immanuelbrookfield.org

Share the Joy of Easter

Once a year, at Easter time, this ministry purchases Easter baskets and attaches Easter tags with the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of Immanuel’s shut-ins (many thanks to the Church Office!).

Immanuel members are invited to take a basket, fill it with items of their choosing, and then deliver it to the shut-in member.

Some ideas to get started:

• Tapes, CDs
• Books – perhaps a Bible study guide or devotional, a fast-paced novel, a coffee-table book with gorgeous photos of landscapes, gardens, etc.
• Flowers – a fresh bouquet, a potted Spring flower such as daffodils or hyacinths, or a dried arrangement or artificial-flower display for year-round enjoyment
• Food – cookies, breads (without nuts), candy
• Decorated hard-boiled eggs to view (and eat and enjoy, too!)
• Handmade Easter crafts

If you do not know the shut-in person, you may want to call to arrange the day and time of your visit. If possible, baskets should be delivered by Easter Sunday.

“The main focus is the visit to the shut-in person, not what is in the basket,” says ministry leader Terry Krueger. “It's a visit from a member of the congregation (other than the pastor).”

Do you love listening (and hey, admit it, singing along) to contemporary Christian music, from your treasured albums by pioneering artists such as Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith, to today’s up-and-coming artists on stations such as K-Love 105.3 FM? Have you ever thought about sharing your passion for these inspiring, uplifting, and worshipful tunes with others at church?

Immanuel has several contemporary music groups; check them out below and decide which may be the right fit for you. Next thing you know, you might be singing in front of more than your bedroom mirror or the driver in the car beside yours! Best of all, you won’t be singing solo anymore; you’ll be serving God by encouraging fellow worshippers to lift their voices in praise to our Heavenly Father.

Contemporary Choir

The Contemporary Choir sings with the band during contemporary services, singing an “anthem” in addition to leading congregational songs.

Participation requires adequate singing ability, singing in parts (SATB), high school age and older, and a worshipful heart with a desire for excellence. Rehearsals are held on 3 Tuesday nights before the service, meeting in the Chapel (Cry Room) or the sanctuary from 6:45 to about 8:00 p.m.

Arranging for marriage at Immanuel:

When a couple is engaged, an appointment should be made with a pastor to reserve the date for the wedding. At that time, the couple will receive the marital guidelines and information about the required premarital counseling. Our pastor’s re­sponsibility is not only to officiate at the Marriage Service, but also to prepare the couple for the years of married life.

Therefore, the couple is required to meet with one of the pastors for 4-8 hours of premarital prepara­tion prior to the wedding. Normally, the pastors will not marry a couple unless they have had the opportunity to spend adequate time in premarital counseling sessions or unless other acceptable ar­rangements have been made beforehand.

·       Greeters at each service to welcome worshippers

·       Ministers at the Information Desk to field questions from both members and guests

Serving a Side of Fellowship on Sunday Mornings…
This ministry promotes and encourages fellowship by serving refreshments on Sunday mornings in the Fellowship Hall. Coffee and lemonade are made available between our morning services and during Bible class (9:30 service time). The new coffee stations and remodeled area create a relaxed, serve-yourself atmosphere to meet and greet each other.

Do You Love Helping and Hosting?
Participants are trained in the simple set-up procedure and clean-up afterwards. New participants are always welcome. Volunteers should be reliable and dedicated in following a rotating schedule. Having a passion for serving others is desirable - the gift of hospitality is a plus!

Contact Linda Felton for more information.

Blessed Again Resale collects used clothing and household items in good condition. These items are then sold, with the profits going to support the work of A Place of Refuge, which supports pregnant women in crisis. Blessed Again Resale is located at 7624 W. Hampton Ave., Milwaukee. The store is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Did you ever wonder:

• Who planned the Birthday Party for Jesus at Christmas?
• Who got Immanuel involved with the Wheeling for Healing bike ride at Community Memorial Hospital?
• Who was responsible for remodeling the church nursery?
• Who organizes the 5th Sunday food drive?
• Who organizes Operation Christmas Child (shoe box) ministry or the Christmas Care packages at Christmas?
• Who held the Camo Quilt workshop here at Immanuel?  

Did you know that some Immanuel members:

• Regularly rock and cuddle preemie babies at St Joseph’s Hospital?
• Serve food at the Milwaukee Rescue Mission?  

 Who has pioneered all these efforts?

ChristCare groups! These outreach activities are a small sampling of the missional service projects our ChristCare groups have undertaken in recent months.                                                                                     

The Card Ministry creates and sends cards to Immanuel members to encourage them in times of need, and to rejoice with them in good times, too. The Card Ministry designs and assembles Anniversary, Birthday, Sympathy, Get Well, Encouragement, and New Baby cards.

Do you like to combine your love of crafts and cards?

More hands are always needed to help assemble cards. Any skill level is welcome; members are willing to teach anyone interested in joining in the fun. (Monetary donations are always helpful for purchasing supplies and postage, too.) 

The Card Ministry meets once a month from 7-9 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Contact Lori Buckridge or Joan Thompson for more info.

How this Ministry Operates:

The Youthful Ringers are junior hand bell and choir chime musicians, (approximately grades 4 through 8). Musical know-how is not a prerequisite, though some children may have had experience with choir chimes in third grade, recorders in fourth grade, and/or previous piano lessons. The Youthful Ring­ers learn the valuable skills of public performance, cooperation, and musical capability in praising God.

Youthful Ringers meet from 12:15 to 1 p.m. every Thursday during the school year (September through May), in the Balcony.

Thus far this school year, the Youthful Ringers have played for church Worship Services, including the Christmas service, and the informal music program in the Field House.

Musically Inclined? Consider hand bells

“Encourage [your] child to join hand bells if they have had piano lessons, an aptitude for music, or do not participate in choir or band,” advises Director Marie Zehnder. “Hand bells is for grades 5 through 8, but interest is higher in grades 4 through 7….Continuing for more than a year is most beneficial and more interesting.”

Questions?

Contact Marie Zehnder.

The Immanuel Lutheran Cancer Support Group is open to all those affected by a cancer diagnosis. Group members share experiences and provide spiritual support for cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, and family members.

Support is given through monthly group sessions, direct assistance to caregivers and families (i.e. transportation, meals, babysitting), access to in­formation and support materials, group prayer for individuals and families, Scripture study, and testi­monials of faith. In 2008-2009 the Cancer Support Group completed two video series by Ken Curtis, (1) Reflections on Psalm 23, for people with cancer, and (2) Reflections on the Lord's prayer, for people with cancer. Members meet the first Tuesday of each month in Rm. 107B/C or Rm. 107E/F (in the Fellowship Hall) from 7 to 8 p.m.

How This Ministry Operates:

The Auction Committee plans, organizes and executes the Annual Auction to benefit Immanuel Lutheran Church, School and ChildCare.  The Auction provides service opportuni­ties for those who have the gifts of hospitality and administration. It also provides an avenue for those with the gifts of arts and crafts to donate an in-kind gift to support Immanuel’s ministry and pro­vides 3rd source funding to provide equipment and programs for Immanuel Lutheran Church, School and Child Care.

How this Ministry Operates:

Lutherans For Life is neither a church body nor a denomination but a voluntary organization of pro-life, pro-family individuals whose mission is to witness to the sanctity of human life through education based on the Word of God. Lutherans For Life promotes the sanctity of life by providing free resource materials (i.e. DVDs, books, exhibits, brochures, etc.) for a variety of topics, including abortion, infanticide, chastity, post-abortion, and euthanasia.

The Milwaukee metro area chapter, called Exodus XX, holds general meetings at area churches twice a year, usually on a Sunday, from 2 to 4 p.m.

Look at Life from a New Perspective:

Check out the Lutherans For Life display board in the hallway adjacent to the Fellowship Hall!

Anyone interested in being part of Lutherans For Life should contact Robert Schweiger. There is a tremendous need to get out the pro-life message about life issues.

Raising Young Voices to Praise God

The purpose of the Immanuel School Choir is to glorify God by equipping students with the tools they need to appreciate and understand music as a means of expression and praise. Students will be encouraged to develop their God-given talents as they express God's love through the music they share.

The choir is for students in grades 5-8 who attend Immanuel Lutheran School. The Immanuel School Choir rehearses during the school year.

The Ringers of Joy is a group of musicians from high school-age to adult who play handbells and choir chimes. The ringers bond with each other and the congregation as they worship God with music.

The handbell choir helps celebrate the festivals and various services of the church year by enhancing the theme with music. For festivals they often process into church with the bells. Some festival songs include organ, trumpets, and choir.

The Immanuel Information Technology ministry provides information about Immanuel Brookfield using information technology. The Immanuel Information Technology ministry maintains a presence on the World Wide Web and provides information about our ministry and current news to members and non-members alike. The ministry maintains and plans for future growth of Immanuel's church and school computers and networks. Computer literacy and experience with Website building is desirable. Ministers meet once a month on a Saturday from 9 a.m. – noon.