Pastors's Message Law and Gospel      In June we celebrate the beginning of summer. The first day of summer is a time when we enjoy the longest day of the year in contrast to the first day of winter when we observe the shortest day of the year. That can be a reminder that there are also equal parts with Christian stewardship - Law and Gospel.      From God’s Word we know what good Christian stewardship should be. We also have principles that guide our stewardship life. But at the end of the day we realize, with sorrow, that we have failed over and over again in our stewardship. We have not managed all of life and life’s resources for God’s purposes. We have not lived out our stewardship with the reality that God is the Owner of all things and we are simply managers. We have used our possessions as if they belong completely to us - not acknowledging that God has simply entrusted them to us for wise management that brings glory to Him and blessings to others. And the list of stewardship failures could go on and on. That’s bad news! That’s what the Law says to us!      However, for us as Christians, there is also some very good news. Moved by sacrificial love, Jesus came into our world and took upon Himself our sins - yes, also the sins of poor stewardship - and gained God’s forgiveness for us by going to the cross to suffer the death penalty that we deserved. What good news that God does not treat us according to what we deserve; instead, in Christ, He loves and forgives us - daily and richly.      That loving forgiveness of God has moved Christians throughout the ages to manage all of life and life’s resources for God’s purposes - and to do it freely and joyfully. That loving forgiveness of God is also the proper motivation for our stewardship. It moves us to share and give freely and generously of our time, talents and treasure for the work of the Lord and to make life sweeter for others. What a place this world would be if we all practiced faithful stewardship. It would be heaven on earth!      The sad reality is that we have not only sinned in the past, but we have also sinned in the present and will continue to sin in the future. Yet there is hope and new life. We confess our sins to God with sorrow in our hearts and minds and flee to the cross of Jesus Christ to find full and free forgiveness for every sin. We have the added blessing of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit to help us live in new and different ways. That’s what the Gospel says to us.      When it comes to our stewardship, it is not possible for us to bring about heaven on earth. But, by God’s power, we can make our little corner of the earth a better place because we are here.      “Maturing stewards do the right things for the right reasons and strive for excellence in all they do.” From “StewardCAST” www.lcms.org Glad to be in Christ’s service,    Pastor Lyle Hansen

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