Welcome to St. John Lutheran Church-LCMC
August
Important Events for August
Shepherd's Heart Work Day
We will be hosting a distribution for Shepherd’s Heart ministry on August 11th, from 8-10 a.m. Please plan to help if you can. We will get started about 7:00 a.m.
Blessing of the Backpacks
On Sunday, August 10th, we invite all the
students to bring their
backpacks to worship. We will have a
blessing of the backpacks, and
each student will be given something for their backpack.
Back-to-School Sunday School Service and Field Trip
On Monday, August 11th, our Sunday School for grades 6 and below is sponsoring a service opportunity and then a fun trip to Hooky's in Hutto for a pizza lunch, bowling, and arcade games. Each Sunday School student will be allowed to invite one friend to join us. Parents/Guardians are invited to join us for lunch and can help supervise the bowling and arcade games and fun! Transportation with Sunday School sponsors will be available for parents who do not attend. Only 5th and 6th grade students will need to be at the church at 8 AM to help with our community food pantry distribution. The younger students need to arrive by 10 AM for us to depart for Hutto. We plan to bowl for an hour, have a pizza lunch, and then play arcade games for an hour. We will be done and head back to Thrall at 2 PM. Permission slips as well as a head count will be needed by Sunday, August 3rd, deadline to attend. You should get information and permission slips in the mail, or you can pick them up at Sunday School or church on Sundays or at the church office. For more information or questions, contact Linda Richter (254) 697-5099.
Lutheran Men ~ Monthly Breakfast
On August 2, we will have a Lutheran Men Monthly breakfast. Breakfast will be served at 8:00 a.m. We will have a hot breakfast, devotion, and a Bible study. Please come and feel free to invite a friend or neighbor.
Women's Bible Study
The Ladies Bible Study will meet on August 14th at 10:00 a.m. They are beginning a new Bible study on the women of the Bible called, “Servants of the Lord”. Please plan to join them for time in God’s Word. For more information speak to Pastor, Kay Bulgerin, Linda Richter, Romadene Mohel, or Sharon Moreno.
The following is some more information about the new Bible study.
Servants of the Lord ~ Women of the Bible
Welcome to a fresh, new look at servant hood. Although the stories of the women in this
study may be familiar to you, you are about to be challenged to look deeper than you
ever have. Within the framework of the opening and closing worship, there will be a trip
into the past (her story), a trip into the present (your story), and a trip into the future
(what's next?). You will be offered personal projects that will make each servant's story
a reality for you. For example, Hannah's Old Testament song will be compared to
Mary's New Testament Magnificat, and you will get to compare both of them with your
own song. All of this is combined with lively humor that helps you to realize the bond
you have with each sister in Christ who lived so long ago.
As you study the six servants, see Christ in their lives. See Christ in your life. See that
His great example of leadership is ... SERVANTHOOD.
Introduction
Session 1: Miriam-First String or
Second Fiddle?
Session 2: Deborah-HI Will Go with
You"
Session 3: Hannah-Return to Sender
Session 4: Esther-Chosen to Save
Session 5: Mary Magdalene-HI Have
Seen the Lord"
Session 6: Dorcas-Willing to Serve
THRALL TEACHER LUNCHEON
Back-to-School Luncheon for the
teachers and staff of Thrall ISD
On August 7th, we will be hosting the
teachers and staff from Thrall ISD. There is
a sign up in the narthex for a cash donation
for food or to bring a dessert. Please
consider bringing school supplies to be
shared with our teachers.
Shepherd 's Heart
FROM THE DESK OF PASTOR GESKE
From the desk of Pastor Geske....
Faithful to the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions
Greetings in the name of Christ! As I write this letter, the thought comes to my mind of how this time of the year is so wonderful. It is often said that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. I
believe this time of the year is also wonderful. The beginning of a new school year brings much excitement and joy over what the upcoming year will hold. For students, it is a time to get back into a routine and have new teachers and new lessons. For parents, it probably is the most wonderful time of the year because the kids finally go back to school and the house, and their lives again have some order. It is interesting how each year we go through the same cycle. I know the teachers appreciate the time off to rest and take additional classes, but it seems to me that maybe our school should no longer follow the growing season. Some children need a constant learning environment, and unfortunately for some children the summer seems to be a waste of time. Sometimes, as we know in our communities, children end up doing things that are not productive.
Well, something very similar can be said of the church. Growing in the knowledge of who God is and what He has done is not limited to certain days, or months, or years, but it is something that we should continue to do. I recall the president of the LCMS and how he developed a five-fold vision for the LCMS, but the vision could be applied to any Lutheran church. The fourth vision of Dr. Barry is to be faithful to the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions. The Lutheran Confessions are those statements in the book of Concord that we believe give a true exposition of what God’s Word says. Dr. Barry wrote, “I have said it before and I will say it again: If our Synod is going to continue to be a blessing to our own people, as well as to the total Christian community all around the world, we must continue to be a church body that is marked, yes, clearly marked by being faithful to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions. No fudging. No apologizing. No side-stepping away from what we know to be true.”
This vision goes hand in hand with our four fold emphasis of the LCMC. We are congregations that are free in Christ, accountable to one another, rooted in Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions, and we are committed to the great commission. The Scriptures and the Confessions clearly tell us what we believe and what we should be about in our communities and in our world. For our church to grow, we must be growing in God’s Word through worship and Bible class. Too many in our church and our association believe that Sunday morning worship is enough. To be faithful to the Scriptures is to gladly hear, learn, and meditate on them. This is something that is to happen more than one hour on Sunday morning.
As we look to the future, I challenge each one of you to look at your life and your commitments. Then I ask you to challenge yourself to be more involved in the study of God’s Word and the Lutheran Confessions. I would love to have the opportunity to offer more Bible classes than here at St. John. To be a faithful witness of what the Gospel is all about and what our church believes, teaches, and confesses, we need to continue to be faithful to the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions by being in faithful in worship and Bible study.
May God bless you as you worship, study, and grow as His child.
In Christ,
Pastor Jeff Geske
We are now connected
YouTube
St. John Lutheran Church Thrall Tx
Sunday Morning Bible Class
Our Sunday school would love to have you
and your child or grandchild
to be a part of learning more about the
love and forgiveness of Jesus.
Please make the study of God’s Word
a priority for you and your
family. A church that is growing is a church that is in God’s Word.