"This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!" (Psalm 118: 24)

By Pastor Dan Gibson

The Psalmist said it well, "This is the day" -- not yesterday -- there were good things to celebrate about yesterday… not tomorrow -- there will be good things to celebrate about tomorrow… but the Psalmist was clear: "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

The year 2004 marked a year we celebrated "the day that the Lord has made" - and we rejoice and are glad for that!

Our major celebrations included:

• In January, we celebrated the arrival of Magdalena Elizabeth Gibson (1/19) a lovely new addition to our church family (although I may be biased)!
• In February, we celebrated our 1st Fellowship Event at the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) to appreciate the fine arts of classic fashion design and a meal on the Miracle Mile (2/8)! Special thanks to Gavin Hall and Jayme Jensen, our two new Fellowship Co-Chairs of the Fellowship Commitee!
• In April, we celebrated Bethel’s 80th Anniversary, “Bethel Lutheran Church: Moving Ahead in Christ”, which, rather than being just another commemoration of the past, focused on what we have become and what we will be (4/25)! Special guests included Rev. George Tan, Director of Mission Empowerment of the Southwest California Synod and Brett Freeman, Founder of the Bethel Praise Band! What an incredible worship celebration and party! Special thanks go to the Babes of Bethel for the marvelous Post-Worship Anniversary Bash!
• Also in April we celebrated in all our operatic glory at our 1st Karaoke Night at Shakey’s (4/23) with over 20 people in attendance! Notable acts included members from the BOB and MOB.
• In May, we celebrated Maggie’s Baptism (5/15), an event that even outnumbered our anniversary celebration!
• In June (on Brian Wilson’s birthday), we celebrated the completion of my first confirmation class (6/20) with 5 new confirmands!
• In July, we celebrated an outstanding Vacation Bible School, “Lava Lava Island: Where the Love of Jesus Flows” (6/28-7/2) with an outstanding staff and an outstanding 25 kids daily singing the song, “Celebration” with great gusto and joy! Special thanks to Lisa Jones and Jennifer Bell, our VBS Coordinators, for putting together the greatest and best attended VBS program in the history of our parish!
• In August, we celebrated our 3rd Annual Leadership Retreat (8/14) with 20 of Bethel’s faithful leaders in attendance, a new and improved Leadership Manual, and the 1st LA Metro Beach Party (8/15) with over a hundred people from our conference reaffirming their baptism by the surf! Many thanks to many people!
• In September, we celebrated another impressive Rally Day (9/12) complete with the Ministry Faire, the traditional barbeque cook-off, games, prizes, and a “jumper” for the kids!
• In October, we celebrated our first fantastic voyage to Santa Catalina (10/17)! Also in October we received our Special 80th Anniversary Addition Pictorial Directory: “Bethel Lutheran Church: Moving Ahead in Christ!”, a spectacular album that captures the life, growth and vitality of our congregation!
• In November, we celebrated 12 new members into our Bethel Family (making it over 30 in 3 years)!
• Finally, in December, amid all our holiday celebrations of Advent and Christmas worship and our carolers going forth in two teams this year, we were blessed with an extra-special Christmas Program, “O Holy Night” (12/19) that featured the professional production and directorial gifts of Mr. Jamison Jones! Thank you, Mr. DeMille!

The lives of two of our Mothers in the Lord, Hildur Reames (5/22) and Gertrude Daniels (6/29) were also celebrated. Both of these remarkable women had a great love and devotion to their Lord and His church. In their own special way, Hildur and Gertrude touched us all very deeply.

It’s been said that, “Yesterday is a memory, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, that’s why we call it the present.” How true. The past is over. Tomorrow is a dream. Let us live for today and all the gifts that today can offer! Look all around you to see what wonderful new things that the Lord has done in our lives and in the life of our church! Let us, today, continue to find new ways to celebrate the Lord’s goodness!

Moving Ahead In Christ,

+ Pastor Dan

Previous Pastor's Pages

• December, 2004
• August, 2004
• June, 2004
• Summer, 2004
• Spring, 2004
• Winter, 2004
• Fall, 2003
• Summer, 2003
• Spring, 2003
• Winter, 2002
• Fall, 2002