| Hello People of St Paul, First I apologize that this week’s midweek message is coming to you now instead of yesterday. I had it all ready to go but forgot to hit send! Then this evening, Google flagged my midweek messages and so they only reached a few of you, so I am trying Mail Chimp out, let me know what you think! Hope all of you enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather today! As we prepare for colder weather it might just the right time to sit down and meditate on some scripture just like Martin Luther. Especially, with Reformation Sunday this coming Sunday, October 25. So don’t forget to wear your red this coming Sunday! (even if it’s just at home) |
 A Few Quick Announcements this weekADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL Class will begin meeting on November 1st, 9:00 – 9:45 AM, in the upstairs Multi Purpose Room. Church safety guidelines will be followed so Mask and Social Distancing will be required. Come Join Us! All Are Welcome!! FAITH MISSIONWe will be collecting NEW only socks and underwear for children, men and women at Faith Mission and/or Choices. It MUST BE NEW items only. We will also accept CLEAN, gently used coats (not sweaters or sweatshirts). There will be a collection box at the top of the stairs in the narthex. |
 A Midweek Message for October 21, 2020“For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked shall be destroyed. “ -Psalm 1:6 Just weeks away from a presidential election, in the middle of a pandemic, with winter fast approaching, I know all of us are feeling some anxiety right now, and that all of these things together are a bit more frightening than Halloween next week. Of course anxiety is nothing new for Christians. Even Martin Luther struggled with anxiety, as Ryan Griffith, who is a profession at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote: “In the summer of 1527, plague struck Wittenberg. Luther was one of its first victims. Sickness spread with such speed that Elector John of Saxony closed the university in Wittenberg and ordered Luther and his family to leave the city. Luther refused, insisting on the church’s responsibility to care for the sick and dying…. Spiritual depression and anxiety were familiar nemeses: Luther’s earliest battles with doubt and temptation in the monastery had nearly driven him mad. His discovery of justification by faith alone saved his life.”In times of despair Martin Luther always turned to scripture and would spend hours pouring over it. Passages like, Colossians 2:13-15 in which it is clear that we are forgiven of our trespasses and that God will disarm rulers and authorities and triumph over them, and passages like Psalm 1. After pouring over scripture passages like Colossians 2 and Psalm 1 during the plague of 1527 Martin Luther wrote one of the most beloved hymns of the Reformation, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” A Hymn that with our current anxieties, many can relate to today. A Mighty Fortress ends stating: “for God fights by our side with weapons of the Spirit.Were they to take our house, goods, honor, child, or spouse,though life be wrenched away, they cannot win the day.The kingdom’s ours forever!” So even though we may not be able to sing together right now, I encourage you to sign a little bit on your own this week. Maybe find some time to just hum a few verses of “A Mighty Fortress,” or your other favorite hymn or song. Singing might not be able to solve what is causing our anxiety right now, but it might very well be able to calm it and give us just a little ounce of HOPE. Blessings and Peace, Rev. Aaron Baughman |