The Weekly Newsletter

Archived issue

The St. Andrew Weekly — September 2, 2026, 2026-09-02

This Week

Power check “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Few would sharply disagree with this well-known proverb, but what do we do about it? This weekend we learn from King Jeroboam (1 Kings 12), from ourselves, and from our Savior. Join us for worship Thursday night at 7 or Sunday morning at 8 or 10:30.

Highlights

Events and ministry news needing immediate attention

Pastor for Outreach call Pastor Alex Groth continues to deliberate his call to serve St. Andrew. Pray for him and his congregation in Cincinnati as he considers where his skills can best be utilized in God’s kingdom.

Worship

Resources and opportunities for you to worship

Adult Choir for Dedication Do you want to be a part of the dedication for our new building? Join your voice with fellow believers as we give thanks for this new worship space and to share Jesus with others. We will rehearse on Wednesday, September 23, at 6:30 PM in the new music room (room 108) in the elementary wing and sing for worship on September 27. Questions? Reach out to Minister of Worship Naomi (opens in new tab)Laabs(opens in new tab).

Worship check-in If you worship on-site, please fill out the Connection Card attached to your worship folder. Online worshipers, please continue to check in here(opens in new tab).

Weekend worship songs Preview some of the songs we will use for worship on Sunday. Obviously ours won’t sound exactly like this, but listening to the links provided will certainly help you be more comfortable participating in the service.

“How Great Thou Art(opens in new tab)” by Paul Baloche “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name(opens in new tab)” arr. by Don Chapman “My Worth Is Not in What I Own(opens in new tab)” by Fernando Ortega, Keith & Kristyn Getty “Trust in You(opens in new tab)” by Lauren Daigle

Nurture

Ways to be connected to Jesus throughout the week in your personal life and with others

Growth Group sign-ups Join a Growth Group to stay in the Word and to make new friends. For more information on St. Andrew Growth Groups, go here(opens in new tab). Sign-up deadline is September 9. Fall Growth Groups begin after Labor Day.

Gather & Grow Women of St. Andrew, you are invited to gather together to grow faith and friendships. We will meet on September 19 from 9:00 to 11:30 AM at the beautiful Koenig-Roach barn in Mazomanie. Sign up here(opens in new tab). Contact Nancy Ninman(opens in new tab) or Yvonne Onsager(opens in new tab) with your questions.

College students We are looking for more addresses of St. Andrew college students. Staying connected to them is so important as we want to help them stay connected to our Savior. If the address is the same as last year, let us know that, too. Send addresses to Minister for Nurture Mark Kjenstad(opens in new tab), or write it on your connection card at church. A third option is to grab a college address card in the atrium.

Impact podcast Persecution is the name of the game for the witnesses of Jesus going back to the first witnesses of Jesus. Seminary Professor Sam Degner is here to take us through Acts 5. You can listen to Impact here(opens in new tab) or by searching for “Kjenstad Impact” wherever you listen to podcasts.

PowerHour PowerHour returns September 11! PowerHour is enrichment for children up to school age with parents/caregivers. PowerHour begins at 10:15 AM on the 2nd and 4th Friday of the month from September – May in our gymnasium. Each PowerHour includes creative and fun learning activities, stories, sing-along songs, and a message from Jesus. After our closing song, each child gets a snack to go. Click here(opens in new tab) to learn more.

Sunday children’s ministries starting September 13 “Let the little children come to me.” Those words of our Savior direct us to bring our children to Jesus. St. Andrew helps you do that through a variety of children’s ministries:

Musikgarten | 1- and 2-year-olds with mom and/or dad* Plugged into Jesus | 3-year-olds through grade 5 Spark | grades 6 – 8

All of these ministries are served by wonderful and dedicated volunteers who are eager to share Jesus with the children of St. Andrew. There is no pre-registration. Questions can be directed to Yvonne Onsager(opens in new tab).

*Newborns are welcome to join parents in Growth Group until they are ready for Musikgarten.

Service & Outreach

Opportunities for you to live your faith and love for Jesus by sharing Jesus with others

A perfect time to join a serving team Transitioning to the new building is a perfect time to join a serving team. Opportunities abound in many established and some new roles. Take a look in the atrium and sign up for a role right away! You can also view the position descriptions and sign up online(opens in new tab).

Service opportunity | Plugged into Jesus assistants Lead teacher roles are filled, but there are opportunities to assist them in working with children. Plugged into Jesus is a ministry for various age groups from age 3 to 5th grade. Serving them is fun and fulfilling. Contact Yvonne Onsager(opens in new tab) to serve in this way.

Monthly Mission Partner Our September Mission Partner is our Ministerial Education Fund. This is St. Andrew’s effort to ease the financial burden of those attending schools that prepare them for the full-time public ministry of the gospel. This year, four St. Andrew members are on that path. Isaiah Durkee and Kylie Roekle attend Martin Luther College, and Ivy and Levi Durkee attend Luther Preparatory School.

Westside Christian School

A ministry of St. Andrew, preparing students for academic success and lives of Christian service founded on God’s Word

Welcome new teachers Ms. Malia Faessler is one of our 4th grade teachers. She is getting to know her students as they are getting to know her. Mr. Schriefer, our other 4th grade teacher, and Miss Faessler work together and switch rooms so all the 4th grade students can enjoy both teachers.

Ms. Hannah Zabel is teaching our 5th grade students this year. Miss Zabel is also getting to know the 23 students in her classroom and working to get to know parents and St. Andrew members.

Mr. Raul Ramos serves as a 4K teacher and our early childhood director. He loves working with the young minds, and they love Mr. Ramos just as much!

We are so excited to have these teachers in place as well as all our returning teachers. God has blessed Westside with some very talented teachers, classroom assistants, paraprofessionals, and staff. We are thankful for all of them!

Open school positions If you stop by Westside Christian School at lunchtime, you might see these two behind the counter serving lunch. Even though we love to see Mr. Plath and Mrs. Miller’s smiling faces behind the counter, there might be someone else with a little more expertise. Can you help us out? Even if it is for one day a week, we would appreciate your gifts and talents as a school lunch server!

Westside Christian School has several part-time paid positions that need to be filled for the 2026-27 school year. If you know of someone that might be interested, please pass this information along.

School lunch server | 11 AM – 1 PM, Monday – Friday

Preschool classroom assistant | full day, Monday and Tuesday

Before school care | 7:00 – 7:40 AM

For more information regarding the school lunch server position, please contact Westside Christian School Administrative Assistant Dana Miller(opens in new tab) or Principal Daniel Plath(opens in new tab). For more information on the preschool classroom assistant or the before school care positions, contact Early Childhood Director Raul Ramos(opens in new tab) or Principal Daniel Plath.

Coaching opportunities Do you want to make an impact on the lives of student athletes? Be a coach! Westside Christian School has two opportunities for you to coach this upcoming sports year.

One cross country head coach

One track head coach

If you are interested, contact Athletic Director Jack Murphy(opens in new tab). Thank you!

Serving This Week

Serving Jesus at St. Andrew this week, September 2 & 6, 2026

Musicians Lead musician: Madison Kremer Vocalists: Naomi Laabs Guitar: Clayton Grow

Front Door Greeters Thursday: Alex Bindl, Tracey Bindl, Ellen Goetz 8:00 AM: Joe Kotecki and Georgia Siler family, Liz Markely, Owen Markley 10:30 AM: Robert and Beth Ramos, Michelle Teteak

Parking Lot Greeters Thursday: 8:00 AM: Dick Smith, Paul Wittkamp 10:30 AM: Paul and Yvonne Onsager

Sanctuary Greeters Thursday: James Lund, Dave Rortvedt 8:00 AM: Jesus Avila, Aaron Dix, Connor Dix 10:30 AM: Aaron Murray, Daniel Onsager, Dennis Schlender

Lay Readers 8:00 AM: Jack Murphy 10:30 AM: Mark Kjenstad

Communion Assistants Thursday: Andy Bindl 8:00 AM: Bill Beier, Jack Murphy 10:30 AM: Jackson Hunter

Communion Care Thursday: Alayna Hutter, Amy Hutter 8:00 AM: Rachel Martalock 10:30 AM: Robert and Beth Ramos

Audio Thursday: 8:00 AM: Brent Denton 10:30 AM: Ben Kleman

Slide Tech Thursday: Phil Otto 8:00 AM: Sarah Wendorf 10:30 AM: Melissa Henke

Livestream Video Dan Wasmer

Hospitality Thursday: Amanda Taticek 8:00 AM: Michelle Murphy 10:30 AM: Rachel Martalock

Connection Card Assembly Brittany Engel

Offering Caretakers Phil and Dawn Otto

Growth Group Leaders Amy Heckmann, Todd Kleman

The St. Andrew Weekly — September 2, 2026

September 2, 2026

Past issues

• The Weekly — September 26, 2026September 26, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — September 16, 2026September 16, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — September 9, 2026September 9, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 26, 2026August 26, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 19, 2026August 19, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 12, 2026August 12, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — August 5, 2026August 5, 2026
• The St. Andrew Weekly — July 29, 2026July 29, 2026