THIS WEEK AT IMMANUEL
Sunday (12/20)
- 7:30 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
- 9:00 am—Divine Service with Holy Communion
- 10:30 am—Christmas Caroling
Thursday
- 7:00 pm—Christmas Eve Divine Service with Holy Communion
Friday
- 9:00 am—Christmas Day Divine Service with Holy Communion
Saturday
- 3:30 pm—Individual Confession and Absolution
- 5:30 pm—Divine Service without Holy Communion
Sunday (12/27)
- 7:30 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
- 9:00 am—Divine Service without 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); Whitney Czerwonka; Lynn Davis (cousin of Mark Whitson); Cindy Ekstrom; Theresa Fields; Darrell Ford; 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); Glenn Linstead; 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); Tim Pollock; Misti Post (niece of Sue Rothe); Cary & Beth Rahn; Joan Rahn; Aurelia Tuegal (grandmother of Bethany Campbell); Emma Silver; Dave Slaughter; Ocil Slone (grandfather of Josh & Jake Dyer); Joy Stenger; Carolyn Stremming (sister-in-law of Arleigh Jones); 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; Ruben Wilson.
THE ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEXT WEEK’S READINGS . . . Isaiah 11:1–5; Galatians 4:1–7; St. Luke 2:33–40.
ABOUT THIS WEEK’S READINGS . . . The coming of God in all His unveiled power at Mount Sinai was terrifying to the people of Israel. The thundering voice of the Lord puts sinners in fear of death (Deut. 18:15–19). God, therefore, raised up a prophet like Moses—the Messiah, the Christ. God came to His people veiled in human flesh. The skies poured down the Righteous One from heaven; the earth opened her womb and brought forth Salvation (Introit) through the blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of the Lord (Luke 1:39–56). The fruit of her womb is the very Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, the One whose sandal strap John was not worthy to loose (John 1:19–28). In Jesus we are delivered from fear and anxiety. In Him alone we have the peace of God which surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:4–7).
THOUGHTS ABOUT STEWARDSHIP . . . Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Paul puts two things in opposition to each other: anxiety and prayer. So trade your worries for prayers! You have a Father who loves you and desires to hear your prayers and bless you.
THANK YOU . . . to the Board of Christian Education, the Sunday School and music teachers, the parents and students for sharing the good news of great joy that is ours because of the Savior, Christ the Lord. Your work and service is a blessing to our congregation and community.
CHRISTMAS CARROLING . . . Help us spread a little cheer by Christmas caroling to some of our members on Sunday, December 20. Meet in the Fellowship Hall after the Divine Service, and we’ll provide music and directions. You’ll brighten their day!
CHRISTMAS CARDS FOR SEMINARY STUDENTS . . . If you’d like to send Christmas greetings to our seminary students, their addresses are: Mr. Gunnar Campbell, Mr. Logan Smith, at: 6600 North Clinton Street, Fort Wayne, IN, 46825-4996. Mrs. Emily McClean’s address is 1104 Marcus Court, Winter Springs, FL, 32708.
UPDATE FROM OUR MISSIONARIES . . . HERE is an update for our missionaries in Sri Lanka, The Naumann Family.
NEW OFFICER INSTALLATION . . . will be Sunday, January 3, during the Divine Service immediately following the offering. If you are a newly-elected officer, please plan to attend. A reception will be held in the Fellowship Hall following the Divine Service to say thank you to out‑going, curre
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!
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