Giving Thanks This Holiday Season – a Message from the Pastor

November 24, 2025

My brothers and sisters in Christ, Grace and Peace be upon all of you this holiday season.

As I take time to write this holiday letter for the members and friends of St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, I think about the relationship I have with each of you individually. I think about how I met you, the first encounter we had. For some, it may have been as I interviewed for the call to St. Matthew’s, or possibly the first time you attended worship at St. Matthew’s. For others, God has joined us through our walks in life, and for my family, God has gifted you to embrace me as a son, nephew, cousin, husband, father, and stepfather.

I give God thanks each day for the opportunity to make an impact in each of your lives. As we approach the holiday season, I ask you to think about the impact you have or will make in the lives of those who mean the most to you and those whom God will place in your path.

Thanksgiving is a time for reflection, gratitude, and the strengthening of bonds either with friends or through acts of kindness. It is a time to look back on the year and appreciate the journey, recognizing the highs and lows that have shaped our lives. It is a time to gather around the dinner table, sharing moments of laughter, storytelling, and enjoying a meal, creating lasting memories. It is a time to gather with friends that are cherished deeply, embracing the diversity of chosen families, strengthening bonds that have been established, serving as a testament to the power of community that extends beyond family of blood relations. It is a time that reminds us that gratitude is not only expressed in words but also in actions that benefit others.

This time of the year can be extremely busy for all of us, filled with emotions, possibly loneliness, as we reflect on loved ones who are no longer with us. We can easily be distracted by the commercialized advertisements, sights, and sounds of the season, but at the core of this holiday season, we are thankful for the Joy to the World, which will fill our hearts with grace and peace.

We give thanks to God for gathering all of us around God’s table to celebrate the gift of life that has been given to us, uniting us as one, claiming, gathering, and sending us forth into the new year to share with all that our Savior is born.

As I write this letter in the narthex of our beloved church and look out our church doors, I see and feel that the weather outside is frightful, yet in the sanctuary it’s so delightful. I look at the sky as dusk draws near, silently approaching; eagerly anticipating that Silent Night, Holy Night when all will be calm and all will be bright, and we celebrate that Jesus Christ Is Born. Let all of Heaven and Earth Rejoice on Christmas Morn – Hark! The Herald Angels Sing as we go forth into the New Year, ready to share with all our Joy to the World as we Go Tell it on the Mountain.

Are you ready, my brothers and sisters in Christ? Are you ready my family and friends, that God has gifted me with to enjoy this holiday season. The time is drawing near! The time has come! For all of us to remember and live. For all of us to continue creating memories. For all of us to celebrate the precious gift of life.

You all mean the world to me and you have given me the honor and privilege of sharing the good news not only with you, but your friends old and new, as we gather around the table of the Lord where we will eat, share stories, create memories, laugh, cry, and sing just like our angels giving glory to the new-born King. Bring peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled. Jesus! What a wonderful child.

We have much to celebrate this holiday together in the name of Jesus. Are you excited? I surely am! What better gift than all of you, members and friends of St. Matthew’s.

From my family to yours, a blessed Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas, and Happy New Year.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Jonathan J. Recabarren, Pastor