Rejoice in the Lord’s Mercy

Lamentations 3:22–23

“His compassions never fail. They are new every morning.” Those words from Lamentations were spoken amid Jerusalem’s ruin. They do not pretend that sin and its consequences are small. They declare that the Lord’s mercy is greater.

We know smaller versions of that ache. We replay an impatient remark, a neglected conversation, a choice that hurt someone, or a failure we cannot undo. We may try to excuse it or carry the guilt indefinitely. God calls us instead to confess it and hear his answer in Christ.

Jesus did not make our sins disappear by ignoring them. He bore them on the cross. For his sake, God forgives us. We may still need to apologize, repair what we can, and learn. Yet we do that work as forgiven children, free from the need to earn back our Father’s love.

This mercy shapes life together at Trinity. Honest conversations and accountability belong in a Christian community. So do patience, forgiveness, and the willingness to let someone begin again. We receive from one another what none of us can manufacture: the grace Christ first gave us.

Whatever yesterday held, the Savior who died and rose for you has not changed. His mercy meets you this morning, and it equips you to meet your neighbor with mercy today.

Pastor Zahn

Rejoice in the Lord’s Sovereignty

Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 6:3

Isaiah saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted. Before he received an assignment, he saw who held authority. The throne was already occupied.

That matters when we think about Trinity’s future. We have decisions to make, people to serve, and work that deserves our best. Yet no council, pastor, teacher, member, or ministry plan rules Christ’s Church. “The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all” (Psalm 103:19).

God’s rule does not make our work unnecessary. It puts our service into its proper place. Paul said, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.” We can labor faithfully while leaving growth in God’s hands.

Isaiah’s vision also exposes our sin. Standing before the holy Lord, Isaiah confessed that he was unclean. But the Lord cleansed him before sending him. We too stand before God by mercy, through the forgiveness Jesus won for us. Our worth does not rise or fall with this week’s results.

The Lord cared for his people before any of us arrived at Trinity, and he will care for them after our service on earth is done. That frees us to make wise plans, work together, and entrust tomorrow to the King whose throne remains secure.

Pastor Zahn

Less Fret, More Faith

Matthew 6:25–27

What worries are you carrying into this week? Perhaps it is a family concern, an expense you did not expect, or uncertainty about what the future holds. Jesus speaks to people who know what it is to worry. He points to the birds: they do not fill barns, yet our heavenly Father feeds them. “Are you not much more valuable than they?”

Jesus is not dismissing our needs. He is teaching us to see them in the light of our Father’s care. The One who gives us life has not forgotten what sustains it. More than that, through his Son he has given us forgiveness and life that does not end. We belong to him because of Christ, not because we have mastered the art of trusting.

An anxious feeling does not mean you have fallen out of God’s care. Some burdens are heavy, and faithful Christians may need help carrying them. Jesus invites us to bring those burdens to the Father who knows us and values us.

As Christians, we can take our responsibilities seriously without acting as though every outcome rests on us. We can plan, give, serve, and care for one another as children of a faithful Father. The needs before us are real. So is his love.

Pastor Zahn

The Picture of a Trinity Graduate: Responsibility

Responsibility begins by recognizing what God has entrusted to us and responding faithfully. “Those who have been given a trust must prove faithful” (1 Corinthians 4:2).

For students, that may mean bringing materials to class, completing assignments, caring for school property, or honoring a commitment to a team. As students mature, responsibility also means making wise choices without needing an adult to supervise every decision.

But responsibility is revealed not only in what we do before something goes wrong. It is also revealed in what we do afterward. Our natural temptation is to hide failure, shift blame, make excuses, or justify ourselves.

The Gospel gives us a better way. Jesus “bore our sins in his body on the cross” (1 Peter 2:24), removing the guilt we could never remove. Because God has justified us in Christ, we are free to stop justifying ourselves. We can tell the truth: “I did this. I am sorry. Please forgive me.”

Christ’s forgiveness is free; we do not earn it by repairing the damage. Yet forgiveness turns us back toward the neighbor. A responsible person asks, “How can I help make this right?” The answer may mean accepting consequences, making restitution, changing what I do and say, or patiently rebuilding trust. Forgiveness does not mean pretending nothing happened.

Responsible Christians are not people who never fail. They are forgiven children of God who are learning to steward faithfully what he entrusts, confess without hiding, receive correction, and seek the good of those affected by their choices.

Pastor Zahn

Picture of a Trinity Graduate: Respect

Respect is more than using polite words or obeying classroom rules. It begins with recognizing who our neighbor is before God.
Every person is God’s creature and possesses God-given dignity that does not depend on intelligence, ability, appearance, popularity, background, or behavior. As James reminds us, people have been “made in God’s likeness” (James 3:9). God’s commandments therefore protect our neighbor’s body, belongings, reputation, relationships, and place in the community.

Respect shows itself in ordinary moments. It listens without interrupting, speaks truth without humiliating, and cares for another person’s property and time. It includes those who might otherwise be overlooked and can disagree without becoming cruel. Christian respect does not ask whether someone has earned such treatment.

Respect also does not mean approving everything another person does. Love sometimes requires correction, boundaries, or consequences. Yet Christian correction seeks the neighbor’s good: restoration rather than shame, truth rather than mockery, and help rather than harm.
We will not practice this perfectly. When students speak harshly, exclude others, damage reputations, or disregard authority, we address the sin honestly. Then we lead them to the Gospel, where Christ delivers the forgiveness he won by shedding his blood for undeserving sinners, including us. His grace renews us to begin again.

At Trinity, we want every student to know: God made the person beside you, his commandments protect that person, and Christ has shown astonishing love to sinners like both of you. Receiving that love, we learn to extend it to one another.

Pastor Zahbn

Picture of a Trinity Graduate: Christian Work Ethic

What makes a Christian work ethic distinctly Christian? It means more than working hard or achieving impressive results. Before Christ calls us to work for him, he has worked for us: accomplishing our salvation through his perfect life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection.

Through Baptism and his Gospel, Jesus makes those saving gifts our own and assures us that we are God’s dearly loved children. Our work does not establish our worth. Grades and awards may recognize achievement, but they cannot measure a child’s value.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord” (Colossians 3:23). Paul wrote these words to people whose labor could seem ordinary and unnoticed. Yet even humble tasks mattered because they were done in service to Christ. The dignity of our work comes not from the prestige of the task, but from the Lord we serve through it.

Freed from having to prove ourselves, we can receive our abilities, time, and responsibilities as gifts from God. Learning, teaching, practicing, cleaning, helping, and completing assignments become opportunities through which God cares for the neighbors he has placed around us.

This means making an honest effort, working carefully, and persevering when success comes slowly. But hard work is not constant activity. Faithful work also includes planning wisely, asking for help, resting appropriately, and caring about the people affected by what we do.

This is the Christian work ethic we hope to see in Trinity graduates: Christians who work wholeheartedly, not to become worthy, but because in Christ we already belong to God and are free to serve.

Pastor Zahn

Picture of a Trinity Graduate: A Christ-Like Attitude

What do we mean when we say that a Trinity graduate should demonstrate a Christ-like attitude? We mean far more than being cheerful, polite, or agreeable. As Paul writes, “Have the same mindset as Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5).

That mindset begins not with trying harder to imitate Jesus, but with knowing and believing what Jesus has done for us. Although he is true God, Christ humbled himself, became our servant, and gave his life on the cross to remove our guilt. He rose again to give us life with God. Before we serve Christ or our neighbor, Christ has first served and saved us.

His grace changes how we see ourselves and others. Because our identity rests in Christ rather than in grades, accomplishments, behavior, or approval, we can enter the classroom ready to learn, receive correction without being crushed, and serve others without needing recognition. We can notice the classmate who needs encouragement, persevere through disappointment, and use our abilities for the good of the neighbors God has placed around us.

Our students will not demonstrate this attitude perfectly.  Neither will the adults who teach and guide them. A Christ-like attitude includes honestly confessing when we have been selfish, impatient, or unkind. Through his Gospel, Christ truly delivers forgiveness to sinners, renews us, and enables us to begin again.
Our goal is not merely a graduate who appears humble, secure, or resilient. We pray for forgiven children of God whose lives toward others are being shaped by the Savior who first loved and served them.

Pastor Zahn

Forming Graduates Who Reflect Christ

What do we pray will be true of students when they graduate from Trinity Lutheran School?

That question guided an important conversation among our faculty. Together, we developed a “Picture of a Graduate,” a description of the Christian character we hope to cultivate throughout each student’s years at Trinity. Four core values emerged: Christ-Like Attitude, Christian Work Ethic, Responsibility, and Respect.

These values are more than desirable behaviors or another way to measure student performance. Our students are loved and redeemed by Christ before they earn a grade, complete an assignment, or demonstrate any virtue. For the Christian, these qualities do not earn God’s favor. They are fruits of faith, that is, ways a child of God, moved by Christ’s love, serves God and neighbor.

Our faculty is now working collaboratively to teach, encourage, and reinforce these values throughout the Trinity experience, from a child’s first days in 3K through eighth-grade graduation. That includes developing shared language, age-appropriate expectations, classroom practices, and opportunities for students to put their faith into practice. It also means that we, as adults, seek to model these values ourselves.

This formation does not happen through a single lesson or program, nor can we produce it through the right educational techniques. We trust the Holy Spirit to work through God’s Word to strengthen faith and produce its fruits in our students. Through the years, instruction, encouragement, correction, forgiveness, and faithful example help children grow in understanding and living out what it means to be God’s redeemed child.

In the coming weeks, we will explore each value more closely.

Pastor Zahn

Anchored in Christ: Our Theme for the Year Ahead

Welcome back, Trinity families and friends! As students returned to their classrooms and hallways filled with backpacks and first-day smiles, our campus community gathered together for our opening chapel service. In that service we unveiled the theme that will guide us through the entire school year: Anchored in Christ.

A new school year brings a mix of feelings, excitement for new friends and fresh starts, alongside a few nervous butterflies too. Parents and teachers feel it, hoping for growth and strong relationships while bracing for the challenges every year brings.

It's a lot like heading out onto the water. When the water is calm, a boat glides along with ease. But when the wind picks up and the waves grow, the boat rocks and drifts. That's what school, and life, can feel like some days: smooth sailing, then, without warning, choppy seas. Even a good anchor can drag in a strong enough storm.

We can’t stop the storms of life any more than we can prevent the storms of weather. So the real question is: What keeps us steady when the storms of life rage?

Hebrews 6:19 gives us a beautiful answer: “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” The next verse tells us why this anchor never drags: it reaches into God's own presence, where Jesus has already gone before us on our behalf. This isn't wishful thinking. It's confident expectation, anchored not in how hard we hope, but in what Christ has already done.

We often look for our own anchors: good grades, good friends, staying in control, having a plan. Those are good gifts, but we can quietly ask them to do more than they were ever meant to, and they slip. Jesus doesn't. He lived, died, and rose for us. As our living High Priest, he still holds us fast today. No matter what this year brings, success or struggle, joy or disappointment, we are held secure.

Being anchored in Christ doesn't mean there won't be storms. Rather, it assures that Jesus is strong enough to hold us fast through his Word and Sacraments in the midst of them.

This year, our prayer is simple: that in every classroom, practice, and conversation, we would rest in that anchor, together.

You'll see this year's theme show up throughout the school year. I invite every family to make "Anchored in Christ" and Hebrews 6:19-20 a part of your own conversations at home. Talk with your children about what it means to have an anchor that reaches all the way into God's presence, and watch for ways our staff and pastors will keep pointing back to this hope all year long.

Pastor Zahn

Proclaiming His Mighty Works

"We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done." (Psalm 78:4)

Psalm 78 calls God's people to remember the Lord's mighty works and to proclaim them from one generation to the next, so that each generation places its hope in him. That has always been the heart of the Church's mission. It’s more than preserving traditions. The mission is joyfully declaring what God has done for sinners through his saving grace.

Christ continues that work today. Through his Word and Sacraments, he gathers his people, strengthens their faith, forgives their sins, and keeps his promises. Then, through the varied gifts he has entrusted to his Church, he continues to care for his people and make his saving Gospel known.

This is why ministry partnership matters. Whether teaching a Bible lesson, preparing a classroom, welcoming a guest, maintaining our campus, or quietly serving behind the scenes, every act that supports the ministry of the Gospel helps create opportunities for others to hear of the Lord's mighty deeds and to grow in faith.

As this devotional series concludes, remember that Christ's ministry has never depended on extraordinary people. It depends on an extraordinary Savior who graciously works through ordinary believers. His perfect life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection have secured your salvation. Because he first served you, you are free to serve with joy.

The ministry is Christ's. The gifts are his. The promises are his. And he is faithful to continue building his Church until the day every generation gathers around his throne to praise the mighty works of the Lamb.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for revealing your mighty saving works through your Word and Sacraments and for making me part of your Church by grace alone. Use the gifts you have entrusted to me to support, sustain, and strengthen your ministry, so that many more may place their hope in you until the day we rejoice together in your eternal kingdom. Amen.

Pastor Zahn