Third Sunday of Easter – April 18, 2021

Edited Version

Alleluia! Christ is risen!

We participate in worship on the 3rd Sunday of Easter on April 18 at 10 am in the church parking lot. Holy Communion will be offered. You may participate through the livestream offered here.  If you can’t make it at 10am, the recording of this worship service will be available by 5pm on Sunday evening.

Print off the attached bulletin and Celebrate, so you are ready to sing & pray with your faith community!

Beginning this Sunday a designated “Fellowship Area” will be offered to encourage us to stay after the service and catch up, meet someone new and just be a little social! So plan to stay a little longer with your mask on and join Pastor Jim as we try to move back into some of our familiar practices that make up our church. Unfortunately, no refreshments will be served yet.

Also, if you are able to come early on the days we have outdoor worship at 10am, we can always use help setting up. Come anywhere between 9am and 9:30am.  

Next Sunday April 25th, we will offer a recorded worship service with Holy Communion that will be available all day.

Beginning in May and possibly continuing through August, on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the month at 10am, there will be an outdoor, live-streamed worship service. The recording of that service will be available after 5pm on our website. Sundays: May 9, 23 / June 13, 27 / July 11, 25 / August 8,22.   All other Sundays will be recorded on Fridays at 11am. and posted to our website by Sunday morning.

Our gathering for worship each Sunday at church, in our homes, or wherever we are able, is very essential to strengthen us to live out our faith and meet the world’s challenges. These days, especially, we cling to the messages of our faith that call us to new beginnings and living a new life in the Easter season. Previous Sunday worship services can be found at our website. “www.ststephenslutheran.org

Thank you all for your amazing support and love and faithful prayers for Leslie and our family. Please refer to Leslie’s “CaringBridge.org” page for updates and details about her story in case you may not have heard about her accident. Please look for your newsletter – Leslie has written an article sharing her thoughts and feelings since the accident. She is also now able to use her left leg because her fractures are healing so well.

Thank you for your continued faithfulness in your financial giving back to God through our church. Please remember to either give your offering through the mail, through our website donation option, signing up for monthly electronic giving, OR if you just want to get out of the house, then come by the church and drop it off in the mailbox in a secure slot called “Incoming mail”!  Office hours are M-Th 8:30-2:30. If you come during those times, you may also want to step into the sanctuary for some prayer and quiet time with God. We would love to see you.  Our library is also open to you with quite a variety to choose from.

Thank you to those of you who have been sending notes and messages of encouragement and support. They help keep us hopeful and joyful! We always love to hear how things are going.  We would like to share your experiences in the Newsletter each month.  So, give some thought to what’s been happening in your life – we all miss each other, and would be thrilled to hear what’s up!

Other notes:

  • If any of you would like to participate in worship, it really helps to have a few people Reading Scripture and offering the Prayers of Intercession from the Celebrate page.  Or if you would just like to come to worship when we record it on Fridays (new day) at 11:00 am.  Call the office at 476-4700 to let us know.
  • Habitat for Humanity Lunches.  We will be providing Lunches (sandwiches, chips, fruit & cookies) for 10 volunteers.  Reply to this email or call the office if you would like to help out. Our next date is Tuesday, May 25.
  • A few copies of “White Fragility” are available to borrow.  Call the office to inquire.

Grace and Peace,
Pastor Jim