Current News

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”  Isaiah 52:7

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as of 20August 2025

Devotion:
The Cross of Christ Is the Way into the Kingdom of God 
With the cross of Christ, the time has come “to gather all nations and tongues” (Isaiah 66:18). The sign of the cross is set forth in the preaching of the Gospel, the declaration of the Lord’s glory “among the nations” (Isaiah 66:19). Many “will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:29), but only by the narrow way of the cross. Those who refuse to follow Christ crucified will ultimately find only “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Luke 13:28), whereas Christ’s disciples, called from all the nations, will eat and drink with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of God. They will come into “the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” (Hebrews 12:22).

Prayer List Requests: If you would like a prayer request published, please contact the Church Secretary at 580-353-0556 or email at stjohnlcsec@gmail.com.  What a friend we have in Jesus...take it to the Lord in Prayer.

Life Quotes: “We stand together, one in mind and heart, and with one voice, in defense of the lives of our unborn children—God’s precious little ones. Yet, what we stand for is not only the lives of these precious unborn children but also the moms, the dads, the grandmas and grandpas, the young and the old, the healthy and the sick and dying. What we stand for is the very value—the very gift of life itself.”

Life Thoughts in the Church Year: Proverbs 3:8 promises that fearing the Lord and turning from evil brings healing to “your navel.” Belly buttons testify to gestation. Scripture’s prescription for surprise pregnancy encourages rejecting death. If the Apostle Bartholomew gave his very skin trusting in the resurrection body (tradition suggests his martyrdom flayed him alive), the Gospel leaves no room for “my body, my choice.”

The flowers on the altar are given to the glory of God by the Recklein family of Cliff Recklein, Sr.’s birthday. We wish God’s richest blessings on the Recklein family.

Altar Flowers:  
The flower chart for 2025 is up and waiting on you to reserve your special day! If you would like to place flowers on the altar for an Anniversary, Birthday, Memorial or other special occasion, please remember to sign up on the “Flower Chart.” Please sign your name and the special occasion. The cost is $75.00 for both arrangements. It is permissible to have more than one person sign up for a Sunday and split the cost. You can also call the office at 580-353-0556 and Sandra will sign you up.

Please note for security reasons if you come into the church from the north door or the kitchen and there are people in the office please make them feel safe and announce yourself.

Announcements! In order to ensure that announcements are included in the weekly bulletin please have them into the office by Thursday at 1 p.m. We want to help you get the word out. Our office hours are Monday – Friday 9 a.m. till 3 p.m. with an hour lunch from 11:30 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Women’s Bible Study - Step into the world of Psalms as we read and discuss Everlasting by Christina Hergenrader. We meet each Wednesday in the LWML room at two different times: 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. The cost of the book is $17 and can be purchased at Bible Study. Hope to see you there!

There is a need for a few pieces of furniture. If you have anything you are wanting to donate please see Sandra.

Save the date: LWML Ladies' Fall Fest: Join Lutheran sisters of the Lawton Zone for a morning of Bible study and fellowship at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, September 6th, beginning at 9:00 am. Information and registration forms are on the table in the front foyer. Questions? Call Sharon Greene @ 580 695-0655. All women are welcomed and encouraged to attend.

Mites Offering: Saturday August 30rd and Sunday, August 31st will be Mites Sunday! Remember how those mites add up and make a huge difference in mission work throughout the world. “Mighty Mites” are blessed in God’s hands.

LWML Sunday will be celebrated October 11/12. More information to follow. The annual Turkey Dinner fundraiser for LWML will be held on Friday, November 7th. Mark your calendars!

LWML SPECIAL COLLECTIONS for LAWTON FOOD BANK: For the months of August and September, the LWML ladies' are coordinating collections for the Lawton Food Bank. We will be asking for donation of toys for Christmas-time delivery as well as boxed foods. Boxed foods can consist of anything in a box, such as Hamburger Helper, mac and cheese, cereal, oatmeal, rice, pasta, other boxed meals, etc. Please place items in the collection boxes in the back of the sanctuary. NOTE: food items may not be previously opened or be past the expiration date on the box. Any opened and expired foods will be disposed of. Thank you in advance for your support of the Lawton Food Bank.

Memorial Services for Ronald Ramming will be held at St. John Lutheran Church on Saturday, August 23rd at 10:30 a.m. Pastor Bill Schneider will officiate, and Elaine Boatsman will play the organ. Following the service all are invited to The Trophy Club located at 2002 NW Cache Rd. Enter through the back entrance of the Cache Road Liquor store. This will be the time for family and friends to share thoughts, make speeches and honor Ronald with a toast. Thank You, Helen.  Click here for Ronald's Obituary.

Would you like to share the love of Jesus and support our St. John Lutheran Preschool at the same time? It’s easy! Simply purchase one of the items on the list and drop it off to the office here at St. John. Thank you in advance for caring for Christ’s little lambs. The list in on the table in the back of the church.

Great News! We received a copy of the church directory on Tuesday for us to proof. It was proofed and sent back to Universal Church Directories. We should have the directory around August 20th.

Men's Ministry.
Mark your calendars, September 3rd, at 6 p.m. for great fellowship, fun and food.

We are grateful to the numerous saints of St. John for their participation and generous donations to the Southwest Oklahoma Pregnancy Resource Center Walk for Life. Their contributions totaled over $1,600, making a significant impact on this worthwhile cause. Thank you once again!

Have You Taken Control of Your Health Today? 
Life Line Screening will be here at Saint John Lutheran Church of Lawton on Thursday, October 16, 2025 offering safe, painless, non-invasive preventive health screenings that are typically not a part of a routine physical. To be more proactive about your health for yourself, your family and your community, please register for these health screenings today. Please refer to the attached e-flyer to get more info about how you can sign up. There is no time like the present to take action! 
Three ways to register: 
• Call toll-free: 1-800-324-9458 promo code HABC001 
• Online: LLSA.SOCIAL/HABC 
• Text: the word circle to 216-279-1607

We will be serving meals to Family Promise starting, Tuesday, August 19th through August 23rd. We will need to provide one meal per day which needs to consist of an entrée, 2 sides and a dessert. The meals can be divided up such as one person providing the entrée, another person providing one of the sides and etc. We have placed sign-up sheets on the credenza by the front of the office. The meals need to be to Family Promise by 4:45 p.m. each day. Family Promise is at located at 901 SW 17th street.

Book Club - The gals at the last Book Club meeting voted on our next reading selection. And the winner is…. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Ann Barrows. Stay tuned for details on our next gathering!

Mission and Volunteer:
If you are looking for a way to serve the church? We need help with the altar duties. The sign-up sheet is on the table in front of the Bible Study Room.
There are many ways that we are able to serve the Lord. One way is to serve as either an usher or a greeter. It takes just a moment of your time, but means so much to our members. Thank you to all who signed up to be a greeter. All months have been filled. There is however, still a need for ushers. Sign up today and take an active part in this ministry here at St. John.
Please don’t forget, we are always collecting pull tabs and aluminum cans. The funds from our efforts aid various outreach programs.

The Lutheran Hour can be heard every Sunday at 9:00 a.m. on K-LAW 101.3 FM. You can also download The Lutheran Hour app for free and listen anytime, anywhere. Find it on the Apple app store, the Amazon Kindle Fire and on Google Play. Or simply listen on your desktop, tablet or smartphone at www.lutheranhour.org.

SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS: Please join us for Sunday School Sign-up on Sept. 7, from 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. We'll have doughnuts and beverages along with some fun family games. Whether your child is new to St. John or has been attending for years, we offer a nurturing environment where they can explore God's Word in age-appropriate ways. Our dedicated teachers are passionate about helping children understand Biblical truths and apply them to everyday life. We can't wait to grow together in faith!

Labor Day Schedule - Sunday School will not meet on Labor Day weekend. See you on September 7th!

Giving opportunities. St. John Lutheran now has several ways to give your offerings. You can select GIVE on the top menu bar or down below at the bottom right of each page on this website.  Of course, you can still use your envelopes.

Please note that we are trying something new on the way announcements are submitted to the office for the bulletin. As always announcements must be submitted prior to 1pm on Thursday or we cannot ensure that the announcement will make it into that week’s bulletin. Please use the format below. I have made a sample for you. 

Title= New Church Announcements Submission Procedure 
Event Coordinator Name= Sandra Harr 
Date Begin= August 19, 2025 
Date End= 31 October 2025 
Body= In order to improve Church announcement submission for clerical staff, this will be done via the web link below. 

https://www.stjohnlawton.com/current-news Click on "Submit Church

 Announcement" below the bible verse". Submission must be done prior to 1 pm on Thursday in order to print the bulletins for preparation on Friday. Thank you for your assistance - Office Staff

Internet Church Calendar: If you are having issues seeing the whole month calendar on your phone, we suggest you rotate your phone to the "Landscape" position, i.e. sideways.  Then you will be able to see the whole month.