Fellowship, Friendship and Fun

Joy in Billings, Montana
​Welcome to our church!  As small, growing church family, we cordially invite all to worship with us.  Not a Lutheran, that's okay, You are a Lutheran?  Great!  Bring a hot dish! 

​Lots of us started in other places and found the right church home here.  You will be welcomed with friendship, fellowship and fun while growing as a Christian.

Pastor Mark Fry

Pastor Mark Fry is unapologetically an Iowan through and through. He was born and raised in northeast Iowa and wonders if he may be from the smallest family of origin; both his parents were only children so he has zero aunts or uncles and zero cousins. Pastor Mark does have an amazing mother who still resides in Iowa and a brother and sister who do the same—they are also amazing! The telephone and Facetime keep them connected and he will be reuniting with them this summer when his hometown celebrates 150 years.
Sports played a big part of Mark’s life when he was a kid, and he experienced some success on the baseball field and basketball court, earning an athletic scholarship to Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa.  That’s where he met his wife, Wenda, and, that is also where he first experienced the Lutheran tradition and history. Upon graduation he was offered the experience of playing professional basketball in West Germany and later in Australia. Mark and Wenda were married in 1979 and had their extended honeymoon in Hobart, Tasmania before returning to the States to attend seminary at Luther-Northwestern Theological Seminary in Saint Paul, Mn.  They served separate pastoral internships in Long Beach and Hawthorne, California, before graduating and receiving calls to serve in suburban Omaha, Nebraska.
Together they served churches in Omaha for over 25 years before moving to Wenda’s home state of Montana when the Joy Lutheran position became available in 2016.
Moving to Montana has presented a new and exciting season for the Fry’s. Wenda’s enjoying being closer to family; her parents reside in Great Falls and she has a sister who lives in Missoula. And, Pastor Mark says the fishing is much better here than in Nebraska! They are the grateful parents of two married adult children, daughter Sydney, and a son, Adrian.
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President Matthew Broch

Welcome to Joy Lutheran Church!  Joy welcomes all new-comers with open hearts, minds and arms.  We are a Christian church of believers using study, worship, prayer and fellowship to proclaim the saving work of Christ and to glorify God.  Our worship service is informally liturgical and reverential.  God is doing extraordinary things at Joy.  Now is a great time and place to serve our Lord as even greater things lie ahead.  After perusing our web page, we welcome and encourage you to begin or continue your pilgrimage with us.  If you have questions regarding Joy, please call 406-xxx-xxxx or email pastor@ijoylutheran.com or info@joylutheranmt.com.
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