Pastor Jim’s Blog

Trust

Trust

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom... Every year, as a part of our confirmation program, I would take those students preparing for their Affirmation of Baptism to a high ropes course. Safety is the critical word for this experience. Every participant is double-linked to a...

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Assurances from the Crabapple Tree

Assurances from the Crabapple Tree

Today’s Word from Susan Shira, Trinity Member... The first thing I set to do when we moved into our house 23 years ago was upgrade the meager landscaping, and I knew just where to start…the flower bed in front of the French doors facing the street. I took inspiration...

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If It Be Your Will

If It Be Your Will

Today’s Word from Sheila Weidendorf, Trinity Keyboardist... Luke 22:42: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." We all know the stories of Jesus, how he anguished as he approached his death. He asked God to remove the...

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Unusual Kindness

Unusual Kindness

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... The Apostle Paul, and other prisoners of Rome, were adrift at sea in a violent storm. The morning light revealed an unrecognizable land. The ship was suddenly caught on a reef and began to break up. All those aboard were left to sink or...

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A Little Boost

A Little Boost

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy. Psalm 126:2 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises. Psalm 98:4 I have decided to share a rather personal...

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Holy Litter

Holy Litter

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom... “Hey you #%#*!! jerk!” was what I yelled in my fantasized response to his littering my personal park. “Pick up your #%#!! trash!” Actually, the above photograph is not my personal park. Lovely picture though, don’t you think? This is...

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Sometimes I Just Get Tired

Sometimes I Just Get Tired

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “I lift up my eyes to the hills, from where is my help to come?” Psalm 121 Sometimes, I just get tired. I get tired of the suffering and loss. Tired of the tears cried with our TLC families as they battle with addiction, disease, mental...

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Touch the Earth Lightly

Touch the Earth Lightly

Today’s Word from Karl Olsen... In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1 Then God said, “Let us make humans in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the...

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A Visit from Santa

A Visit from Santa

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... He came to me in a dream last night as clear as could be. Bill Read was with me asking, as he always did, if I was taking care of myself and when the choir would be starting up again. In my sleeping mind I knew that he should be dead;...

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A Season of Optimism

A Season of Optimism

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... I love spring! I always tell people that spring is my favorite season. The days get longer, temperatures start to rise, everything is blooming, and new life abounds. Spring is full of joy – and hope! There is light and growth all around...

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Standing in Line

Standing in Line

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... It’s not an experience that most people find worthy of our time. It’s a nuisance, it’s troublesome, and we will generally go to significant lengths to avoid it. Who wants to stand in line? Finished shopping? Look for the shortest...

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O Wanderer, O Seeker…

O Wanderer, O Seeker…

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... This past Sunday I led the Adult Education class here at Trinity, and included cross-cultural elements in my presentation, including texts by Kabir, a 15th century mystic and saint from India, whose texts are...

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This Week at Trinity

This Week at Trinity

Sunday, April 25 Worship 8:00 & 10:30 a.m. in person Also available online by 6:00 a.m. Adult Education Adult Ed meets on Zoom at 9:15 every Sunday morning. This week, Pastor Wayne Bacus begins a two-week series titled, "The Ten Most Important Things You Need to...

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Homecoming! What You Need to Know

Homecoming! What You Need to Know

Today's Word from Pastor Jim... A much-anticipated HOMECOMING happens tomorrow! I am so excited to welcome you all home for in-person worship this Sunday, April 18th at 8:00 & 10:30. Our entire Church Staff is so excited to be reopening our doors and seeing your...

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What’s in a Name?

What’s in a Name?

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... My oldest daughter, Ava, has a new baby goat – well, she doesn’t have him just yet as he needs to spend a few more weeks with his mom, but he is all hers. She is, of course, head-over-heels for this little guy, but she’s struggling to...

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Country, Rap, and Jesus

Country, Rap, and Jesus

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... So, what do you get if you play country and western music backwards? He gets his dog back, he gets his truck back, he gets his girl back. Okay, not really so funny but the point to be made is pretty simple… music as a medium often...

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Homecoming This Sunday, April 18

Homecoming This Sunday, April 18

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, and there we wept, when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung our harps.” Psalm 137:1-2 The people of Israel were taken into captivity. They longed to return home. They dreamed of...

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The Risen Christ

The Risen Christ

Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... …we weave notes together to form the fabric of our community’s praise and lament; each of us offering a unique and invaluable thread. Anonymous Smart is good. Smart and hardworking is really good. Smart, hardworking...

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God Given Gifts

God Given Gifts

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... After Easter Sunday, I took the week off. My family and I contemplated going somewhere for a few days, but we decided to stay on the island, get a few things done around the farm, and enjoy our time together. My parents came up to visit...

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Saying Goodbye to Pete

Saying Goodbye to Pete

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim...We were just a few weeks into the pandemic when Pete Teel died on the 11th day of April 2020. Funeral gatherings were not allowed in the State of Washington. We were just learning the proper protocols, and the extent of the...

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A Little Inspiration

A Little Inspiration

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... As I sat staring at a blank page, trying to decide what to write about today, my daughter walked out of her bedroom and put a 3-day-old chick in my hands. He is remarkable. This perfectly developed, fluffy little chick hatched out of an...

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Easter Disappointment?

Easter Disappointment?

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... “Woo hoo! We won the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes!” Again. Seems like every couple of months I get that tantalizing little email notifying me I have only to hit the magic “click” button, and a zillion dollars a month,...

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No Time for Heaven!

No Time for Heaven!

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim...   A vision of heaven: “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready like a bride dressed to meet her husband. I heard a loud voice speaking from the throne: ‘Now God’s home with mankind!...

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Like Clouds in the Sky

Like Clouds in the Sky

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... It is Eastertide here, and Spring, with its little resurrections everywhere. Places in the world where the calendar follows the lunar cycles it is just about New Year. Any way you slice it, rebirth abounds. It...

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Easter 2021

Easter 2021

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim...   Yesterday we had a joyful Easter celebration online and in the parking lot at Trinity Lutheran Church. Easter is a day to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and to claim our promised resurrection. It was 53 years ago yesterday that...

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Silent Saturday

Silent Saturday

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim...   The events of Good Friday are gruesome and painful. It is not the kind of story that I would tell in detail to our Trinity Preschoolers. Savage violence has always been a regrettable part of the human story, and it is sad to say that...

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What’s So Good About Good Friday?

What’s So Good About Good Friday?

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy...   On Good Friday, we remember Jesus’ death on the cross. We remember his trial, his suffering, and his crucifixion. We remember the saddest day in our Christian history. So, if it’s all about remembering such a terrible day, why do we...

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Maundy Thursday

Maundy Thursday

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd...   Empathy is good, narcissism is bad. Pretty sure you’re with me on this one. Empathy is good, narcissism is bad. Empathy is the gift of being able to feel one another’s feelings, allowing one to be fully present with another....

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Putting us in Our Place

Putting us in Our Place

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Christianity is about putting us in our place and slapping us down with grace. Putting Us in Our Place We are the children of God, created in the image of God, blessed and chosen. Children do not understand most of what happens around...

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Dare to Create

Dare to Create

Today’s Word from Karl Olsen, Minister of Music... “Talent copies, genius steals.” Pablo Picasso “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Isaac Newton A few years ago, I wrote a song. That, in itself, is no great surprise. I have written...

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The Movement of God

The Movement of God

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Tomorrow we descend the Mount of Olives in a parade of palms, as Jesus enters the Holy City of Jerusalem for the last time. There were thousands along the pilgrim path that day, peasants from small villages and religious zealots with an...

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R.I.P. Rhonda

R.I.P. Rhonda

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... I don’t talk about it much, but I went through a pretty difficult divorce several years ago. After all of the paperwork was filed, and things were finally settled, I went out and bought myself a new truck (well, new to me). I know most...

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Grow Up!

Grow Up!

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom... How important is it to attend worship services? How critical is it to listen to a contemplative missive or to read a daily devotional? Why would it matter if you or I never opened our Bibles again? Who would know? Really, what does all...

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Fragile Habitat

Fragile Habitat

Today's Word from Pastor Jim... “Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion (benevolent caretaker) over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air…” Genesis 1:26. Felicia and I went out for a hike last...

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Day by Day

Day by Day

Today's Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... It is a common trait for people to look ahead, to wonder what’s next for me, or what might be just around the corner. As we are now dealing with a pandemic roaming the world (gratefully on decline here) we can easily...

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A Close Call

A Close Call

Today's Word from Deacon Amy... When I came home from the office on Friday evening, I parked my car where I usually do, grabbed my bags, and started walking toward the back door. That’s when I noticed the smoke drifting out from the area beside our house. Remembering...

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Trinity’s Reopening Plan

Trinity’s Reopening Plan

“Without a vision the people perish.” Proverbs 29:18 2020 rolled over us and now we have rolled into a more optimistic 2021. We have had lots of plans over the past year, most of which have been significantly altered or canceled altogether. As winter loosens its grip,...

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The Sounds of Silence

The Sounds of Silence

Today's Word from Deacon Amy... I love sitting outside at nighttime and listening to the sounds. It’s amazing how much you can hear in the silence. A couple of nights ago, I sat outside the barn and just listened to the dark. Mostly, I heard the sounds of the goats...

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My Mythology

My Mythology

Today's Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... “I am an excellent golfer.” …. Uhh, I have had moments. Long ago moments. “I am the best putter on the golf course.” … I am not the worst if Pastor Jim is playing. “I have never preached a bad sermon.” … OMG, did you catch that dog...

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If All Else Fails, Just Stick with Jesus

If All Else Fails, Just Stick with Jesus

Today's Word from Pastor Jim... Trends in American Christianity are very clear. The Christian Church is in decline; it has been for nearly 60 years. Trinity has been able to buck that trend for decades, but the pandemic has accelerated change. The pandemic has...

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True Confessions of a Classical Pianist

True Confessions of a Classical Pianist

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... My true north in the world of performing arts is classical chamber music – it’s what I predominantly perform in my professional pianist life and what lives in the center of my musical heart. Having said that,...

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The Greatest Commandment

The Greatest Commandment

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself. Nothing really complicated about this -- the greatest commandment. Nothing complicated, and yet we have a really hard time living it. The greatest commandment was condensed from...

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A Few Words from Pastor Jim

A Few Words from Pastor Jim

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim It does not take a lot of words to say a lot. Brevity can be a good thing. That from a preacher, and a writer. Most adult books are 90,000 words. Some might even stretch out to 100,000 words. In the past pandemic year, I have written in...

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Old Things New

Old Things New

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... My 13-year-old bought a record player this week. Yep, an actual record player. You know, those things that my parents used to listen to. My daughter now has one. It’s interesting, to me, how fads tend to cycle around. I remember that my...

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A Sermon Sleeper

A Sermon Sleeper

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... Harry never made it through a sermon the last 20 years of his life. Five minutes into my stirring rendering of the Gospel of the day, Harry’s head would begin to bob, his eyelids would grow weary, and sleep would soon overtake him....

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Our Journey Together

Our Journey Together

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Our journey together has spanned some 35 years. We were at Luther Seminary at the same time, her two daughters and our three grew up seeing each other on a regular basis. We shared Thanksgiving, summer cookouts at their Mount Vernon...

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Heart of Mystery

Heart of Mystery

Today’s Word from Karl Olsen, Minister of Music... “Let us take hands and try the water…” The copyright date on my song Heart of Mystery is 12/30/88. It is the title track on my first CD. The liner notes for that song say “Heart of Mystery allows that there is mystery...

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Doing Well, Doing Good

Doing Well, Doing Good

Today’s Word from Karl Olsen, Minister of Music... We are here on earth to do good to others. What the others are here for, I don’t know. W. H. Auden It is a gift to meet people who are really themselves. Folks without pretense or guile. We are good at putting on...

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Church Signs

Church Signs

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim Try to be witty or inspirational 520 times a decade. It is not easy. It is not easy to come up with a new church sign message every week. But it must be done. And it is nearly impossible not to offend someone in the process. Church signs...

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All Creatures Great and Small

All Creatures Great and Small

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... When I was a teenager, I loved James Herriot’s books about being a veterinarian in the countryside of Yorkshire, England. He is, in my opinion, one of the best story tellers around. His books were hard to put down. I was drawn to the...

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No If

No If

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... I want to invite you into a question. That is, enter into this question and simply ruminate in the implications. Here it is… “What did you ever lose by dying?” * … what have you ever lost by dying? On one level the question just...

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What’s Happening at Trinity – March 2021

What’s Happening at Trinity – March 2021

Easter Worship Services at TLC April 4 is Easter Sunday, and we will be sharing the joy of the Resurrection with PARKING LOT SERVICES at 8:00 and 10:30 a.m. Bring a lawn chair, your coffee mug, and a mask, and get ready to see friends as we worship outside on Easter...

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Through the Night of Dark and Sorrow

Through the Night of Dark and Sorrow

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... Through the night of dark and sorrow onward goes the pilgrim band, singing songs of expectation, marching to the promised land. Clear before us through the darkness gleams and burns the guiding light: pilgrim...

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Little Epiphanies

Little Epiphanies

Today’s Word from Laura Canby...  At first, I thought he misspoke. It was a couple weeks ago and Pastor Jim was giving the Transfiguration Sunday sermon for later online posting. He read the verse in Corinthians 13:12 where Paul writes: For now we see in a...

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Heavy Burdens

Heavy Burdens

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:18 A friend shared an incredible story about a sheep this week. It seems that this sheep had been wandering the wilderness in...

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Grace is Hard

Grace is Hard

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... I grew up in Rainier Valley, Seattle. I believe at the time of my Franklin High School graduation our student population was approaching 50% non-white. So while I grew up in a pretty integrated world, my father had an entirely...

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Humble and Kind

Humble and Kind

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... One of the great joys of serving alongside the people of God at Trinity Lutheran Church is the privilege of hearing your stories, struggles, joys and sorrows. We rejoice with families as they welcome children or grandchildren into the...

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You Can Do This Hard Thing

You Can Do This Hard Thing

Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... All God’s critters got a place in the choir.  Bill Staines Can you be inspired by a goat? Or by its story? Well, I guess that depends on the goat. And the story, and, in this case, the storyteller. Who loves goats....

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Doing the Hard Things

Doing the Hard Things

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... “Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 I love that I have friends who call me up and ask me to come...

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What Will You Give Up for Lent?

What Will You Give Up for Lent?

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... Ash Wednesday was observed on February 17, with the imposition of ashes and the ancient declaration, “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” For the first time in the history of Trinity Lutheran Church the ashes that mark...

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Focus on the Beauty

Focus on the Beauty

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... At this time last week, we were watching snow fall. In my weekly message, I remembered the joy and excitement that I felt as a child when waking up to a snow day. The day was full of endless possibilities. As an adult with our little...

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Snow Day Project

Snow Day Project

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd...   What does any self-respecting retired clergy do on a snow day? Read Bonhoeffer? Watch a PBS production on the life of Paul and Peter? On a day when a very steep driveway combined with six inches of the white stuff makes for a clear...

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Who Do You Want to Be?

Who Do You Want to Be?

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim Well, we survived the great snowstorm of 2021! It sure was a big win for families with small children. Everyone put on the boots, hats and gloves. Families went sledding or built a snowman as they enjoyed this rare Northwest treat. It made...

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By the Rivers of Babylon

By the Rivers of Babylon

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... This now-famous song was composed in the 1960s by Brent Dowe and Trevor McNaughton and first recorded by their band (which also included Tony Brevett), The Melodians, in 1970. It quickly became a reggae...

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God Bless Us in Our Lenten Journey

God Bless Us in Our Lenten Journey

Today’s Word from Pastor Dennis... We soon begin the season of Lent; Ash Wednesday is February 17. Lent is not the most favorite season in the church year for many people. It’s a poor weather time, and the theme is somber. Many Protestant churches ignore it all...

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Criticism

Criticism

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... I learned very early on that one could not survive in parish ministry without a thick skin. If one is too sensitive or too easily offended this work will chew them up. We get more than our share of criticism. Most of the criticism is...

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Snow Days

Snow Days

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... Can you remember the excitement of a “snow day” when you were in school? If you grew up in Western Washington, it was particularly thrilling! A snow day was a bonus day – no school, no responsibilities, just fun! All of the kids in our...

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Stormin’ Norman

Stormin’ Norman

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... He died January 13. Uncle Norman’s death was the penultimate death of his generation. Only Auntie Corrine is left. Mom (Bergit) was the oldest, then Signe, followed by Corinne and then baby Darlene. Darlene was married to Norman...

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Touching the Future

Touching the Future

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim Lindus... It was eight years ago that my friend Terry Otey died at the age of 66. Terry was not a member of TLC; he attended a few funerals here, and sometimes he would stop in during the week to drink a cup of coffee and offer up some...

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Come Healing

Come Healing

Today’s Word from Minister of Music Karl Olsen... Good Tuesday morning to you! Last Sunday I sang a song during worship called Come Healing. The song is from Leonard Cohen’s album “Old Ideas.” As I was researching the song before recording, I came across a blog by...

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My Journey to Trinity

My Journey to Trinity

Today’s Word from Trinity member Cameron Castle... I was in the back seat with my best friend, Mase, as his parents drove me home from a sleepover. I think we were about ten. His dad was driving; a jovial man. His mom was in the passenger seat; a very proper lady,...

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All Things Work Together

All Things Work Together

[wh_sermons player="HTML5"] Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 This text has carried me through many a rough time. The words of the Apostle Paul...

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No Hour Wasted

No Hour Wasted

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... Winston Churchill once said, “no hour of life is wasted that is spent in the saddle.” I fully agree. I’ve spent more hours of my life than I can count in the saddle, and I don’t feel that a single moment of that time has been wasted....

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Burden Bearing

Burden Bearing

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd... “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2 A part of my life of faith at TLC involves meeting with men in discernment groups. Once a month we gather (practicing social...

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A Word for This Day

A Word for This Day

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... “Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike? May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion? Without all doubt, we may. Herein all the children of God may unite, notwithstanding these smaller differences.” John...

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Down in the River to Play

Down in the River to Play

Today’s Word from Trinity Keyboardist Sheila Weidendorf... As I went down in the river to pray Studying about that good ol' way And who shall wear the starry crown Good Lord, show me the way O sisters (brothers/mothers/fathers/sinners), let's go down Let's go down,...

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February is the Longest Month

February is the Longest Month

Today’s Word from Laura Canby... The poet T.S. Eliot penned in his epic poem ‘The Waste Land’ (written after the 1918 flu pandemic) that ‘April is the cruelest month.’ For me, February– ironically, the shortest month – seems interminably long and worthy of holding...

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Spreading Taco Shells

Spreading Taco Shells

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim... I was alone at church last Sunday morning, because I am alone most every Sunday morning in these pandemic days. I dress up, wear my clerical collar, make coffee and work in my office. On occasion someone will happen by to visit. On...

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Quarantine Ambassador

Quarantine Ambassador

Today’s Word from Deacon Amy... I took a break from work on Monday afternoon to take my daughter’s goat, Kona, on a field trip. Kona got to go visit Ava’s high school classmates at Island Christian Academy. It was a fairly no-frills trip as far as Kona was concerned –...

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It’s in Our Head

It’s in Our Head

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd So, what do you do after church (thank you Pastor Eileen) on a cold, windswept, rainy Sunday morning? (In case you have forgotten, the Seahawks have already ignoramusly flamed out!) You listen to Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, all 1:21:22...

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No Cure

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....

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When Jesus Came to Jordan

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...

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Covid-19 Relief

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...

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Sleepless Nights

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...

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Small Miracles

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...

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Where is our Truth?

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...

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An Old-Fashioned Altar Call

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...

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A Shelter in the Time of Storm

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...

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Protestant Roots

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...

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The Struggle

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...

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Light in the Darkness

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...

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Poetry of Love

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...

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Questioning Christianity

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....

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Brightest and Best of the Stars

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...

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The Weather Lady

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...

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We Move On

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...

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Let Me Sow Love

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...

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Face the Music

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...

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Epiphany

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...

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