Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
It sure has been a year to remember, hasn’t it? Before going out on Vicarage, I was told that this year would shape me in ways I couldn’t have imagined. Even then, I’m sure none of us saw something like the Coronavirus coming our way. The year 2020 certainly has been a year for the books. From the first day I arrived here at Our Redeemer, I constantly heard of Vicars being used to mark the passage of time. It wasn’t uncommon for me to hear, “Was that during Vicar Scheele’s time? I guess it could have been Wolfgram or maybe even Addleson, definitely not as recent as Otterman though.”
Certainly, it’s one of the many blessings you have as the people of Our Redeemer. To mark time with the Vicars who have been blessed to serve here. It is as if the life of the church here is a constant stream and for mere
moments, truly only months at a time, does a Vicar get to dip his toes in the water and see all the wonderful work that God is doing here at Our Redeemer.
This year is no exception. As we have begun packing, Rachel and I have found ourselves discussing our year here and the ways our family has grown and through it all, it is abundantly clear, God has a plan. It wasn’t until I looked at back of a drawing that Rachel gave me back in college that I saw I had jokingly written, “In the year of our lord 2016”. It was an old way of marking time and I’m sure I thought it was hilarious when I wrote it. But it’s true, it was the year of our Lord.
Even through a year of change with quarantines, zoom Bible studies, livestream services, or even the
consistent moments like Pancake Day, Children’s Christmas Service, Vicar’s Installation, it was still the year of our Lord. Through the waters of Baptism, God continued to use Our Redeemer to make disciples for Jesus. The people of God were continually blessed to receive the Lord’s Supper, even if for the first time in Our Redeemer history a service began with cars honking their horns to a pastor speaking to them over the radio. Over YouTube services and in-person worship, you and I have been blessed to hear the Word spoken to us. The Word which is as constant as ever. That Word which became flesh and dwelt among man.
Truly, this year is still the year of our Lord.
The life of the Church is a never-ending stream begun in the Garden of Eden, when God made His first promise of a savior in Genesis 3:15 and it continues flowing until it reaches the end. That final day when you and I will gather before our Lord surrounded by all of the children of God, praising the Lamb who is reigning on His throne. Rachel, Daisy, and I might be leaving you, and we may not see you again on this earth, but we have greatly enjoyed this year of our Lord with you.
We look forward to our reunion on the Day of our Lord.
God’s Richest Blessings,
Vicar Gonzalez-Feliciano