The Chronicle of My Twelve Years at Holy Cross, Emma

 

                Good history requires accurate original sources. Through the years, church records, even when they record boring things, have proved critical for researchers. That is my goal in putting this chronicle together. For both my sake and Holy Cross’s sake, there needs to be a record of what happened here during the time that God called me to serve in Emma.

                This is especially true for the events of 2020 which were certainly the craziest of my time at Holy Cross. While there will no doubt be many sources about the COVID pandemic, the stories of individual congregations and how they handled it will need to be told.

                The main sources for this document are the planners I kept for the years 2012-2024. This was supplemented by a few minutes from elders meetings and videos which are still on YouTube. If nothing else, I hope this helps the next people who have to write a history book for Holy Cross.

The year of our Lord 2012

May 1, I was called to serve Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Emma, MO. Julia and I expected this after a meeting with the placement director a few weeks before. We were excited and quickly realized that Emma was a lot like New Minden.

May 19, The day after graduation, Julia and I went to Emma for the first time to drop off books from my dorm room.

August 3, Julia and I were married at Christ Lutheran Church, Normal, IL and then honeymooned in Daytona Beach, FL until August 11.

August 19, Julia and move to Emma. All our wedding presents were still in their boxes which made them much easier to pack. We were met that afternoon by an excited group of people who helped us unload the truck and put furniture in place. We offered to buy pizza for those who came to help, but someone else picked up the tab instead.

August 23, Jessie Hemme passed away and I prepared to do the funeral, which would take place on August 27.

August 26, I was ordained and installed as pastor at Holy Cross at a service at 3 PM. Dad preached the sermon on Matthew 9:1-8. He brought the scrap of paper Grandpa Mueller wrote his funeral text on (1 Timothy 1:15) and Uncle Bill (who served as the lector) brought Grandpa’s snowshoes from Aunt Ruth’s house in Indiana. Grandpa used those to make visits when he was a pastor in North Dakota in the 1940s. Rev. Dr. Herbert Mueller Jr (my uncle and godfather) was the presiding minister and conducted the ordination and installation. There’s a picture of us the four of us that hung for years in Grandma Mueller’s house until she went to the nursing home. It now hangs in my office. Julia’s Grandma Ruth Graff was able to attend but she passed away only a few weeks later.

September 23 Paxton Hemme was the first baby I baptized.

September 28, Julia and I attended our first of many PALS (post seminary learning and support) meeting with other news pastors at Timothy, Blue Springs. The meetings were led by Pastor Fran Lieb.

One change we made some time that fall was to move Sunday School for kids after church rather than during church. This was done so that kids to be in the service and the Sunday School teachers could go to communion. Sunday School attendance did dip, but in the long run, this change was worth it.

Also, that fall we added a class for kids in 5-6^th grade to review the Bible. This class met twice a month. After this class, the 7-8^th graders would come in for their lesson. With both classes on Sunday evenings, it made for a very long day!

The year of our Lord 2013

February 25, we had a big snow storm

March 9, Steven and Jaala Schlesselman were the first couple I married.

March 30, The first Easter Egg Hunt was held at 11:00 AM. This was an idea we took from St. John’s New Minden, IL, (my home congregation). This was once again, a plan to use the space we had in service to God. We had several thousand eggs that year but, in the following years we quickly made it to 10,000 eggs. Bible verses were placed in some eggs and all eggs had candy. You can’t really hide 10,000 eggs, but we scattered them across the circle drive by the flagpole, yard on the West side of the church, and playground. This was a great event, and we would do it each year following.

June 26 was the day of the first Cross Camp. Donna Oetting and I created this idea from our shared experience as camp counselors. The purpose of Cross Camp was to provide time for kids in upper elementary grades to learn about God in his creation since we have so much space at Holy Cross. Originally this was planned as a full day event but in later years it was cut down to only an afternoon. We had kids make their own food over a campfire and do outdoor activities and hear a devotion. Since kids from Holy Cross attend so many different schools, the goal was to bring all the kids together and help them get to know each other. Two additional days were held on July 26 (the first water day) and 31. Cross Camp would become an annual tradition.

September 12 For the first time I lead the Thursday Morning Men’s Bible Study at St. Paul Hight School. This group was started by Pastor Brandt in the late 1980s and outlived several restaurants until it landed at SPLHS. The class meets at 6:30 AM. They break at 7:00 when breakfast begins and have a second half after everyone is finished. The class dismisses at 8:00 AM. I took over from Walter Loeber who had been leading for several years.

September 22, I took part in one of the first International Services at SPLHS. International students were invited to come to the chapel there and hear the readings and a sermon but say the Lord’s Prayer and Apostle’s Creed in their own language.

November 13, That Sunday we announced to the congregation that there would be a baby in the parsonage for the first time in forty years!

That same say, at about noon, my home church, St. John’s New Minden, IL was hit by a tornado. Two people were killed and nearly twenty homes destroyed. I spent Monday-Thursday of that week at home helping with the cleanup efforts and putting together a prayer service for that Wednesday evening. Holy Cross sent $1,000 to help with the rebuilding efforts. I was very touched by this act of generosity.

The year of our Lord 2014  

April 19, Lunch was added to the second annual Easter Egg Hunt.

May 20 Hannah Grace Mueller was born at Center Pointe Hospital in Independence! She was two weeks early but healthy and welcomed home. Hannah was the first baby to live in the parsonage since Philip Shumpe, who was born in the bathtub some forty years before.

June 18 Cross Camp had the theme “Light and Dark” and was held from 8-11 PM. We never had Cross Camp end that late again!

October 12 A monument dedicated to the bravery of the “home guard” who defended the community on October 10, 1864 but were massacred was dedicated just north of the church. Rev. Craig Muehler, a US Navy Chaplain served as our guest speaker that morning and gave the invocation and benediction at the dedication. The event was well attended.

December 21 The 150^th Anniversary of Holy Cross Lutheran Church kicked off that Sunday with a special service. I preached on the Gospel reading (Luke 1:26-38). Items sold included Christmas ornaments, history books, crocks, and T-shirts.

The year of our Lord 2015

 January 18 The second 150^th Anniversary service saw President Ray Mirly of the Missouri District preaching. The Singing Saints added their voices to make a beautiful service with the theme “Take up the Cross” based on the confession of St. Peter (Mark 8:27-35).

March 1 Uncle Herb, who was serving as Frist Vice President of the LCMS, as our third anniversary speaker. It snowed that day so the kids who were supposed to come from Trinity, Alma, didn’t make it. Of course, the snow didn’t even stick around until the end of the meal. But we enjoyed hearing Uncle Herb give a presentation about the work of the synod.

March 27 After blood work that showed I had low iron levels, I went in for a colonoscopy. This revealed a tumor about the size of a baseball which explained all the symptoms I had been having, bleeding, weight loss, fatigue and others. The surgeon didn’t want to wait and scheduled me for surgery next Tuesday, March 31. Poor Julia and Hannah (who was at this point just ten months old) had to be alone when they got this news. This just so happened to be the Tuesday of Holy Week! But when this happens, you don’t say, “Doc, I’m a little busy next week, can we put this off a few days?” You say, “okay, let’s do this!” Before leaving the hospital, I had preachers lined up for all the Holy Week services. The church would be fine.

March 31 I had surgery to remove the tumor and 14 inches of my colon. This left me with a semi-colon. This time Julia and Hannah were not alone in the waiting room. My Dad and her Mom were both there along with Pastor Jim Dahlke, David Schelp, and Lonnie Weber. I was released from the hospital on Good Friday (April 3) and foolishly made it to church that night.

April 19 was the fourth anniversary service with Rev. Dr. Ken Klaus, the beloved former Lutheran Hour Speaker as guest speaker. The theme for that Sunday was “Lift High the Cross” About a week before I called Pastor Klaus and let him know the situation that I was recovering from major surgery. This would be my first Sunday back as I would do the liturgy and he would preach. He took it as his personal mission to make sure that I didn’t overdo it that weekend. We began the night before with a meal at the BBQ restaurant in Concordia. David Schelp saw to it that he was served bologna after his “Bologna Shop” videos which we enjoyed. Watching the men from Men’s Club and the committee meet Dr. Klaus was like watching someone meet Michael Jordan. Although they were star-struck, Dr. Klaus was incredibly approachable and pastoral.

The service that day was packed. One thing that kept him humble, he said, was that “Joyce Meyers gets standing room only”. Just because they’re coming to hear you, doesn’t mean you’re right! Dr. Klaus gave a wonderful sermon and at the meal afterwards another good presentation. This meal was catered the special event along with a large birthday cake for Holy Cross.

May 12, I received the first of 12 chemo treatments at Western Missouri Medical Center in Warrensburg.

June 7, Pastor Rick Swanson, the Intentional Interim Pastor who was at Holy Cross from 2009-2012 was the guest speaker with the theme “Message of the Cross”

July 19 Rev. Dr. Philip Brandt, son of former pastor Maynard Brandt, was the guest speaker at our first outdoor service. His theme was “Shaped by the Cross”

August 18, was the first day of the CROSS After School Care program. This was something that grew out of our desire to reach the needs of the community during our 150^th Anniversary. In December of 2014, the FLASH program which hosted many kids from Sweet Springs after school closed. We decided to try and provide this service at Holy Cross. We were able to get both the buses from Sweet Springs and Concordia to stop and drop off the kids. Although the program never had more than ten kids, it was always a joy to stop in and help with the Bible Story. To do this, we hired Darlene Dotson from Sweet Springs to run things and filled in various volunteers over the years. The program closed in 2023.

September 13-18 Bruce Hartwig was in the hospital all week and near death. I had been doing chemo every other week and this happened to be an off week. If it had not been, I would not have been able to see him in the hospital. This family needed me to be there, and I was able to do this because it just so happened to be the off week. This happened several times over the course of the chemo treatments. It also happened more than once that I would go to the hospital only to find that my numbers weren’t where they wanted them, so treatment was delayed. Only then would we find that someone had died or was in the hospital. Now I would be able to help them. God took care of us through this time in some pretty big ways!  

October 19 After Pastor Lee Hagan was elected as our new District President, I helped fill the vacancy by teaching for a quarter at St. Paul’s Lutheran School in Concordia. Over the course of the vacancy (which lasted until February of 2018) I would teach four quarters at St Paul’s.

November 1 The 150^th Anniversary service had the theme “Saints in Glory: Saints Under the Cross”. Once again, I preached, and the text was Revelation 7:9-17.

November 7-8 The play “A Christmas Chaos” took place directed by Susan Schelp and Phylis Stuerke. Most of the actors were members of Holy Cross. The play was a very funny comedy based on Dicken’s a Christmas Carol. The play was part of a dinner theater to support the 2016 mission trip to South Africa. (More on that later.)

November 10, I received my final chemo treatment.

The year of our Lord 2016

February 6, Julia threw me a surprise birthday party for my 30^th birthday and invited congregation members, members of the Thursday morning Bible Class, Africa team, and area pastors. It was a great event hosted at The Palace in Concordia.

April 22, Holy Cross hosted the choir and bands from Racine Lutheran High School in Wisconsin.

May 31-June 14, twenty-one members of Holy Cross and neighboring congregations (Immanuel, Sweet Springs; St. Paul’s Concordia; Zion, Blackburn; Immanuel, Higginsville; and Bethlehem Warrensburg) left for a week of service in South Africa. We had been planning this trip for over a year and were glad to serve in Ntshongweni Village where Julia had served as a missionary from 2010-2012. We built a house for a family in need. We were also able to conduct VBS for the kids who were there and do some painting around the creche (pre-school) run by the church. The trip also included a few nights at game reserve and a visit to the Indian Ocean at Durban.

Sometime that summer we had our first Outdoor Movie Night. The movie was The Incredibles. A long time ago in Emma there used to be movies during the summer that would be shown on the wall of the General Store. This was a great tradition that we wanted to see continue, figuring that it would a good way to involve people form the community and enjoying time together. 

November 13-19, Four members of Holy Cross and I traveled to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to help families effected by flooding earlier in the year. There we were met by my Dad and one other member of the congregation in Illinois. We spent most of their time installing drywall and enjoying Cajan food.

The year of our Lord 2017

2016 was the last year that Thrivent published its planers for pastors. For the year 2017, I used a planner produced by a pastor from the Lutheran Church—Canada. It mostly worked, but I had to double check to make sure I had the right day for Thanksgiving. After 2018, I used the planners produced by CPH.

April 23, Rev. Hesham Shehab, a native of Lebanon, was our mission speaker and he told his inspiring story of his conversion to the Christian faith from Islam. He had been part of an Islamic militia during the civil war in Lebanon in the early 1980s when he heard Jesus say in the Gospel of Matthew, “Love your enemies.” This turned his world upside down and started him on a journey to faith in Jesus. He now serves as a pastor in Chicago reaching out to immigrants from the Middle East.

April 28, Zachariah Joseph Mueller was born at Center Pointe Hospital in Independence, MO. He was born on a Friday, and we got out of the hospital on Sunday morning. It rained the entire time we were in the hospital.

May 28-June 3 Several members of our Youth Group traveled to Camp Restore in Detroit, Michigan to work alongside several families from the community. Camp Restore is hosted at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church which had turned its old classrooms into dormitories for people coming to help. Our first day on the job was beset with trials. There was a (unsubstantiated) bomb threat against the charter school which used the building. I stepped on a nail. We remarked “This has got to be something good otherwise the devil wouldn’t be working so hard against it.”

August 21 Emma is part of the “path of totality” for the Great American Eclipse.

September, Lindy Bodenstab becomes church secretary.

October 22 The circuit celebrate the 500^th Anniversary of the Reformation with a festival service of readings, hymns, and quotations from Martin Luther at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Concordia.

During October, I contemplated a call to Our Savior and St. John’s Lutheran Churches in Aberdeen and Columbia, South Dakota. This was my first call while serving Holy Cross and I was glad to “choose” Holy Cross and give the people a boost.

November 18 Leonard the Leopard joins the Holy Cross office. He was an item at an estate sale in Emma where the Dorcas ladies were selling food. I saw this two-foot concrete leopard and told Karen Weber “you need that.” To which she replied, “no, you need that.” Later that afternoon I was in my office when in snuck Rhonda Dice, who had purchased the cat for a dollar and was trying to sneak it in. We named him “Leonard” and he has been in the church office ever since.

December 10, The sermon is posted on YouTube for the first time.

The year of our Lord 2018

March 11, The service is live streamed on YouTube for the first time.

During Lent there was a series of dramas performed by members of the congregation. Each drama was a conversation between two people in involved in Jesus’ passion. For example; Nicodemus and Caiaphas, Pilate and his wife, A Roman soldier and Simon of Cyrene, Peter and John (cleaning up from the Last Supper), and the women with the angel at the tomb. This was well received and remembered fondly.

April 15 A new metal cross on the North side of the church was dedicated. The cross uses the LCMS logo and was made by Paul Allen. It was given as a memorial after the death of Laverne Gieselman. We thought that April 15 should have good weather for all of us to go outside after the service and dedicate the cross. Instead of warm weather, there were snowflakes in the air! The dedication service was very brief.

July, I deliberated a call to Messiah, Caryle, Illinois, which is 20 miles from where I grew up. I declined this call.

July, work begins on a new roof for the church. The trustees were not able to get anyone to go up and replace the roof because of its steep pitch. The congregation chose to raise $70,000 to put on a new metal roof. Members were asked to make pledges towards the project. People were moved by the generosity of their brothers and sisters in Christ and the new roof was paid for by the time work was completed.

August, after Rev. Dan Wing had served two weeks as circuit visitor, he accepted a call to Lincoln, Nebraska, leaving me as circuit visitor. In January, at the Circuit Forum, the votes were deadlocked between Dan and me. After a few rounds, Paul Mehl suggested we cast lots by flipping a coin citing Proverbs 16:33 and 18:18. We did this and that is how Dan was elected as circuit visitor—a position he held for all of two weeks.

The year of our Lord 2019

February 8-23, I traveled to Uganda to teach an intensive class on Romans at the Lutheran Theological College of Uganda. I was first invited to take this trip back in 2008 when I was a student at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Pretoria, South Africa. Many of the students there at the time were from Uganda and they said, “When we start a seminary in Uganda, you need to come and teach.” To which I said, “Okay?” They started the Lutheran Theological College of Uganda in 2017 with the purpose of training pastors for the Lutheran Church of Uganda. Enoch Macben, who was principal, invited me to come and either teach on Romans or the Small Catechism. They like having parish pastors come and teach because our focus is application of the topics rather than academics. It was a great experience, and I will continue to do this.

March 16, My grade school and high school classmate Angie Dinkelman Sani gave a vocal concert at Holy Cross.

July 11-15 Holy Cross and Immanuel Sweet Springs teamed up to send seven people to the LCMS Youth Gathering in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The year of our Lord 2020

The events of the 2020 were some of the strangest anyone in the church had ever encountered. The COVID-19 Pandemic was the first major crisis of the Post-Christian era in the west and we did not handle it well.

The world outside may have not handled it well, but within Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Emma, we handled it well. People got along, were kind to each other, and even when we had disagreements, we were able to work them out in a good way.

During this time, we heavily relied on our elders to make radical decisions quickly. Often, we didn’t know what to do. No one really did. But by God’s grace we made it through without losing anyone. In fact, through COVID, God blessed Holy Cross with growth! As best as I can piece together the events, here’s how it happened.

February 16, Men’s Club held their first dart-ball tournament.

February 29, I took a day and drove to St. Louis to see my Uncle Herb at Barnes Hospital where he was dealing with cancer. That day all of his siblings and mom were able to be with him and receive communion together. Normally when you visit someone, you pick the verses you share with someone. Not Uncle Herb! He told you what he wanted to hear and made you read that. Today it was my turn to read 1 Peter 1. He said it nearly word for word as I read it. As many Christians are, he was not afraid to die, just afraid of everything that’s going to happen until he died. This was a great day. I even got to see my Grandma who my Aunts had brought down from Indiana.

Monday, March 9, After making a call on a shut-in in Warrensburg, I heard about the first case of COVID in Missouri. COVID-19 first began in China, but by this point was already affecting many people in Italy. The first case of COVID in Missouri was a woman who had traveled to Italy, flown to Chicago, and then taken the train from Chicago to St. Louis. Throughout the week, there was talk of limiting the number of people who could gather in public (and even private) spaces. We were introduced to the phrase “social distancing”.

That evening we had a meeting for elders, ushers, and greeters to talk about being even better at welcoming people. No mention was made of the impending COVID crisis.

Sunday, March 15, We didn’t know it at the time, but this would be our last service together for weeks. The sermon was “Peace and Joy in Suffering” based on Romans 5:1-8.

Monday, March 16, This was one day where we made a plan of how to go forward in the morning to present that evening to the elders, but that afternoon the rules changed and I had to bring a completely different plan to the elders.

Tuesday, March 17, In a video message to the congregation, I outlined our response to COVID-19 which we decided in the elders meeting the night before. Services through April 1 were suspended. (This was the “two weeks to flatten the curve”.) A video would be produced each Sunday and Wednesday with the readings, the sermon, and prayers for each service. The Lord’s Supper would be offered on Sunday mornings from 9-12. People were to come in groups of less than ten to comply with CDC suggestions. Reference was made to the 1918 Flu Epidemic when some churches closed all activities for six weeks and it greatly helped stop the spread of that pandemic.

Wednesday, March 18 The first Lenten service video was produced. This was the first one where I went “on location” for a children’s sermon. That year we had begun to give out eggs with little objects to tell the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. We wouldn’t be able to do that anymore, but this led to some creativity. We went on an egg “hunt” in the video which led us to the sink so I could wash my hands. This fit really well since that week was about Pilate washing his hands.

Thursday, March 19, Another video walked people through how people would come into church for communion. They were to wait in their cars and either listen to the service at Immanuel Sweet Springs and the Lutheran Hour on KMMO or go over “Christian Questions and Answers” from the Small Catechism. An elder would welcome them into the church and then once the sanctuary was clear, send them into the church. There I would lead people through the Apostle’s Creed, Confession and Absolution, prayers, and the Words of Institution. After each family left, everything would be sanitized. Families would proceed out the side door. In this video, I reminded people that in this time when we are supposed to be isolated, Christ is here for us!

Saturday, March 21, Harper Nelson was baptized in a private service. It was during this service that I received the call that Uncle Herb had died. Due to COVID restrictions, only his immediate family would be able to attend the funeral (which would have been huge in any other circumstance.) How good is our Lord! As one saint enters rest another is received into the kingdom.

Sunday, March 22, On our first Sunday with the new communion set up, 44 people came to receive Communion at church.

Wednesday, March 25, Another midweek video was produced. At this point I was getting pretty good at video editing. The year before the church bought a new computer. I was asking my brother Daniel, a software engineer, what computer I should get. He suggested two, one that would be good for video editing. “I don’t do any video editing” I said and got the other one. I should have done that differently.

Sunday, March 29, another Sunday with the new communion set up. This time 50 came to receive Communion.

Monday, March 30, Julia went into labor that afternoon. That evening, I met with the elders and congregational president. Rules had changed again. Now groups were not allowed to meet indoors. It was decided to cancel all services until further notice, even through Holy Week and Easter. This was a difficult decision. After the meeting was over, President Adam Dohrman said, “Pastor, go have a baby.” And that’s what we did.

After I got home from the meeting, Julia and I got into the car and drove to Centerpointe Hospital. Things were changing so quickly that we didn’t know what the rules would be for our stay in the hospital. I would be the only one allowed to see Julia and the baby. But would I be allowed to come back in if I had to leave for food? Those questions could wait. Julia was in labor, and we wouldn’t get there in time for her to get an epidural.

Tuesday, March 31, Just after 2:00 AM, Abigail Ruth Mueller entered the world. I wept for joy for so many reasons. So many terrifying things were happening in the world, there was so much uncertainty about the future. It was also five years to the day since my surgery for colon cancer. And here, in the midst of all of this, God had still been good. He had given me the gift of a healthy baby girl. Her name, “Abigail” means “My father’s joy” which was the perfect name for her to receive.

Thursday, April 2, The midweek video was posted a day late because we were in the hospital.

Friday, April 3, As soon as we brought Abby home from the hospital, we headed down to the church for baptism. Julia’s parents and my parents were able to be there (although we did have to wait a while for my dad). We were able to get the sponsors on a Google meeting and they watched the baptism that way. Again, as the world was falling apart around us, here was God’s goodness. Our little girl received forgiveness, life, and salvation in that blessed flood. What a joy it was to receive this gift of light in the darkness!

With that many people at our house, we were able to record some audio that would be used in videos for future services. These included the Lord’s Prayer, Apostle’s Creed, and Confession. We also made plans to record hymns and stitch together videos that had the words to songs so people could sing along. That afternoon, dad and I met with Ken and Cindy Fuchs, and we recorded the music for Easter. This would be critically important as Holy Week was about to begin. At some point we were able to get a few people together on a few occasions to record music for a few Sundays and the Holy Week services.

Palm Sunday, April 5 This was the first service edited together. The basic outline would be opening hymn, confession and absolution, the collect of the day, the readings, the Apostle’s Creed, sermon hymn, the sermon, prayers, the benediction, and closing hymn. These pieces were either pre-recorded or recorded especially for that day. Neal Stuerke was a great help. He was there faithfully each week to help me record the pieces of the service, which I would then stitch together and post on YouTube. This took quite some time, but it was rewarding because we were reaching a lot of people with these videos. Many people outside of our congregation watched because it was really easy to find and didn’t have the issues of lagging as often happened on livestreams.

Wednesday, April 8 During the day, we filled the parts for the Maundy Thursday service. It was strange to have a service about the Lord’s Supper when we couldn’t actually have the Lord’s Supper. That video ended with a dramatized reading of Jesus and his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane through his trial before Pilate.

That evening, we filled the parts for the Good Friday service. The opportunity to film things beforehand allowed us to have some creativity once again. The sermon theme was “Alone” and the text was “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” We opened the video with the audio clip of what had played at the end of the previous night’s service. Then we had a shot of me standing in front of an empty church reading Psalm 22 (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?).

One of the meaningful features of that service is a series of candles being extinguished as the Gospel is read. Rather than film me putting them out the typical way, we did something clever. We want to show the candles going out on their own. But how? Here’s what we did. Neal and I found a three-foot length of pvc pipe about an inch in diameter. I would lay on the floor behind the altar, point the pipe up towards the candle and give a puff of air. Neal would guild me to be sure that the pipe stayed out of sight below the altar. We didn’t use the audio from that video because it was Neals’ constant direction, “A little higher, a little to the left. Ect.” The video ended with audio of our bell tolling 33 times. I was able to put the video together the next day and it came together well. It was moving.

Good Friday, April 10, The Good Friday video had been so moving, but had to be topped for Easter. How was that going to happen? It took some planning. Earlier in the week I asked for videos of people saying “He is risen indeed” with their family. The morning of Good Friday had me out on the cemetery getting two shots of the sunrise. One was of the sun coming up and shining on the graves. The other was of a cross placed among the tombstones. From the back of the cemetery the video captured the sun rising over the cross and tombstones. There was an additional shot taken from inside the sanctuary of the sunlight coming in. All three of these were either timelapse or sped up as fast as could be. Neal and I also filled a video of the Christ candle being blown out. The only place we could find where we could get enough darkness was the men’s bathroom. Yes, we took the Christ candle into the men’s room and filmed it being blown out. Play this footage backwards and it would look like the candle came to life be itself. All of these shots would be edited together to make the Easter intro video.

Easter Sunday, April 12, The now famous Easter video went like this; it opens with audio of a dramatic summary of Jesus’ passion from his time in the garden to his death and the tomb slamming shut. It was intense! Then come the words, “Son of man, can these bones live?” From there we launch into a the timelapse sunrise videos spliced together with different Old Testament promises of the resurrection. This was followed by the video of the candle coming to life with me saying “Christ is risen” and then the videos of different families saying “He is risen indeed! Alleluia!” From there the service begins. I’ve made a lot of videos both of church services and of my layout, but nothing will ever top that.

May 5 The first communion service back was a Tuesday evening service so that two adults who had been going through adult instruction could be confirmed and receive the Lord’s Supper for the first time.

May 7 A video published that day explains the process for coming back to church, including a new procedure for communion distribution that accommodated social distancing. Basically, I would place the elements on a small table for each family as they came up and then step away. This video was helpful to other congregations who were working on their plans to come back from COVID as well.

May 8 The confirmands were questioned and would receive the Lord’s Supper for the first time. The Rite of Confirmation, however, would not be done until July 26.

Mother’s Day May 10 Finally, we were allowed to have in-person services again. We began by having services at 8:00 and 10:00 each limited to about 50 people. We asked people to sit every three rows. Each row people were allowed in was marked with a flower. This was far more friendly than many congregations that put caution tape on pews that were not open. We had 64 at our early service and 54 people at our late service. It was agreed that for the time being, every service should have communion because we didn’t know when people would come back and wanted to be sure that people would be able to come to communion on the Sunday they came back. Live streaming resumed that day as well, saving me quite a bit of time video editing.  

June 28, “COVID Compassion” was introduced. This was an offering to help people who had been affected by COVID. For months before we had been in “reaction mode” now it was time for us to stop reacting and start being proactive. Our goal was to raise $1,000 with a match from our endowment. We would give $500 four different places. Gift cards of $50 to local grocery stores would be given to families in our congregation and community who had lost work. More money was given to congregations in our area that were also helping people. Part of this money went to St. Paul High School to help student have a social event once they came back. Other money was given to LUMA in Kansas City and Messiah, Independence for their ministry to people from the Congo. The rest was split between Pastor Mandla Thwala who would use it to help 14 different families in South Africa and Hearts and Hope which was helping the Lutheran Church of Uganda provide aid to families there. I was very thankful that people came through with the money needed for this project.

July 10 The first of three movie nights were held. We got a deal on license to show more movies. Since we couldn’t do much inside, this was a perfect thing to do.

July 12, After having two services since May 10, we went back to having one service at 9:00 AM.

July 19, The four private baptisms that took place during the lockdown were publicly recognized in the service.

July 26, Confirmation Sunday for Wyatt Oliveros and Ava Hemme.

September 6, More people watch church online than in person for the first time since May 10. The number of cases of COVID was on the rise in our area. For the entire time we were locked down, there wasn’t a single case of COVID in our area. But it was September when our

September 13, I counted at least thirty people in our congregation who were quarantined on that day. Most of these were because kids in their class had been exposed to someone who was exposed to COVID. Zach wound up being out of school (his first year of pre-school) for six weeks because either his sisters or his classmates had COVID. He was never sick even once.

September 15, The first episode of “Help! I’m Teaching Sunday School” premieres. My brother Paul and I made this series to help parents who would be leading their kids through Sunday School materials we left out. Paul had moved and wouldn’t start a new job until after Christmas, so he was free to be part of this project. Each week, the two of us would walk listeners through the text and answer questions kids might have. This continued through March of 2021.

October 31 The first 2 PM service is held. A few people weren’t comfortable with the move back to one service. We accommodated this by adding a communion service at 2 PM once every three weeks. This service continues to this day but is now only once a month.

November 4 Communion is offered at the Lutheran Good Shepherd Home for the first time since March. Pastors stood outside the window and talked to residents on the phone. Services with the consecration of the sacrament were done in this way for months afterwards. We would provide the elements to the nursing home. The home had wonderful activities staff at that time who would help with the distribution to the residents. At first they brought residents one at a time to the window. Later, they would be brought in groups.

November 27 Marrian Horman passes away at the Good Shepherd Home. In normal circumstances, her large family would have been there with her, comforting her and being comforted by her. Before COVID there was a parade of people from her family visiting her every Sunday after church. But that just couldn’t happen due to COVID restrictions. When her visitation was held on December 1, I reminded the family (who took up half the funeral home) that they would see her again and get all that time they missed back.

December 11-12 The first Christkindlesmarkt was held at St. Paul Lutheran High School.

December 24, three Christmas Eve services were held, one at 4:00 with the Lord’s Supper, the Children’s Service at 7:00 and a midnight service at 10:00. The first two were well attended but only 8 people were at the last one.

The year of our Lord 2021

March 21, The coolest story of someone coming to faith resulted in four baptisms on this day. Back in the spring of 2020 Nicole Trease called our church asking about our after-school program, She and her husband Guy were looking for something for their twin boys who would be in kindergarten the next year. They had just purchased a house in Emma and would be moving over the summer from Ohio. The parish education board made the decision to keep the program open even though Walker and Waylon would be the only two kids in the program. Because “this is the only place they will get Jesus.” This was one of the most faithful decisions I’ve ever seen a board make. The kids came and were welcomed by Darelene and Diane. The family didn’t have a church, but people made them feel quite welcome and the kids were learning Bible stories in the after-school program.

Christmas rolled around and COVID was still wreaking havoc on people’s plans. Kids still couldn’t go to the mall and visit Santa Clause. Nicole asked on Facebook if any Santas were doing visits where kids could sit on their laps. Steve Bacon, a Holy Cross member, and Santa offered to come after one of his Santa gigs. He visited with the family as Santa and explained that Santa was checking on them since they moved. Now he knew where to bring the gifts. At the end of the visit, Steve said, “Why don’t you guys come to church.” The next Sunday the whole family was in church. By the beginning of this year, they were in new member class. One March 21, Waylon and Walker were baptized (100% of the after school care program enrollment!) their brother Hershel was baptized. Their dad Guy was baptized, and their mom Nicole was confirmed! What a great day!

April 25 After a few months of work by the Men’s Club, the former cemetery of Zion Lutheran Church, Dunksburg, was restored. A new stone marker was put in place (the place had been marked by an old TV tray with the words, “Zion Luthern Cemetery”) Brush had been cleared and a few trees felled to make the area suitable. The bell of the old church is now at Grace, Lexington and we used a recording of their bell at the beginning of the service. People from St. Paul’s Concordia, Holy Cross, Emma, and Immanuel, Sweet Springs all helped in this project, so Pastor Alan Mueller (Immanuel) and I did the service.

May 5 Bob Loges passed away at Western Missouri Medical Center in Warrensburg. Things had loosened up at this point. This large family was able to be with him as he passed away. I remember being shocked to walk into the hospital room and see so many people gathered around.

The year of our Lord 2022

February 10-26, I traveled to Uganda again to teach at the Lutheran Theological College. This time I was able to see the students I had in 2019 graduate. COVID was still rearing its ugly head. I had to take a COVID test within two days of leaving and keep a mask on for the entire flight. That was no fun. But, on the way over I happened to cross paths with Pastor David Federwitz from Lutheran Bible Translators who attends Holy Cross. He was on his way back from Nigeria and I was on my way to Uganda, and we had the same layover in Amsterdam.

In Uganda, schools had just reopened after being closed for two years. The were a few nights when no one else was in the hotel. I know this because instead of putting out a whole buffet, they asked what I wanted for breakfast and just made that. It was still a good trip!

June 5, The Men’s Club celebrated their 75^th Anniversary by hosting the Lutheran Hour Speaker, Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler. He preached and then did a presentation at a meal provided after the service.

July 8-13, Seven youth and adults from Holy Cross participate in the National Youth Gathering in Houston Texas.

September 28, I was invited to take part in training to “extend the bench” at Spirit Chapel at Whiteman AFB. The chaplains there wanted to get to know area pastors and help area pastors get to know the base. If an event that resulted in massive casualties should ever occur, they would need help at the chapel, so they have made it a goal to get to know area pastors.

October 9-11 Hannah was in the hospital with some strange stomach issues. The outreach of love from the people of Holy Cross both then and in the months that followed was incredible.

The year of our Lord 2023

March 4, First annual Thrivent Fish Fry held at Holy Cross. Evan Johnson provides music.

July 23 Evan Johnson was installed as Director of Christian Education. His duties include helping with the activities of the Parish Education Board (Sunday School, Youth Group, VBS, the Christmas Service, and others).

July 29-August 3, I served as our pastoral delegate to the LCMS Synodical Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The most notable events from that convention were approving fellowship with churches in Uganda and South Sudan where I know people.

September 13 The first “Ignite” Youth night is held. This became a tradition each Wednesday. At 7:30 a bus would bring students from St. Paul High School. For the first half hour there would be food and fellowship time. The second half hour would be singing, a message (usually by me) and prayer. The final half hour was devoted to small group discussions. While most of the kids were from St. Paul High School, a few of our kids joined. You could also see that this was a huge need for St. Paul High School, giving kids a place to talk about their faith off campus.

October 16 Since Sweet Springs has no school on Mondays, and both of my 7-8^th grade confirmation students attend there, we moved confirmation from Sunday evenings to Monday mornings.

The year of our Lord 2024

January 25-February 10 Once again I traveled to Uganda to teach at the Lutheran Theological College. This time my dad was able to come with me.

March 2, This was the first Father-Son Nerf Battle in the gym. This was well attended with 28 dads and boys shooting at each other all morning. This was followed by a devotion on fatherhood. Later that day I was extended a call to serve at Hope Lutheran Church and School in Shawnee, Kansas.

April 7, I announced to the congregation that I accepted the call to Hope, Shawnee. This was also the day of the first “Generational Tea” Women of all ages gathered for a rather fancy tea party organized by Evan Johnson. The event brough in nearly 70 women. Vicki Pottschmidt, pastor’s wife from Concordia, was the speaker.

May 26, My last Sunday at Holy Cross Emma

June 2, Installation at Hope Lutheran Church and School, Shawnee, Kansas