Support disaster response in the Midwest, South

Dear fellow redeemed,

In the last week, severe storms in the Midwest and South have caused significant property damage, injury and loss of life. The effects have been felt in Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana and beyond.

The Rev. Dr. Ross Johnson, director of LCMS Disaster Response, is actively reaching out to those in and closest to the affected areas to ask how the LCMS can best help and support them. Lutheran Early Response Teams (LERT) have already been deployed to clear away fallen trees and assist with debris removal.

Individual congregations like Bethlehem Lutheran Church in St. Louis are already reaching out to their local communities with material assistance and the love of Christ. Read about the damage in the St. Louis area.

Your longstanding, joyful generosity to — and partnership with — LCMS Disaster Response means that our Lutheran congregations and trained responders are immediately acting whenever catastrophe strikes. For example, after a tornado hit the campus of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, last week, resulting in the postponement of commencement, LERT volunteers worked to remove debris so that it could be held just 24 hours later.

Your ongoing prayers and voluntary, joyful support are essential. As we use your offerings given in response to recent disasters, any gift the Lord allows you to provide will make a difference in the lives of people who are hurting — now and even weeks or months into the future.

Will you help sustain the church’s ability to respond immediately to any disaster, taking steps to meet real physical needs while also providing Gospel-centered care for the soul? Please prayerfully consider a contribution only as the Lord allows, whenever He might make that possible. If you are led by God financially to support the response of the church to this spring’s storms, the following donor-restricted accounts are being utilized:

• The LCMS Disaster Response—Strategic Use fund. Visit lcms.org/give/disaster or mail a check to The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, or LCMS, at P.O. Box 66861, St. Louis, MO 63166-6861. On the memo line, write “Disaster Response—Strategic Use (TR9206)”; or

• The LCMS Disaster Response—Tornado Relief fund. Visit lcms.org/give/tornado or mail a check to The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, or LCMS, at P.O. Box 66861, St. Louis, MO 63166-6861. On the memo line, write “Disaster Response—Tornado Relief (NM8050-26050).”

For anyone living in or near an affected disaster area, the LCMS also encourages you to connect with local congregations (any that are taking action, such as Bethlehem Lutheran) and your respective LCMS district office for guidance about supporting a local response.

As the Body of Christ, who continually receive His gifts of Word and Sacrament, we breathe in the Gospel and exhale mercy and love toward our neighbor. Your gifts help us to be the church, especially when our neighbors have suffered a natural disaster like the recent events in the Midwest and South. Thank you for your continued, faithful and joyful partnership.

Sub Cruce (Under the Cross),

Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison
President, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

P.S. When God’s people supply generous offerings to support an LCMS response to a disaster event, they provide Christ’s mercy to our neighbor in close proximity to God’s Word and Sacrament. This is important because victims of disaster, amid some of the worst days of their lives, can receive care for both body and soul, hear the Gospel and receive the comfort that only Jesus and His Word can give.

Pick Your Free Copy of “Portals of Prayer”

Pick Your Free Copy of Portals of Prayer in the Narthex or in the Atrium
APRIL - JUNE 2025 ISSUE
Portals of Prayer is a favorite of readers looking for ways to stay in God's Word with easy, daily devotions.

A great way to start each day, readings feature a Bible passage, meditation, and prayer in an easy-to-read format. Portals of Prayer is great for personal devotions and can be used to open church meetings or Bible studies. Published in the convenient and popular pocket size, large-print, or digest editions. Published quarterly, authors change each month.

Portals of Prayer has been a source of strength and comfort since 1937.

Zion Women’s Book Club Summer Meeting & Salad Potluck

Zion Women’s Book Club Summer Meeting & Salad Potluck

Make This Place Your Home
by Mary Rubarb (Link to Amazon/Kindle website)

Thursday, July 10th from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. (after VBS) in Zion’s Outdoor Pavilion

Bring a favorite lunch salad to share!

This is also a Meet the Author event – Mary Rubarb will be with us that day to talk about her book!

About the book: Libby knew that the life she'd always known wasn't normal, but it was hers. When that life is suddenly gone, all that Libby has to cling to are the memories of what she once had. When Libby is sent off to live with an aunt she never knew, she is faced with an entirely new life. Suddenly, she has friends. Here, she is thought of as smart and talented. But how could she be happy in her new life when in her old life, she'd let everyone down? Is it only a matter of time before these people realize that this life isn't where she belongs?

Prayer Lunch for Shepherd’s Canyon Retreat

Saturday, June 28th 12:00 p.m. 
Lunch will be provided
Zion Lutheran Church, 3197 Washington Pike, Bridgeville, PA 15017
A free will offering will be taken for Shepherd’s Canyon

Joanna Lee serves as the Deaconess at Zion Lutheran Church. She is the daughter of an LCMS pastor and is the third of six siblings. While serving as an LCMS missionary in Taiwan, she met her husband, Richard. Married in 2020, they now have a daughter, a son, and a baby due in September. Joanna obtained her Master of Arts in Deaconess Studies at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana. 

Within a two month span, Joanna experienced the sudden death of her father, was a first responder to people fleeing from a school shooting, and had an undiagnosed herniated disc. Attending a Shepherd’s Canyon Retreat was a great blessing and help to her in her journey of healing. Come to hear Joanna’s story, and more about Shepherd’s Canyon Retreat Ministry.

Please RSVP with how many will be attending so we can plan accordingly.
With appreciation,
Joanna Lee, Deaconess at Zion Lutheran Church

The Scammers are at it again!

Dear Zion Friends,
Unfortunately, once again fake text messages and emails have been circulating to Zion members ... the messages appear to come from "Rev. Dr. Grimenstein or Rev. Edward" and request the recipient to "reply as soon as you get this, there is something I want to discuss with you." If they receive a response, then they request money or gift cards. THESE MESSAGES ARE A SCAM. PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THEM!  

Pastor Grimenstein will NEVER ask for gift cards. You can verify that a text is fake by looking at the phone number it is sent from ... most fake texts are not even from our local area code!

Any legitimate text from Pastor will come from his cell number 412-523-7896. 

LCMS Stewardship Ministry Thoughts

LCMS Stewardship Ministry Thoughts 

Luke 18:35 – “As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.” Who is not a beggar? All that we have is a gift of God. We are all beggars before Him. Knowing this can leave us with nothing but thankfulness in our hearts. And this thankful acknowledgment of all the Lord’s gifts is also what forms the basis of our own generous giving. 

Matthew 6:19–21 – “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” What more is there to say about stewardship beyond this? These are the words of our Lord Jesus, and we would do well to heed them, for they flow from His heart of love. 

Matthew 15:27 – “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Faith receives what God gives, because faith knows that God only gives good things. Indeed, God has given us so much more than just the crumbs that fall from the table — He has given us life, salvation, body and soul, eyes and ears, possessions and income. That’s where our stewardship starts: with faith in the God who is the greatest Giver. 

Philippians 3:19 – “Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.” St. Paul does not want us to set our minds on earthly things, for they are passing away. This is similar to what Jesus says about storing up treasures on earth rather than storing them in heaven. Our heart tends to go where we put our treasure. This is why God commands us to live generously: not to spoil our fun, but to help train us in keeping our priorities straight and our minds off earthly things. 

-- From your Stewardship Committee (please contact Mike Kroeger at michael.k.kroeger@gmail.com if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions) 

VIDEO: Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - Complete Service

View the Bulletin for Wednesday, May 21, 2025
Worship Service: 2:00 p.m. with communion
Bible Study: 2:30 p.m. - Book of Jonah (30 min.)
All are welcome, bring a friend, neighbor or relative

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