St. Paul Lutheran Church

06/24/2026

A short devotion: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid, you are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:29-31)

Sometimes I am amazed at how intimately Jesus and the Father know you and me. When Jesus claims the title of the Good Shepherd, Jesus declares, “I know my sheep and my sheep know me.” The shepherds in the Middle East shepherd differently than we do in the United States. When someone herds sheep or cattle forward, they are usually in the back urging them where they want them to go, making sure no sheep or cattle get left behind. But in the Middle East the Shepherds walk in front of the sheep calling them. The shepherds call them from the valley all the way to the mountain pastures. The shepherd calls them to a mountain stream to drink cool fresh water. As Jesus claims the title of the Good Shepherd, Jesus declares he knows you. Jesus says he knows you as he knows the Father. Jesus said, “The Father and I are one.” Jesus and the Father know each other so intimately that they are one. Jesus says he knows us with the same intimacy. Before Jesus sends out his disciples on a mission trip, Jesus says they are not to be afraid. The Heavenly Father is watching over them. The Father cares about them so much, that even the hairs of their head are numbered. Imagine that, Jesus and the Father know and care about us so much that he cares about something as detailed as the hairs on our head.

06/23/2026

The churches of Asia send greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, greet you warmly in the Lord. All the brothers and sisters send greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (1 Corinthians 16:19-20)

At the end of Paul’s letters and sometimes in the beginning, Paul sends greetings to people in that church. Often several names are listed. Above, we just have Aquila and Prisca named, but the greetings from their house church are also sent. Every once in awhile when I read the names of people Paul is writing too, I wonder what are their stories? Someday, when Jesus has brought in the fullness of the kingdom and all the holy Saints are living together before God’s throne, I think I would like to meet them and hear their story. They are after all, a brother or sister in Christ. We are all a part of this one family in Christ. When I was a seminary student at the Lutheran House of Study in Washington D. C., two of my friends and I were asked to help in assisting at a worship service honoring Martin Luther’s 500th birthday at the National Cathedral. One of the tasks I was able to help with was bringing supplies of wavers to fill baskets that the Communion Assistant was distributing to people. There were about two thousand people present. As I stood nearby, I heard over and over again, “the Body of Christ broken for you.” given to people of different ages, different nationalities. It was a brief glimpse at how big, and how diverse, and how wonderful the Body of Christ is, which also includes you my brothers and sisters in Christ.

06/22/2026

Sunday, June 21, 2026
Pastor Randy Baldwin

06/21/2026

A short devotion: “For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against mother-in-law, and ones’ foes will be members of one’s own household.” (Matthew 10:34-36)

We usually think of Jesus as a the one who brings God’s peace, the peace which surpasses all human understanding. But in this passage, we hear a harsh word from Jesus as he declares he did not come to bring peace, but division. This teaching from Jesus follows a number of Jesus’ healings; healing a paralyzed man, healing a woman suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years as she touched Jesus’ robe, raised Jairus’ little daughter back to life, and cast out a demon of a mute man leaving him to speak clearly and freely. The people marvel at all these miracles, but the Pharisees declare Jesus is casting out demons by the authority of Satan. Shortly after this, Jesus is preparing his disciples to go out on a mission. Jesus gives them authority over demons, the power to heal and to proclaim the kingdom of God is near. Then Jesus warns them that not all will receive their message, considering they call Jesus Satan. Jesus’ teachings have a new authority. Jesus’ healings contradict the tradition that defined these people outside a relationship with God. The Pharisees relied on the tradition of the Laws of Moses to define their relationship with God. They felt they controlled their relationship with God as they kept the traditions. But Jesus brings us into God’s kingdom by his grace, his mercy, and his righteousness. Those who like control fight against falling into Jesus’ hands gifting us with grace, love, forgiveness, peace and joy.

06/20/2026

A short devotion: “How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1)

It is summer. It is a season of vacations, family gatherings, youth baseball and softball, and community celebrations. When families get together to have a picnic or a barbecue, wonderful memories are made as family members catch up each others’ lives, maybe play some cards or corn hole competitions or have epic water fights. Extended family reunions are planned and enjoyed as cousins get to see cousins again, which once upon a time happened on a regular basis. But now everyone has full calendars and a family reunion is one to put on the calendar and attend. We all look forward to seeing some cousins and aunts and uncles more than others, but you know what they say, “You can choose your friends, but not your family.” So we go to the reunions and for the most part have a good time, especially when everybody gets along. It is also the season for small towns to celebrate their communities. This weekend in my town, we have Maynard Days. In Lake Mills, Iowa it is July Jubilee, in Forest City, Iowa it is Pucker Brush Days, I think in Blissfield, Michigan it is River Raisin Festival, but my memory isn’t a hundred percent on that one. Wherever we live in small towns, we gather to celebrate our heritage and who we are. We have parades where children get an ice cream bucket of candy. We have barbecue meals and ice cream to share together. We have dances. The Lord blesses us with communities to enrich our lives with good neighbors, creating memories of laughter, joy and peace of living with good neighbors.

06/19/2026

Thursday's short devotion: “Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.” (1 Corinthians 9:24-25)

Recently there have been lots of sports happening all around us. The NBA championship was recently one by the New York Knicks. It was a good series with exhibitions of some wonderful athleticism, baskets made from a distance, blocked shots, last second shots. The WNBA have games televised where you can watch some fantastic female athletes perform at their sport. There are golf tournaments during the weekends. There are professional baseball games to watch, high school baseball and softball games, little league baseball games to watch. Plus, right now the world soccer cup games are being played. All these athletes have to exercise to keep their body in good shape and practice and practice their sport so when it comes time to compete, they are at the top of their game. Apostle Paul compares athletes exercising to compete and exercising our spiritual health. Paul points out that we are to exercise our spiritual health for the imperishable wreath, of Jesus bringing us to the throne of God as a child of God. Not that we can earn our way, pray our way into God’s kingdom or to become a child of God. But rather, now that you are a child of God, we are called to pray, to hear the word of God, to worship together, so we can be bearers of God’s love to one another.

06/19/2026

Wednesday's short devotion: “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.” (Psalm 100:1)

Yesterday when I returned to the church from my Text study, the women of the church were having a coffee and conversation event. Usually a restaurant in the area is chosen and a speaker in that community makes a presentation and then there is time for coffee and conversation. Yesterday, the location was in the church as two women who are worship leaders for our neighboring church. One lady shared a history of a hymn and then we sang a verse from the hymn. All had fun singing the familiar hymns and learning the story behind the hymn and the story of the composer. The session ended by speaking together Psalm 100 and the presenter said, it is good to come into the presence of the Lord singing for music opens our hearts to hear the word and to worship the Lord. How true it is. Singing hymns together is an opportunity the Holy Spirit takes to blow through our communion of saints, lifting up our hearts, filling our hearts with peace and love. When we sing “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”, we sing with gusto as we sing the Kingdom’s ours forever.” When we sing “It is well with my soul”, it is well. When we sing “What a Friend we have in Jesus", we feel the friendly grasp of Jesus’ hand in ours and we know he is our friend who stands by us. We are invited to come into the Lord’s presence with singing, because we belong and our hearts long to sing God’s praises

06/17/2026

Sunday, June 14, 2026
Pastor David Coffin
Supply Pastor

06/17/2026

06/16/2026

A short devotion: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

Summertime is usually time for family vacations and getting away on the weekends for camping or attending baseball or softball games, cheering on your student athletes, or golfing or disc golf or biking or any other of your favorite activities to get away and relax from the demands of the rest of the week. For me, I like a vacation sometime in the month of June. Usually, I don’t have much time off since Christmas and even though I love what I do, I can get a little tired. A vacation usually helps me catch up with my energy and I am ready to go again when I get back. This vacation was a lot like other vacations. I went north of the Twin Cities to visit my mom and brother and sister-in-law. Then we traveled to Milwaukee area to visit my wife’s side of the family and our friends. It was a good time. One of the highlights was watching an epic family water fight on a hot summer day. Getting away and a change of routine can bring rest. Jesus offers us a different kind of rest. Instead of a change of scenery and a break from the routine, Jesus offers us a deep rest for our souls. We can rest in his arms, feeling his unconditional love for us. We can rest in his arms, feeling his peace fill our spirits as we hand over all our anxieties and stress. We can rest in his forgiveness knowing we are reconciled to Jesus and the Father. Jesus gives us true rest.