home - St. Paul Lutheran Church

Our Staff Welcomes You!

Rev. Mark A. Gefaller
Senior Pastor
Crysten Sanchez
Director of Family Life
Tracy Schmidt
Office Administrator
Jim Schmidt
Facilities Coordinator

Season of Lent

Lent, in most Christian denominations, is the forty-day liturgical season of fasting and prayer before Easter. The forty days represent the time Jesus spent in the desert, where, according to the Bible, he endured temptation by Satan. Different churches will calculate the forty days differently.

The Lenten season is a time of spiritual renewal. Lent prepares the believer—through prayer, penitence, almsgiving and self-denial—for the annual commemoration of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, as celebrated during Holy Week.

Holy Week recalls the events of the Passion of Christ and culminates in what is called the Triduum – the three-day service of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil of Holy Saturday. During this time Christians are moved more deeply than words can express as they walk with Jesus from His last supper in the Upper Room, His betrayal in Gethsemane, His suffering at the hands of sinful men, the agony of His Cross at Calvary, His laying in the tomb, and finally the celebration of His bodily resurrection on Easter morning.

This year as we consider the words of Jesus from the Cross, and meditate on the wounds He endured for our sake that our wounds may be healed, we invite you to join us Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm on a meaningful Lenten journey of faith!

College Ministry at Cornell

Lutheran Student Fellowship (LSF) is the national organization of the LCMS for college students of all faith backgrounds. Moving away from home does not mean you should move away from your relationship with the Lord. Our mission is to connect students with college ministry programs and provide students a church home away from home.

Christ on Campus (ConC) is a Non-Denominational Christian Community. We come from different places and different backgrounds.

What do we have in common?

-A desire to know God in a deeper way.

-A desire to be part of a community of people who are genuine
and compassionate.

-A desire to make a difference in our world.

-A desire to honor Jesus through what we do, what we say, and who we are.

Christ on Campus has been around for more than 25 years, working with God to turn students into Christ-centered laborers.

We do that through large group meetings as well as our small group communities. Also, we believe that faith in Christ is not simply an intellectual endeavor, that being a Christian involves our entire lives. As a result, we encourage everybody to be involved in serving not only the on-campus community, but the community in general. Whether that means visiting the elderly, serving meals to the homeless, or other community projects, people from Christ on Campus are trying to make God's love a reality.

Welcome to St. Paul Lutheran Church!

Located in historic Mount Vernon, Iowa, the members of St. Paul Lutheran Church welcome you to participate in the many activities and personal relationships that a growing congregation has to offer. Whether you are new to the area or have been here a while, our doors are always open to you. So, come join your friends at St. Paul as we share Christ's love!

Mission Statement: In grateful response to God's grace and empowered by the Holy Spirit through Word and Sacraments, the mission of St. Paul Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is to share the love of Christ by word and deed within our church, our community, and our world.

We are… Christ’s Love In Action!

The members of St. Paul Lutheran Church welcome you!

St. Paul Lutheran Church

Come and discover Christ's love in action!

8am Sunday School
9am Worship
10am Fellowship
10:30am Adult Bible Study

Communion celebrated the 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month

Upcoming Events!

Throughout the season of Lent a supper will be served at 5:15pm followed by worship at 6:30 on Wednesday evenings. Meals served will be provided by the jr. high youth, and a free will offering will be taken. The theme of this year's Lenten series is the seven words of Christ that He spoke from the cross as He offered up His life for the life of the world. Each word imparts a blessing and is a word of the Gospel. This series will expound on these words of Christ, linking them to Jesus' words and works recorded in the Gospel as well as the Old Testament prophesies that pointed to Him. Each word delivers His saving death to us that we may trust in Him for forgiveness, life and salvation. Come hear the life-giving words from the cross this Lenten season.

QUILTERS NEEDED to tie quilts on Wednesday afternoons from 2-5pm. No previous experience is needed. Contact Carla Wieben, Kay Hertzler, Gloria Krob or Lillian Johnson for more information, or call the church office (895-8772).

Our Church Family on the Web!