Washing Feet

During the season of Lent, our Children's Sunday School classes collected washcloths and soap to make Footwashing Kits for people who are in need. 

With the help of the congregation, they were able to create 90 Footwashing Kits all together and are looking forward to giving them away in April. Wow! What a blessing it is that even the youngest members of our church can serve others as Christ has served us.

"If I, your teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." John 13:12

Journeying with Jesus

This month,  the children's sermons at St. James have focused on the meaning and the purpose of the season of Lent. So far, we have learned about the color purple, fasting/giving up something for 40 days, folding our hands like a pretzel in prayer, and cleaning up/being cleansed by God in the waters of baptism! 

Jesus' Entry into Jerusalem

On a similar note, our children's Sunday Schoolers have started learning about how Jesus journeyed to the cross.  Week  by week, we learn another piece of this great story that molds and makes us into Christ's own disciples.  

Rooster Craft for the story of Peter's Denial

If you have a child who would like to journey with us to the cross this Lent, bring them to St. James! We have Sunday School each week at 9:15AM and Worship at 8AM and 10:30AM. 

Holy Week Prayer Vigil

This year during Holy Week, members of St. James prayed for 24 hours straight from our Maundy Thursday Worship Service on April 6th until our Good Friday Worship Service on April 7th. Members of all ages were involved in this exciting and renewing event, growing closer to Christ as we lifted up others in prayer. May God guide us all and grant us peace as we seek to know him better through prayer, scripture reading, and worship.

Lenten Bible Study

Throughout the 40 days of Lent, our congregation has enjoyed Bible study and weekly devotional readings based on Max Lucado's Outlive Your Life. In this study, we have read through the first 12 chapters of Acts and have learned about how our calling is the same as that of the early church, to share the gospel through love and service. We hope to "outlive" our lives, sharing the gifts God has given us, and making a difference in this world so that all may know the love of Christ in us.

Holy Week Activities

We had a great time at St. James during Holy Week this year.

It all began with the waving of palm branches and the singing of Hosannas. It included a footwashing service on Maundy Thursday and a Tenebrae service on Good Friday. Then, we had a weekend of celebrating Christ's resurrection, beginning with an Easter Egg Party and Egg Hunt. Alleluia! Christ is risen!

Maundy Thursday and Good Friday

Please join us this Thursday, April 21 at 7PM for our Maundy Thursday Service which will have Holy Communion and Foot Washing. For Good Friday, Friday, April 22 at 7PM we will have a Solemn Service. All are welcome to worship with us!

Palm Sunday

Our worship service begins on the front steps of the church this Palm Sunday, April 17. After worship, everyone is invited to our stewardship fair, where all committees and auxiliaries at St. James will host display tables on our front lawn for every member to walk by and see. We’ll also enjoy some delicious Hudson’s BBQ for lunch in our fellowship hall. Please join us for this memorable service, and to get to know the opportunities here for you to participate in growth and fellowship at St. James!

Preparing for Lent

~Shrove Tuesday Prayer~

Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for it is from your goodness that we have this day to celebrate on the threshold of the Season of Lent.

Tomorrow we will fast. Today we feast. We thank you for the abundance of gifts you shower upon us. We thank you especially for one another. As we give you thanks, we are mindful of those who have so much less than we do. As we share these wonderful gifts together, we commit ourselves to greater generosity

toward those who need our support.

Prepare us for tomorrow. Tasting the fullness of what we have today, let us experience some hunger tomorrow. May our fasting make us more alert so that we might be ready to hear your Word and respond to your call.

As our feasting fills us with gratitude, so may our fasting hollow out in us

an attentiveness to hear the cry of the poor. May our self-denial turn our hearts to you and give us a new freedom for generous service to others.

We ask you these graces with our hearts full of delight and stirring with readiness for the journey ahead. We ask them with confidence in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

It's Almost Easter

Thanks to everyone who helped us pack our pews on Palm Sunday! We had a great time singing "Hosanna" and worshipping our Lord together. Everyone is invited to join us for a service of Holy Communion on Maundy Thursday, April 1, at 7PM. During this service, we will learn about the Sixth Mark of Discipleship to conclude our Lenten Discipleship Series. You are also invited to a contemplative worship service with us on Good Friday, April 2, at 7PM. Then, on Easter morning, we will celebrate Holy Communion at 10:30 AM as we worship our risen Savior, Jesus Christ. We can't wait to see you there!

Palm Sunday

Next Sunday, March 28, is Palm Sunday, and our church is packing our pews! Join us at our 8:00 AM or 10:30 AM Holy Communion services, and bring a friend with you as we wave palm branches; sing Hosanna; hear our hand bell players ring and our chancel choir sing; and worship our Lord Jesus Christ as we begin to walk toward the cross with Him on Holy Week.

Wednesday Vesper Service

All are invited to join us for mid-week meals and prayer services throughout Lent. Every Wednesday until Easter, we will begin with a light dinner in the Fellowship Hall at 6:30PM, and then we will move to the Sanctuary for a Vesper Service at 7PM. This year, our pastors are presenting a sermon series on the 6 Marks of Discipleship. Come along, and bring a friend.

Hello, Lent

Our Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper was a lot of fun, and the food was delicious! Thanks to all who came out to enjoy the fellowship and fill your plates (and your stomachs) with pancakes and sausages. We had a great time together, and we buried the Alleluias for Lent. We'll pull them back out at the great celebration of the Resurrection in early April. Tonight, everyone is invited to join us for a service of Holy Communion with the Imposition of Ashes at 7PM. May you all have a blessed Lenten season.

Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna! On Palm Sunday, the congregation at St. James held our palm branches high and walked behind the cross as we remembered Jesus' ride into Jerusalem. This day marked the beginning of Holy Week, and gave us all a chance to reflect on the great lengths that our gracious Lord goes to, giving his life on the cross in order to bring us sinners back into his arms.

Lenten Services

It's the season of Lent, when we return to the Lord our God, who is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. During this season, we remember our baptism, when God washed us clean from our sins and called us his children. We also take time on Sunday evenings for prayer services. Everyone is welcome to worship with us during these solemn times of prayer and renewal. Before our 6:45 PM service, we meet in the Fellowship Hall for a meal at 6PM.

Shrove Tuesday

Our church family celebrated Shrove Tuesday with a great celebration, as we piled on the pancakes. We had a fun time together, eating to our hearts' content. This tradition stems from the early Christian Church, when parishioners would consume all the fat in the house in preparation for the fast of Lent. We ate all the fat we could find this year, with one of our members eating as many as 10 pancakes all by himself! It looks like we are definitely ready for Lent. All are welcome to our Ash Wednesday Service of Holy Communion with The Imposition of Ashes this Wednesday, Feb 25, at 7PM.