2-15-2026

Good Morning!

   Acts 2:42; “And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”

     In the olden days of VCR’s, we used to watch movies and every so often, push the pause button or even run it backwards.  When you did this, run it backwards, you could watch the guy fall on his horse instead of off his horse.  If you could push the pause button at just the right moment, you could see the water just start to touch the top of the head of the unsuspecting victim.  If you were watching a mystery, you could pause the movie and look to see if there were any clues sitting there that you might miss otherwise.

   Of course, the greatest use of this slowing down, pausing and then backing up is in watching sports today.  They take close plays, ones that at real and normal speed are almost impossible to see exactly what happened.  So, they slow it way down, they zoom in on the play, they run it backwards slowly to see exactly what happened.  They study it and look at it until they almost have memorized it.

    We scrutinize old VHS tapes and controversial sporting events yet our Bible often just gathers dust on the shelf.  We put it up there just in case, some time, we might want to look something up that we “know” is right but we heard it differently.  We use it to store the family documents in, maybe a pressed flower from a loved one’s funeral; that is about all that we have it for.  It is just there.

    Yet God gives us this book for a very special reason.  This is how he chooses to talk to us.  This is how he reveals himself to us.  As we read it, we see his nature unfold before us as his desire to love us and for us to love him is revealed over and over.  We see that God is by nature loving but can be provoked to anger but only for a short time.  We read about how, no matter how many times we fall short of his will; he keeps bringing us back and restoring us to our place in his kingdom.

    So, by reading God’s Word and listening to what he is saying to us, we can find comfort; we can find hope.  This is where God shows us his desire to save us and to make us his people and what that means to us.  Many try to accomplish this by guessing or postulating or simply making it up.  Yet God shows us what his plan for us is.  His plan is to prosper us by his grace and to give us comfort and hope as we face this life’s challenges and to give us the true peace that the world cannot give.  We get this through the prayerful study of God’s Word.  We get this by listening to what He speaks to us.

Wonderful and loving Father, in your mercy you took the time to record for us your message of salvation and to give it to us.  Guide us by your Spirit to love reading and studying it.  Teach us to savor the message of salvation which you speak to us.  Help us to share this message with those around us.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret  

 

2-14-2026

Good Morning!

   1 Peter 4:8; “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”

      Do you remember the Beatles song “All You need is Love”?  It was written, primarily by John Lennon, but credited to Lennon and McCartney.  It was first sung during the first ever live global link broadcast.  It was transmitted over satellite.  It was written specifically so that the message could be understood in any language.  Many criticized the simplistic view of life.  The rejoinder was “You need a whole lot more than love!”  That is true but at the same time love is the most important element.

    Love is that which we freely give.  It does not demand that the other person change rather it accepts the person for who he is.  Love thus becomes the basis for all of our relational events.  We can trust someone because we love them.  We commit to someone because we love them.  Love is acceptance at its greatest level.  Love is what God does to you.

    God shows his love for us by the fact that while we were sinners, while we were his enemies; He died for us.  In the process, he returned us back to our humanity.  Until Christ came to earth, to live, to preach, to die and to rise again; love was dying in the world.  Pagan teachings taught that love or mercy was something to be avoided.  The pagan gods only wanted to be fed and honored; there was no mention of loving others.  Yet this is exactly what Christ brought to us; he brought us love. 

    He returned us to our original created purpose and that is to love.  We are to love God, love each other and love God’s creation.  This was why we were created, yet sin takes us away from this.  Sin causes us to look inward in a selfish and self-centered method.  We are egotists with our only concern about what is in it for us.  Yet when Christ calls us into his kingdom, he restores our original humanity, our original purpose, the purpose for which we were created.  This is what God’s love does for us; it frees us to be the true us.

    Through this love which we share with those around us, we are able to live in his kingdom just as we were designed to.  We see each other as a fellow redeemed child of God; someone whom God has accepted and someone we should accept as well.  We may have to have those things which hurt our relationship with God pointed out but we do so in love.  So, we look at each other for what we truly are; we are God’s children. 

    So, God wants us to love each other and he gives us the desire to do so.  It is sin that holds us back and keeps us from truly doing this.  It is usually the fear that causes us to stand off and not show the love that we should. It is fear is that holds us back.  Yet God gives us the power to defeat that fear and to respond to his love with love, a desire to have compassion and mercy on our neighbors just like Christ had on us.

Gracious Father, teach us to love as you loved us.  Guide us by your Spirit to forgive as you have forgiven us.  Help us to show mercy as you have shown mercy.  Keep us in your loving arms.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

2-13-2026

Good Morning!

   Isaiah 32:18; “My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places”.     

      I often hear people tell me how they need to get away for a while.  They need a break and they need to rest and recharge.  I recently read that if you are having trouble sleeping, research seems to point to going camping for a week and to be sure and leave ALL your electronic devices at home.  This helps to reset our natural clock and the rhythm of normal sleep patterns.  As technologically connected as we are, it can, and often does, disrupt our life patterns and rhythms.  If your life patterns and rhythms are disrupted enough, it can have a detrimental impact on your health. 

    So, it is interesting that Isaiah picks up on this.  Notice in our verse he lists three events or places for us, as God’s children to be.  First, we will abide in peaceful habitation.  Here we can see the relationship that we have with God is no longer one where we are the adversary or enemy of God but that God has declared peace with us through Jesus.  We live in peace with God.  We no longer hide from God; he draws us into his loving arms.

    Since we are no longer an enemy of God, he surrounds us with his love.  This is what the psalmist meant about us “hiding in the shadow of your wings.”  Just like the young chick is kept safe and secure all nestled into the wings of the hen so to we are secure in our dwelling which finds its place in God’s grace.

    So, we have a peaceful and secure place to live.  We dwell (set up camp) in the safety of God’s mercy.  This is where we are always safe and at peace, living in God’s mercy.  Yet even then, we face struggles every day.  The devil attacks every moment of every day.  It takes many forms, pressure on our time, pressure on the views of the world, pressure about worries about health or wealth or personal relationships.  God helps us deal with this but, just like Jesus, sometimes we need a quiet place to go and pray and rest.

    So, we too need a place to go and pray and rest in the Lord.  As difficult as it is, we need to take some time and rest in God’s presence.  We need to take some time, find a quiet spot, read a little Scripture and then take time and pray.  This can help you rest just as much as the vaunted power nap, maybe even more.  It rests our bodies but it nourishes our souls.  It revitalizes our spirit to make us whole.

    So, find a spot, a favorite chair, a bench in the park (it might need to be warmer, but it will be), a seat on the deck; someplace where you can tune out the noise of the world, focus on God’s Word and rest in his mercy.  Take time to listen to God and to speak to God; it is here where we find our resting place.

Father of mercy, in a world that offers no place of safety or rest, you are our shield, our hope and our home.  Guide us to find rest in your arms.  Hide us in the shadow of your grace filled wings.  Be with those who have no peace.  Send your Holy Spirit to strengthen and comfort them.  Be with us gracious Lord.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret    

2-12-2026

Good Morning!

                Matthew 5:7; “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”

       There was a man that I used to know many years ago, he has since died.  You would run into him at the local elevator or the local co-op.  You might see him at the local Memorial Day service in town.  He was just an average run of the mill guy.  There wasn’t anything special about him.  He wasn’t rich or poor.  He wasn’t particularly handsome or ugly; he was just a man.

    Yet he was the saddest and the bitterest person that I had ever met.  He remembered, vividly, every single slight that any neighbor or anyone who he knew had done to him.  He could remember the time someone didn’t say “hi” to him as he walked down the street.  He remembered the neighbor whose cows got out and into his newly plowed field.  He could remember the time the fuel delivery guy was a day late delivering fuel.  He could remember which neighbor did and did not come to help him when he had been hurt.  He remembered it all and he relived it every time he saw someone who would listen.  He lived his life as a sullen, unhappy man.  He never had a smile or a kind word.  Most people would go out of their way to avoid him.  It must have been an incredible disappointing life.

    This is what the Bible is telling us about forgiveness.  Sin refuses to give forgiveness.  Sin tells you to hold onto the grudge, to make sure you get even.  What sin doesn’t tell you is the unbelievable toll that this attitude causes you.  You have no contentment, you have no peace, you have no joy; you only have sorrow and pain.  Those who are not merciful reject God’s mercy.  Those who are not forgiving, hold onto the sins which God has forgiven but they haven’t.  So, by clutching to that sin; you reject God.  It is not that we earn mercy or have it by merit, rather it is that we reject God’s mercy.

    When we reject God, we reject the peace and contentment that he gives us; we simply try to walk away.  When we walk away from God, from his mercy, love, gentleness, and hope; we walk toward anger, hatred, jealousy, and an uneasy and unhappy life.  We live the life of that angry, bitter man and that is not the life that God intends for us.  The life he intends for us is one of contentment, peace, love, and hope.  “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you” is what God tells us.  It is the life we can grab hold of but we have to let go first.  We have to let go of our sin and then let go of our neighbor’s sin against us.  God invites you to let go of your anger, your pain, and your sorrow. 

    So be merciful, let the sins of others go.  They only cause you pain as you hold onto them.  They only let others control your happiness.  Give them up and enjoy God’s mercy in your life.

Gracious and tender Father, through your mercy you bring us back into your holy family.  Teach us to see that our contentment is about the mercy we show.  Guide us by your Spirit to see that our happiness comes from you and is best expressed by showing love to others.  Be with those who won’t let go of the pain.  Give the desire to seek your will and trust in your promise.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret     

2-11-2026

Good Morning!

             Hebrews 12:2; “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

      I confess, I am a “gawker.”  You see, I am the son of a farmer who is the son of a farmer who was the son of a farmer and so on.  I think it is genetic.  All spring, summer, and fall, whenever we drive, I love to look at the crops.  It used to be fun to look and see how straight the corn rows were but with auto-steer that isn’t what it used to be.  I still like to look at the grain as it is growing.  I still like to look at the hay as it is being mowed and baled.  I like to look at the cattle in the pasture, especially early in the season when the calves are still young and will jump and play.  Yeah, I am a gawker; I love it.  It scares the devil out of my wife though.

    You see I am not only a gawker, but I am also a “turner” as well.  If I look to the left pretty soon, I am driving to the left.  Then as I look to the right I started driving to the right.  When she rides with me; there are at least three “lookouts!” and when she calls me by my full given name and then says “lookout!” well, you lookout.  On those times when she didn’t ride with me; well, the ditch was a gentle slope so it wasn’t that big a deal. 

     This event is very epidemic among farmers, especially those who are somewhat age enhanced.  I think it starts from when you first learn to plow.  When you strike out to plow, you pick a spot in the distance.  It might be a tree or a fence post or you might walk to the end and place a flag of some sort.  So, as you plow, you keep your eyes focused on that point.  As long as you never take your eye off of that point, you will drive straight at it.  If you look away, even for a second or two you will start to veer off course.  So down through life, you drive where you look.

      This tends to be true in our faith walk as well.  Whatever we look to tends to be the way that we go.  If we look to the Bible for our guidance and answers we tend to stay there.  If we “gawk” and listen to those who spout lies and untruths well, we tend to pull that way.  If we look to those who say God is dead, non-existent, or irrelevant, well we tend to think maybe that is so.  If we look to those who say that the most important thing in all the world is personal happiness and that we have, not only the right, but the duty to pursue that at all costs; well soon we start to lose our compassion for others.

    Luther defined a “god” like this: A god is that to which we look for all good and in which we find refuge in every time of need.  To have a god is nothing else that to trust and believe him with your whole heart… that to which your heart clings and entrusts itself is, I say, really your God.”  Who is your God, who do you look to?  Who do you see as the pioneer and perfecter of your faith?  Trust in Jesus!!

Father, keep me focused upon your amazing grace and love that I have in Jesus.  Help me to see that this is how I grow and live within the safety of your arms.  Be with those who are distracted and bring their eyes back to you.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray.  Amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

2-10-2026

Good Morning!

        John 3:5; “Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.”

        “You put your right hand in, You put your right hand out, You put your right hand in, And you shake it all about, You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around That what it's all about.”  Do you remember this?  I think most people at one time or another, in their youth, sang this little ditty.  The thing about this song that is curious; I read on the internet (naturally) one time.  It asked the question: “The Hokey Pokey; what if that is what it’s all about?”

    I giggled, at first, but then thought about the many people in the world who do not know or believe in the redemption of Jesus.  Without faith in your life, what is your life all about?  These people have no meaning of life.  When we do not live in a faith relationship with God, or maybe we have lost sight of that relationship, we cannot understand the ultimate purpose in our lives.  We do not see the true purpose for our life.

    This is where many often go off and look for other ideas.  Some seek total sensual satisfaction.  It might be drugs and alcohol; it might be sex; it might be seeking all the wealth you can find.  Some seek some form of introspective self- religion which leaves them empty.  Through it all, searching for what they will never find.  The good thing is that God is seeking them.

    We find our purpose, not through some strange life or actions; rather we find it because God gives us new life and restores our purpose.  Through Baptism, we have new life and we live in Christ.  Our life has meaning, it has purpose.  We get a new beginning.  God gives us the gift of a “do over” every day.  Every day we get to live as his dear children.  We see our life as being one that is blessed by him.  We look forward to eternal life with him.  With this new life, with us being born of the Spirit, we now have a new desire in life.  We no longer desire the sinful and the emptiness; we desire to live in God’s grace. 

    Now that doesn’t mean that we don’t occasionally slip back into that destructive mode, we still have a sinful nature.  But we do know that it is wrong, conscience and the Holy Spirit will tell us that.  Being shown that it is wrong, we are then shown how to fix it; by trusting in God’s mercy and forgiveness.  We are made his holy children by Baptism and with this we are given new life with a new purpose; to live the life that he has laid out for us and to show his love to those around us and THAT is what it’s all about!

Father of all mercy, we are overwhelmed by your grace and love.  Guide us by your Spirit to trust in you.  You give us new life each day.  Through you we have new birth.  Lead us to rejoice in that new life.  Lead us to live the life of purpose for you.  Lead us to be your light in this dark world.  Guide us by your grace. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret     

2-9-2026

Good Morning!

      Romans 15:13; “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

       It was the phone call that every parent fears.  There was a car accident.  Someone had run through a stop sign, never even slowed down.  Neither car was recognizable.  Six high school kids all together in the two vehicles.  Two were dead, three in serious condition and one was flown to a larger hospital.  When the parents of the one that was flown out arrived at the hospital, the doctors sat down with them and had a rather short discussion with them. 

   The doctors explained that there was internal bleeding and massive head trauma.  They would know more in a couple of days but the doctors told the parents, “there isn’t much hope.”  That kind of a statement can be very difficult to handle.  No one wants to hear that there is no hope.  No one wants to feel that all is lost.  To lose hope is to lose everything.  That is why the devil tries so hard to deprive you of hope, when you lose hope; you have nothing.

    That is what God gives us; he gives us hope.  He gives us hope because we know that sin, the devil and even death do not hold us.  They will take their swipes at us but they do not own us or control us.  We have the certainty of God’s promise of salvation.  We have God’s promise of life eternal with him.  This is his guarantee.  Eternal life with God living, celebrating, and rejoicing in the perfect creation; that is what we have waiting for us.  The devil can never take that away from us.

    Even though bad things happen to us, we always have hope.  Hope in the certainty of God’s eternal love.  Hope is the certainty of eternal life.  That is what we cling to.  All those loved ones, some we think left us too soon, will be reunited with us in heaven.  We will share eternal life with all the saints in the glory of God.  We have hope.  The lies and the pain that the devil throws at us are only attacks and not truths.  We are never without hope.  We will face the pain of this broken world; sin causes pain, it always has and it always will but it will not destroy us.  It will not take from us what God gives us; sin will not take away our hope.

     So even though there may be times of pain and struggle, we can face them.  We can face them knowing that our heavenly Father is there with us.  Keeping us in his arms as we face the battles of this broken world.  We face the fight but we are never alone and we know that we will be with our loved ones again when Christ returns and we are all reunited with him in love and glory.  We face the battles but we face them with the certainty of hope.  We have hope that God is love and his reign is eternal.  We have hope that our present pain is nowhere near our future glory.  We have hope; we always have and always will.

Father of love, in you we have hope.  Help us to never lose sight of this.  Help us to always look to you for our hope.  We ask that you be with those who feel that they have lost all hope.  Send your spirit of comfort and use us to bring the consolation which they need.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret