Northwoods Table Talk

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Many things have happened since I last posted anything here, not that anybody ever reads this stuff anyway. But some of them really stick out in my mind. My eldest was confirmed a few weeks ago, "It's cool to come to the Lord's Supper, Dad." Yes it is! It is cool to her your son think that God's gifts of grace are "cool." (He also said, "It's nice not to have mom step over me to get out of the pew.") Last week, the two boys and I left Pauline alone for a vacation from us, and we went to South Twin Lake up north. Each boy brought a friend. The fish weren't the most cooperative, but we fished hard and caught enough for a massive meal of fish and mashed potatoes on Thursday night. When weather or tired of catching nothing overwhelmed us, Monopoly, Apples to Apples, Cribbage, Polar Bowler, Polar Golfer, and catching mayflies for bait kept us busy.

This Sunday we will celebrate the Baptism of our Lord, and in preparing for that day, I again found great comfort. Let's face it, nobody's perfect. What is more, sometimes the Christmas season, for all the joy that is supposedly to accompany it, can also bring with it an overwhelming fatigue. While it is to be about the birth of our Savior, the societal and worldly influences can take and ungodly turn even in the most devote Christians. As my own sinfulness weighed heavy on my thoughts, I found comfort in Sunday's Gospel. Let me explain: Jesus came to the Jordan to be baptized by John the Baptizer, who was proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. When Jesus came to him, John said, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" To this, esus responded, "Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting to fulfill all righteousness." What could this mean? Jesus was without sin, there was no reason for Him to come to John for t