August 8, 2022
ANNOUNCEMENTS .
Lunch & Pie Social, August 21st, 10 am till 4 pm. Lots of great food and homemade pie! Benefits the Women of Trinity.
Workers & items needed for the Lunch & Pie Social Please see the sign-ups on the table in the Narthex
Float Riders needed for the church float at Picklefest! All kids get a free bag of candy! Meet at the church at Noon on Sunday, August 21st.
Campfire Worship, Wednesday, August 17th, 6:30 pm. Bring a chair to sit on.
Pick up your church directories! They are on the Cake Table in the Narthex
Trinity Men’s Band will be at First Lutheran Church in Cumberland at 6pm on August 24th and at the Downsville Rec Park on August 28th at 11 am.
Confirmation Parent Meeting, Wednesday, August 31st, 7 pm.
Don’t forget that you can support Trinity through the Vanco app OR using the donate form on our website. Download the free app, search for Trinity Lutheran Boyceville, and go from there!
MUSINGS FROM PASTOR BRAD
On Thursday, I surprised Amy with a puppy, a male toy Schnauzer that she named Baxter. Amy was completely surprised and of course fell in love with the dog immediately (he is pretty cute). But you know who didn’t fall in love with Baxter? Our current dog, Kapono. Let’s just say that she is not a fan. And I can see why. She has been our only dog for many years and she likes things the way she likes them. Plus, she likes all the attention from Mom, and now that attention is split.
But you know who wants to be friends? Baxter. Baxter tries to engage Kapono, tries to get her to play with him, and she is having none of it. But he doesn’t give up. He keeps going to her, all excited. And she keeps going the other way, trying to escape this hyper puppy. But Baxter doesn’t give up. No matter where Kapono tries to flee, Baxter follows. And doesn’t give up. I have no doubt that eventually they will get along.
Watching Baxter chase after Kapono, I thought about our relationship with God. Sometimes we run away from God. We run away because of shame, of guilt, of feeling unworthy. Maybe we aren’t ready for the radical love of God in Jesus Christ, a radical love that makes us see the world in a different way. Maybe we are afraid, for we know that in Jesus Christ we are changed. And we don’t like change. Like Kapono.
But God is like Baxter. God does not give up on us and keeps coming after us. We might run away, but God keeps after us. You can run away all you want, but God will keep on coming. Why? Because God loves you. Because wants to show you the grace and mercy you need in life, show you that you are matter and that you are loved. No matter what. We might get lost from time to time, but the Lord brings us back. Searches for us so that we might know the grace and mercy given to us in eternal life. As Jesus says in the Parable of the Lost Sheep, “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?”
I’m thankful that God never gives us up on us. We may try to run away, but God keeps coming. I know that without God searching for me, I would be truly lost. But because God has found me, I know the love of God in Jesus Christ. I know that I am saved and redeemed through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I know that I have a place prepared for me in glory and a promise that I can live by.
Remember that God never gives up on you. Ever. For that we can say, “Thanks be to God!”
PICTURE OF THE WEEK
Meet Baxter:
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