“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17

Frederick Buechner, an author of renown, has written:

“To “make” suggests fashioning something out of some thing - the way a carpenter makes wooden boxes out of wood.

To “create” suggests making something out of nothing the way an artist
makes paintings or poems. It is true that artists, like carpenters, have to use something else, such as paint, or words, but the beauty or meaning they
make is different from the material they make it out of. To create is to make something essentially new.”
When God created, God made something where before there had been nothing, and

as the author of the book of Job puts it, “...the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy” (Job 38:7) at the sheer and shining novelty of the creation.

The hymnist John Keble writes: “New every morning is the love Our wakening and up-rising prove Through sleep and darkness safely brought, Restored to life and power and thought.”

Using the same materials of earth, air, fire, and water, every twenty-four hours God creates something new out of them. If we think we’re seeing the same show all over again seven times a week, we’re mistaken. Every morning we wake up to something that in all eternity never was before and never will be again. And the “I” that wakes up was never the same before and will never be the same again either.

Christ Lutheran Congregation is a part of the “new every morning” that Jesus creates for us in his love. A part of that something “new” will be a new pastor to “shepherd this flock.” A call was extended already but our first call was declined. We start over soon with another list of candidates provided by our Minnesota South District from which we will look for a candidate we might choose to call as pastor. Whatever happens, we know that our Lord is watching over and controlling the outcomes.

We also know a new pastor, whomever it is, will be new to Christ Lutheran, and will not do ministry in the same way as has been done here in the past. The new pastor will have a unique set of skills that make him who he is. Together with each congregant’s skills, pastor and people will have what is needed from our Lord to do ministry in this building and in this neighborhood.

I commend the members of Christ Lutheran for their “pulling together” during a time of pastoral vacancy. You have continued strong in your commitment to do the work of the Lord without full-time pastoral leadership. You continue to use your unique set of skills to be in ministry to those with whom you come into contact.

You can anticipate new pastoral leadership in God’s time. My prayer is that we will soon rejoice together at an installation of a full-time pastor. We are bold to confess with the hymnist from the 8th century:

“Christ is our cornerstone, On Him alone we build; With His true saints alone The courts of heav’n are filled. On His great love

Our hopes we place Of present grace and joys above.”

Vacancy Pastor, Dennis M. Drews