Pastor Otterstatter • January 28, 2024

A Time to Prioritize

In his "City of God", St. Augustine talks about rightly ordered love. Augustine calls God the "highest good." He makes the point that if we love anything or anyone more than God, even good gifts, those things become evil because we can not properly show love for others if we do not properly love God first. That is such a challenge! Especially when you consider the list of relationships, responsibilities, & blessings that God places into our lives, like spouse, children, friends, people in need, work, hobbies, recreation, etc.


We have another name for rightly ordering love. We call it prioritizing. Prioritizing is an important skill to have personally & as a congregation. Today we'll see that it's God's love for us in Christ-the love that led him to leave his heavenly home to come and save us sinners-that helps us rightly order our love. Remembering that we pray with St. Augustine. "Set love in order in me, Lord."

Grace Is Amazing

By Pastor Quinn • August 23, 2026
Give a single bag of M&Ms to siblings in middle school and tell them to share. You will witness counting done with accounting-like precision. Each child will get an equal amount of candy because that is fair. That’s what’s expected! Human beings have an incredibly strong sense of fairness.  That is why it can be so amazing when we see how God unexpectedly dispenses blessing and grace. The prophet Jonah was perplexed when he saw God’s mercy on a nation that was an enemy to Jonah’s people. Like Jonah, we need to stop expecting God to be fair. He does not give us what we deserve. Instead, in his grace, he shows us mercy. That’s amazing!

Cross Comes Before Crown

By Pastor Quinn • August 16, 2026
Some churches teach that if a person follows God, God responds by granting prosperity and peace, as would only be expected. Today we see how that is nonsense. The Bible explains that if we are part of the Church of God, we will have bear crosses. Believers suffer in this world, sometimes just because they are believers.  Why bother? We carry our crosses in gratitude for Jesus carrying his cross, one too heavy for us because it was weighted down with our sin. We carry our crosses because we know that in those moments of struggle, we are forced to turn to Christ and rely on his strength. This is the unexpected path, the one Jesus himself walked: the cross comes before the crown.

Christians Trust God to Provide

By Pastor Otterstatter • July 26, 2026
The hardest times to trust God are the times we need him most. It’s easier to trust God when your job is going great, your health is fine, your relationships are fine, and your family is good. It’s easier to trust God when the sun is shining, but what happens when your life is suddenly overshadowed by dark days? When tragedy strikes, we may wonder if God continues to care for us. At those times, Christians do not despair like those who have no hope. Instead, Christians focus on certain foundational facts. We are chosen and adopted as God’s dear children. God provides us innumerable spiritual blessings and promises us an eternity of peace and joy. If we recognize those spiritual blessings, how can we doubt that God will give us everything we truly need at the right time? Christians trust God to provide.
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