Devotion and Detour with Pastor Dr. Hille

Dear members and friends of the Martin Luther Church:

You remember: At the end of the worship service, we are dismissed with a blessing.

“The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.”

You really have to visualize this: on the journey of our life, we are travelling in the presence of our God. He watches over us and accompanies us. In contrast to many other circumstances in these times, this is something that has not changed. We are not alone thanks to the care and concern of our God. We trust in this, and we believe in this – especially in these times. I wish for myself and for you that this trust gives us support and courage.

And I hope for a little more: In the small and big events of our Sundays and weekdays; in joy and sadness, I want to feel his closeness; discover it in the friendly Word that catches my ears; in the hand that reaches out to help me; in the courage and bravery with which people defy this pandemic and have touched me. Perhaps we can discover this together in the diverse efforts of our congregation to stay together as a community, as a church, in these changing times. Although we cannot meet and assemble in our Martin Luther Church, we celebrate worship and there is spiritual and church life. This letter is also a small sign of that. Indeed: We are and will remain the Church of Jesus Christ – even if we are on a detour.

With greetings to all of you,

Pastor Gerhard Hille