Our students sing at the 10:30 a.m. church service on Sunday, January 24, 2027. Every grade takes part, Early Childhood through 8th. If your child is at MLS, this is the morning to be there — and the 10:30 service is the one, not the 8:00.
Come early if you can. There is a free breakfast in the school gym at 9:15 a.m. beforehand — the Faith at the Table breakfast. No sign-up, no charge, and no need to be a member of anything.
This Sunday also opens National Lutheran Schools Week, January 24–30.
This is for every MLS family — the ones who worship at Immanuel, the ones who belong to another church in Joplin, and the ones who do not go to church at all. All three are normal here, and all three are welcome. Nobody will ask you which one you are.
What actually happens
9:15 — Breakfast in the gym. The same gym your child is in every day. Food, long tables, about an hour. Tables are mixed on purpose, so families end up sitting with people they have not met. There is a short devotion and a question to talk about at your table — this one is about faith at home on an ordinary Tuesday, not a Sunday. One parent will speak briefly about their own family. Answer, or just listen. Both are fine.
10:30 — The children sing. The service is in the church building on the same campus and runs about an hour. Your child sings near the beginning. Come as you are; jeans are fine. You will be handed a bulletin that tells you when to stand and sit, and nobody is singled out or asked to introduce themselves.
One note for families who normally come to Sunday classes: Sunday School and the adult and youth Bible classes are all cancelled that morning. Breakfast takes their place, on purpose, so everyone is in one room instead of split across three buildings.
Why this week matters
National Lutheran Schools Week is one week each year when Lutheran schools across the country stop and say out loud what they are for. Starting it with our own children leading the singing is the right way round — the school is not a separate thing that borrows the church building on Sundays. It is the same people.
The breakfast is the other half of that. We are aiming at something specific this year: every child here knowing at least five adults who know them by name and stay in their life for the long haul. Not one teacher and two parents — five. It is hard to know a family you have only nodded at in the pickup line. It is not hard once you have eaten with them.
Come hungry, and sit with somebody you have not met. Grandparents, neighbors, and families still deciding whether to enroll are all welcome — you do not need a child at MLS to eat with us. Watch The Glow newsletter for the rest of the week’s activities.
Our students also sang in church on Sunday, September 20, and one more all-school-and-church breakfast follows in April.
Martin Luther School and Immanuel Lutheran Church share one campus at 2616 S Connecticut Ave in Joplin, Missouri. We serve Early Childhood through 8th grade. The full 2026–27 school calendar has every date for the year. Questions — including “where do I park?” — call the school office at (417) 624-1403 or email info@martinlutherjoplin.com.