Somewhere in mid-October it comes out of my closet – that red hooded sweatshirt. Big, bulky, comfy, and warm. It is a fairly regular companion until it gets tucked neatly away in spring.  But even during the summer months, it brings an assurance – knowing it is there… Yes, it guards against the winter winds and wraps me, comforts me, during those cold, dark nights. But there’s something more – something it brings to mind, even during the months when I would not wear it.

You see, screen-printed on this sweatshirt are the lyrics of a song by Mercy Me, “Bring the Rain” an excerpt follows …

          And I know there'll be days
          When this life brings me pain
          But if that's what it takes to praise You
          Jesus, bring the rain

Maybe you have a favorite piece of apparel, a favorite lyric, or a verse of scripture that helps you get through those tough times, those storms in life.  Whatever it is for you, know that my prayer is that God would use it to wrap your heart with His abiding and steadfast love, like a big red hoodie.

As storms blow by, know that Christ is greater than the pain, that by suffering His destiny, He has made a way for you. So, what’s a little rain, when you have eternity to praise Him?

While you experience showers, in April or other times, perhaps Isaiah 45:8 (NIV) might be a comfort to you:

          8 “You heavens above, rain down my righteousness;
              let the clouds shower it down.
          Let the earth open wide,
              let salvation spring up,
          let righteousness flourish with it;
              I, the Lord, have created it.

Have a happy and blessed Easter Season!
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In Christ,
Pastor Jim Kirschenmann

Are you familiar with the old adage regarding March – the one that says, “if March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb”?  Many also follow the converse as a prediction of the weather this time of year.  So, which will it be? ‘In like a Lamb / Out like a Lion,’ or ‘In like a Lion / Out like a Lamb’? Only time will tell…

In the fullness of time, God sent His Son… and in Him we are to behold BOTH the Lion and the Lamb. A couple of scripture verses may be helpful here:

1. John 1:29 “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
2. Revelation 5:5 “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

In this season of Lent, we remember that the King of Kings came down from his throne to live as one of us, to bear our sins and take the full punishment of God that we deserve. We watch as the one who is the Lion of Judah is tortured, beaten, scourged, and mocked… led silently to slaughter like a lamb – the Lamb of God…

The vision that was given the Apostle John in the Revelation of Jesus Christ is one that takes place in the heavenly realm – outside of time.  He sees the Lion of Judah, the Root of David, as having conquered – victorious – worthy to open the scroll… At the same time, the vision reveals that, “between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders … a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain” (Revelation 5:6). That the powerful Lion and the meek, sacrificial Lamb can both refer to the Lord Jesus Christ is a wonderful mystery to us in the here and now. He is both transcendent and WITH us. He is just and merciful. He fulfills the reign of God by doing what only the Son of God can do. 
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And yet he Reigns! And every knee shall bow at the name of Jesus Christ – the Lion and the Lamb – as He has conquered sin, death, and the devil, and rose victorious on the third day. After ascending once again to His throne, we await the day when he will return – like a Lion – to bring us to eternal life in Him, as He has promised.

May this Lenten Season bless your meditations.
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Grace and Mercy in Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim Kirschenmann

​Not quite what you were expecting, eh?  As we begin the month of February, many will be thinking of Valentine’s Day.  Well, due to an interesting feature of our 3-year lectionary calendar, February 14, 2021 is also the celebration of The Transfiguration of our Lord. What better way to transition from the season of Epiphany and into the Season of Lent than to remember that God is Love.

1 John 4:9-11 states it beautifully:
9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 

True love is that which flows from God and through us to those around us. As we reflect on the sacrifice made on our behalf, we enter the season of Lent, beginning with “Ash Wednesday” on February 17, 2021. Due to concerns about COVID-19, there will be no imposition of ashes this year, but we will remember that [we] are dust and to dust [we] shall return (see Genesis 3:19).

As we proceed through the season of Lent, we will have devotions available for your daily meditations, as well as midweek devotions online on Wednesdays at 7:00 pm.  We will be focusing on the Gospel of Mark for our Sunday messages and recognizing that ‘seeing is not believing.’ May we continue to ‘see’ through the eyes of faith and share that gift of knowing God’s love.

Peace and Joy in Christ Jesus,
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Pastor Jim Kirschenmann

As I walk the halls of Open Arms Child Development Center, I see the “carpet tiles” laid out on the floor to assist in getting the children to “line up at the wall”… One tile for each letter of the alphabet. ‘A’ is followed by ‘B’ then ‘C’ and ‘D’ and so on… somewhere around where ‘G’ should be, things get a little jumbled. Turn the corner and it almost seems to get back in order, but then after ‘W’ followed by ‘X’ comes ‘Y’ and suddenly ‘L’ and ‘M’ break in before we get to ‘Z’ – and that is turned sideways!
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Interestingly enough, that seems to be a metaphor for the way 2020 has unfolded, doesn’t it?! Somewhere around where ‘G’ should be in our lives… it all seemed to go sideways. And we are all experiencing some degree of “pandemic fatigue” at this point, so trying to straighten things out just doesn’t seem to be worth the effort. 

Thanks be to God (notice the Big ‘G’) that we don’t have to make sense of all this mess.  He has come into our world and has begun the restoration of ALL creation. That is what we celebrated this Christmas. And that is what we can continue to celebrate as we go through Epiphany this season.

In the natural progression of the English language, that word – “epiphany” – seems to have taken on a whole different connotation in the secular world than what is meant in our faith-based lives. In today’s society, having an “epiphany” means …”an intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually simple and striking.” For our faith lives it means the manifestation of Christ, the divine and long-awaited savior, having come into our midst. The reality is that Christ has come and saved us from our sin and the condemnation that results from sin. The striking event that we will see at Good Friday is that He has died in our place.  And the meaning that brings to us comes with His resurrection and the promise that we, too, inherit eternal life with and in Christ. What an Epiphany!

May this season bring you continuing joy as we celebrate the Light of Life enlightening our world!

With Christ,
Pastor Jim Kirschenmann