What to Expect….
The Divine Service is a chance for us to step out of time and be in fellowship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Lord comes to us in His gifts of Baptism, Word, and Communion relieving us of our sins and we respond in thanksgiving and prayer.
The service centers around these three gifts as we begin with a remembrance of Baptism (unless we have an actual Baptism!), continue with hearing God’s word in Scripture and proclamation, and receive His Body and Blood in Communion. We have Communion every week so people do not have to worry about missing Communion.
Our services blend time periods as we have hymns in variety of styles and follow the service settings found in the Lutheran Service Book. If you want to see what our service is like please visit our YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@OSLC-CTX) we have recordings of all our Sunday Services and our weekday Prayer Services.
Children are always welcome! We want families to worship together. During the Divine Service, children are invited to come up to the front for a special message. We have an activity bag for children located in the foyer. After the service, please return the bags so that others can use them at the next service. If your child becomes a little fussy, pastor says, “don’t worry, he has a mike so no kid can be louder than him. Besides, we love the sound of children.” However, if you need to take your child out of the sanctuary during the service, an unstaffed parent room is available in the foyer. You can continue to hear the service in the parish hall or the parent room! If you have any questions, please ask an usher!
Holy Communion is indeed a Holy and Precious gift, for it is in this gift we receive Christ’s body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins. Because in Communion we are given these precious gifts, we should take time to examine ourselves lest we fall into the abuses done by the church in Corinth and profane the body and blood of Christ (1 Cor 11:17-32). In order to prepare yourself, please answer and reflect on these following questions.
-Have you been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit?
-Have you failed to keep the commandments in your thinking, speaking, and doing? (Ten Commandments are found on p 321 of the Hymnal)
-Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God, true God and true man?
-Do you believe that Jesus died for you and shed His blood on the cross for the forgiveness of your sins?
-Do you believe that the true body and blood of Christ are in the Sacrament?
-Do you trust Jesus’ promise that his body and blood is given to you for the forgiveness of sins?
If you are struggling to answer these questions or have answered no, we encourage you to please speak with the pastor before communing. All visitors are strongly encouraged to speak with the pastor before communing. If you as a guest did not have a chance to speak with the pastor prior to service, please feel free to come forward with your arms crossed for a pastoral blessing or feel free to remain seated.
We feel that the offering is an opportunity for us to give back to God what He has blessed us with. Guests are welcome to participate but should not feel obligated.