worship Archives - Page 32 of 32 - Faith Lutheran Church, Wesley Chapel

Kurt Steinbrueck March 28, 2020

Special Posts Live Stream, Online, worship

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Live Stream Worship at 11:30am

Live Stream Worship Service

We will be having our live stream worship services every Sunday at 11:30am on both Facebook and Youtube. You can find the services at the links below:

https://www.facebook.com/FaithWesleyChapel/

rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2

We have also setup an event for the service on Facebook. If you are on Facebook, I encourage you to share that event with your friends. Many people are looking for hope and peace during this pandemic and we have a hope and peace that is better than anything the world can offer.

See you Sunday!

God bless!

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Kurt

Moving Forward In These Challenging Times

Kurt Steinbrueck March 21, 2020

Special Posts Corona, CoronaVirus, COVID-19, worship

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Moving Forward In These Challenging Times

There’s an old saying, “You want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.“

We had lots of plans for Lent, Easter, and beyond. The lock-down has changed all that. This pandemic and the response to it were a surprise for all of us. But it hasn’t been a surprise for God. Our plans didn’t include being stuck in our homes, but God’s did.

Not Just an Inconvenience
While we have all be inconvenienced and, possibly, even harmed by the coronavirus and the response to it, there are some opportunities.

There are opportunities for…

Growing stronger as families
Deepening our personal devotion times
Caring for one another
Caring for our neighbors

As we pray for a quick end to this pandemic, let us also pray that God would work in our lives and our community for good.

Online Worship Services:
We will be having live-streamed worship services every Sunday. Tomorrow, March 22, our first live-stream service will be on Facebook Live at 9am (that’s right, in the morning). As a special first service, we will be uniting in worship with the congregation from the Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity in South Tampa.

(A recording of the service will also be available after the service in case you can’t make it at 9am.)

Communion:
Obviously, I can’t distribute bread and wine through the interwebs, but we still want to be able to make Communion available. We are still working on the details, but we are looking into either having a time when members can come by my house and receive communion in their cars or where I come to you and bring Communion. I’ll post more when I have more details.

Tithes and Offerings:
For most of you, giving is a part of your worship each week. It’s an expression of thanksgiving for all God has given and a means of supporting the ministry God is doing through the Faith Lutheran congregation. Even though we are not meeting in person, you are still able to give online. Go to https://faithwesleychapel.com/ and click “Give” in the upper menu.

Informational and Voter Meeting:
The Informational Meeting scheduled for this Sunday and the Voter Meeting scheduled for next Sunday have been postponed. We will still have them soon online. We just need to work out the technical details for how we will hold the meeting. As soon as the tech is worked out, we will set a date.

Growth Group Bible Study:
We will be having Bible study every Friday evening at 7pm. The Bible study will be done online through a Zoom conference call. Zoom will allow the interaction that we desire in the Bible study and allow for anyone to join in whether online or via phone. We’ll post more information about the Bible study next week.

Devotions:
I plan to continue to The Other Six daily devotional blog posts. I am also looking into starting a daily evening Family Devotion video. This will be a short video you can use for a devotion time with the whole family. This is a great time to strengthen your family devotional time!!

Keep In Touch:
I want to encourage you all to keep in touch with each other. Check in on people at least once a week to make sure everyone is doing well and see if anyone needs any help.

Reach Out to Your Neighbors:
Keep in touch with your neighbors as well. If you don’t know them, this is a great time to walk around your neighborhood, knock on the door, stand 6 feet back, and then ask how they are doing and if they need anything. We, especially, need to be caring for those who may not be able to leave to their house to get groceries and other supplies at this time. Let’s shine the light of Jesus into the darkness.

I’m Available:
Please feel free to call, text, or email any time whether you need help, have questions, or just want to talk. I’m here for you, virus or no virus, and I’m overjoyed to be your pastor.

I’m excited about some of the opportunities we have in the coming weeks and I hope you are, too.

God bless!

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Kurt

Faith’s Response to COVID-19 – 3-20-20 Update

Kurt Steinbrueck March 20, 2020

Special Posts Corona, CoronaVirus, COVID-19, worship

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Faith’s Response to COVID-19 – 3-20-20 Update

Faith's response to covid-19 - 3-20-20 Update

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

We live in interesting times to be sure. Hillsborough County has issued a directive that there are to be no gatherings of more than 10 people, including faith-based organizations. Also, the FL-GA District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod has asked all churches to follow the 10 person guideline. Pasco County has, yet, to issue any such directive and our District, the SELC, has not either. However, it’s good to pay attention to what our neighbors are doing and, in light of the current situation and after much prayer, the Council and I believe it’s best to move to online services at this time.

Online Prayer:
At 7:30pm, tonight (Friday), I’m going to do a live stream on our Facebook page to have a short time of prayer. I invite you to join me for prayer. https://www.facebook.com/FaithWesleyChapel/

A Plan for Ministry:
The council and I will be meeting tonight to develop a ministry plan for the pandemic. I’m sure we will still have a worship service on Sundays (online), but we’ll figure out what that will look like. We will also be discussing other ways we can aid each other in our faith, care for each other, and help each of us care for our neighbors.

We Are Still the Church:
Just because we can’t gather in person, doesn’t mean we stop being the church. Remember, the church is the people, gathered or not. God is still with us and will continue to work in this situation and work through the church, you.

This is a great time to strengthen or build our personal and family devotional practices as well as our personal/family ministry to our neighbors.

I will send more information out as we have it.

Do Not Fear.
This situation may, at times, seem out of control, but it is not. God is in control and is working through this. We can trust that He will continue to care for His people, give us strength, and lead us. Lean into Christ and His Word and I encourage you to continue to pray for your fellow members, the church leadership, me, and your neighbors.

Thank you and may the peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus!

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Kurt

Should My Child Miss Church to…(Play Sports, Go to a Party, etc.)

Kurt Steinbrueck February 7, 2020

Special Posts church, worship

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Should My Child Miss Church to…(Play Sports, Go to a Party, etc.)

Should My Child Miss Church to...(Play Sports, Go to a Party, etc.)

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” – Hebrews 10:24-25

It used to be that Sundays were sacred. Sports, work (for most), and other activities were scheduled around Sundays. Even birthday parties at least waited until the afternoon. This isn’t the case anymore.

Today, we have to make an intentional choice to keep Sundays sacred.

But should we? If so, why?

A while back I came across an article by Bob Russell that I thought did a great job addressing this question. The only thing I think was missing from the article relates to what God does for you and your children during worship. So, I would add this…

When we go to church, we worship God and we gather together with other believers. In worship, we hear God’s living and active Word and receive God’s blessings of forgiveness and faith. We (your kids included) need this as we go out into the world as sheep among wolves.

As we gather with other believers, we build relationships, encourage one another, and care for each other. Sometimes we receive the encouragement and care. Sometimes we need to be there to give the encouragement and care to someone else who needs it. When we skip church, we miss out on those things and that affects both our lives and the lives of the other members of the church.

I encourage you to click-through and read Bob’s article. It’s very good.

http://www.bobrussell.org/ask-bob-should-my-child-miss-church-to-play-sports/

Then prayerfully consider the role of church in your life and the lives of your family.

God bless!

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Kurt

Kurt Steinbrueck January 27, 2020

Blog praise, worship

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Here I Am To Worship

Here i am to worship

“God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” – John 4:24

The Lutheran Worship service is pretty active. You sing, speak responsive readings/prayers, receive communion, stand, sit, stand, sit, etc.

It can be easy to learn the moves and go through them mindlessly. Have you ever prayed the Lord’s Prayer and realized at the end you said the words, but you weren’t thinking about the prayer at all?

In John 4:24, a woman asks Jesus where the proper place to worship was. Jesus’ doesn’t name a place, but rather goes to the heart of worship. Our worship doesn’t have to be in a specific place nor is it about doing certain actions. It’s about receiving God’s gifts in faith and praising Him.

When we come to worship, God is there and He wants us to truly show up as well. God doesn’t want us to just go through the motions. He wants to bless us with faith, forgiveness, and strength…and He does. That’s worth showing up for. That’s something for which to thank and praise God.

So far, I’ve just written of worship in terms of a worship service, but worship isn’t limited to just that. We can worship God any time and any place. He is present in our lives, constantly blessing us. He tells us to pray continually and for our lives to be living acts of worship as He transforms us through His Spirit and His Word.

Worship isn’t about the place or the time. It’s about God’s work and our faith-filled reception of His blessings.

How and where do you worship God?

Dear Jesus,

Fill our hearts with gladness and draw us to worship You. Teach us through Your Spirit and Your Truth. Strengthen our faith and increase our thankfulness and love.

Amen

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Kurt

worship

Live Stream Worship at 11:30am

Live Stream Worship Service

Moving Forward In These Challenging Times

Moving Forward In These Challenging Times

Faith’s Response to COVID-19 – 3-20-20 Update

Faith's response to covid-19 - 3-20-20 Update

Should My Child Miss Church to…(Play Sports, Go to a Party, etc.)

Should My Child Miss Church to...(Play Sports, Go to a Party, etc.)

Here I Am To Worship

Here i am to worship

Faith Lutheran Church in Wesley Chapel, FL serving Lutz, Zephyrhills, Land O’ Lakes, and New Tampa, FL