Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I want to express – on behalf of my family – our gratitude for such a warm and hospitable welcome to Our Redeemer. My first month has flown by!

The vicarage house is a blessing to us and it’s starting to feel like home. All the boxes are unpacked.  Routines are getting formed. And yet, just as we are starting to get settled in, things are about to change…

Hawkeye football is just about to kick off, school is in full swing, practices and all sorts of events are filling up the schedule.

With all the hustle and bustle in Iowa City this time of year, Our Redeemer is no exception. So much is “kicking off” at church. Rally Day. Retreats. Programs. Not to mention, the Cross and Entrance construction is right around the corner.

But what I am most excited about is the grand reveal of our brand-new theme (Any guesses on what it might be?!). Our new theme will be central to all we do this next year. The theme will be implemented in the artwork around the building, it will be incorporated in the liturgy, and it will be a guiding feature to various sermon series and Bible studies.

The change of theme at Rally Day presents a great opportunity for the saints at Our Redeemer to recommit themselves to Scripture, prayer, and service to their neighbor. Themes come and go each year, but every theme is unified in motivating us to “let the Word of Christ dwell in [us] richly” (Col. 3:16).

It is tempting – with the business of the calendar – to neglect receiving Christ’s gifts at church or slack in our commitment to daily Scripture reading and prayer. This reminds me of a story from Luther. While he was busy translating the whole Bible, preaching every day, defending the purity of the Gospel, among other things; when he was overwhelmed with all the stuff he had to do.  In response, he spent the rest of the day praying about it!

The Lord of heaven and earth is fully devoted to you. Do not let the business of life affect your devotion to Him.

In Christ, Vicar Morse

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ —

I just attended the LCMS Convention, and for a long time I had absolutely no desire whatsoever to attend.

The national convention of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) began in 1847 in Chicago, Illinois, at First St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, where 12 pastors and 14 congregations signed its founding constitution. Led initially by Dr. C.F.W. Walther, the gathering serves as the primary legislative assembly for setting doctrine, policy, and electing church officers.

On average, the convention has happened about every three years since and follows the district convention held the previous year. At the district convention, resolutions are drafted and sent to the national convention.

I have only attended one district convention early in my ministry. Our district’s convention conflicts with our annual UKANDU youth mission trip. I have always preferred to lead the youth on a mission trip than debate with pastors, and the Elders have always agreed.

But something changed. Two years ago, I was appointed Circuit Visitor. I was appointed by President Saunders because Pastor Mitch Otto stepped down. Pastor Otto served as circuit visitor for years and Pastor Mons for years before him. Essentially, it was my turn.

At the 2025 district convention, in my absence, I was elected Circuit Visitor (a three year term). For the 2026 nation convention, each circuit elects one Pastor and one lay person (from different churches). I was elected by the circuit to attend the 2026 LCMS Convention.

Some have warned that “once you see how the sausage is made” you will never want to eat it, but after attending this year, I disagree. I want to understand it better. I want to be involved more. I want to be a part of making a difference for our beloved synod. I am not a political person, but I am one who stands for justice and righteousness.

Hear the Word of the Lord —
Whereas Amos 5:24 says: “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”

Whereas Micah 6:8 says: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Whereas Isaiah 1:17 says: “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.”

Whereas Matthew 5:6 says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

Therefore, be it resolved: I will pay attention to and participate in synodical business in order to uphold justice and righteousness. I pray that you, too, will find ways to uphold justice and righteousness in your own life. This is what our God has called us to do. Let it be so. Amen.

Blessings, Pastor Hartwig
P.S. I will give a more in-depth presentation on the LCMS Convention during Sunday school this weekend.

I cannot believe how fast this school year has gone! I cannot believe that my family and I only have two months left here at Our Redeemer.  You have all been so gracious and welcoming to us, thank you!

Have you ever noticed how the church year tends to move together with God’s creation? I ask because I did not until I started seminary.  Growing up in the church, the church year simply happened.  Green colors on the pulpit this week, red the next, and purple the week after, I never really paid that much attention.  But the more you look at it, the more it all fits together.  And now in this season of Pentecost, we find ourselves at the end of spring and the beginning of summer.  Think about how many shades of green you seen as you drive around.  The grass, the bushes, the trees, and the new crops planted in rows.  And the shade of green that will hang over the pulpit here at church.  Green to remind us of new life and growth in Christ.  New life found in the waters of your baptism.

In this season of Pentecost, this season of green, we look to the Holy Spirit who holds our faith together.  The one who gives us the gift of faith, the one who keeps us in the faith and the one who surrounds us with His church.  You are surrounded by the church.  The people of God who have been placed in your life to build you up and encourage you.  The people who God uses to strengthen you in the faith.  The people who God has given you to serve and the people God has given you to serve alongside.  You are the church and you get to be the blessing of God to the people around you.

My family and I see it firsthand.  We have been so blessed to be here.  We have been so blessed to be able to watch you work and serve together.  Thank you for inviting us in.  May the Holy Spirit continue to bless you and work through you.

Grace and Peace,
Vicar Andrew Vought

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ –

There is a parable told in India about the selfish man who inherited a rice field.  The first year the man irrigated the field, and it was fruitful.  The water, in fact, flowed into his neighbor’s field, and this too produced a bountiful harvest.

But the next year, the selfish man decided: Why should I let this water flow through my field into his?  Water is precious, and I must keep it.  So he built a dam.  This prevented the water from flowing into his neighbor’s field, but it proved disastrous to his own crop as well.  Irrigation water nourished the field only if it flowed.  When it did not move because of the dam, the water became stagnant and the field a swamp.

We own no rice fields.  Still, the parable is clear.  Think of what we have inherited from God.  Think of all He has given us.  If we are selfish and keep it all for ourselves, our lives become stagnant, a dismal swamp of mere existence. But if we give back to God by giving to others, both the giver and the receiver share in the fruits of God’s love.

I see clear examples of this principle here at Our Redeemer.

First is the Vicarage program.  From the north to the south, from the east to the west, we have men serving as pastors who once did their Vicarage here at Our Redeemer. Twenty-one men have served their Vicarage here at Our Redeemer, and I am blessed to be counted among that fraternity. You, the members of Our Redeemer, have been able to give to others, our Vicars, and now they are sharing the fruit of God’s love with others across this country.  What a joy it is to be part of the Vicarage program.

Second is this facility we call Our Redeemer.  This facility saw major updates in the mid-90s and the mid-teens. Yet again, we are embarking upon facility updates. Now, “decades-old dreams meet present-day needs to become a new reality” with this Cross and Entrance project. For 18 years, we have talked about adding canopies to the exterior entrances, even a second door at each entrance. During the 1996 project, awnings were removed to save money, and the same thing happened in the 2016 project. This is what we mean by an old dream becoming a present reality.

Third is our relationship with the Lutheran Churches of Panama and the Parish Nurses of eSwatini. As I have said before, this congregation has taught me to love missions. What joy it is to bring our resources to help! What bliss is it to bring encouragement to so many who are toiling day in and day out! This is what we get to do when we share our resources with these two very different geographical locations.

It is important that we remember:

If we give back to God by giving to others,
both the giver and the receiver share in the fruits of God’s love.

May God continue to richly bless you!

Pastor Hartwig

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!

In spite of the fact that we are sinful people, God wants us to become involved in His work.
Are we willing to use our talents in service to Him?

Jesus did not pick people from society’s elite when He chose his workers.
He chose a stammering Moses to lead His people out of bondage.
He chose an unhealthy Paul to be the first great missionary of the Church.

Jesus’ disciples were peasants, fishermen, and even a tax collector.
Paul wrote, “For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong…” (1 Corinthians 1:26-28).

The majority of God’s work was done and continues to be done by ordinary people.

Look at the group that is offering and exploring Vacation Bible School possibilities in Panama.
Look at the group that determined the best option for the Cross and Entrance project.
Look at the group that is leading our Enter His Courts Ministry Expansion Campaign.
Look at the group that hosted our campaign kickoff on Super Bowl Sunday.
Look at the group that is preparing for the 53^rd Annual Pancake Day at Our Redeemer.
Look at the group that is preparing for the mission trip to Eswatini this summer.
Look at the group that is signing up for UKANDU in Chicago in June.
Look at the group that…

All of this work is being done by the ordinary people of God’s Kingdom.
All of this work is being done by His people who are called according to His purposes.

It is only by God’s grace that we are saved, called, and equipped to be in His service. If we come into God’s work with impressive talents, we risk taking the glory and credit for ourselves. God desires the weak and the lowly. As Paul said,
“Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

God uses ordinary people to do extra-ordinary things, and look around Our Redeemer, extraordinary things are being done.

God be with you, Pastor Hartwig

Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.

Alleluia! Say it while you can! I know February is not the actual start of Lent, but we are getting close.  Before we know it, Ash Wednesday will be upon us and we will put our Alleluias away for the forty days of Lent.

Do you put anything else away for Lent?  I have been thinking a lot recently on what fasting looks like for us.  The past few years I have fasted all day on Wednesday during Lent and broken my fast at the Wednesday night meal at church.  This year I would like to fast again, but with a better understanding to what the whole point is.  The season of Lent is supposed point us to the cross.  We spend the time focusing on our own sinful condition and our need for a savior.  Fasting is a reminder of our need for a savior and our need for God’s hand to be continually working in our lives to sustain us.  Every good and perfect gift comes from his hand.  He is the one who sustains and provides for you.  He is the one who puts air in your lungs, clothes on your back and food on your table.  Fasting or giving something up for Lent or not saying alleluia for the forty days all remind us of our need and reliance on God our sustainer and our ultimate need for God our redeemer.

Lent is coming.  Ash Wednesday is coming.  Maundy Thursday and Good Friday are coming.  From dust are and to dust we shall return.

But Easter is coming.  Easter has already come.  Christ is crucified and Christ is risen! For you Christ died and for you Christ has risen.  You are forgiven.  And for all of that we say, “Alleluia! Praise the Lord!” Amen.

Vicar Vought

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!

Throughout Scripture, everyone who has come into the presence of the Lord has been in awe of Him and has adored Him.

Think of the Wise Men and their gifts.  The Wise Men came in search of the newborn King, bringing their gifts and bowing before Him in adoration.  Matthew 2:11 records, “And going into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him.” And they offered to the Christ Child the gifts they had brought for Him, “gold and frankincense and myrrh.”

Think of the shepherds and their angelic revelation.  The shepherds adored Him, too. They heard about Jesus from the angels as they sat outdoors watching their sheep and ran to Bethlehem to see the Christ Child. They didn’t have gifts to bring as the Magi did, but they, too, responded in adoration. Luke writes, “And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning the Child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them” (Luke 2: 17-18).

So think of our response.
Sometimes, like the Wise Men, we give monetary gifts to support mission and ministry.
Other times, like the shepherds, we “make known… [what has] been told [us] concerning the Child.”
And all the time, by God’s grace, all of us can respond in faithful obedience to God’s Word.
In these ways, we adore our Savior.

Merry Christmas!
Pastor Hartwig

Dear Christian Friends: 
 
I have said it before, and I am going to say it again… 
Thanks to the Byrds, the words of Ecclesiastes 3 are familiar to much of the world:  
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under Heaven.”  
 
Spring turns to Summer, Summer turns to Fall, and now Fall falls towards the holiday season. We fall back from Daylight Saving Time in the wee hours of the morning of November 2. Yeah, Fall is falling, and Winter is calling. 
“For everything there is a season…”  
 
This is the passage that I was thinking about this morning. It seems like we were just working through the building project we called Vision 2020. That project was to prepare us as a congregation for ministry in the distant year of 2020. That was five years ago. We began that project in 2016. That was ten years ago. However, we actually started the project with the sanctuary roof replacement in 2013. I don’t even want to do the math. 
“For everything there is a season…  
a time to tear down and a time to build…” 
 
Here we are again. On Sunday, October 19, 2025, the Cross and Entrance project was approved by the congregation. The results – 72 yes/4 no. The project passed overwhelmingly, and we found ourselves in the season of building again. We will tear down the laminated wooden cross that has stood faithfully proclaiming the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ since 1969, and we will build a new metal cross to continue forth in the same manner. 
“For everything there is a season…”  
 
Along with this goes the season of a ministry expansion campaign. We will be seeking numerous volunteers to assist with this process, which involves preparing hearts and minds to make campaign promises or commitments. The Spring of 2026 will be the campaign launch, with the fulfillment of the three-year campaign in 2029. 
“For everything there is a season…”  
 
As saints, we don’t go on vacation. In and out of season, we must be prepared to answer the hope that resides within us. Wherever we are, we need to share the Word with whomever God places around us.  
 
Furthermore, we do the same with all that God has given us. We need to be good stewards and return to God what he has given us. We do this directly and indirectly. We use the gifts God has given us to witness to His saving grace as we go about our daily lives. “In season and out of season,” we joyfully proclaim His gift of salvation to all who will hear.  
 
In the love of Christ, Pastor Hartwig 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Alleluia for the start of another theme here at Our Redeemer.  We will be saying alleluia or praise God for all the blessings He gives us.  We have so many wonderful things to praise God for! This year we will focus on our place as part of God’s creation.  He made you and me and everything around us and He continues to sustain all of His creation. So we say Alleluia, praise God.

We praise God for the change of seasons and how He continues to bless us.  We now get to prepare for winter and we get to enjoy the changing of leaves in the trees. We get to see all the fruits of the earth, the apples and pumpkins and corn. We get to be in community with one another at football games and cross country meets.  We get to celebrate holidays with friends and family. For all these wonderful blessings we say, “Alleluia, Praise God!”

Alleluia literally translates to Praise the Lord. It comes from the Hebrew word Hallelujah.   הַ֥לְלוּ יָ֨הּ You can see that in Hebrew Hallelujah is two words.  In Hebrew you read right to left so the first word הַ֥לְלוּ or “hālal” means praise. The second word יָ֨הּ or “yāh” is a shortened version of God’s divine name YHWH.  So when you put it all together hālal and yāh you get hallelujah. The word alleluia comes from Greek. The Greek language does not have a “H” sound so it got dropped off the the beginning of the word. When we say hallelujah or alleluia we are saying “Praise the Lord”.

So this year we will say, “Alleluia, Praise the Lord” for all He gives us!

Vicar Vought