RUSSELL — St. John Lutheran Church will be offering a Blue Christmas worship service this year. Not everyone is up for and cheery for the Christmas holidays. Dealing with the death of a loved one, facing life after divorce or separation, coping with the loss of a job, living with cancer or some other disease that puts a question mark over the future, and a number of other human situations make parties and joviality painful for many people in our congregations and communities. There is a growing attentiveness to the needs of people who are blue at Christmas.

The Blue Christmas worship service will be at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, in the St. John Lutheran Church Chapel. An offering will be taken during the service. The service will be reflective, accepting where people who gather really are, and holding out healing and hope. The date is near the traditional feast day for St. Thomas the Apostle. Thus, there is a connection between Thomas’s struggle to believe the tale of Jesus’ resurrection, the long nights just before Christmas, and the struggle with darkness and grief faced by those living with loss.

During the days of Advent, members of St. John Lutheran and the Russell Community are invited to place names of persons they miss or of whom they are concerned about on the altar. Pencils, pens, and appropriate paper are available in the Usher’s Room in the Church’s narthex or in the Church office during business hours.