The Weekly Newsletter

Archived issue

St. Andrew Weekly, 2026-10-28

The Command, the Christ, and the Confession

The Reformation has many themes and rallying cries, including ad fontes, "to the sources." It's a day we often remind ourselves what Martin Luther and others did, but it's a day to let the Word of God speak for itself. We return to Matthew (22:34-46) this weekend as we celebrate God's grace. Join us for worship Thursday night at 7 or Sunday morning at 8 or 10:30.

Call returned

Pastor Caleb Rothfuss has decided to remain at St. Paul in Clintonville. The Board of Directors will announce our next call meeting date for Pastor for Outreach soon.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Greetings to you in the name of our Lord!

It was such a humbling experience receiving this call which presented me with incredible opportunities to grow and challenge myself in the gospel ministry. Thinking specifically about the call you extended to me, it is evident that the gospel is working wonders for the kingdom of God in Middleton. Seeing how I might be able to serve your congregation as your pastor, I was in awe of the intentionality during every conversation about how we could continue to expand an already thriving ministry to bring more souls in contact with Jesus their Savior.

But after much deliberation, conversations, and prayer, I have decided to return my call to St. Andrew as your Outreach Pastor. It was an amazing call to deliberate, and I am humbled that I was considered for it, but I believe my work at St. Paul in Clintonville is not done yet and I can’t wait to see how the Lord of the church will help me continue to grow here.

I will continue to pray for you all at St. Andrew that God would send you the shepherd that you need to fulfill the calling you have in your congregation. May God continue to bless your work for his kingdom as you serve him in every vocation and may God bless and keep you always!

In Christ, Pastor Caleb Rothfuss

Board of Directors quarterly update

The update video was shown in worship last weekend. View it here.

Call meeting November 8

A voters’ meeting will be held on November 8 at 11:45 AM. This meeting will have two agenda items.

Approve the Board of Directors’ recommendation to extend a call to Mr. Ron Kerr for the position of Ministry Operations Director. He has been serving as our Financial Administrator and has been approved for a provisional call by our synod office.

Extend a call to Mr. Joe Ritter, who has been hired to serve Westside Christian School, including as a middle-school instructor of Word of God. Mr. Ritter is a member at Our Redeemer and is currently in the process of completing a staff ministry program through Martin Luther College.

The process will be similar to a call meeting with only one candidate per position. All are welcome to attend and participate in discussion. Then, a majority vote from eligible voters is required to proceed with calling each man.

Part-time paid position | Facilities Manager

St. Andrew is seeking someone to be responsible for the overall maintenance, cleanliness, safety, and operational readiness of our campus. The facilities manager will handle routine preventative maintenance, minor repairs, and facility setups/teardowns, in addition to coordinating with external contractors. Applicants should have strong organizational and communication skills, adaptability, effective team leadership, and a proven ability to plan and execute. If interested, please contact Ben Carlson, President of the Board of Directors.

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 this weekend. 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.

"Cornerstone" by Hillsong "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" by Don Chapman "Rock of Ages" by Sarah Lambrecht "Christus Victor (Amen)" by Matt Papa, Matt Boswell

Newborn Ministry

Have you noticed all the babies in church? St. Andrew is blessed to be the church home to many families with young children. Do you want to help St. Andrew help those parents? We have a role for you on the Newborn Ministry team. Contact Children's Ministry Director Yvonne Onsager or Minister for Nurture Mark Kjenstad for details.

St. Andrew college students

There are nearly 40 young adults from St. Andrew that are attending college. Our College Ministry team mailed each of them a note last week. We want them to know we are thinking about them and praying for them. To help them out, we included a gift card for a meal on us. Please say a prayer for our college students that they remain faithful to Jesus.

Campus Ministry

When students leave home for college, they become largely responsible for their spiritual growth. It's on them to open the Bible, read devotions, and attend church. Here are two ways you can help college students in your family. Connect them to WELS Campus Ministry and give them a devotion book they can relate to. Click here to find a devotion book written for college students.

Impact 2.0

Impact 2.0 has arrived. NBA star Kon Knueppel graciously shared his faith for our first episode. Kon is a young Christian man who, by God's grace and power, is standing firm in the One who saved him. Click for Episode One. Please help us spread the word about this new podcast.

Impact podcast

One of the great metaphors of Scripture is before us this week: Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Professor Daniel Balge from Martin Luther College is our guest. You can listen to Impact here or by searching for “Kjenstad Impact” wherever you listen to podcasts.

New website

Be sure to check out the redesigned website, still at st-andrew-online.org. You can check service schedules, watch the livestream or archived services, find Impact, view The Weekly, access CCB, give, and more. Special thanks to Todd Kleman and Justin Beck for creating and managing the platform.

Emergency Response team

This is a great way to serve on Thursdays or Sundays and provide our guests with an extra measure of peace. Having someone who knows what to do in various specific circumstances can make a big difference. If you can be that someone, this might be a service role for you. Contact Pastor Clinton for more information.

Monthly Mission Partner

Our November partner is our sister mission churches in Nepal. Though the glacier collapse and flash flooding of late August did not directly impact these congregations, opportunities abound, but one current obstacle is that some of these congregations do not have restrooms. Our donation could change that, so let’s pray for the ministry efforts there this month and consider how our monetary gifts might help them upgrade their facilities significantly. View a brief video explaining the need for restrooms.

Taste of Ministry

This past Monday, Westside Christian School had the pleasure of welcoming four students from Luther Preparatory School in Watertown, Wisconsin, as part of the Taste of Ministry program. The purpose of this program is to allow these high school seniors to experience what the teaching ministry is all about. The students arrived on Sunday, stayed overnight at two different teachers' homes, and spent the day in the classrooms with the teachers. We pray that these four enjoyed their opportunities to experience ministry.

Connections

Connections is an event seeking members of the congregation to "connect" with the 3rd grade students at Westside. This group meets four times a school year. You are welcome to come as many times as you can make it. The next event is on Friday, November 6, at 2:30 PM in the gym. The students and St. Andrew members play games together, laugh a lot, and have a great time. If you have any questions or would like to sign up to join us, contact Mrs. Beth Plath (612-616-1760).

Job opportunity | Classroom aide

Westside Christian School is looking for a part-time classroom aide for grade 4. If you are interested and would like more information, please reach out to Mr. Plath, and he can provide you with all the details.

Serving Jesus at St. Andrew this week, October 29 & November 1, 2026

Musicians

Lead musician: Madison Kremer Vocalists: Amanda Faessler, Naomi Laabs, Carter Kotecki Guitar: Clayton Grow Drums: Aaron Faessler Violin: Malia Faessler

Greeters

Thursday: Sarah Arndt, Piri Kerr, Doug and Rachele Rickels 8:00 AM: Behrens family, Beth Dettman, Jeff Grim 10:30 AM: Diercks family, Amelia Maron, Brian Maron

Worship Attendants

Thursday: Ron Kerr, James Lund 8:00 AM: Ferron Havens, Darrell Kamin 10:30 AM: Andrew and Sandy Stoecker

Lay Readers

Thursday: Ron Kerr 8:00 AM: Mark Kjenstad 10:30 AM: Colin Shaffer

Communion Assistants

Thursday: Dick Bernards 8:00 AM: Karl Kuschel, Casey Weiss 10:30 AM: Tom Shepard, Tyler Simmons

Communion Care

Thursday: Jessica Tokarski 8:00 AM: Sara Nixon 10:30 AM: Jennifer Maron

Audio

Thursday: Naomi Laabs 8:00 AM: Brent Denton 10:30 AM: Sarah Wendorf

Slide Tech

Thursday: Dan Fischer 8:00 AM: Connor Dix 10:30 AM: Melissa Henke

Livestream Video

Elle Walleck

Hospitality

Thursday: Ashlynn Buechner, Jill Buechner 8:00 AM: Hope Eberle, Linda Eberle 10:30 AM: Ana Belstra

Connection Card Assembly

Brittany Engel

Offering Caretakers

Jim and Heidi Pease

Musikgarten

Karen Hong

Plugged into Jesus

Esther Bohl, Jess Bohl, Naomi Bohl, Tiffany Hanna, Kris Howard, Hannah Ihlenfeldt, Sarah Kuschel, Scarlett Sandbo

Spark

Daniel Plath

FUEL

Seth and Delaney Fenske

Growth Group Leaders

Mary Bruskewitz, Scott Fanello, Paige Fricke, Brian Fritz, Clayton Grow, Amy Heckmann, Mark Kjenstad, Todd Kleman, Pastor Clinton, Michelle Luppen, Neil Marshall, Sue Martalock, Nancy Ninman, Paul Onsager, Jane Schlenvogt-Dew, Tom Shepard, Jim Teteak, Wayne Utke, Laura Westphal

St. Andrew Weekly

October 28, 2026

Past issues

• St. Andrew WeeklyNovember 4, 2026
• St. Andrew WeeklyOctober 21, 2026
• The Weekly — October 14, 2026October 14, 2026
• The Weekly — October 7, 2026October 7, 2026
• The Weekly — September 30, 2026September 30, 2026
• The Weekly — September 26, 2026September 26, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — September 16, 2026September 16, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — September 9, 2026September 9, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — September 2, 2026September 2, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 26, 2026August 26, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 19, 2026August 19, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 12, 2026August 12, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 5, 2026August 5, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — July 29, 2026July 29, 2026