Zion's Messenger

Volume 12 Issue 8
August/September 2007



August 1 - Two Weeks Under Our Belt


    Isaiah 61:1 - “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”

    John 1:32 - And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.”

    2 Timothy 2:25 - In humility [I seek to be] correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth.

     Two Weeks.    It has been two weeks since Zion Lutheran Church of Silverhill inaugurated “God’s Lovingkindness in the Morning” on WHEP on July 15. Our new radio program is a five minute devotional which airs at 8:34 AM weekdays with an emphasis on the Bible. On Sundays the program expands to 15 minutes and airs at 6:44 AM.

     Proclamation.    God spoke to Isaiah the prophet about his role or task for the Jewish people. He was to bring good news and freedom from bondage. John the Baptist saw God’s Spirit descending from heaven upon Jesus. The sense is that Jesus shared what the Spirit taught. St. Paul, talking to Timothy, explained how God desires hearts to change so that people will turn from sin, that’s “repentance,” so that they can know the truth. Do you suppose that somehow we at Zion Lutheran Church can share some of that with the people of Baldwin?


     Radio.    Well, that’s the task of our radio ministry. We have received funding for about a year to attempt to do that. Here’s our strategy. Our program will be focused on God’s Word. God’s Word is always an encouragement to people of faith and hope for those seeking God. We live in a time when we need those wonderful words found in God’s Holy Word. Our goal is to provide God’s Word and to flavor it with an understanding of Luther, Lutheran worship, and prayer. Each devotional begins with a piece of the hymn, “A Mighty Fortress” followed by Luther’s “Morning Prayer.” Then comes the meat, God’s Word.

     In terms of the rest of our five minutes, we can get a prayer in, a brief Bible reading, and a word or two about what it is saying. For our fifteen minute devotionals, we can do all of that and get things like the Creed and the Lord’s Prayer into the mix. At the conclusion of each devotional, there is a brief description of us and when we worship on Sunday mornings.

     Background.    "God’s Lovingkindness in the Morning" began as a grant proposal to the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations (AFLC) in January of this year. Several months later Zion Lutheran Church of Silverhill learned that it was one of eight congregations in the AFLC to share in Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' Foundation’s “Church Extension” program. That program seeks to develop new congregations and assist established congregations to undertake special evangelism programs. Now with grant funds in hand, the Zion congregation invites folks in Central Baldwin to "tune in WHEP for a year of radio broadcasts focused on God's Word." Congregation members Charles Canning and Peter Midgarden have an oversight role in grant management and direction.


Radio Ministry
Zion Lutheran Church's Pastor Dave Johson (l)
and WHEP-AM Radio personality Kenny Graves.

     Sharing God's Word.    We have an opportunity to encourage others to listen to Zion in the morning for a whole year. “Tell your friends about our show,” used to be something we would hear on the radio or tv years ago. It is time to do exactly that again. And don’t forget to pray that God would be honored in all that we do in this radio ministry.

     Prayer.    Heavenly Father, we ask that You would minister to our friends and neighbors through our attempts at sharing devotions with our community during this coming year. Bless the proclamation of Your Word, the testimony of Your Spirit, and call to repentance and newness of life promised in the Bible. Amen

~Pastor Dave



God’s Loving Kindness in the Morning
Click here to read more about the
Radio Ministry

WHEP Radio AM 1310
8:34 AM Weekdays
6:44 AM Sundays




“Rejoice in the Lord and be glad,
you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!”

~ Psalm 32:11





Zion Hosts
International Visitors


     What does a couple of people from Nordic Europe do when they vacation in Baldwin County? They look for whatever happened to their nation's people when they came to the US. One hundred years ago, one Swede in five did not live in Sweden. There was a mass exodus from that country, many of the Swedes coming to the US. In fact, some Swedes came to three "colonies" in Alabama, Thorsby, Fruithurst, and Silverhill. They put down roots in this country and were assimilated into the American culture.

The Cockrell family of Daphne has been hosting the Zytos from Malmo on their trip to the United States.

July 14, 2007: Mich and Ann Zyto, from Malmo, Sweden, visited the museum housed at Zion Lutheran Church in Silverhill. Museum curator Ernie Burnett (l to r) was joined by Amy, Kathryn, and Anna Cockrell, Mich and Ann Zyto, Sam Cockrell, and Church Chairman Pete Midgarden.



     There is curiosity in Sweden and other emigre countries as to what happened to the folks that came here. On this side of the Atlantic, we have folks that wonder whatever happened to the people left behind in that mass immigration of a century ago. When Mich and Ann Zyto from Malmo, Sweden, were visiting the Cockrell family in Daphne, they were invited to search some of the memorabilia of Swedish generations past at the Museum located at Zion Lutheran Church in Silverhill.

     Church members Ernest Burnett and Pete Midgarden saw that the church and Museum were opened for the visit. Silverhill native and "Swedish" Covenant Church member Ted Forsman, one of the few people in Silverhill still having some ability in the Swedish language, greeted the visitors along with Zion's Henri Burnett and Pastor Dave Johnson. Among a variety of artifacts and home schooling materials perused, was a parent manual with a long article in Swedish on President Harrison, circa late-1880s. The manual was concerned with bringing up godly children and spelled out the duties of mother and father.

     In another handbook, there was a printing guide for making rather gothic printing letters for spelling Swedish and English words. And of course, there were attendance rosters from the first part of the Twentieth Century for both adult and children Sunday School classes. The Museum with its artifacts were sufficient to fill a morning with the Zytos. The visitors toured Zion Lutheran Church as well, which is on the list of historic buildings in Baldwin County.

     Zion Lutheran Church museum visits may be scheduled with the church by calling 945-5209