A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, Reformation Worship October 28

                          While 2017 was the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, our celebrations continue into the 501st year. The Reformation is a celebration of freedom in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Martin Luther found hidden light in the Word of God. He found a real reason to hope in Jesus Christ alone. Even though we all sin and fall short of the glory of God, we are welcomed into the sanctuary and refuge of God’s grace and love. Today we also celebrate the 70 year anniversary of Bethlehem Lutheran Church being God’s house in this place. God is good!

All Things are Possible for God, October 21 Worship

"What is the meaning of life?" is a question we often ask. Your answer might change if you really think that God is capable of doing anything. Jesus points out that living in a broken world we will often use the word “never.” By our own strength many things we can imagine are not possible. But Jesus says, “All things are possible with God.” This means we can live in hope. With God the possibilities are infinite and eternal. What does that mean in your life?

God's Eternal Treasure, Worship October 14

In our Gospel lesson Jesus challenges a successful and eager young man. The Lord seems to deliberately push this person further then he could possibly go. What is Jesus doing? He is confident that God has eternal treasure for us. But He sees that we grasp for the enticing things of the world first. It can be a challenge to see past all that is ultimately empty and take to heart that God’s goodness is our eternal treasure. The Book of Hebrews tells us that today we can celebrate and encourage one another in the reality of Christ, the living God, our eternal treasure.

God's Eternal Family, Worship October 7

 To bring humanity back to Him, God sent His Son to live a completely human life, even to the point of enduring temptation, suffering, and death. He victoriously shared our mortal life so that we might share His eternal life. He calls us to Himself even as Jesus once gathered the children in His arms and blessed them. Each of us, by grace, is God's own child, a part of His family forever.

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Seasoned with Wisdom, September 30 Worship

In our age of low salt diets and health conscious choices, it might seem that salt is always bad.  But salt is a necessity of life.  Salt is still used to purify, cure, preserve, and season.  Once it was considered so valuable that it was also a commodity and a form of currency.  Something so valuable could not be allowed to become tainted by impurity and then lose the power to serve its purpose.  We find our purpose and meaning in life by knowing Christ Jesus. Today, we pray in thanksgiving for the amazing gifts Jesus has made known to us, and we pray that we may be kept "salty" in the fullness of His grace and favor.

God's Gift of Noble Character, September 23 Worship

In today’s scriptures we can sense the care God has for all the members of His family. In our Gospel we see Jesus take care of one child. He wants all of us to feel as cared for as that child. In our Old Testament lesson from Proverbs we are given the image of a woman and her family who are thriving because they have built noble character by the grace of God. The message is tied together by James who challenges all of us to be humble before our God. In this way we will be richly blessed and can live noble lives in the family of our great God and Father.

Good Words from God, September 16 Worship

 O, the power of words. From the mouth of Jesus words change lives in dramatic ways. Despite our best efforts our words can fall short of what we hoped for. In our second lesson today James issues a lament that the same tongue that praises God can be the source of so much mischief and evil.  Luther reminds us that the eighth commandment calls upon us to put the best construction on all things, yet too often we speak evil where we should speak good, or speak when we should remain quiet.  Our out-of-control tongues are magnified in the damage they do through social networking media, the relative anonymity of the Internet, and the great temptation to press "send" before reconsidering what we have said. Today we can pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us to good words that encourage and uplift.  By getting to know the character and personality of Jesus our words will be guided by the Eternal Word of God, forever good and righteous. 

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God Makes All Things New, September 9 Worship

Students are going back to school and new things begin. Perhaps we feel as if we are not ready to move on. We would just as soon hold on to what we have. Today God tells the prophet Isaiah, “say to those with fearful hearts, ‘be strong, do not fear; your God will come to save you.” In our Gospel lesson we see Jesus fulfill Isaiah’s promises. He “opened the eyes of the blind, and unstopped the ears of the deaf and the mute tongue shouts for joy.” In many and eternal ways we are made new in Christ. The past can be left behind and we can celebrate the new things of God.

The Gift of God's Protective Armor, September 2 Worship

Paul tells us that God wants to put us in a full suit of armor. Should we be worried and ask why are we going to need armor?   Perhaps the warfare we are preparing for is to fight for the honor of our King. Are you ready? Well of course not. Thanks be to God that He himself stands already triumphant on the battlefield. We know the victory is His. Jesus is our protection in any and every thing.

Jesus Gives Us the Big Picture, August 26th Worship

Life can get complicated. We can get so immersed in details that we lose the big picture. The gift of God’s Word is to restore the big picture for us. For instance, in the Gospel Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for getting so immersed in the details that they end up denying the love and honor God's Law demands. Today, we confess our loss of the big picture and how that hurts our human and divine relationships. We can “Rejoice in the Lord,” that He gives even more than the big picture. He gives us the infinite and eternal picture in Christ Jesus.