Friday, October 4, 2013

Week of October 6th, 2013
Saturday,  October 5th  
  6:00pm - Contemporary Worship (Northwest Site)
Sunday, October 6th
  8:00am & 10:30am – Worship/Communion (Central Site)
  9:15am -  Bible Class/Sunday School  (Central Site)
  9:15am – Worship (Northwest Site)
10:30am – Bible Study (Northwest Site)
11:00am – Walcamp Festival (Walcamp)
  1:00pm – Walk to Remember (YMCA Log Lodge)
  6:30pm – Jr. Confirmation (Northwest Site)
Monday, October 7th  
10:00am – Monday Morning Bible Class
Tuesday, October 8th
   9:00am – Piecemakers (Central Site)
Wednesday, October 9th
  7:00am – 7:45am -  Men’s Devo & Prayer (Stockholm Inn)
  8:25am – Chapel
  6:00pm – Chancel Choir (Northwest Site)
Thursday, October 10th
  6:30pm – 9:00pm – Consider the Conversation (Coronado)
Friday, October 11th
  5th – 6th Grade Girls Volleyball Tournament (Gym)
Saturday,  October 12th LWML Weekend
 5th – 6th Grade Girls Volleyball Tournament (Gym)
  6:00pm - Contemporary Worship/Communion (Northwest Site)
Sunday, October 13th Blood Pressure Screening – Central
    LWML Weekend
  8:00am & 10:30am  – Worship (Central Site)
  9:15am -  Bible Class/Sunday School  (Central Site)
  9:15am – SPY Band
  9:15am – Worship/Communion (Northwest Site)
10:30am – Bible Study (Northwest Site)
  6:30pm – Jr. Confirmation (Northwest Site)


Prayer for the Day is a daily devotional ministry. To hear a devotion recorded by Pastor Thies, please call the special Prayer for the Day phone number (963-7641) and then dial 3 when the call is answered.

Sermon Series by Pastor Thies – As part of our effort to transform our church and school ministry with some planning, last weekend each person received a prayer journal.  For this weekend and the next two weekends that Pastor Thies preaches he will lead us through the remaining themes in the journal: 2) Trust, 3) Money & 4) Courage.  You are invited each of these weeks to prayerfully work through the journal with five personal and/or family devotions and to keep some notes on your thoughts.  The hope is that these weeks serve to bring us together in reflecting on the Lord’s things in our lives as we prayerfully attempt to plan our ministry together as a church.  Everyone can participate in this!

HELP--LADIES GUILD and LWML of NID collect for "Gifts from the Heart."  We are collecting Women's Toiletry items which will be delivered to the Crisis Center for South Suburbia. Some suggested items are--lotions, body washes, new slippers, etc.  A complete list is with the black collection tub at the narthex at each site.  LADIES GUILD sincerely thanks all who help with this LWML project.

Pastor Thies will be away next weekend serving our sister congregation in La Fox.  Please pray for them that the Lord’s will in the response of the pastor they have called will be done.

Next weekend we remember the work of the LWML or Lutheran Women’s Missionary League in our services.  Our women and their work will be featured in out themes and in action.

Walcamp Fall Festival – Bring your family for a day of fun at Walcamp Outdoor Ministries and Retreat Center today, October  6th at 11:00am. This day offers many fun activities. Come and explore the beautiful fall colors of God’s creation. Events of the day will include Civil War living history, children’s games, food, craft vendors, live music and fellowship. Worship service starts the celebration at 11:00am. Entertainment and pork dinner begin at noon.

Ministry Planning:  Let's Pull together! Mr. Tom Grunow of Cornerstone Stewardship Ministry will be with us again on Saturday, October 19 for phase two of our planning sessions.  We will meet in the Undercroft from 8:30 AM - 12:30 PM.  Thank you to all who attended our first planning session!  We hope to make plans to move into action at this next session!  All are invited, even if you missed the first session in September.  Please consider attending to be a part of laying out plans for future ministry here at St. Paul Lutheran Church and School.  Watch for a rough draft in your email box of some of the plans we have discussed at the September planning session and at the "I Love St. Paul" workshops we hosted in January.  We are encouraged to pray for our Lord's guidance through this process!  Please call the church office (815-963-5435) if you have any questions.  Child care and light refreshments are available. 

What if we could replicate our St. Paul Lutheran School ministry several times over in Africa in places where there is NO SCHOOL AT ALL for the children there without it?  Well, we actually can by partnering in supporting Joe Boway,a friend of St. Paul Lutheran for many years.  Mr. Boway is a missionary who returns several times a year to his native Liberia to establish Lutheran schools for the families living there.  He has established twelve schools with Lutheran churches there so far in just a few years!  He has visited our school for many years to tell us about his work to spread the knowledge of Jesus Christ.  Our students enjoy hearing about life in Africa when Mr. Boway speaks to us for chapel.  He was here in May and will be back via Skype for a chapel service in October.  Our school chapel offerings for September and October will go towards Mr. Boway's ministry.  We are also collecting school supplies for the schools in Liberia.  We invite you to participate!  You may bring in writing utensils, loose leaf paper, spiral notebooks, folders, and other items.  Financial gifts help as well as long as they indicate for this ministry in some way.  You may provide a donation in the offering plate or bring to Mr. Volkert or leave in the school or church office.  Just a few dollars allows a child to have a Christian education in an area where they would otherwise receive absolutely no education.  Mr. Boway will be by in person on October 30th to pick up what we have collected.   You can find more information at http://www.nl4u.org/page8.html

St. Paul Lutheran Church & School and its 125th Anniversary are featured in the current Fall issue of Northwest Quarterly Magazine.  Page 219 gives us and our ministries of the past, present and future a full page description.  You may take home your cost free issue to review and/or keep by picking it up from one of the church entrance ways or in many business establishments around the area, courtesy of Guler Appliance which supplied the ones to our church.

You are still invited to tell others about enrolling their children in St. Paul School next Fall.  Seats are available in most classes.  We think we are the best deal in town - tuition is only $2,700 a year for Community Members.  That is less than $68 a week for a quality education in a small school setting.  Remember to tell them that the children learn of Jesus each and every day!  That is priceless!  Interested families can call 815-965-3335 or email Lynn Warner at stpaulrockford@gmail.com.

"8 oh 4 St. Paul".  This is our new method to remind ourselves to take time from our busy lives to bow our heads in prayers to our Father.  Last Spring we used "stop at 1:30 to pray for 130 students" for our school .  We want to continue the habit of the St. Paul Family uniting in prayer at the same time.  You are welcomed to set your alarm or phone for 8:04 (AM or PM) and join us to pray at 8 oh 4 St. Paul.  Pray that God continues to guide and bless the ministry of St. Paul Lutheran School.  Pray for our students, families, and teachers… and anything else that is on your heart.  Jesus promises to hear our prayers!

Perhaps you have a musical instrument at your house that is no longer being used.  If it is donated to our band program we can guarantee that it will once again produce beautiful music!  Donated instruments are used by our students for no charge.  For many students, being able to use a "school instrument" is what allows them to join our band.  Talk to Mr. Volkert if you have any questions.
      
Little Lambs is now accepting applications for fall enrollment. Please call Jan Morton at 815-965-3335, ext. 218.

Here is a real way for any congregation or school member to assist the funding of the ministry of St. Paul Lutheran School - and it does not cost anyone anything!  This project has the potential to bring in tens of thousands of dollars each year to St. Paul!  Intrigued?  St. Paul is working with a company that processes credit cards who will give a gift to St. Paul that represents a large amount of their profits.  We need an "army" of people in the St. Paul family to represent us in the community as we provide businesses with the opportunity to partner with us as we strive to make Christian education more affordable.  One company has already signed up!  Anytime you make a purchase at Guler Appliance Company you are also funding Christian education.  This is a definite "win-win" situation!  You are invited and encouraged to attend an informational meeting on Thursday, October 17 at 6:30 PM in the Central Site church undercroft (basement).  We need your help to make this dream become a real way to bring in needed funds for our school ministry.  This could be one of the methods which allows St. Paul to maintain low tuition and fees for our families.  Please talk to Bruce Volkert if you have any questions.