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This Week at
St. Paul's Lutheran Church-Lionville
April 6, 2025
"Grow in Faith, Serve with Love, Invite into Fellowship"
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Fifth Sunday in Lent
Sunday, April 6
8:00 am Traditional Service
9:15 am Faith Formation (for all ages)
10:30 am Contemporary Service
Attend in person or worship online
Everyone is welcome!
Second Sunday of Every Month:
4:00 pm - Rejoicing Spirits Service
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Our Prayer List.
We pray for Lois, Loretta, Christine, Larry, Eamon, Arthur, Hunter, Mike, Kim, Sue, Samantha, Gene, Dave, Nick, Ron, Elaina, Adam, Anne, Samantha D., Patty, Deb, Helene M., Samantha, Michael, Steven, Rick, Lucy, Janet K., Amy C., Ruth, Sid, Sandy L., Pat, Marlene, Garnet, Chip, and Jean. We lift up Daniel, Zach, Alistar, and Chris in the military. We pray for peace in Ukraine and the Middle East. We pray for those we now name aloud or lift up quietly in our hearts.
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Easter Flowers
St. Paul's will be ordering flowers to decorate the sanctuary on Easter. If you would like to sponsor a hyacinth, lily, or tulips in memory or honor of a loved one, please submit this online form. Orders are due Friday, April 11.
Flowers can be picked up following the 10:30 am service on Sunday, April 20, or from 9:00 am - 4:30 pm on Tuesday, April 22. Dedications will be listed in the Easter bulletin.
Each flower is $10. Please make your check out to "St. Paul's Lutheran Church" and write "Easter flowers" in the memo line. You can put your check in the offering plate, drop it off from 9:00 am - 4:30 pm Monday - Thursday, or mail it to the church at 104 S. Village Avenue, Exton, PA 19341.
If you have any questions, please contact the church office. Thank you!
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Crafters Chocolate Eggs
The crafters are selling their candy eggs on Sundays after church services. The chocolate-covered coconut and peanut butter eggs are $10.00/box. The money they raise from selling the chocolates helps pay for the sewing supplies they use for their projects throughout the year.
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Pop Up Thrift Store News!
Our next pop up thrift store is this weekend, Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6 from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. Donations of items for the next sale are now being accepted and may be left in the air locks between the entrance doors. Donations of housewares and home decor items are particularly appreciated.
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Easter Breakfast
Let us take the fuss out of Easter Breakfast! Social Ministry will be serving up breakfast from 9:00 - 10:15 am on Easter Sunday, April 20. Come enjoy Brian Lloyd's famous homemade quiche along with French toast sticks, hash brown patties, sausage, fruit, and more. A freewill donation is requested and will be used to fund the lunches for the Living Love Lunch program and the Honey Brook Thanksgiving Food Drive. Come enjoy a delicious breakfast while helping others in our broader community. We understand plans can be somewhat fluid but please help give us an idea of how much food to make by signing up online. If you are able to help with the breakfast, sign up here.
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Easter Family Fun Night
St. Paul's is having an Easter Family Fun Night on Saturday, April 12 beginning at 5:00 pm. This event will have food, games, crafts, and a special glow-in-the-dark Easter egg hunt! (It's also the week before St. Matthew's egg hunt, so you can do BOTH!) Sign up here to join the fun: April 12th St. Paul's Family Fun Night.
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Holy Week Postcards
We have Holy Week postcards available for you to share with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers and acquaintances. It's amazing how a simple invite to church through a postcard can change someone's life. Feel free to grab a few and bless someone through our Holy Week and Easter services!
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Easter Food Drive - Donations Due This Sunday and Food Box Delivery
Our Easter food drive is wrapping up, and all donations are due back to St. Paul's by this Sunday, April 6. Please consider donating food or monetarily to help us provide food boxes to local families in need. The primary recipients are families supported by the Care Center in West Chester. Food and monetary donations can both be dropped off at church. Checks should be made to St. Paul's with a comment about going to the Food Drive. Click here to see a list of items for a complete food box or to sign up to donate.
We will also need help to deliver the packed Easter food boxes to the Care Center in West Chester. We will meet at church on Sunday, April 13 following the 2nd service (usually around 11:45 am), load up the trucks with the boxes, and then caravan to the Care Center. Once at the Care Center we will unpack the boxes and help any of the recipients carry to their cars or nearby apartments. We generally leave the Care Center no later than 2:00 pm. Sign up here to help.
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St. Matthew's Annual Easter Egg Hunt
St. Matthew's annual Easter Egg Hunt will be held Saturday, April 19 beginning at 10:00 am at St. Matthew's. All kids from toddlers through 5th grade are welcome to come participate in the egg hunt and other Easter-related activities. If you know you are coming, sign up here to help us with planning the event: April 19th St. Matthew's Egg Hunt.
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Rare Birds April Lunch
Rare Birds (ages 50+), please join us on Tuesday, April 8 at noon for a springtime luncheon in the church social hall. If you have any photos of past Easter celebrations please bring them to share. RSVP to Karen Lammey by Sunday, April 6.
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Twin Valley Coffee Youth Fundraiser
Our St. Paul's/St. Matthew's Youth Ministry has partnered with Twin Valley Coffee to raise funds. Our fundraiser will be completely contact-less. Twin Valley Coffee has created a unique online store for our team. Simply share the site with friends and family members near or far. Make sure to tell them that Twin Valley Coffee will roast and ship each order as soon as it is placed. The profit from every bag of coffee purchased and merchandise from our online store will add to our fundraising total. We will make $2.50 profit for every 12 oz. bag, $10 profit for every 5 lb. bag of coffee, and $3.50 profit for every “5 Small Cold Brews” card and “5 Large Cold Brews” card sold. We will make $1.00 on every “1 Small Cold Brew” and “1 Large Cold Brew” card sold. We will also make $5 profit for each apparel item and $3 profit for each drinkware item sold. Our fundraiser will run from April 11 to May 2.
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No Sunday School This Week or Easter Sunday
Please note that there will be no Sunday School on Sunday, April 6. Instead the children are invited to help pack Easter food boxes during the normal Sunday School time (9:15 am). There will also be no Sunday School on Easter Sunday, April 20.
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Church Office Closed Easter Monday
The church office will be closed on Monday, April 21 in observance of Easter Monday and to allow our staff time to celebrate Easter with their families. Regular hours (9:00 am - 4:30 pm Mondays - Thursdays) will resume on Tuesday, April 22.
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Penny Wars Youth Fundraiser Update
As of Monday, March 31, St. Paul's has 9,214 points, and St. Matthew's has 14,286! St. Matthew's seems to be pulling away and Pastor Christian is looking a lot more calm, but will St. Paul's rally and catch up? Total dollars raised so far are $281.60. Remember, when the money is counted after Easter Sunday, the pastor of the losing congregation will star in a costumed dance performance, and it WILL be memorable! AND, if we raise a combined $1,000 or more between the two congregations, Craig will ALSO be involved in the event! What are penny wars? For more detailed info about this friendly youth fundraiser competition with St. Matthew's Chester Springs, see the display in the Narthex.
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Chat and Chews Book Club
The Chat and Chews Sunday School Book Club will now meet on the THIRD Sunday of each month, after the late service in the Lounge next to the Hospitality Room. Our next meeting will actually be on the FOURTH SUNDAY on Sunday, April 27 due to Easter.
We will be reading "Ordinary Grace" by William Kent Kruegar. You do not have to finish the book or even read it to join us in a lively and faithful discussion. Please contact Gwen Werner or call the church office for more information. Happy Reading!
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Maundy Thursday Seder Meal
Our Service on Maundy Thursday, April 17 at 6:00 pm will be an interactive Seder Meal in Fellowship Hall which will serve as a Christian adaption of the Jewish Passover Seder. This will connect last year's Last Supper which we enacted on Maundy Thursday with the events of Jesus' crucifixion. We can use a few extra hands to help prepare the food on Maundy Thursday at noon. And, help at the service with food distribution and clean-up is always appreciated. Please sign-up online to help if you're able.
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Holy Hilarity Sunday
This year we continue our “every other year” pattern of Holy Hilarity the Sunday after Easter. In the Greek early church there was a tradition of having a service of joy and celebration after Easter. The custom was rooted in the musings of early church theologians (like Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, and John Chrysostom) that God played a practical joke on the devil by raising Jesus from the dead. "Risus paschalis,” the Easter laugh the early theologians called it. (It’s also called Holy Humor or Bright Sunday in some traditions.) Like many things in the history of the church, this idea has made a resurgence in more recent years. Two years back we had a joyous celebration of Holy Hilarity and we hope you can attend and celebrate some fun and light-heartedness as God’s power has defeated all darkness and gloom!
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Exton/Lionville Ministerium Music Fest
Please join with the folks of our area as we celebrate the incredible musical gifts of our churches on Sunday, May 4 at 7:00 pm at St. Paul's Lutheran Church at 104 S. Village Avenue, Exton. (Online at YouTube.com/StPaulsLionville) The evening will feature a variety of music from our various local congregations followed by a time of fellowship with others!
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College Grads
Share your college graduate’s name, picture, college, degree, area of study, and future plans for a spotlight feature in the May newsletter! Please send photo and details to Maureen@StPaulsLionville.org
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Younger Families "Family Faith Friends" Gathering
Younger families, come to our "Family Faith Friends" end-of-school-year gathering on Sunday, June 8 from noon to 3:00 pm at Warwick County Park! Families with kids in preschool through fifth grade are invited to join us for a barbecue and relaxed afternoon of food and fun at one of the park's pavilions. (Older and younger siblings are welcome, too.) Get to know other families at St. Paul's and St. Matthew's as we mark the completion of another school year and the start of summer! Families are asked to bring a side dish, snack, or dessert to share with the group; burgers, hot dogs, and beverages will be provided. RSVP here to be part of the fun: June 8th Family Faith Friends Gathering. For questions, contact Craig Miller at craigyouthmin@gmail.com.
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Parsonage Grant Research
We're currently forming a small team to do research to see if our historic parsonage is eligible for any grants. If you've looked into this in the past, have experience in grant writing or would like to be part of this team, please contact Jenn Pindle-Lloyd or Bryon Wornson.
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Help With High School Senior Dinner
We need help with the May 2 High School Senior Dinner. We're looking for people to take leadership roles in decoration planning and setup, as well as food planning and preparation. We also need folks to help with setup and cleanup for the event. Please sign up here to help: May 2nd Senior Dinner Help.
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Youth Ministry News
For the most up-to-date event information and signup links,
go online to the Youth Ministry web page at StPaulsLionville.org/youth.
HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS - SAVE THE DATE! We will be having a special celebration and dinner for our 2025 high school graduates on Friday, May 2 from 6:30 to 9:00 pm at St. Matthew's. Further information is coming, but hold the spot on your calendar now!
CALLING ALL YOUTH - HELP NEEDED WITH OUR EASTER EGG HUNTS! We need 6th through 12th graders who can help hide eggs and run events for both congregations' Easter family events. Helpers are needed on Saturday, April 12 from 3:00 to 7:30 pm at St. Paul's, and on Saturday, April 19 from 8:30 to 11:00 am at St. Matthew's. Here are the signup links to help: April 12th St. Paul's Easter Event Help, and April 19th St. Matthew's Egg Hunt Help. Sign up for one, or sign up for both - the more help we get, the better the events will be for our younger kids!
CAR WASH HELP NEEDED - YOUTH AND PARENTS! On Sunday morning, April 27, youth in sixth through twelfth grade are encouraged to help us with our car wash fundraiser at St. Matthew's. We need plenty of help with washing (youth), as well as shuttling cars around (adults). The event will run from 8:00 am setup through 11:00 am cleanup. Sign up here to have some good, clean fun and raise money for our youth ministry: April 27th St. Matt's Car Wash.
OUR NEXT APPALACHIA SERVICE PROJECT PREP SESSION will be held on Sunday, May 4 from 4:00 until 5:30 pm at St. Paul's. Find out work crew assignments and where we will be serving in Central Appalachia this summer!
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Prayers for Retreat Participants
Please keep in prayer our five youth and four adults who are away this weekend at the Tuscarora Lutheran Youth Retreat, learning more about prayer.
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Coffee Fellowship Help
Our coffee fellowship sign up is empty! Please sign up to lend a hand and provide Sunday morning fellowship snacks and prepare coffee. Get together with friends, family, or your church group and have some fun! Sign up in the narthex or online.
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VBS is Coming!
Hello everyone! Road Trip VBS will be held July 21 - 25, 2025! We welcome students from age 4 (by 1/1/25) through 5th grade (completed 2024-2025 school year). Older students and adults are encouraged to volunteer as helpers. We are looking for station leaders at this time. If you are interested in leading crafts or snack please reach out to Leah or Cari. We are happy to answer any questions you may have regarding the level of commitment. More information and registration forms (and volunteer forms!) are available on our website. We are looking forward to seeing you at VBS this year!!
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Pave the Way Parking Lot Update
To learn more about this project and be part of God leading us forward, check out StPaulsLionville.org/parkinglot.
Project Finances as of 03/25/25:
Pledges: $60,720
Funds Received: $39,040
The drawing to the left shows our parking lot with a little over 100 spots.
- Each red car represents $1,000 in pledges.
- Each green car represents $1,000 in received funds.
- As the parking lot fills up with cars, we get closer to our goal of $100,000.
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