Blogs And Devotionals (Page 28)
2/23/2023 Lenten Daily Devotional
Thursday, February 23 Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 15The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.”1Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the…
CYF Blast & Family Tip Of The Week February 23, 2023
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…
2/25/2023 Lenten Daily Devotional
Saturday, February 25 Matthew 4:1-11 1Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. 3The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” 5Then the devil took…
2/22/2023 Lenten Daily Devotional
Ash Wednesday, February 22 Psalm 51:1-17 1Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.3For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.4Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment.5Indeed, I was born guilty,…
E-Note Febuary 17, 2023
Dear Peace Members and Friends, Our Epiphany sermon series, “Jesus Rediscovered” concludes Sunday with the question: “Why Jesus?” With Bible readings from Galatians and John’s Gospel in hand, Pastor Joe will remind us why God gave us Jesus and what it means for our following him. We will also receive new members, Jim and Carolyn Bergum, Marcia Craig, and Mona Gerike. Join me in welcoming them to Peace this Sunday! Following worship, the Education Hour will start (10:45am), and we’ll continue with the series, “On Faith and Justice with ‘A Peace…
CYF Blast & Family Tip Of The Week February 16, 2023
Dear Peace Families, Lent begins next week on Ash Wednesday (February 22). And as we approach the season that leads up to Easter, I realize that there is a misnomer about Lent—it’s a pervasive one, but not one that is necessarily biblical. In my growing years, however, it’s one that I used to believe too. It is the belief that Lent is all about sin, suffering, and death. And because of that, we need to engage in practices of…
E-Note Febuary 10, 2023
Dear Peace Members and Friends, I’m looking forward to being back in worship with you on Sunday. We will continue our Epiphany worship series, “Jesus Rediscovered.” We have made our way through just some of the different Jesus’ that I, and maybe you, have known: friend, teacher, Savior, Lord, and way. This Sunday, we’ll look at another Jesus; “Jesus….As Presence.” What does it mean to say, Jesus is “present”? How do we experience Jesus’ presence? I’ll say more on Sunday. Following worship, the Education Hour will…
CYF Blast & Family Tip Of The Week February 9, 2023
Dear Peace Families, Last Saturday our Confirmation students enjoyed a day-long retreat at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter. The time at Gustavus is always a highlight for the students—many have never been to a college campus before, and everyone gets excited for something new and different. After our fall retreat was spent learning about world religions and visiting their houses of worship, this day was spent learning about Christian denominations, and Lutheranism in particular. Our closing time was spent…
E-Note Febuary 3, 2023
Dear Peace Members and Friends, On Sunday in worship we will continue with our sermon series, “Rediscovering Jesus.” We have looked at Jesus as Friend, as Teacher, and as Savior. This weekend, Pastor Joe will continue the series with a message entitled, “Rediscovering Jesus: Way.” Pastor Joe writes, “There are so many ways we can describe Jesus, but what do we do when other people misunderstand our beliefs about Jesus? How do we respond when preconceived notions about what we believe…
CYF Blast & Family Tip Of The Week February 2, 2023
Dear Peace Families, In about three weeks, the season of Lent will begin. When I shared this with our Confirmation class last evening, one student replied, “You mean like the lint that gets stuck in my belly button?” No, not that… Lent is the season that precedes Easter and is symbolic of the 40 days that Jesus spent wandering in the wilderness before beginning his ministry. Beginning on Ash Wednesday (February 22), we are reminded of our finite mortality as well as our…
E-Note January 27, 2023
Dear Peace Members and Friends of Peace, I want to first thank the many of you who responded to Wednesday’s email and its urgent call to help clothe, in this cold, cold weather, some Ecuadoran refugee students who will begin school in Bloomington next week. I also want to thank those who have answered the call for the need of infant diapers at VEAP (and John Sandness’ great joke to inspire that effort. You had to be there in worship last week. It was good!). In the name of Christ,…
CYF Blast & Family Tip Of The Week January 26, 2023
Dear Peace Families, This Sunday after worship, we will all gather together for the Peace annual meeting. During the meeting, we will review and rejoice in our 2022 ministries , elect new church council members, pass our 2023 budget, and hear some of the wonderful ways God is moving through our community. In addition, the annual report itself contains ministry reports from Pastor Mark and me; Council President Scott Moe; Treasurer Gayle Haugen; and from the Worship and Music Committee, CYF…