About Worship
Worship at All Saints might look and feel a little different. We carefully and prayerfully select a worship theme each season, and we choose songs and liturgical elements that help communicate that theme and bring us closer to God and to one another.
All Saints Lutheran Church is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and participates in the Synod Authorized Ministry (SAM) program offered by the Southeastern Iowa Synod. Bishop Amy Current has authorized Wanda Barber, Matthew Reece, and Julie Schoville to be Synod Authorized Ministers able to preside over all worship services and offer pastoral care. The Synod provides training and instruction throughout the year and fully supports this program.
Colors for the season of Pentecost: Autumn/November (09.06.2026 – 11.22.2026)
Time after Pentecost (09.06.2026 – 11.22.2026): Green is used, to indicate our growth in faith as we follow the teachings and ministry of Christ. Some assemblies use differing shades of green throughout the Sundays after Pentecost, a lighter green in summer and a darker green in fall.
Reformation Sunday (10.25.2026): The liturgical color for Reformation Sunday in the ELCA is red, symbolizing the Holy Spirit’s fire, courage, and the ongoing reform of the church. Red paraments and vestments on this day visually proclaim God’s radical grace and the call to be a continually reforming, Spirit-led community.
All Saints Sunday (11.01.2026): For All Saints Sunday, the liturgical color in the ELCA is white. White symbolizes joy, light, resurrection hope, and the communion of all the saints in Christ, both living and departed.
Christ the King (11.22.2026): The final day of the church year uses white, a festive color suggesting light, joy, and the celebration of our Lord.
Worship Information
The Sunday morning Worship Service will be at 10 am in the sanctuary.
This link will open the congregational text for the Sunday morning worship service for the month of September.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yyIkFxxDGXs0S8lyD9vQH70gJtJvZCa1/view?usp=sharing
Pentecost: Autumn/November Season (09.06.2026 – 11.22.2026)
Theme & Write-up
Written by the Director of Music Ministries
We are all saints: Teach us to love and serve all of God’s children
At All Saints Lutheran Church, our name reminds us of something important: all of us are saints. Not because we are perfect, or because we have somehow earned a special status, but because in baptism God has called each of us beloved, claimed us as God’s own, and joined us to the body of Christ. Throughout this season, we will reflect on what it means to live as saints in the ordinary places of our lives. The saints are not only the people whose names we remember or whose stories fill the pages of church history. Saints are people like us—people who laugh and grieve, stumble and begin again, care for one another, and seek to follow Jesus. To be a saint is to recognize that God is at work in our lives and then to allow that grace to shape how we live with one another.
As All Saints, we are called to see all people as children of God and to practice the love and service that Jesus places at the heart of faithful living. This means widening our circle of compassion, welcoming those who may feel like outsiders, caring for those who are hurting, and recognizing the dignity and sacred worth of every person we encounter. It means discovering that serving God’s children is not simply something we do for others; it is one of the ways God forms us into the people we are created to be. During this season, we will ask God to teach us how to love more deeply, serve more generously, forgive more freely, and walk more faithfully alongside our neighbors. All of these ideas are encompassed by our worship theme for the rest of Pentecost: “We are all saints: Teach us to love and serve all of God’s children.”
Altarscape
Sunday, September 13th – 16th Sunday after Pentecost
Ardor (Worship Musicians)
The musicians rehearse from 9:00 to 9:45 am every Sunday morning. You are invited to join us in leading music during the worship service. The musicians for worship can find the service orders and music in the crate on the back pew in the sanctuary for each week. Contact the Director of Music Ministries or the church office if you plan to help lead worship.
Introduction
In Sunday’s second reading Paul questions why we judge one another, since we all stand before the judgment of God. Yet we do sin against one another, and Jesus’ challenge that we forgive seventy-seven times reveals God’s boundless mercy. When we hear the words of forgiveness in worship and sign ourselves with the cross, we are renewed in baptism to be signs of reconciliation in the world.
Prayer of the Day
O Lord God, merciful judge, you are the inexhaustible fountain of forgiveness. Replace our hearts of stone with hearts that love and adore you, that we may delight in doing your will, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Scripture
Genesis 50:15-21 Joseph reconciles with his brothers
After Jacob’s death the brothers of Joseph begged for forgiveness for the crime they had done against him. You intended to do me harm, Joseph said, but God used this as an opportunity to do good and save many lives.
Psalm 103:[1-7] 8-13 Lord, you are full of compassion and mercy. (Ps. 103:8)
Romans 14:1-12 Accepting diversity in the community of faith
This Christian community has significant struggles with diversity. Here Paul helps us understand that despite different practices in worship and personal piety, we do not judge one another. All Christians belong to the Lord Jesus Christ who died for all of us and will judge each of us.
Matthew 18:21-35 A parable of forgiveness in the community of faith
When Peter asks about the limits of forgiveness, Jesus responds with a parable that suggests human forgiveness should mirror the unlimited mercy of God.
Fellowship Time
After worship there is time for refreshments and fellowship in the gathering space.