Teaching Again

Friday after Pentecost 8
July 31, 2009

The Lord be with you.

My wife, Kitty, has been unemployed for a year. She is a teacher by profession and worked for many years as an adjunct professor at U.S.C.Upstate here in Spartanburg. The past year has been a challenge, to put it mildly. The good news is that Kitty has a job again. She will be teaching world American history at Greenville Technical College. God is good. He does answer prayers. Her new boss is very pro-adjuncts (unlike the man who took over the history department at Upstate). Kitty will be teaching two and maybe three courses. Praise God.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Rev. Crandall Installation

Friday after Pentecost 8
July 31, 2009

The Lord be with you

The Rev. Ted Crandall will be installed as the Associated Pastor of Lamb of God, deployed to Beaufort, SC, August 30, 2009 at Lamb of God in Spartanburg. Rev. Cliff Gade, the Circuit Counselor of Circuit 18, will do the actual installation. Circuit Counselors often represent the District President in matters such as this. There will be dinner after the installaion service. While I will be sending an invitation to all the LC-MS churches in circuits 18 & 19, please also consider this post an invitation to come and be a part of this joyous event.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

P.S. The installation service will begin at 6:00 PM.

Colonoscopy Update

Friday after Pentecost 8
July 31, 2009

The Lord be with you

For those of you that might be interested, everything was indeed routine in reference to my colonoscopy yesterday. There was one itty-bitty polyp, which was removed and will be examined. Though I don't remember, apparently I solved the world hunger problem while "under" and asked the nurses to take notes. I also apparently started to make "beeping" sounds as they wheeled me from the operating room. (I guess that was the inner-child coming out.)

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Worship for Pentecost 9

Tuesday in the week of Pentecost 8
July 28, 2009

The Lord be with you

Because I will be having a completely routine colonoscopy on Thursday, which is the day I normally would post this blog, and because I will be kind of out of it on Wednesday preparing for this test, I am posting it today.

This coming Sunday is the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost. We will be using the Service of Prayer and Preaching for our liturgy (page 260). The assigned lessons are: Exodus 16:2-15; Ephesians 4:1-16 and John 6:22-35. The text for the sermon is John 6:27. The sermon is titled “A Different Kind of Food.” The opening hymn is “Feed Thy Children, God Most Holy,” LSB 774. The sermon hymn is “Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer,” LSB 918. The closing hymn is “O Living Bread from Heaven,” LSB 642.

The hymn “Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer” was originally published in Welsh by William Williams in 1745. It was first translated into English by Peter Williams. Today it is known in many denominations, sometimes as “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah” (as it was in The Lutheran Hymnal). It has been said of William Williams, “What Paul Gerhardt has been to Germany, what Isaac Watts has been to England, that and more has William Williams of Pantecelyn been to Wales.” I found a great YouTube video of a Welsh church singing “Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer,” and it is at the end of these notes. The words are included in the video so you can sing along.

Preview of the Lessons

Exodus 16:2-15: The people of Israel had followed the Lord (and Moses) into the wilderness, but quickly their joy turned into grumbling. They forgot the misery of slavery and longed for better food. God mercifully treats their grumbling as a prayer and answers with manna and quail. Their real problem, which reappears time and time again, is a lack of faith. In verse 10 the people look out at the wilderness and see “the Glory of the LORD” in a cloud. This probably appeared as a supernaturally bright cloud, based on the root meaning of “glory.” I’m not going to go into why, but I believe this was a pre-incarnate manifestation of the Son.

Ephesians 4:4-16: Paul, writing from prison (v. 1) urges the believers in Ephesus to live together in Christian love. Verses 4-6 accent the unity of the Church. This unity comes from the One God (v. 6), Holy Spirit (v 4), Son (v. 5) and Father (v. 6). Just as there is one God, so there is only one Christian Faith and only one Christian Baptism (v. 5). This is a statement of faith. There are members of this One Holy and Christian Church wherever the Spirit converts people by the Gospel to faith in Jesus. Verses 7-10 have been understood as a reference to the incarnation of Jesus by some, and as a reference to Christ’s descent into hell by others. I think of it as referring to his descent into hell, but as those who think of it as referring to the incarnation are not teaching any false doctrine, I have no problem with that view either. In verses 11-16 Paul tells us what the function of the ministry and Church is. Basically we are to facilitate growth in Christian maturity. This is growth in knowledge which should lead to loving actions towards others. If loving actions do not follow, then there is something wrong with the understanding. Perhaps it has just become “head” knowledge. Perhaps it is flawed doctrine. Whatever it is, true knowledge/faith leads to the Church working together like a living body. [By-the-way, because there is only one baptism (v. 5) if you have been baptized more than once, only the first time you were baptized in the name of the Triune God counted in God’s eyes. In essence, if you get “re-baptized” you are saying that you were not a Christian before (even if you believed in Jesus) and that the Church in which you were baptized is not a Christian church (even if they proclaim the Triune God and Christ as Redeemer). This is why we do not re-baptize people who join Lamb of God if they were baptized in non-Lutheran Christian churches.]

John 6:22-35: Jesus, in John 6, gave what has become know as the “Bread of Life Discourse.” Most of the Jews who heard Jesus that day didn’t understand what Jesus was talking about (6:60, 66). The text has been difficult for many since then as well. The Gospel lessons for the next three weeks is a continuous reading through this sermon of our Lord’s, and gives us an opportunity for a sermon series based on John 6. Because my sermons for the next three weeks will be based on the Gospel readings, I’m not going to write anything else here. Instead I encourage you to come and worship with us.

Sunday’s Collect

Merciful Father, You gave Your Son Jesus as the heavenly bread of life. Grant us faith to feast on Him in Your Word and Sacraments that we may be nourished unto life everlasting; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Gradual Psalm – Psalm 145:10-21 (antiphon: v. 15)

The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD,
and all your saints shall bless you!
They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
to make known to the children of man
your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The LORD is faithful in all his words
and raises up all who are bowed down.
The LORD upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD,
and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.


Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

The "Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer" YouTube video.

Luther thought you could share the Gospel with song

Monday after Pentecost 7
July 27, 2009

The Lord be with you

I subscribe to the blog SEDCongregationsAblaze. On it I found an excellent short devotion by Vicar Jim Driskell of First John’s Lutheran in York, PA. It seems that I’m not the only one who thinks our hymns are an excellent tool for sharing the Gospel. Martin Luther had the same idea. Vicar Driskell quotes the great reformer,

“To be silent about God’s grace in Jesus Christ is no longer an option for the Christian. For believers to refuse to sing and speak about their faith …”

Check out the quote in the devotion and then review some of the quotes in the booklet I made and handed out at church, “Tell Ev’ry One What He Has Done.”

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Thoughts on Worship

Pentecost 8
July 26, 2009

The Lord be with you

I just watched a YouTube video sent me by a fellow pastor. It was of a wedding processional in a church. In it, the wedding party boogalooed down the aisle of the sanctuary to a grinning and swaying priestess. The grasping for novelty in worship is nothing new. In the first half of the 20th Century, Aimee Semple McPherson, the founder of the foursquare Church, was a media sensation with her outrageous costumes and theatrical antics. In the 19th Century, great crowds were drawn in by the "new measures" employed by the Methodists. In England, the Booths founded the Salvation Army using brass bands (the popular music of the day) and rejecting such confusing teachings like the Lord's Supper and Baptism in their worship services. Their pastors dressed up in military uniforms, and were given ranks like captain. Every generation faces the same challenge going back to the Gnostics of the Second Century with their super-spiritual knowledge rituals drawn from Eastern Religions. Such caving in to whatever the current culture is tickled with reveals a real lack of reverence for the truth that was once passed down to us. Now, I'm not saying that just because something is new it has no value. If that were the case many of the great hymns and liturgy pieces we use today would never have seen the light of day. but when it comes to the worship of God, reverence for Him and respect for the history of the Church seems to be proper. Our goal is not the gathering of the largest crowd possible simply for the sake of having a large crowd, but the faithful proclamation of the Gospel to as many people as possible so that they may be saved. Such antics like portrayed in the YouTube video detract from the Gospel. I wonder what people will remember from that day, the dancing wedding party or the message from the priestess? It is through the Gospel that the Holy Spirit converts people. We are to transform the world, not have the world conform us into its image. At Lamb of God, we do indeed have quite a variety of worship formats, but you will never see me boogaloo down the aisle Sunday morning.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor Rickert

I Trust When Dark My Road

St Mary Magdalene
July 22, 2009

The Lord be with you

There is a blog titled “I Trust When Dark My Road – A Lutheran View of Depression”. The LCMS pastor who writes it says,

“This site is about Christ and His gifts, especially as He gives them to those of us who suffer with mental illnesses such as depression or anxiety. I’m a Lutheran pastor who suffers from clinical depression, and this is where I pose questions about treatments, theological questions, a little humor, and generally discuss the matter of how Christians respond to mental illness.”

There is a free downloadable book with the same title. You can also get a free print copy published by LCMS World Relief and Human Care. Click here if you want to go to the I Trust When Dark My Road site to learn more. I’ve seen nothing but good comments about the book.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor

Worship for Pentecost 8

St. Mary Magdalene
July 22, 2009

The Lord be with you

This coming Sunday is the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost. We will be using the third setting of the morning service for our liturgy (page 184). We will be celebrating the Lord’s Supper. The assigned lessons are: Genesis 9:8-17; Ephesians 3:14-21 and Mark 6:45-56. The text for the sermon is Ephesians 3:20. The sermon is titled “Willing and Able.” The opening hymn is “How Wide the Love of Christ,” LSB 535. The sermon hymn is “Entrust Your Days and Burdens,” LSB 754. The closing hymn is “Our Father, by Whose Name,” LSB 863. The distribution hymns will be: “Jesus Comes Today with Healing,” LSB 620; “Jesus Christ, My Sure Defense,” LSB 741; and “Holy Spirit, Ever Dwelling,” LSB 650. The hymnal review committee ranked the opening hymn as one worth learning, the sermon hymn as known, and the rest of the hymns as well known.

Preview of the Lessons

Genesis 9:8-17: This is the account of God making a covenant with Noah and every creature on the earth after the flood, promising never to flood the entire world again. The rainbow is given as a reminder of this promise. The flood, its date, its extent, the location of the Ark, and such, has absorbed a lot of current research. Often such research misses the big picture, God is in control of nature, God is faithful to his promises, and God takes care of his children. Dating the flood is difficult because conventional dating methods for ancient events cannot be applied. They depend on comparing events across various cultures. So if we know that Caesar crossed the Rubicon in 49 BC, and something happened five years after Caesar crossed the Rubicon, then we know it happened in 44 BC. But there were no other cultures after the flood to compare dates to. Some have used the genealogical records in the Bible to try to determine an exact date, but there is good reason to think that these records are not complete (not only from passages like Matthew 1:1, but also from comparison to early manuscripts and early translations that had manuscripts of the Old Testament we no longer have). The geologic record is easily understood in a flood context. A flood also explains the presence of fossils much better than other ideas popular today. The ideas about the pre-flood world being enveloped in a dense marine atmosphere based, in part, on God pointing to the rainbow as the symbol of his promise are possible, but the text doesn’t say this is the first ever rainbow, only that the rainbow is now a symbol of God’s promise. So there is much that can be discussed about the flood, but we should remember God is the God in control of nature, God is the God who is faithful to his promises, and God is the God who cares for his children.

Ephesians 3:14-21: This is an extremely rich text. The Trinity comes through loud and clear. In verse 14 Paul speaks of the Father, In verse 16 he speaks of the Holy Spirit. In verse 17 he speaks of the Son. In the Greek this is all in one sentence. In verse 15 we have an allusion to creation (and perhaps the flood). This could be used as an anti-bigotry text. It certainly indicates the Gospel is for all people. This text also indicates that all real spiritual life is from and dependent on the Triune God. In verse 21 Paul prays that God be glorified in the Church. This does not increase God’s glory. It is a recognition of his glory by the Church. As this lesson is the foundation for Sunday’s sermon, I’ll say no more.

Mark 6:45-56: This lesson picks up where last weeks lesson left off (it was a long day filled with teaching, healing, and ending with the feeding of 5,000, all while Jesus and his disciples were looking for some rest). Jesus sends his disciples across the lake while he goes off to pray. I always find the prayer life of Jesus, as well as his worship life, inspiring. If anyone didn’t need to pray or attend worship services, that person was Jesus. Yet he made worship and prayer a regular part of his life. Part of the reason for this was that he was fulfilling the Law for us and in our stead. Part was also as an example for us. But part was that in corporate worship and prayer he met the Father where the Father chooses to met us. Those who ignore corporate worship and/or prayer ignore God. As Jesus was praying the disciples were experiencing a difficult crossing. Jesus comes to them walking on the water (Jesus controls nature, just as God did in the Old Testament lesson). The disciples see him and think they were seeing a ghost. This reflects a 1st century superstition. It was believed that if you saw a ghost you were about to die. The reason was that only those who were close to death could see “the other side” where ghosts lived. That is, you were close enough to death to see the dead. An analogy might be that I can’t see Niagara Falls right now, but as I travel towards it, before I arrive, I will see the mist from the falls rising up into the air. Jesus assures the disciples that he is no ghost. Arriving on the other side of the lake Jesus is recognized and the crowds immediately start appearing and the hectic pace of Jesus ministry continues with healing and teaching. In this whole lesson we see the compassion of Jesus as he heals and assures all in need.

Sunday’s Collect

Almighty and most merciful God, the protector of all who trust in You, strengthen our faith and give us courage to believe that in Your love You will rescue us from all adversities; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Sunday’s Introit – Psalm 145:1-3, 6-7; antiphon Psalm 145:5

Of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.
They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen
On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate

Gradual – Romans 11:33, 36

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be glory forever. Amen.

The following video is an organ prelude based on the hymn “Jesus Christ, My Sure Defense.” You can’t sing along with it because it is a prelude, but it will help you remember the tune for the hymn. If you like the big pipe organ sound, you will like this video.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

YouTube Video

I can now embed a YouTube Video, and this one is great!

Sermon Preparation

Tuesday in the week of Pentecost 7
July 21, 2009

The Lord be with you

Good sermons don’t just happen, they need to be prepared. I am told that in some church traditions such prior planning is frowned upon. You are supposed to get into the pulpit and let the Holy Spirit work. I have found that the Holy Spirit can work just fine at my desk as I prayerfully craft a sermon. I have also discovered that the Holy Spirit works in the lives of other people. That these people have actually written down their insights (we often call these recorded insights “books”). Some of these blessed people, motivated by love for the Church, have even gone so far as to record their insights in journals and books designed to aid ministers of the word in crafting their sermons. I consider such people a real blessing from God. One of those journals is Concordia Pulpit Resources. In researching this coming Sunday’s sermon (Pentecost 8) I checked it out and the section labeled “Liturgical Setting” was excellent, and I want to share it with you.

“The Sundays after Pentecost are marked by the liturgical color of green. Green is the color of growth and nature. The Propers for this day, following the Gospel, focus on God’s power over nature and his harnessing it for our good. In Mk 6:45-56, Jesus defies a law of nature by walking on water and then heals many victims of the natural order gone bad. Noah and his family have likewise benefited from God’s power over the sea, and we are assured of his continuing protection by the sign of the rainbow (Old Testament Reading [Genesis 9:8-17]). The portion of Psalm 136 selected as the Psalm of the day [verses 1-9, antiphon verse 26] also identifies God’s mastery over nature as the reason for giving him thanks.

"The Epistle [Ephesians 3:14-21], as is usual during this time of year, follows a continuous reading through Ephesians rather than being keyed to the Gospel. Paul does, however, use imagery from growing plants and nature in our text, describing the Church as “rooted and grounded in love” (Eph 3:17). The season of Pentecost is, after all, about the growth of the Church. This Pauline prayer summarizes the objective of the Pentecost season—that God’s people recognize the source of spiritual growth and respond in praise and worship through all generations. The season of Pentecost emphasizes the work of the Holy Spirit. In his Trinitarian prayer, Paul notes that God does his strengthening through “his Spirit” (v 16). Moreover, the Sundays after Pentecost take place for the most part during summer. This is a season marked by heat and dryness. In many places the only way for people to stay cool and for plants to grow is to import (or impart) external sources of relief. The wilted and arid characteristics of summer may provide an illustration for the natural condition of mankind apart from God’s grace. The external source of relief, then, would be God’s grace in Christ.”

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Sunday Morning Bible Study

Tuesday after Pentecost 7
July 21, 2009

The Lord be with you

At Lamb of God in our Sunday morning adult Bible study we are currently doing a series titled “Puzzlers and Questions about the Bible.” The idea is simple. If one of our members has a question about anything in the Bible they write it down on a piece of paper and submit it. I then create a Bible study around the question. I’ve received over a hundred questions, so this series will last over two years. There were a number of questions out of St. John’s first epistle and I’ve chosen to handle them one right after the other. That way we can look at, not only the specific question, but the epistle in general. This coming Sunday (Pentecost 7 8) we begin our consideration of these questions with 1 John 5:8 – “… the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.”

Blessings in Christ
Pastor John Rickert

Welcome Rev. Crandall

Pentecost 7
July 19, 2009

The Lord be with you

I would like to welcome Pastor Ted Crandall as an invited publisher on this blog. Pastor Crandall is called by Lamb of God Lutheran as our deployed Mission Developer in Beaufort. He will be using this site to keep us up-dated on the work of the Lord in Beaufort. Welcome aboard, Pastor! (The picture is from our Church directory and is Pastor Crandall with his family.)

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Newspaper Photo

Saturday after Pentecost 6
July 18, 2009

The Lord be with you

I have spent most of today working on tomorrow's sermon. Now all I have to do is run over it so I'm okay in the pulpit. As a break I decided to post a picture of me in my bio section of this blog. The photograph was taken in 2008 for our local newspaper. They were doing a story about an anti-slavery resolution I was sponsoring in our denomination. That resolution was, by-the-way, adopted by our regional body (the Southeastern District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod) and now is headed to the national body. If passed there 2.5 million Christians will be committing to praying for the end of this horrible "business."

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert

Sunday Sundries for Pentecost 7

(For those of you who have not read the first blog on this site, this is a test blog. The Sunday Sundries are sent out each week by me to the members of Lamb of God Lutheran Church. I sent this one out yesterday.)

Thursday in the week of Pentecost 6

July 16, 2009

The Lord be with you

Well Kitty and I are back and so are the Sunday Sundries. On a personal note, if you have a chance to spend a few days at Colonial Williamsburg, take it. In many ways it is like stepping back 230 years.

This coming Sunday is the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost. We will be using Matins for our liturgy (page 219). The assigned lessons are: Jeremiah 23:1-6; Ephesians 2:11-22 and Mark 6:30-44. The Introit Psalm is Psalm 23. The antiphon is verse 6. The text for the sermon is Jeremiah 23:1. The sermon is titled “There is a Difference!” The opening hymn is “Almighty God, You Word Is Cast,” LSB 577. The sermon hymn is “Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens,” LSB 589. The closing hymn is “On What Has Now Been Sown,” LSB 921.

Preview of the Lessons

Jeremiah 23:1-6: Jeremiah had a long ministry, going from 626 to 571 bc. This puts him after the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (722 bc) and reaching to the exile into Babylon of the Southern Kingdom of Judah (586 bc). His ministry began while the good king Josiah reigned. He was the son of the bad king Manasseh, who reigned for over 40 years. Though Josiah instituted many good reforms, it seems the reforms didn’t have a lasting impact. After Josiah came a quick succession of kings, all bad. The “church” and the people gladly returned to the “good old pagan days” of Manasseh. As Jeremiah and other prophets warned, this rejection of God led to the fall of Judah. This lesson is a warning to the leaders of the people, both religious and political. Instead of gathering the people into the green pasture of the Lord they are scattering them. This will lead to the exile. God, though, will not leave his people abandoned, but will gather them, ultimately through Jesus. The new shepherds appointed by the Lord will be faithful to the Word and therefore faithful to Christ. But we must we warned, even today, there are many false shepherds. We desire shepherds who are faithful to the Word and therefore faithful to Christ.

Ephesians 2:11-22: In this reading Paul is explaining how God, through the work of Jesus, reached out to Gentiles (you and me), and brought us into the same redeemed family as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jeremiah, Isaiah, King David, and so on. In-other-words, God in Christ was making a new “Israel.” One not based on the blood line of Jacob (AKA Israel) but based on the redeeming blood of Jesus. Based on passages like this one (and there are lots of others that are even plainer) the Church, right from the very beginning, understood all the ot promises about a restored Israel are referring to the Church and not the blood descendents of Jacob. To put this another way, the modern Millennialist’s ideas about the restored modern state of Israel are false. Those who proclaim such ideas are scattering God’s sheep for it leads people to trust in a false hope. Likewise those who preach hatred of Jews are also false shepherds, for Paul clearly states that both Jews and Gentiles through the same Holy Spirit have access to the same Father, because Christ died for both. By the way, this is a great Trinitarian text. Those who deny the Trinity are also false shepherds.

Mark 6:33-44: Last Sunday Rev. Wallace Mooney used this reading for the text of his sermon. It was a good sermon and I don’t have anything to add.

Sunday’s Collect

Heavenly Father, though we do not deserve Your goodness, still You provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may acknowledge Your gifts, give thanks for all Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Sunday’s Introit

Psalm 23, antiphon verse 6

Don’t forget that this Friday, July 17, is Movie Night here at Lamb of God. We will be showing “One Night with the King”. It is the story about how one woman, Esther, saved her people. The script was drawn from the Bible and other ancient sources and was shown in theaters around the country. This would be a great event to invite a friend, especially a non-Christian one. The film will be introduced, and that introduction will include a message about God’s grace in Christ Jesus. The movie starts at 7:00 pm.

The new question we will be looking at in the Adult Bible Class is, “If a person lives his life as a non-Christian, and one day suffers a brain injury such that he has no memory of his life before the injury. Suppose this person becomes a Christian, and repents of his sins, but does NOT ask forgiveness for sins committed prior to his injury because ‘that wasn’t him.’ Is this person saved?” What do you think, and why? Join us Sunday at 9:00 am as we examine the Bible for an answer. In general it is interesting to my how many questions revolve around the topics of grace and forgiveness. This really isn’t surprising and our fallen human nature, and therefore our culture, is works oriented. Therefore God’s grace in Christ Jesus needs to be stressed, and never relegated to the back burner of a church’s life and proclamation.

The Church council was scheduled to meet Sunday, but that meeting has been postponed for a week. The Board of Evangelism, which was scheduled to meet next week will now be meeting this Sunday after the worship service.

Have you tried to guess whose baby pictures are posted in the Sunday School Room? Here is a clue: The people are Pastor & Kitty, Rob & Ramona Ludvik, Connie Melton and Sam Parks. Do you need more clues? They are available, but they cost. Hard clues cost $1.00. Medium clues cost $3.00. Easy clues cost $5.00. The clues are also posted in the Adult Sunday School room, along with entry forms. The correct answers will be in the August newsletter. There are prizes for the first ones to get all six right. One of those prizes is a pre-paid phone. Money raised will go to the Organ Fund.

The date for the installation of Rev. Ted Crandall as our Associate Pastor has not been set yet, but will most likely be on the 16, 23, or 30 of August here at Lamb of God. We are just waiting for word from Rev. Cliff Gade, our Circuit 18 Counselor, for which date is best for him. Pastor Crandall will be deployed to Beaufort and has already begun work. The Mission has really outgrown its current meeting facility (literally standing room only), and is looking for a new home. Also this Sunday I will be sharing with the congregation a letter we received from Pastor Gade in reference to this call. Please keep Pastor Crandall, his wife Helga, and their children Samantha, Rebekah, Nathan, and Allison, in your prayers.

There are still some backpacks missing. Please return them, packed full of the school supplies, so we can take them to Jesse Boyd Elementary School the first week of August.

Wow, did we have a run on the (Angle) Angel Pantry (food bank) this week. Please buy something extra for it and bring it to church Sunday.

As those of you who have heard me preach know, I have mentioned more than once that the liturgy and hymns we use every Sunday can be a blessed way of sharing God’s love in Christ Jesus. Well my short time with the District’s Ablaze Task-Force has motivated me to “put my money where my mouth is.” I’ve compiled a collection of quotes from the hymnal, as well as from the Lutheran Confessions and Martin Luther, under topic headings that are common points Christians tend to make while sharing the Gospel. This booklet will be posted on the District’s Ablaze website, but you will get to see it first. Copies have been placed in each mail box in the narthex.

Information for the August newsletter is due this coming Sunday.

Are you willing to help form a Cub Scout pack at Lamb of God? If so please tell pastor or Scott Mullinax. More information is in the July newsletter.

The new church directory is almost finished. A draft copy is in the narthex for you to check your information. If there are any corrections, simply print it in the draft copy and Kitty will use it to make the final copy.

A sign-up sheet is posted on the “good times a-comin’” bulletin board for the soon to be released (October 31) Lutheran Study Bible. There is also a great deal of information about the new study Bible on that bulletin board which gives you sample pages. We will take orders through September.

As always, refreshments are available before the worship service. Donations to help defray the cost are accepted.

Remember if you like the coffee you are drinking Sunday morning you can take a pound home. It is our own Luther’s Roast. It costs $12.00 a pound and the proceeds help with special projects at Lamb of God. Currently we are raising money to help buy a replacement organ, which will cost over $16,000.

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor

Another Test

Friday after Pentecost 6

The Lord be with you

This is another test. This time I will try to add a picture to this site. It is a picture of my wife Kitty and me taken earlier this month at Niagara Falls.

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor John Rickert

A Test Blog ... For Now

Friday after Pentecost 6

The Lord be with you

If you stumbled across this blog you should know that this is a test blog. I'm just trying to get the hang of this medium. I hope it will turn into a "real" blog where I'll post information about what I'm doing, what is happening at my church, and some theological reflections. To that end I invite your comments on the posts. Much of what I will post here I am thinking of putting in the final product. One thing I will be posting is my "Sunday Sundries." This is an e-mail I send out each week to the members of Lamb of God Lutheran Church in Spartanburg, SC. It tells them what will be happening on Sunday, including a review of the appointed Bible readings. It also includes information about various upcoming activities. I also plan to have links that are of interest to me. In fact, I'm going to try a link right now. This link should take you to a video about Lutherans.

Blessings in Christ

Pastor John Rickert