it?" Then the pirate said, 
"It was my first day with my hook! 
TAXED AGAIN 
A little boy wanted $100.00 very badly and prayed 
for weeks, but nothing happened. Then he decided 
to write God a letter requesting the $100.00. 
When the postal authorities received the letter to 
God, USA, they decided to send it to the President. 
The president was so amused that he instructed his 
secretary to send the little boy a $5.00 bill. The 
president thought this would appear to be a lot of 
money to a little boy. The little boy was delighted 
with the $5.00 bill and sat flown to write a thank- 
you note to God, which read: 
Dear God: Thank you very much for sending the 
money. However, I noticed that for some reason 
you sent it through Washington, D.C., and, as usual, 
those turkeys deducted $95.00 in taxes. 
On the first day of school, the Kindergarten 
teacher said, "If anyone has to go to the 
bathroom, hold up two fingers." A little voice 
from the back of the room asked, "How will that 
help?" 
A three-year old put his shoes on by himself. His 
mother noticed the left was on the right foot. She 
said, "Son, your shoes are on the wrong feet." He 
looked up at her with a raised brow and said, 
"Don't kid me, Mom. I KNOW they're my feet."