St Mark Lutheran Church
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St Mark Lutheran Church (WELS) strives by God's grace to be a congregation that is Christ-centered Eternal life in heaven belongs to all who believe in him.
We are:
Christ-centered: We believe that Jesus Christ is the only Son of God, who offered his life as a sacrifice for the sins of the world and then boldly rose from the dead on Easter. Confessional: We believe that God has preserved and passed down to us a precious heritage from the Reformation. So we believe that the Lutheran Confessions are correct and tru in their exposition of God's Word. Committed: We believe that the Holy Spirit has not promised to create and strengthen faith in any other way than through his Word and the Sacraments. We are committed to upholding the Bible as 100% inspired without mistake or error. Compelled: We believe that Chrsit's love compels us our actions of thanksgiving and gratitude. So we worship our God regularly. We come together to study his Word in formal Christian education. We share our faith with the people around us. In fact, God's people strive to do all "for the glory of God" (I Corinthians 10:31).
Sometimes people get braver when they realize they are nearing the end. They speak things they couldn’t or wouldn’t say before, even to the powerful, because they realize they have nothing to lose.
The message of repentance and forgiveness of sins through Jesus’ death on the cross has many powerful enemies. Sometimes those enemies are religious people, rebellious spirits and heretics. Sometimes those enemies are people of this world who worship their own personal desires and glory in their shame.
It doesn’t matter how powerful the enemies are. God persists in speaking his truth and drawing our eyes to his Son, who will help us persevere to the end and speak truth to power.
Give a single bag of M&Ms to siblings in middle school and tell them to share. You will witness counting done with accounting-like precision. Each child will get an equal amount of candy because that is fair. That’s what’s expected! Human beings have an incredibly strong sense of fairness.
That is why it can be so amazing when we see how God unexpectedly dispenses blessing and grace. The prophet Jonah was perplexed when he saw God’s mercy on a nation that was an enemy to Jonah’s people. Like Jonah, we need to stop expecting God to be fair. He does not give us what we deserve. Instead, in his grace, he shows us mercy. That’s amazing!
09/23/2026
Each year, we as brothers and sisters in faith, walk upon the field of battle, as we shoot each other with little foam darts. At the same time, we those who think this will be funny to watch, to observe the chaos, and merriment. This was rescheduled from last Sunday due to the weather. Now this great event will be held Sunday September 27th, after worship.
09/21/2026
The good news is that what pleases God is to have a relationship with the people he created. When that relationship is broken by our selfish disobedience, what pleases him is to restore that relationship by sending his Son to suffer in our place. What pleases him is to demonstrate amazing grace by showing mercy to every sinner for the sake of his Son. If God were limited in any way, if God operated according to what we think is right, we could only fear him. But instead, he is pleased to love, forgive, and restore. And nothing can stand in his way.
Prayer:
Gracious God, in all of life’s circumstances, I know that you will do what pleases you and bless me by your amazing grace. Help me to trust your loving care. Amen.
Read the full Daily Devotion here: https://wels.net/dev-daily/dd20260921/
It might be expected for someone to look sorry when they are caught doing something wrong. You might even see tears and hear words of apology. But you might not be surprised if the shock of being caught wears off and so does the intensity of the repentance.
Real repentance looks different. God doesn’t want us to simply go through religious motions like some sort of show. God’s desire is that our repentance would demonstrate sincere sorry over sin. It might be unexpected, but God wants us to see the grace and forgiveness he has shown us in Christ, and in response, to love him back deeply and sincerely.
09/18/2026
Each year, we as brothers and sisters in faith, walk upon the field of battle, as we shoot each other with little foam darts. At the same time, we those who think this will be funny to watch, to observe the chaos, and merriment. This year, we are planning our event on September 20th. This is one week later than we normally meet, so that we don’t have to wait for our meetings to be finished. We will be serving hot dogs, for those who want one, and encourage everyone to bring a dish to pass. Come and enjoy our monthly Friends & Food get-together.
09/17/2026
We have been forgiven in Christ, we, too, can forgive with kindness, compassion and love. God doesn’t promise that it will be easy. So, he gives us these beautiful words. They are not just an example for us. They build us up with his love and power so that we can forgive from our hearts out of love for God.
Prayer:
God, we know we are filled with sin and that it makes true forgiveness hard to give. Forgive us for our weakness. Fill our hearts with the knowledge of our Savior, Jesus. Help us to forgive freely and with compassion when wrong has been done to us. Help us to daily set the same example for our little ones through our words and actions. Amen.
Read the full devotion here: https://wels.net/ecme-dev/ec20260914/
09/16/2026
It can be tough, being away from your family, in a strange (or not so strange) town, while away at college. We here at St. Mark, want to help out those who are away, to remind them that we have not forgotten them. So, we are going to do another college care package. If you are interested in helping, please bring to church anything you might have wanted, while away at school. Or, if you don’t want to shop, but still want to help, our volunteer is more than happy to do your shopping for you. DUE SEPT 27th.
09/14/2026
Joseph did not take revenge on his brothers. He reassured them, cared for them, and spoke kindly to them. Your Savior does even more. When guilt tells you that God must still be angry, listen to Jesus instead. His cross says the punishment has been paid. His empty tomb says the payment was enough. What seems unforgivable to you is not beyond the forgiveness of Jesus.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, when guilt makes me doubt your forgiveness, direct me to your cross and assure me that my sins have been paid for completely. Amen.
Read the full devotion here: https://wels.net/dev-daily/dd20260914/
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1710 W College Avenue
Normal, IL
61761
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