What do they do together?
That’s a great question. We believe that Jesus died to save us. He did everything that needed to be done to make God happy with us, despite our mistakes and wrongdoing. God now says to us, “You are forgiven.” With everything done for us, you might be wondering, “What do they do together?”
The answer is simple. God gave us a gift, and we are grateful. We want to follow Jesus and do as He taught us to do. We want to show love and compassion to all. We want to use our hands to carry out the greatest command, to love one another. We don’t have to do any of this, but we want to do these things, because we are thankful to God.
So we do what we are able to do. We visit nursing homes. We work together to give the children a great place to hear about Jesus in our Junior Kindergarten. We volunteer time, funds and efforts to tell others about Jesus, even in such faraway places as Peru and Ukraine. We gather around the Bible to hear what God has to say. We come together for the divine service on Sundays to receive God’s love. Pastor Lepak leads us in worship, study, prayer and singing.
Education is big at Hope, especially with so many little ones. We conduct a Sunday School for all ages. We also hold confirmation classes for the youth who are preparing for full church membership. Our Junior Kindergarten has been going strong for forty years. Each summer, we also hold a Vacation Bible School for all ages. Our church body has such a great educational heritage, and we want to continue that tradition. Eventually we would like to have a full, private elementary school. Will it happen? Stay tuned for more…
That’s all the serious stuff. We also get together as friends to help each other out and for fun. Picnics, Christmas parties, Easter breakfast, Lutheran Youth Association Convention, junior youth summer camp and Vacation Bible School are a lot of fun for everyone.
Right now, we’re really looking forward to finding land for a new facility. We’ll have the opportunity to really get some of these programs off the ground.