Connections
St. Matthew Lutheran Church - Connecting Faith With Life!
CALENDAR
of EVENTS
SAT., APRIL 11
FOOD PANTRY WEEKEND
10am - 1pm ECIRMAC
5:30 pm
Worship
6:00 pm
Sola Gratia Farm
Local Flavors Dinner
Alexander is 80. It doesn’t take long in any conversation for Alexander to start his complaining.
He complains about the weather, politicians,
sports, and the list goes on. Alexander really gets
on a roll when he starts complaining about his
good-for-nothing daughter. He complains he has
no peace – no peace at all.
Liza works at a fast-moving company, but she has
begun to notice her bosses consistently overlook
FOOD PANTRY
the talented Hispanic employees for wellWEEKEND
deserved promotions. At a meeting last week, her
8:30 am
Worship
bosses made several jokes about Hispanics. She
9:50 am
Coffee Fellowship
was deeply offended, but doesn’t want to stir
9:50 am
Sunday School
9:50 am
No Adult Forum Today things up at her workplace. She really likes her
10:45 am
Worship
job, but she is losing sleep over the matter. She
MON., APRIL 13
just wants to be at peace, but she doesn’t feel the
8:30 am
Morning
same about her bosses.
Prayer
STM
SUN.,
APRIL 12
FOOD PANTRY
WEEKEND
9:00 am
Group
Pastors’ Text Study
TUES.,
APRIL 14
5:45 pm
6:00 pm
6:00 pm
LUTHERAN DAY
IN
SPRINGFIELD
Council Meeting
Bell Choir Rehearsal
Boy Scouts
WED., APRIL 15
9:30 am
5:30 pm
6:15 pm
6:30 pm
Prayer
Shawl
Ministry
CrossTraining
Adult Bible Study
STM Choir Rehearsal
FRI., APRIL 17
11:30 am
Religion & Lit
Discussion of
Extremely Loud
and
Incredibly Close
SAT., APRIL 18
10am - 1pm
5:30 pm
ECIRMAC
Worship
SUN., APRIL 19
8:30 am
9:50 am
9:50 am
9:50 am
10:45 am
2:00 pm
Worship
Coffee Fellowship
Sunday School
Adult Forum Today
Worship
CROP
Walk
On the evening of his resurrection from the dead,
Jesus appears to his disciples and gives them the
gift of the peace as well as the promised Holy
Spirit. These two are intricately connected. Peace
is a gift from God alone. We have no true peace
without God.
God’s peace is more than being
without conflict. Obviously,
Jesus is a man of peace, but he
is crucified by his enemies. Yet
he has peace in his spirit and
freely gives up his life so we
might experience God’s incredible peace and presence. He
confronts his enemies time and time again. He
breaks through traditional boundaries as he invites
children to come to him, teaches women, heals on
the Sabbath, and eats meals with sinners. Jesus
strives to bring peace to all humanity.
When Jesus visits the disciples on the night of his
resurrection, he gives them peace and commissions them. They are sent in his name. Peace is to
be their companion. He breathes on them and
gives them the new life of the Holy Spirit. They
are not to journey alone, but the Spirit is to be
their companion filling them with peace.
Prayer
O God, giver of peace, give us peace for the journey and most certainly for the day. Amen.
Prayer Requests
Teri Nelson, sister of Sandy Ackerman
Merle & Virginia Shea,
Lucy Stuyniski,
parents of Mike Shea
Kathy Lowery, friend of Margie Colter
Tim Roy,
Specialist Sean Splittstoesser,
Kristie, friend of Elaine Ebeling
grandson of Ruby & Dan Splittstoesser
Karen Warfield,
sister-in-law of Rod Warfield
Connie, friend of Cheryl Light-Shriner
Diane Orris, mother of Amy Burge,
mother in law of Matt Burge
****************
Wayne Mcdaniel,
friend of Mel & Liz Schwartz
****************
All the relatives of
the Richardson family,
Nancy Ellis, sister of Karen Deck
Debbie Jones,
friend of Mel & Liz Schwartz
son-in-law of Rudy & Elaine Ebeling
****************
Sharon Hedrick
John Gantz
Aleta Blobaum
Debbie Fotzler
Leona Saathoff
Bruce Larson
Ruby Splittstoesser
Bruce Carroll
Hervin Buhr
Mike Krumwiede
Rod Warfield
Elaine Ebeling
Sandy & Arlen Ackerman
****************
Remember our shut-ins:
Robert Anderson
Vivian Larson
Pat Tammen
friend of Mel & Liz Schwartz
Bruce & Ethel Hamilton,
friends of Mel & Liz Schwartz
****************
Fran & Laurie Sexton,
parents of Margo Richardson
****************
Lorayne Knapp, mother of Peg Warriner
Janice Shields, niece of Joyce Hayn
In loving memory of ~
Yarra Tammen,
niece of Alan Tammen
Please include her family & friends
in your special thoughts & prayers.
May God welcome her
into the kingdom of heaven.
Please note: Names on the list for prayers will be posted for one month unless otherwise requested.
Please contact the church office with any updates or extensions. Thank you.
STAFF OF ST. MATTHEW LUTHERAN CHURCH
PHONE: 367-1189 www.stmatthewurbana.org
Pastor
Robert J. Rasmus
Office Coordinator
Gayla Pellum
Administrative Assistant
Derald Meier
Sunday School Superintendent
Ann Rasmus
Nursery
Ruby Splittstoesser & Danielle Deck
Parish Nurses
Aziza Awate, Beth Riddle & Rita Vanier
Connections Deadline: Submit announcements in writing to the church office or by e-mail
to [email protected] no later than 9:00 a.m. Wednesday. Thank you!
Welcome!
St. Matthew Lutheran Church
is a fellowship of Christian believers
called to:
grow in Christ,
share the Gospel,
serve God’s people.
Do come again to
St. Matthew Lutheran Church
where you are always welcome.
Worship Services
Saturday, 5:00 pm
• Healing Service on the 3rd Saturday of the month
A relaxed & informal worship held in the Christ Chapel.
Sunday, 8:30 am
Spirited traditional worship that focuses on participation through the liturgy, the great hymns of the Church, & corporate confession of our faith.
Sunday, 10:45 am
Praise & worship in an open & accessible style.
STEPHEN MINISTERS: THE AFTER PEOPLE
People often ask, “What exactly is a Stephen Minister?”
One way to put it is that Stephen Ministers are the After People.
Stephen Ministers are there:
...after the phone call you hoped you’d never get.
...after the divorce papers are served & the bottom falls
out of your life.
...after the funeral, when everyone has left & the emotions you’ve
held at bay come crashing in on you.
...after the doctor says, “I’m sorry, but there’s nothing more we can do.”
...after the nursing home director shakes your hand & & says, “Welcome to your
new home.”
...after the last child honks the horn, waves, & drives away—& the house
suddenly seems empty.
...after the gavel goes down, the handcuffs go on, & your loved one is
led away.
...after the baby arrives, demanding more of you than you ever dreamed
possible.
...after you find a pink slip with your final paycheck.
...after your family & friends have heard your story one too
many times, but you still need to talk it out.
Stephen Ministers are the “After People.” They are ready to come
alongside you–or your friends, neighbors, coworkers, or relatives
–& provide comfort & support for as long after as needed.
ALTAR FLOWERS
The flowers on the altar this weekend are given in celebration of Bryan Fink’s 23rd birthday from his parents, Greg &
Kay and sister, Lynette. Happy birthday Bryan!
Help make our altar beautiful! Celebrate a birthday,
anniversary, someone’s life or just because. The sign up
sheet is located on the bulletin board in the narthex. There
are still many open dates throughout this year.
ADULT FORUM
Our Adult Forum is taking this week off. We will resume on
Sunday, April 19th.
WEDNESDAY ADULT BIBLE STUDY
Our multi-year adult Bible study cycle continues that takes us
through the whole of the Scriptures. The Augsburg Adult
Bible series is written by scholars & pastors from the
Lutheran tradition & is formatted for both private study &
group reflection in the Augsburg Room on Wednesdays at 6:15.
YOU MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO HELP FEED HUNGRY FAMILIES
Your help to families in need of food in our community has always
been a great success. Your response to our STM Food Pantry week
end and your continued donations of food week after week to this
STM
Ministry helps to provide food for families who without your help
would not have food to eat. Here are some things that we are running low on that would help fill the list of things that we deliver to
the families; canned peaches, boxed instant rice, hot cereal, complete pancake mix,
pancake syrup, canned fruit cocktail and boxed mashed potatoes. Please call
Richard or Kay King at 367-1297 and we will be happy to answer any questions you
may have.
WE NEED VOLUNTEERS TO MAKE FOOD DELIVERIES
Can you spare about 2 hours every few weeks? We have a great spot
for you helping families who are in need of food. We would love to
have you join us in making deliveries and will be happy to train you.
Start 2015 by helping with this ministry of St Matthew. We will be
looking forward to hear from you, Richard and Kay King 367-1297.
FOOD PANTRY WEEKEND THIS WEEK
We have a blessing of items for the food pantry once a month during a Sunday morning service. This will fall on the first full weekend of every month. A basket for donations will be placed in the
narthex Saturday evening & Sunday morning. We ask that you still
give to the pantry on other days. Food Pantry Weekend will serve
as a reminder that the need for food never goes away.
STM
FOOD PANTRY
WEEKEND
IT’S TIME TO MAKE UP THE NEXT WORSHIP ASSISTANT SCHEDULE!
I will be scheduling worship assistants in early May for the June
through September 2015 services. Please note: During June, July &
August there will only be one service on Sunday mornings at
9:30am. I will be using assistants from both 8:30 & 10:45 together for many of the duties. We are especially in need of people for
Altar Guild, Cantor, Sound Technician, Coffee Fellowship, Visitor
Team & Offering Counters areas. We will be happy to train anyone who is interested. We would love to have your smiling face be
part of our team of worship assistants! If you are currently part of the schedule,
please contact me to let me know if you are unavailable for certain weekends and/or
if you have a scheduling preference. Please have your requests and/or preferences
emailed to me at my office address ([email protected]) no later
than May 1st. If you have any questions, please give me a call at the office 367-1189.
Thank you! Gayla Pellum
PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY THIS WEEK
The next meeting of the Prayer Shawl Ministry will be
Wednesday, April 15 at 9:30 a.m. in the Concord Room at
church. We welcome all who knit. If you know of someone who
would be comforted by a prayer shawl, please contact Joan
Peterson (384-7415), Mary Anderson (896-2061), Pastor Bob
or the church office (367-1189). The stories from the recipients are beautiful &
filled with gratitude for the prayers & love that goes into making them.
RELIGION AND LITERATURE THIS WEEK
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Nine-year-old Oskar Schell has embarked on an urgent, secret mission that
will take him through the five boroughs of New York. His goal is to find
the lock that matches a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who
died in the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11. This
seemingly impossible task will bring Oskar into contact with survivors of
all sorts on an exhilarating, affecting, often hilarious, and ultimately healing journey.
Join us for discussion on April 17th at 7pm in the Concord Room.
BLOOD PRESSURE SCREENINGS - APRIL 18-19
Blood Pressure Screenings are held on the third full weekend of the
month. A parish nurse will be available in the Parish Nurse office (west
side of the Concord Room) starting at 4:30 on Saturday evening & after
the Sunday morning service. Please stop by. Look for the colorful banner hanging outside of the door!
BLOOD
PRESSURE
SCREENING
TODAY
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE STORYBOOK PROJECT!
An informational meeting about Storybook Project is being held
at 10 a.m. on April 25 at Holy Cross Church at 3778 North Water
Street, Decatur, IL. Coffee and cookies will be served. For more
information, contact Rev. Amy Ziettlow at [email protected]
or Gail Beard, Storybook Director, at [email protected] or 217371-1633. Please RSVP to Rev. Amy by April 20 if you plan to
attend. St. Matthew is the home base for the Storybook Project
team for Danville Prison. Bill Brown, Jon Gunderson, and Nancy
Schneider are on the team and would welcome additional members. Many children whose mothers or fathers are incarcerated rarely get to see or
to hear from their parents. To help them keep that vital voice connection, every
month Storybook Project sends hundreds of children of the incarcerated a book and
a CD of their mom or dad reading the book to them. This involves a once-a-month
morning visit 9 or 10 months of the year. We have a collection box placed by the
church office for your new or like-new books that would lend themselves to oral
reading and that are suitable for children of all ages.
2015 CU CROP H UNGER WALK
Get your walking shoes ready,
the Champaign/Urbana CROP Walk
will be next Sunday April 19th starting at 2pm.
CROP Walk is great way to raise awareness and money to help
solve local, national and international hunger problems and
improve your health in a fun way in fellowship with other members
of St. Matthews and area churches. We are looking for individuals
and families to walk, and sponsors to help support our walker’s
efforts. If you are interested in walking or sponsoring a walker please contact
Jesse Helton or Jon Gunderson. Walkers will be available after services to receive
your sponsorship or you can also sponsor on-line. To sponsor online, visit the
local Crop Walk website (http://www.cu-cropwalk.org) and just follow the “St.
Matthew Lutheran” link on the home page of the website. 25% of the funds raised
stay right here in Champaign county and will be used to support St. Jude’s Worker
House, the TIMES center and Eastern Illinois Food Bank. Look forward to walking with you and your support!
Our son, Kristoff David Miller, was born March 2 at 12:51pm. He was 8 lbs,
4.5 oz and 19.5 in long, a nice size and not nearly as big as the ultrasound
had predicted. He has light brown hair with a touch of red. He is doing well
and has a very healthy appetite.
Dave and Suzie Miller
Congratulations to the Miller family from all of us at St. Matthew!
Join Lutherans from across the state
in study, prayer and action
for greater justice and compassion
in Illinois.
Please join us to build relationships
with public officials, showcase the
active engagement of Lutherans
in pursuing the common good, and
build camaraderie among Lutheran
advocates in Illinois.
STM Garden of Remembrance
STM Garden of Remembrance Columbarium memorial options are
available. Those ordered this winter will be included in the spring
landscaping. A display of options will be in the coffee area for viewing. A memorial request form is on the table near the coffee bar. Niche
spaces are $1200 and include 2 urns and engraving. For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Connie Minnes, Kathy Rhoads, Vic
Isaksen, Karl Koenke or James Quisenberry.
SOLA GRATIA FARM
2015 SHARES ARE AVAILABLE NOW!
Shares for the 2015 season of Sola Gratia Farm are currently for sale.
Some shareholders purchase a share for their own family, while
others purchase a share to be donated to the Eastern Illinois
Foodbank. The price for a half-share for 2015 is $315 and a full
share is $575. Shareholder agreements are available in the farm or
church office. If you would like more information, please ask a
member of the Sola Gratia Farm board.
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT
CROSSTRAINING APRIL 15?
R ECEIVE THE
H OLY S PIRIT
Mac & Cheese, Salad, Veggies
Dessert, Milk & Water
Suggested donation $2.00 per person