Posts by Pastor Joe Orner (Page 7)

Dear Peace Families, This week, as students near the end of the school year, I offer a prayer from writer, Kayla Craig: O God, Creator of beginnings and endings, we pray for our students. Walk ahead of them and beside them as they step into a big world littered with loss but glittering with hope. You were there for every newborn squeal and first step and lost tooth. Remind us that You are with them now, too, as our child…

Dear Peace Families, This weekend in worship we will be recognizing our high school graduates—five students from four different high schools. Each of them are exceptional individuals with bright futures ahead, and I ask you to join me in both celebration of them and prayer for them—celebration for the wonderful young adults they’ve become and all their accomplishments along the way, and prayer for them as they enter into this next season of their lives. Marta Borggreve is graduating from Eden Prairie…

Dear Peace Families, This weekend marks the last day of Sunday School for the 2022-2023 school year. We have had a wonderful year growing in faith and community. In the fall we read and learned about stories from the Old Testament, starting with Creation and Abraham and moving through the Exodus narrative. Beginning in Advent, we started reading through the Gospels and learning about Jesus. On Sunday we conclude our spring adventure through the New Testament with a lesson on Paul’s Letters. …

Dear Peace Families, As many of you know, I am a big sports fan and care a lot about our Minnesota professional sports teams. And last week, Thursday-Saturday, the 88th annual NFL Draft was held down in Kansas City. Over the course of seven rounds, there were 259 players selected by the 32 NFL teams.  Prior to the draft (sometimes very prior—Todd McShay’s “Way-Too-Early 2024 NFL Mock Draft” was just posted by ESPN), there are mock drafts created by analysts and writers…

Dear Peace Families, On Sunday during worship, we celebrated the Rite of Confirmation for our 8th grade students as they professed their faith and affirmed the promises God made with them at their baptism. Faith is many things—a gift, a trust, a belief. But it is also a responsibility—to live among God’s faithful people, to hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s supper, to proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed, to serve all people, following…

Dear Peace Families, Last night we had our last Confirmation gathering of the year. As our time together comes to an end, it is (as always) bittersweet—I am so happy for our students and proud of them for all the ways they’ve grown throughout the year, and I will miss our time shared together each week as well.  Because it’s been a great year! True to our mission, growing a community that nurtures a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ, we’ve grown…

Dear Peace Families, I hope you all had a blessed Holy Week and a wonderful celebration of Easter.  In the life of the Church, the celebration of Easter and Christ’s Resurrection is not just one day—it is a season that continues for six more weeks.  One big question for us to consider during the Easter season is: how do we live as Easter people? Or rather, what does it mean for us, as Christians, to share the Good News that…

Dear Peace Families, Before this week’s message, I have an important announcement: VBS registration begins on Sunday!  We are excited to welcome your children to a week of fun at this year’s Vacation Bible School! VBS will be June 26-29, 2023 at Peace, from 9:00am-12:00pm each day. This year’s VBS theme is Stellar, and we’ll be launching the kids on a cosmic quest, to Shine Jesus’ Light to the world. The week will be full of uplifting music, engaging Bible adventures, imaginative crafts, galactic snacks,…

Dear Peace Families, In Lent we follow Jesus on the 40-day journey to the cross and beyond. During the season, many Christians have traditionally given up something—things like coffee or desserts—sacrificing something they love for 40 days, acknowledging that Jesus sacrificed even more for us. As we continue through Lent, I’ll be offering suggestions for things we might give up—though there won’t be anything tangible mentioned. This week, I propose giving up poor boundaries. If we’re being honest, most people…

Dear Peace Families, In Lent we follow Jesus on the 40-day journey to the cross and beyond. During the season, many Christians have traditionally given up something—things like coffee or desserts—sacrificing something they love for 40 days, acknowledging that Jesus sacrificed even more for us. Over the next several weeks, I’ll continue offering suggestions for things we might give up—though there won’t be anything tangible mentioned. This week, I propose giving up the fear of failure. The fear of failure…

March 2, 2023 Dear Peace Families, As I mentioned last week in this newsletter, in Lent we follow Jesus on this 40 day journey to the cross and beyond. During the season, many Christians have traditionally given up something—things like coffee or desserts—sacrificing something they love for 40 days, acknowledging that Jesus sacrificed even more for us. And over the next several weeks, I’ll offer suggestions for things we might give up—though there won’t be anything tangible mentioned. This week,…

Dear Peace Families, The season of Lent has officially begun—though being covered in snow doesn’t feel quite the same as being marked with ashes.  Regardless, Lent echoes the 40 days that Jesus spent wandering through the wilderness, facing temptation. In Matthew’s Gospel, this journey happens immediately following his baptism from John, and is followed by his three years of ministry.  Similarly, we follow Jesus on this 40 day journey to the cross—but it is also a journey to resurrection and…