Shout-Out from St. Matthew for Sunday, March 14, 2021

Rejoice/Refresh!

Give thanks to the Lord, for the Lord is good, for God's mercy endures forever. (Psalm 107:1)

As I have shared previously, Lent 4 is a day to take a break. In former days, "Refreshment Sunday" gave people a breather from the Lenten fast. We use the word refresh in our culture in a new way. To "refresh" one's computer means to prepare new data for consideration.

Let's refresh! We anticipate a new day while still looking at our lives that are stuck with old news! Let me share some good news as we prepare to refresh our church lives.

On Tuesday, the Covid re-entry team will consider plans for an Easter morning in person celebration. That group will make a recommendation to our Executive Council that meets the same evening. Pending their action, our worship team will create Easter liturgies at their Thursday evening meeting. What will our refreshed Easter Sunday look like? Next Friday's shout out will tell the story!

Let's continue to pray that the environment surrounding the pandemic will allow us to meet and worship faithfully and safely.

"Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim that God redeemed them from the hand of the foe, gathering them in from the lands...." (Psalm 107:2-3)

In Christ,
Pastor Bill Diehm

We Offer Our Prayers For:

Deacon Lindsay
Family of Connie Holthouse
Carolyn Grenfell
Chuck Payne
Esther Svoboda

Working in cooperation with Lutheran churches in our conference, we are participating in prayer worship on Wednesdays during Lent.

Each Wednesday there will be a scripture and sermon based on stories from the Bible with the theme “Fear Not”.

SERVICES ARE RECORDED IN ADVANCE
and we will receive them in different formats.
An email, with the video link,
will be sent Wednesday afternoon.
The video will also be uploaded to
our Facebook page .

In the spirit of our congregational prayer,
it is suggested that you participate at 7 p.m.

Mid-Week Worship Schedule

Mar. 17 Pastor Rosy Rivera
of First Lutheran, Lorain
Sermon Title: “What’s to Fear?”

Mar. 24 Pastor Sarah Taylor
of Trinity, Vermillion
Sermon Title: “Faith & Fear”

Visit
stmatthewmedina.org
Today!

Have you had a chance to visit and explore our new website this week? A major improvement is the addition of new posts throughout the month. This week a brand new 2021 Church Directory list was added. You can access it by going to the Member page and using the universal password*.

While on the site, stop by the Prayer page, https://www.stmatthewmedina.org/prayer, for a weekly reminder of the people we are including in the prayers of the church, as well as a link to Prayer Ventures, a monthly ELCA publication which may help to deepen and broaden your prayer life.

If you have feedback or would like to contribute to the website, please contact Lisa Burke, Melody Costello or Beth Johnson.

*There is a new password for the Member's section of the website. In order for it to remain secure, it will be sent out via (USPS) mail to St. Matthew members only next week. For members that may need the password before receiving the mailing, please call the church office.

COMPREHENSIVE YOUTH is in need of some help with a project. We are collecting Easter eggs filled with peanut-free candies or trinkets. If you are unable to fill them and have eggs or items you would like to donate, please feel free to do that as well. A collection box is located in the northwest entryway of the church (Where things were for Ash Wednesday) starting February 27-March 19. Thanks in advance for your help. ~Christy Gabler and Julie Shrader

Season of Lent