Welcome! Thank you for joining us for worship today. In our services we gather before our almighty God to receive his gifts and to offer him our worship and praise. Through God’s powerful Word and Sacraments he renews our faith and strengthens us to serve in joy.

December 21 is the Festival of St. Thomas, Apostle. According to church tradition, it is the day he died a martyr’s death while doing mission work in India. On Easter evening, Thomas was absent when Jesus appeared to the other disciples, and he famously refused to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead until he could see and touch Jesus’ wounds. After seeing the risen Jesus a week later, Thomas cried out, “My Lord and my God!”

There are still skeptics today who think that Jesus’ virgin birth or resurrection from the dead are myths. It is appropriate to invite those skeptics to find out what the Bible says about those events. The Holy Spirit can work on their hearts just like he did with Thomas.