Living Our Baptized Life in Christ

Galatians 2:20

March 27, 2026

Bishop Jeff Miskus presided over the installation of Rev. Travis Schmidt at Faith Lutheran Church, Arlington Heights, IL. Congregation members were overjoyed, and the service was filled with special music and song. A meal and fellowship followed worship.

Bishop Miskus recently visited Rev. Doug Hoag and the congregation of Trinity Lutheran Church, New Lenox, IL, where he preached and enjoyed a time of fellowship. Rev. Hoag was a classmate of the Bishop some 35 years ago at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN, and they continue to be friends today.

Call Received

The Rev. Ryan B. Schnieder (Indiana District) has received a Divine Call to serve as Sole Pastor at St. Mark’s, Ferndale, CA.

We encourage congregations to reproduce and share the following message with your members. Click here for Lifeline's "Holy Week 2026" reproducible file in .pdf format.

Meet a member of the Ministerial Health Commission.

Marianne Jackson

Parish Nurse, Sarnia, Ontario 

Canadian Cell: (519) 466-5923 

mejmominator@gmail.com 

Marianne is a graduate of Hamilton and District School of Nursing (Mohawk College - 1973) and continues to maintain her Registered Nurse status and license to practice from the College of Nurses of Ontario.  

She obtained a certificate in Occupational Health and Safety from Metropolitan University in Toronto, Ontario and held the designation as a Certified Occupational Health Nurse within the Canadian Nurses Association until 2019. She completed her certificate in Parish Nursing from Concordia University in Alberta, Canada (2009) and completed an IDEAS Advanced Learning Program offered to health professionals towards leading quality improvement efforts in patient healthcare, experience, and outcomes.  

Through her memberships with several professional nursing associations, Marianne continues to participate in continuing education opportunities in Occupational Health, Faith Nursing, Health and Wellness and Competencies of Nursing Practice. 

Marianne began her nursing career at the community hospital (Bluewater Health) in Sarnia (1973-1979) and then pursued a 40+ year career as an Occupational Health Nurse in Sarnia for a global company. Upon retirement, she continued to work part time in Occupational Health and for Rapids Family Health Team (a primary care facility) as the Occupational Health and Quality Assurance Coordinator (2010-2017) and currently is a contract consultant.  

Marianne has been married to her husband Tom for 50 years. They have three grown children and three grandsons. She volunteers as a Board member for a community art and culture organization and also at various health related events. In her spare time, Marianne enjoys her Book Club, attending musical and literary events, and traveling to various places around the globe. 

Mission 1-1-1 is a very simple, yet powerful, ministry. It is NOT burdensome, nor sacrificial. It involves every baptized member of the Body of Jesus in your congregation, from the newest baby baptized to the oldest member. It demonstrates the power of the beautiful body of Christ working together, prompted by faith. It shows how much can be accomplished by many, giving little.

Here's the plan: $1/per baptized member/per week. Simple, right? Self-explanatory almost. Not burdensome, nor sacrificial. All can participate.

If your congregation has not yet begun this work, please prayerfully consider it. All of the information you need to get started can be found on the district website. It is the goal of this campaign to saturate our efforts with Scripture, through where the Holy Spirit moves us, and surround them with communication.

Luke 10:42 “…but few things are needed—or indeed, only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

While it is also scriptural that “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35), it seems to depend on who is doing the giving and receiving. Jesus himself declares that Mary has chosen better, as she receives from Him, vs. serves Him, as Martha does.

We know that Lent is a time for reflecting and receiving, as Mary does.

We reflect on our sinful nature, repent of it, and receive the forgiveness from the only One who can truly provide it.

Once having received all that our baptismal forgiveness brings, we aim to give what we have received to others in our mission efforts.

In this way, we live out our baptism:

Matthew 28:19-20 “Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

We lift in prayer those affected by the tragedy in Nebraska.

We pray for Pastor George Schaetzle, who is scheduled for surgery.

District daily prayers for April 2026 are located on our website.

Your prayer concerns are important to the English District. If you have a prayer request you would like shared in this newsletter, email the district office.

“Exploring God’s Mission Here” is a self-study resource designed to help facilitate “tough conversations within congregations that are in challenging spots.” It seeks to address the spiritual and emotional side of those conversations while also helping to isolate the relevant facts and numbers. The Bible study includes questions to guide congregational self-appraisal, then points the congregation toward possible next steps, such as revitalization, developing partnerships, church planting/replanting, or even a blessed end. This study is designed to be led by an individual who has been prepared to serve in this role by our English District Mission Executive, Pastor Derek Mathers. If you or your congregation would like to make use of this beneficial study, please contact Pastor Mathers and he will resource your ministry to this end.

Please visit lc.lcms.org to submit your congregation’s end-of-year statistics and update your current list of lay leaders by Tuesday, March 31st. If the username and/or password that was created for the congregation is unknown, follow the on-screen helps on the login page to recover the congregation’s credentials.

Thank you in advance for providing this valuable information. Should you require assistance or have any questions, email Rosters & Statistics at LCMS or call (314)996-1366.

Nominations are requested for the third annual Roger D. Pittelko Ille Dilexit Ecclesiam* Award (*He loved the Church).

The English District has created this award to recognize and celebrate pastors who have served God’s people well in the English District. 

Recipients of this award must meet the following criteria:

• He is an ordained pastor who served in the English District.
• He has retired from full-time active parish ministry.
• He exhibited a lifetime of faithfulness to our God and service to God’s people through congregations and the wider field of the English District.

Download the nomination form from the English District website.

The deadline for submitting nominations is Wednesday, April 1, 2026. The recipient of this award will be announced as part of the 2026 Professional Church Workers Conference.

Contact John Hoover, LCEF District Vice President, by email or phone 314-276-3370 for more information.

Contact Ron Grimm, English District Gift Planning Counselor, 412-584-7039 or visit www.LCMSFoundation.org.

For more information, please contact our Operations Department at 314-394-2790.

Faith, Overgaard, AZ

The men of Faith Lutheran Church, served by Pastor Rodney Schmeltz, recently enjoyed a time of fellowship and delving into Scripture at the Men's Breakfast and Bible Study group.

Calvary, Mechanicsburg, PA

LWML Philadelphia Zone members of Calvary Lutheran Church presented a check to support the Operation Barnabas Military Share Food program. Operation Barnabas is a ministry of the LCMS that supports those in the Armed Forces.

The LCMS Church is facing a significant shortage of professional church workers. The English District provides financial aid to English District applicants enrolled in synodical-approved church work programs (pastor, teacher, DCE, DCO, deaconess, etc.). Click here for more information and the application. (Scholarships are not given to interns, vicars, or graduate students.)

There is a separate application for colloquy students which also can be found using the link above. 

The deadline for receipt of applications is June 1. 

Please consider sharing this information with your church and school families, especially those considering professional church work. It might be that this assistance will add one more worker to the Kingdom! 

Due to Executive Director Rev. Dr. Matthew Heise’s upcoming retirement, the Lutheran Heritage Foundation (LHF) has begun the search for a new Executive Director. As an LCMS recognized service organization, qualified candidates must be an ordained LCMS pastor passionate about LHF’s work of translating and publishing the good books of our Lutheran faith for churches in nearly 100 countries around the world. To learn more about this position AND to submit your name (or the name of a person you believe would be qualified) for consideration of this Call, click here.

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis has launched “Light from Above,” a new video series hosted by Seminary President Dr. Thomas J. Egger. “Light from Above” offers viewers a regular look into campus life as the Seminary carries out its mission to prepare the church’s pastors, missionaries and deaconesses. Watch the first episode here.

ENGLISH DISTRICT LCMS

248-476-0039

info@englishdistrict.org

www.englishdistrict.org

Connect with us