The Troester Times

The last 9 days have been an emotional roller coaster for our family and though we’re finally in our new house, it hasn’t been without it’s share of frustrations. It all started with Rome getting car sick 30 minutes outside of St. Louis on our move up to Minnesota. 2 hours and a new car seat later, we were finally under way. We made it to our hotel in Iowa City around 11:30pm on Thursday night after battling a wicked thunderstorm. We couldn’t see our hotel at first because the power was out, but literally seconds before we pulled in the parking lot, the power came back on.

The next day we hit delays in Iowa due to flooding - and let me just say that anything we’ve been through pales in comparison to what those poor folks in Iowa are dealing with - whole buildings under water. Please do keep them in your prayers. Finally, we made it to Minnesota on Friday afternoon and after 12+ hours total in the car with a 2.5 year old and 3 month old baby, I’ve decided we aren’t traveling again until our kids are teenagers.

We thought things were finally beginning to settle down a bit when closing on our house went off without a hitch but that changed on Tuesday. As I was driving to church to pick Rome up from VBS, a Semi threw up a golf ball sized rock which put a nice half moon crack in the windshield. Needless to say that needs to be replaced.

Wednesday we got a call from our moving company and found out that instead of getting our stuff sometime between Tuesday-Friday (June 17-20), we found out it won’t be here until next Tuesday, June 24th. Thankfully we already bought a bed and we brought enough stuff with us to get by. But, the icing on the cake was today. I had finished cleaning out the gutters on the back of our house and I was using the hose to spray them out. All was going well until I came around the front of the house and heard the sound of spraying water and Rome yelling from the living room “there’s water all over!” Apparently the “frost valve” on the outside spicket burst open inside the house carving a 1 inch hole in the drywall and soaking our carpet in the living room and possibly damaging some of the other walls as well.

As Kris and I were reflecting on this, we just found it amazing that twice we had seemingly bad things happen to us - but they really turned out for our good. 1) Had Rome not gotten sick, we would have been in the hotel when the power was out. 2) Had out stuff gotten here on time from the movers, our belongings would have been damaged from the water leak. I know the devil has been using these events to try to break our spirits and to make us doubt whether or not we really belong here. But then it occurred to me…there was another major event where all seemed bleak and where the devil thought he’d won. Where it looked like all was lost. That’s when Jesus was nailed to the cross and left there to die. It looked like there was no hope but then 3 days later when Jesus rose from the dead, the cross took on a whole new perspective. What seemed like a terrible event turned out to be the best for all humanity as Christ’s death and resurrection mean forgiveness and eternal life for all who believe in Him. While there may not always be a silver lining on the clouds we face in our daily lives, Christ’s death and resurrection is always cause for rejoicing.

Lord God, Heavenly Father, I praise and thank you for this day. I ask that you be with our family as we go through these minor setbacks and ask that you be with us and give us your strength. Send your holy angels to watch over us and protect us from the evil one. Give comfort and peace to all those afflicted by trouble in body, home, spirit, or mind. May your Holy Spirit give us hope knowing that no matter what happens in this life…no matter what troubles we experience…we have the assurance that our sins are forgiven because Jesus died and rose again for us. Thank you, Father, for loving us. Thank you for turning negative events into positive outcomes for us. Keep us in your tender arms now and forever. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Years of school - 3
Years on Vicarage - 1
Pages read - 35,826
Exams Taken - 43
Exams Passed - 42.5 (just kidding)
Papers Written - I lost count
Taking a picture wearing your academic hood as a literal hood - priceless…and a little silly.

Okay, so the MasterCard thing is rather dated, but I’m fresh out of creativity at this point. Yesterday I received both my Theological Diploma and my Master of Divinity degree after 4 years of study. So now that one chapter of life is done, another exciting one is about to begin as I prepare for my Ordination and Installation. I’ve posted photos from yesterday’s events on our photos page so take a look!

The picture on the left was taken when I was about 2 years old and my dad was on vicarage in Woodbury, MN and we thought this would make for a “cute” picture (I put “cute” in parentheses because even though I’m a father with young children, it’s still un-manly of me to use that word without putting it in quotes). Actually, it seems fitting that on the eve of our return to Minnesota, Rome would be dressed the same as his father. You know, I’m not sure if it’s an indication of anything or not, but Rome sure looks a lot happier than I did when I had my picture taken. Perhaps the serious look on my face was my deep understanding for the significance of that moment. Or…maybe I was just bitter about my mop-top hairdo. Who knows. At any rate, my time at the Seminary is quickly drawing to a close. I’ve only got one major test left on Thursday then it’s graduation on Friday. The experience here at the seminary these past four years has been incredible…from the classroom with extremely gifted professors to the friends I’ve made to the ways I’ve grown in my Christian faith. God has indeed been good to us and we’re looking forward to all that He has in store for us in the weeks, months, and years ahead!

As you can see, Jack is really excited about all the changes coming up in the next several weeks. It’s hard to believe that I’ve only got a little over a week left of classes! All in all things are going pretty well here. Jack is slowly developing a more regular schedule which is nice (especially for Kris). He’s a little over 11 pounds now and starting to become a little more interactive. The other day Rome really had him smiling and cooing. Rome continues to make us laugh as well and is actually getting back to a normal sleep schedule. I am flying up to the Twin Cities the week after graduation to meet my dad and look for homes. Now I’m off to sign up for HGTV’s “My First Place” so maybe we can end up with a sweet new LCD TV or living room set. Hey, it could happen!

Buildings aren’t as exciting as people, but I found this picture of St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington where I’ll serve as Assistant Pastor starting in just a couple short months. As for the physical building itself, it’s very nice and I actually visited once for a technology conference when I was on vicarage in Minnesota. In fact, I told the youth director from my vicarage congregation “wouldn’t it be neat to serve here some day?” Amazing how the Lord works. Things are still going well here at home. Rome is finally back on a more regular napping schedule which makes life just a little less hectic. Kris and Jack are doing well and thankfully I’ve got a pretty light load to finish up classes so it’s not too bad. Graduation is only three weeks away and I’m scheduled to be ordained and installed on July 12th at St. Michael’s. We’ve already started looking at some houses online and I’ll probably be making a trip up in May with my dad to try to find something. Though in some ways it’s very overwhelming, this is a very exciting time for us and we can’t wait to get up to Bloomington. Please keep us in your prayers as we finish up school, look for a home, and make moving plans.

(for those without Superman vision, the packet I’m holding says “Russel Troester, Minnesota South District, Assistant Pastor, St. Michael’s Lutheran Church, Bloomington, MN)

As some of you may know by now, we had our Call Placement Service tonight and I have received my first call into the Office of the Holy Ministry of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and we’re going back to Minnesota where I’ll serve as an Assistant Pastor at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington, MN (home of the Mall of America and Kris’ favorite, IKEA). We’re really excited to get to know the people there and serve God in this place. A lot will be changing for us in the next few months so keep your eyes peeled for more to come!

Jack turned one month old today so I thought I’d take this opportunity to provide some updates. It feels like just yesterday we brought him home from the hospital and now he’s almost walking and talking. Okay, time isn’t moving that fast, but this last month sure does feel like a blur. Jack is doing well though we can’t seem to convince him that he should sleep through the night. He had a doctor’s appointment today and he weighs 9lbs, 12oz - up 2lbs 9oz from when he was born! Rome seems to be adjusting well to his new role as a big brother. He is very gentle with Jack and really hasn’t been acting jealous but lately he’s decided he doesn’t need to take naps which we think may be his way of acting out. The reality, though, is that he really does need his naps because he too ends up waking up at night, sometimes coming out of his room. We’ve also been giving a run at potty training him, but so far that’s not much of a success. Probably just too much going on right now. As for Kris and me, life is pretty much a blur…wait, didn’t I say that already? Kris is just plain and simple an awesome woman. It amazes me how she can take care of 2 kids on little sleep. She has more patience in her little finger than I could ever hope for and she even manages to keep me in line too! I really don’t know what I’d do without her. I’m pretty fortunate to have a relatively light load this quarter which is good because it’s been hard to concentrate with everything going on. I can hardly believe in only a little over 3 days we’ll be finding out where I’ll serve for my first call! There is a lot of buzz on campus from guys in my class about where everyone is headed…some know, some (like myself) have really no clue. It’s all in the Lord’s hands and I trust wherever He sends me, I’ll be able to use the gifts He’s given me to serve the people well. Then, 4 weeks after Call Day I’ll be graduating from the Seminary and before we know it…we’ll be moving again (Lord willing we’ll stay put for a while this time!) All in all, things are going well but it’s been a crazy ride these past few weeks. I wonder what I’ll think when I actually have some time to process this! Did I mention life is pretty much a blur right now?

Oh yeah - if you’re interested, the info for the Call Placement service (including a live stream) can be found on the Seminary’s website. Here’s the link: http://www.csl.edu/Resources_CallDay2008.aspx

Rome got to meet his baby brother for the first time yesterday afternoon and he seems very excited to be a big brother. Today I was taking him to the the hospital again and made a stop at MacHeadQuarters to get my laptop looked at. Well, they have a neat aquarium at the store with a “Nemo” fish and Rome loves watching all the fish swim around. We were going to wait around for my laptop to get done, but Rome said “lets go see Mommy and Baby Jack!” So, the point of this story is that Rome was more excited to see his baby brother rather than look at the Nemo fish so that’s pretty good.

In all my haste to get updates & photos up yesterday, I never really gave an account of Jack’s arrival into the world…

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Jack Henry Troester! He arrived today (March 18th) at 12:17pm, weighing in at 7lbs, 3oz and measuring 20 1/4″ long. He’s actually a lot cuter than he looks in this picture! Mom & baby are both doing well. I’m staying at home with Big Brother Rome who is quite excited about his new role in the family. We went into the hospital last night at 7pm and 17 hours later he was here. We didn’t get much sleep last night so needless to say, we’re all pretty tired and though this hasn’t quite sunk in yet, but we’re giving thanks to God that he brought us safely to this point and we look forward to the day (April 19th, as of now) when Jack will be brought into the family of God through the waters of Holy Baptism. I hope to have more photos posted soon…if I don’t pass out from exhaustion first (like I can talk - Kris is the one who did all the hard work!). Oh, and a huge thank you to everyone for all your emails, thoughts, and prayers. We’re truly blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives!

UPDATE: New photos posted on the photos page. More to come soon! (Would have been sooner had I not left the camera with Kris at the hospital)

Well, the winter quarter is finally over (well, for all intents and purposes, anyway - I still have one paper to revise and hand in), and we’re looking forward to some time off. As you can see, Kris is showing more and more as Jack continues to grow. She’s officially done doing day care now which is good because her back’s been bothering her more lately and she’ll need the extra rest before Jack officially arrives in early April. Rome’s vocabulary continues to increase and we recently transitioned him away from using pacifiers. Over the break we’ll be putting him into a “big boy” bed so he’s pretty excited. As for me, I’ll feel better when I finally hand in this paper, but it’s nice to have only one quarter left. I had my Certification Interview (a.k.a. Theological Interview) this past Wednesday and it was really great. I met with a couple of my professors and we talked over various topics of theology and church practice and it was a good conversation. The end result is that they will recommend me for certification to become a pastor…I’m now one step closer! The next big thing is Call Day on April, 22. This is where I’ll receive my first call (assignment) to serve as a pastor. It could be anywhere in the US and I could end up as a sole pastor or associate. I’ve had 4 interviews for associate pastor “positions”, one of which I know I will not be going to because they have already told me so. Of the three remaining…well, I haven’t heard anything back yet from any of them so I guess we’ll just have to wait until April! In the mean time, I’ll be spending time with family, taking in some of the sights in St. Louis, and I hope to get some good bike rides in (assuming the temp goes up a little). I’m also planning to do a few races this spring too. I’m officially listed as a member of the Concordia Seminary Bike Club and I now have an official license to race through USA Cycling…how exciting! In addition, our Nintendo Wii has been feeling seriously neglected, so we’ll have to get in some quality time together. I think that about covers it for now. I haven’t uploaded any new photos yet but hope to do so over the next couple of weeks.

UPDATE: I’m in the process of uploading a bunch of new photos so be sure to check out the photos page for more updates.