THIS WEEK AT IMMANUEL
Sunday (4/26)
- 9:00 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
Saturday
- 3:30 pm—Individual Confession & Absolution
Sunday
- 9:00 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)
IN OUR PRAYERS
HEALTH CONCERNS: Bernita Ashwill; Mindy Bell (friend of David Holzrichter); Dale Brown (friend of Margaret Stilwell); Connie Hilgendorf Bruns (cousin of Mary Appleby); Jeff & Jo Coon (friend of David Holzrichter); Lynn Corrie (friend of the Joneses); Ellie Crawford (daughter of Laran Crawford); Whitney Czerwonka; Scott Dallas; Orlean McDaniel (friend of Bob & Joan Vukelich); Cindy Ekstrom; Theresa Fields; Jenna Gustafson; Jim Harbaugh; Rick Hardesty (family of the Hoels); Kim Hausman (friend of Ann Carroll); Deanna Henningsen (sister-in-law of Jerry & Joyce Alexander); Barbara Holste (friend of the Joneses); Kimberly Mulvany (daughter of Pastor Doug Meyer); Mary Negangard (grandmother of Bryce Reifsteck); Sandra Oehmke (sister of Joan Vukelich); Dennis Pickett (friend of Ann Carroll); Cary & Beth Rahn; Debbie Rahn (wife of Leroy Rahn); Emma Silver; Ruth Sims; Ocil Slone (father of Carolyn Dyer); Joy Stenger; Brian Walker (uncle of Bryce Reifsteck); Irene Wattjes; Lynn & Jane Whitson (parents of Mark Whitson).
DEATHS: Family and friends of Troy Kramer (cousin of Rachel Kramer)
SEMINARY STUDENT: Gunnar Campbell; Logan Smith.
DEACONESS STUDENT: Emily McLean.
MISSIONARIES: Rev. Dr. Edward and Monica Naumann; Rev. Ryan and Emily McDermott; Julie Lutz.
HOMEBOUND: Bernita Ashwill; Leonard Boerngen; Janet Pollock; Art Rahn; Ruth Rentschler.
MILITARY: Carl Crawford; Jeremy Gordon; Jack Leonard; Jake Lindgren; Raymond Longtin; Joey Pollock; Chase Reifsteck; Blake Stokes; Paige Stokes; Ruben Wilson.
THE ANNOUNCEMENTS
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!
HOLY COMMUNION . . . The offer still stands 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.
WHEN CAN CHURCH RESUME . . . In talking with many members on the phone or when seeing them out and about, a common question is this: “When can church resume like normal?” As you know, the governor’s shelter-in-place order is set to expire on April 30. If there are no new orders with restrictions, the Elders and I will have a plan in place to resume as soon as possible. But the likelihood of there being no new restrictions seems slim from reports in the news. So as soon as we know what the governing authorities and the medical community is suggesting, the Elders and I are uncomfortable setting a hard date. We will be in contact with the congregation with details. I can say this for certain: We are looking forward to coming back together. And when we do, when we can finally resume with normal activities, we’re going to celebrate.
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
LET GOD BE GOD . . . This series of podcasts goes through a number of Bible passages that discuss sickness and suffering and how the Christian is to understand what God is doing through these things and how the Christian is to respond to them. They seek to give us a biblical framework by which we can understand the circumstances that we’re facing now.
- Episode 75 – Let God Be God (2 Samuel 24)
- Episode 76 – Let God Be God (Isaiah 45)
- Episode 77 – Let God Be God (Romans 8)
- Episode 78 – Let God Be God (1 Peter 1)
- Episode 79 – Let God Be God (1 Peter 2)
- Episode 80 – Let God Be God (Psalm 91)
- Episode 81 – Let God Be God (Luke 21)
QUESTIONS ABOUT GIVING . . . The church office has received some inquiries about giving their offering during the shelter-in-place order. If you would like to drop off your offering during business hours or mail it to the church, it will be counted and deposited weekly.
MEMORY WORK . . . If a Sunday School student has been able to learn the next level of the Catechism Learn-By-Heart Program and would like to recite it to Pastor, you can schedule a meeting with him to do this through Zoom, Skype, or Facetime. Contact Pastor by e-mail or phone.
PASTOR MEYER IS RETIRING . . . Join the Salem Lutheran Church family in celebrating with Pastor Doug Meyer and his family as he retires from active ministry in August 2020. For more information, download the invitation HERE.
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. As such, s/he must undergo training within three months of first serving. 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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