All Are Welcome!WORSHIP TIMES
10:30 AM Sunday Worship w/Communion Fellowship following worship All are Welcome! 
Ash Wednesday February 22, 2023
5:00 pm - Immanuel 7:00 pm – Bethel Wednesday, March 1, 2023 – Bethel 5:30 pm Soup Supper 6:15 pm Lent Worship Wednesday, March 8, 2023 – Immanuel 5:30 pm Soup Supper 6:15 pm Lent Worship Wednesday, March 15,2023 – Bethel 5:30 pm Soup Supper 6:15 pm Lent Worship Wednesday, March 22, 2023 – Immanuel 5:30 pm Soup Supper 6:15 pm Lent Worship Wednesday, March 29, 2023 – Bethel 5:30 pm Soup Supper 6:15 pm Lent Worship HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE Palm Sunday Worship April 2, 2023 8:30 am - Bethel 10:30 am - Immanuel Maundy Thursday Worship April 6, 2023 7:00 pm - Bethel Good Friday Worship April 7, 2023 5:00 pm - Immanuel 7:00 pm - Bethel Easter Sunday Worship April 9, 2023 8:30 am - Bethel 10:30 am - Immanuel CONTACT US:Pastor Kari Pancoast
EMAIL: pastorkari@brainerd.net How To Find Us:Immanuel Lutheran Church of Hillman is located at the intersection of County Hwy 27 and County Hwy 47. It is one mile west of County 8.
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Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
We will spend the entire month of March in the season of Lent, so allow me to share a little information about the season: The word LENT comes from the Anglo-Saxon word that means “spring” or “springtime.” Taken literally, the word means that this is the item of the year when the days lengthen. This season of the church year is a time of preparation, reflection, growth, and change. As God’s people take the time to learn more about God and their relationship to God and to others, the season before Easter can be seen as the springtime of the would—a time of growth in faith and a time to nurture the faith that is already theirs. The Christian faith centers around the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We need to see this event from both sides—before and after—because each side of the story is incomplete without the other. The season of Lent began in the early church as a time for preparing new converts for Baptism on Easter. By the middle of the fourth century, a 40-day preparation period has been established. During that time candidates for baptism fasted and heard lectures from early church leaders. Later, the season of Lent became a time for all Christians to prepare for Easter. It remains a 40-day long period, not counting Sundays, since all Sundays are considered “Little Easters,” celebrating the resurrection. The Season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and continues until Easter morning. By the year 400 AD the early Christian church had established this period of 40 days. It became a time of self-discipline and harsh self-examination, and during the Middle Ages, the season of Lent was so strict that people dreaded its coming. Through time, the harsh demands and expectations have been softened and relaxed. People today look to Lent as a time of growth and change. They often include fasting or restriction of some of their favorite foods or drinks during the 40 days. Some people spend more time in prayer and meditation while other give up habits they think are unnecessary. Still others search to discover how they can share God’s love with others in the world in meaningful ways. Purple is the color associated with the season of Lent. It is a solemn color, reminiscent of royalty and repentance. It reflects the serious and somber nature of this time in the life of the church. Adapted from Before and After Easter by Debbie Trafton O’Neal Our observation of the season of Lent is not for the purpose of punishing us or making us feel bad or guilty, but rather it is to give us hope when we feel overwhelmed by the sin, death, chaos, and darkness in the world. Lent is a time to grow in our faith and to be reminded that our merciful God is with us even in our suffering. As I prepare for leading worship in this season that so keenly reminds us of the suffering that we all experience, I think again about one of my favorite poems. I shared this poem with you last year during Lent, but I want to share it again. It is a poem from one of my favorite poets, the late Lutheran Pastor and professor Dr. Gerhard E. Frost. He had wonderful way of expressing the richness and comfort of daily life lived in the gift of knowing God’s grace in Jesus. Grounds for Hope “The light shines in the darkness, And the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5 If I am asked what are my grounds for hope, this is my answer: Light is lord over darkness, truth is lord over falsehood, life is ever lord over death. Of all the facts I daily life with, there’s none more comforting than this: If I have two rooms, one dark, the other light, and I open the door between them, the dark room becomes lighter without the light one becoming darker. I know this is no headline, but it’s a marvelous footnote; and God comforts me in that. By Gerhard E. Frost “Jesus Christ is the light of the world. The light no darkness can overcome.” We say this with our kids during our children’s time in worship. We sing these words during the Holden Evening Prayer during our Wednesday Lenten service. My family begins our devotions at home with these words. We need to hear these words, over and over again. These are words of promise, reassurance, comfort, and hope in this broken world that so often seems to have much more darkness than light. The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. As we gather in worship this season, and again move through the story of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, crucifixion, death, and finally resurrection, we experience the attempt by the darkness to win. And once again, we experience the victory of light over darkness, of life over death, of love over hate. This victory is for us—for us to know and celebrate and participate in. This victory is for us to share in the world. It is the footnote that defines our life. Thanks be to God. Pastor Kari
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