News of St. John's Lutheran Church
From the Pastor...
Dear friends,
In January you will notice a difference in our Scripture readings for worship. Instead of three readings, we will be moving to one primary reading, which may be accompanied by a psalm or shorter reading. For some of you, worship may feel a little different because of this. If you use the Christ in Our Home devotional, the readings will not be aligned like you are accustomed to. These readings come from the Narrative Lectionary. The worship team and I, after looking into it, decided to move to this lectionary as a way to focus in on the overarching story the Bible tells of God and God’s people. For many years our readings have come from the Revised Common Lectionary, used by many churches, which is a three-year cycle of Gospel readings, with accompanying Old Testament readings, and a selection of readings from the epistles (letters in the New Testament). The Narrative Lectionary focuses more specifically on just one Bible story. It is a four-year cycle. Each year tells us the story of God and God’s people from Genesis to the early church, with readings from the Old Testament in September through mid-Advent, then readings from one of the four Gospels January through May. The summer months are open for various sermon series. We hope that this effort allows worshipers to both have a deeper look at some of our primary Christian stories, as well as see the larger arc of the biblical narrative. This lectionary year is the Gospel of John; beginning January 4, our Sunday readings will highlight Jesus stories according to John. You can find the assigned readings for the upcoming month in this newsletter and on our website (under the worship tab). I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts as we proceed through John’s Gospel in the coming months! Yours in Christ, Pastor Elise Inclement Weather Office HoursThe church office follows the lead of our local school districts when it comes to closing because of wintry weather conditions. If the schools are closed, it is likely we are closed also. Please call before coming to the office. 815-539-5626
Pastoral Care
If you find yourself in need of pastoral care or you or a family member are hospitalized, please contact the church office. Remember that because of privacy laws, the hospitals do not contact us when you or a family member are admitted.
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Join us for worship on YouTube!Simply click on the button above to go to our YouTube page. Once there, you can watch any of our worship services (just double-check the date).
Online Giving to St. John's
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To set up or adjust recurring gifts, contact Le Roy in the church office, follow the QR code to the right, or click the "donate now" button below. You will be asked to create an account and set up donations with a credit, debit, or bank account.
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Thank you for supporting the mission of St. John's!
NOTICE OF THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE CONGREGATION
St. John's Annual Meeting of the Congregation will take place on SUNDAY, JANUARY 25TH following the 9am worship. Confirmed members will be voting on the 2026 budget, the Endowment Bylaws, and also the ballot presented by the Nominating Team. Please plan to attend this important meeting and you are invited to stay for a potluck lunch after the meeting. Bring a dish to pass.
Endowment Fund Bylaws Draft
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THANK YOU...
Thank you to everyone who helped with Christmas preparations at St. John’s. Our worship services were filled with beauty and inspiration. Pastor Elise and the entire St. John’s staff gives thanks to all of you for the cards, gifts and Christmas blessings so generously poured out during this holiday season!