Hits: 16 Grace, peace and strength be to you during this critical time. We pray that you are well and caring for yourselves and others with the love of Jesus. Know that the Holy Spirit interprets even our “sighs” before the throne of grace so that we may have hope in our Lord, Romans 8: […]
Hits: 10 Our Advent Greeting Again, seasonal greetings are in the news. Many “Merry Christmas” greetings will be forthcoming. Arlette Zimmerman would edit it to: “Blessed Christmas!” London-born Jo Ann might say, “Happy Christmas.” And most of us would try to be aware and bid a “Happy Hanukkah” to our Jewish neighbors. Let’s […]
Hits: 9 Installation of Associate Pastor! We are rejoicing these days at the acceptance of the Call to serve as Associate Pastor by Charles Johnson. Pastor Chuck and Lauren, Russell and Ellie are excited to begin ministry here. God has blessed the consecrated and patient efforts of our Call Committee, and we […]
Hits: 7 Pastor’s Corner: Martin Luther an Angel? In the early 80s, with the development of our former, blue LW hymnal, the readings for Reformation Day (observed) were reviewed. In the earlier TLH hymnal, the Revelation 14 text for Reformation was listed as the Epistle Lesson. Some wondered if it should be […]
Hits: 13 Back to It with the Lord! This morning I made my way to church on 151st Street going west and needed to be thoughtful along the way. For a couple of months, my speed stayed a constant 35 mph, but as an early bird I now needed to fly a little […]
Hits: 4 The Place of Prayer As July drew to a close, the assigned Gospel in church was Luke 11: 1-4, St. Luke’s record of THE Prayer given to us by our Lord in its shorter, essential form. In the Lord’s Prayer, our Lord puts everything in its right place. […]
Hits: 3 Say “Thank You” — and “Please” In catechism/Confirmation class the eighth graders are learning about prayer as we study Dr. Luther’s instruction on the Lord’s Prayer. Among our topics has been our motivation for prayer, the “why” of our prayers. To help the students evaluate their prayerful motivations, our […]
Hits: 5 “Hair-on-Fire Christian Witness” As the third of the great Church Festivals – Pentecost – approaches on June 9, our hearts turn in the direction of Christian witnessing as prompted and empowered by the Holy Spirit. On that first Pentecost, the disciples/apostles were topped with “flames” and enabled to speak the “wonders of […]
Hits: 6 “Graduation” Not long ago in worship we sang a “Gradual Hymn.” During Lent the Alleluias are omitted, so an added Lenten hymn is sometimes inserted. At our worship planning meeting it was noted that a little triangle (Stand) needed to precede the Gradual Hymn. Why? It is the song that […]
Hits: 3 “Lent to Easter Lillies” As I write this April article the days are getting longer. Last week marked the Vernal Equinox and signaled, by both the increasing light and the warming temperatures, the creation is awakening from its winter slumber. Among the signs of spring are the shoots emerging from […]
Hits: 7 Pastor’s Corner: “Shrove Sunday… Ash Wednesday… Easter!” So we are at the entrance to Lent with Ash Wednesday on March 6 this year. For Lent we line up with the lunar calendar following our ancient faith-lead of Passover and marking time with the risen Savior in the celebration of Easter. […]
Hits: 7 “Going Forward with God” Year of Our Lord 2019. Or is it just 2019? As we enter the New Year, we are encouraged in faith to go with the hope and strength that comes with God’s presence. One of my favorite devotional writers over these now many years has been […]