Announcements (9-20-26)
Welcome!
We are thrilled that we can be together - either in person or online today.
This school year, Trinity First Lutheran School is focusing on God’s call in Micah 6:8: "…act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.” teachers will tell students what God calls them to do. They will even teach by example. But neither telling nor showing can truly change someone. We need a Jesus who does all of these things for us. Today, through the parable of the workers in the vineyard, Jesus acts justly, loves mercy, and walks humbly, always putting others before himself.
Fill out a Connect Card so we know you were with us and can provide answers to questions you may have. Please worship with us again soon.
Guest Pastor this Week
Pastor Nathan Schultz, the new-ish campus pastor at Trinity First, will share a message from God’s word and tell us about what is happening in Minneapolis at the beginning of the school year. Pastor Nathan was installed this Spring.
“I have lived in many places, but I am so excited to now call the Twin Cities home. I enjoy meeting new people, especially hearing the stories of how they came to call Trinity First their church home. I look forward to discovering the many joys of Trinity First as I seek to love and serve others.
It is important to me that you know how deeply Jesus loves you and that He has a purpose for you, right where you live, work, and play.”
YOU ARE INVITED - learn more about what God is doing at Trinity First
At 10:45am, grab some treats and come over to the Discipleship room to join Matt Meier from Trinity First who will provide an update on the ministry in 2026 and some Scripture motivation.
Trinity First School, located in the heart of Minneapolis, is blessed to serve God by providing a Christ-based education to children through the eighth grade. We see ourselves as a family and joyfully give thanks to God for each child He leads to our school.
Godly Homes…
where we serve together.
“As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” — Joshua 24:15
How powerful when a household reflects Christ's love through service, compassion, and generosity together.
St. Peter’s is praying for our family of faith because your home is located at the intersection of faith & real life.
Weekly Prayer Project
Don’t fall behind. We are in week 38 in our year long prayer guides. Pastor Mark has recorded a message about evaluating your life. It is titled “Please Forgive Me.”
Have you ever gone through a job evaluation? Ever had a paper returned by a teacher? Then you will appreciate what Job went through after a tough stretch in his life. Be sure to watch/listen on your own at a convenient time. Pull it up during a walk or listen during a long commute. Start or end the day with a little reflection and prayer.
Memorial Service for Alexis Thalken
At St. Peter’s, Monday, September 21
Visitation: 10:00am
Celebration of Life & Faith: 11:00am
Read her life story and see an opportunity to provide family meals by clicking below:
Outdoor Work Day - Saturday, September 26
We have several outdoor projects that need to be tackled. And many hands makes the work lighter!
Everything from:
washing down playground equipment
pulling weeds
washing windows
sweeping the stairwell
patching holes from the woodpeckers
power washing entrance floor mats
raking pebbles on the playground
picking up sticks
and anything else you see
We love to have children participate! Use the form to let us know if you will be there. We will have treats an beverages to keep you going. Come anytime you are available: Saturday, September 26, 8:00am-Noon
Bring gloves, garden rakes, bucket and brush, rags, glass cleaner, garbage bags, even a step ladder. We will have some items here.
Prayer & Support for Ms Ima
One of our Early Childhood Education Center, Ms. Ima, has blocked and inflamed lymph nodes and has been diagnosed with cancerous lumps in her chest, underarm area, and brain. She began radiation treatments over the last weeks. Even with everything she is going through, Ms. Ima is determined to continue working because being with her students makes her feel better, which says so much about who she is and how much she loves her students. Ms. Ima has made such a lasting impact on our families that parents set up a GoFundMe for her. It is such a sweet indicator of just how loved she is by our St. Peter’s community and how much of an impact the servant of God has made on Students and families.
The Lord’s Prayer Bible Study - Sunday Mornings
Many of us have memorized the Lord’s prayer. But what do the words mean?
If this is the only prayer Jesus taught his followers to pray, it’s worth knowing what it is we are praying! This 6 session study, with video, will take you line by line through this prayer, to discover the meaning and power of each word.
You’ll never pray this prayer the same again!
Join us beginning NEXT Sunday morning at 10:45am in the Discipleship Room.
Why do you do all this?
As you seek to live a disciple of Jesus, consider this article from a foreign missionary:
Why should anybody be frightened of Christians? We are barely 2.3% of this country’s population. We do not have the numbers to dominate elections. We do not have armies to defend us.
Most of our institutions are schools, hospitals, homes for the aged, and centers of care for folks with special needs. Then, why the fear? Perhaps they’re not afraid of us but of an uncontainable Christ.
Two thousand years ago, Herod tried to kill Him as a baby. He failed. Religious leaders tried to silence Him. They failed. Pilate tried to wash his hands of Him. He failed. The Roman Empire nailed Him to a cross, sealed His tomb and stationed soldiers outside it to keep Him in the tomb. They failed. On the third day the stone was rolled away, revealing an empty tomb.
Throughout history, emperors have banned His name. Dictators have burned His Bible. Regimes have imprisoned His followers. Mobs have attacked His churches.
Yet you cannot arrest a God who enters the human heart. You cannot contain a God who needs no microphone to speak. You cannot frighten a God who has already defeated death.
When Peter and John were ordered to stop speaking about Jesus, they replied, “We cannot but speak about the things which we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:20 They did not riot. They did not threaten. They simply refused to remain silent. That must be our answer today. Remember Daniel in the Lion’s den. The three young men in the fiery furnace. Paul singing in prison. The disciples emerging from hiding after Pentecost.
The Bible is filled with rulers who believed they could contain God. Today, their thrones are gone. Their empires are history. Their names are remembered only because they tried to stop Him.
But Jesus remains. So do not be afraid. Enemies of Christ are not frightened by our numbers. They are frightened when Christians forgive their attackers, love their neighbors, educate children, heal the sick, and serve the abandoned.
Somebody may ask, “Why do you do all this?” And the answer will be one word. One name. Jesus. The name above every name. The God nobody has ever been able to contain!
How are your finances?
It is an honest question. Call it the economy; call it poor money management; call it temptation; call it lack of restraint; call it an opportunity that was just too good to pass up. There are many reasons you may have concerns about your personal finances. What about higher interest rates? What about having enough for retirement? What about credit card debt that seem impossible to pay down?
We want to help the St. Peter’s community. We have held Financial Peace University classes in the past and are assessing “interest” in offering a weekly Financial Peace University class this fall. Many families today are carrying financial stress, and this course—built on biblical principles of stewardship—provides practical tools for budgeting, saving, eliminating debt, and building a stronger financial foundation.
If you or your family would benefit from a Christ‑centered approach to managing finances, let us know if you are interested in learning more about attending this biblically-based class that’s helped millions beat debt, build wealth, and give like never before, please let us know. No need to be concerned - the Shockeys first took it in the midst of struggling with debt while raising a family. Mark & Joann admit they continually need to keep an eye on their finances! Join them as they facilitate this class.
Parking Lot Sealing
In an ongoing effort to maintain the blessing God has given us with our building and grounds, the Board has approved the sealing and restriping of the parking lots to lengthen the life of the surface.
We started with $2,400 in our parking lot fund and the total cost of the project was $12,300. Many have stepped forward financially. If you would like to contribute, please use a Facility Fund envelope or use the button below to give online - marking your online gift Facility Fund.
Thanks for helping us maintain our facility and keep it welcoming as we share Jesus with our community.
Wanted: Used Garden Hoses
Thank you - we received two new hoses this week!! Very helpful - plus God helped out with some rain showers!
If you have a hose that is in bad shape, we’d still appreciate if you would share it. Or a hose that you aren’t using. Any condition is fine - we can repair.
If you have a hose to share, leave it beside the Youth Impact Racing trailer by the east entrance or let us know and we will even arrange for pick up! Our goal is to make it all the way to the grassy area in the playground… for the Early Childhood students to enjoy on a hot summer day.
Thanks for sharing.
A Changing Church
Walking into a familiar sanctuary and seeing things shift can feel deeply unsettling. Over the years, congregations naturally change. We notice different faces and a shift in how ministry programs operate. Change often brings a quiet sense of loss because we attach deep memories to the way things used to be. Yet, a healthy church must grow and adapt to reach a hurting world. Just as a strong tree grows new branches while its roots dig deeper into the soil, our place of worship must embrace necessary growth to share the gospel effectively.
Join us in prayer that God will use us to meet families at the intersection of faith and real life.
While the methods and aesthetics of a church shift over time, the foundation must remain entirely unshakable. The beautiful truth of scripture never alters. Jesus Christ stays exactly the same through every passing generation. When a congregation anchors itself firmly in biblical truth, it can weather any transition with profound grace.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8
Post your prayer requests!
There is a tool down on the bottom of this page where you can add your prayer request. Others will join in you in prayer - AND - you will also encourage others by your prayers.
Pray for a personal opportunity, for a challenge, for your neighbors, for a family member, for your Godchildren, for a situation at work, for our church, for your teachers, for the blessing of another day. The possibilities are endless.
All year we have been engaged in The Weekly Prayer Project. Look through some recent weeks and turn some of your prayer prompts into prayers that others can see. You can add your name or keep it anonymous. If you want more private prayer click the button for more options:
More than 1000 have lost their lives in this disaster
Almighty God, You are the One who created all things, who can calm the wind and the waves, and who can make the earth shake. We lay before You those who have been so deeply affected by the floods and destruction in Nepal and beseech You on behalf of their mourning and loss. Bring the light of Your grace to those who have suffered loss of any kind and bring the tangible sense of Your presence to those who grieve, who rescue, who administer medical help, who support and care, and who rebuild. May the presence of Jesus be known through every person that serves to lift up another. And be with every minister of the Gospel in their Words and Deeds, that Jesus might be known among them. In His Holy Name, we pray. Amen
If you would like to contribute to Christian relief agencies who are on site in Nepal providing relief, mark your gift NEPAL. Catastrophic flooding and landslides — triggered by a glacier collapse — destroyed homes, infrastructure, and displaced over 10,000 households. The need will continue for a long time.
God is at work all around us…
Our desire is to join Jesus on His mission in our neighborhoods and in our country. Through your offerings, we make Christ known throughout our community - and around the globe.
If you want to join us, go to the giving options on the website by clicking the button below. Wherever and however and whenever you give, you will partner with God to bless others.
Together we meet families at the intersection of faith and real life.
A Midweek Boost?
We have a online library of hundreds of past St. Peters messages. (plus there is a message this week from Pastor Mark that goes with week 38 in our Weekly Prayer Project guides about evaluating your life.
Be sure to view the weekly message on the St Peter’s-Edina YouTube channel - or watch past weeks to stay up to date in the Weekly Prayer Project as our messages this year correspond to each entry.
May we add you to our weekly email list so that you get a reminder with a link and the weekly announcements as well?
Upcoming Birthdays
September 24 - Lyanna Fernandez Mendez
October 4 - Steven Moll
October 4 - Walter Strobel
If your birthday is in the next two weeks and you are missing from this list, fill out a connect card and share your birthday so that your St. Peter’s family of faith can lift you up to the Lord.