April 28, 2025
ANNOUNCEMENTS
FREE FOOD, FREE STUFF, FOR ALL Saturday, May 3, 8 am till 10 am. Free breakfast and personal care item distribution for those in need. All are welcome. We are looking for help with this event. See the sign-up in the Narthex or contact the office if you would like to help.
Men’s Band Worship, Sunday, May 4th, 9 am.
Smelt Feed, Sunday, May 4th, 10 am till 11:30 am. Smelt, Meatballs, Tater Tots, Cole Slaw, Garlic Bread, Chips, Baked Beans, Dessert. Free-will offering taken to benefit Trinity Missions. Served by the Trinity Men. Help needed! Sign-up in the Narthex or just come! Help is very much appreciated!
Voices of Praise every Wednesday night at 7 pm! Come join us for a time of song. A great time to sing with others and have some fun!
We are collecting Cereal for the WestCAP food pantry! Bring your boxes and place them by the altar in the Narthex. Please make sure the cereal is not expired.
SAVERS FUN DRIVE-Bring your household items and clothes to Trinity in May. Every Saturday in May, from 9 am till Noon. We are collecting items as a fundraiser for the Women of Trinity. All items should be clean and in good condition. Place clothes and shoes in white kitchen trash bags and all other items in boxes. Thank you for supporting the Women of Trinity!
Lagers with the Lord Monday, May 19th, 6 pm at Buckshot’s.
Last week was our last week of Sunday School. Thank you to everyone who helped with Sunday School this year!
MUSINGS FROM PASTOR BRAD
Look, I have to stand in front of people all the time and do all sorts of things, and sometimes I get a little nervous. I think a little nervousness is good no matter what. Performing with the Men’s Band on Saturday in front of the entire Synod, with all my colleagues silently judging me? Somewhat nervous, but not as nervous as the times I have had to speak in front of them (I did have to pray in front of them and that was nothing). I get nervous before big crowds of Easter and Christmas or huge funerals, just wanting to do well and feeling the pressure of saying the right words that people need, but that nervous level maybe gets to about a 75 out of a 100. High, but not crippling. But on Saturday night, I was at a nervous level of 500 out of 100. Why? I was about to do something I had never done before: I was going to DJ prom.
Now look. Let’s be real. I knew I was being asked for two reasons. The first: I was cheap. The kids knew I would do it for free (they did give me a little something). I come every year and announce and never ask for a thing. And they know I’m a sucker who has a hard time saying no to them. So that was the first reason.
And the second? This one was even expressly said to me and I agreed. They knew that if they asked me to play something, I would play it. For prom the kids make a play list and submit it for approval from the school and then that approved play list is given to me. So if I played something and they didn’t want it, they knew I would pass it by. If they wanted something to be played at a certain time, I would play it, unlike their DJ’s in the past who would often fight them on stuff. What do I care? I want the kids to have fun so I’ll play stuff when they want. So I was under no illusion that I was asked because of my great skills at picking songs at football or basketball games. Heck, they give me so much grief for what I play in the van on the mission trips.
But here is the thing my friends. I used to do this all the time. I played the tunes at tons of parties in college and seminary, hooking up two five disc changers and rocking it out for multiple hours. And look, to be honest, I was pretty good. I knew how to build the party, when to make it jump, how to bring it down, and then blow the roof off. But that was in the MID 1990’S. The last time I truly did it was probably Halloween 1997, senior year of Seminary. The last time I put together a playlist that was meant to be used for anything close to a prom was for Amy and I’s wedding, which we did the music ourselves, but I wasn’t behind the controls for that.
But it is 2025. Half the playlist I didn’t even KNOW. Sure I listened to it twice, but it is not like a lot of the music is stuff I listen to daily. I try to get a little current, but I’m a 48 year old, soon to be 49 year old man. I’m not hip. I’m not with it. Just saying those words shows that. And I’ve never done a prom, which is a whole different animal. I was nervous as all get out. I did NOT want to ruin this for the kids and I was trusting that if I made wrong choices, the kids would tell me, and we would move on.
At this point you are now wondering how it went. And, to be honest, it went really well. Really well. One of the great feelings in life is when you pick a song and the whole room goes nuts. And that happened. Multiple times. Even better, every time my song guru, the one I trusted to tell me when I needed to play something or when I might need to skip something, came over to tell me they wanted something next, I had that exact thing cued up next (thanks Zoey, you rule). It was a heck of a lot of fun and I think the kids had a lot of fun too. And that was the greatest joy. Watching them have a good time.
In the end, that is what it is always about. It is what I love about announcing and playing music at games. It is why I say yes to these things. Watching the kids, or the crowd, have a great time just brings me a lot of joy. It is why I started playing music at parties back in college for my friends. Getting them hyped, helping them have fun, was just as much fun for me as being out on the dance floor with them (don’t worry, I stayed behind my table where I belonged). I may never get the opportunity to do this again, and I might have been freaking out about it before it began, but I’m glad I took a risk and said yes. I hope the kids had fun, it seemed they did. And if nothing else, I got to pretend I was in my early 20’s again, playing tunes and making a room bounce. And that was pretty fun.
May God bless you today and always.