Hold fast to Jesus Christ

My dear, sweet wife often makes fun of the fact that I have the ability to remember the most insignificant details from the past but have a hard time remembering that garbage pickup in our neighborhood is Thursday (or is it Tuesday?).

Anyway, I recently took a trip down memory lane all the way back to my days at Redeemer Lutheran School in Tucson, Arizona. The first verse our 5th grade class memorized was Luke 11:28 - Blessed are they who hear the Word of God and obey it."

Our teacher, Mrs. Royer, told us that everything we learned during religion hour that year would be from the Word of God.  She said, "Now I don't want God's Word to go in one ear and out the other! I want you to memorize God's Word and know it and keep it and obey it!"

The emphasis on the Greek word for "obey" is "to hold fast to, trust, cherish, keep on believing."  Our Savior God takes up residence in our hearts through faith created by God's Word.  The Holy Spirit continues throughout our lives to teach us the truth of the precious Word.  As we hear and learn it more and more, we trust God for the forgiveness of our sins, hold fast to Christ, "the way and the truth and the life," and cherish how God speaks to us through His Word.

May God continue to bless you and you hear, read, study and pray over His Word and keep on trusting in His promises of grace!

Who not to take criticism from

Don't take criticism from people you wouldn't take advice from.

TV commentator  and former coach Jeff Van Gundy

This Old House

The psalmist writes, "O Lord, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells."  Join us in God's house for worship this weekend at LICL;

Saturday at 5 pm

Sunday at 8, 9:30 and 11 am.

That's it! Have a blessed weekend!

When we all get to heaven...

Father Murphy walked into a pub and said to the first man he met, "Do you want to go to heaven?"

The man said, "I do Father."The priest said, "Leave this pub right now!" 

He then approached a second man.  "Do you want to got to heaven?"
"Certainly, Father," was the man's reply.  "Then leave this den of Satan!" said the priest.

Father Murphy then walked up to O'Toole and asked, "Do you want to go to heaven?" O'Toole replied: "No, I don't Father."

The priest looked him right in the eye and said, "You mean to tell me that when you die you don't
want to go to heaven?"


O'Toole smiled, "Oh, when I die.  Yes Father.  I thought you were getting a group together to go right now."

A prayer for unity in the church

Heavenly Father,

You called us into the body of Christ
 Help us to live as one in Him

You have given us one faith
 Keep us in the one true faith

You have given us one baptism
 Let us live in our common baptismal grace

You have given us apostles and prophets
 Let us live with singleness of heart

You have sent us pastors and teachers
 Enlighten us to learn with oneness of mind

You have equipped us for the unity of faith
 Help us to attain that unity by forgiveness

You have given us Your love in Christ
 Enable us to speak Your love in truth

You built Your church of Your will
 Make us to fit into our proper place

You create Your church of living stones;
 Enliven us to serve Your holy purpose,
 that the whole church may grow and upbuild itself in love

We ask it in the name of Jesus, 
 the chief Shepherd and Bishop of our souls

Amen

From Lutheran Book of Prayer, page 78

My father in law's birthday

It's my father in law's birthday.  But he's not here to celebrate with us.

Bill Landis is celebrating his birthday in heaven.  Although, I doubt that birthdays receive much of a fuss in heaven.

Why celebrate yourself when you are resting in the arms of your Savior, Jesus?

So we remember Bill today.  We remember what a wonderful husband and father and grandfather he was.  We remember his track record of success in the business world (although you'd never hear it directly from him - Bill hated talking about himself.).  We remember that you couldn't have a better friend in the world.  He was always "on call" when someone needed help.  We remember that he was a quiet man of a deep faith that enabled him to trust in his Savior for forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

The promise of the resurrection is our comfort today.  We'll be reunited with Bill.  We'll know him better there in heaven than we ever knew him here on earth.  And we'll celebrate the perfect sacrifice and perfect love of Jesus who has made our family reunion certain.  What a day that will be!

We are the "called out" ones

The word for 'church" in the New Testament is "ecclesia."  It means, literally, "called out,"  Christians are "called out" by Christ - out and away from sin, death and the devil.

Matthew Harrison, "A Little Book of Joy," page 156