Many of us get excited about Jesus on Easter, but then end up right back in the daily grind that seems to push faith to the sidelines. We become emotional on Good Friday as we enter the story of what Jesus has done for us, but the pressures of the world build and our renewed passion for following Jesus fades.

What if this year was different?

What if the next 30 days weren’t a slow descent back to normalcy, but rather an engrossing journey toward a deeper, richer, fuller life with God?

This year we invite you to join the 30 DAY EASTER CHALLENGE.

Completely free. No strings attached. No ‘enter your credit card here, cancel at anytime.’

We are launching this 30 day challenge to kickstart a spiritual journey, together.

For the 30 days after Easter we will send a daily email with bible verses, prayer practices, daily challenges, and other tips and ideas to help you grow spiritually and experience the newness of life your soul has been longing for.

What does the 30 Day Easter Challenge entail?

Sign up now to get on the mailing list.

In 2023, Good Shepherd undertook an extensive search process and selected LifeWise Stl as our local service partner to connect with at a deeper level. The hope was to increase congregational engagement and improve our knowledge of the needs in our local community. By now, most everyone has heard of LifeWise, and several members of our congregation have already donated items or volunteered their time. You may recall that there were collections of backpacks for students and for their holiday market. Several of our members participated as well. That was just a taste!

Last week, Scott Walker, president of LifeWise visited our congregation and gave us an overview of all that they do. Their mission, “...is to help individuals and families achieve economic well-being by providing high-impact, relationship-based programming and by addressing systemic barriers to their success.”. What does this mean? They offer wrap-around services for all ages, from infants to seniors. Some examples are that they have an early childhood center, after school tutoring, and a summer literacy program for kids. They have economic education, lending circles and mental health programs for adults. They also provide seniors with companionship support and help teens to prepare for college. It’s an impressive range of support that seeks to transform the lives of those that they serve through ongoing relationships instead of a few transactional connections.

Good Shepherd now has a LifeWise committee that is working to coordinate our congregational local service goal with opportunities for engagement at LifeWise. We recently organized a Lenten collection, and we will do a few more collections throughout the year. This summer we will support their Freedom School Summer Literacy Camp and Back to School event. Looking ahead, we will help with the Holiday Market. Stay tuned for information and opportunities to sign up and participate in these events.

If you want to volunteer as an individual, there are many opportunities! Take a look at their website.

It is our hope that Good Shepherd and LifeWise Stl will have a fruitful and rewarding relationship that is blessed by God and where the Holy Spirit is at work! If you would like to know more, please reach out to Sonia Francis at srfrancis03@gmail.com.

Blessings,

Tim Sorensen

On March 30, we hosted our Children’s Easter Celebration! There were games and crafts in the Narthex, and egg hunts held outside. The gorgeous weather brought us over 60 children from Good Shepherd. The highlight this year was that, much like the tomb, the eggs we hid were EMPTY. Instead, we had a room FILLED with color-coded tables full of candy and treats, where empty eggs were traded for treats at the same-colored table.

All 100+ people had a great time!

We had fifteen volunteers from the congregation (middle and high schoolers plus a few adults) run the games, oversee the crafts, and hide 1,200 eggs! This community event wouldn’t be possible without the help of all these generous people, and we look forward to even more fun next year!