HEALTH CONCERNS: Joyce & Jerry Alexander; Beau Brown (friend of Ann Carroll); Brad Butler (friend of Hilgendorfs); Darla Combs (friend of Dave Holzrichter); Crystal Davis (friend of Dave Slaughter); Tim Flynn (friend of Dave Holzrichter); Nash Foreman (friend of Sofie Reifsteck); Layla Harp friend of Sofie Reifsteck) ; Rick Hardesty (family of the Hoels); Kim Hausman (friend of Ann Carroll); Julie Holzrichter (sister-in-law of Dave Holzrichter); Mary Houvanagle (friend of Hilgendorfs); Ashley Kerns (friend of Joan Vukelich); Bob Kresin; John Lamkin (friend of Dave Slaughter); Mike Marana (friend of Josh Whitson); Candace McElhaney (daughter of Corky Fields); Steven Pingolt (friend of Mathew Waldrop); Emma Silver; Mike Scott (father of Celeste Nau); Dave Slaughter; John Stewart (grandson of Laura VanCleave); Margaret Stilwell; Janet Stumeier; Kim Travis (friend of Jaimee Whitson); Lausanne Walter (mother of Tiffany Cash); Lynn Whitson (father of Mark Whitson).

SEMINARY STUDENT: Jacob Garrison; Nicholas Sinatra.

MISSIONARIES: The Jastram Family (Japan); The Preus Family (Romania).

HOMEBOUND: Bernita Ashwill; Janet Pollock; Joan Rahn; Norma Uthe.

MILITARY: Carl Crawford; Josh Dyer; Jeremy Gordon; David W. Holzrichter; Jack Leonard; Jake Lindgren; Raymond Longtin; Scott Walter.

NEXT WEEK’S READINGS . . . Isaiah 40:25–31; 1 Peter 2:11–20; John 16:16–22.

ABOUT THIS WEEK’S READINGS . . . Our Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11–16). He is not like the hireling, who cares nothing for the sheep and only for himself, who flees when he sees the wolf coming. Rather, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks out His scattered sheep to deliver them (Ezek. 34:11–16). He gathers them and feeds them in rich pasture. He binds up the broken and strengthens the sick. He lays down His life for wandering and wayward sheep. On the cross, Christ bore in His body the attacks of the predators of sin and death and the devil for you that you might be saved. He now lives to restore your soul in the still waters of baptism, to lead you in the paths of righteousness by the voice of His Gospel, to prepare the table of His holy supper before you, that you may dwell in the house of the Lord forever (Psalm 23). “For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25).

THOUGHTS ABOUT STEWARDSHIP . . . John 10:16 “And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.” The sheep know the Shepherd’s voice—and we delight to go where He leads. Of course, the world, the devil, and our own sinful flesh want to pull us in another direction. But following the Shepherd means life, and everything is of death. So no matter how difficult the path is that the Shepherd points out: let us follow Him!

THE FLOWERS ON THE ALTAR . . . are given by Dave Slaughter to the glory of God for blessings received.

ALTAR GUILD & COFFEE COMMITTEE . . . For April, the Altar Guild is Sarah & Savana Andresen. Coffee Committee is Dorothy Hostetler. For May, the Altar Guild is Dorothy Hostetler and Willa Braaten. Coffee Committee is Ann Carroll.

APPLICATIONS FOR THE ILC COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP . . . sponsored by the Board of Missions and Evangelism are now being accepted. The deadline is May 1, 2024. Applications are available by contacting Pastor.

PASTOR WILL BE AWAY . . . giving a presentation at a conference on May 5–7 in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In an emergency, you may contact him on his mobile phone or contact one of the Elders (Jack Appleby, Steve Hilgendorf, Les Sluder, Mark Whitson).

THE 2025 FLOWER CHART IS AVAILABLE . . . Please sign up on the bulletin board across from the member mailboxes. 2025 flowers are $35.00 and can be special ordered. Flowers can be taken home after the Sunday service.

ALTAR GUILD . . . Please sign up for a month to serve on the Altar Guild, caring for our Lord’s body & blood just as the woman who went to be tomb sought to care for the body of Jesus. There are spots available for Junior members to sign up.

FUNERAL CHAIR . . . Please sign up for a month to serve as funeral chair; the chair is responsible for placing calls requesting food donations and volunteers to help with serving and cleaning up after the funeral dinner. The current call list is included with the chair sign-up list on the clipboard located in the Narthex.

RATE & REVIEW IMMANUEL ON GOOGLE . . . Did you know that throughout the United States each month over 2 million people search on Google for “Churches Near Me.”? That’s how a majority of people find churches to visit. Therefore, being visible on Google as one of the top results for searches is important to get found. One way to increase your visibility on Google is through their Rate & Review feature. Please consider rating and review Immanuel on Google by going to: https://g.page/r/CdbSahe0h2B0EAI/review

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR VBS . . . This year’s VBS is June 9–13. The theme for this year is UNSHAKEABLE: A Journey through God’s Promises. Registration will begin in May.

CHANGE TO SATURDAY NIGHT SERVICE . . . In consultation with the Board of Elders, beginning on Memorial Day Weekend (May 24–25) and, at least, throughout the summer, there will be no Saturday night service. Instead, on Wednesday evenings at 6:00 pm, a spoken Divine Service will be offered. This service will have a different sermon than Sunday morning. This will accommodate anyone who travels or works weekends, or would like another opportunity to attend the Divine Service.

THIS SUMMER . . . Immanuel will be hosting a summer vicar: Seminarian Reece Parlier. This summer fieldwork opportunity is made possible by the generosity of the Board for Mission & Evangelism and all the saints at Immanuel who have given to our mission. His work will be two-fold. First, it is a time of learning and training. He will learn first-hand knowledge and gain experience serving a congregation that is similar to most congregations throughout the LCMS. He will see how crucial being active in a community is as well as the many people who help to make church possible. Second, he will help pastor continue to canvas the town, host VBS, our June outreach event at the Community Building, and our Not Ashamed Conference. Be on the look out for more information about Vicar Parlier in upcoming announcements.

STAMP OUT HUNGER FOOD DRIVE . . . benefitting SAM Food Pantry is Saturday, May 17. Pick-up begins at 9:00 am. Place donations of non-perishable food items in bags beside your mailbox. If you wish to make a monetary donation, make checks payable to SAM Food Pantry and mark the memo line with USPS Food Drive. Checks may be mailed to SAM Food Pantry, 901 N Prairie St. Tuscola, IL 61953.

UPDATE FROM SEMINARY STUDENTS . . . Tuesday night was Call Night for the seminary students we have supported the last couple of years. That means they received their placements in the LCMS to be pastors of particular congregations. Nicholas Sinatra was called to St. John Lutheran Church, Sandborn, IA. Jacob Garrison was called to Centennial Lutheran Church, Superior, NE, and St. John Lutheran Church, Chester, NE. Jackson Scofield was called to River of Life Lutheran Church, Channahon, IL, and Friends in Christ Lutheran Church, Morris, IL.