The Wonders of God's Creation
May 2021
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Dearly Beloved,
Nehemiah 9:6 says, “You alone are the Lord; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things on it, the seas and all things in them, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You.”
This month’s TLO Disciple is under the theme The Wonders of God’s Creation. Job, a man who lived 4,000 years ago said: “Ask the beasts and they will teach you…; Ask the birds of heaven, let them teach you…; Speak to the earth and let it teach you…; Let the fish of the seas declare to you…” (Job 12:7-8). By His Word, God made all His creation and it was very good, harmonious, beautiful and pure. Even after the fall into sin God is still actively creating and sustaining this world.
Paul writes in Romans 11:33: “O the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and inscrutable his ways.” Paul could see the wonder of God’s wisdom and knowledge that through the foolishness of the cross, sin, death and the devil would be defeated once and for all.
Through the sacrifice of Jesus, God has freed you and me from having to suffer the eternal separation from God as punishment of our sins. Through the wonders of His steadfast love in Jesus, God’s people are forgiven and freed from sin. And having been made new through the resurrection of Jesus, God’s people are transformed by grace to pour out their lives in service in the world. Such love stirred Paul’s heart with amazement and wonder, filling his spirit and ours with praise for all that the Lord has done for us.
In Christ,
Pastor James Kroonblawd
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Concerning the six-day creation
by Matthew C. Harrison
Creation is a mystery. Just as science will forever have a problem with Jesus being God and man, with His virgin birth, or with His resurrection, so science will forever scoff at or, at best, view the creation account in Genesis as mythology. Though I’m no scientist, I’ve had challenges myself believing that the creation accounts are history. When will a talking snake appear believable to reason? How, in the face of the dominant theory of evolution, will the special creation of Adam out of dust and in a flash appear reasonable? And what of Eve from a rib? How can I possibly hold to an actual creation of all things in six natural days? Read the entire Lutheran Witness article.
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Joe Watson
I am an LCMS Pastor (Military Chaplain) and I also have earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemistry (prior to seminary). One of the first things a scientist learns is that a theory can never be proven, but it can always be disproven. Also, a theory must be based on experimental data which necessarily require observable and reproducible results. As far as I know, no one has ever observed evolution, nor are they able to provide reproducible results. When I was a student in the field of science, my method of analyzing scientific theories was to accept them as valid as long as they did not contradict God’s Word. Since the theory of (macro)evolution contradicts the Word of God, it is necessarily false. Scientists are fallible and come to erroneous conclusions. God’s Word is infallible and should be considered as true, no matter how much scientific “evidence” contradicts it. Anything less than that calls any and all of God’s Revelation into question. That is what has happened to many mainstream denominations, and was in danger of happening to the LCMS years ago. God forbid that we ever place human reason over divine revelation. It would only serve to weaken our faith and increase our sinful pride. Sola Gratia – Sola Fide – Sola Scriptura.
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From Luther's Small Catechism
I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me a body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them.
—Martin Luther, Small Catechism (II, Art. 1)
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Words by Herbert F. Brokering, b. 1926
Tune by David N. Johnson, b. 1922
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Mining Hidden Talents
Those of you who are familiar with the mining industry know that mining is hard work. It takes lots of time, patience, care, and persistence to mine the treasured gems in God’s creation.
This is also true when mining hidden talents in those people around you. To mine their talents may take a little more patience and perseverance, but the effort will yield treasured blessings.
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Movie Review
“Wonder” (2017) is a sometimes whimsical, sometimes serious fictional drama about a boy named Auggie (Jacob Tremblay) who suffers from the facial deformity mandibulofacial dysostosis, also known as Treacher Collins syndrome (TCS).
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After many surgeries and years of homeschooling by his mother Isabel (Julia Roberts), Auggie enters Beecher Prep, a private preparatory school in his Upper Manhattan New York City neighborhood. The film follows Auggie’s fifth-grade year from the first to the last day, with all the ups and downs he experiences along the way. Read the full review.
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Pointing to the Natural Knowledge of God
"Even those who deny that God is, still they are not ignorant that God is."
Johannes Quenstedt, Theologia Didactico-Polemica, Part 1, chapter 6, section 2, question 1 (Leipzig, 1715), 373–74.
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From God's Word
“By awesome deeds You answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas; the one who by His strength established the mountains, being girded with might; who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.” –Psalm 65:5-7
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Pointing to the Natural Knowledge of God
The reasons why God imparted the external knowledge of Himself to the minds of all men are: (1) For the sake of external discipline, which God wished to be exercised by all men, even the unregenerate; (2) that God might be sought after (Acts 17:27–30); [. . . and . . .] (3) that He might render men inexcusable (Rom. 1:20). ~ Martin Chemnitz
Martin Chemnitz, Loci Theologici (1591), quoted in Schmid, The Doctrinal Theology of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, 110.
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It is the Christian’s great privilege, therefore, to give name to the “unknown god” of Athens, the “anonymous god” of civil religion, and the denied god of modern skepticism and atheism—to proclaim “the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9–11)
The Natural Knowledge of God in Christian Confession & Christian Witness, p64 A Report of the Commission on Theology and Church Relations
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From God's Word
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. Hebrews 11:3
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Welcome to Camp Omega on the Lake!
Camp Omega is all about RELATIONSHIP …a place for children, teens, adults, families, congregations, and communities to grow in their relationship to Christ…a place for campers young and old to DISCOVER & REDISCOVER what life in Jesus means.
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Established in 1964 and located just north of Waterville, MN, Camp Omega has been serving over 50 years as a Christian retreat facility and summer camp. Join us this summer! |
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a lighthearted video from 2019 LCMS Youth Gathering
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From God's Word
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” — Psalm 119:1
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From Concordia Publishing House |
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Arch Books tell popular Bible stories through fun-to-read rhymes and bright illustrations. This well-loved series captures the attention of children, telling scripturally sound stories that are enjoyable and easy to remember.
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During his six months aboard the International Space Station in 2006, Colonel Jeffrey N. Williams orbited the earth more than 2,800 times and took more photographs of earth than any astronaut in history.
In The Work of His Hands, every shot contains lessons about God’s creation, God’s care for His creation, and His wisdom in ordering the universe.
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8 T’s of Stewardship
By Rev. John Heckmann
The 7th "T" — Trash
It is hard to fathom that more than seven billion people now live on planet earth. According to God’s design there are ample resources on earth to satisfy the needs of all living creatures. The truth is that God provides but man divides. Our stewardship of the air, earth, water, crops, livestock and other resources on earth is of critical importance. Polluted air and water, world hunger and trashy environments give evidence to the need for improved stewardship of God’s creation. Find out how you can help.
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Together with All Creatures Bible study Week 2 video
Video produced by Center for the Care of Creation, which exists to promote a deep appreciation of creation by bringing biblical theology to bear on cultural issues related to our life. For more information about this study talk with Pastor Kroonblawd. Click for the video
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A Lutheran View of Science
By Ronald A. Buelow, Ph.D., and Ryan C. MacPherson, Ph.D.
Lutherans distinguish carefully between two senses of “science.” On the one hand, science refers to true knowledge. (“Science” comes from the Latin verb scire, “to know.”) Science must, therefore, agree with Scripture, where God reveals the truth about himself and the world that he created. Because of this agreement, we can speak of science as “divine.”
On the other hand, the word “science” can refer to human behavior. Science is what people do and think when they wear lab coats, conduct experiments, and interpret God’s creation. This human science differs from divine science, since scientists’ conclusions always are tentative and often are proven false by the scientists of later generations.
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Trinity Lone Oak Lutheran
651-454-7235
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