Opportunities at St. Matthew
           St. Matthew has Sunday services with communion at 10:45 each Sunday with a Bible Study preceding at 9:30. There is also a fellowship time with coffee and refreshments following the church service. We also offer midweek services during Advent and Lent on Wednesdays at 7 PM with a light supper preceding them at 6 PM.
There are various opportunities to serve our Lord during worship. Please call the church and speak with our secretary Sally if you are interested in any of the following: altar guild, greeter, reader, usher, acolyte, or worship assistant.
          St. Matthew takes pride in its music. Our organist Sarah Dukeman has a degree in Music Education with extensive experience and has also been classically trained on playing the organ. We have a newer Allen organ, and we also utilize a new piano in our worship. Our choir sings at various times throughout the year and always wants new voices. We also have a handbell choir that plays at services and occasionally at a local nursing home. We regularly involve various instruments in our services, such as trumpet, trombone, acoustic guitar, flute, strings, and more. Sarah is also eager to work with anyone interested in singing or playing an instrument to help accompany our worship.
 We offer Sunday School for children at 9:30 AM using the “Growing in Christ” curriculum from Concordia Publishing House. Our organist Sarah also leads a children’s choir at certain times of the year. Our young families often get together for fellowship together, whether it be at a fellowship event, a service event, or a more informal gathering in a member’s home. We are currently offering a confirmation class that meets during the Bible Study time prior to the Sunday service. We also have either a traditional VBS or a “neighborhood VBS” at a local park each year. 
 There are numerous fellowship and outreach opportunities at St. Matthew. If you would like to be a part of our church leadership we encourage you to do so! When a month has five Sundays, on the fifth Sunday there is a potluck following the church service; we also have various other special fellowship opportunities throughout the year like pizza parties, football parties, bowling, etc. On the fourth Sunday of months with five Sundays, we assemble sack lunches for the needy at Feed My Sheep at the beginning of the Sunday School hour (9:30 AM). Pastor and Sarah have some training in life coaching and are always happy to discuss life with a family over dinner. Women might be interested in our Lutheran Women's Mission League (LWML), which usually meets the first Tuesday of each month. The church also has a quilting group that meets each Saturday at church around noon and regularly donates numerous quilts to Gulfport Memorial Hospital for cancer patients. Our church often utilizes Thrivent Action teams to aid in various service projects, such as the next-door school Harrison Central Elementary, which we have adopted. If you would like to be in a community of prayer, we also have a prayer chain that serves our church and community. We also have a fairly substantial church rummage sale once per year that many members enjoy participating in. We welcome and encourage you to think of new opportunities for our church that you might have special gifts for.
 

Finally, please feel free to contact Pastor Dukeman at any time to talk, ask questions, or schedule a meeting.