How thoughtful! Penney's gave us a sign, so we could remember which year it was.

Some people want this year to be over, but I see all kinds of things developing which are the results of many years of labor. 

In higher education, colleges are reducing tuition for the first time. Both of my universities have worked hard for their position in online education, and they are doing well. It helps to be a pioneer and laughed at for years, until everyone wants to know how it is done.

Some well known and yet hidden crimes are coming out into the open. Swalwell and his Chinese spy fling is just a hint of what is coming. A celebrity chef witnessed a high profile murder and paid the price. That may already be a significant arrest. I only partially believe what I read.

The major news has to come out before people realize that "evil" is just 1% or less of what they imagined. Here are some of the child traffickers - known but not known:

1. Ghislaine Maxwell, the brains behind Epstein, is in prison and cooperating.
2. The French model "agent" has been arrested.
3. The billionaire Nygaard - with his own island near Epstein's, Biden's, and Branson's - is under arrest.
4. Another billionaire trafficker is well known but not yet arrested.

As we all know, these crimes must have been carried out in the midst of powerful people who made sure no one was indicted for anything. That time is over. Francis, the Jesuit Pope, has sworn a lifelong oath of obedience to the Jesuit General. 

The only way to photograph us in the snow is to use Photofunia.

Why Not Let the Church Doctor - Kent Hunter - Fix the LCMS

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Rev. Kent R. Hunter and Tracee Swank speak on the topic of civility at the Heart Issues are Hard Issues Conference. Kent Hunter is an LCMS pastor who served churches in Michigan, Indiana, and South Australia. He is the author of 32 books including Who Broke My Church? (2017) and Restoring Civility (2020). Kent has consulted over 1,600 congregations in 78 denominational, non-denominational, and independent churches in the U.S. and Canada. Kent is the founder of Church Doctor Ministries. He is a graduate of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. He received his Ph.D. in Theology from ELCA's Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and a Doctor of Ministry degree in Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA.

Rick Strickert (Carlvehse) Senior Member Username: Carlvehse Post Number: 9682 Registered: 10-2003

Posted on Monday, December 21, 2020 - 5:32 pm:       The 2020 version of the LCMS "State of the Synod" is available online. The Report contains an editorial from the Rev. Dr. [honorary only] Matthew C. Harrison, six interviews of various Synod officers, along with their "Looking Forward" reports and the Fiscal Year 2020 Financial Report. The only problem is that the "State of the Synod" report lacked annual statistical information about the reported number of clergy, congregations, and congregational members in the Missouri Synod, the average weekly worship attendence numbers, the number of baptisms and confirmations, and other numerical information (except for the Synod's finance numbers).

Luther Quotation - On Faith

8. Do you ask: “What then am I to do? How shall I make myself good and acceptable in person to begin with? how secure that justification? The Gospel replies: “Hear Christ and believe in him, utterly despairing of yourself and resting assured you will be changed some Cain to an Abel and then present your offerings.” Just as faith is proclaimed without merit or work on your part, it is also bestowed regardless of your works, without any of your merits. It is given of pure grace. Note, faith justifies the individual; faith is justification. Because of faith God remits all sins, and forgives the old Adam and the Cain in our nature, for the sake of Christ his beloved Son, whose name faith represents. More, he bestows his Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit changes the individual into a new creature, one with different reason and different will, and inclined to the good. Such a one, wherever he is, performs wholly good works, and all his works are good; as taught in the preceding epistle lesson.

Luther's Epistle Sermon for the Sunday after Christmas

I was reminded of Hebrews 11:1 -

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."