Lent
The Church is now in the season of Lent. It begins with Ash Wednesday and continues for the next 40 days (not counting Sundays) concluding with Easter Sunday. During this season there is an emphasis on repenting of one’s sin and realizing the costly sacrifice Jesus made through his gruesome death on the cross to pay the penalty for the sins of the world. Lent is a time to focus on God’s initiative to establish a relationship with all people throughout time, including today. There is no way anyone can satisfy God’s standard of perfection. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Romans, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Lent is not a time to earn God’s favor by doing “good things”, but to embrace God’s undeserved love of us. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). Lent prepares us with joyful hearts to hear the wonderful news on Easter morning as well as the promises of God which we experience each day in our lives.
Applications for the 2025 season are available here.
The St. John Community Garden first opened in Spring of 2011. This garden area was a gift from St. John Lutheran Church to the neighborhood.
The garden is located at 7422 Washington Street, Forest Park, Illinois. The season runs April 1 - November 1. If you are interested in applying for a plot, you may contact the church office at 708-366-3226.
Y4Life Baby Donations
THANK YOU!
Thank you to all who donated to the baby supply drive for “Breakfast with Baby,” a ministry of our Northern Illinois District sister church, Our Savior Lutheran in Carol Stream.
Y4LIFE is the Youth arm of the
Lutherans for Life. It seeks to equip high-school- and college-aged youth to be Gospel-motivated voices 4 Life, publicly and privately pronouncing with joy “You are made 4 LIFE!” as well as answering the question: Why should I be 4 Life? Through service, education, worship, and celebration, youth are encouraged to engage in life-affirming activities and become Leaders 4 Life in their schools, communities, nation, and world!
SewWhat! makes quilts that become donations to those in need.
Through Lutheran World Relief (https://lwr.org/quilts) the large (60”x80”) quilts are distributed in areas of need around the world. The quilts may be used as bedding, shelter, flooring, and for carrying possessions in bundles.
Members of SewWhat! assemble the quilt tops, then add a layer of polyester batting and a backing fabric. These three layers are then tied together (easy - down, up, down, up, cut the thread and tie a knot). The final step is finishing the edges with a binding. Sewing skills are not needed to help us finish off these quilt tops. If you can tie a knot you can help us. We also make smaller quilts which are given to Phil’s Friends, an organization that serves people who are fighting cancer. Phil’s Friends include these lap quilts in the care packages they send to those undergoing cancer treatments.
SewWhat! meets year-round on Tuesday mornings from 9:00 - 11:00, with a chocolate break at 10:00. While we work, we socialize and enjoy each other’s company.
Dartball League
Dartball meets select Tuesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. in Room 102 from September to April. Confirmed male members of St. John and fellow Lutheran LCMS congregations are welcome to join.
St. John was one of the founding churches that formed the league in the 1930's.
For more information contact Pete Schoedel at: 1petros113@gmail.com
What is Dartball?
Dartball is a game of darts that is scored like baseball. It bears no resemblance to "pub darts" whatsoever. The darts are thrown underhand at a board that is 20 feet away.
THE DARTS
The darts are about six inches long, wooden with a steel tip and three or four feathers. The Lutheran Dart League uses Apex #2 darts made by Apex Manufacturing.
THE BOARD
The dartboard is four-foot square, elevated so the bottom edge of the board is 2 feet above the ground. The board is laid out like a baseball diamond, with first, second and third bases, as well as a Home Run where Home Plate would be. There are strikes, balls, fouls, outs and double-plays on the board as well.
PLAYING THE GAME
As stated above, dartball is scored like baseball. A game consists of 9 innings, with each team batting in an inning until they make three outs. The visiting team always bats first. A dart that lands in the First Base is scored as a single; a dart landing in the Second Base is a double; a dart landing in the Third Base is a triple; and a dart landing in the Home Run is scored as a Home Run.
A batter whose dart lands in the First Base is said to "be on first." The next batters then try to hit the Third Base. If they succeed, they are awarded a triple, which "forces" the runner on first around the bases to score a run.
Like baseball, the idea is to score more runs than your opponent in nine innings.
For more extensive information about the Lutheran Dartball League go to the following website from Concordia Lutheran Church, Berwyn, IL.
Food Pantry
St. John participates in a food collection every third Sunday of the month to help support the Food Pantry
located at the Howard Mohr Community Center in Forest Park, Illinois
Mission Opportunities Short Term
We received a Thank You letter from the Mission Opportunities Short Term (MOST) organization thanking St. John members for the box of eye glasses which we recently donated. This year with the help of donations from various churches, including our congregation, MOST was able to send 16 eye glass teams to 10 different countries to bring clear vision to these people as well as the gospel of Jesus.
Currently, in many countries of the world eye glasses are still needed as well as non-prescription sunglasses. As part of our mission outreach here at St. John, we have an opportunity to help MOST. If you have any type of eye glasses or sunglasses that you are no longer using please consider donating them to this cause. Just bring them to church and place them in the box in the narthex which is across from the church mailboxes. If you have an interest in helping with this action team Call the church office 708-366-3226.
