As God’s people we say with the Psalm writer, “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” (Psalm 122:1) It is in the Lord’s house that we hear the good news of God. The Introduction to the Lutheran Service Book says,

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“Our Lord is the Lord who serves. Jesus Christ came into the flesh not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. On the cross He offered Himself as a spotless sacrifice for the sin of the whole world. Through His perfect life and death, He accomplished forgiveness and salvation for all before the Father in heaven. By His empty tomb and ascension into heaven, He declared His victory over sin and death to all the world. Seated now at the Father’s right hand, He graciously serves His Church with the gifts of salvation. On the Last Day, He will come again to gather His elect from every nation to celebrate the feast that will have no end.

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Our Lord serves us today through His holy Word and Sacraments. Through these means, He comes among us to deliver His forgiveness and salvation, freeing us from our sins and strengthening us for service to one another and to the world. At Holy Baptism, He puts His name upon us, pours His Holy Spirit into our hearts, and rescues us from sin, death, and the devil. Through Holy Absolution, He pronounces His forgiveness again and again. With His holy Word, written in Scripture and preached into our ears, He daily proclaims His abiding love for us through all the joys and sorrows of life in this world. In His Holy Supper, He gives us His own body and blood to eat and drink as a priceless gift to nourish and strengthen us in both body and soul.

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The Lord’s service calls forth our service— in sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to Him and in loving service to one another. Having been called, gathered, enlightened, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit, we receive His gifts with thankfulness and praise. With psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, we joyfully confess all that God has done for us, declaring the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. Our song joins with the song of every saint from every age, the new song of Christ’s holy people, declaring: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Rev. 5: 12).

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Within the Lutheran tradition, the wedding of the Word of God to melody was modeled by the reformer himself. Martin Luther had a high regard for music and urged the Church to use it wisely as a vehicle for proclaiming the Gospel. “Next to theology,” he wrote, “I accord to music the highest place and the greatest honor.” Retaining the best of pre-Reformation hymnody, as well as adding a great number of new hymns to the Church’s song, Luther and succeeding generations of hymn writers continue to inspire the faithful to lift their voices in praise and thanksgiving to the triune God.”

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In summary, we believe in worship God comes to us to give to us His gifts. We receive those gifts with thanksgiving and praise and go forth into the world sharing those gifts with others. The services we have are structure with the belief that God comes to us and gives His gifts and we response in praise and thanksgiving. If you have any questions about our worship, please contact us.