God is with us in Word and Sacrament

Immanuel News & Notes (Trinity 2)

News & Notes Banner


THIS WEEK AT IMMANUEL

Sunday (6/21)

  • 7:30 am—Divine Service of the Word (On-Line Video)

Saturday

  • 3:30 pm—Individual Confession & Absolution
  • 5:30 pm—Divine Service with Holy Communion

Sunday

  • 9:00 am—Divine Service with Holy Communion
  • 11:00 am—Divine Service with Holy Communion

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; Lynn Davis (cousin of Mark Whitson); 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).

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; Blake Stokes; Paige Stokes; Ruben Wilson.


THE ANNOUNCEMENTS

NEXT WEEK’S READINGS . . . Micah 7:18–20; 1 Timothy 1:12–17; Luke 15:1–10.

ABOUT THIS WEEK’S READINGS . . . Wisdom has issued an invitation to the divine feast: “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight” (Prov. 9:5–6). This is the call of the Spirit of Christ to believe the Gospel and to receive His saving gifts in the Holy Supper. Many make excuses and reject this invitation, even as the Jews did in the days of Jesus, yet the Master’s house will be filled. The Gospel call therefore goes out to the lowly and despised, into the highways, even to all the Gentiles (Luke 14:15–24). For “you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Eph. 2:13–22). In Christ, believing Jews and Gentiles are no longer strangers but fellow members of the household of God. The enmity of class and race is put to death through the cross. Having been reconciled in the one Body of Christ, we are enabled to love one another (1 John 3:13–18) as we await the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom which will have no end.

THOUGHTS ABOUT STEWARDSHIP . . . Luke 14:19 “And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’” The things of this world tempt us to cast aside the things of God. The things of this world demand our attention, time, finances, etc. But Jesus invites us to the feast – what could be more important than this gracious invitation? Today’s parable invites us to examine our own priorities and attempted excuses…and then to come home to the Lord who invites us in humble repentance.

PASTOR WILL BE AWAY . . . for vacation June 20–25. During the restrictions, the Board of Elders decided that instead of having someone from out of town come to fill in, services during Pastor’s vacation would be posted online. There will be no in-person services on Saturday, June 20, or Sunday, June 21. In-person services will resume on Saturday, June 27, and Sunday, June 28. If you have an emergency, you may contact one of the Elders: Joel Burgener, John Harvey, Josh Whitson, Mark Whitson.

STAYCATION BIBLE SCHOOL . . . The Board of Education is announcing the first-ever (and hopefully last!) Staycation Bible School. We have put together a five-day program entitled By Faith, which highlights the way in which people in the Bible, and even Jesus Himself, trusted in God by faith. During these uncertain times, we as Christians can look to the Bible for reassurance and comfort that by faith and trust in God, He will work all things for our good. Since gathering in groups is limited, Staycation Bible School is a way for parents to fill a morning or afternoon with sound biblical teaching and remain in God’s Word with their children at home. All materials will be provided, which includes age-appropriate lesson plans, craft directions and materials, and even a pre-packaged snack. Please register your child online HERE. Registration ends on Friday, June 26. Parents and children can come to the church on Sunday, July 12 from 6:30 PM until 8:00 PM, where members of the board will be outside at a table handing out all the materials and supplies needed. If you have questions, please call the church office at (217) 253-4341.

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.

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:

  1. On Immanuel’s Facebook page
  2. On Immanuel’s Website under the Sermons tab
  3. On Immanuel’s YouTube channel

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.

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!


PRAYER REQUESTS


0 Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.