Greetings from Pastor - August 2007
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  As the end of July and the beginning of August approaches, I find that I am getting more and more excited about heading to Ashville for the "For You" youth conference. Our confirmed youth and I leave for a week filled with various times of play, catechetical sessions, prayer, and worship. None of our teenagers have been to a youth conference and neither have I.
    We are going to have a chance to do a little sight seeing and hiking in the hills. We will have time for a game of laser tag in the woods. But the purpose of our trip and the focus of our minds and spirits will be on our Triune God and what He has done for us; what He has done "For You."
    I know that the teens are excited about going away and taking a trip without their own parents as chaperone and spending time with several hundred other teenagers, but all of us are also excited about the chance to dive in and study some of the tough issues that face us Christians today. Issues like that of worship; does it matter if a congregation chooses a "traditional" or "contemporary" worship service? How is Jesus portrayed in the movies and does it really matter? And what about the end of times; is it going to happen the way the popular fiction books portray it? These and many other topics will be addressed from Scripture. We will read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest God's Word in these matters.
    I am looking forward to hearing a few sermons and sitting in on a few Bible studies. I am going to pack in as much as I can in those few days that we will be there. And while I look at the schedule and think about which sessions I want to attend, I realize that it is not as if this is my only opportunity to study, pray, and worship. I have that same opportunity everyday. I have my own copy of the Bible to read and study. I have two hands to fold in prayer to the God who is always listening. I have moments every day to acknowledge God for His mercy shown to me in Jesus Christ. The week's retreat may offer a change of pace and some unique opportunities, but it is not so different from what the daily life of a Christian is too be.
    I think many of us are used to packing as much as we can into finite periods of time. We pack so much into our vacations that we need to get home to rest. We pack so much into our bellies at the buffet restaurant that we swear off food for a week. And so it goes, even to the point that some pack their Christianity into infrequent but "intense" periods of time, as if they were the energizer bunny that only needs a jolt of God's Word now and again. Imagine if God said that He was only going to be available a few times a year. That wouldn't be very assuring.
    I am thankful for the retreats that are offered and the chance to be a part of the "For You" conference this year. But, I am even more thankful for the daily forgiveness that God offers me through His means of grace and the congregation of believer's that we have in Good Shepherd, where God is abundantly offering Himself for our forgiveness in Word and Sacrament.
    Since our sins don't happen in fits and spurts; we commit them daily; thankfully God's gift of forgiveness is available to us daily as well. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1). He is always present; very present and ready to forgive for the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ. His constant presence for us among the believers in Word and Sacrament is for us a comfort.
    May we seek Him continually in His means of grace. Glory be to God.

        In Christ,  Pastor