One Season Ends, Another One Begins

The end of the football season and the beginning of a big church season coincide this year. Yesterday we all watched a game that seemed like a big defensive struggle through the first three quarters. Wasn't that Giant's defense amazing? You gotta be happy for Strahan. Plus it was kind of nice to see the Patriots come apart. They couldn't do anything. Payton's little brother seemed to keep it together no matter what happened. Now some people don't like a low scoring game, but those are the same people who watch the game for the commercials. Speaking of commercials I wasn't impressed by any of them. You would think for 3 million dollars they would do something interesting. The fourth quarter was probably one of the most spellbinding quarters of football all season, not because of anything spectacular but because it looked like the Patriots might actually lose. That quickly changed when they scored again and we all leaned back in our armchairs and said well what else could we have expected. And then Payton's little brother became Eli and did what no one thought he could do. He drove down the field escaping from tacklers along the way and eventually threw a touchdown to the man who had predicted a New York victory. And as if to top everything off and show that good does win over evil, the Patriot coach (Darth Vader) left the field with time still on the clock. It was like the end of a superhero movie where the good guy (Eli) saves the day but the bad guy (Darth Vadar) gets away at the last second (literally) to plot his next attack. Yes New England will be back! And you could add a few more dramatic lines in here like Darth Vadar saying, "And I would have gotten away with it if had been for that meddeling kid (Eli)" And you could also add in a Senator's name that is similar to spectator. So the football season is over and now is the time of my discontent, but April and the draft is coming.
Now we begin the next season, not a sport season, sports are over until training camp in July. No this is a church season. The season of Lent which kicks off (get that kicks off, okay bad joke) this Wednesday with Ash Wednesday. We will be holding Wednesday evening services for the next six weeks at 7 p.m. There will be soup suppers preceding them starting Wednesday the 12th. The series that we are following this year is Lamb of God Pure and Holy which is a Lutheran hymn (LSB 434). The themes are as follows: "The Pure and Holy Lamb of God"; The Crucified Lamb of God; The Patient Lamb of God; The Lowly Lamb of God; The Lamb of God Who Bears Our Sins Away; The Lamb of God Who Suffered Scorn; On Maundy Thursday the theme will be, "The Lamb of God Who Has Mercy on Us. On Good Friday it will be "The Lamb of God Who Gives Us Rest."
If you have not picked up a devotional book yet please do so on Wednesday. It follows the themes and provides good meditation.
The story of Lent is similar to the story line of the football game that we saw yesterday. It looks all throughout the story that the bad guy is going to win. And yet time after time Satan is frustrated and keeps getting sacked by Jesus. But then as the game comes a close Satan scores big with the crucifixion and it looks like it is all over. But then Jesus shows what he really made of and rises from the dead. The result is an upset victory in the eyes of the world. The good guy wins agains.

Pastor Fred