Welcome to Trinity Lutheran Church. We are glad you are here!
We strive to be a welcoming place of God’s grace where everyone is living passionately for Jesus Christ. Awakened by the transforming power of God, our mission is to engage the curious, encourage the convinced, and empower the committed to be fully devoted disciples of Jesus Christ.
We invite you to explore our site to learn more. Check out our calendar for a complete schedule of services and events. Feel free to reach out to us with a prayer request or to answer any questions you may have.
Sunday Worship
Please note at the present time, all services have been suspended until May 10th. Please check back for updates.
Non Covid-19 schedule is:
- 8:00 AM Traditional Service
- 9:00 AM Coffee Hour and Sunday School
- 10:00 AM Contemporary Service
Trinity Lutheran Facebook page
Messages from Pastor Jon
Palm Sunday 4/5 Service (7:45) Palm Sunday Sermon Sunday 4/5 bulletin
Facebook Video’s March 25th March 21st March 19th
COVID-19 Update
Dear Trinity family,
We hope and pray that all of you are doing well and making the best of the circumstances we now find ourselves in. It can seem as though everything we knew and took for granted as normal has been turned on its head. This is certainly a challenging time for all of us. The disconnection, loss of community and freedom, are difficult to comprehend and adjust to. It is almost as if we are experiencing a new exile, similar to what the Israelites experienced when they were carried off to Babylon. But just like those Israelites almost 3,000 years ago, we too have a God who has not forgotten or abandoned us. In the words of the prophet Isaiah,
Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Isaiah 43:5-6
This is a time where we will be separated from each other in terms of physical proximity. However, we will strive to draw closer to each other in love and the Spirit. There are certainly difficult days ahead of us, though through faith, hope, and love, we will persevere.
As we are sure most of you are suspecting, due to current CDC recommendations, Trinity’s staff and Church Council have decided to suspend all in-person worship services and church activities for the next eight weeks. This decision was not made lightly. A lot of discussion and prayer went into making this choice. However, we think it is the most responsible action to take for the well-being of our church family and our community. We will continue to have office hours from 8 AM-3 PM M-Th, though the doors will be locked so please call during those hours.
Here are some important things for you to know:
- Worship: All Sunday morning and Wednesday morning and evening worship services have been suspended. Unless the current CDC recommendations change, in-person worship at Trinity will resume on May 10th. We are planning on celebrating a special Easter Sunday the first Sunday we can worship together safely again.
- Fish-Fry: The remaining fish-fry events are cancelled.
- Building Usage: The building will be closed to all inside and outside groups that meet. All activities that take place inside our building are canceled effective immediately. We will still be hosting the Red Cross Blood Drive on March 27th from 8 AM-1 PM and April 13th from 1-6 PM. We highly recommend all those who can to come and give blood.
- Musical Groups: Choir and New Creation practice has been canceled until further notice.
- Church Office: The church office will remain open from 8-3 M-Th. Church staff will continue working remotely and on-site. During this time, please contact staff by email or by phone.
- EDGE and Sunday School: Both EDGE and Sunday school activities will be suspended until May 10th. Staff will be working on providing resources to families for devotion and discussion.
- Confirmation: Confirmation classes, retreats, and confirmation Sunday are suspended. We will be coordinating a new date for our confirmation service in the coming weeks. Pastor Jon will be sending out some distance-learning instructions for students soon.
- Video Worship: We are working diligently to be ready to broadcast or stream a worship service each week by April 5th. We hope to be ready to do this by March 29th, however with our current capabilities this may not be possible. If we are not able to do a worship service on the 29th, Pastor Jon will at least post a video sermon for that Sunday. We encourage all of our members on Facebook to join us in worshiping online this Sunday with Bethlehem Lutheran in Minneapolis. Two of their pastors are classmates of Pastor Jon from seminary and they have promised to make a special welcome to our congregation for joining them. We will be posting and emailing the details out to you later this week.
- Connecting with each other: This current crisis is affecting each and every one of us, from our youngest to our oldest. It’s important to find ways to connect and care for one another. This week we will begin to focus on a process that will enable us to connect with every member or family to check in. We hope to compile a list of those who may have certain needs during this time away from each other. If you are willing to make a few phone calls to other members please let Pastor Jon know and he will give you more details.
- Pastoral Care: Care to our members will take place through phone calls or other forms of digital communication. If you have a prayer request or concern, please contact the church office or Pastor Jon. His email is pastor@trinitynorthbranch.org and his cell phone number is 612-231-2111.
- Giving: Your continued generosity toward our unified fund will be more important than ever during this time. This is especially true as there are still bills to pay and payroll for our amazing staff. Please continue to support our mission and ministry if you are fiscally able. You can go to our website to set up online giving. If you do not use electronic giving, you can still mail your offerings to the church at PO Box 447 North Branch, MN 55056. If you are not a regular financial contributor to this ministry we share, we can’t think of a more important time to step in. A commitment of $5 or $10 a week can make a huge difference!
Please know that all of you are in our thoughts and prayers. This is not an easy time, but with Christ, we will get through it together. We leave you with one more passage from the prophet Isaiah to strengthen your resolve.
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:28-31
God Bless,
Pastor Jon, Staff, and Council Members
- Weather related closings will be listed on WCCO (channel 4), FOX 9, KARE 11, and Trinity’s Facebook page.
Upcoming Special Events
- Cancelled - Worship Service - Traditional
April 5, 2020 | 8:00 am | Read more - Cancelled - Sunday School
April 5, 2020 | 9:00 am | Read more - Cancelled - Worship Service - Contemporary
April 5, 2020 | 10:00 am | Read more - Cancelled - Senior Choir
April 7, 2020 | 6:00 pm | Read more - No Confirmation - Holy Week
April 8, 2020 | All day | Read more - Cancelled - New Creation
April 8, 2020 | 5:30 pm | Read more - Cancelled - EDGE
April 8, 2020 | 6:30 pm | Read more - Cancelled - Women's Bible Study
April 9, 2020 | 8:00 am | Read more - Cancelled - First Communion Class
April 9, 2020 | 6:00 pm | Read more
Please check the calendar for a full list of worship services, special occasions, and events.
Employment Opportunities
Vikings Vittles
Viking Vittles is a food backpack program led by Trinity Lutheran Church of North Branch. It provides a bag of food every Friday to any student in Sunrise River School, ECFE or Phoenix Academy who signs up to participate. Each bag will contain 2 breakfast items, 2 lunch items and 2 snacks. The goal of the program is to help food insecure families stretch their food budget.
Find more information here.