Greetings in Christ's Holy name! Well I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. I know I certainly did. This was my first Christmas experience here at Peace in Christ. Normally they have two services at 4 and 6. However, this year, I added a 9 o'clock service. All three went very well. The first two were beautiful services with all kinds of special music. There was a duet, a soloist, a cello, flutes, and the choir. Outside the church, a member had made ice candles. So right along the main road we are located on, there were 20 luminaries (as some called them) flickering and grabbing people's attention as they drove by. At the 4 o'clock service we had just shy of 500 people. The church was busting at the seems and it was awesome. 500 people singing the beautiful Christmas hymns. A few less than 500 candles flickering while singing Silent Night. What a way to celebrate Christmas. Then during the 6 o'clock service, I went to a families house for supper and Pastor Ludwig did that service by himself. There were 200 hundred people there for that one. Then I came back and had another supper with the organist and her husband since she played for all three services. Pastor Ludwig had went home to be with his family since all his kids were home. I did the 9 o'clock service by myself and we had 110 people there. That service did not have all the special music, but had a very classic, traditional carols and lessons feeling to it. On the day we had 790 people for Christmas Eve which they were pretty sure was the record. I was pleased that the 9 o'clock service went well because now it will be in the normal routine.
I preached that weekend right after Christmas so it was a short turn around time between sermons. Then last week I took a little vacation. I made my way over to South Dakota to see old friends and families I am still in touch with from vicarage. Then I made my way down to Lincoln to hang out with some old college buddies for New Year's Eve. And then I spent New Year's Day at JoAnna and Steven's hanging out with Ava. Mom and Dad were there so I did get to see them during the holiday season. Overall, it was a good vacation and a nice way to relax after the busyness of the Christmas season.
However, now I am back and January is shaping up to be just as busy. I agreed to host a blood drive here on the 19th. I am going on a Young Men's Ice Fishing trip on the 22nd to the 24th. We are doing our big confirmation retreat on the 29th through the 31st. Plus, I am starting up both small group Bible studies again. Last time we did the same topic so it wasn't that bad. This time I decided to do different books for the two groups. We will be working through C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity in one group. And the other group will be working through Vieth's The Spirituality of the Cross. Both are phenomenal books and I am excited to work through both of them again. And then we also resume our Romans Bible Study on Sunday mornings. All of this plus the fact that we have six weeks until Ash Wednesday and I will be busy. However, it is a good busy like always.
I have been playing catch up on my Bible Reading plan, and have been reading large portions of Jeremiah. Jeremiah is a very unique book. So much doom and gloom, wrath and punishment, and then just a glimpse of Gospel to keep the people going. It sort of feels like my golf game, lots of frustrating shots, only to be redeemed by one great shot which is enough to keep me going. However, it is the Word of God and the glimpses of Gospel are beautiful illustrations of God's mercy in spite of our sinful ways. So as we begin the new year, just a simple reminder to love, trust, and fear in God above everything else. However, even when you fail, He is a merciful God who has forgiven you in the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. Happy New Year in Jesus' name. Amen.
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