HILLCITY HUDSON

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Freedom, fireworks, and following Jesus

I got in some trouble last night - celebrating my freedom. There’s been a tradition at our house since the year we moved in, we invite friends over for the fourth of July and have a grill out and shoot off some fireworks. Seems like that’s what it means to be an American, right? I thought so too. Or perhaps I even still think so.  Only once (until last night) has this annual occasion proved dangerous, as a firework shot…

Giving up on getting even

There’s this thing about baseball that I think is pretty cool. They have what are considered to be “unwritten” rules. These are guidelines that apply to situations where there is no actual rule in the rulebook, but it is understood that there are certain things that everyone does or does not do. The unwritten rules also apply in such a manner that, if A happens, then B is likely to also occur.  For example, there is a very exciting scenario…

Intentional Church

Hudson Wisconsin didn’t need another church. There were already 15 of them in April of 2013 - and many of them were functioning well and growing. But what Hudson was looking for, perhaps even asking for - was our church. Let me explain a little bit more… I grew up in Hudson. Some people would call me a lifer. A guy I went to high school with recently called us “townies.” I guess I would just say I never left.…

Empty tomb, Resurrection, Jesus is alive, Easter, Sunday Morning
silence, weeping, death, sadness, Holy Saturday, the end of hope

Saturday – The world will never be the same – Pt. 1 (He is dead)

He is dead. There is nothing in this world that is as sudden AND permanent as death. Many things happen quickly. There is also an abundance of things that are permanent. But the combination of the two is especially brutal. Death packs the two punch. It kicks you in the gut, removes all hope from your heart, messes with your mind - all while seemingly sucking the life right out of your soul. It drags you down, and you do…

Holy Week, Holy Week Devos, Good Friday, the death of Jesus, it is finished

Friday – It is finished. Amen

The word “amen” is often uttered after prayers to signify that it is over. It literally means; let it be true, or truly - and is intended to be used to express that the person who spoke the prayer believes that God has heard it, and He will answer it, according to His will. For 33 years, Jesus has been living a prayer. His every word, action, teaching and healing has been an offering to God, His Father, with whom…

Wednesday – God’s anointed

He was just spending it with friends. His last day, the day before it all changed. Like the calm before the storm, Jesus is with His people, enjoying a meal and trying not to focus on what the next few days will bring. Perhaps there is even a smile, or a moment of laughter, as for one brief second, there is respite from His reality. And then, suddenly, it was time.  Mark 14:3–9 (ESV)And while he was at Bethany in…

Tuesday – truths from trees

Mark 11:12–14 (ESV)On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. He is yelling at a tree. He was…

Monday – Sometimes, you just have to weep

Yesterday there was a parade. Today there are tears. Yesterday there was a celebration. Today there is frustration. Yesterday he was their king. Today he is feeling the affects of being their God. The events of Monday - Wednesday of Holy Week, are not clearly defined by date or time, only that they happened - but this does not reduce their importance. In his version of the story, Luke tells us something that most of the other Gospel writers do…

Palm Sunday – The King has come

Mark 11:1–10 (ESV)Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send…