Pastor’s Notes

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Because it is so difficult in parts of the world to find clean drinking water, an organization called Water Is Life developed a wonderful resource called “The Drinkable Book.”  The paper in the book is coated in silver nanoparticles that filter out almost 99.9 percent of harmful bacteria.  Each tear-out page can be used and reused to filter up to 100 liters of water at the cost of only four pennies per page.

The Bible is also an unusually “drinkable” Book.  In John chapter 4 we have the story of the woman at the well.  She needed much more than just water to quench her spiritual thirst.  Because of the circumstances in her life she was desperate to know about “the living water” that Jesus was talking about.

Jesus said to her, “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.  The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14)

The Lord gave us living water in our Baptism.  We need the “drinkable” Book as we face the circumstances of our life.  This “drinkable” Book points to God’s Son as the sole source of “living water.”  Those called and washed in the water through the Holy Spirit will experience “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Lord, help us discard the things that leave us empty and thirsting and exchange them for the blessings of the living water you offer.

In Christ,
Pastor

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

After many years hearing and talking about the 500^th Anniversary of the Reformation we have now arrived at the month.  Lutheran churches around the world and other Christian denominations will celebrate this turning point in the history of the Lord’s Church.

This month of October 2017 is a very busy one for Good Shepherd and I would like to let you know of the many happenings at our church and within the circuit.

Sunday, Oct. 1 – LWML Sunday.  We worship together and thank God for this mission society within our LCMS.

Sunday, Oct. 22 – Mission Festival Sunday.  Rev. Charles Olander who is involved in prison ministry in our district will be here to preach and conduct Bible Class.  We will also have a meal after late service and learn more about our Central Illinois District’s Mission.

Sunday. Oct. 29 – Reformation Sunday.  Special Worship Service and our last collection for the new church sign we have planned on the south end of our property.

Sunday, Oct. 29, 3:00 p.m.  – Circuit-Wide Reformation 500 Festival Worship Service at Christ Lutheran Church, 311 N. Hershey Road.

We thank the Lord for these opportunities to gather and worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We join in grace alone, faith alone, and scripture alone.  We are blessed to be part of this historic event and we look forward to your participation.

In Christ,

Pastor

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In reviewing history, we find some amazing statements made by respected and knowledgeable people.  Charles Duvelle, Director of the US Patent Office in 1899, said, “Everything that can be invented has been invented.”  In the days of silent movies, H.M. Warner, Chairman of Warner Brothers Pictures, said, “Who wants to hear actors talk?”  Gary Cooper said, “Gone With The Wind” is going to be the biggest flop in Hollywood history.  I’m just glad that it will be Clark Gable who’s falling flat on his face and not me.”

Jesus made many amazing statements, too, such as these:

“Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matt. 10:39)

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him over to the Gentiles.  And they will mock Him and spit on Him, and flog Him and kill Him.  And after three days He will rise.” (Mark 10:33-34)

“Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown.” (Luke 4:24)

“I must preach the Good News of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.” (Luke 4:43)

“It is finished.” (John 19:30)

            “Receive the Holy Spirit.  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold from any, it is withheld.” (John 20:22b-23)

All these statements made by Jesus proved to be true and are still true today.  We can trust the words spoken by our Savior.

In Christ,

Pastor

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

One of the things we enjoy about summer is the chance to “get away.”  What does that mean to you?  Are you getting away from work?  Are you getting away from home and the responsibilities that come with it?  Are you getting away from the monotony that is your life?

When we “get away,” our routines change.  Recently when I “got away” with the family at a baseball tournament for Holden, every day I was up at 6:00 a.m.  Yes, you read that right, your Pastor who loves his pillow and his siesta was up early!  But that is what happens when you “get away.”  The minutes and the hours and the days change from the usual.  I don’t like to sleep in when I “get away.”  I like to be doing and going and enjoying.  Some people, maybe you, are the complete opposite.  You “get away” to sleep later, lounge around and enjoy an adult beverage on a beach somewhere.  “Getting away,” means different things to different people.

Do you ever want to “get away” from your foolish actions?  Do you want to run to a beach and hide because of words you said in haste?  Would like to sleep in and not face the transgressions you displayed the day before?  Where can we go in those instances?  The cross of Jesus.  There we “get away” from our actions, our sins, because they’ve been placed on Jesus, and He removed them as far as the east is from the west.

Furthermore, our natural inclination is to wonder what we must do to be right with God, and that’s totally frustrating and wearisome, for it has no end.  Once again, the cross is the reminder that Jesus did everything necessary to make us right with God and we have perfect rest, at no price to us.  In Christ, our rest is eternal.

One of the blessings as a Pastor in “getting away” is the chance to sit with my family in worship.  I always enjoy visiting a sister church of the LCMS.  Have a good time when you “get away” but don’t get away from your life of worship.  We need the constant of God’s Word in our lives.

In Christ,

Pastor

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Think of the soldier standing in the cold and snow of Valley Forge.  The men with their muskets in their bloody hands at Lexington and Concord.  They could not see then what we enjoy now, but they were fighting for it – freedom.

We have been blessed to be born into freedom.  We are blessed by those who sacrificed to give it to us.  We are not in North Korea or Cuba or any other totalitarian government where the state would be our god, and we would own nothing.  Leaving the country or even traveling within her borders is not safe.

Freedom is not free.  Freedom is responsibility.  The Apostle Paul writes, “For freedom Christ has set us free…For you were called to freedom, brothers.  Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Gal. 5:1a, 13)  When Paul wrote these words, he was living under a bloody despot, Nero, the Caesar who had become the Roman god.  Paul flew no banner but Christ.  He knew, as we know, that Christ has granted us the ultimate freedom.  Freedom from sin, death, and the power of the devil.  Christ gives us strength and reminds us of His presence even as certain freedoms get taken away or limited.  We pray for those misguided souls who want to scream and yell the loudest in our country.  They need the reminder that having freedom means responsibility.  They can only do these things because they live in a place where it is allowed.

Paul gave the warning that we all need to heed in these days of being in everyone’s face and the rampant public discord.  “But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.” (Gal. 5:15)

In Christ,

Pastor

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Throughout the centuries, the relation between Islam and Christianity has been a challenge.  Within a hundred years after the prophet’s death, Muslim armies had conquered Spain and penetrated into France, only to be stopped at the battle of Tours in 732.  We think also of the Crusades to win the Holy Land back from the Muslims.  In Martin Luther’s day the Turkish Muslims menaced Europe from the east.  In the original German of the hymn “Lord, Keep Us Steadfast In Thy Word,” the Reformer prayed, “put a stop to the murder by the pope and Turk.”

Today the struggle continues.  It is not to be won with weapons or money.  Rather, victory is in the Word of God and prayer, as Christians are urged to “contend for the faith” (Jude 3) and “take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17).  We as Christians should also know something about Islam in order to refute some of their beliefs.  We might even read the Qur’an so that we better understand their teachings.

The Qur’an urges Mohammad himself, “ask forgiveness of thy sin” (Sura 40:55).  Yet nowhere does it mention sin in connection with Jesus.  The Qur’an offers a fallible prophet who lies buried in Arabia.  The Bible presents a sinless Savior who has conquered death.  The Bible presents an eternal home that is given to us wholly through the merits of Christ Jesus.  As the thirteenth century scholar Riccoldo da Montecroce wrote in his refutation of the Qur’an (Confutatio Alcorani, which Luther translated into German and which is now available in English), “The fact is:  Christ lives, Mohammad is dead.”  A former Muslim from Iraq put it this way, “Allah calls on Muslims to sacrifice their sons so that they can go to paradise; God sacrificed His Son so that we can go to heaven.”

In Christ,

Pastor