Praise the Lord for preserving our place of worship

I posted the following on our church website today.  Since many of our readers have been paying attention to our situation, I decided to link to it here on Intrepid:
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Praise the Lord for preserving our place of worship

Our congregation decided on October 17, 2012, to disaffiliate from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) so that we can continue to believe and teach that sinners are saved and justified in no other way but by faith in Christ. The WELS demanded that we believe and teach that God has already saved and declared all people to be righteous in His sight, whether or not they believe and are baptized. When they condemned our confession of faith as false doctrine, we could no longer remain in fellowship with them. The Gospel is more important than any denominational affiliation, and by God's grace alone, the Gospel is still being proclaimed in our midst.

Our congregation faced an immediate challenge. Our church's mortgage was with the WELS Church Extension Fund (CEF), and we still owed $275,000 on the property. Within 48 hours of our decision to disaffiliate, in spite of the fact that we had never missed a monthly payment, the CEF sent us a letter in which they cited a clause in our loan agreement that placed us in default on our loan the moment we disaffiliated from the WELS. In the same letter, they threatened to begin foreclosure proceedings if we did not pay off our balance in full by December 1st.

We were not entirely surprised by this letter from the CEF. On the very evening on which we decided to disaffiliate from the WELS, within two hours of our decision, Pastor Jon Buchholz, president of the Arizona-California District of the WELS, who happened to be at a pastors' conference at that very moment, began announcing to some of the pastors there that the CEF would call the note on our loan—another warning not to defy the synod.

But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14-17).

The Lord provided willing and generous hearts among our members and among our brothers and sisters in Christ in other parts of the country, and we were immediately able to reduce our debt by over $25,000. At the same time, He provided a local bank that was willing to refinance our mortgage. We closed on the loan November 26th, five days ahead of our December 1st deadline.

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies (Romans 8:31-33).

This is part of a letter I sent to my members yesterday:

I would like to thank all of the families and individuals of our congregation who helped to make all of this possible—those who donated large or small amounts. Your gifts for the work of the Lord in this place are fragrant offerings to the Lord, acceptable and pleasing to Him through faith in the blood of Christ that cleanses and purifies all the works of God’s children. I give thanks to God for all of you.

Most of all, let us give thanks to God together. We took a stand on a very basic but very important doctrinal issue, trusting that the Lord would preserve us in spite of the odds that were against us. It is He who has helped and supported us for the sake of His Gospel. We could never have done it. And so we pray with the Psalmist in Psalm 115:

¹ Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness! ² Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” ³ Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases. ⁴ Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. ⁵ They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. ⁶ They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. ⁷ They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. ⁸ Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them. ⁹ O Israel, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. ¹⁰ O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. ¹¹ You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. ¹² The Lord has remembered us; he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron; ¹³ he will bless those who fear the Lord, both the small and the great. ¹⁴ May the Lord give you increase, you and your children! ¹⁵ May you be blessed by the Lord, who made heaven and earth! ¹⁶ The heavens are the Lord’s heavens, but the earth he has given to the children of man. ¹⁷ The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any who go down into silence. ¹⁸ But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the Lord!

See you Sunday,
+Pastor Rydecki

President of the United States declares National Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer

For those wishing to know how our government has viewed the purpose of Thanksgiving – a civic holiday, not a sectarian one – the text of the first Presidential Thanksgiving Day Proclamation reads as follows:

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General George Washington prays for his troops and nation at Valley Forge, outside Philadelphia, PA, in the winter of 1778.

Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and

Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness”:

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these united States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the Beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplication to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our national government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a government of wise, just and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, AD 1789

President George Washington

See the Library of Congress exhibit, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic for additional interesting (and surprisingly well-balanced) information.

Congress issues Thanksgiving Day Proclamation

For those wishing to know how our government has viewed the purpose of Thanksgiving – a civic holiday, not a sectarian one – the text of the first Congressional Thanksgiving Day Proclamation reads as follows:

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The opening prayer of the First Continental Congress, in Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, PA, 1774.


Forasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with gratitude their obligation to Him for benefits received, and to implore such farther blessings as they stand in need of; and it having pleased Him in his abundant mercy not only to continue to us the innumerable bounties of His common providence, but also smile upon us in the prosecution of a just and necessary war, for the defense and establishment of our unalienable rights and liberties; particularly in that He hath been pleased in so great a measure to prosper the means used for the support of our troops and to crown our arms with most signal success:

It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive powers of these united States, to set apart Thursday, the 18th day of December next, for solemn thanksgiving and praise; that with one heart and one voice the good people may express the grateful feelings of their hearts, and consecrate themselves to the service of their Divine Benefactor; and that together with their sincere acknowledgments and offerings, they may join the penitent confession of their manifold sins, whereby they had forfeited every favor, and their humble and earnest supplication that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance; that it may please Him graciously to afford His blessings on the governments of these states respectively, and prosper the public council of the whole; to inspire our commanders both by land and sea, and all under them, with that wisdom and fortitude which may render them fit instruments, under the providence of Almighty God, to secure for these united States the greatest of all blessings, independence and peace; that it may please Him to prosper the trade and manufactures of the people and the labor of the husbandman, that our land may yield its increase; to take schools and seminaries of education, so necessary for cultivating the principles of true liberty, virtue and piety, under His nurturing hand, and to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of that kingdom which consisteth in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

And it is further recommended, that servile labor, and such recreation as, though at other times innocent, may be unbecoming the purpose of this appointment, be omitted on so solemn an occasion.

This Proclamation was Issued by the Continental Congress during the Revolutionary War, November 1, 1777 – the day after news reached them of the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga, a triumph which turned the tide of the War. It was authored by Mr. Samuel Adams, future Governor of Massachusetts, and cousin of future President of the United States, Mr. John Adams.

See the Library of Congress exhibit, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic for additional interesting (and surprisingly well-balanced) information.

Humiliation & Prayer Sunday

[Written to my congregation this past Sunday - Pastor Spencer]

Why Observe A Day of Humiliation & Prayer?

           A day of humiliation and prayer has been observed in the Church since the middle of the 4^th Century, very soon after the Christian faith was no longer an outlaw religion.  Both Pastors and people recognized the need to remember our place under our Almighty Father and beneficent Creator as created beings; sinful and often arrogant ones at that. This need seemed most apparent during times of great danger, stress, or upheaval, either from political forces or from the earth itself.

          As nation-states came into being, it became very common for the leaders of a country to declare "a national day of humiliation and prayer" in the face of some natural disaster, at a time of invasion and war, or in the midst of great economic hardship for the people. Thus, in the Lutheran lands during the Thirty Year's War such proclamations came often. Such was also the case during the two English Civil Wars, the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the War Between the States, and World Wars I & II. Proclamations of a National Day of Humiliation and Prayer by men like George Washington, John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt have become quite famous in American history. But over the past fifty years or so, the practice of setting aside a day to focus on our great need for God and His grace and mercy, and to pray for His continued love and blessing has fallen into disuse.
          We certainly cannot say that this is the cause of the difficulties and calamities of the past few decades – Viet Nam, Watergate, terrible floods and hurricanes, AIDS, political scandal and upheaval, 9/11, economic hardship, Jihad, and the like. However, it is certain that in past centuries such problems would bring about a turn of God's people to publicly and openly recognize their sins, and their need for His help.
                   Thus, as your shepherd, I have decided that there is no better time than now to return to this ancient and worthwhile practice and set aside one of our Sundays of worship as a Day of Humiliation and Prayer. In doing this I do not desire to forget that each Sunday is in fact a celebration of Christ's Resurrection, or to detract from the joy of our sure and certain salvation by grace through faith. I hope only to give us all an opportunity to give voice to our humility as reconciled sinners before our holy God, and to our pleas for His mercy and guidance in our many trials and problems.
          Let us use this occasion to admit that we have rebelled against God's will and brought much of our troubles upon ourselves by our greed, impatience, and pride. Let us pray for His undeserved grace and continued blessings upon us, our church, and our nation. Let us then leave our worship refreshed by His love and forgiveness, and strengthened by His Word to be better and more able citizens and Christians!
  

          To God alone be the glory!

Propers, Hymns, and Readings

for Humiliation & Prayer Sunday

Possible Sundays:

- Sunday before Ascension (Rogate); very ancient practice from the early church
- a Sunday in late October/early November (harvest & winter planting); again very historic, especially in Germany
- the last Sunday of the Church Year; in place of Christ the King Sunday in
preparation for Advent 

Liturgy:

The Order of Holy Communion (TLH 1941), or Service of Word & Sacrament (CW)  

Opening Hymn:

286 or 287

Introit:

Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken, "I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me." They have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger; they are gone away backward. If You, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O LORD, who shall stand?

Collect:

Almighty and most merciful God, our heavenly Father, of whose compassion there is no end, Who is long-sufferings, gracious, and plenteous in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, we have sinned and done perversely, we have forsaken and grievously offended You; against You, You only, have we sinned and done evil in Your sight. But we ask You, O LORD, remember not against us our former iniquities; let Your tender mercies speedily come to us, for we are brought very low; help us, O God of our salvation, and purge away our sins for the glory of Your holy name and for the sake of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Old Testament Lesson:

First Samuel 7:3-14, Isaiah 1:2-20, Daniel 9:3-19, or Joel 2:11-19

Psalm:

6, 32, 38, or 130

Epistle:

Acts 3:12-26, Romans 12:1-21, First Timothy 1:12-2:8, Hebrews 10:19-31

Gradual:

Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
Let him return unto the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. Praise the LORD!

Gospel:

Matthew 3:1-17, Matthew 5:13-20 & 6:1-8, Matthew 6:16-34, or Matthew 7:1-23

Hymn of the Day:

288

Prayer of the Church:

The Litany

P: Lord, have mercy upon us.

C: Lord, have mercy upon us.
P: Christ, have mercy upon us.
C: Christ, have mercy upon us.
P: Lord, have mercy upon us.
C: Lord, have mercy upon us.
P: O Christ, hear us.
C: O Christ, hear us.
P: O God, the Father in heaven:
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: O God, the Son, Redeemer of the world:
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: O God, the Holy Ghost:
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: O Holy Trinity, One God:
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: Be gracious unto us.
C: Spare us, good LORD.
P: Be gracious unto us.
C: Help us, good LORD.
P: From all sin; from all error; from all evil:
C: Good LORD, deliver us.
P: From the crafts and assaults of the devil;
From sudden and evil death;
From pestilence and famine;
From war and bloodshed;
From sedition and rebellion;
From lightening and tempest;
From all calamity by fire and water;
And from everlasting death:
C: Good LORD, deliver us.
P: By the mystery of Your holy Incarnation(+);
By Your holy birth;
By Your Baptism, Fasting, and Temptation;
By Your Agony and bloody Sweat;
By Your Cross and Passion (+);
By Your precious Death and Burial;
By Your glorious Resurrection and Ascension;
And by the coming of the Holy Ghost, the Comforter:
C: Help us, good Lord.
P: In all times of our tribulation;
In all times of our prosperity;
In the hour of our death;
And on the Day of Judgment:
C: Help us, good Lord.
P: We poor sinners do beseech You;
C: To hear us, good LORD.
P: To rule and govern Your Holy Christian Church;
To preserve all pastors and ministers of Your Church in the true knowledge and understanding of Your Word, and in holiness of life;
To put an end to all divisions and causes of offence;
To bring into the way of truth all such as have erred, and are deceived;
To beat down Satan under our feet;
To send faithful laborers in your harvest;
To accompany your Word with Your Spirit and grace;
To raise up them that fall, and to strengthen such as do stand;
And to comfort and help the weak-hearted and the distresses:
C: We ask You to hear us, good LORD.
P: To give to all nations peace and concord;
To preserve our country from discord and contention;
To direct and defend our President, and all others in authority;
To bless and keep our magistrates, and all our people:
C: We beseech You to hear us, good LORD.
P: To behold and rescue all who are in danger, necessity and tribulation;
To protect all who travel by land, air, or water.
To preserve all women in the perils of childbirth;
To strengthen and keep all sick persons and young children;
To set free all who are innocently imprisoned.
To defend and provide for all fatherless children and widows;
And to have mercy upon all people:
C: We beseech you to hear us, good LORD.
P: To forgive our enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, and to turn their hearts;
To give and preserve to our use the fruits of the earth;
And graciously to hear our prayers:
C: We beseech You to hear us, good LORD.
 P: O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God;
C: We beseech You to hear us.
P: O Lamb of God, that takes away the sin of the world;
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of world;
C: Have mercy upon us.
P: O Lamb of God, that takes away the sin of the world;
C: Grant us Your peace!
P: Almighty God, our heavenly Father, Who desires not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should turn from his evil ways and live: We beseech You graciously to turn from us those punishments which we by our sins have deserved, and to grace us grace hereafter to serve You in holiness and pureness of living; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord.
C: Amen.

Communion Distribution Hymn:

310

Closing Hymn:

408, 409, 412, or 413