Wednesday Lent devotions | The Crucial Hours
Soon we begin the season of Lent, a season where we bow our heads before our holy God in repentance and humility. We have sinned, and God’s perfect justice demands punishment for sin. But God’s perfect love demanded that the people he created should not have to be punished for their sin. So the Father sent his Son, Jesus, to stand in our place and to take the punishment for our sin. During Lent, we remember the cost of our sin, but we also remember with gratitude and love the sacrifice our Savior made for us. This Lent, we will follow Jesus through a series we are calling the Crucial Hours—certain hours during the week of Jesus’ death that show his love and dedication to our salvation. As we follow Jesus on this journey, we will get a better understanding of how good he is, and how good it is to follow him.

Gather with brothers and sisters on the six Wednesdays of Lent beginning March 5 at 5:00 or 6:30 PM. Stay for dinner provided by one of our St. Andrew Best Chefs from 5:30 – 6:15 PM. Livestream will be available at 5:00 PM.

Milestones

• Luka Joseph Buhr, child of Leah (Wolf) and Kyle Buhr will become a child of God through Holy Baptism on Saturday, February 15.
• Owen Davis Elkins, child of Katherine (Nelson) and Jonathan Elkins will be baptized into Christ on Sunday, February 16.
• Pastor Hunter has received a divine call to serve the Pacific Northwest District of our church body as a Mission Explorer in Boise, Idaho. We have one church there, but the city is growing so fast they would like to plant at least two churches in the next five years and two more after that. This call is to survey the area, determine the best locations for these churches, make recommendations for which might come first, second, etc., and begin gathering people as a core group. The call is a “sunset” call, it ends after two years. In our church body, pastors, teachers, and staff ministers don’t “seek” a call. A calling body determines whom they will call. Then it’s up to the one called to determine whether to return the call and continue serving where he or she is, or accept the call to serve in the new ministry. Pastor Hunter and Karen invite your prayers and conversations about the ministry and the mission we share at St. Andrew.

Worship check-in
If you worship on-site, please fill out the Connection Card attached to your worship folder. Online worshipers, please continue to check in here.

Weekend worship songs
Preview some of the songs we will use for worship on Sunday. Obviously ours won’t sound exactly like this, but listening to the links provided will certainly help you be more comfortable participating in the service.

“Here I Am to Worship” by Tim Hughes
“Praise” by Elevation Worship
“Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery” by Matt Papa, Matt Boswell
“Make Me a Light” by Caleb Schmiege

Men of His Word
Eighteen men from St. Andrew attended the Men of His Word conference on Saturday in Oshkosh. One St. Andrew attendee said, “It was awesome! I took away a lot to reflect on and put into practice as a Christian man wanting to live for Christ. For example, I picked up tips for a better relationship with my wife and how to make sure I am not impeding the gospel with how I live. I will return in 2026 for sure!”

Science Camp
St. Andrew is excited to bring back science camp this summer! “All Creatures Great and Small” will be held the mornings of July 14 – 17 for kindergarten – grade 6. Registration will begin soon.

Impact podcast
One of the great teachings of Jesus is an answer to a question from Thomas: “Lord, how can we know the way?” Jesus said, “I am the way . . .” Professor Keith Wessel from Martin Luther College is here to help explain this verse and others from John 14. Listen to Impact here or by searching for “Kjenstad Impact” wherever you listen to podcasts.

PowerHour
February brings some change to PowerHour dates. Instead of the 1^st and 3^rd Fridays, it will be on the 2^nd and 4^th Fridays. That makes the next PowerHour February 14 with a “Love Your Neighbor” theme. Go here to learn more about this ministry for children.

LifeBoat
This fun ministry for grades 7 – 10 meets Sunday, February 16, from 5:00 – 7:00 PM at St. Andrew. You are welcome to bring a friend. It’s a simple agenda: hang out, enjoy some snacks, and open up the Bible for a bit.

Funeral for Andrew Holdorf
Andrew, son of Jennifer Utter, passed away unexpectedly earlier this month. His funeral will be in the afternoon at St. Andrew on February 22. We pray that his family find comfort in the forgiveness of sins and in the resurrection of Jesus to conquer death.

If you would like to serve his family and friends by helping with the funeral meal, contact Pastor Clinton.

Service opportunity | Assist with Wednesday Lent meals
Lent worship services begin March 5 and continue the next five weeks. These are additional opportunities to gather and focus on our Savior and to share a meal. If you or your Growth Group would like to serve by assisting the chefs with prep, setup, service, and cleanup, sign up here.

Service roles to be filled
Do you get the impression that there’s no place for you to serve? There is. Below are a few of the teams that could get you involved in service right away. See Pastor Clinton to serve.

• Audio—mostly turning mics on and off and up and down. It may seem intimidating, but it just takes a little bit of training.
• Sunday 10:30 AM slides—controlling what is on the screens. It’s mostly about paying attention and pressing buttons.
• Thursday ushering—helping worshipers get what they need and making sure service runs smoothly.

Monthly Mission Partner
In February we pray for and support the families of Abundant Life Christian School, a community that experienced a tragedy in December. The kindness God’s people show to our neighbor is in response to the kindness God has shown us in Christ, who lived and died even for his enemies. Abundant Life is not quite the backyard of St. Andrew, and one might think of it as in competition with Westside Christian School, but God’s love is for everyone, so we will lift up in prayer these fellow souls for whom Jesus died. February MMP offerings will be used to send a gift to each individual family as an outpouring of Christian love.