January 27, 2026
Dear fellow redeemed,
A while ago I listened to a podcast that described how the human brain learns to identify and describe things. For example, we learn as a child that something with feathers, wings, and that flies in the air, most likely is a bird.
Then the podcast shared how A.I. is trying to duplicate this identification and knowledge. And it told how it is a challenging process to learn this. But you and I already know so much about things like birds, animals, and people…all by what we have seen and heard, from childhood onward.
So now may I ask: what have we learned about Christians? About followers of Jesus? What do they look like and what do they do? And can we identify them by their beliefs, words, and actions?
I suppose the first way many will try to answer these questions is by their affiliation with a Christian denomination, their membership and activity in congregations, and their references to God in their lives, their devotional life, prayers, etc.
But I wonder if this Sunday’s Gospel Reading can answer the question of who we are and what we do as followers of Jesus. He describes us as “Blessed”. A word that means more than just being happy. It is a deep, lasting well-being, that comes from God. So what does God give that makes us blessed? And how does being blessed show in our lives?
At our baptisms, we received God’s presence and grace and power in our lives. The Holy Spirit came upon us, giving us faith and life in Christ. And so as Luther’s Small Catechism sums it up, the blessings we have from God in Christ is “the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation”.
And in this Sunday’s Scripture readings, and especially in the Gospel reading, we see the things that identify people as being “blessed”. Now, we may be surprised by what identifies people as being blessed. It doesn’t mention theological beliefs, nor the affiliation with any denomination, and not even a person’s participation in worship or devotions.
Who are the blessed, according to Scripture (especially this Sunday’s readings in Micah 6, 1 Corinthians 1, and Matthew 5)? They are people who do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with God. They are those who find wisdom in the weakness of the cross of Christ, and they are, as Jesus tells us, the poor, the meek, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, and those who mourn and who hunger for righteousness.
In other words, the blessed are those who do as Jesus did, and continues to do in and through His Body of Christ (you and me). A summary of Jesus’ ministry while walking the earth is given in Matthew 4:23, “Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.”
So what does being blessed look like in each of our lives? I cannot answer for each of you. We can only answer that question as we look at each of our own lives. But I know that I am personally challenged and given direction for my life as I read the Scriptures. And the Scriptures tell us to bring the blessings of God to the least, the last and the lost, so that they may know and believe they are loved by God, even as each of us are!
May each of us who are blessed be a blessing to others!
– Pastor Steve
Pastor Steve’s 2-Minute Devotion – 1/28/26
Pastor’s Monthly Update – February 2026
Dear fellow redeemed,
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven; a time to…” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-2) It’s that time already?! How time flies! Your time is up (already?!) Where did the time go? It seems like just yesterday that I was… You remember that far back? You were born in WHAT year?!
So how do we deal with the passage of time? Aging? And all that goes with getting older. I have a theory for why time seems to be going so fast for me. When a year passes for me, it is only 1/69 of my life. But when a two year old has a birthday, it is 1/2 of her life! No wonder than that a year seems longer for that child than for me. :)}
Here are a few suggestions to help deal with the passage of time:
1). Time is a gift from God! So let’s be thankful for each and every day that God gives us. Every breath and heartbeat is God’s gift!
2). God has entered our time when He sent His Son into our world. So God in Christ knows our experience of passing through time.
3). “Kairos” is a word in the original language of the Bible that means “the right time”. It is the word used in Galatians 4:4, “But when the fullness of time (kairos) had come, God sent forth His Son…” Certainly God knows the right time for all things. And praise be to God that He found “the right time”, the “kairos” for sending us a Savior! Now we can pray for the right time for all the important things in our life. Let’s pray that God gives us the wisdom and time to do all that is needed.
4) It seems to me that the best advice to follow for dealing with time is to take life a day at a time. Psalm 118:24 simply puts it, “This the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” The words of the Apostle Paul are helpful also, “make the most of the time” (Ephesians 5:16). So let us live in the grace and mercy of God our Savior and Lord! Trusting in the Lord, who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)
Living in Christ,
– Pastor Steve
Redeemer Lutheran Church - Hartford, WI 