Pastor Jim’s Blog
No Cure
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “God created them, male and female, God created them.” Genesis 1:27 She is 37 years old; she is doing her best to keep living, living with a cancer that is most certain to kill her. Is a cure possible? “There is no cure,” she says....
When Jesus Came to Jordan
Today’s Word from Trinity's Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... This lovely hymn – another example of old folk tunes making their way into the modern world, whether via symphony or liturgy! – was first published in an American hymnal in 1982. The text was written by Fred...
Covid-19 Relief
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim In 2020, Trinity Lutheran Church ranked number 16 out of some 9,500 ELCA churches when it came to giving to ELCA World Hunger and ELCA Disaster Relief. Thank you for taking seriously the admonition of Jesus to care for the most vulnerable...
Sleepless Nights
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “My soul waits for the Lord, more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning.” Psalm 130:6 In Biblical times people lived in walled villages, military camps that were enclosed with some sort of...
Small Miracles
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... The dictionary describes a miracle as “a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.” We may have experienced a small miracle at our...
Where is our Truth?
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... The beginning is always the most difficult. Whether it be a sermon, a blog, a pastoral note or a journal entry it is the beginning that most often leaves me struggling. Maybe not so curiously, I typically have an idea where the...
An Old-Fashioned Altar Call
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... My friend Bob Wheeler was raised in Texas; he was a standout baseball player, business owner in Langley, a devoted family man, and a member of TLC. Midway through his brave battle with cancer, shortly before he died, Bobby shared his...
A Shelter in the Time of Storm
Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... Sometimes, like now, it’s helpful to be reminded that we have a shelter in God when times are challenging and we’re weary. Here’s a possibility! Jesus Is a Rock in a Weary Land (ELW 333) is listed as an African...
Protestant Roots
Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen I have protestant roots. Protest. Hmm…maybe you do, too. But first, here’s a bit from the recent Holden Village email newsletter… "In the Christian calendar, January 6 is Epiphany, which means “manifestation” - a thing...
The Struggle
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... We watched the movie Selma last week. It reminded us of the long struggle for civil rights, voting rights, and basic human rights. The blood-stained dream of the Declaration of Independence turned out to be more an illusion than a...
Light in the Darkness
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5 Consider this a continuation of my last note to you – I referenced the above verse at the end of my message, and I’ve had this verse swirling around in...
Poetry of Love
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... Picture 15 middle schoolers sitting around the confirmation table with yours truly trying to be inspirational, hoping to quicken their love of Luther and the Small Catechism. But it’s January, it was dark at 4:15 p.m., they’ve been...
Questioning Christianity
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8 Is it time to question Christianity? The answer must be a resounding YES! Why? Because it is always time to question the human institution that bears the name of Jesus....
Brightest and Best of the Stars
Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... On Winter Solstice 2020, Saturn and Jupiter reached a significant conjunction – the closest they’d been in over 800 years! – to form a recurrence, it is believed, of the Star of Bethlehem. A considerable...
The Weather Lady
Today’s Word from Mark Winslow... Recently, I was out in my old neighborhood of Snohomish. We lived right in town, for most of the 50s and 60s. At that time, it was a sleepy little town. Mostly just a bunch of old houses that are now referred to as “historic.” I took...
We Move On
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “Then neither do I condemn you, now go and sin no more.” Jesus One really only has two choices in life; move on or get stuck. Time, months, days, years, the calendar, the stars, the slow decay of our bodies, the mountains working their...
Let Me Sow Love
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... We typically celebrate Saint Francis of Assisi in October, but today I am drawn to the words of a prayer which bears his name: Lord, make me an instrument of your Peace: Where there is hatred, let me sow Love Where there is injury, let...
Face the Music
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... She smiled and said “Jimmy Page.” Being the faithful Ace Hardware employee (Oak Harbor) and recognizing I was probably not the best at directions, she was leading me down the aisle toward my appointed purchase when my phone began...
Epiphany
Today’s Word from Pastor Dennis Hanson... The Church Year and the secular calendar do not always match up. Officially, in the church calendar, Christmas ends on January 5; January 6 is Epiphany Day. Then follow the Sundays in Epiphany which means “make...
The Twelfth Day of Christmas
Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... “On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…” No! That’s not our song for today, but, Yes! It is the twelfth day of Christmas! So, there’s time for one more little Christmas-themed message. Christmas...
What I Love About Trinity
Today’s Word from New Member Sally Rongren More people than ever are watching TLC’s video services, reading our daily messages, and sharing them with friends and family! And throughout this time of pandemic restrictions, many folks are making the decision to join a...
We Made It!
Today’s Word from Preschool Director Felicia Lindus Forward in Faith When the school year began, we had so many more questions than answers: What would the weather be? Could we stay outside? Would we stay healthy? Would this be fun? Would the program be beneficial for...
Lessons from 2020
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... Welcome to 2021! Have you ever been this excited to hang a new calendar on the wall? While we’re all eager to say good riddance to 2020, I have to admit that the tumultuous year taught me a few things. Here, in no particular order, is a...
What Now?
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... “Thank God this is over!” So said a golf mate in his summation of 2020. The year started with such promise, such symmetry, “20-20.” Like the good news of an eye exam, the year began so easily rolling off the tongue… “Twentyyyy -...
Building a Strong Foundation
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... One of the great stories in the Bible is found in the 41st Chapter of Genesis. Some 1600 years before the birth of Jesus, Egypt was the most powerful nation in the world. Pharaoh was the undisputed leader of Egypt; he was considered to...
Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella – AKA Love Has Come
Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf It’s a Two-For-One Christmas Special! Today’s Christmastide hymn is derived from a 17th Century Provençal tune that was, in its original form, music for courtly dance. Then poet and composer Nicolas Saboly...
The Gift of the Baby Jesus
Today’s Word from Reverend Dave Bieniek A few months ago, I wrote a missive about one of my favorite statues of Mary. It is called the Mother of the Whole World and features Mary holding a Baby Jesus in outstretched arms, who in turn has his arms outstretched to the...
The Last, the Least, the Lost, and the Forgotten
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... The Christmas story features the last, the least, the lost and the forgotten. Mary would sing the Magnificat; “My soul proclaims your greatness O God, and my spirit rejoices in you, you have looked with love on your servant here, and...
Christmas Eve
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd I have always had a deeper affinity for Lent over Advent which tends to strike most people as curious. After all, Advent is about getting ready for Christmas, it is about gift giving and Christmas trees and beautiful decorations and the...
2020 Sunday School & Confirmation Christmas Reading
Trinity's Sunday School and Confirmation classes present our 2020 virtual Christmas Program, a reading from the Book of Luke.
Lost in the Night – an Hymn for Advent
Today's Word from Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... I once lived in a house set amid wooded hills. Behind the house a path led up one such hill, winding its lovely way through the forest. But at night, the path disappeared from view beneath the veil of darkness. In the...
The Manger Menagerie
Today’s Word from Pastor Dave Bieniek... Anyone who visits our house (or our social media pages) at Christmas realizes that we have a lot of Nativity scenes. Each one has a story of course, which makes each one important. Some of the Nativity scenes we have bought...
A Little Light in Dark Times
We get lots of cards at TLC. This one we wanted to share with a larger audience. Merry Christmas! Today’s Word from Mark Winslow 2020! Wow! 2020 is the number you like to hear if you are visiting an optometrist. “Great news! You can see clearly, both near and far...
God as Guardian
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... I went back to college in 2013 – I was one of the oldest students in most of my classes. One of our first projects was to create a visual display featuring images of God. I was pretty proud of my trifold photo collage. I hauled it into...
Faithful Posture
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... What do you think is the coolest invention of the past 40 years? Okay, okay, the vaccine for Coronavirus 19 wins, but what gets your vote for the next coolest invention after that? What would be the next neatest invention? C’mon,...
One Gift
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... There is one gift this Christmas that only you can give. You will not find it on Amazon or at Costco. It is too precious to rest underneath a Christmas tree. It is timeless and critical to human life and human relationships. There is...
Images of Jesus
Today's Word from Karl Olsen... On my mind today is really a song, rather than the hymns Sheila and I have been exploring in recent months. On my mind as we prepare to welcome, again, the birth of Jesus, is the different ways we see Jesus, and how that is informed by...
The Festival of Lights
Today’s Word from Pastor Dave Bieniek... This year, the Jewish feast of Hanukkah began at sundown on Thursday, December 10th. It is a moveable feast that happens somewhere between late November and late December each year beginning on the Jewish calendar day of the...
The Merriest Christmas
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Let’s make it the Merriest Christmas that we can this year! I think that it is safe to say that this will not be a traditional Christmas, but it will still be Christmas. Through the centuries the birth of Jesus has been celebrated in...
Pandemic Blues
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... This time of year, when daylight hours are short and darkness creeps in early, can feel depressing and gloomy. Many people struggle with the holidays, deeply feeling the loss of loved ones. Our ongoing pandemic quarantine has only added...
Christmas Evokes Memories
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... This time of the year evokes memories. Many are from my own childhood. Most of them are positive, thankfully. My childhood memories of Christmas are probably pretty American typical, i.e. decorated tree, presents with pretty...
The Smallest of Presents
Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... It was the smallest of presents, but it would potentially have the longest shelf-life. Sweaters and ties come and go, iPhone 5 is replaced by iPhone 6, the toys break or lose favor, but the ornaments come out...
Savior of the Nations, Come
Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf Martin Luther (1483-1546), as well we know! — was a German theologian and Augustinian monk — ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1507. He is known well for his reforming work that ultimately sparked the...
Swiss Cheese & Cafeteria Methods on the Path of the Gospel
Today’s Word from Reverend David Bieniek... When I was working on my masters in Youth Ministry many years ago, we were taught the importance of offering a “cafeteria method of youth ministry” where youth of a parish could pick various places to connect with the church...
Thanksgiving and Christmas – Two Random Thoughts
Today’s Word from Pastor Dennis Hanson... Random Thought One: THANKSGIVING When the church celebrates the secular, national holiday of Thanksgiving, the text used is often of the ten lepers who beg Jesus to be healed. Leprosy was a serious disease. If our pandemic...
Advent Lament
Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... Advent is one of my favorite seasons! It is a season filled with hopeful anticipation. We spend our time waiting, and preparing for the Christmas celebration. We put up lights, decorate trees, shop for the perfect gifts for our loved...
Satan and the Effect of Our Sin
Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... “If Satan cannot bind you by your sin, he will bind you by the effect of your sin.” Never were truer words spoken. It was early in my ministry that these words became real. Though I cannot recall the exact work from whence they...
Facing Adversity Together
Today's Word from Pastor Jim... I have been reading a little about adversity. Let’s start with the definition: Adversity is a state of hardship, difficulty, or misfortune that one deals with in life. There are two things to be noted in this definition. The first is...
Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming
Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” Isaiah 11:1 “The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the...
Darkness and Light
Today’s Word from Reverend Dave Bieniek... This is by far the most difficult time of the year for me to live in the Pacific Northwest. These days many of us go to work when it is barely light outside and come home in the dark. It only lasts for a few months, and I...