Posts from 2024 (Page 12)
2/14/2024 Lenten Daily Devotional
Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 1Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near— 2a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness spread upon the mountains a great and powerful army comes; their like has never been from of old, nor will be again after them in ages to come. 12Yet even now,…
E-Note February 13, 2024 – Lent
Dear Peace Members and Friends, The season of Lent begins tomorrow. The word “Lent” comes from the Old English word “lengten,” which simply means “spring”—when the days lengthen and new life springs up. It is a time in which we anticipate the victory of the light and life of Christ over the darkness of sin and death. Still, Lent doesn’t have to be grim! It is, to borrow a phrase from C.S. Lewis, a season of a kind of “happiness…
E-Note February 9, 2024
Dear Peace members and friends, I’m looking forward to being back with you this Sunday. And what a Sunday it is on the church calendar: the Transfiguration of Our Lord. It’s a strange story. Jesus transformed. Petrified disciples. Heroes from the past. A shiny cloud. It’s a milestone in the life of Jesus. From this moment, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem to (in the words of Luke) “accomplish” something. The Transfiguration is what God is about to go…
CYF Blast February 8, 2024
Dear Families and Friends of Peace, As I mentioned last month, and as you’ve hopefully seen in the Blast, bulletin, and/or website, our deadline for summer camp registration is quickly approaching. The deadline for Camp Wapo Seeds, Camp Wapo Youth Camp, and Family Camp at Wilderness Canoe Base is just one week away—next Thursday, February 15. As a refresher, here’s our summer 2024 schedule: Camp Wapo provides students with the opportunity to come together with friends and neighbors from all…
E-Note February 2, 2024
Dear Peace members and friends, This Sunday in worship (9:30am) is the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany. Pastor Joe writes, “The season of Epiphany celebrates Jesus’ physical presence among us—that God became manifest through Jesus in the flesh. The season started with the wisemen following the star to see Jesus in Bethlehem, and this Sunday we’ll hear the story of Jesus healing the disciple Simon’s mother-in-law, and then a whole town. It reminds us, as the Apostle Paul described in his…
CYF Blast February 1, 2024
Dear Families and Friends of Peace, On Tuesday night, the Jefferson Jaguars faced off against the Kennedy Eagles in a boys hockey game at Bloomington Ice Garden. Like most games, there were parents chatting, Mites and Squirts giddily sporting their own jerseys, and a raucous group of students supporting their team. But for this game, while the score was still important to players and spectators, there was also a bigger purpose—Hockey Fights Cancer. Held annually for three years now, both…
E-Note January 26, 2024
Dear Peace members and friends, It’s a big Sunday ahead! The Annual Congregational Meeting of Peace Lutheran Church will take place in the Parish Hall, beginning at 10:45am. At this meeting, both a proposed budget for 2024 and new Council members will be voted upon; Pastors’, Committees, and President’s reports will be offered. All members of Peace are encouraged to attend! Before the meeting we will gather for worship (9:30am). As we near the end of the church season of…
CYF Blast January 25, 2024
Dear Families and Friends of Peace, This Sunday, immediately after worship, we will gather together as a congregation for the Peace Annual Meeting. During the meeting we will review and rejoice in our 2023 ministries, elect new church council members, pass our 2024 budget, and hear some of the wonderful ways God is moving through our community. In addition, there’s also a lot to catch up on in our annual report, which will be available at the meeting. The annual report…
E-Note January 19, 2024
Dear Peace members and friends, He said to me: “Have you heard any good news lately?” I paused. I had to think. And my first response was, “Well, no—no I haven’t.” I had to admit that I hadn’t heard any good news on TV or read any in the newspapers. That’s why, when I read this Sunday’s gospel that begins, “…Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God,….,” my reaction was, “What is it? I want to know!”…
CYF Blast January 18, 2024
Hello from New Orleans! This week I am attending the ELCA Youth Ministry Extravaganza, a continuing education conference specifically for those who work with young people in our denomination. During the conference, I’ll be hearing from excellent and insightful speakers during our general sessions, and I will also be attending various workshops. One main focus while I’m here is learning more about the ELCA National Youth Gathering, which will be hosted here just six months from now. It has been…
E-Note January 12, 2024
Dear Peace members and friends, In these Sundays between Christmas and Lent, we keep the season of Epiphany. It is the season in which, having just celebrated God’s coming in Jesus Christ, we are now invited to see and experience him. This is the season when, in answer to the question, “Who is God, and what does God want from us?” we are invited, in the words of Philip in Sunday’s Gospel reading, to “come and see” Jesus. “Come and…
CYF Blast January 11, 2024
Dear Families and Friends of Peace, As I mentioned last week, it is time to think about summer camps and programming. Here’s what our schedule for summer 2024 looks like: Registration for Camp Wapo will be open January 15-February 15. Plan to register early (link below), as spots fill up quickly! We have a limited number of spots, and you’ll be assigned to a waitlist if we reach that number before the February 15 deadline. After February 15, any remaining…