Trinity Lutheran Church

Trinity Lutheran Church "Bringing hope and healing through Christ's Word and Spirit to those who are hurting; and encouraging words to all that come."

Trinity Lutheran Church was established in 1894 near Edinburg, IL., and the Church moved into Edinburg in 1936! We are Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. On our page we will post weekly verses, as well as upcoming events and activities. Come celebrate our Lord's Word at our Sunday Worship Service - 10:00 a.m., Adult Bible Class - 9:00 a.m., Sunday School - 9:00 a.m.

05/13/2026

Word of Encouragement
"I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name." (Revelation 3:8)
In seeking to know God’s will, there are two things you should never do. First, when the door is closed, get impatient and force it open. Second, create your own door. To succeed in what God has called you to do, follow the ‘open door policy’. The Bible describes it this way: ‘To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: “These things says He who is holy, He who is true, ‘He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens’: ‘I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name’”’ (vv. 7-8 NKJV).

Who does God open doors for?

1) People who ‘have a little strength’. So, your mistakes don’t disqualify you, as long as you’re willing to learn from them. And your inadequacies don’t limit God if you allow them to make you more dependent on Him.

2) People who ‘have kept My word’. The people God opens doors for are governed by this guiding principle: ‘Whatever God’s Word says about it, that’s what I’m going to think, believe, and do.’ If it’s not on God’s blueprint, don’t build it. If it’s not in God’s recipe book, don’t mix it in.

3) People who ‘have not denied My name’. Regardless of rejection or ridicule, these people speak boldly about the things they value most in life, including their relationship with Jesus. If you want God to open doors for you, live by these principles each day.
Heavenly Father, help me get, stay, and remain in Your Word and wait patiently for You to open the doors. My foot is tired and sore from trying to kick them open! In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Devotion taken from Lutheran Church Charities, used by written permission.

05/12/2026

Word of Encouragement
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." (2 Corinthians 1:3–4)
God can make you comfortable in the most uncomfortable places. He can pull you out of situations you thought you would be stuck in forever. He can give you peace, even in the midst of trauma. Before your life is over, you will live, love and experience loss. Losing some things will actually help you to appreciate the things you still have. It’s the taste of failure that makes success so sweet. How can you celebrate victory unless you’ve known defeat? You’ll live each day not knowing what tomorrow holds, but knowing that God holds all your tomorrows. They’re not in the hands of your boss, your broker, your spouse, or anybody else. Nor are they in your hands to manipulate and control. No, all your tomorrows are in God’s hands!

So, whatever you do; get to know Him, because you’ll need Him. And He’ll be there for you. He’ll be there when everybody and everything else has gone. He’ll be there for you in the dark places. His promise to you is, 'Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning' (Psalm 30:5). However long the night, morning always comes and with it His joy. Just think, no matter how dark the night, you have always lived to see the morning. Right? Somehow, His grace has protected you, provided for you, secured you, calmed and comforted you, and brought you through. Times and seasons change, but not God. He’s always 'the God of all comfort', and He’s watching over you today!
Heavenly Father, help me always remember that You are always there for me, and keep me focused on that fact. See me through all the ups and downs! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

05/11/2026

Word of Encouragement
“Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16)
Now, some of us aren’t ignoring the struggle anymore. We’re just tired.

Tired of appointments.
Tired of praying the same prayer.
Tired of carrying something that doesn’t seem to change.

The Apostle Paul speaks directly to our weariness. “Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16)

Notice what Paul does not say.

He doesn’t deny the pain, doesn’t minimize the exhaustion. He doesn’t rush past the reality.

Outwardly, we are worn down.
Inwardly, God is still at work.

Renewal doesn’t always look like relief. Sometimes it looks like endurance. Sometimes it looks like faith that keeps breathing.

Even when hope feels thin. You may feel like nothing is changing. But God is not finished.

Not with you.
Not with this story.
You’re not stuck forever.

God, you see my weariness. Renew me where I feel empty. And give me strength for today. Not just answers for tomorrow. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

05/09/2026

Word of Encouragement
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33 ESV
We give thanks to our Lord for all the blessings we receive despite our frailties and lack of strength at times. No matter what our past or present condition, He speaks His life giving word to us: 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matt. 11:28 ESV) Our Lord always welcomes us and even in the midst of our struggles, we not only come to Him, but He continually desires to come to us through His Word and Sacraments. He does not want us to reject or let other things in this world to keep us from regularly receiving these, to strength our faith and trust in Him.
He wants us to learn from Him, and be connected to Him, (yoked to Him). He offers to carry our load and our burden of sin, guilt, condemnation and shame:
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matt. 11:29 ESV) He is gentle, trying to get our attention to receive His Word, pray continually, and offer our thanks and praise to Him throughout our day.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matt. 11:30 ESV) As His gift of faith is being worked in our hearts, we begin to see: He truly is Lord.
Dear Lord, Continue to put the desire in our hearts to read, hear and study your Word every opportunity that you give us. Put that hunger to seek you and grow up in the faith into our hearts. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.

05/04/2026

Word of Encouragement
“We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)

We spend a lot of energy trying to manage our struggles. We ignore them, we power through them, we get stuck in them.

We blame someone, maybe even God.

But all of those responses have one thing in common — they make the struggle about us.

Yet the Apostle Paul says something different.

“We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)

Our weakness is not a flaw in the story. It’s the setting.

God never said the Christian life would be struggle-free. In fact, Jesus promised the opposite. But He also promised this: The power holding you is not your own.

You’re not strong enough to carry your life, and you were never meant to do so.

Your struggle is not proof that God is absent. It is often the very place where His power shows up most clearly.

This isn’t about you getting tougher. It’s about Him being faithful.

And that changes everything.

Lord, I confess how quickly I make my struggle about my strength. Remind me today that Your power is at work in my weakness. Carry what I cannot. Amen.

04/27/2026

Word of Encouragement
"Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God." (2 Corinthians 3:5)
In the Bible, when God calls someone to do something, you will notice they don’t jump up and say, ‘No problem, I’m ready.’ In story after story, they tell God why they can’t do it. Consider the following list of people.

Moses: ‘I have never been eloquent…I am slow of speech and tongue’ (Exodus 4:10).

Gideon: ‘How can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family’ (Judges 6:15).

Abraham: ‘Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old?’ (Genesis 17:17).

Jeremiah: ‘Alas, Sovereign Lord…I am too young’ (Jeremiah 1:6).

Isaiah: ‘Woe to me!…For I am a man of unclean lips’ (Isaiah 6:5).

Esther: ‘All…know that for any man or woman who approaches the king…without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death’ (Esther 4:11).

Rich young ruler: ‘He went away sad, because he had great wealth’ (Matthew 19:22).

Saul: ‘The Lord said, “See, he has hidden himself among the baggage”’ (1 Samuel 10:22). (This occurred when Samuel was proclaiming Saul as king, and the people couldn’t find him and asked the Lord where he was.)

What a list of excuses: too inarticulate, too weak, too old, too young, too sinful, too dangerous, too rich, too hesitant – yet God used every one of them to fulfill His purposes. And Paul tells us why: ‘Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God.’ Today, depend on God.
Heavenly Father, help me to dump the excuses and to depend on and follow You! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

04/21/2026

Word of Encouragement
"I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:13)
Paul shares with us the key to his amazing success in life: ‘I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency].’ There is a syndrome called ‘failure to launch’. It’s experienced by people who feel insecure about their future. They never seem to get to the place in life where they feel ready, so they miss out on opportunities.

Life says, ‘Ready or not, here I come.’ Now, life’s inevitability doesn’t mean that preparation is trivial; it’s important. But feeling ready is very overvalued. We are called to ‘walk by faith, not by sight’ (2 Corinthians 5:7).

When God brought the Israelites into the promised land, He told them to step into the Jordan River first; after, He parted the water. If they had waited for evidence first, they would be waiting on the banks still. Faith grows when God says go and you say yes. The truth is, you don’t realize what you can do until you do it. ‘Ready’ happens quicker if you are already moving. If you wait to move until you’re completely ready, you will wait until you die. Jesus doesn’t tell us, ‘Go; you’re ready.’ He tells us, ‘Go; I’ll go with you.’ You will grow as you ‘go’. You will develop as you ‘do’.

Here is the key: the thing that makes you ‘ready for anything and equal to anything’ is ‘Him Who infuses inner strength’ into you. God designed it that way because He wants you to depend on Him.

Heavenly Father, help me “go through so I grow through”. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

04/20/2026

Word of Encouragement
"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:5)
Your mind is the battlefield where victory or defeat is decided. That’s why Paul writes, ‘We lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ.’ You have a choice: either you lead your thoughts, or your thoughts will lead you. Either you take your thoughts captive, or your thoughts will take you captive. Where do thoughts come from? Everywhere. If you spend quality time with God each day in prayer and the Scriptures, your thoughts will be guided by God. If not, your thoughts will be guided by the world around you.

You don’t have to accept every thought that comes into your head. Instead, you should measure each thought against the standard of Scripture, which calls for obedience to Christ. Here is a practical example: if someone hurts your feelings, make a decision right then and there that you won’t be upset with them for days on end. That only gives Satan the opportunity to plant seeds of bitterness (see 2 Corinthians 2:11). Instead, you can reject negative thinking and refuse to let it drain you of your peace and joy. The same is true when you are tempted.

The best way to conquer a wrong thought is to replace it with a right one. As you renew your mind with God’s Word each day, your thinking will change and begin to line up with Scripture. Then, day by day, godly boundaries around your thoughts will be established and reinforced. These limits will not only keep you out of deception and defeat but help you to live a more enjoyable, godly life.
Heavenly Father, HELP me to guard my thoughts and actions – and when my thoughts are not honoring to you, help me pause and take a breath and focus on You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

04/17/2026

Word of Encouragement
Our lives are in the Lord’s hands and He offers to each of us His Hope:
11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jer. 29:11 ESV)
He is the one through His Word and Spirit makes us spiritually alive and desires to strength our faith each day, not just once or twice in our lives, but each day with a continual connection with us through His Word.
According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…(1 Peter 1:3 ESV)
12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. (Jer. 29:12-13 ESV)
Our Lord reminds us that: “God is our refuge and strength a very present help in trouble.” Psalms 46:1 ESV
Dear Lord, thank you for hearing every one of our prayers and strengthening our faith to trust you more fully each day, despite our feelings or lack of understanding. You are faithful, and no one shall pluck us out of your hands. Your mercy endures forever. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

04/16/2026

Word of Encouragement
"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight." (Ephesians 1:4)
Nothing about you surprises God. He knew what He was getting when He chose you. He ‘actually picked us out for Himself as His own’. You didn’t just randomly show up one day. And God hasn’t decided to merely tolerate you. He is not rolling His eyes when you have a problem. Instead, He will always remind you how far you have come, how well you are doing, how precious you are in His sight, and how much He loves you.

God already knew your weaknesses, every flaw you would have, and every time you would fail, yet He still said, ‘I want you.’ Ephesians 1:5 says that God ‘adopted’ you as His own. He is your father, and you are His family. Yes, He will discipline you when you need it, but He will never discard you. And with Him on your side, things are bound to work out all right in the end.

‘All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son’ (vv. 3-6).
Heavenly Father, knowing that You know everything about me sometimes scares me – but then I remember You will never leave me!! WOW!! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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205 N Campbell Street
Edinburg, IL
62531

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