Opportunities to Serve– {Opportunities to Serve Our Lord and Savior, who comes to serve us and allow us to serve one another, are listed below.}

Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, has come to serve us and to give His Life as a ransom for many. Each week in the Divine Service, Christ comes to each of the baptized in His Holy Word read and spoken, and in the Sacrament of the Altar, where He is present to forgive our sin and strengthen us in the faith. We go forward to serve Him as we witness and serve others. We faithfully witness to Christ, to our families, neighbors, and all around us daily in our vocation and calling, as we live as people declared free from sin. Together we are the ‘Household of God’ and Christ’s ‘Royal Priesthood’, sharing in Jesus’ royal rule and His priestly service. Certainly in opportunities as we are led by Christ, Building His Church, this is our great joy to serve in HIS church and school, in service to HIM, and as CHRIST comes to serve us.

Below you will find some of the many opportunities for serving Christ and one another here at St. Peter. Just as Jesus our priest and king gave his life for our salvation, we share in His royal rule by serving our neighbor in love.

Adopt a Senior: Adopt a Senior: is an extension of our Mercy Committee here at St. Peter. Certainly care and compassion upon the members of our congregation, showing ‘mercy’ is taught in God’s Word. Those who wish to be involved will be partnered with a member(s) who is interested in assisting with the needs of each individual. This could be as simple as reading or visiting a member of the congregation who would like this to take place. If you are interested in this program, call the church office and your questions will be given to a member of the Mercy Committee, and someone from the group will be in contact as soon as possible.

Altar Guild: is responsible for the maintenance and care of Christ’s Altar in the sanctuary here at St. Peter. This provides members and opportunity to care and beautify the altar, linens, and banners to our Savior’s Glory and Honor. Weekly members assist on Sunday, after services are concluded, and in preparation for services the following week. The Altar Guild meets on the last Thursday of each month at 7pm.

Board of Christian Education: is responsible for the spiritual growth of children and adults in the congregation, of our church and Christian Day School. The board is charged with the important responsibility to strengthen the Christian home and equip parents, children and young people for our life in Christ. The Board of Christian Education meets on the first Monday of each month at 4:30pm.

Board of Elders: are the men of the congregation, of spiritual maturity, who assist the Pastor in all matters pertaining to the spiritual welfare of the congregation. The Elders are to see that all services are conducted in order, to allow for Christ to serve us in the Divine Worship Service. In addition, support and encouragement for a faithful attendance of the services is demonstrated, and assist those who have been negligent in their attendance. The Board of Elders meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 7pm.

The Choir and Handbell Choir: is responsible for presenting uplifting and spiritual musical presentations, appropriate to the liturgical season of the church year. The Choir leads the congregation in the singing of hymns and the Liturgy of the Divine Service. The choir sings two times a month and the Hand Bell Choir plays as decided by the Music Director. The Hand Bell Choir has rehearsals as listed in the bulletin for that week at 6:30pm and the Choir has practice each Wednesday at 7pm.

The Christian Day School: our St. Peter Christian Day School, in existence for over 144 years, provides an Education with a Foundation, for children in kindergarten through the eighth grade. Members of St. Peter have the opportunity to serve as classroom aides, story readers, assist in the lunchroom, and direct in sporting events and other current related activities that are students are involved in. St. Peter Christian Day School also conducts a Parent Teacher League. Please review our school website at www.stpeterschool-joliet.org.

Evangelism Committee: is responsible and seeks to model to members of the congregation how to bring the spoken Word of God, the Gospel Message, to those in our community and in all the world. Evangelism Committee members assist to introduce new members and catechumens into the life and worship of our church. Further, the committee is resolved to encourage a desire to tell others, through the weekly Divine Service and our going out to share the spoken Word of God in our vocations and in our daily work. St. Peter congregation incorporates the use of media presented in our weekly radio broadcast of the Sunday morning Divine Service. This is heard every Sunday morning over WJOL 1340 AM. The Evangelism Committee meetings are November – April on the fourth Sunday of the month at 12:30pm and May – October on fourth Tuesday of the month at 7:15pm.

Fellowship Club: seeks to promote the spiritual, cultural and social growth of individuals. Each month the Club members join in Christian Fellowship to share a meal, conduct a meeting, and either have a service work project for the church or enjoy a social activity. The members conduct an annual fruit sale each fall. A weekend camping trip is held every June, and also every October members camp at Walcamp and volunteer at their annual Fall Festival. The Fellowship Club usually meets on the second Sunday, September – May, after the late service.

Ladies’ Aid: seeks to promote among the women of the congregation. The Ladies’ Aid meets the first Thursday of the month at noon to eat together, study Luther’s Small Catechism, plan visits to shut-in members, and other activities. A monthly birthday party for members of this organization is observed. In the spring, a Missionary Luncheon, with a missions focus is conducted. A Christmas Bazaar sells beautiful handmade craft items, with the proceeds utilized for the work of this organization during the year. The Bazaar is usually conducted at the time of our annual Turkey Dinner, a long standing tradition here, on the last Thursday in October.

Lutherans For Life: Lutherans for Life of Will County is hosted by St. Peter Lutheran Church. Members meet every other month to plan activities to support Joliet’s Crisis Pregnancy Center and to raise awareness among Lutherans of the Bible’s teaching about the sanctity of human life. Lutherans for Life is looking for new members and new ways to show the love of Christ to people whose lives are threatened or have been touched by our society’s disregard for life. This group meets every other month. Contact the church office for more information.

Lutheran Laymen’s League and Lutheran Hour Ministries: is prayerfully supported by the congregation. For over 80 years the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod has produced the weekly radio program, The Lutheran Hour, which has been Bringing Christ to the Nations … and the Nations to the Church. This program airs on over 1300 radio stations. The Lutheran Layman’s League has gone beyond radio to International Foreign Ministry Centers, taking the Gospel into all the world. In February, Lutheran Hour Sunday is observed and a special door offering is received for this important work. Also provided to the congregation are special Advent and Lenten Devotional materials. A monthly article in the church newsletter is shared encouraging the congregation’s prayers and financial support.

St. Peter Mission Society: to spread the “Good News” of Salvation through Jesus Christ everywhere in our community and worldwide. Some of the specific goals are to assist with local NID missions through the weekly envelope contributions, and also to provide the large print copy of ‘Portals of Prayer’. The group also send greeting cards to shut-ins and communicate Missions in our church newsletter, and also maintains a mission bulletin board (located in the school hallway) for notes and requests from missionaries and Mission information in general. Meetings are held quarterly on the first Sunday of the Month, April, July, October and December at the church following the second service at 12:30pm in the Walther Hall West.

Sunday School: the Sunday School is offered every Sunday from 9:30am to 10:30am. Children ages 3 to 18 are encouraged to attend. The opening is conducted in Walther Hall West. The study of God’s Word is the responsibility of their parents. An Adult Bible Study is also conducted. A plan for catechesis, youth and adults is fully developed and faithfully taught.

Visitation: Our Pastor, The Rev. David Totsky, looks forward to serving those in the ‘Household of God’ who are in need of in home, or assisted care living , and ministry visits. This includes visits, sharing the Word of God, and in bringing the Lord’s Supper to those who are unable to attend church on a regular frequency. Please call the Church Office Secretary to arrange an appointment.

Special Committees:

Mercy Committee: This committee, recently formed as of April 2011, is part of our Strategic Plan that was adopted at our annual meeting in November 2010 here at St. Peter. This group conducts acts of mercy, as our Lord has instructed us to do. This is shared within the congregation, community, and via worldwide organizations. The monthly meeting is held on the third Monday of the month at 7pm.

Holy Scripture describes the Church as “the body of Christ”, a fellowship in which all Christians are united in Christ, and are therefore members on of another. Furthermore, we are commanded by our Lord to love our neighbors as ourselves. As the ‘Household of God’, we are to care for the temporal needs of those in distress or necessity. This embraces several categories of individuals:
* Those within our own congregation, in accord with the apostolic injunction in the sixth chapter of Galatians, “let us do good unto all men, especially unto them that are of the household of faith.”
* Those within our community, and city, and to those in other parts of our country or throughout the world. This is accomplished by St. Peter Congregation, through Lutheran World Relief, and other agencies of our Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.
The works of mercy should be done out of gratitude for what the Lord has done for us, and for the purpose of helping our neighbors in their need. Therefore, although we are always gladdened when those outside the church are brought to the household of faith, we should persevere in showing mercy and love to those around us, even when they do not respond to the Gospel.