Snow today

 Snow. Lots of snow! Yesterday morning it started to snow, rather slowly. As I watched it from the office at church, I thought, "It is going to have to work hard to get what they are saying." Then late forenoon, it started snowing much harder. It started to add up. I shoveled walks at church/daycare, came home for lunch, let the dogs out, shoveled walks and returned to church. Noah's Ark was going to close early because of the weather. A father shoveled N.A. for us. That was great. The walks were covered again. It continued to snow. After coming home, shoveled again, then again, then again. It was really snowing. 

Was I upset? Nope. Penny and I enjoy the snow. The dogs played in the snow. They bounced around. They played. They rolled around. They enjoyed themselves They payed for it later in the evening. Both of them were stiff. 

I know that this is dark but it was what I saw this morning when I let the dogs out. Have some more shoveling to do. 

So what will we do today? There are sermons to be written. Zoom meeting to do. Penny will have things to do for N.A. while here at home. But we will be able to do it in front of the fireplace. Maybe she will bake something today. Hint, hint.

Be safe. If you have to get out, which you probably shouldn't, be careful. For those who have health issues, please do not do anything to cause yourself harm. Stay inside and look out. Enjoy the beauty of what God has given us. Yes, this is a beautiful day. Thanks God, for today. 

Sunday morning ramblings.

 I just received the update from Page County about a Winter Storm warning for Monday. That means that there is a very good chance that we will get 6-12 inches of snow. I know that some of you will rejoice. Others will moan. Still others will be upset. Everyone has a different perspective on winter time. Some enjoy it. Some don't. And that is all right. That is the way it works. Every has differing perspectives on such things. Personally, I greatly enjoy snow. No, I don't like getitng stuck in snow. I don't like having to shovel snow. But at the same time, I do really enjoy snow. I like to play in the snow with my dogs. But if I had to drive any distance while it is snowing, I would not be so happy. Those with snow plowing companies are probably looking forward to the extra work. Those who have to pay the snow plowing companies might not be looking forward to it. Just the way it works. 

Penny and I spent the last couple weeks stuck in the house, not because of the weather but because we were told that we had to. While we don't like to be told to stay home, we did as we were told. We actually enjoyed the time together. We both felt good, no sickness at all. So we did puzzles. We sat in front of the fireplace. We watched the snow blow on Friday (15). We were able to do work via the internet and phone. I know that last week I spent each day in zoom meetings with the LWML as the Board of Directors and President's Assembly were not able to go to Lexington, KY to meet in person. On breaks and each evening, I enjoyed being in my house, talking with Penny, playing with the dogs, and eating home cooked meals. Penny baked a variety of things. It was nice to have fresh homemade peanut butter cookes during the meetings. Yum. Thanks Penny.

I would not want to be stuck in the house all the time. When our time was over, we enjoyed getting out and about, being around people. I enjoyed leading worship on Saturday night (and look forward to leading worship and Bible study this morning, Sunday). We only missed one weekend, but it sure seemed like it was much more than that. I don't think I could handle missing worship week after week. Worship fills my soul, feeds my faith and encourages my life. It is so valuable to my life. Worship might only happen once a week, but it reaches into each day during the following week. What a blessing it is! I hope and pray that you take advantage of your opportunity to worship each week. 

So what does this week bring? I don't know. I do know this: God will be with me throughout this coming week. He will watch over me. He will strengthen me. He will help me as I face temptation. Thank You, dear Lord for all that You in my life and in the lives of all who follow You. Lord, I praise Your name. 

Lord willing...

 It has been a week. Last Monday was the beginning of the time when I was moving towards having my 2nd knee surgery. Oh how I was looking forward to it. The left knee is really giving me fits, more than I remember before, which might be because of work it needed to do when the right knee was replaced. It is nice to not have the pain in the right knee. It gets stiff. I have to keep moving it. If I sit too long, it gets stiff. But that is to be expected. I just keep moving my leg, making sure that it is in good shape. I am thankful to have had that surgery.

But that hasn't happened yet with the left leg. It was all set up. Thursday the 14th I was to go in at 7:30 for a 9:30 surgery. I was filled with trepidation. Why? For those who have gone through such a surgery, you understand the challenges. At first, they get you up. You walk the first day. How is that possible? Lots of pain medication. Then comes the challenge of even lifting the leg. You work and work to get it moving. Lots of pain. Lots of work. Lots of therapy. And over time, things get better. But those early days are a challenge. I was not looking forward to that aspect but I was willing to go through it in order to have two legs that work good and don't have the pain in the knee and leg when I stand up or when I walk or when I stand too long. Bring it on!

Casey Brown and I recored two weekend sermons, in order to be ready for the time I would be laid up. He does a good job with the recording and the sound of within our worship services. He is a real asset to the congregation and the mission of the church. "Called by God" was the Sunday theme. God calls each of us. We reach out to others. We tell them, "Come and see!" Come and see the Lord from His Word. 

So everything was ready. Even the LWML ladies on the national Board of Directors were ready. This week is a when the CPC, BOD and PA meet via zoom. They were aware of the impact that would make upon my thinking and we had it all worked out. Great! God be praised.

Then it all fell apart. God be praised! Yes, I say that about it all falling apart because if I can't say it in every situation, it is just a pious little ditty that is said in good times. We are to praise God in good times and in bad times. I give thanks to the Lord in the times when I am feeling good and I give thanks to God in the times when I am frustrated, upset and unsure of what is going to happen. God be praised when the week goes as I planned. God be praised when the week does not go as planned. As James tells us in his epistle, we are to say, "Lord willing I will do this or that..." (see James 4:3-17) My week was going according to the will of the Lord.

I received word that I was not going to be able to have the surgery. I would be lying if I told you I was ok with it. I wasn't. I was frustrated. I was upset. I wanted to get this over with. Now I would have to wait a month to 6 months to get the surgery. Frustrating. It took a while for me to move past the emotion of the moment. Then I found myself looking at it and realizing that someone else needed the surgery more than me. I prayed for that person who underwent surgery on Thursday morning. I know that the Lord had things well in hand and I found myself praising His name. 

So this week, I will be with the LWML ladies (and a few men) and will have a clear head, no pain medicine or surgery recovery. Yep, the Lord knows what He is doing. I need to trust the Lord. I am reminded that the Lord has things safely in hand and I trust Him. That is the message that I would leave you with today. As you go through your week, make your plans, do the things that you plan but do it with the confident faith that says, "Lord willing, I will do this." 

Blizzard, snow, wind, and ramblings

 The snow is blowing like crazy. Here on this Friday morning, we are under a blizzard warning. Really? A warning. No, it is a blizzard. I heard this morning that means that you have sustained winds of 35+ mph and snow. Well, all night that wind blew like crazy. What is it about winter wind that howls? In the summer when the wind blows, it doesn't howl like it does in the winter. Winter winds just sound cold and awful. Laying bed last night (actually whenever I happened to wake up for a few moments, thankfully I sleep well), I heard the wind blowing. That is something because it takes a lot of wind for us to hear it in our house. And believe me, I could hear it last night. Today, as I sit here at my desk in my study, I see the snow going sideways down the road and I thank God that I am stuck inside! I am also glad that Penny did not have to go to the hospital today to pick me up following the knee surgery. I would have been concerned for her well being as she drove to the hospital and back. So there is another thing to thank God for - Penny did not have to drive in the snow and wind. I pray for whoever got my spot on the surgery schedule. That person must have needed it more than I do. So I ask the Lord to please help the person get through the recovery of surgery and get safely home today.

Watching the snow, I realize how much I enjoy it. I know, those of you with livestock are stuck doing chores in this awful weather. I am sorry for you. I pray that you are safe while doing your chores. Get them done quickly and get back into the warmth. Make sure those cows have some straw to bed down in. This too shall pass. Not quick enough for you, I bet. Anyway, I like watching the snow, listening to music, having the fireplace going, and enjoying the day with my lovely wife, Penny. The dogs lay around with us too. It makes for a winter day. Lord, watch over those who are driving the snow plows. Keep them safe from the crazies on the road, and keep them on the roads as they work to try to keep them open for those who must get out.

I will look forward to going outside tomorrow and taking pictures of the snow, the drifts, the places the snow was blown, the wonder of nature and how snow gets in amazing places and in amazing formations. Clumping around in my boots, I may find some good pictures. I don't think I will clump around today. I am only going outside when the dogs need to go out. Otherwise, I am inside! 

So what do you do on a snowy day? Puzzle? Read? Eat? There is comfort food that is great to consume on a day like this. I am doing a couple of interviews for my Major Applied Project for the Doctor on Ministry degree. I am also going to be doing some writing. 

Unfortunately I will be unable to lead worship this weekend. Fortunately, I recorded the sermon already, since I was planning on being laid up, getting around with a walker, and moaning and groaning about how I felt. But that won't happen. Still will not be leading worship or Bible study Sunday. Oh yes, just a note, there will be no Adult Bible study Sunday. There is worship. Elders will lead it and the preacher will be on the screen. 

I hope you have a great day. The Lord is with you. He sends His angels to watch over you. Ramble with you again in the near future. 

A Fiery Furnace, a Lion's Den and living in Christ.

 I have been thinking about the many struggles and problems that we are facing as a people. I am not going to say that people that don't look like me or act like me are wrong. I am not saying that all Democrats are wrong and all Republicans are right. The fact is, there are people on both sides that are right and wrong. There are people who made terrible decisions, poor decisions and right decisions. And it could well be that the same person did all three things in the same day.

But wait a minute. Isn't that the way of life? I think about my life and I think who I have done what is good and right, what is bad and wrong and everything in between (those gray areas that we like to color that way because we don't want to make a black or white decision because we don't want to be put on the spot). As sinners, that is what happens. 

But wait, why would I say that? Why would I fall back on that statement? Am I defining myself as a sinner? Have I forgotten something important? Have I forgotten that I am a baptized child of God, which means that my identity is found not in my sinful nature but is found in the grace and mercy of God. I am a child of God. I do not have to give in to the sinful decisions and actions that temptation lays before me. I can turn to the Holy Spirit, turn to the waters of my Baptism, to find the strength to live as a child of God.

I have been thinkings about this a lot lately. I want to put before you some people who faced situations much like we face, and stood firm in the faith that they had been given. I am thinking of when King Nebuchadnezzar sat up his golden image and said, "Whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace." (Daniel 3:6 ESV) Then we are introduced to Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They would not worship another god. They worshiped the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They followed the true God. When the music played, they would not bow down. Didn't they know that they could die? Didn't they know that no one goes into a fiery furnace and walk out of it alive? Of course they did. They understood their actions. They trusted in the Lord. They even said, "If not (if God would not save them from the fires), be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." (Daniel 3:18 ESV) Their faith led them. They stood firm in faith. And they were thrown into the furnace.

Then you have Daniel. A document was signed that said that no one could worship any other god than the king. We are told, "When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously." (Daniel 6:10 ESV) Even though he knew that if he prayed to God, he would be thrown into the lion's den. No one ever goes into the lion's den and survives. Yet, he continued to pray to God, just as he had done in the days before. He did not stop praying to God. Nor did he hide it. He could have hidden in his closet, did his prayers, and no one would have know. But he did exactly as he did every day. He did not let those who were opposed to him and his faith stop him from praying. He prayed.

All of them lived their faith. They did so in the face of persecution. They did so with the threat of death. They trusted in God. They lived their faith. I think about that, and I think, that is what I need to do. I need to continue to live my life of faith no matter what is going on in society. Will I be attacked because I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior? I don't know. But then again, I don't really care. I need to focus on how the Lord wants me to live, not how the world wants me to live.

I am to continue to love those around me. I am to love those who are different from me. I am to love those who don't agree with me. But I am not to give up my faith in order to do so. So you might disagree with me. That is all right. In Christ, I still love you. I pray for you. I pray that the Holy Spirit would bring peace between us. 

I pray for our nation. I pray for our leaders. I pray for the people. I pray that we would find a way to work together no matter where we stand. That is what we are to do. Instead of attacking each other, let us work to understand each other. In Christ, I pray that I might be just that. Lord, send Your Holy Spirit to me, that I might follow Your will in my life. Amen. 

Giving some thought to what has happened

 Watching the news reports, I was saddened. Why? Because I don't agree with rioting, no matter which side of the political spectrum you find yourself on. Yesterday, I watched as there were peaceful protests in Washington D.C. That is something that can take place at any time. But then it began to change. There were those in the crowd who attacked and invaded the U.S. Capital. There was violence. There was shootings. There was killings. There was destruction. And I was disgusted. I don't care that it was the red side that was responding. It was wrong. 

But then again, I was also disgusted to hear the blue side stating how terrible it was for there to be rioting to be taking place. For months, there was riots, and they never spoke against the violence. Don't be hypocritical at this point and say how bad it is to riot, after spending months turning a blind eye. 

And I don't support the riots or those who speak in support of the riots yesterday. If you were opposed to violent riots over the summer, then speak in favor of them right now, then you are just as hypocritical. It is wrong.

All violent rioting is wrong. I don't care what you support or what your message is. If you want to peacefully protest, that is one thing. When it becomes violent, it is wrong. As people in America, you have the right to express your opinion. If fact, you should express your opinion. But you cannot, and do not, have the right to violently act - to hurt someone, to destroy something - all in the name of trying to get your point across. I know that it has been said, "Well, they just got to the point that they couldn't take it anymore." That doesn't make it right. It is still wrong. Someone might say, "Yesterday was the people reacting to their voice not being heard." That was the excuse used last spring and summer. It was wrong then. It is wrong now. That is reality. 

Sinful hearts will show themselves at times like this. We begin to see that no matter who you are, sin still is part of your nature, and if you do not allow the Holy Spirit to lead your heart, thoughts and nature, you will act sinfully. You will not do what is right. You might think you are right, but to act like a mob, is not right. It is wrong. Wrong on both sides, at the different times. 

I condemn all violent protests. I condemn the destruction of property. I speak against such actions. As a nation, we need to come together, supporting truth, supporting peace, supporting that which is right. We need to set aside our own personal desires. We need to do that which is right. Period. Plain. Simple. All sides need to come together. 

The new year has already moved quickly.

 We are in a new year. 2021 has arrived. Today is actually the 5th day of this new year. Time has marched on, even when we don't think that it does. As difficult as 2020 was, as many struggles as I faced and you faced, the days continued to tick away. While it seemed like some of the days and weeks were dragging, before I knew it, a week had disappeared and then a month, then several months and finally the year itself was gone. Now I understand what goes on for our friends and neighbors who are live in the nursing home or are homebound. They would relate to me that time still went quickly for them. They had the same routine each day - get up at the same time, go through the same motions each day, and then the day would end when they went to bed at night - and the days moved quickly. Day after day ticked away. And that is how I feel about this last year. As long as it was, it still went quickly. 

Which makes me think about 2021. 5 days into it! Today is my mother-in-law, Shirley Rex's, 91st birthday. I can't imagine how fast those years must have gone. 91 years. Here I at 59, looking at 60 this year, and it doesn't seem possible. I don't believe that I am really that old, that I have taken that many trips around the sun. How is that possible? Each day seems to slip away quickly. And it seems to go faster as I have taken more trips around the sun. It was just a few years ago that I was in high school, and college and then Seminary. It seems like just a short time ago I began in the ministry. I remember looking at the men who had served 30+ years in the ministry and think, "Man, they have really come through a lot. They have spent so many years serving the Lord." And now, here I am having served 34 years in the ministry. I am one of those older guys who have served many years. 

What will 2021 bring? I don't know. I do know who holds the days in His hand - and it isn't me. The Lord holds each day in His hand. I look at the days, and I rejoice that He holds the days and I don't. I would mess up the days. I do that enough because of my sinful nature. Even as I try to follow the will of God daily, temptation comes calling and I struggle to continue to do that. I have to repent daily. I confess my sins, and ask the Lord to forgive me for the sake of Jesus' sinless death and resurrection. Believing in Jesus, I know that I am forgiven. I give thanks that the Lord leads and guides me through each of these days.

Yesterday, there was a stupid thing in the news. It was when Rev. Emanel Cleaver ended the opening prayer for the 117th congress with "amen and awoman." This was an attempt to be inclusive, as Pelosi is trying to get into the rule of the new congress. It was really dumb. "Amen" is latin for "it shall be so." It is not a gender specific word. Cleaver is saying he was trying to do a pun on the word to show respect for the women in congress. It was a stupid pun. It was a dumb move on his part. As a pastor, he should know better than having that be a gender specific word. It would be like changing the songs in a hymnal from "hymns" to "hers." Once again, no gender is intented. Or perhaps in restaurants, we should not have "menus" but should have "womenus." The whole gender specific wording, removing father and mother and having to use parents, or instead of aunts and uncles, having to use parent's siblings. Really? There are still genders. Two genders. Male and female, as the Lord created them. In this sinful world, we have tried to do away with the two genders. But there is still two genders. That is the way the Lord intended. And that is the way it should continue to be. 

So as we have started this new year, we see that there is nothing new. We are going to face the same struggles through this year that we faced last year. There may be new challenges, new ways of being tempted, new ways to argue with each other and so on. But in the end, it always comes down to the question: Are we going to follow the will of the Lord? Or are we going to turn away from His way? Me, I am going to continue to following His will. Will I be perfect at it? No. But that doesn't stop me from confessing my sin, seeking the guidance of the Spirit to face temptation and knowing that I live in His grace and mercy. I can only say, "Lord, be my guide each day. Forgive me my sins. Help me to live as Your child." 

Happy new year. It is almost Epiphany! Tomorrow! The Light shines brightly in this dark world.