Belonging to the People of God

by Pastor Paul Werger

I don’t suppose there is a greater source of joy and comfort in life that to know you are baptized into Jesus Christ and “belong to the people of God.”

To be perfectly candid, sacrifice, self-denial, and self-giving have been the methods by which Christ has built His church and created the people of God. You and I enjoy the blessings and benefits of our faith simply because others have been willing to pay the price to share the Gospel. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in the [hundred and three] year history of St. Luke’s Lutheran Church. It was the commitment of life and resources, the faithfulness through many stormy periods of existence and the devoted loyalty of those early pioneers of our community that created a House of Worship and made it possible for God to have his people in this place.

Now the burden of responsibility rests squarely on our shoulders. At this hour when the needs of God’s people at St. Luke’s are everywhere in evidence, each of us must look within himself [or herself] to see if there is the love and faith to pay the price of belonging to God’s people.

At this period…as we see Christ’s sacrifice for us and as we reflect on the [103] year history of this congregation, these words of the poet express all our desires and feelings:
                        “Were the whole realm of nature mine,
                        That were an offering far too small;
                        Love so amazing, so divine
                        Demands my soul, my life, my all.”

Pastor Paul Werger, writing to the congregation on its 45th anniversary, on the threshold of the final building phase. From the Fields Were Ripe, 75th Anniversary history book. (p.8)

Words that still speak to us today as we celebrate 103 years and counting... 
Happy Anniversary St. Luke’s! – February 23, 1923.

What are your favorite memories of St. Luke’s?
What are your dreams for the future of St. Luke’s?
Please post in the comments…
[updated for this year]
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