THIS WEEK AT IMMANUEL
Sunday (3/14)
- 7:30 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
- 9:00 am—Divine Service with Holy Communion
- 10:30 am—Bible Class and Sunday School
Wednesday
- 12:30 pm—Catechism Class
- 5:30 pm—Lenten Soup & Sandwich Supper
- 7:00 pm—Lent Midweek (Evening Prayer)
Saturday
- 3:30 pm—Individual Confession and Absolution
- 5:30 pm—Divine Service with Holy Communion
Sunday (3/21)
- 7:30 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
- 9:00 am—Divine Service with Holy Communion
- 10:30 am—Bible Class and Sunday School
IN OUR PRAYERS
HEALTH CONCERNS: Bernita Ashwill; Connie Bruns (cousin of Mary Appleby); Lynn Corrie (friend of Arleigh Jones); Ellie Crawford (daughter of Laran Crawford); Leona Czerwonka; Lynn Davis (cousin of Mark Whitson); Cindy Ekstrom; Lisa Hall (sister of Holly Wikoff); Rick Hardesty (family of the Hoels); Forrest Harvey (son of John Harvey); Kim Hausman (friend of Ann Carroll); Deanna Henningsen (sister-in-law of Jerry & Joyce Alexander); Mary Miller (friend of David Holzrichter); Kimberly Mulvany (daughter of Pastor Doug Meyer); Mary Negangard (grandmother of Bryce Reifsteck); Dennis Pickett (friend of Ann Carroll); Misti Post (niece of Sue Rothe); Cary & Beth Rahn; Joan Rahn; Jody Reifsteck (mother of Bryce Reifsteck); Tammy Shrader and Kalvin Crawford (granddaughter and great-grandson of Sharon Allen); Emma Silver; Dave Slaughter; Ocil Slone (grandfather of Josh & Jake Dyer); Joy Stenger; Carolyn Stremming (sister-in-law of Arleigh Jones); Doris Threet (sister of Wanda Long); Debbie Tiffan (friend of Deborah Reifsteck); Aurelia Tuegal (grandmother of Bethany Campbell); Brian Walker (uncle of Bryce Reifsteck); Lynn & Jane Whitson (parents of Mark Whitson).
SEMINARY STUDENT: Gunnar Campbell; Logan Smith.
DEACONESS STUDENT: Emily McLean.
MISSIONARIES The Naumann Family; The McDermott Family, Julie Lutz
HOMEBOUND: Bernita Ashwill; Leonard Boerngen; Jim Harbaugh; Janet Pollock; Ruth Rentschler; Ruth Sims; Irene Wattjes.
MILITARY: Carl Crawford; Josh Dyer; Jeremy Gordon; Jack Leonard; Jake Lindgren; Raymond Longtin; Joey Pollock; Blake Stokes; Scott Walter; Ruben Wilson.
THE ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEXT WEEK’S READINGS . . . Genesis 22:1–14; Hebrews 9:11–15; John 8:42–59.
ABOUT THIS WEEK’S READINGS . . . The Lord provided bread from heaven for His people in the wilderness (Ex. 16:2–21). Now He who is Himself the living bread from heaven miraculously provides bread for the five thousand (John 6:1–15). This takes place near the time of the Passover, after a great multitude had followed Jesus across the sea, and when He went up on a mountain. Seen in this way, Jesus is our new and greater Moses, who releases us from the bondage of Mount Sinai and makes us free children of the promise (Gal. 4:21–31). Five loaves become twelve baskets—that is, the five books of Moses find their goal and fulfillment in Christ, whose people continue steadfastly in the doctrine and fellowship of the twelve apostles, and in the breaking and receiving of the bread of life, which is the body of Christ together with His precious blood, and in the prayers (Acts 2:41–47). So it is that God’s people “shall not hunger or thirst” (Is. 49:8–13). For He abundantly provides for us in both body and soul.
THOUGHTS ABOUT STEWARDSHIP . . . John 6:8–9 “One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, ‘There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?’” The disciples focus on the numbers: so little for so much! But the Lord’s grace will not be limited by the narrow vision of His disciples. The Lord has a plan to use even the little for His work of greatness. So let us be faithful even in the little and watch the Lord use it for His great works!
EASTER LILY ORDER FORMS . . . Please return them to the office or Debra’s mailbox by Sunday, March 28. Lilies are $13.00 each.
LCMS PRESIDENT HARRISON . . . makes a statement regarding the Equality Act which is now in Congress. Read it HERE.
LENTEN MIDWEEK SUPPERS . . . will be served this year before the Midweek services beginning on Ash Wednesday. Serving time will be 5:30 pm–6:45 pm. Since we are not just physical beings, but also spiritual and emotional, the time we spend together is important. We didn’t want to take this time of gathering away from anyone who felt comfortable doing so. In order to do this, we will not be assigning boards to provide meals this year so that we can make them Covid compliant. A couple of ladies have volunteered to make the meals in order to follow guidelines for indoor dining. Tables will be spread out to allow for comfortable distancing.
LENTEN MIDWEEK SERMON SERIES . . . is “The Salutary Gift.” The chief blessing of the Lord’s Supper is made clear by the words of Christ’s institution: “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” The forgiveness of sins, won for us on Calvary and offered in the Sacrament of our Lord’s body and blood truly makes this blessed Supper a “salutary gift” (Post-Communion Collect). While the chief blessing and benefit of the Lord’s Supper is the forgiveness of sins, there are several different images and metaphors used by Holy Scripture to highlight the blessings of the Lord’s Supper, many of which are reflected in our hymns. They draw upon the themes of Holy Scripture and teach us to appreciate the full range of blessings that are present when the faithful are gathered around the life-giving, nourishing, and salutary gift of our Lord’s holy body and precious blood.
HOLY COMMUNION . . . The offer still stands, during the pandemic, that if you desire the Holy Communion, you can make an appointment with Pastor to receive the Lord’s Supper either at church or in your home until services resume.
SERVICES ONLINE . . . A copy of the service bulletin, which includes all the responses and the hymns, is available at Immanuel’s website under the Sermons tab by clicking on the button labeled PDF. This video option will continue to be made available until our usual service times resume. You can access these online services in three places:
- On Immanuel’s Facebook page
- On Immanuel’s Website under the Sermons tab
- On Immanuel’s YouTube channel
CHANGES IN MANDATED REPORTER LAW . . . The state of Illinois recently made significant changes to the mandated reporter law. By law, any person affiliated with the church who, in their role, comes into contact with children, either in a paid position or as a volunteer, is now a mandated reporter. Mandated reporters are required to call the DCFS Hotline when they have reasonable cause to believe that a child known to them in their professional or official capacity may be an abused or neglected child. As such, s/he must undergo training within three months of first serving. This is only a training session not a background check. This new law would include the following at Immanuel: all Sunday School teachers, VBS volunteers, youth group chaperones, and those on Altar Guild who work with the Jr. Altar Guild. To that end, we ask that those individuals in the groups listed, follow THIS LINK to take the online training. This training takes roughly 60 minutes to complete. Upon completion of the training, a certificate is awarded which will need to be printed off and a copy be given to Pastor to keep on file. For those who are unable to access this online training at home, time will be available for you to complete this in the church office. Please find time to complete the online training as soon as possible. While we understand that this may be a burden for some, please know that we are willing to help you get the necessary training so that we as a church are compliant with this new law. If you have any questions or concerns, please talk with one of the members of the Board of Christian Education or Pastor. Thank you!
PRAYER REQUESTS
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