Entries by Kristin Vomhof

Here is Hope for All who Grieve – Jesus Sinners Does Receive!

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Erdmann Neumeister. Ever hear of him? Erdmann Neumeister was actually Pastor Neumeister. He was a pastor in Germany around 1700. He is also the writer of a hymn that in the last few years has become kind of popular in our circles. Erdmann Neumeister wrote the hymn “God’s Own Child I Gladly Say It.” Remember that one? It is a beautiful and very memorable baptism hymn. The third verse contains some of my favorite poetry in a hymn: “Satan, hear this proclamation: I am baptized into Christ! Drop your ugly accusation; I am not so soon enticed. Now that to the font I’ve traveled, all your might has come unraveled, and against your tyranny, God, my Lord, unites with me!” That’s good poetry…and good theology!

Christ Meant More

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How do you want to be remembered?  Have you ever thought about that?  Some people spend a lot of time thinking about their “legacy” and how they will be remembered.  Do you want to be remembered as a loving husband, a great dad, the guy on the block who had the best looking yard?  Do you want to be remembered as the model wife and mother, the woman who “had it all together”?  Do you want to be remembered for your accomplishments on the field or your faithful years of service on the job? 

Wisdom Revealed through the Spirit

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There is an interesting detail tucked into the story of when Jesus went to his hometown of Nazareth and preached in the synagogue. After Jesus got done teaching on that Sabbath Day, the people said this, What’s this wisdom that has been given to him? (Mark 6:2) They said this not because Jesus had given them a stimulating lecture on physics or geometry. But he had spoken to them about the Kingdom of God, about prophecy and fulfillment, about himself being the Messiah. Jesus had a different kind of wisdom.

The Bridge between Fear and Courage: “I AM”

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The account before us this morning is well known to most Christians. The story of Jesus walking on the water is part of just about every Sunday School curriculum there is. Just about every preaching pericope includes the record of Jesus walking on the water. It is at the same time simple and profound. Every child can understand that Jesus walked on top of the water out to his disciples. That is simple. But there is also something very profound about this event.

“Be Still”

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I remember preaching on this text, Psalm 46, back on Sunday, September 16, 2001. That was the first Sunday after 9/11. Many of you here today remember that week well. For some of you, 9/11 is only a history lesson. We were a nation that had been attacked. We were reeling. We had seen something never before seen. Skyscrapers collapse upon themselves! It seemed surreal, like we were living a dream. Psalm 46 seemed like the perfect text for the moment. It is a psalm that describes calamity and catastrophe and chaos, and then calm. It is a psalm in which we hear our God say those words we were desperate to hear, Be still. (v. 10)

The Kingdom Grows!

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The state of Wisconsin right now is like a huge object lesson on the Kingdom of God.  I say that because all over our state farmers are planting their crops.   Everywhere they are putting the seeds in the ground.  Wheat and corn and soybeans and alfalfa.  Drive anywhere and you will likely pass a field where you will see the corn now sprouted and well on its way to being “knee high by the 4th of July.”

Crushed!

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The scene in the Garden of Eden is crushing. There are Adam and Eve – the crowning glory of God’s creation – hiding in the bushes. They are hiding because – of all things – they heard the sound of the Lord God in the garden coming to talk to them! They are hiding because they are crushed…crushed beneath feelings of guilt and shame.