Pastor David Maier - Forward in Hope

Come, Let Us Worship the Lord our Maker

The following is the President's Article in the December/January Michigan in Touch District Magazine.  It written to serve as "An Introduction and Invitation to the Michigan District Theological Conferences on Worship in early 2011."

In the first stanza of a hymn recently penned by Rev. Steven P. Starke of Michigan, we read these words:

O sing of Christ, whose birth made known The kindness of the Lord,

Eternal Word made flesh and bone, So we could be restored. 

Upon our frail humanity God’s finger chose to trace

The fullness of His deity, The icon of His grace.¹  LSB, #362

Having come to know the Word made flesh by God’s grace through faith, we joyously sing, praising our God for His great kindness in giving us a Savior from sin.  We read the Christmas accounts in the Gospels, marveling at the angelic announcement to the shepherds and their response of wonder, joy, and proclamation. (Lk. 2:8-20)  We celebrate God’s leading of the Magi by star which enabled them to see God, worship the Word made flesh, and present Him with gifts. (Matt. 2:1-12)

2010 Maier Family Christmas Letter

December, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,     

Merry Christmas!

As we marvel at the great gift of God in our Savior Jesus Christ, we want you to know that you are in our thoughts and prayers.  We thank our gracious God for the gift of YOU, the gift of each opportunity to share or be with you (or at least exchange Christmas greetings each year!), and we wish you God’s most awesome and excellent blessings this Christmas season and throughout the New Year.

This past year held lots of changes for our family, not the least of which was our move from Lansing, which had been our home for 20 years, to the Ann Arbor area in southeastern Michigan. (Please note the new address!)  Dave is now 15 minutes from the District Office – and he does not miss the 2 ½ hour commute at all!  Spring was busy with Joel’s graduation, helping move Leah, Joel, and James from apartments/dorm rooms to new apartments/back home, attending call services at the seminaries in St. Louis and Ft. Wayne, and looking for a house.

A Season of MIRACLES - YES They Still Happen ... and We Need Them

MIRACLES … perhaps because of the age in which we live, have taken on the cloak of the fantastical, whimsical, or the special effect in a movie.  Maybe because of the very tough times in which we live they impossible.  Rarely, for many, do “miracles” embrace the category of “possibility” because of something supernatural, much less because of God.

Even those who “believe” in miracles have romantic notions of how and where they take place.  Too often we suppose that supernatural miracles only happen in special or splendid circumstances.  But part of the great Good News at Christmas is that God clothes Himself in the ordinary – and does amazing things!