Preparing our hearts & minds for worship

Join us for Sunday worship

8:00 a.m. Traditional Worship, Service of the Word

Pastor Linda Hanus preaching | Bulletin | Livestream

9:30 a.m. Traditional Worship, Service of Holy Communion 

Pastor Linda Hanus preaching | Bulletin

This week’s readings:

Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18; Psalm 34:15-22; Ephesians 6:10-20; John 6:56-69

The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and God’s ears are open to their cry. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to erase the remembrance of them from the earth. The righteous cry, and the LORD hears them and delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those whose spirits are crushed. Many are the troubles of the righteous, but the LORD delivers them from every one. God will keep safe all their bones; not one of them shall be broken. Evil will bring death to the wicked and those who hate the righteous will be punished. O LORD, you redeem the life of your servants, and those who put their trust in you will not be punished. 

Weekly Herald Updates

A message from Pastor Hand

For the past two years, I have been privileged to serve the people of St. Peter’s as a part-time Interim Pastor. I have enjoyed the opportunity to be a part of the ministry team under the direction of Pastor Ross, which enabled me to do aspects of ministry that I felt were so important during my 40+ years in full-time calls at 5 different congregations – preaching, leading worship, and hospital visitation, as well as visiting and offering holy communion to shut-ins in their homes and nursing and personal care facilities. There are, of course, so many more aspects of ministry, but I always felt that these were my priorities in serving a congregation.

As I witnessed so often in the course of those 40+ years, changes can and do take place in the focus and direction of ministry as well as the names and faces of those who shared in that ministry, particularly the staff with whom I interacted and led when I was a Senior Pastor. And now, change has come once again to this congregation. Pastor Ross served this congregation and community well and faithfully for the better part of 4 decades. As we give thanks for his long ministry (I certainly am thankful I had the opportunity to work with him and to witness his faithfulness and deep dedication to the people here), we pray that he will enjoy his well-deserved retirement.

And now, it is so important for us as God’s People in this place to move forward, always giving thanks for the past and those who played such an important role in it, but also looking ahead to what we might do together as we face the future. Pastor Linda has come on board to provide continuity and stability in ministry as well as new thoughts and ideas about how we might do ministry together. From the beginning of my time here, I’ve been so impressed by the capable, dedicated staff with which we are blessed. Sister Dottie is a joy to work with and so very dedicated to the work of ministry here. Tom and Deborah Berdos are such a blessing in their abilities and dedication in providing our music leadership as we focus on our worship life, a primary reason for our gathering together. The rest of our staff go about their work faithfully and in such a capable manner. Between their good work and the efforts of so many volunteers, the work of ministry gets done so very well. I am so blessed to be a part of it all!

May I humbly thank one and all for the way I have been received into your midst, supported by your kind words and your presence and involvement in the life of this parish. And I would ask, as well, that the people of St. Peter’s continue to support our staff, our worship life and fellowship opportunities, and the ministry to which each of us, in some way, has been called. During this time between called Senior Pastors, this support is crucial. I see so much happening here that is wonderful! May that continue and even grow stronger in the days and months ahead.

Thank you again for the privilege you’ve given me!

Pastor Harold Hand

St. Peter’s Music Ministry

2024-25 Music Ensembles - come and join us!

Please contact St. Peter’s Director of Music Tom Berdos  to participate, or for more information.

CANTICLE CHOIR — adult choir providing choral music on the first Sunday of each month at the 8:00 a.m. service. Singers in high school and older are welcome to participate. Rehearsals are with Tom Berdos in the music room on the third and fourth Sundays of each month, at 9:00 a.m., beginning on September 22. (Note - no rehearsals in December or singing on January 5)

HERALD CHOIR — adult choir providing choral music each Sunday at the 10:30 traditional service. Singers in high school and older are welcome to participate. Rehearsals with Tom and Deborah Berdos on Thursday evenings, at 7:00 p.m. (6:30 p.m. during concert prep seasons), beginning on September 5.

CONCERT CHORUS — adult choir providing choral music for our two annual choral concerts - Messiah in December, and St. Peter’s Choir Festival in May. Singers in high school and older are welcome to participate. The concert chorus is also open to any singers in the community, so you can bring friends and neighbors to sing with you. Rehearsals with Tom and Deborah Berdos are Thursday evenings, 7:30-8:30 p.m., during concert prep seasons (mid fall, after Easter). Singers need to purchase concert music.

YOUTH CHOIR — open to all kids in grades 5-8; come and sing! Rehearsals with Tom Berdos on Thursday afternoons, 4:15-4:45 p.m. in the music room, beginning September 5. 

ST. PETER’S RINGERS — handbell choir for experienced ringers, providing handbell music for our worship services. Ringers in high school and older are welcome to participate. Rehearsals are with Tom Berdos in the sanctuary on Monday evenings, 7:00-8:00 p.m., beginning on September 9. Signup sheets are outside the choir room door.

EXSULTATE RINGERS — handbell choir for beginning and intermediate ringers, providing handbell music for our traditional services from time to time. Ringers in grade 5 and older, through adult, are welcome to participate. Multiple generations from the same families are encouraged to ring together. Rehearsals are with Tom Berdos in the sanctuary on Monday evenings, 6:15-7:00 p.m., beginning on September 9. Signup sheets are outside the choir room door.

INTERGENERATIONAL ORCHESTRA — open to all instrumental musicians, grade 8 through adult, and younger students by audition. This orchestra accompanies the hymns in our worship services several times in the year. Music is available online. Instrumentalists prepare on their own, and we put the music together on the day we play in worship. 

OTHER MUSICAL INVOLVEMENTS

Deborah Berdos will be leading Sunday School children in grades 1-4 each week in a time of singing. This will happen at the beginning of the Sunday School time. These children will sing in our worship services occasionally.

Instrumentalists (brass, woodwinds, strings, piano) and vocalists who would be interested in playing or singing in worship, please contact Tom. 

We’ve also created a flyer you can print or share digitally, for those you want to invite to participate in these opportunities of ministry.

I hope to see you in our ensembles this year!

— Tom Berdos, Director of Music

Financial Summary for July 2024

Financial Information: 

• July includes Property Expense included HVAC and roof repairs. Total $11,740. 

• July includes $12,502 for youth ELCA Youth Gathering emergency travel costs home from New Orleans, Church received $3,370 toward the emergency travel costs. Thank you for your extra generosity for this emergency need. 

• New phone system YTD expense of $9,389. 

• YTD Offering Total is 1.7% greater than YTD Offerings in 2023, and within 9.4% of 2020 YTD Offerings. 

• YTD Expenses are 10.5% less than Budget, and 4% less than YTD 2023, due to lower Property, Debt Service, Admin, and HR Expenses. 

Order of Worship Change Begins Sunday

Beginning this Sunday, we are moving the announcements from the beginning of the service to the end, right before the Blessing. Instead of calling them "Announcements", we will call them “What’s happening at St. Peter’s!” This will give us more of a focus on how the things that are happening at church during the week are a part of how we carry our faith out into the world. Anything relating to that Sunday's worship service will still be a part of the "Welcome" at the beginning.

Participate

Ways to participate in the life and community of St. Peters

BLESSING OF THE BACKPACKS — Join us this Sunday, August 25 during the Children’s Sermon at both services. Children and youth are invited to bring their school backpacks for blessing. We will also offer a blessing for teachers and all school workers. 

YOUTH & PARENT KICKOFF MEETING — A youth and parent meeting for grades 5-12 will be held after the second service this Sunday, August 25 (meeting at 10:30 a.m.) in the conference room. We will review the calendar for the fall, learn about the opportunities to participate in the St. Peter's youth musical ensembles, and hear about the plans for the new Senior High Sunday School class. Please bring any feedback and ideas. Youth are welcome to attend this meeting. No need to sign up - hope to see you there! If you have any questions, please reach out to Leslie McCarthy.

SAGES RECOGNITION SUNDAY — Sages (those who have celebrated 80 or more birthdays), join us on Sunday, August 25 at either service. A reception will be held after each service in the Narthex. Let St. Peter’s honor you for your service at this annual event. No R.S.V.P. is needed. Would you like a ride? Call the church office or Christine Smith at 717-299-0949.

FUNERAL— Carolyn Galebach passed away on August 18, 2024. Carolyn’s funeral will take place Tuesday, August 27. Visitation will be held at 10:00 a.m. followed by the Funeral held at 11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. Please keep Carolyn’s family in your prayers. 

WIDOWS GROUP — St. Peter's Widows Group will meet this Tuesday, August 27 at 10:30 a.m. in room 100. Please call Betsy Linn 717-618-9615 with any questions. 

BACK TO SUNDAY SCHOOL INFORMATION — Sunday, September 8 at 9:15 a.m. we will have a few special events as we come back for another Christian education year. Children and youth will be part of our God’s Work Our Hands activities in Augsburg Alley. Adults are invited to a breakfast meet and greet with Pastor Linda in the Family Life Center at 9:15 a.m. 

BIBLE STUDY — Wednesday Morning Bible Study Returns - Pastor Linda will be offering a weekly Bible Study from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday mornings in the Cafe, beginning on September 11. The first session will be a time to "get to know one another" and to share ideas for our weekly Bible study discussions. Old friends, new friends, all are welcome to join us! 

COMMUNITY YARD SALE — A Community Yard Sale/Flea Market will be held in the parking lot of St. Peter's Lutheran Church. Date: Saturday, September 28 from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Rain or Shine. You will get 2 parking spaces for $10.00. You must provide your own table and chair(s). To reserve your space, call Kim Sterner at 717-396-7739. All proceeds for the yard sale/flea market spaces will be given to the youth. The Manheim Township Lions Club will also be selling preordered BBQ pulled pork meals the same day. To obtain tickets for the pulled pork meal, call George Groff at 717-569-0101. 

Offering

Ways to give of your time and financial resources

CHILDREN AND YOUTH DONATIONS NEEDED — For God’s Work, our Hands Sunday, September 8. We are in need of the following items for our blessing bag donations: granola bars, small tissue packets, pocket sized hand sanitizers, individual packed hand wipes, lip balm/chapstick, peanut butter crackers, gallon zip lock bags. For children and youth snacks: granola or cereal bars, individually packed gluten free snacks, individual packs of cookies, individual packs of Rice Krispy treats. 

BACK TO SUNDAY SCHOOL FOOD DONATIONS NEEDED — Our September 8 breakfast at 9:15 a.m. is still looking for food donations, including: muffins, bagels, cookies, fruit. Please sign up to donate or reach out to Sister Dottie. 

CHILDREN & YOUTH SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS NEEDED — We’re looking for volunteers to teach PreK/Kdg, grades 1-4, 5/6, and 7/8 classes in our fall Sunday School program starting September 8 at 9:15 am. No experience required—just a heart for our kids! All materials and setups are provided. Interested? Contact Sister Dottie at dottie.almoney@stpeterslutheran.org. 

LYDIA’S CLOSET— We are in need of gently used clothing, new socks, new underwear, (always in demand), and shoes, to prepare for back-to-school! We need boys’ clothing, but are especially short on girls’ clothing, starting at children’s size 4 to adult. This ministry supports families who would love to have your gently used items (or new) for school or play. Please, no swimsuits or hats. All donations can be placed in the bin, under the portico, at the church entrance. We are also looking for volunteers to sort clothing and staff the closet on the first Saturday of each month. Sign up here to help. Thank you in advance! 

Prayer

Ways to be in prayer for church and community

PRAYER CHAIN welcomes questions about membership at any time! We continue to be an active committee and your committee ‘work’ is done on your schedule, as it suits your busy schedule. You simply receive an email when we receive a request and then you pray for that request for a week. We would love to have you join us! Contact Ginny Gerhart (717) 201-8724 or Ginny.gerhart@gmail.com or Angela Moshos (717) 330-0557 or angmosh@gmail.com for more information or to sign-up!