Easter Breakfast at Zion

Attending?
Please RSVP to attend as soon as possible meganpasquini@gmail.com
More egg bakes are needed ... can you lend a hand with baking?
These are make-ahead recipes so there is no fuss on Easter morning!

Join us for the Zion Easter Breakfast Easter Sunday, April 5th
Join us in the Fellowship Hall in between services

From the Desk of Bruce Sutherland

Will Your Faith Have the Last Word? 
Our faith speaks through our lives—and through our giving. Week after week, we bring our offerings to the Lord as acts of worship, trust, and gratitude. Yet even after we enter Heaven, our faith can still speak. The gifts God has entrusted to us can be offered one final time, becoming a final act of worship that continues to support Christ’s church and its mission. 

For many faithful Christians, this final offering is often overlooked—not out of a lack of generosity, but simply because no one pauses to think about it. Today, nearly 95% of people in their 60s, 70s, and 80s name their children as beneficiaries on financial accounts. The church is rarely included in these beneficiary designations and is often relegated to a will that is unfunded or not intended for charitable gifts. Quietly and unintentionally, this means the Lord’s work is given little opportunity to share in the blessings God has provided. 

The good news is that this can be changed with prayerful intention and great joy. A final offering is not about choosing between family and faith—it is about reflecting the whole story of a life shaped by God’s grace. Even a simple designation can become a final act of worship, a witness to trust, and a gift that strengthens the church’s mission for years to come. In this way, your faith does have the last word—spoken gently, faithfully, and with hope. 

To help congregations reflect more deeply on this sacred opportunity, Sharing the Lord’s Harvest with Your Church offers an informative, uplifting, and timely look at what Scripture teaches about our final offering. This engaging workbook and presentation are well suited for Bible study groups, men’s groups, women’s groups, and other congregational gatherings, inviting thoughtful conversation and faithful discernment. To schedule a group presentation and receive complimentary workbooks, simply contact Bruce Sutherland at 716-998-0225 or email brucelcmsed@gmail.com. 

Bruce Sutherland serves as Discipleship & Stewardship Resource Manager for the Eastern District of the LCMS. 

VIDEO: Wednesday, March 25, 2026 - Complete Service

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Audio: Readings & Sermon for Wednesday, March 25, 2026

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First Reading -- Hebrews 2:1–12 
Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His will. 

Now it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere, 

“What is man, that You are mindful of him, or the son of man, that You care for him? You made him for a little while lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet.” 

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, He left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see Him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. 

For it was fitting that He, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why He is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, 

“I will tell of Your name to My brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise.” 

Second Reading -- Mark 8:31–9:1 
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And He said this plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. But turning and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” 

And He called to Him the crowd with His disciples and said to them, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” And He said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.” 

Third Reading -- Mark 15:33–47 
And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, He is calling Elijah.” And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to Him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.” And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed His last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing Him, saw that in this way He breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” 

There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. When He was in Galilee, they followed Him and ministered to Him, and there were also many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem. 

And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the Council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate was surprised to hear that He should have already died. And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether He was already dead. And when he learned from the centurion that He was dead, he granted the corpse to Joseph. And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking Him down, wrapped Him in the linen shroud and laid Him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where He was laid. 

Shout Out to Students (Part 3 of 3)

Sam Bishop, a Senior at South Fayette High School, was named an Ambassador for the TEN Junior, a nationally ranked junior golf tournament held each Spring at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier. In addition to competing in the two-day tournament, the six Ambassadors work to promote the event which recognizes student leadership and character beyond the leaderboard. Kudos Sam! 

Bulletin: Wednesday, March 25, 2026

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Today’s Theme: FOR US BETRAYED 
Jesus foretells His own betrayal, death, and resurrection in today’s text (Mark 8:31–9:1). This shows us that the way of salvation only comes through the path of suffering (Hebrews 2:10). Jesus’ suffering, His Passion, does not simply mean that He sympathizes with us. Rather, it means that He participates in our suffering, and we in His. His betrayal, the crown of thorns, the shameful cross—all of these lead to how Jesus “gave His dying breath,” as we sing in the series hymn. In the Passion reading, we will also hear how He dies (Mark 15:33–47) and what that means for us today. 

Shout Out to Students (Part 2 of 3)

Serenity Migyanko, a 4th grader at Avonworth, earned a 4.0 gpa during the 2nd term of the school year. Recently, Serenity and her cheer team, the Infinity “baby bombs”, took 1st Place in mini prep at the hard rock nationals in Cleveland. Their “trophy” was a real guitar! Way to go, Serenity!