SERMON: “Endure ” by Youth Gathering Participants

based on the text: Hebrews 12:1-3
 
Dear Friends In Christ,
Hello…It is with sadness and steadfast hope in Christ  that we announce the passing of Werner Mews, father of Pastor Kurt Mews, who was called home to his Heavenly Father today.  We rejoice in the knowledge that Werner has found eternal peace with the Lord!  All church services will be held this weekend with the Endure National Youth Gathering participants presenting the sermon as we had originally planned.  The recognition for Pastor Mews’ forty years in the ministry will be held at a later date. Please keep Pastor Mews and his family in your thoughts and  prayers. Have a blessed weekend!
 

ALTAR FLOWERS

The altar flowers are given by Jerry & Nancy Call in celebration of Kevin & Lori Froelich’s 22nd wedding anniversary on August 23rd.

PASTOR MEWS 40 YEARS RECOGNITION

This weekend we are celebrating Pastor Mews’ many years of service as a called church worker in the LCMS ministry. Pastor Mews was installed as a teacher at St. John Lutheran in August of 1985. He will be recognized at all services and  will be presented with a certificate at the 9:00 am service. There will be a cake reception during the Fellowship Hour.

TREES OF LIFE BENEFIT – SEPTEMBER 28TH

The annual “Defiance Has Talent and Heart” will be held Sun. Sept. 28 at 4:00 at the K of C Hall. There will be a buffet dinner, auctions, great talent presentations, and emcee Rick Small. The beneficiary this year is Good Samaritan School  (Life Skills Project). Tickets are $20 with a deadline of Sept. 16, and available at Ken’s Furniture,  Defiance Visitors Bureau, or contact Deb Weisgerber at 419-980-9514. 

FRIENDSHIP SUNDAY BREAKFAST

In celebration of Friendship Sunday, the Board of Parish Fellowship will be hosting a breakfast from 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, September 14th.  The breakfast is sponsored by Thrivent Financial and there will be a freewill offering.

JULY 2025 FOOD PANTRY REPORT

We served 85 families in July or 222 people. We distributed 402 bags of food for a value of $6,030.00. Eleven  families visited our pantry for the first time.  We spent $962.53 at Meijer and $135.61 at the Toledo Food Bank for a total of $1098.14.

Meijer Simply Give Program is featuring us again through Saturday, September 27th.  The DOUBLE DAYS, when they will DOUBLE the money that is donated, are Saturday, August 16th,  AND Saturday, September 13th. Yes, during this

campaign there will be TWO DOUBLE DAYS. Meijer Simply Give Scan cards are available on the south receptionist desk. Pick one up today!

Being associated with the Toledo Northwestern Food Pantry, we are required to have the food pantry inspected and take a Safe Food Handling course. Our food pantry passed inspection and the Safe Food Handling test with flying colors.

Our Mission Statement: “To improve the health and well-being of our neighbors by providing reliable access to nutritious food in welcoming environments through the generosity of volunteers, individuals and community partnerships.”

ITEMS NEEDED: saltine crackers, cream of chicken soup, egg noodles

ALTAR FLOWERS

If you have purchased altar flowers for the weekend services, please remember to pick them up after the 11:00 service. After Wednesday, the flowers will be thrown away.

SAVE YOUR PLASTIC CAPS!

We are saving CLEAN plastic caps (any size, shape, or color) to possibly have a park bench on our church property.  Please bring them to the church office. Examples of caps: water bottles, milk jugs, sprays (oil, etc.), cleaning products, food products.  Thank you!

THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS DAY TRIP

Ohio Star Theater – Sugarcreek, Ohio

Thursday, September 25, 2025

7:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. 

*See bulletin insert for more information

Camp Lutherhaven Men’s Retreat

Calling all men! Join us for the Lutherhaven Men’s Retreat on September 26-28, 2025! The first 25 guys to register will receive a free book, Callings for Life: God’s Plan, Your Purpose by retreat main speaker, Jeffrey Leininger. To learn more or register today, visit http://lutherhaven.org/programs/retreats/men/
 

ACTS – ADULT CROSSTRAINING

We are getting started with our Adult CrossTraining Studies (ACTS) on September 3, 2024 6:00-7:30 p.m. 

Do you want to grow closer to God?  Would you like to learn how to share Jesus’ love with others?  Think about

ACTS –  a great way to grow individually and as a group of people who love the Lord.

ACTS is the name we use for the habit of people who come together on a regular basis to pray and worship as a group. 

But why have this habit at all?  The best explanation was from a woman who has had a difficult life.  She said, “Having this time allows us to acknowledge the God who’s getting us through the day.”  That’s the main reason, pure and simple – to have a short time when we can lift our eyes above the craziness of our daily lives to focus on the God who loves us and is with us to help us.  It’s a time to stop running and simply breathe for a while – to rest in  God’s presence – to remember once again that we are God’s children through Jesus Christ our Savior.

Dates for September:

September 3 — Family Game Night with Pizza, Bible Bingo, and CrossTraining Orientation

September 10 — topic:  Confusion            Adult Ed Room A.

September 17 — topic:   One in Love        Adult Ed Room A

September 24 — topic:  The Shepherd      Adult Ed Room A

We hope to see you then ~  Judy Detter and Penny Mueller

 

 

ATTENDANCE                CHURCH SERVICES                  

August  16         44               5:30 PM                                                             

August 17          97                9:00 AM                                          

                            56              11:00 AM                                                          

TOTAL:             197                                                                                  

 
– Worship Services –
Traditional Services
Saturday, 5:30 p.m., Sunday, 9:00 a.m.
Sunday, 11:00 a.m. Contemporary Service
 
THE 5:30 P.M. SATURDAY AND SUNDAY AT 11:00 A.M. ARE
LIVESTREAMED 
 
————————————————————————–