December 3, 2017
THOUGHTS ON STEWARDSHIP: 1 Corinthians 1:9 – “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” The faithfulness of God is our great comfort. He has made promises to us and He will keep them. He is kind and loving toward us and will not break faith with us. This gives us the confidence to step out in faith, to leave fear behind. So when it comes to following the Lord’s commandments for our daily lives: we know His will is best for us because our God is faithful.
NEED A RIDE? If you are unable to drive to church, we have an option that is available. Please speak with Pastor who has the details. Thank you.
OUR SUNDAY SCHOOL meets at 9:15 a.m. in the Choir Room which is located on the 2nd level (the west side).
THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS meets in the basement at 9:15 a.m. As we celebrate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation we continue studies on that time period. We are studying “A Man Named Martin”, a video-based study on the reformer Martin Luther.
MIDWEEK ADVENT WORSHIP: The first of our three Advent Services is this Wednesday, December 6th at 7:00 p.m. This year’s theme is: “The Word Becomes Flesh”, based on John 1:1-18. This week’s message is: “You Have My Word!” Meals are served at 5:30 p.m. in the basement. The food sign-up is in the narthex and this week’s free-will Offering will go to the Prison Ministry in our district.
“LOVE CAME DOWN”: Advent Devotion Booklets are available on the table in the narthex. Pick up your free copy today.
NEXT SUNDAY, December 10th, will be our second Sunday door Offering for our Seminary Student.
POINSETTIAS FOR THE ALTAR: We have a sign-up sheet on the table in the narthex for poinsettias on the altar for Christmas. They are $8.00 each and you may sign up until Wednesday, December 20th. They will be available to be taken home after Epiphany on Sunday, January 7th. There will be an envelope with the sign-up sheet for your check or cash. Please make checks payable to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and list “Poinsettia” on memo line. If you have any questions, please contact Jackie Kwasny at (309) 662-4995 or Luanne Huth at (309) 829-6897.
CHRISTMAS EVE MORNING: The Elders at their November meeting made a worship change for Christmas Eve morning. We will have one Worship Service at 9:00 a.m. with Sunday School and Adult Bible Class from 10:15 – 11:00 a.m. The Christmas Eve Candlelight Evening Worship will be at 6:00 p.m.
CAN YOU HELP: John and Paula Hardy are planning their annual trip to Ft Wayne, IN. It will be sometime after the holidays, hopefully mid-January. The Seminary needs clean usable clothes for men, women, and children. They also accept shoes, coats, and kitchen supplies. Please bring them to church. There is a closet located in the hall upstairs where items are collected, and packed for our trip. If you need help finding it just contact John (309) 310-7917. Thank you!
YOU ARE INVITED: Join your neighbors at Luther Oaks, 601 Lutz Rd., Bloomington for “Holiday Trivia” this coming Saturday, December 9th from 2-4:00 p.m. Fun for all ages. Complimentary snacks and beverages provided. Any questions, please call Bev Voss at (309) 557-8048.
YOU ARE INVITED: Take a free quided 20-minute walking tour and experience “The Journey” Mary and Joseph took so many years ago. This tour features indoor and outdoor scenes with live drama, animals and singing. “Journeys” begin inside every 10 minutes between 5-7:30 p.m. NEXT SUNDAY, December 10th at Christ Lutheran Church in Normal. Free cookies and hot chocolate will be available. Meals are also available for purchase between 4:30 – 7:00 p.m. For more information please call Christ Lutheran Church (309) 452-5609.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR: Please mark your calendar for 2018 – Saturday, February 10th. Wittenberg Lutheran is hosting a Speaker’s Forum with the theme, “Cultural and Governmental Influence On God’s Design For the Family”. The speakers are Tim Goeglein an LCMS Laymen who worked in the Bush White House and now is employed by “Focus On The Family”; and John Rosemond a family psychologist whose syndicated newspaper column appears in The Pantagraph on Saturdays.
THE LUTHERAN HOUR: “Prep Time” is the topic for next Sunday. The sermon text will be from Mark 1:1-3 Preparing for Christmas is quite different than preparing for Christ. Reverend Dr.Ken Klaus is the speaker. Hear this Sunday’s message on the Lutheran Hour on WGN (720) at 6:00 a.m.; WJWR (104.7 FM) and WJWR (90.3 FM) both on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Also, if you can receive Lincoln, IL radio station WLLM (1370 AM) the program is broadcast two times on Sunday at 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Tune in! You can also listen to The Lutheran Hour on your personal computer at RealAudio, www.lhm.org.
PRAYER CHAIN: If you have a prayer request please submit them by email to Mary Anne Kirchner at makirchner@yahoo.com or you may phone a Prayer Request to Mary Anne; her cell phone# is (309) 532-2582. The Prayer Request box is on the table in the narthex for any written requests.