Day of Pentecost & Confirmation Sunday

Mason K.

My name is Mason and I believe that one of the best ways of showing faith and God’s love is by showing up and helping out. The first book of John, Chapter 3 says, “let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”  I enjoy coming to church on Sundays and for other events because I get to be around people who care about me and teach me about Gods love. From these people I have learned how to share Gods love with others by finding ways to serve this congregation. I will serve God in the ministry of this congregation by helping with different community events like VBS, continuing to serve as an acolyte or crucifer and help wherever it is needed. In the future I would also like to help with things like reading lessons, mowing or helping with children’s chapel. All of these things make me feel like a contributing part of the congregation. I can show Gods love by showing up and helping out.  

I would like to end with a knock knock joke.   

M:   Knock knock?   

C:   Who’s there?

M:   Noah

C:   Noah who? 

M:   I Noah guy if you need an ark.

Bible verse 1 John 3:18

Wyatt K. 

Hello, my name is Wyatt, and I am here today to confirm my baptism. I wanted to start by thanking you all for being here to rejoice with me, thanks to my family who has supported me throughout my whole faith journey, and to the other youth involved in this church for creating such a welcoming community. Some of you may know that I am fairly new to this church as I have only been here for a little under a year, yet I feel so welcomed and supported by the many people who build a compassionate and supportive community for me. Some of the ways I have served God in the ministry of Confirmation and will continue to serve are by participating in the brass band playing French Horn, attending the Faith Boosters class on Sundays, and by trying to volunteer in various ways when my time permits. While I have mostly had God as a passive backup for when things get bad, I have had to heavily rely on him before. In the past 4 years alone, I have moved between 3 churches and 2 states, perching myself here at Calvary for the foreseeable future. During this time God has been a nice backbone to support me. I saw a relatable Bible verse which represented this. In Isaiah 54:10: “For the mountains may depart from you and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” If there is anything I have learned through my faith journey it is that if you think that nobody is there to support you, God will be there to guide you. This is stated in Psalm 16:11: “You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy, in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.” Amen.

Amber M.

Growing up as a child with little money, I wasn’t really able to go to church. On the weekends and in the summer, I would always go to church with my grandparents. They have helped me to have a strong belief in God.

Psalm 37:5: “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.” I chose this verse because it reminds me of when I got baptized and the promise between me and God. I also like this verse because when you commit to the Lord and give him your all, he will answer your prayers and questions.

My favorite thing to do sometimes if I can’t sleep or if I’m stressed, I like to read my favorite verse in the Bible, and it helps me sleep and I feel more calm and less stressed. I go to God when I feel upset or happy because he makes me happy when I read in the Bible or pray to him.

I like to imagine that he isn’t just in my heart, but he is everywhere all around, not just in one specific place. Some people don’t realize how important church is; when I go every week, it makes me feel refreshed for the new week ahead of me.

When I get confirmed, I will miss going to class and laughing with Morgan and Victoria. But I am glad I get to go to youth group. I hope Victoria doesn’t have fun without me.

Thank you for listening to my amaze-sauce speech. Amen.

Faith P.

Hi, my name is Faith and I have been going to Calvary Lutheran Church for 5 years. I wanted to start my Faith statement with a verse that speaks to me. From Isaiah chapter 41 verse 10 “Fear not for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” This verse offers me comfort, knowing that God will always be there for me in uncertain and difficult times. Over the years I have discovered and participated in many different ways to serve God. I have served God through service projects whether to help people in need by making sandwiches or fundraising money for the church itself. I am also hoping to serve God in the future by helping the younger children in the church understand God better, maybe even leading some of their activities. Peter chapter 4 verse 10 states, “as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God‘s buried grace.” This verse shows that we should all try to serve God because he has blessed us. Serving God is one of the most important parts of church, but there are also many incredible things that come from being part of a church. The thing that resonates with me the most is the people of the church. People bring the church community together and without people the church would not be a church. Another incredibly important part about church is making connections with other people who believe in God. I personally love all of the things that the youth group does with the church as well. They have been incredibly fun and have served as a great bonding experience between all of the youth. All of the experiences and opportunities that I have had through the church have all been incredible. Thank you.

Benjamin S.

I have been a member of Calvary since I was born. Being in confirmation class, I have learned so much about God. The most important part of faith is understanding that God loves and accepts everyone.

Genesis 28:15 says, “Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go.” It makes me feel very safe and protected knowing that God is always with me.

I have so many fond memories of being a member of this church, including being in the Christmas programs, Sunday School, Children’s Chapel, participating in Vacation Bible School, youth group outings, making friends, and most importantly, becoming closer to God.

I feel very welcome at church because of all the people surrounding me. They have really brought me to where I am today.

I will continue serving Calvary by being an active member of this church, helping at Bible school, and continue praying to God.

Thank you to Pastor Anke, Mrs. Eveline, and Mr. Eric for teaching the confirmation class and thank you all for joining me to celebrate this day.

Morgan S. 

Learning about God over these years has brought me closer to him and more involved in our church. Since I’ve joined confirmation class, I’ve started becoming more and more interested in learning about the Bible. Church went from somewhere I had to go to every Sunday to somewhere I enjoyed being a part of. I feel that John 20:29, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe”, relates to my faith. I have been part of this church since I was born, but only recently saw the importance of increasing my belief in God. Whenever I need help with something, I can pray to Him, and I know He will help me.

My grandma participates in a lot of activities at our church and has always been encouraging me to do the same. I saw how much she enjoyed it and decided to join the church choir with her. Along with other things I have been in, such as Vacation Bible School and multiple Christmas Programs, I enjoyed being active in the community. I’ve also loved becoming friends with other people in my catechism class who share the same beliefs as me. Once we realized we really like to spend time together, we all started hanging out for more than just confirmation class. We’ve had multiple youth group outings, sleepovers (even though they hardly involved sleeping), and stayed a night at Ocean City. I’m extremely grateful to be a part of this group. I made a lot of new friends, discovered more about my faith, and I knew that God will always be with me no matter what. I’m looking forward to continuing serving the church as I start a new stage in my life, and I would like to thank our teachers, Pastor Anke, Mrs. Eveline, and Mr. Eric. Amen.

Will S.

Thank you all for being here to help me celebrate my milestone. I am grateful for all the people who helped me .

I read the Bible because it makes me feel closer to God. I especially like the book of Romans because of the information it teaches about God and Jesus and us. I particularly like Romans 8:39: “Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Like when my father passed away early in December, I was sad, but knew God was still there.

I will continue to be part of Calvary by participating in activities and attending church.

Thank you, Pastor Anke, Mr. Eric, and Miss Eveline for teaching catechism class and once again thank you all for being here.