Lake Superior University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan has published its list of ten words and phrases that must be banished in 2025. It’s their annual “2025 Banished Words List.” Do you use these? Do you even know all of them?

1. Cringe
2. Game Changer
3. Era
4. Dropped
5. IYKYK (If You Know, You Know)
6. Sorry Not Sorry
7. Skibidi
8. 100%
9. Utilize
10. Period

 
For the article describing these words/phrases and the rationale for banishing them, go to: https://buff.ly/3DYP3eB
 
May I offer a few words and phrases of my own that could use banishing?

1. Perfect!
2. Just sayin’.
3. Obsessed.
4. Anything followed by three dots (…)
5. Banishing. I’m serious! “Banishing” is often described as a core skill for witches, sorcerers, and people seeking to cast spells to eliminate undesirable elements from their lives. Understood this way, I think you can understand why I’d suggest banish…, I mean, elimination.

 
Here are a few more words and phrases that relate to our interaction with God and his Word that should be, ahem, eliminated:

1. I can do this on my own. (See the January 1st Wednesday Encouragement)
2. I believe in myself. (Big mistake. Again, See the January 1st Wednesday Encouragement)
3. I know enough of the Word to get by. (Is “getting by” enough for you? Immerse yourself in the Word. Grow! Thrive! Rejoice!)
4. I don’t need to attend worship all that often. (Would I say that to Jesus, face-to-face?)
5. I don’t need the Lord’s Supper all that often. (Which is like a person who takes blood pressure medication saying, “I don’t need to take my meds all that often.”)

 
Whatever you do, do not stop using the Word of God! Let us not in any way banish or eliminate/minimize the Word of God in our lives. There are approximately 783,000 words in the Bible. It’s hard to get a definitive count due to the variety of languages and translations. You don’t need to take them all in all at once. You don’t even need to read through the Bible in a year (a worthy goal). Just read, learn, study, meditate. Daily. Yes, daily.
 
Why? Why not? For life now. For the life to come.

• “The word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates even to the point of dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, even being able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12 EHV)
• “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16 EHV)
• “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11 NIV)

 
God’s grace be with you!
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

Every year I make my list of New Year’s resolutions.  Most every year they are pretty much the same. They include: 1) Lose weight; 2) Exercise more (walking, biking, ICE FISHING, FISHING, gardening, woodworking; 3) practice reading Biblical Hebrew out loud to become one of the best Hebrew readers in the world; 4) stop procrastinating!  (“Perfect is the enemy of good,” so just get started!  Avoid the hectic pressure of last-minute projects!)
 
How ‘bout you?  Do you have a list of New Year’s resolutions?  Eat healthier?  Get fit?  More books? Help others?  Be more optimistic and less of a grouchy Eeyore? 
 
If so, then I hope this Wednesday Encouragement will encourage you to stay the course and stick to those resolutions you made just a week ago!  And the best way to encourage you is by example.  So here goes!  I have decided to put this resolution at the very top of my list.  Stop procrastinating!  
 
So... “I quit!”  You heard me, “I quit!”  Why on earth would I say that?  Because I just learned that most folks quit on their New Year’s resolutions by the second Friday in January. This year that’s Friday, January 10.  This Friday has even been given a name: “Quitter’s Day!” 
 
So if I quit on my resolutions today, January 8th, that means I’m 2 days ahead of the Quitter’s Day deadline!  No procrastinating!  No last-minute crazed rush to do nothing!  It’s a win-win!
 
Two days to take naps so long they give me what I call “turtle head.”  Two days to eat lots of left-over Christmas cookies and candies.  Two days to gorge myself on mind-numbing social media and podcast drivel.  Two days to overload my brain on bad news gleaned from the around the world via my Smartphone.  2 days to fret and worry and be anxious about all the bad things I can imagine happening in the New Year of 2025.  (The Packers losing their first game in the play-offs.)
 
Or not.  Instead, I plan to spend these next 48 hours asking my Father to steady my head and my heart; asking his Spirit to tighten my faith-hold on my Savior; asking Jesus to pull me back when I stray, to stand me back up when I fall, and to point me back to the cross and the empty tomb when I grow depressed. 
 
Since my Father works his miracles through his precious Word, that means I plan to spend the next 2 days honing my focus on the Lord’s guidance and promises contained in the Scriptures.  Here’s a little appetizer of what I’ll be reading.   
 

• Psalm 65:11: “You crown the year with your goodness. The tracks made by your carts overflow with riches.” 
• 2 Chronicles 15:7: “But take courage and do not let your hands be slack, because there will be a reward for your work.”  
• Proverbs 15:21-22: “Stupidity delights a person who lacks sense, but one who has understanding stays on course. Plans fail without advice, but where there are many advisors the plans succeed.”
• Psalm 68:19: “Blessed be the Lord. Day by day he bears our burdens. He is the God who saves us.” 
• James 1:17: “Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the lights, who does not change or shift like a shadow.” 
• Ephesians 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.”  
• Psalm 34:1: “I will bless the LORD at all times. His praise will always be in my mouth.” 
• 1 Chronicles 16:8-14: “Give thanks to the LORD. Call on his name. Make known his deeds among the peoples. Sing to him. Make music to him. Tell about all his wonderful acts. Praise his holy name. The hearts of those who seek the LORD will rejoice. Seek the LORD and his strength. Seek his presence continually. Remember his wonderful acts, his signs, and the judgments from his mouth, you descendants of Israel, his servant, you sons of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is the LORD our God. His judgments are in all the earth.” 

 
That’s just a tiny sampling of the treasures our Lord shares with us in his Word!  And to think--you and I have the rest of this year, our good Lord willing, to read his Word, mark his Word, learn his Word, and take His Word to heart.  Now, that’s a New Year’s resolution I pray I never quit on! 
 
Privileged to serve,
Rev. Glenn Schwanke

It’s a New Year. Again. A fresh slate of…

• 365 days
• 12 months
• 365 days
• 8,760 hours
• 525,600 minutes
• 31,536,000 seconds

 
We’re mere hours, minutes, and seconds into the very first day of 2025. The clock is ticking.
 
How would you fill in the blank? In 2025, follow your _______.
 
One popular option? “Heart.” You’ll find “Follow your heart” splashed all over the mindsets and media posts of millions. Shall I, shall we, follow our hearts in this New Year?
 
No! NO! A thousand times: NOOOOOOO! Why? God says, “The heart is more deceitful than anything.
It is beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)
 
This is an understatement. Jesus adds, “To be sure, out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual sins, thefts, false testimonies, and blasphemies.” (Matthew 15:19) In short, I have a sinful nature. You have a sinful nature. When our gaze is only inward, at our own heart and mind, we’ll find no good thing.
 
Sociology and psychology say that we’re born good, at least neutral, and with a clean slate. Sociology and psychology are wrong. Sociology and psychology take a back seat to theology here. Theology/Bible/God says we’re born sinful, evil, that we’ve gone wrong even before day one: “Certainly, I was guilty when I was born. I was sinful when my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:5)
 
So much for “Follow your heart,” that lyin’, cheatin’, deceivin’ enemy within the walls of our very existence.
 
Other suggestions? “Follow your dreams.” Nope. See above. Consider also what the Lord says: “Let the prophet who has a dream tell his dream. But let the one who has my word speak my word faithfully.” (Jeremiah 23:28)
 
Other suggestions? Follow your passion? Follow your vision? Follow your dreams? Follow your leader? Follow your crowd? Follow the latest and greatest influencers on social media? No, nope, nada, negative, no way, absolutely not!
 
Follow what, then? There are clues, more than that, answers to be found in or near the Scriptures referenced above. “Let the one who has my word speak my word faithfully.” (Jeremiah 23:28b) “This is what the Lord says. Cursed is anyone who trusts in mankind, who seeks his strength from human flesh, and who turns his heart away from the Lord. But blessed is anyone who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by water.” (Jeremiah 17:5,7,8a)
 
And there is the one who speaks the Word, the Word made flesh, the Word of God himself: Jesus our Savior. “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:27,28)
 
Whatever awaits in 2025, Jesus will be there: speaking, holding, caring, directing, protecting, saving. Let’s follow our Savior/Shepherd/Lord. Let’s listen to the utter clarity and absolute power of his voice where he has promised to be found – not in our traitorous, befuddled hearts and minds – but in the Means of Grace: the preached and written Word, the water and remembrance of Holy Baptism, and swaddled in the bread and wine of his Holy Supper.
 
A Blessed New Year to you and yours!
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

Age 7:  “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth, my two front teeth, see my two front teeth.”
 
Age 9: “I want an Official Red Ryder carbine action two-hundred shot range model air rifle.”
 
Age 16:  “I want a 1968 Ford Mustang Cobra Jet with the 335hp, V8 engine.  Color?  Gulfstream Aqua.”
 
Age 30:  “I hope my husband goes to Jared and gets me a pair of the John Hardy Hammered Dot Drop Earrings with the 18K yellow gold bead, topped by a pavé diamond dangle.”
 
Age 50:  “Hon, let’s buy the Sun Tracker Party Barge 22 DLX, with the 90 horse ELPT four stroke command thrust Mercury motor, the color-keyed bimini top, and the stow-more seat back compartments.  It will be great fun for the grandkids next summer at the lake.  Come on, hon, it’s only $36,995 at the no-hassle price!”
 
Age  69:  “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth. . .and 6 more incisors, 4 canines, 8 premolars, and 8 molars.  Let’s skip the wisdom teeth this time around.”
 
Is there anything on that list you want for Christmas, or is your wish list different?  Don’t worry.  Retailers will do their best to have the perfect gift for you this Christmas! Amazon and Amazon Marketplace alone carry more than 362 million products, including 108,708,692 for the home and kitchen.  Their selection is so huge that some have called it “the endless shelf.”


But maybe this Christmas you realize you need something you can’t buy off of any endless shelf or find in a dentist’s chair. Why?  Maybe there’s a hole in your heart that nothing fills.  An ache deep down that never goes away. 
 
Maybe that’s because your life is broken. . .by a health crisis or an addiction, and a new toaster-oven can’t fix that.  By a failed marriage, or a child who won’t talk to you any more, and a drive-way full of big boy toys (car, boat, ATV, motorcycle, snowmobile) or a weekend shopping spree can’t make it better.
 
The truth is, all of us are broken in one way or another—by sin.  But sin’s consequences go much further than a deep-down ache, a guilty conscience, and sleepless nights. (Psalm 32:3-4).    Sin’s consequences are eternal.  Death.  Hell.  (Romans 5:12)  Can you even begin to imagine heartache that will never go away, all because you are forever separated from the Only One who is goodness, righteousness, mercy and love? 
 
But our Heavenly Father doesn’t want that for any of us!  (2 Peter 3:9)  That’s why his Spirit wrapped the perfect Christmas Gift in flesh in the womb of Mary.  And nine months later, Mary “gave birth to her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”  (Luke 2:10)  That same Christmas night, an angel shattered the quiet outside of Bethlehem when he announced to lowly shepherds, “Today in the town of David, a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord.”  (Luke 2:11) 
 
By inspiration, more than six decades later, the Apostle Paul glimpsed into the manger and saw the baby wrapped in something far warmer than swaddling clothes.  “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior toward mankind appeared, he saved us—not by righteous works that we did ourselves, but because of his mercy.”  (Titus 3:4) 
 
There’s nothing wrong with wanting a Red Ryder BB gun or some new teeth for Christmas,  as long as you’re not greedy or selfish about it.  And as long as you never forget the one Christmas Gift all of us really need. 
 
Privileged to serve,
Rev. Glenn Schwanke

​The story is told of a British preacher who came to the United States. He had prepared a careful three point sermon on the subject of the word, “But.” No one had told him that in America “butt” means “backside.”
 
And so he embarked on the first point of his carefully prepared sermon: “Everyone has a ‘but.’” He was a little confused by the congregation’s response.
 
Undeterred, he carried on to his second point, “You can see other people’s ‘buts.’”
 
It didn’t seem that the congregation was getting his argument at all, but he carried on with his third and most significant point: “But you can’t see your own ‘but.’”
 
Everyone in the Christmas account has a “but.” Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph, Mary, the shepherd. “But, I’m too old/it’s not my child/I’m a virgin/we’re just lowly shepherds/etc.”
 
Christ’s arrival erased the “buts” in spectacular fashion!
 
God’s promises fulfilled erase our “buts,” too. “But, I can’t endure this/I’m uncertain/I’m afraid/I can’t do this alone.” The name of Jesus (Savior) and his name Immanuel (God with us) assure us that our “buts” are unnecessary.
 
This Christmas and beyond, may your “buts” be removed! May you emerge from the overload of the season “but”-free.” No hesitation to believe, no hesitation to serve, no “buts” at all!
 
Christ has come…and he is coming again! The following Scripture expresses both events precisely and powerfully – no “ifs,” “ands,” or “buts.” “The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people… We wait for the blessed hope, that is, the glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” (Titus 2:11,13)
 
God be with you!
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

It was a week ago Monday.  And it was the bestest, most fabulous day—because everything was going so smoothly, precisely according to my plans.  During the day I had worked ahead on sermons through the end of the year.  Then I spent extra time reviewing my sermon, the readings, the hymns and the liturgy for the Monday night worship service.  I even unpacked a few more boxes of books that were aging in my garage from my retirement move, and I arranged the books neatly on the shelves in my home office.
 
Next I headed over to Trinity early for the worship.  There I caught up on some email before worship, and enjoyed the privilege of leading the evening worship service.  Right after worship, as I had planned with persnickety precision earlier, I stopped at Kwik Trip, bought gas and ran inside to pick up my haute cuisine supper:  a Hot Spot Quarter Pound Bacon Cheeseburger.
 
I jumped back into the car and headed home. As I drove, I was serenaded by Christmas music on 95.9, the Island.  The music was punctuated by life-changing commentary offered by radio host and entertainer, John Tesh.  And John had just splashed a rainbow of delights on the horizon of my life when he told me that research had revealed the happiest age-decade in the life of an average US citizen.  I waited with bated breath for the answer.  Surely your 20s!  Or maybe your 30s?  But NO!  It’s your 70’s!   My 70s?  I felt as if heaven opened before my eyes, because I will step into my 70’s, our Lord willing, next year!  I reveled in the moment.  Could this day get any better?  
 
Just then, precisely then, exactly then. . .DEER!!#?!  THUD!  And I'm pulling off to the side of Highway 70, just east of St. Germain, and turning on my car’s 4-way flashers on the worstest, most bummerish, messed up day of my life.  As I left the car to check on the deer and damage, it’s as if the blackness of the night had instantly deepened and the chill of the wind worsened.  Once I made sure the small doe was off the road (I was in no mood to take it), the highway was clear of debris, and my car was drivable, I headed home—with my driver-side headlight askew, shining high up into the trees across the road.
 
Since my tech skills are somewhat lacking, I didn’t attempt the easy-peasy, super-convenient online reporting with insurance and the Wisconsin DOT on my smartphone.  I did that back home, on my computer.  It was so easy-peasy, super convenient that it took me 2 ½ hours. 
 
Then, at long last, I ate my rock-hard, ice-cold Hot Spot Quarter Pound Bacon Cheeseburger. I decided to waft it down with a German beverage, and thus put an exclamation point on the worstest, most bummerish, messed-up, trashed, lousy day of my life.
 
Well, not quite.  Even though for a few moments, it felt that way.  But then I started to reflect on my just-shy-of-three-score years-and-ten, and I realized how minor this car/deer close-encounter was.  Through the decades of my life, my gracious Father has deemed it wise for me to experience much more serious setbacks, and every time it’s because he knew precisely how large a spoon-full of discipline I needed in my life in order to keep me bound closely to him in saving faith. 
 
So I reached for my Bible and turned to Paul’s words.  “Not only this, but we also rejoice confidently in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces patient endurance, and patient endurance produces tested character, and tested character produces hope.” (Romans 5:3-4)
 
Then I checked Hebrews 12.  “Have you also forgotten the encouragement that addresses you as sons? My son, do not regard the Lord’s discipline lightly, and do not become weary of his correction. For the Lord disciplines the one whom he loves, and he corrects every son he accepts. Endure suffering as discipline. God is dealing with you as sons. Is there a son whose father does not discipline him?”  (Hebrews 12:5-7)
 
And I wondered, “What is the Lord trying to teach me through this?  Maybe to be less focused on unboxing, organizing, building, fixing, and getting everything on my “Schwanke estate” just the way I want it, so that I can fully enjoy my Golden Years of retirement?”  In that moment, Jesus’ story about the rich farmer popped into my mind, and the farmer’s empty boast.  “Soul, you have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry.”’  (Luke 12:19)
 
Thud!  The words hit hard into the depths of my soul. And I realized that a deer, and a thud, had worked together for my good.  Since I remain a child of God, bought and paid for in the blood of Christ, it was still the bestest, most fabulous day ever. 
 
Because everything was going according to His plans. 
 
Privileged to Serve, 
Rev. Glenn Schwanke

It happened to me for the first time about twenty years ago. I pulled a “Scrooge.” I didn’t listen to any Christmas music in the weeks before Christmas. I can’t really explain why. I just didn’t feel like going out of my way and putting in a Christmas CD (twenty years ago, remember?) or turning on one of those all-Christmas, all-the-time stations.
 
It’s happened again in “on and off” fashion since then. This year, I did listen to Christmas music once…so far…for about an hour.
 
I have favorites: Mannheim Steamroller, Reba McEntire, Amy Grant, Pentatonix. But this year, I haven’t made much of an effort to listen to Christmas music…again.
 
Is it a lack of opportunity due to busyness? That’s in the mix. Is it a matter of choosing different entertainment – streaming preferred shows/movies, reading, time with adult children/grandchildren (either in person or via Facetime), time with extended family (a form of entertainment? Depends…)? Definitely a partial reason for my lack of seasonal “holly jolly.” Is it a sense of melancholy which can be traced to any number of circumstances in one’s life? I can’t apply the “shrugging shoulders” emoji to this document, so I’ll just offer an IDK (“I don’t know,” for those over the age of 65 J).
 
Which gets me to wondering…is it required of me to listen to Christmas music right now? Do I have to? What if I don’t? Is there something wrong with me?
 
Do I have to get a Christmas letter out to everyone? Do I have to battle traffic, and crowds, and credit card debt to find true joy? Do I have to put up a tree and outside lights? (The parsonage doesn’t even have regular outside lights right now due to a remodeling project – whew, I’ve got an excuse!) Do I have to attend area light displays and drive through neighborhoods to ooh and aah at other people’s incredible light display efforts?
 
Do I have to say, “Happy Holidays” so as not to offend? Don’t get me started on this one…
 
Do I have to shop for gifts? Thankfully, my dear bride has a gift for turning a small mound of cash into a heaping overflow of creative, well-loved presents. Although, I wouldn’t turn down an invitation to browse at the Musky Shop.
 
What do I have to do in order to be ready?
 
John the Baptist was clear: “Repent! Prepare the way for the Lord! Make straight paths for him!” (Matthew, Mark, & Luke all record his message)
 
Repentance is done by the work of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. This is more than seasonal, it’s daily. It’s a change of mind, a turning away from sin and turning back to God by the mercy of God. Repentance prepares me not to DO all kinds of things to get ready for Christmas, but to receive all that has been DONE for me.
 
Indeed, you and I don’t have to do anything (of an exterior, seasonal, commercial, decorative nature) to be “ready” for Christmas. Christmas will come whether we’re “ready” or not. Christmas HAS ALREADY COME! Christmas is already “ready.” Please enjoy, ponder, and believe…that all the fuss that God made thousands of years to make Christmas happen for us is worth far more than all the fuss we make over a few weeks’ time to get ready for our “version” of Christmas.
 
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people.” (Titus 2:11)
 
In Christ our Savior,
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

7:30 AM.  Day 2 of Deer Camp.  I’ve been sitting in the Taj Mahal deer blind on Luchterhand the Elder’s property since 6:10 AM.  But there’s nothing.  No movement.  No sounds.  No gun-shots. Just a stifling blanket of nothing.  Nichts.  Nada.  Rien.  Niente.  This choking canopy of nothingness follows Day 1 of Deer Camp which was also marked by. . .nothing.  No movement.  Not so much as the cawing of a crow, the jeering of a blue jay, or the chattering of a squirrel.  No one in our hunting group has spotted a single deer, but a few wolves have been sighted. 
 
So my mind begins to wander, and I begin to fashion a mental map for this Wednesday Encouragement.  Since this Wednesday Encouragement falls on the eve of Thanksgiving, I search the deep recesses of my misty memory for a Bible verse to use.  Perhaps a Psalm?  Maybe Psalm 36?
In short order, I’ve deep-dived into the expanded outline for this article.  It will be the best I have ever written.  The Psalm expounded with dazzling clarity.  The applications personal, touching head and heart.
 
But just as this article (surely destined to be nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature) is about to be born, something begins tugging at the corners of my mind.  The tugging grows more urgent, until this Wednesday Encouragement evaporates into the murky recesses of my mind.  Instead my sense of sight is demanding my brain’s attention, shouting, “Glenn, that brush is moving! MOVING!  There’s MOVEMENT!”
 
A- l - l    t - o - o    s- l- o- w- l -y I struggle to rouse myself from my daze, and sure enough, there’s a grayish brown shape moving—just over the tops of some brush! Coming from my right to the left.  With another sure, silent step, the grayish brown shape raises its head.   Then a bit more.  Antlers!  A buck!  A DANDY!  Slowly, majestically, he leaves the brush behind, and steps onto an open path.  He’s precisely where I had been asking the Lord to bring a deer! 
 
So I reach for my gun.   Raise it.  Click off the safety.  Site through the scope to take the shot, as this ginormous stag of a lifetime takes one more step just off the left of the path, and….

​HE’S GONE!  WHAT!?  Where did he go?  All he did was take a single step in between a few young white pines.  Hardly a thicket, much less dense forest.  WHERE DID HE GO?  HOW COULD HE DISAPPEAR?  Was this a buck rapture?  Aliens?  Angels messing with me? 

For the next 45 minutes, I remain on high-alert. Scoping the area.  Making a mental note of every leaf.  Every branch.  Did the buck bed down?  Escape undetected up the hill away from me?   How could he just be gone?   Later on a meticulous search of the area reveals. . .nothing.
 
During all of this, an atmospheric river of thoughts flooded my heart and brain.  “Why wasn’t I more alert?”  “How could I be so slow to raise my rifle?”  “How will I ever live this down?”  For a moment or two, I even waxed Job-like.  “How could the Lord do this to me!”
 
But then, God’s Spirit grabbed me squarely by the ears and pulled me back, and I began to rejoice in the moment.  I savored the sight of that buck, his stature, his power.  I laughed over the hollow that had hidden him and the white pines that later masked him from view.
 
Then I looked around with fondness at the Taj Mahal in which I was sitting; my Savage 30-06 rifle, a trusted, familiar friend; the Trail Mix I munched on; the coffee in my thermos.  Next my thoughts were whisked back to my friends back at the Luchterhand Castle--even my “Nemesis” at Sheepshead.  I delighted to think of the stories that would be told.
 
And I gave thanks!  And I continue to give thanks!  For the intricacies of the LORD’s magnificent creation that wraps us like a warm blanket here in the Northwoods!  But I give thanks even more for the LORD’s mercy to someone so unworthy as me, all-too-often too quick to complain or to focus on a single dark cloud dwarfed against the background of a sky of dazzling blue!  I give thanks that the LORD sent his Son to rescue me, a short-sighted sinner who does not always stand in awe of his grace.  A broken sinner, at times too quick to forget what matters the most.  Sins washed away!  God’s gift of life!  A sinner-so richly blessed-yet not always thankful.
 
Does any of that confession ring true for you?  If so, I humbly suggest that we bow our heads, fold our hands, and join David the Psalmist, in this Thanksgiving prayer.   
 
“LORD, your mercy reaches to the heavens. Your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is as high as the mountains of God. Your justice is as deep as the ocean. You save both man and animal, O LORD. How precious is your mercy, O God! So all people find refuge in the shadow of your wings. They are satisfied by the rich food of your house. You let them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life. In your light we see light.”  (Psalm 36:5-9)
 
Privileged to Serve, 
Rev. Glenn Schwanke

Last Sunday morning. Up early, 4 AM, can’t sleep. What’s a pastor to do, especially one that isn’t preaching on that particular day? Write a sermon, of course. In this case, a Thanksgiving Eve sermon. It’s done, ten days prior to the event. This was done – the world would surmise – “despite” circumstances. But the world would be wrong…
 
About 30 hours earlier, in the room next to the one in which I sat, my father-in-law breathed his last. Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, took him home to heaven. No more tears. No more pain. No more sorrow. No more sadness. To steal from the great Christmas hymn: For this loved one, “No more let sins and sorrows grow Nor thorns infest the ground.” (Christian Worship, #353:3 “Joy to the World”) “No more!” our dear Savior declared. (See Revelation 21:1-6) Now, for this man, loved by many here on earth and loved above all by his Savior, everything is new and everything is forever blessed!
 
Have there been tears? Enough to resolve WI’s drought issues or to green over the Sonoran desert. Has there been emotional, even physical, pain? If you’ve been through this, you know. The gut punch, the feeling of trying to catch one’s breath, the occasional callous outbursts of “It is what it is.”
 
So why, in the midst of all this, in the early morning darkness of Appleton, WI, in a 3rd floor apartment of an assisted living facility, a mere day after the passing of a loved one, would I pull out my EHV study Bible and my laptop and write a Thanksgiving sermon?
 
Why not? This was done, Christians understand, “because of” circumstances. This was done because while this is a time of grief and sadness for us who remain, this is also a time of joy and thanksgiving. Job’s words come to mind: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. May the name of the Lord be blessed.” (Job 1:21) The psalmist declares: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.” (Psalm 116:15 NIV)
 
There are many Psalms that speak of praising God and giving thanks to him. Psalm 100 (the sermon text for Thanksgiving Eve) is the only one with the superscription/heading, “A psalm for giving thanks.”  Here’s an excerpt of what came to mind as I wrote:
 

• Verse 3b says, “We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” Here’s something for which to praise God. We are his people! We didn’t start out that way. “At one time you were not a people, but now you are the people of God. At one time you were not shown mercy, but now you have been shown mercy.” (1 Peter 2:10) Consider this: there is only one reason we are able to “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, his courtyards with praise” (v. 4) today and every day – – and for all eternity. It’s because Christ Jesus entered the Most Holy Place at the cost of his own blood. “He entered once into the Most Holy Place and obtained eternal redemption, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood.” (Hebrews 9:12) Our sins paid for by that precious blood. Heaven opened wide by Christ and his precious blood, backed by the unshakable message and power of the empty tomb. He lives and so will we!

 
The funeral service is tomorrow (Thursday). Here’s the text my father-in-law chose for the service:
 

• “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart.” (Philippians 1:3-7a)

 
Another reason to give thanks – a chance to hear a faithful confession of God-given, Spirit-inspired faith. Blessed “early” Thanksgiving to you.
 
In Christ Jesus,
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

We’ve come to the middle of another week, another idyllic Wednesday morning in the Northwoods.  It’s a day marked by the chirping of song sparrows, the chatter of squirrels, and the snorting of a 30-point buck back in the woods. 
 
I gaze out at my lake, and the serenity of the moment is capped by two pair of white swans, gliding slowly out from my shore on the glass-like surface of the water.
 
It’s time to drink in the silence, along with another sip of coffee kept hot in the cherished YETI coffee mug I bought as a souvenir from the Open Bay Lodge during a June fishing trip to Canada.
Ah. . .life is so peaceful.  Doubly so, because my email inbox is no longer flooded with emails from both sides of the political aisle.  My smartphone’s spam filter doesn’t keep alerting me throughout the day (and night) to one political text after another, after another, after another.  My mail box no longer needs to be supersized to fit all the political fliers that kept arriving, daily, from both parties.  And no longer are there endless ads on podcasts or streaming TV that scream at me about the horrors one or the other candidate will inflict on our country. 
 
But, now what?  What comes next?   Some are ecstatic at the election results.  Others are ready to pack up and leave the USA.  Will the last election cycle result in less violence in the streets?  Increased security for our country?  A better economy?  I have no political crystal ball to make predictions.
 
But this I do know, and this will never change, no matter what has happened in our elections, and no matter what side of the political aisle you stand on.  Drink in this inspired encouragement shared by the Apostle Paul!
 
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope to which he has called you, just how rich his glorious inheritance among the saints is, and just how surpassingly great his power is for us who believe. It is as great as the working of his mighty strength, which God worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, authority, power, and dominion, and above every name that is given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. God also placed all things under his feet and made him head over everything for the church. The church is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” (Ephesians 1:18-23)
 
That’s what the Apostle Paul shows us.  Jesus, King of the Universe! 
 
Jesus ruling over everything “for the church.”  For believers.  For you.  For me.  Ruling over everything!  Solar flares, atmospheric rivers, El Nino and La Nina weather patterns, earthquakes, famines, floods, hurricanes, snow-droughts or snow banks so high you can’t see over them.  Our Savior is in control of the weather.
 
Ruling over everything!  And that includes governments like ours that come and go, as nations rise and fall.  Jesus, our King, controls the government.  Read Romans 13:1-7 for a quick review.
Jesus is our King!  He rules everything, always, “for the church.” For you.  For me.  So no matter what happened in this election, my dear friends in Christ, OUR KING IS IN HIS CASTLE AND HIS FLAG FLIES AT FULL-MAST! 
 
And this leads to a final encouragement our King himself has shared with us--whether our candidate won or not, whether the election went the way we want or not.  Through St. Paul our King gives us this directive. 

“First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all those who are in authority, in order that we might live a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  (1 Timothy 2:1-4)
 
Privileged to Serve, 
Rev. Glenn Schwanke