Pastor

Hello! We are glad that you found our churches’ web page. My name is Tim Olson. I am the pastor at First Lutheran Church in Charlotte. It has been a joy to serve God’s people here and proclaim the Good News that Jesus has died and risen to save all people from their sins.

If you do not know Jesus as your Savior from sin, please know that Jesus died for you and that he wants you to be part of his kingdom. My goal as the pastor is always to point people to Jesus Christ who was crucified and resurrected for them. The Bible is very clear that all who believe in Jesus shall be saved.

“The jailer called…out and asked, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved…’” (Acts 16:29-31).

Pastor Olson

flcrev@acd.net

St. John writes, “But these [God’s Word] things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31).

If you would like to learn more about the teachings of our church, please e-mail us or call us. I hope that we can be of help to you in your Christian walk. We would be glad to share the truths of God’s Word with you. Blessings in the Lord!

First Lutheran Church in Charlotte, MI follows what is known as the liturgical church calendar. Since we cannot consider every aspect of our Lord's life, adequately, at one time, the church year focuses on one individual event in the life of Christ every Sunday. Our regular calendar revolves around the seasons--spring, winter, etc. The church calendar revolves around the life of Christ. It begins with Advent which is the time of the year when we prepare for the birth of Christ (this is approximately 4 weeks before Christmas). This is always in the month of December. It then proceeds to Him manifesting Himself to us. We call this Epiphany, which means to reveal or manifest. Jesus reveals Himself to us. This season begins on Epiphany Sunday in early January and continues until the middle of February. The Epiphany season lasts for 6 or 7 weeks and ends on Transfiguration Sunday. Transfiguration Sunday, when Jesus was transfigured before the disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36), is the last Sunday in the season of Epiphany. Ash Wednesday is always the Wednesday after Transfiguration Sunday. Ash Wednesday starts the Lenten season.

Lent is a season or time in the the church calendar that prepares us for Easter. During Lent we focus on our need for a Savior. We reflect upon the fact that we are sinful and in need of a Savior (Psalm 51). It is a penitential season in which we ask God to help us overcome our sins through Christ Jesus and live a new life in His forgiveness. The season of Lent lasts for 6 weeks or 40 days. This time is meant to prepare us for Easter.

This leads us into Holy Week. Holy Week is the special week every year in which we remember our Savior's suffering and death. We have services on Thursday (Maundy Thursday), the night in which Jesus had the passover meal with his disciples. This leads to Good Friday, the day on which Jesus died to redeem all people from their sins. Then comes the greatest day in the church calendar: EASTER SUNDAY!

On this Sunday, the church celebrates the fact that Christ overcame death, rose from the grave, and won salvation for all people. All who believe in His name shall be saved! The pastor says, "He is risen, Alleluia!" The congregation speaks back, "He is risen, indeed, Alleluia!" Jesus has risen from the dead. He defeated sin, death, and the power of sin. He is now our resurrection and life. Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" Let us say as Martha did: Yes, Lord ... I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." (John 11:25-27) This is the message of Easter. Easter is about 6 or 7 weeks long, depending on what day Easter falls.

The next season in the church calendar is Pentecost. Pentecost happened 50 days after Easter. "Pentecost" means fifty days after. On this day in the life of the church, the disciples of Jesus were gathered in Jerusalem for worship and some different things happened. In Acts 2 it says, "They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them" (Acts 2:3-4).

The New Testament church began on this day. Some call this day the birthday of the Christian church. It is a day when the Holy Spirit gave the disciples the ability to speak in the language of all the people who were there from the known world at that time. God's Word went out to them and it says that many of them believed that Jesus did die on the cross for their sins. Jesus did rise from the dead and give them victory over sin, death and the power of the devil. St. Peter preached this sermon to them. It says, "Those who believed his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their numbers that day" (Acts 2:41).

The season of Pentecost in the church is the longest season. It lasts for 23-28 Sundays. During it, the church reflects upon Christ and his life for us. We learn in greater detail the miracles that Christ performed and how he showed the people that he is the Christ. The last few Sundays of the Pentecost season focus on the Last Day. We learn more about the Last Day and how we can be ready, because Christ will come at any time. Pentecost begins in late May or early June, depending upon when Easter is, and it ends in late November. There are several special Sundays during the season of Pentecost. First, there is Trinity Sunday. This Sunday focuses on the Trinity and how God reveals himself to us. This is always the first Sunday after Pentecost. Then, there is Reformation Sunday on October 31. This Sunday focuses on the history of our church from the time of Dr. Martin Luther in the 1500s. There is also All Saints' Day. This is celebrated to remember those who have died in the faith. It encourages us to keep the faith and continue to do the work that the Lord has given us to do. Thanksgiving is also celebrated during these Sundays after Pentecost.

We also have different colors on the altar, pulpit, and the Pastor's stole (The narrow decorative cloth that pastor wears around his neck. It hangs down almost to his feet. It matches the color of the day). These also aid us in focusing on the various events of Christ's life. The color for Advent is blue, symbolizing hope, anticipation. Christmas, Easter and most major festivals are white, symbolizing joy, celebration, gladness. Lent is purple, which is the color of royalty. Black is used for Good Friday as it is the color of mourning or death. Green is the color that is used for the Sundays in Epiphany and after Pentecost. It is the color of growth, as seen in trees, leaves, etc. It suggests a time of spiritual growth for the church.

As you can see, we have a reason for the things that we do in our church on Sunday morning. The church calendar and other traditions have been passed down for centuries. We have decided as a church to continue those traditions that are helpful to us in our Christian walk and which keep our focus on Christ. We believe that these traditions do all of that and more.