Unless you’re living in the middle of the woods with no access to outside communication, it’s hard these days as an American not to feel discouraged and afraid.  Every day we see footage of wars, impending wars, civil unrest between criminals and police, and high and increasing crime rates. Illegal drug use and deaths by overdose continue to mount.  Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce; almost half of all newborns are born to unwed mothers; and we continue to abort about 1 million babies a year.  The gap between rich and poor continues to grow.  Young adults complain of unaffordable housing, crushing student debt, and shrinking job opportunities. Our political leaders appear to have no concern for their own constituencies. Trust in government, media, and even our education system is at an all-time low.   We are bombarded with social media data, much of it biased, or worse, generated by artificial intelligence posing as a real person.  We are no longer “one nation under God.”
Rather, we have become many tribes, each with their own gods, and all at war with the others.  The enemy is at the gate. What is a Christian to do.

I imagine the first disciples felt exactly the same way those first few days after his death, discouraged and afraid.  Their rabbi, the master, did not turn out to be the hoped-for messiah who would rid the land of the hated Romans. Instead, they ignominiously hung him on a cross to die.  Instead of sitting at the right and left hands of the king, they were being hunted by the Jewish religious authorities and the Roman government.  It seemed like all was lost. They had been deceived like so many before them by another false messiah. Society mocked them as fools and simpletons.

But wait!  What is this we see and hear? He is risen! How can this be? Could it be that he is part of the Godhead he claimed to be all along? And he instructs us to go and make other disciples as he did with us. His final assurances, his presence that we saw and felt, the Holy Spirit that he left behind, all these gave them (and us) hope to endure any trouble this world throws at us, even to the point of death as a martyr.  I pray that such a thing never happens to Christians again, but the point is that this world is passing away.  It has nothing good to offer us, and nothing bad in it can harm our eternal destiny. Our hope is in a better future sitting at the feet of God, with no more pain, no more sorrow. Rejoice and be glad.

Pastor David

April 2026 NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE!
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Join Father Dominic - "The Bread Monk" for an inspiring and interactive baking presentation.  Dom will demonstrate how to mix and knead a basic dough, then show beginner-friendly techniques to shape beautiful braids and rolls.  

Easter comes earlier than usual this year so the Lenten cycle will be upon us soon. We start with our “Ashes at the Elburn Train Station” event on Wednesday, February 18 at 6:00AM. All are welcome to join me to bestow a blessing on the early morning commuters.

Then we start our 5-week Lenten Bible study series on Wednesday, February 25. As usual, we will be hosting a soup lunch at Noon followed by a lecture series. This year the topic is: “Judaism: Christianity’s Foundation and Signpost.” A repeat of the Wednesday lessons will occur on the following Saturdays at 9:30AM with cake and coffee. The Wednesday lessons will run from February 25 to March 25 and the Saturday lessons will run from February 28 to March 28. Since the Wednesday and Saturday lessons are the same, feel free to drop in to either (or both!) as your schedule allows. We will be posting sign-up sheets soon.

After a four-year hiatus, we are bringing back our Seder Dinner celebration on Maundy Thursday, April 2 at 6:00PM. We will recreate the Passover meal that Jews around the world celebrate every year.

On Friday, April 3 we have our community Good Friday service with Country Covenant Church, Congregational Church and Burlington Methodist Church at Congregational Church on Empire Rd at 7:00PM. All are welcome to join us.

Finally, we will celebrate Easter, the high point of the Christian calendar, on Sunday, April 5. I look forward to worshipping with you as we continue to deepen our relationship with God and each other. Blessings to you all.

March 2026 NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE!
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Welcome teens to the 2026 confirmation class at Grace! Class will meet approximately every other Sunday for about one hour after the 9:30 service. Parents are welcome to attend, but not required.

February 1
February 15
March 1
March 15
April 5
April 19
May 10
May 24
June 7
June 21
September 6
September 20
October 4
October 18
November 1
November 15
December 6

Open House at Grace! Saturday, February 21st 9:30-11:30.  Meet the teachers and tour the classroom. 

  ROADRUNNERS 2026 TRIP
 
The next Roadrunners trip is scheduled for September
21-25 (or 26), 2026.  We will be going to Frankenmuth, Michigan.  Save the dates – more information to come.

LENTEN / HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE - Come Join the fun! 

February 18th – Ash Wednesday – distribution of ashes at the Elburn Metra Station at 6 am (see Pastor to assist) and 7pm evening worship at Grace.
Lenten Bible Studies – Wednesdays at noon (soup lunch) on February 25 – March 25 with a repeat study on Saturdays (coffee & treats) at 9:30am, February 28 – March 28th.
April 2nd, Maundy Thursday – Seder meal at Grace in Fellowship Hall at 6 pm.  Reservations needed.
April 3rd – Good Friday – Community Worship at the Congregational Church on Empire Road at 7 pm.
April 5th – EASTER SUNDAY – worship at 10:30 am withBreakfast before and/or after worship from 8:30 am to 11:30am (free will offering.)

February 2026 NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE!
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January 2026

It’s a new year and the obligatory time for making resolutions, plans, and goals. It has become mandatory that losing a few pounds (from chocolate chip cookies), getting more exercise, and eating healthier are at the top of everyone’s list. After that, it becomes customized, so to speak. It is the time of year when we reflect on the year past, our accomplishments, our unfulfilled dreams, our wins and our losses. It is also the time when all the major media outlets will go through their own year in review: celebrities who died, sports champions, political trends, world events. Ultimately, these are all trivia and noise, the constant rhythm of the cycle of life.

Our focus is on the eternal. My prayer is that all of you will have a healthy and prosperous 2026, that illnesses will be healed, that broken relationships will be mended, that enemies will become friends. I pray that your faith will continue to grow and that your love will extend outward to touch even more of the lost so they too can come to know Jesus. I believe that as a faith community, we are well poised to see God do great things in His name. Our attendance continues to trend upward, our finances are on more solid ground than they have been in prior years, our service to our neighbors is vibrant, our faith is secure, our love for God is evident.

I am excited to see what plans God has in store for us this year and I continue to be humbled and honored to serve as your pastor.     AMEN

From the desk of Pastor David, December 2025

I wish I were writing to you about caroling, hot chocolate, and Christmas ornaments.  But I have a more serious topic I want to share with you, so I hope we can return to a happier discussion another time.  As I am sure you have noticed, there is a seismic cultural shift occurring in America (and other parts of the world), so we need to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Mt 10:16).  I see a confluence of three societal changes that together have the potential to produce the perfect storm of chaos.  Let me describe each independently, then summarize what could possibly happen when they meet, and finally, a Christian response.

Trend 1:  Artificial Intelligence. I have written about AI previously, noting its potential for both good and bad. But just last month, we have started to see its ill effects.  Major corporations have been laying off tens of thousands of their (mostly white-collar) employees.  In part, this has been because of over-staffing, in part because of cost cutting, but in large part, because these jobs have been permanently replaced by AI.  This has obvious long-term deleterious economic implications.

Trend 2:  Capitalism run amok.  Our monopoly laws are supposed to prevent a concentration of market share and control among just a few providers of goods and services. Monopolies, where one company is the sole provider, (or oligopolies, where a very few control most of the output) prevent consumers from having choices.  Having choices is what keeps prices in check.  But the Anti-Trust Division of our Department of Justice seems to be on a perennial vacation. As a result, the state of commerce today is highly concentrated among two or three major providers across most industries.  The result has been steep price increases and fewer choices.  Consider banking, wireless carriers, automobile manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, computer hardware and software, food manufacturing and distribution, as examples.

Trend 3:  As I have mentioned in sermons and past newsletters, America can no longer be called a Judeo-Christian nation.  Attendance and membership across all the mainline denominations (Roman Catholicism included) has been in steep decline for decades, while the evangelical population ebbs and flows.  People no longer seek God for truth; they prefer science, logic, or government, even “internet influencers!”   What has been the effect of replacing God with humanism as our source of truth? In just our lifetime, what was once shameful is today celebrated.  Instead of valuing and embracing life, we now increasingly promote a culture of death and dysfunction: abortion mills, drug legalization, legalized gambling, open pornography, even assisted suicide!!  It feels like we’re living in the Bedford Falls alternate reality of Pottersville in which George Bailey had never been born.  And not only is society moving away from Christianity; Christians are now the enemy!   We are labeled domestic terrorists and our Gospel Message is classified as “hate speech” (Oh irony of ironies!). Satan is clearly gaining ground.

So what effects can we expect from the convergence of these three trends? Especially for the young, a traditional lifestyle seems out of reach.  Good paying jobs with opportunities for advancement are getting harder to find. An investment in a college education often leaves graduates unemployed or under-employed and saddled with enormous student loans, debt they will never be able to pay off.  And the process to discharge this debt in bankruptcy is extremely costly and complicated.  Housing is scarce and unaffordable. Prices of many goods and services have risen exorbitantly because of the prevalence of monopolies/oligopolies.  People are frustrated, hopeless and angry. So understandably, they are going to lash out at the existing systems of power and control, fight hard to overturn them, and seek to replace them with something radically different, a change that offers them hope.
And here is where things can go terribly wrong.   We see the old guard being kicked to the curb.  New systems of governance unheard of in America even ten years ago-socialism, communism, guaranteed state-provided income, Sharia Law, even state-enabled anarchy- are gaining traction in urban centers.  But these “new” systems are not new, and they offer hope in the same way a worm on a hook offers a fish a tasty snack.  

History has shown over and over that such systems make great promises up front, but eventually deliver nothing but death and destruction.  (“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”)   Why is this so?   Because mankind is naturally sinful and selfish, not righteous and magnanimous.  The more power that is concentrated in fewer hands, the more evil those hands become.  Ultimately those systems do not deliver the good that was promised for the many, rather, they become the source of wealth and power to the few who rule, and a penalty of misery and hardship to the ruled. And as these systems take seed and grow, people who originally supported them find out that these promised benefits slowly disappear, while their freedoms are taken away. Sadly, these abusive systems become increasingly entrenched and self-protective over time and therefore cannot be changed overnight as in an open election. They typically last generations and only come to an end through rebellion, war, and the death of many. So, what should our response be through all this? I believe that there are five practical steps we as Christians can take:

1. Continue to give thanks to God for all the blessings He has given us, and pray for strength, endurance, and wisdom for any future trials we might go through.
2. Pray especially diligently for all the unsaved in our circles of influence and don’t be shy about sharing Christ with them.  People today are afraid and living through uncertain times. They need to hear about the assurance of the Good News of the Gospel and they deserve  an opportunity to accept it.
3.  Encourage and vote for local, state, and Federal legislators who support laws that protect individual freedoms, including the right to worship, the right to own property, and the right to live free from excessive government interference.
4. “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (Jn 14:27). As Christians become more of a minority voice in America, we will face increasing criticism, ridicule, and even persecution, so prepare your heart today and continue your resolve to fight the good fight of faith and to finish the race that has been set out for us.
5. Finally, do not put your hope in any man, woman, or entity who promises you a better life, especially if that “better life” involves an exchange of more control for them and less freedom for you. Only one man, Jesus Christ, has the power to make life better. Therefore, continue to put your faith exclusively in Him. And remember, true disciples are not here to seek a better life in this world, but to bring as many with us as possible into a glorious eternity.
AMEN

January 2026 NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE!
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As I am writing this letter, America is once again gorging itself on evil and joyfully worshipping Satan. Yes, it’s Halloween. Up until about 50 years ago, kids would dress up as clowns or hobos or princesses, going door-to-door or to houses decorated with pumpkins and cornstalks, signs of the harvest. Somewhere since then, Halloween took a very dark turn.  Ironically, the word Halloween comes from “All Hallows Eve,” the day before All Saints Day on November 1st.  All Saints Day is meant to honor those Christians that have gone to be with the Lord and have left us with examples of how to live a Godly life.

As in all aspects of life, as America has moved away from God, God has allowed America to be given up to “a debased mind and to things that should not be done.” (Romans 1:28). Kids compete to see who can wear the most gruesome costumes, soaked in fake blood, usually incorporating fangs, long knives, hatchets, chain saws, and other hideous paraphernalia.  More and more households now compete to see who can create the most gruesome front yard Halloween displays with graveyards, skeletons, scenes of torture, and mutilations.  Some have even gone so far as to man their horrid creations at night to shock any onlookers with live scare tactics. Commercial haunted houses grow ghastlier and more realistic every year.

As part of this season, we can also expect the usual lineup of scary movies out of Hollywood.  These are not innocent suspense movies.  No, they feature graphic depictions of gratuitous killings, mutilations, beheadings, and torture. The “heroes” of these films are serial killers with names such as Pinhead, Pennywise, Chucky, and Freddy Krueger.  These names are as familiar to the world as Peter and Paul are to Christians.   “Oh, but Pastor, it’s all in fun.  No one takes these things seriously.”  Au contraire!  For one, the more people partake of these shameful and unrighteous displays, the more they are “normalizing” their use.  And while you may think that children have become hardened by these displays, know that such things cause high levels of anxiety, fear, and anti-social behavior.  Most importantly, if people are not only participating in such activities, but also being entertained by them, they are honoring and worshipping Satan.  That does not sit well with God.

Our response as believers?   Do not participate in such things.  Hopefully, that is obvious.  Secondly, if you have children that still celebrate Halloween, try to keep them safe and away from houses decorated in hellish displays.  Arrange your own parties with more wholesome activities.  Keep your eyes open all year round to such evil behaviors and avoid them at all cost. And finally, continue to pray that God will open the eyes of the unsaved so they can see the wide path to destruction that they have chosen.

December 2025 NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE!
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