Ministries

Confirmation Program

Confirmation is a time to explore what it means to believe in God. It is a time to ask questions about God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit and what it has to do with your life. It’s also a time to dig deeper into God’s word, to explore what it means to be a Lutheran and find out how that is different from other faiths. The point is to begin to understand what you believe, to affirm the baptismal promises made by parents and sponsors, and to claim your faith as your own.

• When a child is baptized, parents promise to:
• Bring the child to services in God’s house
• Teach that child the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments
• Place in their hands the Holy Scriptures
• Provide for instruction in the Christian Faith

The confirmation program supports families in keeping these promises.

Our confirmation program is led by our Pastor, Justin Fenger and linked to our youth group. In addition to confirmation classes, students will have opportunities to participate in service projects, retreats, mission trips, to work with a mentor, and be part of a whole host of fun activities to grow together in faith and friendship.

Confirmation classes are held during the school year on Wednesday evenings. To learn more contact the office 651-583-2340.

Youth Group

The Youth Group is open to all youth grades 6 – 12. You need not be a member of Immanuel to participate. All are welcome. The youth group builds on what it taught in confirmation and provides opportunities to grow together in faith.

Some of the youth activities include:

• Youth Quake
• Retreats
• Lock-ins
• Mission Trips
• Feed My Starving Children
• Wreath Making – annual fundraiser
• Roadside clean-up community service
• Bonfires and hay rides
• Snow tubing
• Immanuel’s Easter Breakfast
• And much more!

Come and be a part of it. Bring a friend. For more information contact youth leaders, Jason and DeeDee Fredlund, at 651-465-6130 or via email below.

CONTACT JASON & DEEDEE

WELCA – Women of the ELCA

Immanuel’s women meet periodically to coordinate projects such as the annual Christmas brunch, craft sale, and bake sale.

Sarah Circle

The Sarah Circle is a women’s group dedicated to service. This group provides handmade quilts for baptisms. They gather items for people served by Family Pathways and the Refuge. They host community fund raising events such as Turkey Bingo and use funds to assist with special projects at Immanuel and in the community.

Naomi Circle

This group of dedicated women meet monthly for Bible study and fellowship, using the Gather resources of the ELCA.

Tanzania Companion Congregation – Itonya

Immanuel is partnered with the Itonya Lutheran Parish of the Iringa Diocese, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania. This ministry is part of the Bega Kwa Bega (Shoulder to Shoulder in Swahili) program of the St. Paul Area Synod. Immanuel provides financial support for education, transportation, and building projects. In 2017 Immanuel helped fund a healthy drinking water distribution system for the village of Itonya. It was designed by University of Minnesota engineering students through a special class and trip, and implemented by St. Paul Partners. Pastor Marla Amborn represented the congregation on a visit to Itonya in 2016. Others are welcome and encouraged to be part of this ministry of prayer, presence, and projects.

LEARN MORE

Liberian Training Center

Immanuel is supporting an effort to build a training center in Liberia to help people who had to leave during the Liberian Civil War to return to their home country. The center is planned to teach trades – like carpentry and plumbing – and also to help people make the tough adjustment from living in a refugee camps to becoming self-sufficient at home.

Church Council

The church council provides lay leadership for the administrative, finance, and facility needs of the congregation. Together we seek to discern God’s ministry and support the congregation in living into God’s mission for Immanuel.

Stewardship of Time & Treasure

The goal of our stewardship ministry is to help God’s people grow in their relationship with Jesus and to make a difference in the world by joyfully returning to God what he has first given us – ourselves, our time, and our possessions.

We are a dedicated group with a desire to educate and encourage each other and the members of our congregation in our discipleship with Jesus. The Stewardship Committee seeks to help the congregation grow in its stewardship year-round, with a special emphasis on sharing of time, talents, and financial resources each fall.

If you’d like to be part of the Stewardship ministry, contact the church office at 651-583-2340

Service Groups

As Christians, we are called to follow Jesus’ example of loving service and serve one another. One way we fulfill that command is through congregation-wide participation in service groups. For more than 30 years all confirmed members of Immanuel have been part of service groups, taking turns serving meals for funerals, Lenten suppers, Memorial Day dinners, pot lucks and other church functions. Due to COVID, Some restrictions now apply. No time is the impact of this service more meaningful than at a funeral when the community comes together to provide hospitality for grieving family members and friends. That commitment to serving one another is one thing that distinguishes this congregation and helps us live into our mission as “A welcoming community rooted in Christ, growing in faith and serving with joy!”

Parish Care Team

The Parish Care Team brings a Christian caring presence offering comfort to those who are in need of support, either short term or long term. Trained lay people from the congregation connect with those who are home-bound, experiencing illness, recovering from injury, or dealing with a loss through visits, calls, and cards. The team also hosts periodic communion worship services at nursing homes and healing services. Occasionally the Parish Care Team sponsors educational workshops and fellowship events.

If you or a family member would like to receive confidential support from a Parish Care Team member, or if you’d be interesting in serving on the Parish Care Team please contact our Pastor or the church office 651-583-2340.

Prayer Shawl Group

The group wraps people in God’s love and care. These hand-knit or crocheted prayer shawls are given to persons needing comfort and healing or in celebration of a special event. The members have fellowship with one another, enjoy a cup of tea and a special treat along with a brief devotion, meeting 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month January – November. The co-founder of the original prayer shawl ministry says, “Sometimes there are no words. A prayer shawl wraps someone in a hug that’s the accumulation of thoughts and prayers for them.”

Quilting Ministry

The Quilting Ministry makes and distributes quilts to people in need. Most quilts are boxed and donated to Lutheran World Relief, but donations are also made to local groups and families in need.

All are welcome to be part of the quilting ministry. No sewing skills are required as there are many opportunities to help. Thread, needles, yarn, fabric, and sewing machines are always available. You may tie quilts, press and organize fabric, pack completed tied quilts, cut fabric, lay out fabric or donate fabric, yarn and thread. You may come and go as you please, whatever works for your schedule…. but try to stay for the potluck at noon. This is a great tine of fellowship and sharing God’s love with one another.

The regular meeting is the third Tuesday of the month at church in the old fellowship hall. For more information contact the church office at 651-583-2340.

Senior Choir

The mighty voices of the Immanuel choir make a joyful noise beyond their number. Under the direction Momoh Freeman, the choir enjoys fellowship and singing together on a diverse range of music from Swedish to African-American to traditional Gospel.

Immanuel Worship Band

The third Sunday of each month, this band enlivens worship with a range of styles including gospel, country, jazz, and contemporary renditions of traditional hymns.

Sunshine Singers

This charming group of ageless singers brightens the day of their audiences with cheery tunes such as Keep on the Sunnyside.

Immanuel Brass

This ensemble enhances special worship services with the triumphant fanfare of human breath through brass horns.