Newsletter

<p>December 13, 2021 Dear friends, Another hymn for you today as we make our way towards Christmas! First, have a listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWICUo65wW4&amp;ab_channel=KingsCollegeChoir A multitude of the heavenly host praised God as they announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds. Think of what a marvel that is! The angels,<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/12/13/all-out-of-darkness-we-have-light/" class="more-link">Con

<p>December 5, 2021 Dear friends, Our hymn of the day for Sunday is “Comfort, Comfort Ye My People,” based on a beautiful passage from Isaiah 40. It’s God’s call to his prophets and apostles to bring good news to his people. This is the kind of good news that a<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/12/06/how-beautiful-are-the-feet/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">How beautiful are the feet</span></a></span></p

<p>November 29, 2021 Dear friends, Advent wreaths are a relatively modern tradition, only going back in America to about 100 years ago, but the church has always marked time and seasons one way or another. One of the legacies we enjoy from centuries of wholesome tradition is our lectionary: the<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/11/29/sundays-in-advent/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Sundays in Advent</spa

<p>November 22, 2021 Dear friends, It’s such a common expression that, like many turns of phrase, it so easily loses its meaning. “Thank God!” gets bandied about like cheap slang. And yet, there is something ironic about how regularly it gets used. In fact, perhaps it should be used more<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/11/22/thank-god/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Thank God!</span></a></span></p>

<p>November 15, 2021 Dear Friends, O Lord, so rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that, ever mindful of the end of all things and the day of Your just judgment, we may be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwell with You forever<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/11/15/the-end-of-all-things/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">The end of all things</span></a></span></p>

<p>November 8, 2021 Dear Friends, Be busy with prayer. It is your privilege as children of God to bring all your cares before your heavenly Father. Do not think of it as moaning or grumbling or complaining, which accomplish nothing. Quite to the contrary, your prayers are effective. They prompt<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/11/08/the-prayer-of-the-righteous/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">The prayer o

<p>November 1, 2021 (All Saints’ Day) Dear Friends, Today we thank God for all his faithful departed, those who were loved by him and given a blessed death, those of whom the world was not worthy. There’s a beautiful Norwegian hymn written for the commemoration. Here’s a recording, and here<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/11/01/behold-a-host-arrayed-in-white/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Behold a Host

<p>October 25, 2021 Dear Friends, The Church has a color-coded calendar. You look at it every Sunday in the paraments (decorative cloths) that are on the pulpit, lectern, and altar, and in the stole (looks like a scarf) that I wear around my neck. It’s a helpful way to observe<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/10/25/the-church-calendar/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">The Church Calendar</span></a></span><

<p>October 18, 2021 Dear Friends, A bunch of information today: First, a reminder that Men’s Bible Study will meet this week on Wednesday at 8pm. Next, the Sunday School kids have been practicing the first verse of “Thy Strong Word”, which we’ll sing in church on Reformation Day (Sunday, October<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/10/18/st-luke/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">St. Luke</span></a></span></p>

<p>October 12, 2021 Dear Friends, With a Confirmation coming up this Sunday, it’s a good time to think again about preparation for the Lord’s Supper. We confess and are absolved every Sunday before approaching the altar, and it is fitting for you to spend time examining yourself beforehand so that<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/10/12/preparing/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Preparing</span></a></span>

<p>September 28, 2021 Dear Friends, Think a moment about the name of our church. Names often become so familiar that we lose their meaning. Concordia is a Latin word that means something like one-heartedness. It’s a word for unity and harmony. It’s the word that was used to describe the<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/09/28/concordia/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Concordia</span></a></span></p>

<p>September 21, 2021 Dear Friends, Here’s another historic festival of the church for you. On September 21, the church remembers St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist. This is the fellow who was called by Jesus while he sat at his tax collector’s booth (Mt. 9:9-13) and who wrote the Gospel of<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/09/21/st-matthew-apostle-and-evangelist/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">St. Matth

<p>September 14, 2021 Dear Friends, For many hundreds of years, the church has marked September 14 as Holy Cross Day. This day has, at times, been connected with devotion to relics. There are some churches throughout the world that claim to have a piece or pieces of the cross in<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/09/14/holy-cross-day/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Holy Cross Day</span></a></span></p>

<p>September 7, 2021 Dear Friends, The Christian faith is profoundly simple. It is simple in spite of our best efforts to complicate and confuse and confound. What the kids know so well is what matters most of all: Jesus loves me, and so he died for my sins. In your<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/09/07/are-we-there-yet/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Are we there yet?</span></a></span></p>

<p>August 30, 2021 Dear Friends, Let’s get started! Here’s a friendly reminder that the Bible Reading plan for Catechism begins on September 1! If you need a copy, you can find it here: Here’s the first week: Down the road, I’ll be updating the schedule to include matching readings straight<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/08/30/lets-go/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Let&#8217;s go!</span></a></span></p

<p>August 23, 2021 Dear Friends, Imagine that you’re at the eye doctor for a checkup – things have been a little blurry lately. The optometrist tests your vision and discovers that your eyesight has gotten poorer. Sure enough, you need something to correct your vision. So, the doctor writes you<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/08/23/god-will-supply-every-need/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">God will supp

<p>August 16, 2021 Dear Friends, You’re invited! We have traditionally held Wednesday evening services during the summer here at Concordia. As we move into fall this year, we’re going to keep our Wednesday evening services going, but they’ll take on a different character. We’ll follow the orders of Vespers and<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/08/16/wednesday-vespers/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Wednes

<p>August 9, 2021 Dear Friends, Back in the Spring, I wrote about some changes to our approach to studying the Catechism here at Concordia. Since then, I’ve worked out some details on what we’ll begin this Fall. I’ve been meeting with families to make sure everyone’s up to speed, and<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/08/09/family-night/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">Family night!</span></a></span></p>

<p>July 28, 2021 Dear Friends, Just a quick heads-up! I forgot to mention in Bible Class last Wednesday that I’ll be busy with a conference this week, so we’ll have no 10am Bible Study on Wednesday, July 28. There will be worship on Wednesday evening. If you need me you<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/07/26/no-bible-study-7-28/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">No Bible Study 7/28</span></a></span></p>

<p>July 19, 2021 Dear friends, Prior to the Reformation of the 1500s, it was uncommon for church music to be sung by the congregation. It would have been sung by the priest or by a choir. But during the Reformation, along with the translation of the Bible and the liturgy<span class="more-button"><a href="https://www.concordialcms.com/2021/07/19/that-man-is-blest/" class="more-link">Continue reading<span class="screen-reader-text">That man is blest</span></a></span></p>