Tag: COVID-19

May 2020 Pastor’s Update

Posted on by Rev. Peters

“The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” —Psalm 23:1

Dear Friends at St. Thomas,

This month I want to write to you to let you know about all the things that have been going through my mind lately with regard to St. Thomas and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

First, and foremost, I want you all to know that you are in my prayers constantly. As the pandemic continues, not a day goes by when I don’t think about St. Thomas and how best to serve God’s people there. Unfortunately, the answer to this question is not easy, and in this ever-changing situation I often find myself paralyzed by indecision. With the most recent updates from both the Ohio and the Indiana governors, the path forward does seem a bit more clear, at least in the short-term.

Ohio and Indiana are beginning to open up again, but very slowly. It will still be some time before things are anywhere close to what we’ve always known as normal. Although things will be opening a little at a time, people who are considered “at risk” are still going to be encouraged to stay safe at home as much as possible. Unfortunately, this group includes the large majority of our members at St. Thomas. This is something Pastor Sims mentions in his sermon for the first Sunday in May. Indiana says that houses of worship can begin to hold in-person services again starting on May 8th, but those who are “at risk” are encouraged to continue to stay home.

Given the current state of affairs, and in light of the most recent guidelines, it just doesn’t seem like a good idea for us to come together face-to-face again for another few weeks at least.

So what’s the current plan?

Right now, I plan to continue to broadcast a service every Sunday, live at 9:00am. You can watch live if you like by visiting the St. Thomas Facebook page. The web address is facebook.com/StThomasLCMS. If you don’t have a Facebook account, you can still watch live without signing up. You can also watch the service at any time after it is over by visiting the same page. If you don’t want to watch at 9:00am, you can watch it whenever you like.

After the service is over, I will also keep posting the video to the new St. Thomas website so that you can find it there as well. The web address is StThomasLCMS.com. Look for the “Posts” link to see the embedded videos and other content.

Speaking of that other content, I also plan to write short posts as often as possible which will be posted on the website. My hope is that these can help you to continue to receive God’s Word and stay connected to St. Thomas throughout the week.

When it finally seems safe to start holding services in person again, I hope you will all be ready to come back to church and hear God’s word and receive the body and blood of Christ which we need now, it seems, more than ever. And I’ll be sure to let you all know when that happens. Until then, pray for each other, and stay safe.

I think this is also a good time to share with you some good news, although you have probably already heard it by now: During the combined Vicarage and Call service, it was announced that Daniel Gray, our fieldworker, will be able to continue as our Vicar for the next year. We thank God for this wonderful blessing. Daniel will continue to bless St. Thomas with his service, and he will be blessed by us with this opportunity to gain valuable experience in his pastoral formation. This is certainly reason to rejoice in this time.

I also want to encourage you to contact me for any prayer requests or other needs, or if you have any feedback on what we’re doing. Since I’m at the seminary library during the week still, evenings are usually best, but I’m always happy to talk.

As I said, you are all in my prayers constantly. I pray that the Lord Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd will bless you and keep you in His mercy and grace until we come together again.

God’s peace be with you,

Pastor Peters

April 2020 Pastor’s Update

Posted on by Rev. Peters

Just a few weeks ago, we never would have imagined that things would turn out the way they have today. As a pastor, I never would have expected to suddenly cancel church services for two weeks as the result of a virus. I certainly did not expect to have to make the heartbreaking decision to cancel church for the entire month of April—for Holy Week and Easter too! These are certainly strange times that the new corona virus has brought upon us. No one alive today can remember times like these. Strange times, indeed!

This week I have been reflecting on the fact that the first Sunday in April is Palm Sunday, the day we remember Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. If we were in church on Sunday, we would read John 12:12–19 together, and we would hear about the crowds who went out to meet Jesus waving palm branches and shouting out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” It’s a fitting text for these strange times.

The word the people cry out is, “Hosanna!” We sing this word every communion Sunday when we sing the Sanctus right before the Lord’s Supper. Since we hear and sing this word so frequently, it’s easy for us to forget that “Hosanna” is actually a Hebrew word with a very specific meaning. The word “Hosanna” means, “Save us, now!” in Hebrew. It’s the perfect word for today!

At a time where stability has been replaced with uncertainty, we can certainly resonate with the people of Jerusalem as they shouted out to Jesus, “Save us, now!” When we’re going stir-crazy at home, when we’re having a hard time finding enough groceries to feed our families, when we here reports of more and more people afflicted with a virus, we can all cry out, “Save us, now!”

But in a time like this, we can also remember the words of the prophet quoted in John 12:15: “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” Those are words of comfort for us today. “Fear not.” Even in times of trouble, we know that the Lord is in control of all things. We know that God’s wisdom is greater than our wisdom, and that nothing can snatch us out of His hand. Fear not.

Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, in an unexpected way. He didn’t ride a magnificent horse or a chariot, but a donkey. We may find in the near future that the Lord continues to come to us in ways that we don’t expected. Instead of hearing God’s word at Church on Sunday, it may be on the radio or TV. Or it may be on the internet through Facebook or something else. Maybe it will arrive in the mail, like this newsletter! But even if God comes to us in strange ways in this strange time, fear not! For he is the king of Israel, He is the king of the Church, and He will work out all things to His Glory.

We know that God will do this for us because He has sent His Son, Jesus Christ into Jerusalem where he was handed over and suffered and died for our sins. And we know that God will lead us through this uncertain time because He raised Jesus from the dead, and that resurrection is our resurrection!

So, as sad as it is, we will not see each other in church on Easter Sunday this year. But fear not! We will still have our Easter celebration! For every day we remember Christ’s resurrection. And we will celebrate that resurrection all the more when we are able to worship together and see each other face-to-face once again. And at all times, we sing “Hosanna!” “Save us, now!” as we wait for Jesus to do just that, to come and restore this fallen creation and put an end to all sickness, and virus, and suffering. On that day he will draw us to himself and we will see Him face-to-face!

I am confident that the Lord who has called each of you to faith will preserve you in that faith, and that he will bring you with himself and all the saints on that great and glorious day, no matter what happens between now and then. Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!