Christ came at the perfect time, meaning that His influence, His power, His transformation was done perfectly for us! The time and world which Christ came in gave way to His perfect death, His perfect resurrection, and His perfect gift of Righteousness for you and me! Reading that entire verse, we realize too, that we are the ungodly, which is spoken about! Us ungodly? That is right, you and I are ungodly in our nature, for we are sinners, we are against God at birth (which is why we need to be baptized immediately)! It is our nature that makes us weak (Governor Jesse Ventura had it right) and ungodly!

Christ came when He did perfectly, to give us His power (over sin, death and the devil), to give us His victory (over sin, death and the devil), and to give us His life (eternally). Let us become God centered see His perfect work daily in our lives, and seeing His transformation each and every day! God Bless your day and week!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

I have begun to look at the year with the lens of faith. One of the things about the church year, is that the season after Pentecost (that is the season we are now in) is sooooo long! Actually it is 24 weeks long! Holy cow, that is just shy of 1/2 the year. The season after Pentecost is to be a time when the church grows. This season is the time when we individually grow in our relationship with the Lord, when we collectively grow by sharing and showing God’s love, and when we also reflect on our lives and the season of our life in this world as we prepare for the next.

This summer, I will enjoy each day of sunshine seeing that the sun provides warmth, growth, and joy. I will also begin to anticipate winter as a time when I will be reminded that our world has pain, death and cold, but that isn’t all we have in Michigan, there will be a resurrected summer to come! Spring (Easter), reminds me that the cold will thaw, the snow will go, and we will rejoice again!

All these seasons that we live in are small pictures of the work and love of Christ in our midst. I am encouraged to see each season with the lens of faith, and so this fourth of July season, let us celebrate, not only our freedom in our county, but in Christ! And may we continue to give off great fireworks in the world publicly witnessing His love! I look forward now to the winter to come, because that means again, we will have a summer again soon!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

This weekend at Immanuel or wherever you celebrate the freedom of our country, see the freedom we have in Christ too, over sin, death and the devil, and as you thank God for His love, thank also, those brave, men and women for their love and heroism too!

God Bless your freedom and celebration this weekend!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

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A rather obscure but important study conducted by the Swiss government in 1994 and published in 2000 revealed some astonishing facts with regard to the generational transmission of faith and religious values. In short the study reveals that "It is the religious practice of the father of the family that, above all, determines the future attendance at or absence from church of the children."

The study reported:

"If both father and mother attend regularly, 33 percent of their children will end up as regular churchgoers, and 41 percent will end up attending irregularly. Only a quarter of their children will end up not practicing at all.

If the father is irregular and mother regular, only 3 percent of the children will subsequently become regulars themselves, while a further 59 percent will become irregulars. Thirty-eight percent will be lost.

If the father is non-practicing and mother regular, only 2 percent of children will become regular worshippers, and 37 percent will attend irregularly. Over 60 percent of their children will be lost completely to the church!"

Now, let’s look at the study from the flip side. Extraordinarily, the percentage of children becoming regular goes up from 33 percent to 38 percent with the irregular mother and to 44 percent with the non-practicing, as if loyalty to father’s commitment grows in proportion to mother’s laxity or indifference to religion. In short, if a father does not go to church, no matter how faithful his wife’s devotions, only one child in 50 will become a regular worshipper. If a father does go regularly, regardless of the practice of the mother, between two-thirds and three-quarters of their children will become churchgoers (regular and irregular).

So, dads, you really do make a difference. We cannot as Father’s let the leadership of faith become matriarchal. It must be led by the Spiritual head of the household. Father’s may you fight the good, fight, which means that we need to be active and involved in the faith and the leadership of faith in our community, in our families. Let us dad’s follow the example of our Father, the Father of love, care, and compassion. The Father of humanity!

This blog was adapted in part from S. Michael Craven

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

These brave men and women laid down their lives for us…but in the midst of our remembrance of the heroism of our military, let us not forget about the one who laid down His life for us His enemies (all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God). Jesus Christ laid down His life so that we would have ever lasting life. He died so we would live, and live in abundance. This weekend as you travel, or bbq, or gather with friends, may you also travel with Jesus, dine at His table, and gather with His family (other Christians), and may we share how thankful we are for Him and His life given for you and me.

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

Pastor Greg ‘s Blog

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Yet, God calls us to be hospitable! We share and show the love of God by loving strangers, loving others! How can you show and share the love of Christ, in our world and make an eternal difference? You can do plenty, when our eyes are open and we see the need around us. We can make a real difference when we make hospitality a priority in our lives.

Laurie’s grandmother lives down near St. John’s Hospital. Whenever I drive down there for a family gathering, or when I drive to make a hospital visit, I bring with me a sandwich, or put together a small dinner bag from our evening together, and go to the local corner where I know someone who is hungry is always standing. I hospitably give them food, and know that it makes a great difference.

Out Live Your Life today, open your eyes, and your heart, making a difference as you see the need in our community and as you share His love, by using the abundance He has given to you to provide for someone who has little.

"Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of min, you did for me." Matthew 25:40

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

In the midst of great success and celebration, we look and say look at me, what I have done, it is easy to stand tall with chest puffed, and hearts filled with pride and joy! We can look around easily with eyes shut because of a large smile and forget to see God as the one who really set us up to succeed!

This week, be reminded who holds you! It is God who provides you with all success, and guides you through all trials and tribulations! It is Christ, who stands at our side at all times! This week, look at Stephen, who stands up for Jesus, because He knows that Jesus is always standing up for him! Remember who holds you this week, as you live each day! Look back and see God at work, look forward reminded of His faithfulness as you respond in great faithfulness!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

Think this week about all the opportunities you have to pray. Opportunities to pray before you begin your day, before you work out, before you have breakfast, before you get into the car and on the road, before you walk to your desk, before you turn on your computer, the list can go on and on (maybe you think it already did). This week pray, pray first, and pray most! Click here to see some prayers before events, and also to add some if you’d like!

God Bless your prayers!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

Pastor Greg ‘s Blog

Confidentiality Note: This message is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed. It may contain confidential and/or privileged material. Any review, transmission, dissemination or other use, or taking of any action in reliance upon this message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited and may be unlawful. If you received this message in error, please contact the sender and delete it from your computer.

Do you have your eyes open for opportunities to Let God unshell you and serve others? Are you being observant to those whom He is placing in your midst who are in need of simple help? Do you see a person who is out of money and can’t afford what they have, do you see a person who needs help with their groceries, do you see someone who simply needs a kind "neighbor" to give them a quick hand.

God always has His eye out for us, and He is always placing us in situations where if we are open to the opportunities given by Him we can really make an eternal difference in the lives of others. This week, at Immanuel, we will begin to discover how God can use us to make a difference! We will begin to see opportunities to Out Live Your Life. You can blog about how God used you to make a difference, to pay it forward at http://immserve.wordpress.com/seeing-opportunities-to-serve/ where you can post how you are being used by God, and where you can also see how God is using others to make a difference.

God Bless your sharing His love in His world!

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran

This weekend churches all across the world will be celebrating Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. He comes to Jerusalem off the heals of raising Lazarus from the dead, and the crowds are excited for His Kingship to begin. They expect and await for Jesus to overthrow the Romans, to establish His power and might, and the kingdom of David restored! What a grand expectation (so they think), but soon they will be disappointed! Soon, they will realize that He is not going to overthrow the romans. The crowd of cheers will turn to a crowd of jeers!

What do you expect from Jesus, and when He doesn’t fit into your expectation, do your cheers for Jesus turn to jeers? Let us see the real purpose of Jesus, which is to do the best for the people. To save them from their sins, for everlasting life! Look around your life, see the work of Jesus in your life, and see how He takes our beautiful mess and makes it for the best!

If you would like to join the world community about blogging how God has done more than the expected, join in the community at beautifulmess.me

This is from King of Kings Lutheran in Omaha NE. What a great resource they have provided.

Blessings on God’s Work in your life, as you reflect on His love this Holy Week

"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." -Galatians 1:10

Serving Christ Together,

Immanuel Lutheran