One of the first things children learn is to share. Two area churches are doing just that.

For three years, St. Matthew Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lehighton went without a pastor of their own — until Jan. 1.“They are very excited to have someone who is their pastor,” said the Rev. Michael Frost, who took the job. “There’s a great deal of enthusiasm.”He is also the pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Palmerton.Frost said he started at Holy Trinity a year and a half ago, but their budget couldn’t support a full-time pastor. That’s when they approached the synod office for Northeast Pennsylvania and learned that St. Matthew’s needed a pastor.“I think they thought, ‘We’d rather share him than lose him,’ ” Frost said.On Feb. 12, the congregation at St. Matthew’s is holding a dessert fellowship at 6:30 p.m. to officially welcome Pastor Frost and his wife, Ginny. The public is welcome to attend.Frost said that over the years, the church has seen a decrease in membership due to the lack of an official pastor.“Worship attendance has picked up since I started,” he said. “Morale dips when there isn’t a consistent pastor.”Frost said he looks forward to seeing the church grow. Building community is key to that growth and anyone who wants to worship with them is welcome to come to services.Sunday services will be held at 8:30 a.m. at St. Matthew’s and 10:15 a.m. at Holy Trinity. Frost said the schedule gives him enough time to talk with the congregation and still get to the second service on time. His only regret is that he is not able to be present for Sunday school at either church.“I’d like to be able to drop in on the children and their classes,” he said.Shepherding people closer to God is what drew him to ministry.“I’m a preacher. I’m a teacher. That’s where I think my gifts lie. It’s the people stuff and the worship that energizes me.”Frost leads Bible study groups at Holy Trinity.“Bible study has always been important to my ministry,” he said.They meet from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and 10:30 to noon Thursdays. The evening group is studying the book of Genesis, and the morning group is studying St. Paul’s Letters to the Romans.“I hope there’s crossover and the people get to know one another. I hope this leads to new relationships between people.”The public is also welcome to attend Bible study.Frost said there isn’t any prerequisite of Bible knowledge to attend.“We don’t expect you to have anything memorized, just have an interest in getting involved,” he said. “The more people involved the better the conversation.”St. Matthew’s also offers a morning and afternoon preschool for children 3 to 5 years old. The 3-year-old group meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the 4- and 5-year-olds meet on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, said Donna Austin-Ahner, the director of the program.“The program was started as an outreach to the community so we can provide affordable early education,” she said. “We just love what we do.”The program consists of two teachers in addition to the director. Registration for next fall opens on March 1. The registration fee is $40 and the program costs $100 a month for the 3-year-olds and $110 month for the 4- and 5-year-olds. More information can be found at

www.stmatthewspreschool.info.Anyone interested in learning more about the preschool or St. Matthew’s can call 610-377-2972 and Holy Trinity at 610-826-2524. Pastor Frost’s office hours start at 8:30 a.m. on Mondays and Tuesdays at St. Matthew’s and Wednesdays and Thursdays at Holy Trinity.