“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8
Dear Redeemer Family:
The verse from the prophet Micah above is considered to be the sum total of the message of the prophets. What does God want from us? Justice, kindness and to walk humbly with Him. I chose that verse with a sense of pride today. We just had the eclipse two days ago. Although we did not receive the overwhelming numbers of people that were predicted, and I am glad for that, we did have roughly 50 families who came and viewed the eclipse from our property. Those of us that were preparing for this event (and I am glad that it is over!) decided that we were just going to enjoy the event, show hospitality, and not try to gouge our visitors. Here at Redeemer, I think that everyone who came here thanked us for our hospitality. One person even thanked me for the eclipse. I told him that I wasn’t responsible for that. My boss is. We offered free parking. I was told today that someone up Highway 21 was charging people $35 to park in his yard. We sold food, but at very reasonable rates. And for those who came, they were appreciative. We had the building open and cool for those who came to view the eclipse in the 88 degree weather. People were very appreciative for that, especially the families from Wisconsin and Michigan. We tried to live out those words from Micah. And, I commend all of those who helped out on the 21st of August. You all did well. I believe that is what God wanted us to do. And as I wrote last month, it was really God’s eclipse. That is one big event completed.
The next event where we are also trying to live up to this injunction for hospitality is our 500th Anniversary of the Reformation celebration at the end of October. For that, we will be hosting the De Soto Ministerial Alliance’s Singspiration. That is very appropriate. It was Martin Luther who invented congregational singing. Prior to him, only the choir sang during service. The congregation just stood silently (yes, I said stood. Someone later invented the pews.) Indeed, he wrote the first hymn book for individuals (it contained 8 hymns which he wrote). But we are also putting a spin on it. And we will do it in classic Lutheran fashion: Food. We will be serving everyone who comes a free meal, with a total German cuisine slant. We will start that event at 4pm with the meal. Then, at 6pm we will hold the musical service. And following the service, we will be serving them dessert, again with a German slant (all of those pastries that I am no longer able to eat). We have a committee who has been working on items in preparation for this event for several months. And hopefully, we have most of our ducks in a row. But the day of the celebration, we will undoubtedly need more volunteers. If you would like to help out on this one, please let me know. We will need help especially in the meal department. We will be celebrating the beginning of the Lutheran Reformation. We will be doing it for the glory of God. And we will be reaching out in hospitality to all of those in the community who wish to join us. I think that the prophet Micah would agree with us!
In Christ,
Pastor Rose