September 24, 2026 E-Vine

The Upside-Down Kingdom
“When Yes Isn’t Enough”
September 27, 2026

 

CLICK HERE FOR SERVICE NOTES

 

As We Gather

In today’s Gospel, Jesus confronts the religious leaders who question His authority, and He answers with a parable that exposes the difference between words and obedience. One son says “no” but later repents and does his father’s will; the other says “yes” but never follows through. In the Upside‑Down Kingdom, repentance is more than talk — it is a change of heart that becomes a change of life. Jesus calls us to the kind of authentic repentance that shows up in what we do, not just in what we say.

 

Ongoing News and Information

 


Assistance Needed with Memorial Service for Michele Arnold
We would be grateful for assistance with the reception following the memorial service for Michele Arnold on Saturday, September 26.  If you can help by bringing food for the reception and/or tidyng up afterward, please sign up here.

 


September 25 – Livestream Link to Gunnar and Ivy’s Wedding
We rejoice with Gunnar De Young and Ivy Shattuck as they are joined in marriage tomorrow, September 25, in Exeter, NH. The service will begin at 12:00 PM California time, and our congregation is invited to view the service on the church’s livestream at this link.

 


September 25 – St. John’s Lutheran School Country Fair
St. John’s Lutheran School invites you to join us for our annual Country Fair tomorrow, September 25 from 3:00-6:00 PM – a fun community event for all ages! There will be bounce houses, giant slides, carnival games, face painting, a rock wall, food and beverage trucks, and of course the ever-popular cakewalk. New this year: the SJL Small Business Showcase! Come shop from our talented SJL vendors, who will be donating a portion of their event proceeds directly to the school. Admission to the fair is free, and tickets for games and activities can be purchased in advance or at the fair. For more information and to buy tickets, click this link.

 

September 26 – Memorial Service for Michele Arnold
Our dear sister Michele Arnold went home to be with the Lord last month, and a memorial service for her will be held on Saturday, September 26 at 10:00 AM in the St. John’s Lutheran Sanctuary, with a reception to follow in the Parish Hall. All at St. John’s are warmly invited to attend. We would be grateful for assistance with bringing food for the reception and tidyng up afterwards; please visit the sign-up list here to let us know how you can help.

He husband Ken has sent us the following request so that he can keep Michele’s memory alive for their young grandchildren: “In memory of Michele, I’m asking people to share any stories, memories, funny moments, or special experiences you have of her. I am collecting them so that her grandchildren will be able to read them someday and learn who Michele was, the people she touched, and the memories she left behind. No story is too small – anything you remember would mean a lot to our family. Please send the stories to marnoldgp@gmail.com. Thank you…Ken Arnold.”

 

 


Pastor Mike’s Bible Class: Revelation
Pastor Mike is continuing a Bible study series on the Book of Revelation. We are going through the entire book in the months ahead, seeking to understand and apply Jesus’ revelation to John, and through him, to us today. This Sunday we will be studying Revelation 10. We will be meeting in Room 10 at 11:00 AM on Sundays after worship.

 

 

September 30 – 7th & 8th Grade Fellowship Night

All 7th and 8th graders are invited to join us in the Parish Hall on Wednesday, September 30 from 7:00 to 8:30 PM to kick off our monthly fellowshp nights! We’ll enjoy games, snacks, and fellowship as we dive into God’s Word and talk about what it means for our lives today. If you have any questions, please contact Kevin Mathison.

 

 

 

Update from the Mission Farm
The summer harvest is winding down at our Mission Farm, but there is still a need for help this Saturday with laying out the drip irrigation systems of our fall planting. On Monday, we’ll be planting cabbage and broccoli as well as doing some clean-up jobs. Join us on the farm on one of these beautiful autumn mornings (Mondays, Wednesdays, Saturdays from 9:00 AM to noon) so we can get the farm ready for its next bountiful season!

 

 


Cancer Care for the Scully Family
Many thanks to our wonderful congregation for providing such care and support for the Scully family over the past few months. Rebecca has successfully completed her four-cycle course of chemo. She’ll be concentrating in September on resting and recovering before undergoing radiation in late September or early October. To help the family continue to focus on rest and healing, we have put together a “Cancer Care” website with links to items that would be most helpful for them as they navigate this phase of treatment. For more information and to contribute, please click here. The Scully family is incredibly grateful for the prayers, gift cards, and generosity of our St. John’s family throughout this journey!

 

   

For more than 60 years, our main parking lot has served St. John’s well. But as we all know, it is now in serious need of repair. In addition, several sections of the sidewalks along Linda Vista Avenue and Trojan Road have been lifted and broken by tree roots, creatng uneven and unsafe walking areas.

 

“Make the Rough Places Plain” (Isaiah 40:4) is our congregation’s project to:

  • Repave the parking lot
  • Improve parking lot lighting
  • Repair the damaged sidewalk sections

Our goal is to complete the work this summer, so that when school begins, the “rough places” will indeed be made plain – a safer, well-lit parking lot and level sidewalks for all who come onto or walk by our campus.

Project Budget: $280,000

  • Parking Lot Repaving – $200,000
  • Improved Parking Lot Lighting – $50,000
  • Sidewalk Repair – $30,000

We have applied for assistance through the City of Napa’s Sidewalk Cost Share Program and are awaiting their response.

 

How You Can Help
Please prayerfully consider making a special offering to support “Make the Rough Places Plain.”
Gifts may be made by check or online at this link.

 

As of September 6, 2026, we have received:

  • $160,048 in donations
  • $50,000 pledged by the Association of Parents and Teachers

Praise God for His generosity through His people!

 

 

 


October 4 – Coffee Hour Brunch with Thrivent
Join Thrivent on Sunday, October 4 in the Parish Hall after the worship service for a light brunch from Model Bakery to learn about some important member benefit updates, which include $10,000 identity theft protection, while also learning how to protect yourself from scammers. Financial advisors Ashley Tangeraas and Austen Wilson, Thrivent’s number one advisor, will also be sharing some important tax strategies to help you take advantage of the One Beautiful Bill’s deductions for charities, families and seniors. Please email Ashley.tangeraas@thrivent.com if you plan to attend. Thrivent members and non-members are welcome to this event. No products or services will be sold.

 

 


October 4 – Oktoberfest

🎉 St. John’s Oktoberfest. Come for the brats, stay for the banter.

 

Fall has arrived, and while everyone else is out hunting for the perfect pumpkin or pretending they understand “harvest décor,” we have a better plan.

Join us for an afternoon of food, drinks, music, and potluck desserts that range from legendary to “who made this?”

 

Here is what you can expect:
🌭 Catered brats, hotdogs, and potato salad
🍺 Beer, wine, lemonade, soda, and coffee
🍰 Potluck desserts that are heartfelt, unpredictable, and occasionally controversial

Join us for good food, good people, and a chance to hang out.
📍 Sunday, October 4th | 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
📍 St. John’s Lutheran Church Patio

🎟️ Free entry (Sign-ups are encouraged – sign up using the QR code above or at this link). Real fun. Mild dessert drama optional.

 

 


October 15 – Dine and Donate at Panera
The St. John’s Lutheran School Theatre Program invites you to Dine and Donate with Panera on Thursday, October 15. Just visit the Panera location at 1725 Trancas St any time from 7:00AM to 9:00 PM on October 15 and present this flyer at checkout (or use code FUND4U when ordering online), and Panera will donate 20% of all sales to support our theatre program!

 

 


Save the Dates: Advent Soup Suppers — December 2, 9, 16
Advent is on the horizon, and so are our Wednesday evening soup suppers. This year’s dates are December 2, 9, and 16. We encourage everyone to begin thinking about attending or hosting one of the evenings with your small group, ministry team, or family. Sign ups and full details will be available soon, but now is a great time to start planning.

 

 

Submit Your Ideas for a New St. John’s Lutheran Logo!
Calling All Artists & Designers! We’re dreaming up a new St. John’s Lutheran Campus logo, and we’d love your creative input. If you have experience in graphic design or clean‑line illustration, we invite you to submit a concept featuring grapes and grapevines (with grapes clearly visible), an eagle either flying above or resting in the vines, and a cross placed in the background. The design should be simple enough to print across many different materials.

 

Please turn in your concept to the church office or email joshwright@stjohnsnapa.org by November 1, 2026.

 

Your artistry helps shape the visual identity of our campus!

 


 In Search of Rental Home (Napa)
A family in our congregation is seeking to rent a house, townhouse or apartment with at least 2 bedrooms within walking distance of St. John’s beginning in September. If you have any leads, please reach out to Jeff at 650-804-6218. Many thanks!

 

 

Dust to Dust: Aging Wisely in an Anti-Aging World
Jen Wilkin

We’re all aging. It’s intrinsic to the human condition. But how should we think about it?

Jen Wilkin argues that we inhabit a culture distinctly antiaging. Familiar clichés—“age is just a number” or “you’re only as old as you feel”—mask the truth that, despite our efforts to appear younger, we are all growing older every day. Is aging something to fear, deny, or dread? Or is it a gift from God to be lived with courage and wisdom in the context of our relationships? It’s a timely question in a society that idolizes youth and often treats those beyond middle age as obsolete or irrelevant. It is easy to absorb this antiaging mindset as an unquestioned fact of life, yet Scripture offers a very different vision.

The heart of Wilkin’s argument is simple and deeply biblical: aging is not a failure to resist but a gift to steward. Scripture never treats aging as a problem to solve. Instead, it presents aging as a pilgrimage one that shapes humility, deepens interdependence, and prepares us for eternity.

Wilkin exposes our cultural idols—youthfulness, productivity, selfsovereignty—and invites us to reconsider the assumptions we carry. In this way, the book feels less like a critique and more like a reorientation toward the God who formed us from dust and will raise us from it. We grieve the losses that come with aging, but not as those without hope in the resurrection.

She offers practical ways to embrace aging: cultivating intergenerational friendships, learning to number our days without dread, and living honestly within the limits God has given. As Moses prays in Psalm 90:12, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Wilkin encourages us to trust the resurrection God has promised, to age with wisdom rather than fear, and to look to our Maker for hope rather than the mirror.

I highly recommend this book for readers of all ages. Its message is not only for those who daily feel the effects of aging, but also for younger readers who will gain a fresh perspective on the lives of those who are older—and on their own.Previous recommendations can be found here: church.stjohnsnapa.org/resources/pastor-mikes-bookshelf

 

   

Wednesday Night Confirmation Classes

The new year of Confirmation is underway! Confirmation, for 7th and 8th graders desiring to know more about God, will be meeting throughout the school year right here at St. John’s. This month we will meet on September 9,16, & 23 in Room 10. Each of those Learning Events runs from 7:00 to 8:30 PM. If you have any questions or desire to get involved, please contact Kevin Mathison.

 

September 30 – 7th & 8th Grade Fellowship Night

All 7th and 8th graders are invited to join us in the Parish Hall on Wednesday, September 30 from 7:00 to 8:30 PM to kick off our monthly fellowshp nights! We’ll enjoy games, snacks, and fellowship as we dive into God’s Word and talk about what it means for our lives today. If you have any questions, please contact Kevin Mathison.

 


Tuesday Night High School Hangouts
Tuesday is Youth Night! We’re kicking things off with an apologetics series to better prepare ourselves for sharing our faith. Join us as we dive into the Word and have a little fun while doing so! Invite a friend and come join us! We’ll meet on Tuesday nights from 7:00-8:30 PM in Kevin Mathison’s office. For more information, please contact Kevin Mathison.

 

 

Join Us For Children’s Church!
All children ages preschool through 5th grade are invited to join us for Children’s Church, an age-specific time of teaching and fellowship during the main worship service every Sunday morning. The children will spend the first part of the service in the sanctuary, then join their teachers for Children’s Church in one of the classrooms. The children then rejoin their families for the last part of the worship service. We are also looking for more adults and teens to help lead these classes, so if you are interested, please reach out to Kevin Mathison.

 

Follow St. John’s Youth Ministry on Social Media to keep up with all the latest information! 
Facebook: SJL Napa Youth Ministry
Instagram: St. John’s Lutheran Napa Youth 

 

                                                                             
 

Every week is an opportunity to invite someone to join with us in worship, whether in person or online. The first step, though, is to pray for those who you may invite.  Who can you pray for?  Who will you invite?  

 

 

 

You can CLICK HERE to give your offering online.   

 

 

 

What Happens When You Ask for Help from a Stephen Minister?

When you ask for help from a Stephen Minister, a Stephen Leader will contact you to talk more about Stephen Ministry and what it can mean to you. If your needs can be best served by a Stephen Minister, you will be matched with someone who will support you through this tough time. Confidentiality is a top priority for the Stephen Ministry team. You do not need to be concerned that other people will discover that you have requested help. Everything discussed with your Stephen Minister remains confidential. To find out more about Stephen Ministry or to request a Stephen Minister, contact Penni Cremen (707-483-9321) or Pastor Mike at the church office (707-255-0119).

 

Women’s Monday Morning Bible Study

The Women’s Monday Morning Bible Study meets on Monday mornings in the Sanctuary from 10:00-11:30 AM. This fall we’re studying the Book of Genesis. All study materials will be handed out at the start of the study. For more information, please contact Judi Rock at goalyce2041@gmail.com. All women are welcome to join us!

 

Men’s Saturday Morning Bible Study

The Men’s Saturday Morning Bible Study is currently studying Paul’s Letter to the Colossians. All men are welcome to join us every Saturday morning in Room 10. Breakfast will be at 7:30 AM, and the Bible study will be from 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM.

 

 


Right Now Media
Right Now Media is an online resource providing Christian videos for all ages – children’s resources, Bible studies, lectures, and more. As a congregation, we have subscribed to Right Now Media, so access is free for all in our St. John’s family. If you haven’t already signed up for Right Now Media, CLICK HERE.

 

Where do I find sermons and services that I missed?

You can find previous sermons in three places.  The full services are available on the YouTube channel.

 

More Links to Check Out


Church Calendar

 

Scrip Info: What is Scrip?…

 

 

InstagramFacebookYouTubeWebsiteEmailX

 

 

Copyright © 2026 St. John’s Lutheran Church, All rights reserved.

 

Our mailing address is:
St. John’s Lutheran Church   3521 Linda Vista Ave.  Napa, CA 94558