Trinity Lutheran Church

Mother Teresa's faith

2010-07-21T13:17:00.002-05:00

"The tendency in our spiritual life but also in our more general attitude toward love is that our feelings are all that is going on, and so to us the totality of love is what we feel. But to really love someone requires commitment, fidelity and vulnerability. Mother Teresa wasn't "feeling" Christ's love, and she could have shut down. But she was up at 4:30 every morning for Jesus and still writing to him, 'Your happiness is all I want.' That's a powerful example even if you are not talking in exclusively religious terms." Rev. Brian Kolodiejchuk, compiler and editor of Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light in an artilce in Time

The spiritual practice of paying attention

2010-05-24T13:51:00.005-05:00

Do you hear Lady Wisdom calling? Can you hear Madame Insight raising her voice? She's taken her stand at First and Main, at the busiest intersection. Right in the city square where the traffic is thickest, she shouts, "You - I'm talking to all of you, everyone out here on the streets!

"God sovereignly made me - the first, the basic - before he did anything else. I was brought into being a long time ago, well before Earth got its start. I arrived on the scene before Ocean, yes, even before Springs and Rivers and Lakes. Before Mountains were sculpted and Hills took shape, I was already there, newborn; Long before God stretched out Earth's Horizons, and tended to the minute details of Soil and Weather, And set Sky firmly in place, I was there. When he mapped and gave borders to wild Ocean, built the vast vault of Heaven, and installed the fountains that fed Ocean, When he drew a boundary for Sea, posted a sign that said "no trespassing," and then staked out Earth's foundations, I was right there with him, making sure everything fit. Day after day I was there, with my joyful applause, always enjoying his company, Delighted with the world of things and creatures, happily celebrating the human family. (Proverbs 8:1-4; Proverbs 8:22-31 (The Message)

I invite you to read this passage from Proverbs as a starting point and inspiration for a spiritual practice that is much neglected in our frantic, overly-electronic, preoccupied world: paying attention to creation in order to deepen our relationship with God. Quiet time. Listening. Being observant. Being. (Not "being" on our cell phones, but just being.) Barbara Brown Taylor, in her book on spiritual practices, An Altar in the World, is helpful with this practice. She reminds us that classes, meetings, and even worship services in sanctuaries are not the only (or perhaps even primary) way we might connect with God. Taylor writes evocatively of twelve different ways that we might encounter God in our everyday lives, in the embodied lives we lead, including practices like walking on the earth (groundedness), paying attention (reverence), getting lost (wilderness), and waking up to God (vision). "Wisdom," she writes, "is not gained by knowing what is right. Wisdom is gained by practicing what is right, and noticing what happens when that practice succeeds and when it fails. Wise people do not have to be certain what they believe before they act. They are free to act, trusting that the practice itself will teach them what they need to know….Wisdom atrophies if it is not walked on a regular basis." And yet she clearly doesn't expect us to take her literally; that is, an excellent form of practice is attentive inaction: "The easiest practice of reverence I know," she writes, "is simply to sit down somewhere outside, preferably near a body of water, and pay attention for at least twenty minutes. It is not necessary to take on the whole world at first. Just take the three square feet of earth on which you are sitting, paying close attention to everything that lives within that small estate."

adapted from the website Weekly Seeds

Who is The Holy Spirit?

2010-05-17T11:46:00.005-05:00

Jesus said to his disciples, “If you love me, you will obey my commandments. Then I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever –the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, because it does not see him or know him. But you know him, because he resides with you and will be in you.
“I will not abandon you as orphans, I will come to you. In a little while the world will not see me any longer, but you will see me; because I live, you will live too.
“I have spoken these things while staying with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and will cause you to remember everything I said to you. John 14: 15-19, 25-26

Summer is almost here. My oldest child is home from college and my youngest is getting ready to graduate. Our summer planning is underway, and looking toward this summer, I recall summers past.

I spent every summer from the time I was born until I was 7 years old at camp. My dad was the camp director at 4-H camp on the beautiful shores of Lake Esquagama, near Biwabik, MN.
On the last day of school, we would load our green station wagon with necessities, bid goodbye to city life and all of our friends, and head north for 3 months of outdoor fun.

Our little cabin, called Elsin Lodge, sat at the end of the winding, pine tree lined driveway which was the entrance to the camp. This was our address for the summer. There was a shower in the basement, but I remember taking my Sunday night bath in the big sink.

Mosquitoes were our constant companions at night, buzzing in our ears and leaving red welts on our arms.

More than once our brown wiener dog Toby tried to wrestle a skunk under the front porch (and lost) causing a horrific odor that would last for weeks. I remember our accommodations as primitive and less than comfortable, and we were 60 miles from home.

It was during one of those summer nights at Elsin Lodge, an hour’s drive from our doctor in Duluth, that my little sister developed the croup.

I awoke to her coughing, and the sound was unlike any I have heard since. Barking is what it was, but along with the barking was wheezing, and crying, and then doors opening and slamming shut, and then I heard the shower running and running and running – for what seemed like hours.

And then it was quiet. I tiptoed out of my room to find my mom sitting in the steaming shower room, holding my baby sister who was now breathing easily and sound asleep. The steam from the hot shower had calmed her coughing and opened her airways and allowed her to breathe.

The steam that night was the Holy Spirit, the breath of life for my sister.

Who exactly is the Holy Spirit and how does she work in our lives? Think of water.

Even though there are three uniquely different states of H2O, (solid, liquid, and gas) they are still water. In the same way, these states of water can remind us of the triune nature of God.
The solid form of water (ice) reminds us of God the FATHER. Ice is hard. It is solid. In the same way, God the FATHER is our solid foundation.

The liquid form of water reminds us of God the SON. Jesus called himself the living water. Water is used for cleansing. Jesus died on the cross to cleanse us of our sin.

The gas form of water is steam. Steam reminds us of God the HOLY SPIRIT. You can’t always see steam, but you can feel the effects of it. In the same way, the HOLY SPIRIT cannot be seen, but the effects of her presence can be seen and felt in our lives as the HOLY SPIRIT works to make her will known to us and to change us.

The bible describes the many and various works of the Holy Spirit in our lives and in the world:
In the original languages of the bible, Hebrew and Greek, the word spirit is from the same root word as breath or wind (ruach, pneuma) – we might think of the Holy Spirit as the breath of God, blowing through our lives like the wind.

The bible mentions the Holy Spirit 92 times. It:
· Conceived a child in Mary
· Baptized Jesus
· Speaks for us
· Intercedes for us
· Filled Elizabeth
· Rested on Simeon
· Teaches us
· Led Jesus into the wilderness
· Revealed scripture through David
· Is received by us
· Gives us power
· Gave the people at Babel the ability to speak in other languages
· Is our advocate, our comforter
· Sends us out
· Makes us overseers of the church
· Pours love into our hearts
· Sanctifies us
· Inspires joy in us
· Resides in our bodies, making us living temples of the holy spirit

I saw the Holy Spirit at work that night so many years ago in the little shower room in Elsin Lodge, giving my mother the strength and wisdom to know what to do, giving my sister the gift of breath, giving me the courage to get out bed and lend some night time comfort.
And I have seen it many times since then.

It isn’t always visible to the naked eye, but if you listen, and pay attention, you will notice that it is breathing life into the world, blowing comfort, courage and strength through our lives.

The Holy Spirit is the active presence of God in creation.

Take some time today and think about and then tell each other about where you’ve witnessed the Holy Spirit working in your lives. I bet you’ll have some steamy stories.

What If God Was One Of Us?

2010-05-10T15:05:00.012-05:00

Close your eyes for a minute and picture the face of Jesus.

I bet I know what he looks like to you. It’s probably the same image that comes to my mind. There are no pictures of the real face of Jesus. Legend tells us that Luke may have been an artist, and that he may have drawn a picture of Jesus but nobody has ever found anything to prove that. Even though we think we know what Jesus looked like, the truth is that we really have no idea.

And why do we even want to know?

In her song “What if God Was One of Us,” Alanis Morissette imagines, “What if God was one of us, just a slob like one of us, just a stranger on the bus, trying to make his way home…”

It is in the incarnation, God’s word, Jesus, who was made flesh and who lived among us, that the words to this song are true. In the person of Jesus, God was one of us.

God came to earth and for a short time, joined the human race. He was born, he was a member of a family, and he had a job. He had to eat and sleep, and pray and travel. He was scared and happy and angry. He loved his friends. He was truly human, and so we believe that he was just like us, just a slob like one of us, just a stranger on the bus…

There was just one difference – Jesus was also truly divine. At Christmas time, we hear Jesus called Emmanuel, a word which means “God with us.” Jesus was one of us, and while he was here, the people that he met were face to face with God.

So what did they see? Our image of Jesus, and the image of Jesus for each person in the world who believes in him, is the image that helps each of us to relate to and to form a connection with this part of the Holy Trinity, that is, God with us.

A few years ago, some British scientists, assisted by Israeli archeologists, used forensic anthropology to create a model of what Jesus might have really looked like. Words from Matthew’s gospel offer a clue to the fact that Jesus wasn’t a tall, light skinned, blue eyed western looking man. He looked like the rest of his disciples. We know this, because in order for the soldiers to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before the crucifixion, Jesus had to be indentified by Judas. Jesus looked like everyone else, a typical Galilean Semite.

For me, and maybe for you, it doesn’t really matter what Jesus looked like. When we imagine Jesus sitting next to us, when we share our worries and our sorrows and our successes and our joys with him in our prayers, Jesus looks like each one of us. He was here, on this earth, for each one of us, and he died for each one of us, and because he rose from the dead, each one of us will have eternal life.

In Japan,

In Africa, or as an African American,

in the Caribbean,

At Mount Sinai,

In Turin, Italy.

God is one of us, Holy Trinity, three in one. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

2010-05-03T12:54:00.001-05:00

Something to think and pray about this week

In the northern hemisphere, May brings the special joy of brighter sunlight and longer days. Throughout the scriptures God is spoken of as the source of light, living in inaccessible light. Jesus is the light of the world, bringing sight to the sightless. We are to walk as children of the light. Light is more than just a condition to see by. Sunlight opens the world to us, nourishes our skin and our body, shows us we are still alive. Dylan Thomas' angry poem bids his sick father, ‘Rage, rage against the dying of the light'.
Lord, I treasure your light, and the feeling of the sun on my back. May I never lose my gratitude for the sight of my eyes and the glory of sunlight. I need your light too in the dark hours, when I am baffled by the evil of the world. Be you the light of my life.

borrowed from http://sacredspace.ie/
click on the link to continue the prayer

Where is God in the storm?

2010-04-26T14:25:00.002-05:00

I listened to the news coverage of the tornados in Mississippi this past week with an especially broken heart. Five years ago I travelled for twenty four hours in a bus with a group from Mount Olivet to lead a Camp Noah week in McComb Mississippi, about 150 miles south of Yazoo City. The participants of our camp were refugees from the Hurricane Katrina ravaged areas of New Orleans. We spent the week talking about the hurricane and the broken levees and the flood and how God cares for us through the storm.

Our group devotions for that week came from a book by Dr. Gary Harbauch called “Act of God - Active God: Recovering from Natural Disasters.” In the introduction, Gilbert B. Furst, director of Lutheran Disaster Response writes,
”Instead of seeing disasters as 'acts of God,' Harbaugh shows that when disasters occur, God in fact is active: in and through our questions, confusion and doubts; active in and through our responses and actions; active in and through people of faith.” p.ix.

It is our faith that sustains us when everything is falling apart around us. In a CBS "Early Show" interview, the faith of the decimated community shines through.

“Ashley Saxton, who was driving to her family's restaurant with her husband Rob as the tornado approached, said the storm came upon them very fast.

‘It's a miracle we're here," Ashley told ‘The Early Show’. Rob Saxton said the tornado was powerful enough to lift up their car and briefly send his wife airborne. ‘I had to snatch her.’

Sunday was sunny and breezy as Thrasher and about three dozen members the Yazoo City church stood in a circle and sang ‘Till the Storm Passes By.’ Thrasher reminded the group that the church has survived tough times before. They rebuilt after their building was destroyed by arson about 10 years ago.

‘The Lord brought us through the fire, and brought us back bigger and better,’ Thrasher said. ‘The Lord will bring us back bigger and better this time, if we stick together.’”

Harbaugh writes, “Through the eyes of faith, we see Christ present and caring for us in times of disaster, making it possible for us to ‘comprehend’ with the heart of not with the mind. The word translated in Ephesians 3 as ‘comprehend’ also means ‘perceive.’ Especially when disaster darkens our vision, we pray that God will strengthen us in the inner person and give us power to perceive the presence and care of Christ.” p. 21. “The light never shines so brightly as when it appears in utter darkness. There is no way to experience the joy of the resurrection except by way of the cross.” p. 17

Till The Storm Passes by Mosie Lister.

In the dark of the midnight have I oft hid my face while the storm howls above me and there’s no hiding place mid the crash of the thunder precious Lord hear my cry keep me safe til the storm passes by.

Chorus: Till the storm passes over till the thunder sounds no more till the clouds roll forever from the sky hold me fast let me stand in the hollow of thy hand keep me safe till the storm passes by.

When the long night has ended and the storms come no more let me stand in thy presence on that bright peaceful shore in that land where the tempest never comes Lord may I dwell with thee till the storm passes by.

Chorus: Till the storm passes over till the thunder sounds no more till the clouds roll forever from the sky hold me fast let me stand in the hollow of thy hand keep me safe till the storm passes by.

Many times Satan tells me there’s is no need to try for there is no end of sorrow there’s no hope by and by but I no thou art with me and tomorrow I’ll rise where the storms never darken the skies

Chorus: Till the storm passes over till the thunder sounds no more till the clouds roll forever from the sky hold me fast let me stand in the hollow of thy hand keep me safe till the storm passes by.

The Hound of Heaven

2010-04-19T09:40:00.001-05:00

by Francis Thompson

I fled Him down the nights and down the days
I fled Him down the arches of the years
I fled Him down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind, and in the midst of tears
I hid from him, and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes I sped and shot precipitated
Adown titanic glooms of chasme d hears
From those strong feet that followed, followed after
But with unhurrying chase and unperturbe d pace,
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
They beat, and a Voice beat,
More instant than the feet:
All things betray thee who betrayest me.

I pleaded, outlaw--wise by many a hearted casement,
curtained red, trellised with inter-twining charities,
For though I knew His love who followe d,
Yet was I sore adread, lest having Him,
I should have nought beside.
But if one little casement parted wide,
The gust of his approach would clash it to.
Fear wist not to evade as Love wist to pursue.
Across the margent of the world I fled,
And troubled the gold gateways of the stars,
Smiting for shelter on their clange d bars,
Fretted to dulcet jars and silvern chatter
The pale ports of the moon.

I said to Dawn --- be sudden, to Eve --- be soon,
With thy young skiey blossoms heap me over
From this tremendous Lover.
Float thy vague veil about me lest He see.
I tempted all His servitors but to find
My own betrayal in their constancy,
In faith to Him, their fickleness to me,
Their traitorous trueness and their loyal deceit.

To all swift things for swiftness did I sue,
Clung to the whistling mane of every wind,
But whether they swept, smoothly fleet,
The long savannahs of the blue,
Or whether, thunder-driven,
They clanged His chariot thwart a heaven,
Plashy with flying lightnings round the spurn of their feet,
Fear wist not to evade as Love wist to pursue.
Still with unhurrying chase and unperturbed pace
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
Came on the following feet, and a Voice above their beat:
Nought shelters thee who wilt not shelter Me.

I sought no more that after which I strayed
In face of Man or Maid.
But still within the little childrens' eyes
Seems something, something that replies,
They at least are for me, surely for me.
But just as their young eyes grew sudden fair,
With dawning answers there,
Their angel plucked them from me by the hair.
Come then, ye other children, Nature's
Share with me, said I, your delicate fellowship.
Let me greet you lip to lip,
Let me twine with you caresses,
Wantoning with our Lady Mother's vagrant tresses,
Banqueting with her in her wind walled palace,
Underneath her azured dai:s,
Quaffing, as your taintless way is,
From a chalice, lucent weeping out of the dayspring.

So it was done.
I in their delicate fellowship was one.
Drew the bolt of Nature's secrecies,
I knew all the swift importings on the wilful face of skies,
I knew how the clouds arise,
Spume d of the wild sea-snortings.
All that's born or dies,
Rose and drooped with,
Made them shapers of mine own moods, or wailful, or Divine.
With them joyed and was bereaven.
I was heavy with the Even,
when she lit her glimmering tapers round the day's dead sanctities.
I laughed in the morning's eyes.
I triumphed and I saddened with all weather,
Heaven and I wept together,
and its sweet tears were salt with mortal mine.
Against the red throb of its sunset heart,
I laid my own to beat
And share commingling heat.

But not by that, by that was eased my human smart.
In vain my tears were wet on Heaven's grey cheek.
For ah! we know what each other says,
these things and I; In sound I speak,
Their sound is but their stir, they speak by silences.
Nature, poor step-dame, cannot slake my drouth.
Let her, if she would owe me
Drop yon blue-bosomed veil of sky
And show me the breasts o' her tenderness.
Never did any milk of hers once bless my thirsting mouth.
Nigh and nigh draws the chase, with unperturbe d pace
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
And past those noise d feet, a Voice comes yet more fleet:
Lo, nought contentst thee who content'st nought Me.

Naked, I wait thy Love's uplifted stroke. My harness, piece by piece,
thou'st hewn from me
And smitten me to my knee,
I am defenceless, utterly.
I slept methinks, and awoke.
And slowly gazing, find me stripped in sleep.
In the rash lustihead of my young powers,
I shook the pillaring hours,
and pulled my life upon me.
Grimed with smears,
I stand amidst the dust o' the mounded years--
My mangled youth lies dead beneath the heap.
My days have crackled and gone up in smoke,
Have puffed and burst like sunstarts on a stream.
Yeah, faileth now even dream the dreamer
and the lute, the lutanist.

Even the linked fantasies in whose blossomy twist,
I swung the Earth, a trinket at my wrist,
Have yielded, cords of all too weak account,
For Earth, with heavy grief so overplussed.
Ah! is thy Love indeed a weed,
albeit an Amaranthine weed,
Suffering no flowers except its own to mount?
Ah! must, Designer Infinite,
Ah! must thou char the wood 'ere thou canst limn with it ?
My freshness spent its wavering shower i' the dust.
And now my heart is as a broken fount,
Wherein tear-drippings stagnate, spilt down ever
From the dank thoughts that shiver upon the sighful branches of my
mind.

Such is. What is to be ?
The pulp so bitter, how shall taste the rind ?
I dimly guess what Time in mists confounds,
Yet ever and anon, a trumpet sounds
From the hid battlements of Eternity.
Those shaken mists a space unsettle,
Then round the half-glimpse d turrets, slowly wash again.
But not 'ere Him who summoneth
I first have seen, enwound
With glooming robes purpureal; Cypress crowned.
His name I know, and what his trumpet saith.
Whether Man's Heart or Life it be that yield thee harvest,
Must thy harvest fields be dunged with rotten death ?

Now of that long pursuit,
Comes at hand the bruit.
That Voice is round me like a bursting Sea:
And is thy Earth so marred,
Shattered in shard on shard?
Lo, all things fly thee, for thou fliest me.
Strange, piteous, futile thing;
Wherefore should any set thee love apart?
Seeing none but I makes much of Naught (He said).
And human love needs human meriting ---
How hast thou merited,
Of all Man's clotted clay, the dingiest clot.
Alack! Thou knowest not
How little worthy of any love thou art.
Whom wilt thou find to love ignoble thee,
Save me, save only me?
All which I took from thee, I did'st but take,
Not for thy harms,
But just that thou might'st seek it in my arms.

All which thy childs mistake fancies as lost,
I have stored for thee at Home.
Rise, clasp my hand, and come.
Halts by me that Footfall.
Is my gloom, after all,
Shade of His hand, outstretched caressingly?
Ah, Fondest, Blindest, Weakest,
I am He whom thou seekest.
Thou dravest Love from thee who dravest Me.

What do you know?

2010-04-12T13:02:00.001-05:00

Now every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. (Luke 2: 41-47)

I am the parent of two grown children. My son just turned 20, and this year, my daughter will graduate from high school. As we look back on our parenting years, we hope that we did a good enough job raising these young people to be responsible, productive adults. There are so many things they need to know as they venture out into the world, and there are so many times when we’ve felt unprepared or simply unable to teach them about everything that will come their way. I hope as their parents, we recognized, as we tried to guide them through childhood, that our children have their own wisdom, their own way of looking at things that may be different from the way we see things, maybe even that they have something to teach us!

This week, an article called “Learning from Children,” in the May 2010 issue of Lutheran Woman Today, affirmed my hopes. According to the author, Herbert Anderson, “The story of Jesus in the temple reminds us that we cannot know the fullness of being human without listening to children and understanding what they see.” Anderson suggests that when our primary, our only focus as parents is teaching, nurturing and protecting our children, we miss the opportunity to learn from them. They have stuff to teach us!

Anderson observes, “The biblical story parallels the human story of childhood, adulthood, and parental care of children. Because of Jesus, childness is not foreign to God. The picture of Jesus welcoming children is a radically new and more inclusive vision of the human community. Adults are invited to learn from children about being human and about being a disciple of Jesus.”

I invite you, with the children who are around you, to be intentional about how you listen to them. You might be amazed!

Hungry?

2010-04-05T11:56:00.000-05:00

This year, for the first time, I practiced the discipline of a Lenten fast. Starting on Ash Wednesday, and ending on Good Friday with a salty, doughy cross shaped pretzel, a product of Trinity’s Good Friday cross crafts, I gave up eating bread and pasta. These foods were staples of my diet, not only because of their convenience, but because they’re yummy. I have an Italian recipe book called “The Top 100 Pasta Sauces.” My family enjoys dinner from that book at least once a week.

I thought my Lenten fast would be difficult to maintain. I thought that I would never be satisfied following a meal minus the carbs.

In an article called “A Christian Diet,” (From The Christian Century, April 6, 2010, p. 35) David Grumett recalls a sermon by John Wesley. “Wesley lists various grounds for fasting: a natural sense of affliction, sorrow or penitence, the limitation of sensual appetites, self chastisement and the aiding of prayer. He does not present these grounds as necessary reasons to fast, but as reasons why Christians choose to fast.”

My fast surprised me in a few different ways. I was indeed more mindful of what I ate at every meal. I ate less food in general, not really missing the bread with dinner, skipping the pasta that came with an order of scallops at a restaurant. I was indeed satisfied after a meal that filled me up just so I was not hungry. I never once during Lent had a stomachache after eating more than I should have.

What I was missing was the connection. I wish I would have read Grumett’s article before Ash Wednesday. I think I would have been more mindful of why I was doing what I was doing. The discipline part of it did not really connect with the faith part of it for me, at least this time. Grumett writes, “By fasting during Advent and Lent, one experiences an absence that enables one to long physically for Christ’s incarnation and resurrection… The key point is to use our food practices for the good of our community and to develop our connection with God.” (p. 36)

I think I am going to continue with my discipline of fasting. I have resolved to be more aware of what and of how much I am eating, where it comes from and who has prepared it. I will continue to read ingredient labels to avoid high fructose corn syrup. And the fresh fruits and vegetables that have become staples will continue as staples – I am looking forward to summer’s abundance of local produce!

Grumett writes, “We may use food as a means of reconnecting to our spiritual heritage and traditions and marking the Christian calendar and the seasonal calendar – which itself is God-given.” (p. 37)

I pray that my continued discipline and mindfulness of the faith-food connection will help me to “[recognize] the link between food and spirituality, and [subject] eating to the scrutiny of Christian conscience and tradition.” (p. 37) I challenge you to be mindful, too.

Turn! Turn! Turn!

2010-03-22T10:12:00.005-05:00

This weekend I read a passage from the book of Ecclesiastes at a funeral. It’s a familiar passage. Most of you can probably sing it in the song made popular by the Byrds. But even the well-known words of Ecclesiastes 3 are the living Word of God, so I wasn’t surprised when someone asked me after the funeral, about some of the “times” that the teacher Ecclesiastes writes about – a time to kill, a time to hate - words of God he found troubling.

In a message on Chicago Sunday Evening Club, Sr, Joan Chittister makes some thoughtful comments on the third chapter of Ecclesiastes. She writes, “The purpose of time is to alert us to ourselves so that we can become… with its affirmation of all the dimensions of life, the only thing it’s really worth our time to be: a total human, a deeply spiritual being.

That's the call of Ecclesiastes. It's an awesome thought. If God is in this particular life struggle, and this life struggle, this painful separation, this shocking loss, this deep deep pain, this change of status, of life, of love, has something to do with the development of the God-life in me, then it is to be dealt with reverently and lived through trustingly. Then raging will cease. Then the despair will dissolve. Then the bitterness can ebb. It is not Ecclesiastes implies that God is in this awful thing treating us like mice in cages and tweaking our tails with glee. No, it is that we are living in God, no matter what life is like for us at this particular moment. So, then, what can possibly be taken away that will leave us bereft, once we decide to live in the presence of God?

Young widows know life's sting. Old inventors know its zest. Middle aged women know its allure. Young couples know its excitement. Middle aged men know its false promise. Children know its partiality - that many thrive some of the time, and that some struggle ceaselessly. But through it all, whatever its twists and turns along the way, life leaves us images of the serene elderly, the ones who fought the fight and found it energizing, found it good. They are proof for the rest of us that if we do not resist it, if we dance the dance of life whole and entire, we, too, may come to the end of it weathered and strong, wizened and laughing, quietly satisfied with what we have learned, for what we have become that we could not have been without our own particular recipe of cleansing pain and perfect joy in proper proportions. There is no such thing as a meaningless moment. Life is a growing thing going from seed to sapling, but always, always toward its purpose, the shaping of the self into a person of quality, compassion and joy. But for that to happen every smaller segment must be faced and cannot be fled.

Indeed, Ecclesiastes weighs them all. He teaches there is a time to kill whatever it is within us that keeps our souls from flying free. There is a time, he says, to refrain from embracing whatever it is that is smothering the heart. There is a time to weep the tears that dignify the going of those things and people in life who have brought us to where we are today. There is a time to embrace the good of life with great thumping hugs that give energy for the rest of the journey. There is a time to reap, to work hard, to achieve and assure the fruits of life. There is a time to glory in the gains of life, to run through life head up and lusty, gathering as we go, piling up the good things and laughing as we do. There is a time to love, to find ourselves in someone else, so that we can find ourselves at all. There is a time to lose, a time to let go of whatever has become our captor in life. There is a time to be born, fresh and full again out of old ideas, old forms, old shapes. There is a time to laugh, to let go of the propriety and old pomposities and join the bungling, lunging, silly human race. There is a time to die, to put an end to things, to stop the carousel, to surrender to the forces of time and trust them. There is a time of war, of struggling against the forces within me that make for my destruction. There is a time to heal ourselves from the hurts that weigh us down and keep us from taking charge of our own emotional lives. There is a time to build up, to construct the new world, to co-create the globe, so that what we leave behind is better than what we have received. Finally, there is a time for peace, for coming to grips with the demons within us, for staring them down and smoothing them out, so that we can spread peace like velvet.

Article exerpted from: 30 Good Minutes Message by Joan Chittister "Time: The Great Spiritual Director" Program #4019 First air date February 16, 1997

With Empowerment, Responsibility

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O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor. You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Psalm 8

I’ve always lived in a house shaded by huge trees. The house I bought with my husband when we were first married was nestled between tall oak trees. They provided wonderful shade which kept our house cool on hot summer days. They also provided lots of food for the legions of squirrels that made our corner lot their home.

About every four or five years, the entire contents of the acorn crop for that year would fall from the trees in about 1 week, and the noise from those falling nuts was like hail, pouring down 24 hours a day.

In the autumn, we spent hours raking and playing in the leaves with our two children, who were very small in those years.

It was a lot of work to maintain a grassy yard under those oak trees, but we managed to have a decent lawn with the help of grass seed developed to grow in the shade. My gardens contained day lilies, hosta, impatiens and begonias, all plants that thrive with very little sunlight.

About 8 years ago, when it was clear that my family had grown out of our little starter house, we bought a larger house on a larger lot, with larger trees. This time, we were “blessed” with two 70 year old silver maples, one in the front yard and one in the back. These trees also provided cool shade, a home for all of the squirrels in the neighborhood, and many, many leaves to rake in the fall. But we soon discovered that silver maples have a life expectancy of about 70 years. Branches would fall to the ground with each gust of wind, and the squirrels had hollowed out a huge nest in a section of trunk that hung directly over our den. The trees had to be removed.

Except for the great expense to have them taken down, I was thrilled to get rid of those trees. They were messy, and I was looking forward to a yard filled with sunshine. I wanted to grow flowers that didn’t love shade, and I wanted vegetables. In my own yard, I could now plant and grow whatever pleased me.

That spring, I cleared out the garden full of day lilies next to the garage, and I planted a salsa garden. Eight tomato plants and four pepper plants didn’t seem excessive at the end of May. They were so tiny, and I wanted to have a good crop.

If you do any gardening, you can imagine what happened. I spent many sunny afternoons trimming branches and clipping buds from a garden that went wild. The plants were actually choking each other out, and I had to tend carefully to the garden, thinning and trimming the excessive over planting that I did in the spring. I worried that I wouldn’t have any vegetables at all! My enthusiasm for a bountiful crop, and yes, my greed, might have eventually caused my garden to die.

The psalmist reminds us of the great gift that God has created for us. Praising God, he writes, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established, what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” The psalmist then reminds us not only of the power we have been given over creation, but of the responsibility that comes with that power. “You have given human beings dominion over the works of your hands, you have put all things under their feet.”

In creation, God has given us a great gift. We can do with it whatever pleases us, and we do. We live in a culture of excess. Yesterday I filled up the gas tank on the big red truck that belongs to my husband, and the bill came to almost 50 dollars. With our Costco membership we can buy our crackers in 3 pound boxes. The honey bees are disappearing, possibly because of the millions of invisible cell phone signals that are disturbing their natural radar which helps them find their way back to their hives.

We have dominion over the work of Gods hands, but I think we might misunderstand what dominion means.

In Psalm 8, the word dominion conveys a concept of partnership between God and God’s creation. In her book Gaia and God, feminist theologian Rosemary Radford Ruether reminds us that “nature is not private property to be done with as one wishes, but stewardship over an earth that is God’s.” Those of us who live in the light of God’s grace must be aware of that, and remember that safe in our relationship with God, we are given the privilege and responsibility to be partners with God in care for, love for and intimate relationship with the natural world.

Just because we know how to, and because we can, does not mean that we should. We need to downsize instead of supersize. We should use more public transportation. We should stop buying bottled water. Studies have shown that most tap water is just as good for you, if not better, and the cost to our environment to produce and dispose of all the plastic is staggering.

In 2005, the UN Millennium Ecosystem Assessment discovered that the global food production and distribution system is the main cause of pollution and the greatest destroyer of ecosystems and biodiversity. It’s not industry or oil, as we usually think, but the global food industry. Agriculture poisons and makes the soil infertile, monoculture crops involve increasingly invasive hybrid strains, aquifers get polluted. Unsustainable amounts of water are needed for irrigation, crazy logic sees staple foods transported for thousands of miles, fish stocks are plundered, farms are places where animal lives are just cogs in an assembly line.

We have learned that small everyday acts like changing the type of light bulbs we use, can help our environment. Just think what effect our food choices could have: we really could make a decisive difference. The rules are simple: buy products which are local, fresh, in season and organic; get information by reading the label and, even more important, by getting to know producers; cook for yourself, avoiding precooked and preserved foods; practice healthy restraint, preferring quality over quantity and refocusing our attention on the importance of food. While gaining benefits and respect from virtuous behavior, it won’t be a sacrifice but a pleasure.

Come to my house this summer and I will get you started with fresh ingredients for salsa.

We are blessed with a wonderful world. Our ability to manipulate our environment, to harness and exploit the power of our natural resources is not proof of God’s blessing on our nation. It is evidence that we tend to rely on ourselves, and forget that the primary actor in Psalm 8, and in the world, is not human, but God.

We have been given dominion over the work of God’s hands, and with that empowerment comes responsibility. Dominion thought of in terms of our precious relationship with God and with nature brings with it the responsibility to value the interdependence of God, all creatures, and creation as well as the responsibility to care for the earth as we have been cared for and loved by a God of limitless love.

Amen.

“How old are you?”

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For reasons I do not understand, most women and some men don’t like to be asked this question. I’ll never forget the time, while visiting with a very elderly member of my former congregation, what happened when I asked her, out of curiosity I suppose, but also with a sense of awe at her long history, how old she was. She was not amused, and she snapped back that I should never ask a lady her age. Lesson learned. I am very careful about this now.

I don’t mind when people ask about my age. Every year of my life has brought challenges, joys, and experiences that I am grateful for. Although I would never want to relive the past, I appreciate that each moment, each life lesson has shaped me into the person I am today, for better or for worse. My age, a glorious 47 years as of last Friday, is not something that has ever caused me a moment of anxiety and I pray that this will continue.

In her reflections on the biblical story of Ruth, Joan Chittister observes that “early texts called age 45 ‘the meeting of past and future,’ the point at which people came to terms with who they were because, it was now clear, there was no time, no possibility of being anything else.” (Chittister, p. 33)*

I wonder if it is because I can imagine possibilities ahead of me, both in my life and in my ministry, that I remain comfortable with my age. I wonder if I will ever get to a point where I feel like there is no possibility of anything else. I hope that time never comes!

In the book of Ruth, we meet Naomi, the mother-in-law to two daughters, the three of them widowed, left alone in a world that seemed stripped of possibilities. But all three moved hopefully forward to see what God had in store for them. Chittister writes, “Weary from the burdens of her life, aware of how vulnerable she is as a woman alone in society of families, but intent on living still, Naomi refuses to give up. She is a sign of womanly wisdom, a spiritual guide, an antidote to ageism.… Railing and raging, pushing and claiming, scratching and climbing we come to the peak of our physical years, but it is what we know about life, about God, about what’s worth it and what’s not, about what’s holy and what’s not, when our bodies have lost their tensile strength and our legs have lost their timber that may be what the world needs most.” (Chittister, p. 35)

How old are you? And what are your hopes, your dreams, your possibilities?

*(Joan D. Chittister, The Story of Ruth: Twelve Moments in Every Woman’s Life (Grand Rapids: Wm B Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000)

She Was A Judge

2010-03-01T15:41:00.005-06:00

At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came to her for judgment. (Judges 4: 4-5)

Deborah has been a witness for me as long as I’ve known her. If her job as a judge could be summed up in one word, it would be oracle; spokesperson for God. In her day, she was God’s mouthpiece to Israel as she sat under her palm tree dispensing wisdom to the Israelites. She also spoke for God when her people needed to defend themselves against their oppressors. Although it was unusual for a woman to judge in her time, she was confident in her role, because she knew that she was speaking God’s word. She was confident enough to say to Barak, Israel’s military leader, “the Lord, the God of Israel, commands you.”

When God asks someone to speak God’s word, the chosen person isn’t always ready or willing. It is a frequent human response to tell God, for one reason or another, that we’d be an inept representative, or that we simply do not want to do the job we are asked to do, or that it won’t fit into our life at the present time. But remember, as Deborah did, that whatever God asks us to do or say, God has promised that God will lead us along familiar paths, and will not forsake us (Isaiah 42:16).

Deborah spoke God’s word to Barak, and to the Israelites, and they listened. Somehow, they knew that she was speaking God’s truth. We can all speak for God, but in order to do so, we must carefully listen, as Deborah did, for God’s word. Deborah’s confidence was not in herself, but in God. The kind of wisdom and bravery she showed us is very achievable for each of us when we put our trust in God and in God’s promises.

And so we pray,

Dear wise and guiding God, Help us to see the purpose you have for us in your world. Help us to put our trust and confidence in your work and your word for us, and help us to be brave in proclaiming your love to the world. We pray in the name of Jesus, who is our hope, Amen.

2010-02-22T13:22:00.002-06:00

Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. (Genesis 12: 1, 4)

"Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you." - Saint Augustine

I am constantly trying to figure out what it is that God wants me to do, and I never really feel like I know. So I daily remind myself of St. Augustine’s words and I try to follow them.

I will admit that for me, it’s hard to put my trust in God when it seems like so much actually does depend on me. The day to day activities of life are not items that I can place in God’s hands as I sit in trusting and contemplative prayer.

There have been many times when I’ve wished for a clear message from God, complete with the promise of blessing, protection, and guidance, like the one that Abram received. God clearly said go! I will show you the way. And Abram went, no questions asked.

If you read the whole story of Abram, who became Abraham, you will notice that Abram didn’t always trust God. Abraham didn’t always know what God wanted him to do. And so sometimes Abraham got it right, and sometimes he got it wrong. The good news for Abraham, and for us, is that God stuck with Abraham when he was doing what God wanted him to do, and then when Abraham messed up, God was there, too.

We need to live our lives, work as though everything depends on us, and trust God to be God, and pray as though everything depends on God. In the Book of Faith Series bible study on Genesis, Catherine Malotky writes, “the challenge is to trust God implicitly and still live proactively. This is the nature of the covenant God has established with us. Like Abraham, we are on a journey of faith. Faith is not something we tidily achieve and then set aside.” (Leader’s Guide, p. 38)

We will never know in this life exactly what God expects of us each day, so we journey on in faith and trust. We actually DO have a clear message from God; complete with the promise of blessing, protection, and guidance. His name is Jesus.

Prayer for the journey

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that my desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope that I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Ashes and Dust

2010-02-15T14:18:00.002-06:00

Last year I found an article in the March issue of “The Lutheran” magazine called 40 Days Without Shaving. The author, Vic Larson, tells about his tradition of giving up shaving for Lent. “Each year on Ash Wednesday I go home from our solemn evening service of ashes and before retiring for the night, I wash my face and put away my electric razor until Easter.” He admits the first time he did it, it was kind of fun. But something else happened, and each time he looked into the mirror, he remembered, “Oh, yeah, it’s Lent.”

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday again, and with a cross of ashes on our foreheads, we will remind ourselves that we are mortal and, as Walter Brueggemann writes in his commentary on Genesis, “death in and of itself belongs properly to the human life that God wills for mankind.” You are dust and to dust you shall return. (Genesis 3: 18)

Some Christian traditions hold an Easter vigil on Easter Saturday night. This lengthy service recalls our faith story, and ends with singing and light and rejoicing as the hope of the glorious resurrection is celebrated. During the vigil, there is often a baptism or two, which helps us to remember that although we will die an earthly death, that we lament our sinfulness, we are washed clean in the waters of baptism and so we get not what we deserve, but what God extends us by grace. We are reminded that we have the hope and privilege to turn to God from whom comes life because we know that we are creatures who face death. And by God’s grace through the life and death and resurrection of Jesus, death will never have the last word.

Vic Larson’s Lenten beard reminds him of original sin from which we are washed clean in our baptism. He recalls the words of Martin Luther. “Original sin is in us, like the beard. We are shaved today and look clean, and have a smooth chin; tomorrow our beard has grown again, nor does it cease growing while we remain on earth.”

Larson writes, “I can shave my beard, but the hair returns to remind me each day. And so I go through life ‘shaving’ and failing, then shaving again.”

We will never be the perfect reflection of Christ while we journey through this life on earth. Even as we strive to live the way God would have us live, we will fail again and again. And then we face death. So we serve God with courage, and we hold fast to what is good. And we remember that through Jesus Christ we are forgiven, and that God, through the power of the Holy Spirit keeps and holds us in eternal life.

A prayer for Ash Wednesday

Merciful God, accompany our journey through these forty days. Renew us in the gift of baptism, that we may provide for those who are poor, pray for those in need, fast from self-indulgence and above all that we may find our treasure in the life of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever, Amen. (from the Ash Wednesday Service found in the Evangelical Book of Worship Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2006 p. 254.)

Siesta Spirituality

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Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. (Luke 9: 28)

A windstorm arose on the sea, so great that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but Jesus was asleep. (Matthew 8: 24)

My prayer-life isn’t exactly what you would call exemplary. I work full time, take care of a house and a family, including two dogs, and even find time to fit in a few hobbies. Quiet time spent alone with God comes at a premium. Sometimes I wonder how people ever find time to pray.

Prayer, especially in our busy lives, is important. Prayer is the way that we maintain our relationship with God. In this week’s scripture reading, Jesus reminds us of the importance of prayer. He takes his disciples up to the top of a mountain specifically to pray. Wouldn’t it be great if Jesus would come around once in a while and take us with him to pray? He would certainly hold us accountable.

What is a good prayer life? How do we pray correctly? Do we have to be kneeling alone, silently, for an hour in a dimly lit room? In a little book called Pray All Ways, Edward Hays reminds us that prayer is not an event but a way of living our lives. He teaches that “Jesus has not called all his followers to abandon all other activities of family, life and work to continually and solely engage in … times of prayer… The different activities of our daily lives are not distractions from prayer, but rather the rich soil for prayer.” (p. 14, 15)

Some of the chapters in Hays’ book are entitled, “How to pray with our feet,” and “Feasting as prayer.” My favorite, however, is one of the last chapters, called “The prayer of napping.”

Napping has always been one of my guilty pleasures. When I’m at home for the day, I usually lie down for an afternoon siesta around 2 o’clock. Even on working days, I manage to close my eyes for a few minutes when I get home before I start preparations for the evening’s meal and activities.

Hays reminded me that even Jesus had to rest in order to be refreshed for his work. The story of Jesus stilling the storm (Mark 4: 35-40) shows us “an interesting and unusual form of prayer. Interesting and important for us is the experience we find there: Jesus engaged in the prayer of napping!” (p. 197)

We have to take care of things in our lives, but we also have to stop and allow God to take care of us. When we sleep, we are letting go of everything – especially control – and trusting that God will take over. We are allowing God to take over.

Hayes writes, “as zealous Christians, should we not be ‘on our toes,’ alert, awake, and busy? For who wants to be caught napping, which is a sure sign of carelessness? But wasn’t Jesus caught napping that afternoon on the lake? He was, to put it plainly, careless. To be careless is to be care-less, to be without care or anxiety. He was a casual and relaxed rabbi-teacher who was well aware that not he, but the Father was in control of the universe. That state of awareness is prayer. It is a way of facing the Mystery. Since God was in charge, why worry and be upset with undue care, for he and his friends were held in God’s love which would shield them from all evil.” (p, 199-200)

A Prayer for Nap Time
(or for any time when we desire to be “out- of- control” or to do “nothing-of profit”)

Well, Lord, it’s not yet time to quit – all around me life is buzzing. Nevertheless, I need to let go of being busy and, at times, just to relax. May each nap time be a sacrament for me, giving me the grace to be aware that you are able to use stones to praise you and to raise up your kingdom. My time of doing nothing – of letting go – remind me that it is you, my God, who is bringing about the kingdom, and that the more I can let you do it – especially in the midst of my greatest efforts – the more beautifully and gracefully the age of justice and peace can come in this tired world.

Show me that if I can let go of trying to control people, events, and especially my futile attempts at controlling you, holiness will flow to me more quickly and surely. May each short time of leisure renew my spirit, fill my heart with insights and restore my body. As your Son, Jesus, let go of his cares and fell asleep in the story-tossed boat, may I now let go of my cares and rest in you, my beloved God and ever-vigilant lover. Amen. (Hayes, p. 207-08)

Hayes, Edward Pray All Ways Forest of Peace, Ave Maria Press (Notre Dame, IN, 1981, 2007)

What makes you mad?

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Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on the cause of your anger. You must put away every kind of bitterness, anger, wrath, quarreling, and evil, slanderous talk. Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you. (Ephesians 4:26, 31-32)

I get mad when things don’t go the way I think they should go. I get mad when a wrench gets thrown into the works. I get mad when somebody does me wrong.

I found this story about anger that I could relate to, and I’d like to share it with you.

Molly and Mort have been married since Monday. For months they have been planning a honeymoon tour of Kansas. On Tuesday they got as far as Indianapolis. They spent the night in the Ramada Inn, and were set to make it to Topeka by nightfall on Wednesday. Molly has heard so much about Topeka. She is sure this is going to be a perfectly wonderful beginning to a storybook honeymoon. But by now, Mort, returning to the room, has a sheepish look on his face.

“What’s up?” Molly asks. “Are we ready to go?” “I’m awfully sorry,” says Mort. “For safe keeping I set the keys to the rental car just inside the trunk while I loaded it. And you know when I next remembered they were there? It was a split second before I heard the trunk lid snap shut as firm and final as anything.” To hide his embarrassment, interrupt the line of vision between their eyes, and to protect him from the emotion that he feels rising like a mighty tide in his bride, he approaches her for a kiss.

Molly is not in the mood for a kiss, and becomes less so when they discover that the locksmith isn’t available until 4:00 pm. The hope of Topeka by nightfall is dead. Molly is mad. You could say she is frustrated; the circumstances are contrary to her wishes. You could say she is disappointed: she was expecting something wonderful and now sees that it won’t happen. But her emotion is more than irritation and disappointment. It is anger. In addition to seeing her circumstances as bad, she sees that it is somebody’s fault.

So what makes you mad? Change a few details in this story, and I can say that I’ve felt exactly the same way that Molly feels, especially towards my husband, several times just in the last week!

There are, of course, other things that make me mad. I get mad about how global warming and the influx of technology are destroying native culture in Alaska. I get mad that because of a continually faltering economy, many of my friends and neighbors still don’t have jobs. I get mad that we can’t protect each other from disease and earthquakes and grief. I see terrible things happening and I wonder who is to blame, and who is going to make it right.

It’s not good to be an angry person. I recently discovered a new word – irascible – the definition of which is being an angry sort of person, marked by hot temper and easily provoked. Sometimes, when I consider all the things I have to be mad about, I feel like that is the direction I may be headed.

So what do I do with my anger? Is it ok to be angry sometimes? What on earth is human anger good for?

Biologists point out that anger is very useful as a signal to the offender. Anger is a part of our original human nature, just as love is. It is not necessarily sinful. Even God gets angry when we sin – his anger is not directed at us, but what we do. And Jesus got angry as well. Jesus got angry at those who obstructed compassion, and eventually plotted against his life. Because Jesus loved us so much, his anger came from love. But Jesus also loved the plotters. With the first sign of true repentance his eye for their goodness overwhelmed his eye for their sin. Remember the repentant thief on the cross next to Jesus? Jesus immediately forgave him, promising him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”

Paul tells the Ephesians that it’s ok to be angry, but not to sin. Anger turns to sin if it becomes your normal mode of operation – if you become truly irascible. When he says, “Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice,” I don’t think he is saying that we should never be angry, but that we should not always be angry.

Remember how God treated those Israelites who grumbled and complained in the wilderness for 40 years? God was mad at them again and again. And then God forgave them, and helped them out of the mess they’d gotten themselves into again and again. God’s anger at them came from God’s love for them.

We all get mad at something, sometime. When we do, we can remember Paul’s words, and God’s love. We can take the initiative of saying a kind word, telling a joke on ourselves, offering a compromise or making a gesture of reconciliation. A little “I’m sorry” goes a long way. We can say a little prayer. When we do this, we will see something wonderful happen. Others will follow our lead, and we will bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

What about them?

2010-01-25T11:13:00.003-06:00

“In the waters of baptism, we are reborn children of God and inheritors of eternal life.” (from the service of Holy Baptism, ELW)

“Woe, woe, O great city, Babylon the powerful city! For in a single hour your doom has come!”(Revelation 18:10)

As a pastor, I often get asked questions that I don’t have answers for, for example, questions about heaven and hell and God’s judgment.

Most people don’t really wonder about their own face to face meeting with God. As baptized children of God, we are confident that our baptismal promises hold up. Eugene Peterson observes that even in the face of accumulating and not-yet-avenged justice, it is most remarkable that communities of faith persevere in believing that God is just and will judge. (Reversed Thunder, p. 138)

We wonder about what will happen to the other people, the murderers, the child molesters, the cheaters, the atheists. It is a question we have been asking for thousands of years.

How long must I bear pain in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? (Psalms 13:2 NRSV)

Why do we wonder about these “other” people when we are confident in our promise of salvation? Do we hope we can do something to help them turn around and repent? Or do we wish for them a swift and just punishment? Sometimes life doesn’t seem fair. We don’t always get, on this earth, what we deserve.

The book of Revelation shows us, in so many ways, the world in which we live. It provides “images that show us what is going on in our lives. ‘If there are mysterious powers around,’ a character in a Saul Bellow novel says, ‘only exaggeration can help us to see them.’” (Reversed Thunder, 145)

Revelation exaggerates not only what is going on around us, but it exaggerates our own lives, calls each one of us to examine how we live, and why we need to repent. Each of us will face God and be called to account for our lives. And each of us will be forgiven.

Revelation shows that God is in control of the whole universe in heaven and on earth. Revelation reminds us that our relationship with God begins with worship.

Eugene Peterson writes, “The word hallelujah occurs in Revelation for the first time in Chapter 19, verse 1. The timing is exactly right, protecting our gratitude and relief for judgment from degenerating into gloating over the judged… Longing for judgment is only a step removed from a demand for revenge. The desire for God’s judgment always totters on the edge of wanting to see our enemies writhe in pain. The saint, wanting God’s judgment to set things right, has a way of slithering into the sadist who takes pleasure in seeing his tormentors punished. [In Revelation] four hallelujahs pull us from the edge of gloating over pain and back to the act of worship where we are humble and adoring in the presence of the Glory.” (Reversed Thunder, 148-9)

“In the waters of baptism, we are reborn children of God and inheritors of eternal life.” Amen.

A New Year, the same you

2010-01-18T14:58:00.004-06:00

Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19)

It’s that time of the year when we are trying to fulfill our New Year’s resolutions. Most of the festivities of the holidays are over, and even though I still have about 3 dozen Christmas cookies left in the walk-out freezer (the porch), I am trying to eat healthier and lose 10 pounds. I should just throw those little tempters out.

I heard on the radio this morning that the most common New Year’s resolutions have to do with money and health. These things are at the top of the list of things that we want to improve, and yet we really need to work hard at improving them.

According to an article in Seeds for the Parish, “Health is on the tip of the nation’s tongue these days. Health insurance reform, influenza, depression, childhood obesity, the plight of the uninsured … these top a long list of challenging, health-related topics. But there’s a bright spot. Each of us is a steward of gifts given. As a new creation in Christ, we can take steps, today, to change our lifestyle. As individuals, family members, neighbors and congregational leaders, we can work—to the best of our ability —to be healthier in mind, body and spirit.”

What are you doing to respect the temple of the Holy Spirit that is your body, the gift God has given you in which you dwell? You are not simply changing your shape when you chose to live in a healthy way. You are worshiping the one who created you and loves you, even through your struggles and temptations.

Eight reasons to Live Well

1. To be a more effective leader for the sake of the world
2. To role-model healthy behaviors for our children
3. To have a healthier relationship with God
4. To endure hardship with resilience and grace
5. To feel better in mind and body
6. To avoid lifestyle-related illness
7. To better steward gifts given by God
8. To age with strength and dignity

Remember, in baptism you are a new creation in Christ. Every day, and at all times, you can make the sign of the cross on your forehead remembering your baptism and begin anew.

Peanuts and Wisdom

2010-01-11T11:18:00.001-06:00

And Solomon said , “And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.

Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?" 1 Kings 3: 7,9

George Washington Carver was born in 1865, and died in 1943 at the age of 78. A former slave, during his life he became inventor, scientist, businessperson, service industry employee, agriculturist, medical worker, artist, author, lecturer, domestic, reformer, and performing artist.

As a member of the faculty of Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, he worked with agricultural products and developed industrial applications from farm products. His research developed 325 products from peanuts, 108 applications for sweet potatoes, and 75 products derived from peanuts. He also developed over 500 dyes and pigments from 28 different plants, and was responsible for the invention in 1927 of a process for producing paints and stains from soybeans, from which three separate patents were issued.

“God’s little workshop” was the name George Washington Carver gave his laboratory. It was there that the famous scientist asked in prayer to discover the uses of what was then a lowly, unesteemed crop—peanuts.

“Dear Mr. Creator,” the humble man began, “please tell me what the universe was made for.”

“Ask for something more in keeping with that little mind of yours,” God answered.

So Carver tried again. “Dear Mr. Creator, what was man made for?”

Again the Lord replied, “Little man, you ask too much. Cut down the extent of your request and improve the intent.”

So the scientist tried once more. “Then, Mr. Creator, will you tell me why the peanut was made?”

“That’s better,” the Lord said, and from that day on Carver began to discover more than 300 uses for the lowly peanut!

What do George Washington Carver and King Solomon have in common? Both asked for a hearing heart. In 1 Kings 3:6-9, Solomon recognized that God’s kindness to David was because of his father’s faithfulness to God, which manifested itself in righteous actions and upright attitudes of heart. Also, he was concerned that he would be able to function effectively as the representative of God. His responsibility as the leader and judge of God’s people weighed heavily on him.

So he requested a “hearing heart,” tuned to the voice of God, so he could lead Israel as God desired. He acknowledged his dependence on God by referring to himself as God’s servant (1 Kings 3:7-8). As a result, God granted his request and gave him great wisdom.

Two men asked for a hearing heart. God gave one the privilege of discovering the value of a peanut, and to the other he gave immeasurable wisdom.

I wonder what God will give us if we ask for a hearing heart today. If you need wisdom, ask him, and he will gladly give it to you.

Peace,
Pastor Carrie Scheller

Revelation and the End of All Things

2010-01-04T12:45:00.003-06:00

After this I looked, and there in heaven a door stood open! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." (Revelation 4: 1)

During the month of January, I will be studying the book of Revelation in preparation for teaching and preaching. The first time I did a Revelation bible study with a group was almost 8 years ago. The location was a nursing home. After my first class, a woman came up to me to tell me that her father had been a pastor. He didn’t like the book of Revelation, she said, because it frightened people. I think she might have even said that her dad thought the book was dangerous.

I don’t think that’s an uncommon sentiment towards what some people believe to be the most difficult and mysterious book in the bible. There are frightening and mysterious images and symbolism throughout the book of Revelation.

But I hope that you will join me this month and give Revelation a chance. What you will find when we read and learn together is another book in the bible that is filled with law and gospel. You will find a book that is filled with hope and promise. And you will find some brilliant and interesting and even entertaining literature.

In Revelation, John, an apostle of Jesus Christ receives a vision of heaven. “John (and thereby his readers with him) is taken up into heaven in order to see the world from the heavenly perspective. He is given a glimpse behind the scenes of history so that he can see what is really going on in the events of his time and place. He is also transported in vision into the final future of the world, so that he can see the present from the perspective of what its final outcome must be, in God’s ultimate purpose for human history. … It is not that the here-and-now are left behind in an escape into heaven or the [end-time] future, but that the here-and-now look quite different when they are opened up to [God’s presence].” (from The Theology of the Book of Revelation by Richard Bauckham: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge UK, 2001. P. 7-8.)

I invite you to discover Revelation, maybe again and maybe for the first time. The hope and promise of God in Jesus Christ be with you! Amen.

Christmas Faith

2009-12-28T10:28:00.002-06:00

“We act in faith - and miracles occur. In consequence, we are tempted to make the miracles the ground for our faith. The cost of such weakness is that we lose the confidence of faith. Faith is, faith creates, faith carries. It is not derived from, nor created, nor carried by anything except its own reality.”

From Markings by Dag Hammarskjold (Vintage Books, New York 2006) p. 145.

The Miracle of Christmas

2009-12-21T16:02:00.004-06:00

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. (Matthew 2: 1-4)

On a website called The Bethlehem Star, the science and truth and meaning of the star that led the wise men to Christ’s manger-bed is explored. In an effort to “set the stage” the authors of this site pose the following thoughts for us to ponder.

“THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM FASCINATES. For millennia, believers, scoffers and the curious have wondered at the Biblical account of the Star. The Bible recounts unusual or even impossible astronomical events at Christ's birth. For many doubters, the account of the Star is easily dismissed as myth. For many believers, it's a mystery accepted on faith. But what happens if we combine current historical scholarship, astronomical fact and an open mind? Judge for yourself...”

Is the star an impossible astronomical event? Would your faith in the events of Christmas be changed if you found out that the star wasn’t real, that it had been an illusion? Or even a myth?

In the introduction to “The Martin Luther Christmas Book” (translated and arranged by Roland H. Bainton) we find that Luther himself was not primarily interested in the miracles surrounding the Christmas story. Did angels really appear to the shepherds? Did, as the carol has it, “ox and ass before him bow?” Luther believed that the purpose of these stories, whether factual or fabricated, help us to understand the impact of the real miracle.

Bainton writes of Luther’s faith in real miracle of Christmas. “Christian teaching is that in Christ, God became flesh. Compared with that, no particular miracle matters much. If one could but believe that God lay in the manger, one could let go the star and the angel’s song, and yet keep the faith. The question was not whether God could or would make a special star, but why the Lord of the universe should care enough about us mortals to take our flesh and share our woes. The condescension of God was the great wonder.” (p. 12)

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!" (Luke 2: 13-14)

It is Christmas time, a halting of hate time. On this platform of peace, we can create a language to translate ourselves to ourselves and to each other. At this Holy Instant, we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ into the great religions of the world. We jubilate the precious advent of trust. We shout with glorious tongues the coming of hope....Look heavenward and speak the word aloud. Peace. We look at the world and speak the word aloud. Peace. We look at each other, then into ourselves, and we say without shyness or apology or hesitation: Peace, My Brother. Peace, My Sister. Peace, My Soul. (From Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem by Dr. Maya Angelou)

Are You Ready?

2009-12-14T14:59:00.003-06:00

No one can celebrate a genuine Christmas without truly being poor. The self-sufficient, the proud, those who, because they have everything, look down on others, those who have no need even of God – for them there will be no Christmas. Only the poor the hungry, those who need someone to come on their behalf, they will have someone. That someone is God. Emmanuel. God-with-us. Without poverty of the spirit, there can be no abundance of God. ~Oscar Romero~

At church last Sunday, I asked most of the people with whom I chatted before and after services, “are you ready?” and the most common answer was “not at all!” We are busy with our preparations, our baking and cooking, our shopping and everything else that comes with Christmas anticipation. We have to be ready!, to have everything done by December 24th so we can enjoy a leisurely holiday, give our gifts and share a festive meal with family and friends.

In an Advent devotion, Bishop William Willimon wonders, in this season of generous giving, if it is more difficult for us to be the receivers than the givers. He writes, “We enjoy thinking of ourselves as basically generous, benevolent, giving people… Yet I suggest we are better givers than getters, not because we are generous people, but because we are proud, arrogant people. The Christmas story [according to Luke] is not about how blessed it is to be givers but how essential it is to see ourselves as receivers.” (p. 143, 44)

In the biblical account of the first Christmas, “we are portrayed not as the givers we wish we were, but as the receivers we are. Luke and Matthew go to great lengths to demonstrate that we – with our power, generosity, competence and capabilities – had little to do with God’s work in Jesus. God wanted to do something so strange, so utterly beyond the bounds of human imagination, so foreign to human projection, that God had to resort to angels, pregnant virgins, and stars in the sky to get it done. We didn’t think of it, understand it or approve it. All we could do, at Bethlehem, was receive it.” (p. 145)

“This strange story tells us how to be receivers. The first word of the church, a people born out of so odd a nativity, is that we are receivers before we are givers. Discipleship teaches us the art of seeing our lives as gifts. That’s tough, because I would rather see myself as a giver. I want power – to stand on my own, take charge, set things to rights, perhaps to help those who have nothing. I don’t like picturing myself as dependent, needy, empty handed.” (p. 147)

“It’s tough to be on the receiving end of love, God’s or anyone else’s. It requires that we see our lives not as our possessions, but as gifts. ‘Nothing is more repugnant to capable, reasonable people than grace,’ wrote John Wesley a long time ago.”(p. 148)

God’s love comes to us in a way that we don’t expect. We receive a gift that “we thought we didn’t need, which transforms us into people we don’t necessarily want to be. With our advanced degrees, armies… and material comforts… we assume that religion is about giving a little of our power in order to confirm to ourselves that we are indeed as self-sufficient as we claim.

Then this stranger comes to us, blesses us with a gift, and calls us to see ourselves as we are – empty-handed recipients of a gracious God who, rather than leave us to our own devices, gave us a baby.” (p. 149) Are you ready for that?

Adapted and excerpted from “The God We Hardly Knew,” by William Willimon, found at religion-online, and also in the book, “Watch For the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas” Orbis Books, Maryknoll, New York, 2004, p 141-149.

Believe!

2009-12-07T13:56:00.007-06:00

The theme of Macy’s 2009 Christmas promotion is “Believe!” The following invitation appeared on Macy’s website. “This holiday season we believe more than ever. In the spirit of Christmas and the power of community, join the fun and tell us why you believe. We can’t wait to hear from you!” The website includes a link to the story “Yes, Virginia” and also to Santa’s post office. The “believe meter” shows the words “imagine, wish, dream and believe.” Just exactly what does Macy's want us to believe?

In a tongue-in-cheek article in this month’s Christian Century magazine (December 01, 2009 Vol. 126, No. 24, p. 13), Bishop William Willimon writes an imaginary editor’s rejection letter to the evangelist John regarding the forth Gospel. As editor, Willimon points out that John doesn’t make Jesus come across as someone who we would necessarily “like,” and John doesn’t write in a way that would attract readers. “Surely,” Willamon writes to John as he criticizes his style, “you can find more efficient ways for Jesus to convey his message.”

It is a criticism I sometimes get as a preacher. Scripture doesn’t always give us the easiest, most uplifting, or inspirational material to work from. Sometimes, Jesus comes across as a mean and surly leader who can’t get anyone to do what he wants. “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house into a marketplace!” (John 2: 16) Sometimes, he speaks in confusing parables that are almost impossible to understand. “You must be born from above. The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3: 7-8) Sometimes Jesus challenges us with words that make us uncomfortable. “If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world – therefore the world hates you.” (John 15: 19)

And then, sometimes, Jesus’ words are filled with love and hope and direction that is simple to understand and to follow. “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13: 34-35)

We have to live and work with all of it, the good, the confusing and the difficult. As preachers, it’s not always easy to speak words that light a fire in the bellies of our listeners. And to be honest, we are not in the fire-lighting business. We preachers are in the business of reminding you, our hearers, over and over again, that whatever Jesus says, he says it because God loves you so much “that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

In a column called “Life, Death and the Task of Preaching,” Dr. David Lose writes, “We preach the Christian story, and by preaching it we invite our hearers into it so that it becomes their story. So that the promises the Christian story revolve around become promises they hear and believe, and through believing discover hope, meaning, and courage.”

That hope, meaning and courage may inspire you to head out of church and change the world. It may simply comfort and strengthen you in the face of a frightening situation.

In this Advent season, my prayer for you is that you hear and remember the true message of Christmas, and that you find, in listening to the familiar story again, “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,” (Phil 4: 17) and that you believe! Amen.

Holiday Strangeness

2009-11-30T14:02:00.005-06:00

Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Luke 14: 26

“The holidays” are upon us. Starting last week with Thanksgiving and continuing on through Christmas and then New Year’s Eve, we gather and celebrate with loved ones and acquaintances as we mark the important events of our faith life and of our secular life. This celebrating usually involves our families in some way.

For some of us, gathering with family is relaxing and joyful. For some of us, it can be stressful and feel like hard work. Even so, family is important. Although it may sometimes feel difficult to spend time together with family, it would be much worse to be separated, estranged.

The dictionary definition of estranged is to be removed from the customary environment or associations; to arouse mutual enmity or indifference where there had formerly been love, affection, or friendliness. The word comes from the same Latin root as strange. It would be strange to be removed from family. I can’t think of any circumstances that would make estrangement feel right.

I know people who are estranged from their families for reasons I don’t understand. How could someone give up a relationship with their parents, their husband or wife, their children, or their brothers and sisters over money, or over possessions, or over politics, or over religion?

And so, when I think about Jesus’ words in Luke’s gospel it makes me very uncomfortable that this is exactly what Jesus asks us to do. Actually, he doesn’t even ask. Jesus tells us that this is what we MUST do in order to follow him.

“Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14: 26

Especially coming from the mouth of Jesus, these words sound strange. The ambassador of love, the one who once said to a rich young man that in order to have eternal life, he must keep the commandments that include honoring your father and mother and loving your neighbor as yourself, tells us here that we must hate not only our own family, but even our own life in order to follow him.

Something must have provoked Jesus to use such strong language.

Jesus had been traveling and preaching and telling parables. Along the way, huge crowds had accumulated, and were traveling with him. He wanted them to know what they were getting into. Maybe as he looked out over the masses he saw people who weren’t really committed to his cause. Maybe he saw people who were merely swept up in the movement, along for the ride, so to speak, traveling with the crowd because they wanted to see what was going to happen. Maybe he saw people who didn’t understand what he was going to do for them, that he was passionate with love for them, passionate about their salvation, and that he expected them to be passionate, too. Maybe he wanted to kindle a heavenly flame in their bellies, to startle them into action.

I searched for the commentary that said that Jesus didn’t really mean hate. I looked in my Greek books, and learned that the word had been translated correctly. Jesus really did say that we should hate our families, and even hate our own lives to follow him.

One scholar did say that the word hate was a Semitic term expressing detachment or turning away from, and was not the emotion filled word we think of if someone screams, “I hate you!” But even then, Jesus says turn away, detach yourself from what you love, and follow me.

What do we do with this? I, for one, no matter how annoyed or angry I get with them, will not turn away from my family. I’m sure most of you feel the same. But Jesus is telling us in no uncertain terms that becoming a disciple is not going to be easy. Becoming a disciple may create tensions in an already crowded life. When asked for loyalty in many different places, Jesus wants us to clearly understand that he desires and calls for primary allegiance. There is tension. We are not prepared to, probably not even able to hate the people we love. We can’t carry the cross like Jesus did. We are simply not capable of it.

Most of us can’t even get rid of our stuff.

We know the terms of discipleship, and we can’t accomplish them. And so instead of carrying the cross, we fall at the foot of it with all of our inadequacies and failures, and we remember that because of that cross, nothing is required of us.

God’s grace and mercy for our poor selves will help us hear Jesus’ strange words and remember that we can hand all of our relationships and plans and possessions to him, and that he takes care of us. What he started for us at that first family Christmas in a stable in Bethlehem, he will finish for us. Amen.

A Prayer of Thanksgiving

2009-11-21T20:18:00.003-06:00

O Divine Gift-Giver,

I stand beneath the endless waterfall

of your abundant gifts to me.
I thank you especially for the blessing of life,

the most precious of all your gifts to me.
I thank you, Ever-generous One,

for clothing to wear,

for food and drink to nourish my body,

for all the talents and skills that you have bestowed upon me.
I thank you for the many joys of my life,

for family and friends,

for work that gives to me a sense of purpose

and invests my life with meaning.
I thank you as well

for the sufferings and trials of my life,

which are also gifts

and which together with my mistakes

are among my most important teachers.
Grant that I may never greet a new day

without the awareness of some gift

for which to give you thanks.
And may constant thanksgiving

be my song of perpetual praise to you.
[Generous God], a needy one stands before you,

I that sing am that one.
Native American Omaha Indian

(from Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim: A Personal Manual for Prayer and Ritual by Edward Hays (Forest of Peace Books, Inc. Leavenworth, KS, 1989.) p. 197-98.

2009-11-16T12:16:00.004-06:00

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; He descended to the dead. On the third day He rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father; and he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

If you come to church with any regularity, you will recognize the Apostles’ Creed, the confession of our Christian faith which we recite together each week during worship. The Apostles’ Creed explains and helps us to understand the Holy Trinity; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

At first glance, the Creed might seem like a simple expression of what we believe as Christians. It is anything but simple. In his little book, Living in the Kingdom; Reflections on Luther’s Catechism Alvin N. Rogness writes “It boggles the mind to say, “I believe in God the Father.” (p. 50) In the creed, we are confessing that we believe in something unbelievable – that there is a God at all, and that God is indeed our father, a personal parent, someone who knows each of us and loves us individually, unconditionally.

Martin Luther devoted ten pages of the Large Catechism (Luther’s basic teachings on the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer and the Ten Commandments) to the Creed. After much thought and prayer, he concluded that we should understand and study the Creed in reverse. We simply can’t believe on our own. Belief starts as a gift from the Holy Spirit.

“Because the Holy Spirit makes us believers, it stands to reason that we experience the Trinity backward – that is, only when we believe in Christ, (the work of the Holy Spirit, who does not indulge in self-revelation bit in revealing the Son) do we pierce God’s judgment and arrive at mercy.” (Martin Luther’s Catechisms; Forming the Faith Timothy J. Wengert, p. 45)

Even after witnessing Jesus perform an amazing, grace-filled miracle; the father of a young boy who Jesus healed from his convulsions cried out, “I believe! Help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24) How much more do we, who walk by faith and not by sight, have to rely on the Spirit?

The Third Article of the Apostles' Creed Explained – from Martin Luther’s Small Catechism.

I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy catholic church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

What does this mean?

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; even as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith; in which Christian Church He forgives daily and richly all sins to me and all believers, and at the last day will raise up me and all the dead, and will give to me and to all believers in Christ everlasting life.
This is most certainly true.

King David knew how to wait. Do we?

2009-11-09T14:12:00.003-06:00

Map of David’s Kingdom

So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign and he reigned forty years. (2 Samuel 5: 3-4)

By the time he became king over all of Israel, David had been anointed as king three times. First, the prophet Samuel anointed David when he was still a child. The only witnesses, besides God and Samuel, were David’s brothers. (1 Sam 16: 13) The second anointing was by the people of Judah, the southern part of ancient Palestine (2 Sam 2: 4). Only the people of Judah acknowledged David as king. The rest of Israel wasn’t yet united. When David was about 37, he was finally anointed king of all Israel.

David had to wait a long time to become the king that God chose him to be as a child. In his commentary on 1 and 2 Samuel, Eugene Peterson writes, “David knows how to wait. His waiting is not procrastination; it is not indolence. It is poised submissiveness, a not-doing that leaves adequate space and time for God’s initiating actions through others.” (p. 156-57)

Waiting is never easy. We want things to happen now, and we want them the way we want them. Sometimes, even though we hear it again and again, it’s hard to remember that God’s time is different from our time. Sometimes the waiting - the time before something happens - is the time that God gives us to get prepared, to become educated, to grow mature enough to handle the experiences that come our way.

Do you know how to wait? Do you leave adequate space and time for God to work through you and through other people in your life? God has great plans. You might not see what they are right now, but remember that God is working through you even as you wait. God invites you be patient, to learn and grow, and to anticipate what is to come.

2009-11-02T19:45:00.001-06:00

This past Sunday at Trinity, almost fifty new members were welcomed into our congregation. I ask you to keep our new members, and our congregation in your prayers. Together in faith, we will continue the tradition started with a dream more than 90 years ago. We have things to do! Baptizing, worshiping, sharing the sacrament of holy communion and so many other important meals, raising new saints and caring for each other and for the world, and sending saints into eternity - how could we do all these things alone?

We know that even as saints, we aren’t perfect. We struggle and we stumble, we fall short, we disagree and sometimes we even fight. But it is in our imperfections that we bear witness to the abundant love of God in Jesus, who washes us clean, and receives us only by grace. It is God who knits us together in this one holy church which is the body of Christ.

My prayer for myself, and for each of you, for our congregation and for the whole church, is that, together with all the saints, we share our time and our talents and our treasure, and we to continue to make a difference for each other and for the world. I pray that we continue to live a resurrection life during our time here on earth, even as we look toward heaven. We are all part of something greater than ourselves, “part of the unending ribbon of God’s children, walking wet from baptism to eternity, walking by faith and not by our own meager efforts.”

2009-10-26T10:55:00.000-05:00

I know, O Lord, that the way of human beings is not in their control, that mortals as they walk cannot direct their steps. Correct me, O Lord, but in just measure; not in your anger, or you will bring me to nothing. (Jeremiah 10: 23-24)

Sometimes it feels like things are falling apart around me and I don’t have control over anything. Living in a house with 3 other adults and 2 dogs, life often feels messy and hectic and chaotic. Three blocks west of my house, noise from the famous I-35W/Hwy 62 Crosstown reconstruction project, which began in June of 2007 and is scheduled to be completed in December of 2010, is constant and traffic is jammed on 35W even when I come home on Sunday afternoon or Wednesday night at 8:00.

The uncertain economy, terrorism and war, global warming, it’s no wonder I wake up at night in a cold sweat. All is not right with the world, and apparently there is nothing I can do about it!

Yesterday was Reformation Day in the Lutheran Church. We celebrated our Lutheran “birthday” and our realization, thanks to Martin Luther, that God is in control and we are not. Dick Rice, our visiting preacher and director of spiritual care at The Retreat in Wayzata, spoke about our human need to be in control. He called our desire to change things that we cannot change pride and arrogance. Who are we, he asked, that we think we can do work that belongs to God?

When we finally realize most things in this world are not in our control, only then can we rest in the love and grace of God in Jesus Christ. As everything around us changes, even as it falls apart, we can remember that it is only God who never changes. God is the solid ground upon which we stand. Then our hearts and minds can find peace in this chaotic world. God has something great planned for us in this life, but that is not all there is. God has something even greater planned for us – something beyond this life, beyond this messy world.

Following her divorce from Lance Armstrong, Kristin Armstrong turned to God for courage and strength. Her daily devotional has been helpful to several of my friends, and although I haven’t personally experienced the pain of divorce, I have found many of her reflections comforting.

She writes, “Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Heb 13:8) He is our Rock. He is in the boat with us, calm and steady despite the turbulent seas. We can look forward to the future with unwavering confidence when we approach it from solid ground. We don’t need to fear change when we know it cannot disturb the peace at our core. If the circumstances surrounding us are unsteady, we cannot waste our energy attempting to control them. But we can focus on our efforts inside, allowing Christ to change and fortify us. We can work on our core, on our own personal steadiness. Perhaps we can’t change where we are, but we can change how we respond while we are here. (p. 285, Happily Ever After, Armstrong, 2007)

Is faith blind?

2009-10-19T11:57:00.006-05:00

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part, then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

I recently had a conversation with a friend following a presentation by a Martin Luther scholar. The discussion centered on the subjects of grace and faith. One of the things we talked about was doubt, and how doubt relates to our faith. “So, we’re just supposed to have blind faith?” my friend asked, “Is that what God expects?”

There is so much about our faith of which we cannot be absolutely sure, and so in some things we must have blind faith. We must trust God wholly and completely in all that we do and in all that we are. But I also believe that doubts and questions are an integral part of our faith. We can’t know the mind of God.

The NRSV translation of 1 Cor. 13:12 is positively poetic. “For now we see in a mirror dimly.” Now we can’t see clearly what God has in store for us. The Greek word that is translated “dimly,” is actually “in a riddle.” Now we can only see in a riddle, but then, the riddle will be solved for us, we will know everything.

In John Irving’s wonderful book A Prayer for Owen Meany, the young narrator John Wheelwright compares the pastors of the two churches in his small Canadian town. One believed absolutely, and was “blind to doubt or worry in any form.” What made the other “infinitely more attractive was that he was full of doubt; he expressed our doubts in the most eloquent and sympathetic ways…” The gift of having faith, he said, was that it was necessary to believe in God without any great or even remotely reassuring evidence that we don’t inhabit a godless universe. I agree.

Dear God, Help our unbelief. Help us to know that, in wondrous time when we will see you face to face, all things will be perfectly clear. Amen.

Beautifully Imperfect

2009-10-12T14:15:00.006-05:00

SnowCrystals.com

Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions. Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astounded and said, "Then who can be saved?" But Jesus looked at them and said, "For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible." (Matt 19: 21-26)

This morning I woke up at 5:30 to a barking puppy who needed to go out. I threw on a sweatshirt over my pajamas and out we went, into the snow. It was puppy’s first experience with snow. She was delighted, I was not.

But we live in Minnesota. We know that there are certainly a lot of wonderful thing about snow. In his amazing book “Snowflakes,” Ken Libbrecht writes, “Many people are under the false impression that all snowflakes are beautifully formed and all are almost inexplicably symmetrical. To dispel this myth, spend a mere ten minutes with a magnifying glass during any snowfall. The quintessential, well-formed snowflake is actually quite rare. The vast majority show imperfect symmetry, if they show much symmetry at all…. There are many potential problems that can interfere with symmetrical growth.” (p. 48)

As Libbrecht says, perfection is quite rare. Jesus gives the rich young man a radical idea – a way to attempt human perfection. “Sell all your possessions and give your money to the poor.” And the rich young man walked away because he couldn’t do it.

What is Jesus doing to us when he speaks these difficult, law-like words? He is giving us commands that we can’t fulfill. We know that even if we sold everything and gave all of our money to the poor, we still wouldn’t be perfect.

It is an ideal. Jesus is teaching us that this is what we should strive for. He doesn’t call our wealth evil, or make any judgment on wealth at all. What Jesus is calling evil is what our wealth is doing to us – causing us to be dependent on what will not save us, instead of trusting completely in him. He is teaching us that we need to change our focus, to change our definition of what gives us life.

Perfect or not, we are not saved by what we do, or by what we give, or by what we have. We must learn to trust God, who loves us so much in our beautiful imperfection that he overlooks what we can’t do, even as he rejoices in what we actually do. It is impossible for us, but all things are possible with God.

“Snow crystals are wonderful examples of nature’s art, even as they are wrapped in the cold winds and dreary skies of winter. When you stop to notice them, snowflakes are a delight to find on your sleeve and are absolutely fascinating when viewed under a microscope. Their complex structures grow and develop as they tumble through the clouds, each design ephemeral and never again to be repeated.” (p. 111, Libbrecht)

Why do we have to read that? Mark 10: 2-12

2009-10-05T11:45:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, my sermon was about Jesus’ words on divorce. As I prepared to preach about this difficult topic, I consulted some resources and commentaries, and I also spent time in prayer trying to understand what Jesus was teaching us. One commentator said, “If you are going to read this text in church, you need to preach about it. You can’t just leave it hanging out there.” The tension between our Lutheran understanding of law and gospel seemed particularly important to discern in these complex passages.

I want to be clear about WHY I chose Mark 10: 2-12 as my sermon text.

The sermon is the tool that we, as pastors, use to proclaim the gospel to our congregations during worship. Our sermon preparation always starts with a text from scripture. These texts are not randomly chosen. We preach using the Revised Common Lectionary, a collection of readings or selections from the Scriptures, arranged and intended for proclamation during the worship of the people of God. Lectionaries were known and used in the fourth century, where major churches arranged the Scripture readings according to a schedule which follows the calendar of the church's year. This practice of assigning particular readings to each Sunday and festival has continued through the history of the Christian Church.

These common texts are used by churches worldwide, and across all denominations. If you visited several different churches on a Sunday morning, you would probably find that most of the pastors and priests were preaching on the same text. It would be an interesting study of theology! There are many reasons to use the lectionary, but one of the best, I think, is that by using the lectionary, we are invited to address all different kinds of texts and not simply choose our favorites week after week.

And sometimes, a text pops up that we would rather skip because it makes us uncomfortable, or it is difficult and harsh. It is our job as pastors, to work and to pray and to study so we can find the grace in even the most judgmental sounding scripture. And we know, because of our trust and faith in the unconditional love of God for us in Jesus that grace, the gospel, is always found there.

I hope that you all heard a word of grace yesterday if you were in worship. It is never my intention to hurt of offend anyone with my preaching, but God calls us to look at ourselves in the mirror and to realize our brokenness (with the law) – we are all broken in one way or another. It is that brokenness that shows us our need for a savior. Thanks be to God for giving us once for all, what we so desperately need – Jesus Christ – unconditional love, and forgiveness, and grace (it’s the gospel!).

Be Quiet!

2009-09-28T11:18:00.002-05:00

For God alone my soul waits in silence, for my hope is from him Psalm 62:5

Last weekend I gave the 9th graders at the confirmation retreat a very difficult assignment.

We were at Green Lake bible camp. At around 9:30 on Saturday night, our education time was done, and we were finally outside, and preparing for evening worship. We had to walk on a path through the woods in the dark of night to our destination, the outdoor chapel.

Walking through the dark woods, imagining what could jump out at us, hearing all of the night noises, was both frightening and thrilling. But we all made it safely. A bonfire was blazing by the time everyone arrived at the chapel, and spirits were high. And there was a lot of noise.

Chattering, laughing, singing, shouting, we were in God's great outdoors and the energy was boundless. As everyone sat down for worship, I gave this simple (yet difficult) instruction. Everyone must be quite. Completely silent. It is impossible, I told them, to listen to how God is speaking to you if you don’t sit quietly, at least for a little while, and listen. And so we sat, quietly. I had to shush them a few times. But it was beautiful – the night noises were clear and comforting, and I hope that some of those kids had a chance to listen to something that God was saying to them that night.

In an article called Why Be Silent?, Margaret W. Jones reminds us of the importance of taking time to be quiet to listen for God.

"Silence is a lost art in a society made of noise. What God works with in my silent times is ME. It is only with ME that God deals when I permit myself to be quiet.”

God is always speaking to us, but how much of what God says to us do we hear? If we are always in conversation, or listening to the news on the TV or the radio, or even listening to religious music on our IPOD, we are drowning out the voice of God, who might have a very important message just for us.

Take some time today, and every day, to be quiet and to listen. God is trying to tell you something that only in the silence will you be able to hear.

2009-09-21T11:52:00.002-05:00

Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. James 3: 13-18

Yesterday God spoke to me as I was sitting in church listening to these words from the book of James. I believe that it’s important to pay attention when God has something to say – especially when God is speaking directly to you.

It’s a busy time of year for all of us. School is starting; programs at church are being kicked off. My daughter is filling out college applications and planning campus tours. And then, forgive me for being a broken record, but, the dogs… A puppy, Rosie, and her five year old sister, Penny. Two dogs in the house create some stress. I know that things will get better, probably very soon, but my husband tells me that I’ve been unusually crabby lately.

So this week, God had a message for me. “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.”

God has given us many gifts, and one of those gifts, wisdom, actually does work in us if we pay attention and let it work. With wisdom from above, we can be peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, and full of mercy.

Yesterday after church I was exhausted. I’d spent Saturday night with the confirmation kids at Green Lake bible camp, and by 6 am Sunday morning, I was on the road from Spicer so I could be back to Orono in time for 9 am worship. The first 10:10 was kicking off – subject, Lutheran Basics, teacher, me. After visiting with a few people following 10:45 worship and stopping for a quick errand, I arrived home later than expected, famished, and discovered that I missed lunch. A perfect storm – there could have been harsh words exchanged that would have ruined a peaceful afternoon.

Thank you, God, for giving me what I needed yesterday, for your wisdom, for your Holy Spirit working in my life. Thank you for reminding me that I can be peaceable, gentle. It is ok to be the one to yield.

After taking a deep breath, I greeted my family with a cheerful hello, ate some leftovers, and, along with the dogs, took a much needed and wonderfully refreshing nap. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. Amen.

2009-09-14T16:06:00.006-05:00

I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6

The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. Ecclesiastes 7:8

When I went out with the dogs this morning, I noticed how beautiful the morning glories have grown around my lamp post. I started these lovelies from seeds way back in March, and it took the longest time for them to get going. Even up until the middle of July, they still looked spindly and I had almost given up any hope of flowers. Then all of the sudden, with the late July rains and some warm weather, they simply exploded. We will enjoy their bright pink blossoms until the first hard frost.

Last week, my daughter Sophie and I attended the funeral of our beloved friend, and Sophie’s piano teacher, Marilyn. Sophie only took piano lessons for a couple of years, and then the demands of teenage life, school, sports and a job made it hard for her to find the time to continue.

Marilyn, however, had planted musical seeds in Sophie that have been germinating and growing. Unbeknownst to either one of them, in the months that Marilyn was her weakest, Sophie would sit down at the piano almost daily and play for an hour or so. Sometimes she would practice a song that she and Marilyn had worked on together, and sometimes she would try something new and work at it until she could play it through.

Before she died, I sent Marilyn a note telling her that the good work that she started in Sophie, although she was not able to hear it for herself, was sprouting new growth. I pray that it will continue to grow. It is the way that Marilyn will live on in our lives.

We don’t always get to see the results of the seeds that we plant. But it is our job to plant the seeds nevertheless, when we share our faith, our talents, and our stories with the people around us. It is by God’s grace that the seeds sprout and grow, that the good work that is started will come to completion.

Thanks be to God!

A Humble and Sincere Expressin of Faith

2009-09-03T21:26:00.002-05:00

Jesus set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” But she answered him, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he said to her, “For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.” So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Mark 7:24-30

We will always have questions about what Jesus the person was really like. When we imagine him in the world, we think of him as love and peace and grace personified. The gospel of Mark, however, shows us a very different picture of Jesus. He is a strong and compassionate leader, but he is sometimes stern, harsh and impatient with the Gentiles, and even with his disciples who don’t seem to understand much of what Jesus does, or what he teaches them.

The story of the Syrophoenician woman’s faith shows us that Jesus is driven by his mission to the people of Israel. It’s possible that Jesus was responding to this Gentile woman’s plea for help with a well known proverb similar to our saying “charity begins at home.” Jesus was on an urgent mission to the Jews, and his initial response might be the same as ours would be when we need to prioritize and take care of first things first. Even some of our very important work might have to be put on the back burner because we can’t be all things to all people all of the time.

The difference with Jesus is that he stopped and recognized the woman’s faith, and he made time to help her. He made an exception to his rule. He patiently and lovingly responded to her humble and sincere expression of trust in him, and by doing so, he acknowledged that she, the Gentiles, and all of us are included in the promise, and in the kingdom. Thanks be to God! Amen.

Fear Not

2009-08-31T15:24:00.003-05:00

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil.
It will be a healing for your flesh and a refreshment for your body. (Proverbs 3: 7-8)

It’s the beginning of the program year at Trinity, and at churches everywhere. Adult education, confirmation, and choir are revving up and there’s wonderful energy around here. It’s exciting – and scary. Most of the legwork goes on behind the scenes, weeks and months before the first class, or the first rehearsal, or the first Sunday of TK. Curriculum and music are planned, calls are made, postcards are sent out, publicity gets written and published and then we pray.

What if nobody shows up? What if the speaker bombs? What if the topic is a dud? What if what if what if…

There are lots of things to be afraid of and to be worried about. I’m sure you all can think of things in your jobs or in your life that worry you, that you think you may fail at.

And we are living in fearful times. We fear terrorists, we fear job loss, we fear the weather. We fear sickness and loneliness and anything that is strange, uncertain or new.

We know that fear has its place, of course. It is wise for example, for the Californians in the path of the fire to fear it and evacuate. But when fear is the guiding principle of our lives, when we fear so much that we can’t live, that is a path that leads to our death.

In his book Hope Against Darkness, Richard Rohr observes, “People more easily define themselves by what they fear, by what they are against, by who they hate, by who else is wrong, instead of by what they believe in and by whom they love. It’s much easier to build our identity on our group, our wounds, our angers, our agenda, our fear; that’s the more normal way, unless you’ve been taught by the way of Jesus.”

That “way” to which he refers is both radical and hard. It is nothing less than living in the faith that God is God and we aren’t. It is knowing in our bones that God is good, and that in spite of appearances, evil and hate don’t have the final say. Does such knowledge guarantee that we will never again be afraid? Not at all. What it does do is enable us to live with confidence and joy and hope in spite of the things we fear.

God is God and we aren’t. So let God be God. One of my favorite bits of wisdom from Martin Luther goes like this. "Pray as if everything depends on God, but act as if everything depends on you." We do have responsibilities. There are some things to fear. We may fail, and things may fall apart, but God never abandons us in our struggle. And God has arranged for us this promise – no matter what we fear, or how we fail, finally we will succeed safely and joyfully in the arms of Jesus, who gave himself for us, to sooth our minds, to calm our fears, and to save us. Ultimately, we have nothing to fear because our lives are encompassed in the love of God, by the protection of the Holy Spirit, and with the salvation of Jesus.

Change is never easy

2009-08-24T15:56:00.001-05:00

Women should be silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be subordinate, as the law also says. If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church. 1 Corinthians 14: 34-35

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. 2Titus 3:16

Change is never easy. In her book “The Woman Behind the Collar,” The Rev. Joy Carol Wallis describes the journey, sometimes rocky and emotional, that the Church of England traveled as they discerned God’s call for women to become ordained clergy. A similar rocky path was trod by my predecessors in the Lutheran Church in America before the ordination of Elizabeth Platz on November 22, 1970. I am thankful for those smart and tenacious women who blazed the trail that some people thought was wrong, against the teaching of the bible, and just not a woman’s place.

Elizabeth Platz, described some experiences of those early years.

“While strolling down a convention hallway with Barbara Louise Andrews, the first woman ordained in the former American Lutheran Church two women approached warmly. But the tone changed when they quizzed the pastors about how they expected to pastor as wives or mothers. ‘There was a lot of hate mail. Ugly ideas, like I was ruining the church,’ Platz recalls. ‘Some would walk out when I was invited to speak.”

In a letter to the brothers and sisters of the Minneapolis area synod on Friday, Bishop Craig Johnson commented on the changes happening in the ELCA following the church wide assembly last week in downtown Minneapolis.

“…Many in our Church will be bitterly disappointed and angry. I ask everyone to remember the words of the Apostle Paul, "Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body." (Colossians 3:14-15a) Let us strive to live together as the Holy Scriptures call us to live together even amid our disagreements. Our Church has gone through very difficult votes before in our history. I believe if respect is given for bound consciences, prayers for peace are offered to God, and the Scriptures are the central, authoritative norm for our life together, we will also find our way together with God's help.”

More information on the ELCA 2009 church wide assembly

Servant or Slave?

2009-08-10T13:36:00.004-05:00

Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name, including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. (Romans 1: 1-6)

In the beginning of his letter to the Christians in Rome, the apostle Paul introduced himself with a traditional salutation that included a summary of the gospel. He carefully chose the words that he used to describe himself, servant of Jesus Christ and apostle.

In her bible study on the book of Romans in the September issue of Lutheran Woman Today, Sarah Henrich points out that the Greek word doulos from which servant is translated in most bibles really means slave.

The concept of slavery, especially when we remember and acknowledge the appalling history of slavery in our own country, makes us uneasy. It’s difficult for us to reconcile slave and Jesus in the same thought. These days, we carefully distinguish between the words servant and slave. They mean very different things to us.

But Paul uses the word slave, even though translators have softened it for us. By calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, Paul is teaching us that he “not only serves Jesus Christ, he literally belongs to him.” (Henrich)

What would it mean if we were to claim to be a slave, to literally belong to something or someone? What it would mean for our lives and for our world if we would claim to be a slave to Christ?

2009-08-03T08:47:00.000-05:00

Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10)

In her book, The Mermaid Chair, Sue Monk Kidd tells the story, of a young monk, Brother Thomas, who experienced a terrible loss in his former life. His pregnant wife was killed in a car accident weeks before their child was to be born. Unable to bear his grief, and searching for God, Brother Thomas retreated to the monastery on Egret Island to live and pray and learn, to find his true self, and eventually become one of the monks.

One day, he is asked question about heaven. “This experience of the eternal you mentioned, what is it exactly?”

His answer was this. “When I first came here, I had the impression that transcending the world was superior to simply being in it. I was always struggling to meditate, fast, detach, that kind of thing. One day I realized that merely being here, going about my work was what made me the happiest. I finally figured out that what matters is giving over to what you love. “

What would it look like if we were true to ourselves and to our heart, giving ourselves over to what we love? Jesus teaches us not only how to pray, but he is teaching us what we need from God, and what God would like from us. Jesus is telling us what our life on this earth should look like, what the kingdom of heaven, the experience of the eternal, can and should be right now for each one of us. “Your kingdom come to me now, Your will be done, God, on earth, with me, just as it is in heaven.”

It’s a tall order, and sometimes I think we are very bold to ask God for the things we do when we pray the Lord ’s Prayer. But then I remember, these are the words that Jesus taught us. Jesus is simply reminding us that God’s kingdom is here with us on earth, and it is what we hope for in our eternal experience.

It is in our relationship with God, our acknowledgement of Christ’s presence in our lives, that we become part of the kingdom of heaven on earth. In the name of Christ, give yourself over to what you love, and remember that it is God who loves you, unconditionally, just as you are. The experience of heaven on earth is truly in our relationship with God, so try to be aware of God’s presence in your lives. God will guide you through this life in spite of yourself.

"What then shall we do?"

2009-07-27T13:35:00.004-05:00

And the crowds asked [John the Baptist], "What then should we do?" In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages." As the people were filled with expectation, all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah. (Luke 3: 10-14)

I read a column in this week’s Sunday Startribune about one of the businessmen in Minneapolis who has recently fallen. The story was about his excesses, and how it doesn’t yet appear that he “gets it.”

Then, this morning, I read about John the Baptist in the gospel of Luke. He was preparing to baptize the crowds. The people had been waiting for a messiah, and when John appeared, gaunt and serious from his time in the wilderness, they wondered if he may be the one. John cleared up their confusion right away, answering them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Luke 3: 16)

Jesus was coming. The people were expecting a savior and John was merely the one to prepare the way for him. John was not going to save them, but he did have some suggestions about how they should live as they waited. It was really common sense instruction about how to live in the world, how to get along and care for one another as they anticipated the messiah. It was a message about distraction.

John lived in the desert. He wore simple clothing and ate simple food. It was his call to bring the news of Jesus, and that is what he devoted his life to. He was not distracted by anything. He didn’t suggest that the people live like him, but that they pare down their stuff and live more simply, sharing what they had with those who didn’t have as much, and making room for spiritual things.

He invited them to find their own desert.

In the early Christian era, “there was a Hellenistic notion that provided a romantic nuance to the desert as a place of solitude, to which the weary person of the city could retire in order to regain peace and involve oneself in philosophy or meditation… In Jerome’s Life of Paul, a fictitious work modeled on the Life of Antony, the desert was portrayed as a place inhabited by strange and sympathetic animals, as well as a place of miracles. This kind of writing would generate an enduring literary picture of the desert as the place where God dwells, as the scene of battles of heroic monastic men and women with demons of human passions, and as the paradise regained where humans and beasts dwell in idyllic harmony.” (from Praying with the desert mothers, by Mary Forman Liturgical Press, Saint John’s Abbey, 2005 p 29, 30)

Our stuff won’t save us. We have read enough about that in the newspaper recently. Take some time to find your desert. Give some of your stuff away to someone who needs it. Make some room in your life for spiritual things.

"Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” (Luke 3: 4b-6)

God Our Host

2009-07-20T10:17:00.004-05:00

"You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." (Psalm 23:5)

God is not only my shepherd; he is also my host. The shepherd protects me from harm and guides me on the right path; the host welcomes me and gives me a good meal and fine accommodations.

The battle rages; enemies approach. They sharpen their weapons and take aim. What does God do? He fixes a meal for us. Right in the middle of the battle, right where the action is most dangerous. The verse is so powerful because it arises as a direct response to the feeling expressed in a verse in Psalm 78.

Psalm 78, the second longest psalm, describes the history of the people in Israel until the kingship of David. When it speaks of Israel's wilderness wanderings, it stresses the disobedience of the people. They lacked food and, thinking to mock God, said, "Can God spread a table in the desert?" (v. 19) The question reverberated through the corridors of time until our author decided to give a decisive answer to it. And what an answer! God can and does spread a table for us--a sumptuous feast. The psalmist takes it even one step further. God supplies our need, not simply in the desert but also in a place of great, immediate danger.

The spirit of Psalm 23:5 is like that of Paul, who says in Romans 8 that we are not simply conquerors in Christ; we are more than conquerors (Rom. 8:37). We not only have a feast in the desert but we have it in the midst of enemies. And the portions are not small. We don't have to eat and run because an impending rainstorm might wash out the church picnic. rather, "my cup overflows." Every need is taken care of amid our foes.

Thinking about foes leads to a final thought. When I think of enemies, I think of being chased. My heart pounds, sweat bathes my brow, my breath becomes a series of gasps. I've got to escape! The psalmist is also thinking about being pursued, yet he is being pursued by God.

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long." (Psalm 23:6)

Oh, what a triumph! The voice at my back, the sound at my heels is the sound of the hound of heaven who pursues me all the days of my life. It is a friend who comes after me, to embrace me and wash over me with cups of goodness and buckets of love.

Don't you feel pursued at times? When I am pressured, I feel like I am being chased. My heads starts to hurt. I take deep breaths. I don't know if I'll be ready on time. Even if I am ready, I worry that I will fail at the presentation. What a joy to think that the sounds I hear pursuing me are really the graciousness and love of God. They are not following to pummel me or to exhaust me, but to set a table for me, to calm me, to restore my balance and rhythms, to say, "It's OK to slow down and breathe, because I'll let you feast in the middle of life's battles."

What more can I say? God has given his invitation to the great feast while the battles of life still rage. Let's sit down to the table and sup with him. The table is every meal, but it especially points to that meal called Communion or the Lord's Supper, in which we celebrate the Christ who gave himself so that we may live.

So come to the table. The cups are brimming. The feast is prepared. Don't wait until the battle is over to sit down for the meal. The battle will never be over in this life. God calls us now. Let him be our shepherd and our host now in the midst of life.

Article written by Bill Long http://www.drbilllong.com/Lectionary/Ps23II.html

I'm not afraid

2009-07-13T15:52:00.010-05:00

God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing. You have bedded me down in lush meadows; you find me quiet pools to drink from. True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction. Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I'm not afraid when you walk at my side. Your trusty shepherd's crook makes me feel secure. You serve me a six-course dinner right in front of my enemies. You revive my drooping head; my cup brims with blessing. Your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life. I'm back home in the house of God for the rest of my life. (Psalm 23, The Message)

Do you recognize these words? In his translation of the bible called The Message, Eugene Peterson wrote Psalm 23 in a way that is contemporary and easy to understand. But when it comes to this very special and well known psalm, some people may prefer the more traditional language found perhaps in the King James Version of the bible.

I experienced this once while visiting a young woman at her deathbed.

As I walked into the room, her mother, who was sitting at her side, requested that I read Psalm 23 from the King James Version. Even though I had memorized the KJV of the psalm in confirmation many years before, I did not have the words at the tip of my tongue. I believe I disappointed the mother as I opened the small travel bible that I carried, the New International Version, and read the psalm from there. Surprisingly, the less well-known words of the very familiar psalm flowed easily off my lips and still felt familiar and comforting.

Rabbi Harold Kushner reminds us that Psalm 23 is a psalm that “answers the question, ‘how do you live in a dangerous and unpredictable world?’” Psalm 23 reminds us, whatever translation we read or memorize, that when we have God at our side, we are protected and guided even in the most frightening and dangerous situations. Life in this world is not safe or easy. But Psalm 23 reminds us that God’s beauty and love chase after us every day of our lives. And no matter what happens on earth or in heaven, we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen.

2009-07-06T18:11:00.001-05:00

[Jesus] left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 0n the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And he could do no deed of power there, except that. And he was amazed at their unbelief. And he went out among the villages teaching. (Mark 6:1-6)

I have spent the last few days at home. Not my own home with my husband and children, but my childhood home. My two sisters and I, along with my daughter and my niece, are visiting my parents for the weekend. You’ve probably heard people say that as soon as they go home, no matter how old they are, they are the become 15 years old again. It’s comforting to know that this also happened to Jesus.

When he visited Nazareth, his home town, Jesus was grown up, and deep into his ministry, but people still couldn’t fathom who he was. They were astounded by his wisdom and power. They were even offended that this “kid,” the carpenter’s son, would presume to teach in the synagogue.

Jesus was more gracious, of course, than most of us might be. He acknowledged their lack of belief, and even while they scorned him and pushed him away, “he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them” before he left town. He didn’t get angry, or discouraged. He loved them for who they were, blessed them, and went on his way.

Maybe we should follow his example, but surely we should give thanks for his love. We are all, at one time or another, the people from his town who can’t believe. But still he touches us and heals us and then he goes out, in us, among the villages.

2009-06-29T11:45:00.004-05:00

Monday, June 29, 2009

Submit to the Lord with fear, and with trembling bow down in worship; lest the Lord be angry and you perish; for divine wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are they all who take refuge in the Lord. (Psalm 2: 11-13)

I am on a never ending quest to find the best way to spend time in daily prayer and devotion. I have several resources that I use, but I keep going back to the Psalms. The Psalms are not always easy to read or to understand. Some of the Psalms are worshipful, joyful and full of praise and thanksgiving. Some of them are full of anger and fear and wrath toward God. The Psalms contain the range of human emotion, and for that reason, they make some pretty good prayers.

Many years ago I discovered this directive for praying the Psalms in a little book called Prayer of the Faithful by Walter C. Huffman (Augsburg Fortress, Revised Edition, 1992, p. 9-10). I find it very helpful. Huffman writes,

“An ancient approach to praying the Psalms is to pray them in a given order, fitting oneself into a biblical or liturgical pattern rather than forcing the Psalms into our own. Instead of asking what they have to do with us, we must ask what we have to do with them and what we hear of God’s will through them. In Psalms: Prayerbook of the Bible, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes:

It does not depend, therefore, whether the Psalms express adequately that which we feel at a given moment in our heart. If we are to pray aright, perhaps it is quite necessary that we pray contrary to our own heart. Not what we want to pray is important, but what God wants us to pray… The richness of the word of God ought to determine our prayer, not the poverty of our heart.”

Huffman continues,

“To be honest, to be valid, many feel that prayer must surge from the heart in a stream of original sentences or stammerings. While there will always be the prayer of the heart and one’s inarticulate reaching toward God, there must come again emphasis on the “givenness” of biblical praise-speech so characteristic of the Psalter. Daniel Stevick states:

No language, however eloquent or nuanced, could capture or define the specific quality of any moment. Even under intense emotion, I do not seek for some novel mode of expression. It would be like writing all new Christmas carols every year, or like searching for alternatives, having decided that the phrase “I love you” has grown hackneyed. I return gratefully to the simple, familiar, general allusive terms that I and thousands of others have used before.”

Try praying one Psalm each morning, in order. Find in them the richness of the word of God and then listen to how God is speaking to you. You might be surprised.

2009-06-22T11:23:00.002-05:00

How blessed is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of scoffers! Instead he finds pleasure in obeying the Lord’s commands; he meditates on his commands day and night. He is like a tree planted by flowing streams; it yields its fruit at the proper time, and its leaves never fall off. He succeeds in everything he attempts. Not so with the wicked! Instead they are like wind-driven chaff. For this reason the wicked cannot withstand judgment, nor can sinners join the assembly of the godly. Certainly the Lord guards the way of the godly, but the way of the wicked ends in destruction. (Psalm 1)

A few days ago, I was having a conversation with my friend Kim about faith. It’s always interesting to hear how people believe, and what they believe. To some people God looks very different than to others. This particular conversation was about salvation. What if, Kim posed, someone decides just before death to confess faith in Jesus, as the thief did on the cross? (Luke 23: 42) What if they say they believe, but they really don’t believe? What if they are just talking to try to get to heaven?

Of course, I replied, God doesn’t fall for false confession. God knows what is in our hearts before it is even on our lips.

Psalm 1 has often been called a psalm of law, so sometimes it’s not a favorite.

I see Psalm 1 as a psalm of instruction about the world we live in, and also a psalm of grace. God guides us with the law, and guards us no matter what we do. Our wicked ways, ways that we choose for ourselves, lead us to our own destruction. We are blessed when we follow the law because God put it in place for our safety and well being. But God doesn’t abandon us if we stray. God is still with us in our wickedness. God continues to guide us by his word.

Life is all about making hard decisions, Kim concluded. We are faced with choices every day that we have to wrestle with. We get to decide whether we walk in the way of the Lord, and live in the blessing that comes with that way, or in the way of the wicked, suffering the consequences. God is with us no matter what.

“It’s not all about you”

2009-06-15T15:11:00.002-05:00

I have been suffering with “gardener’s” elbow, for the past month or so. In my zeal to get ready for summer and to provide the longest possible growing season for my garden, I labored for long hours in May to dig, plant, and mulch. I guess I overdid it because my right arm aches at the elbow. It hurts the worst first thing in the morning, and on some days it is tenderer than others. When I make a motion that irritates it, I know it immediately.

This weekend, I was complaining about the pain to my husband, and I told him that I didn’t think I would be able to do any work around the house. The pain, although it isn’t severe, affects my whole attitude and energy level. It brings to mind Paul’s words “If one member suffers, all suffer together with it” (1 Cor 12: 26a)

In today’s Luther Seminary God Pause, Pastor Jill Bergman writes about the suffering of Job and asks the question, "why do people suffer?"

She writes, “Sometimes when we suffer, we allow our suffering to define us. We make our pain our identity. We become the center of our own universe. When this happens, we are separated from God and lost in chaos with nothing to hold us steady.”

The gospel text this week is from Mark 4, the story of Jesus calming the storm. When the winds start to whip around the boat in which Jesus and his disciples are crossing the sea, they cry out to him, “Don’t you care that we are perishing?” They can’t do anything to help themselves because of their fear of impending trouble, possibly even of their death. They’re in danger and it’s all about them.

Pastor Jill reminds us that even in our pain and suffering, it’s not all about us. God’s words to Job, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding,” (Job 38:4) sound harsh, but they remind us that someone greater than our self, Someone greater than our suffering, is at work through our crisis. God will care for us, and God promises us something more than this momentary affliction. It is God who will save us from the storm. We are not our own best hope.

2009-06-08T15:25:00.005-05:00

He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion (Philippians 1:6)

Whenever anyone finds out what I do for a living, the first question they ask is, “How did you decide to become a pastor?” I wonder if they’re disappointed when I tell them my story – when Sophie, my youngest, went to kindergarten, I felt like I should have a job outside of the home. I had been a stay-at-home mom until then, and the church seemed like a good place to work. There was no bolt of lightning, no voice of God telling me in what direction I should go. I just started thinking and praying and talking to people around me, and finally, I enrolled in my first semester of seminary, not completely sure that I was pastor material. Now, almost twelve years later, I am still not completely sure. I am not the smartest, the most prayerful or the most reverent person that I know. But every day, I am surprised at how God uses me to do God’s work. One thing that I have learned is that God uses each of us to do God’s work in the world and God doesn’t care if we are the perfect vessel. God created us – we are not only God’s children in this world, we are God’s workers, created for God’s purposes, whatever they may be.

Last week I came across an article about Denise Cerreta, owner of the Salt Lake City restaurant One World Everybody Eats, a pay-what-you-want restaurant that helps feed the world. Denise developed this concept when, while struggling to run an acupuncture clinic and a small café, she hit rock bottom, and God sent an unlikely helper who changed her life.

“Realizing that she couldn’t run two businesses at the same time, she folded the clinic, let the coffee shop staff go and ran Smoochy’s herself. She opened an hour earlier than before, hoping to bring in more customers. “I honestly wasn’t sure what was coming next. It was like throwing myself down the Grand Canyon,” she says. For the next four months, she struggled, doing all the food preparation, shopping and cleaning. She maxed out her credit cards and could barely pay her rent. Then came the lowest point: Her car was repossessed. Concerned friends told her she was crazy to keep the shop going. Still, Cerreta was positive that food was somehow in her destiny.

Although she isn’t a religious woman in the conventional sense, Cerreta says her faith and prayer allowed her to persevere. One particularly stressful day, when Cerreta had run out of sandwich meat and had no money to buy more, a local street person named Doggers entered the shop and handed her $50. “He said, ‘Denise, I have some money but no place to cook. If I buy you some food, will you make it for me?’ ” Cerreta remembers. She walked with him to the grocery store, and when she explained her predicament, Doggers offered to buy her the roast beef and turkey she needed. “Now he can eat at One World anytime he wants for free,” Cerreta says. “It’s amazing how the answers to your prayers aren’t what you think they’re going to be.” (copied from More.com)

Watch what’s going on around you, and inside of you. When God created you, a good work began. All we have to do is pay attention to whatever gifts we have been given. God will bring that good work to completion. Be open to the possibility that when God answers our prayers, we might be amazed at what happens, even if it’s not what we’re expecting.

Pentecost Blessings

2009-06-01T11:19:00.005-05:00

I often turn to my computer for my daily devotion. Although a good chunk of quiet time, just me and my bible each morning would be ideal, I don’t always feel like I have that luxury. Instead, I spend a few minutes with a website called Sacred Space which guides me through a morning prayer.

A friend recently reminded me that for people of faith, quiet devotion time, whether it’s as short as ten minutes or as long as an hour, is not a luxury. It’s a necessity if we want to nurture our relationship with God. It’s not always easy. She described it as a discipline and compared it to exercise. At first, we might not want to do it. We might feel like we don’t have the time. But once we get into a routine, not only do we feel better, we may find that everything is better – God’s presence is more apparent, and God’s guiding hand can be more easily felt as we struggle with our daily tasks and decisions.

Each week, Sacred Space gives me something to think and pray about for the week. Take a moment after you read the following paragraph to think about how God is speaking to you today.

“This week leads to Pentecost, the feast of the Holy Spirit. We speak of the Spirit guiding us. Quakers wait in silence for the Spirit to move them to speak. How does this work? The Holy Spirit does not normally work by telling us things we do not know, or by extraordinary revelations. The Holy Spirit introduces no new ideas, but improves and deepens my knowledge of what I already know. Jesus said, “The Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you.” (John 14:26) We shall sometimes, but not always, be conscious of a special divine influence, and we may feel sure that the action we have received is from God. But God’s action, though strong, is often quite imperceptible, for instance as the grace of fidelity in a time of great aridity.” (Taken from Sacred Space for the week of May 25, 2009)

I have a plaque on my wall that daily reminds me, “Bidden or not bidden God is present.”

Pentecost blessings, Pastor Carrie Scheller

2009-04-08T11:39:00.002-05:00

After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, "Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me." The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. John 13: 21-22

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…

I am going back to a petition of the Lord’s Prayer that I have already thought much about. As I write this devotion, I am surprised by the plethora of new insights that this prayer provides.

I receive a daily devotion from Luther Seminary and today the comments were about the story in the Gospel of John that we read on Maundy Thursday (tomorrow). Jesus is sitting at table with his disciples celebrating the Passover meal, which will be his last, and after dinner, he looks around and announces that one of them will betray him. It’s amazing, not only that Jesus knew all the events that were about to take place, but that, as he announced that one of his beloved and trusted disciples would betray him, they looked around at each other, not sure of who he was talking about.

“Betrayal. Lord, who is it? Even Judas seems curious. We ask, but do not want to know. It is like Hemingway's bell for us. We are the ones who have betrayed, denied, abandoned. It is true of the apostles at the table with Jesus. Which of us can assume superiority?” (from God Pause, Wed April 8 John Martin Mann)

We are all the ones who need forgiveness. Maybe we don’t even realize what we’ve done, but when we look into our hearts, we cannot accuse or judge anyone. God loves each one of us, even when God knows what is in our hearts.

Look around. Which one of you will be the betrayer? It is each of us.

Prayer for today

Lord, we thank you for your mercy for each of us, poor and miserable sinners. We need it – if we didn’t, it wouldn’t be mercy. Forgive us for our trespasses and help us to forgive. Amen.

2009-04-06T10:57:00.003-05:00

When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36)

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil…

This weekend I watched the movie “Rachel Getting Married,” the heartbreaking story of Kym, who has spent the past nine months in rehab and is released for the weekend to attend her sister’s wedding. The family is close and affectionate, but at the same time, dysfunctional. Underlying the family's dynamic is a tragedy that occurred many years previously and for which Kym is held by some to be responsible, the accidental death of Kym and Rachel’s little brother Ethan.

This is a conversation that takes place between the sisters when the painful and tender emotions come to the surface.

Rachel: Kym, you took Ethan for granted. Okay? You were high for his life. You were not present. Okay? You were high.
Kym: [Whispering] Yes.
Rachel: And you drove him off a bridge... and now he's dead.
Kym: Yes, I was. Yes, I was stoned out of my mind. Who do I have to be now? I mean, I could be Mother Teresa and it wouldn't make a difference, what I did. Did I sacrifice every bit of... love I'm allowed for this life because I killed our little brother?

In her book A Place to Pray: Reflections on the Lord’s Prayer, Roberta Bondi writes about the gift of temptation. “[A]s Christians, we can never honestly set ourselves self-righteously apart from any other human being, saying, ‘The sins of this person are so unimaginable that he or she has forfeited any claim to my love or to God’s.’… [N]one of us can ever look at someone else’s crime and say, ‘I would never do anything like that!’… The implication here is that if we are to learn compassion – a fundamental disposition if we are to love our neighbor – then we must be able to see, not how we differ from others from whom we would separate ourselves, but how we are similar. It is our temptations that let us see this.” (p 122)

“There but for the grace of God go I,” is sometimes what I say to myself in order to remember to have compassion for the people that I might tend to separate myself from, that I might tend to judge. I pray that I am spared from temptation and evil, but I also acknowledge that I am imperfect, fallible, a sinner who has been redeemed only by God’s grace. I thank God that Jesus has compassion for me, harassed and helpless as I am, and I pray for the strength and wisdom to show that compassion for others, no matter what.

Prayer for today

Compassionate God, you did not choose who you would save - you came to save the whole world. Help us to remember that we cannot choose upon whom to have compassion if we follow your example, but that we must have compassion for the whole world. We pray with the example and in the name of the great compassionate one, Jesus. Amen.

2009-04-02T14:55:00.002-05:00

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 38-39)

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever, Amen.

When we pray these words that Jesus taught us, “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” we are praying for God to guard and protect us from the things of this world that could harm us or change us. But we are not only praying for ourselves. We are fervently praying that God would help each of us, and all of those people around us, to be safe from the things that would test our faith.

Because of a sad and tragic event in the life of a friend last week, I have experienced what it means to have my faith tested, to ask God questions like – how, in a world that you created, can you allow tragedy? Where are you in tragedy? And how will you protect me from tragedy happening in my life?

Maybe these are not rational questions to ask God, who after all, does not cause bad things to happen, and in fact, experienced the suffering that we experience in this world when he became flesh and lived with us for a time. But these are the thoughts that have been going through my mind in the last week.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

We are all children of God, created in God’s image, given the freedom to make whatever choices we are faced with in our lives. Part of our life-long education, and especially our Christian education, is teaching us about these choices, helping us to understand the difference between right and wrong (Martin Luther calls that LAW) and knowing that, being faced with all of the choices that we will encounter in our lives, sometimes we will make wrong choices in spite of our best intentions.

Sometimes we will succeed and sometimes we will fail. Because we live lives that are connected to other people in so many and various way, whatever we do has an impact of others – and whatever others do has an impact on us. When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are not just praying for ourselves. “We pray for each other, not wanting anyone to be tempted into the arms of evil or fall victims to those who have.” (French p 103)

But we are imperfect people living in an imperfect world, and so sometimes, no matter how fervently and earnestly and honestly we pray for deliverance from evil, evil may enter our lives. What I hope and pray for you and for me is that in the circumstances of sadness or hardship or illness or tragedy in my life and your life, your relationship and your communication with God remains fervent and earnest and honest.

We live in a time between the suffering of Jesus who took away our sins, and the perfection that he will one day bring into the world and into our lives. We live in a world where we have to trust in the power and in the love of God, but also in a world where evil exists.

And so, “when we pray to be saved from the time of trial, we pray that our faith would not be tested, but if it is, we pray that God would be with us throughout and beyond the trial.” (French p 113)

Finally, we come to the end of our petitions to God with the words, deliver us from evil.

“There is, in this petition, a hint of longing, the longing that things will finally come out right for the world God loves. There is a yearning for God to put things right, to replace human sorrow with joy, human tears with laughter, human fear with peace.” (French p 118)

In the meantime, we hope and we trust, and we continue to pray.

2009-04-01T10:13:00.002-05:00

I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. (Romans 7:15)

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil…

This petition of the Lord’s Prayer has always been important to my prayer life. It is in these words, spoken and taught to us by Jesus, we acknowledge not only that we are weak and sinful, but that in our imperfect human state, drawn to temptation, we can and do turn to God to help us. I am so grateful that Jesus just laid it out there – lead us not into temptation – naturally assuming that this is the direction we head, asking God to deliver us from the very thing we hate, but cannot help ourselves.

Martin Luther teaches us, in the Small Catechism, that it is not God, but the devil who is responsible for the evil in the world, and who leads us, and even tried to lead Jesus, into temptation.

“It is true that God tempts no one, but we ask in this prayer that God would preserve and keep us, so that the devil, the world, and our flesh may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice, and that, although we may be attacked by them, we may finally prevail to gain the victory.” (From Martin Luther’s Small Catechism).

In my own prayers, and especially in prayers for my children and their friends, I pray that God gives us the strength to prevail over the many dangerous temptations that we face in our lives, and live in the light of Christ that God so graciously shines on us.

Prayer for today

Protecting God, guide our paths and keep us safe. Lead us not into temptation. Amen.

2009-03-30T22:02:00.002-05:00

My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that you yourselves are not tempted. Galatians 6:1

Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12

I’ve had a lot of practice forgiving since I have become the parent of teenagers. My 18 year old son and 16 year old daughter are wonderful people, but I have to remind myself of that at one a.m. on Saturday night when I should be sleeping, getting my rest for church on Sunday morning, but instead I’m pacing the floor and wondering where they could be – late again.

It’s a small but real example of my parenting challenges and frustrations. You can probably think of your own, or maybe you can remember the nights when you caused your own parents to worry when you were growing up.

My children don’t always apologize right away when they have done something that I think is irresponsible or disrespectful. Sometimes, they get mad at me, thinking that I am mean or too strict or I don’t understand them. We might argue and fight – but so far, we have always made up, come to some sort of understanding, and eventually apologized to each other, and forgiven each other for any transgressions, any disrespect shown or angry words spoken.

I am thankful that, with the example of God’s love in Jesus, we learn, and we live in an environment of unconditional love, first from God, and then in our family. Without that divine love in our lives, how could we ever do it?

Prayer for today

God, thank you for your spirit of gentleness on our lives that helps us to forgive each other as you have forgiven us. Amen

2009-03-29T21:37:00.001-05:00

Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4: 31-32

And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. Luke 11:4

It seems like we’re always talking about how hard it is to forgive. Actually, the older I get, the harder I find it not to forgive. Forgiveness is what God asks, and requires us to do, and as it turns out, God only asks us to do what is best for us.

Have you ever been so angry at a person that you imagined that you never wanted to see or speak to them again? I certainly have. I fret and I stew. But, I’ve gotten to the point in my life, and maybe in my faith, to take Paul’s words to the Ephesians seriously. Anger and grudges don’t do anyone any good. In fact, they can kill you.

An angry heart is dangerous to both body and soul. Along with recognizing what makes you angry, taking a deep breath and talking about the problem, try a healthy dose of forgiveness. It might save a life. When God does it, it saves ours.

Prayer for today

God, teach us to love each other as you love us. Help us to forgive each other as you forgive us. Amen.

2009-03-26T11:00:00.001-05:00

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors… Matthew 6:12

When we come to this petition in the prayer that Jesus taught us, we sometimes use different words. Trespasses, sins, debts, these words all describe offences, transgressions, ways we turn away from God and from each other.

In the Lord’s Prayer, we ask to be forgiven for our offences. Then we remind ourselves, and God, that because of that grace-filled gift of forgiveness that we receive, we also should (must) forgive those who commit offences against us. It’s the Christian thing to do.

It’s also a very difficult thing to do. If you have been wronged, depending on the severity of the transgression, it might be impossible for you to understand how you will be able to forgive.

Remember that forgiveness does not mean condoning. Forgiving does not mean forgetting. It means moving on. Forgiveness is as much for you as it is for the person being forgiven. I once heard that holding on to a grudge, not forgiving in your heart, is like eating poison, hoping that it will kill the other person.

Roberta Bondi writes that there are two essential elements of forgiveness. “The first is that we give up the notion of revenge (“turn the other cheek”) and the second is that we pray for the well-being of our injurer (“pray for those who persecute you”)." (p 93-94)*

It sounds so difficult to do, but it is essential to our own well being and to the well being of our relationships with other people, and with God.

Prayer for today

Gracious God, help me to understand how to do, and then do the difficult things that I should and must do, and that includes practicing forgiveness. I ask for strength and guidance. Amen.

*Bondi, Roberta C. A Place to Pray; Reflections on the Lord's Prayer Abingdon Press, 1998

2009-03-24T14:16:00.001-05:00

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. (Luke 24: 30-31)

Give us this day our daily bread… (Matthew 6:11)

I often listen to people tell me why they don’t attend church on Sunday mornings. Once people know that I’m a pastor, they must feel the need to explain.

These are some of the things I’ve heard; “I feel God’s presence with me the most when I am in the woods, close to nature.” “I don’t believe in organized religion.” “I worship at the altar of baseball.” (Seriously, that was one of them!)

In their book, Lord Teach Us: The Lord’s Prayer & the Christian Life, William Willimon and Stanley Hauerwas write “When we want to meet God, we Christians do not go up some high mountain, do not rummage around in our psyches, do not hold hands, close our eyes, and sing Kum Ba Yah in the hope of revelation. We gather and break bread in Jesus’ name. That’s where he has chosen to meet us, that’s where our eyes are opened and we recognize him.” (French p 80)

We gather together, as the body of Christ, never alone, for the sacrament. “Continuous communion of the whole congregation, with the post-communion blessing given after all are communed, underscores the aspects of fellowship and unity in the sacrament.” (The Use of the Means of Grace, p 49)

In the sacrament of bread and wine, Holy Communion, Christ is truly present with us. He has given himself, for us, and we receive this gift each time we gather for the celebration of the Eucharist.

“The use of leavened bread is the most ancient attested practice of the church and gives witness to the connection between the Eucharist and ordinary life.” (The Use of the Means of Grace, p 48)

And so together we thankfully pray, give us this day our daily bread.

Prayer for today

Ever present God, help us to remember that we see you and we feel your presence with us especially in the breaking of the bread. Amen.

2009-03-23T12:44:00.002-05:00

Give us each day our daily bread… (Luke 11: 3)

“God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.” (Prayer of St Augustine, 4th century)

Why is our faith important to us? If you look around, it seems that even people who don’t have faith have what they need, their “daily bread.” So when we pray for ours, what are we asking for?

Henry French writes that it’s “possible to confuse needs with wants.” (p 75)

Possible? I might argue that, in our culture, it is impossible not to! If we sat down and thoughtfully made three lists, one of the things that we need, one of the things we have, and one of the things we want, I think that those lists would look very different. But how often are we thoughtful about what we need and what we want? Most of us are able to get whatever we want whenever we want it. And so it is possible that we don’t make the distinction very often.

This summer I bought a new car. Our family of 4 drivers (one who is away at college) now owns 3 cars, and we so we are never without transportation. We never have to wait for a ride, we never have to go out of our way to drop someone off, and we never have to walk anywhere if we don’t want to. Really, if one of us didn’t have to ask permission to use a car, we would never even have to see or talk to each other at all! The down side? I will let you come to your own conclusions.

I included St. Augustine’s prayer today to remind us that we belong to God, and everything that we “own” belongs to God as well. We should take a moment to remember that. Our daily bread includes not only what we physically need, but also includes our relationships with each other, and most importantly with God. We will finally realize what we need when our hearts find rest in God.

Prayer for today

God, give me the wisdom to know what I need, to be thankful for what I have, and to be thoughtful about the things I want. And give me the wisdom to know the difference. Our hearts finally seek rest in you. Amen

2009-03-20T09:18:00.002-05:00

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35)

Give us this day our daily bread… (Matthew 6:11)

I don’t know why, but I always have to think twice about Jesus’ words, “I am the bread of life.” I get it – Jesus came into the world to give us life, to sustain us with what we need and bring us eternal life, but the whole bread thing, for some reason, I get stuck on that.

Bread is an important source of nutrition for every culture in the world. Baguette, tortilla, naan, challah, pita, rye, sourdough, banana. The popular low-carb diets really go against everything that we have been taught about eating well. Removing bread from our diet doesn’t seem natural.

And so Jesus, calling himself the bread of life, was speaking in terms that would be familiar to everyone, and for all time. In calling himself the bread of life, Jesus was reminding us that our faith has to do with things of heaven, and also with the things of earth. “Christianity cannot be reduced to a concern with the spiritual things alone. It also has to do with the earthly, the fleshly, the bodily, the physical.” (French p 70)

We need to care not only for our spiritual health, but also our physical health. We must first put on our own oxygen mask before we can help anyone else. We need to pay attention our life in the world, and that includes not only our diet, but our outlook, our exercise habits and our community. (see http://www.bluezones.com/)

When we pray give us this day our daily bread, we are praying for “whatever we need to protect the gift” of life that we have been given by God. (French p 70)

Prayer for today

Help us, gracious God, to care for ourselves so we can care for the world you have created. Amen.

2009-03-19T09:13:00.002-05:00

Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18: 19-20)

Give us each day our daily bread… (Luke 11:3)

Sometimes, when introducing the Lord’s Prayer we say “we are bold to pray in the words that Jesus taught us.” It is true. Not only do we pray about what Jesus teaches us about God’s name and God’s kingdom on earth and in heaven, but we pray about the will of God. It seems like we are being very bold to presume that we might know the will of God. But we pray in words Jesus taught us and so we feel comfortable talking to God in such a familiar way.

Even more boldly, after acknowledging God’s greatness, we begin to ask for things that we want and require. Make sure God, we ask, that we have all that we need. “Give us each day our daily bread.”

It seems like a no-brainer. God provides at least the daily essentials, food, shelter, and clothing. And so we acknowledge that in this prayer, and we give thanks.

Each day when I drive home from work I exit off of 35W at Diamond Lake Road. There is usually someone standing at the top of the exit ramp holding a sign that says something like this: “homeless, totally desperate, anything helps, God bless.” I always hope that there is a green light or a line of cars on the ramp so I will wait a little farther back. This prevents me from sitting in my car close enough to the homeless person to make eye contact. I am ashamed to admit it, but these people make me uncomfortable and I don’t know what I can or should do to help them. I’ve heard that handing money out of the car window isn’t the best idea. So every day I just drive past with a pang of guilt.

Henry French reminds us of one important word in this petition of the Lord’s Prayer. “Our” We are not praying for just ourselves individually. We are praying for the whole people of God. He reminds us that “When anyone suffers, we all suffer; when things go well for anyone, things go well for everyone. As the seventeenth century English poet John Donne so beautifully put it, “Any man’s death diminishes me because I am involved in mankind.” (French p 68)

Even as we pray and hope for God to give us our daily bread, and as we give thanks for what we have, we know that there are many people in the world who do not have what they need. My prayer today is that we will do whatever we can with whatever we have to make sure that all people receive their daily bread. God help us.

Prayer for today

Good and gracious God, please help us to act when we can help, share what we have, and to remember that we live in an imperfect world. We are your hands and your feet. Show us the way. Amen.

2009-03-18T08:50:00.001-05:00

Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6)

Your will be done… (Matthew 6:10)

When I was still a seminary student, my friend’s 6 week old son became very ill. For weeks, this little tiny boy was in the hospital, hooked up to machines and tubes, fighting for his life. I will never forget, during one visit to the pediatric ICU, praying together with an older pastor and my friend. The pastor prayed words that made me wonder about God’s will and our will. The pastor prayed, “God, we pray for healing, but if that is not your will, we ask for strength and acceptance.”

I’m not sure if I’m remembering the exact words of the prayer, but I remember wondering how we should pray in such a situation. And so I went back to the seminary that afternoon and asked one of my professors what he would have done. He said something similar to what Paul told the Philippians. He said we should pray like crazy for what we wish and hope for. We should let all of our requests be made known to God. God will guide us and strengthen us along the way, no matter what happens.

Eleven years later, my friend’s son is wonderful, healthy and happy and strong. God answered our prayers for healing, and God also answered our prayers for strength. It isn’t God’s will for us to suffer but suffering happens anyway. God’s will is that we “pray always and not lose heart.” (Luke 18:1)

So pray like crazy. About anything and everything. Let your requests be made known to God, then listen. God will show you what to do.

Prayer for today

Listening and loving God, thank you for hearing everything that I say, and knowing everything that I need. Help me to feel your guidance, and to remember that my strength comes from you. Amen.

2009-03-16T22:14:00.002-05:00

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35)

“Your will be done, on earth as in heaven…” (Matthew 6:10)

Sometimes I have trouble talking to people about my faith. I can be intimidated because it seems like my conversation partner is more knowledgeable than I am about the bible, about prayer, or even about faith itself. Some people have a certain kind of language about their faith. They have certain expectations of how Christian people should act.

While we each have our traditions and practices, I don’t think that God prescribes one particular way for us to live in the world. To do God’s will on earth as in heaven is to love one another as God loves us. If we remember that, we will always be evangelists, speaking and living the good news of God’s love, God’s justice, God’s forgiveness, God’s compassion, and God’s salvation. (French p 61)

Prayer for today

Loving God, help me to share my faith with everyone I encounter by being your loving presence in the world. Let each of us show that we are your disciples because of the love that we show for one another. Amen.

2009-03-16T08:46:00.002-05:00

O Lord, God of my salvation, when, at night, I cry out in your presence, let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry. For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the Pit; I am like those who have no help, like those forsaken among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. You have put me in the depths of the Pit, in the regions dark and deep. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. (Selah) You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a thing of horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape; my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call on you, O Lord; I spread out my hands to you.
Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise up to praise you? Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon? Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness? But I, O Lord, cry out to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you. O Lord, why do you cast me off? Why do you hide your face from me? Wretched and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am desperate. Your wrath has swept over me; your dread assaults destroy me. They surround me like a flood all day long; from all sides they close in on me. You have caused friend and neighbor to shun me; my companions are in darkness. (Psalm 88 – A Psalm of lament)

…What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

Your will be done… (Matthew 6:10)

What does it mean for us to do God’s will, to walk humbly with God? It means that we stay in relationship with God, no matter what.

Much of our language of worship and prayer is praise. We emphasize the importance of praising and thanking God for our blessings and the abundance of our life. Both praise and thanksgiving are important parts of our relationship and communication with God.

But what do we do when things aren’t going so great? What happens if we get angry with God or if we feel like God isn’t even there for us anymore? It is during these times that the Psalms of lament teach us how to pray, and how to continue our humble walk with God.

God’s will for us is to be in relationship with God, and that means we can bring everything to God; our joy and our thanks, and our sadness and our anger. God wants to hear it all. God can take it. And even in our anger, God will strengthen us, and guide us and walk with us as we walk humbly with God.

For more on praying the Psalms of lament, read the sermon written by The Rev. Michael Rogness, http://saplc.org/ministry/sermons/sr070228.php

Prayer for today

Merciful God, please help me to remember that you are with me in good times, and in bad. Give me confidence to pray in joy and in anger, knowing that you hear me and love me always. Amen.

2009-03-12T18:16:00.001-05:00

What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6: 8)

"But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and herbs of all kinds, and neglect justice and the love of God; it is these you ought to have practiced, without neglecting the others. (Luke 11:42)

The demand for justice in the bible is grounded in the nature of God. (French, p 54) The biblical definition of justice is probably not the definition of justice that first springs to mind. When we think of justice, we first might think of a court of law; a criminal getting what they deserve and paying their dues to society. Justice becomes equal to righteousness, and we associate it with our safety and our security. If the justice system works, we will live in a better, safer world.

The prophets and Jesus, however, make it clear that according to God’s will, justice is not a question of civil or criminal law – it is about equity, fairness, sharing the abundance that God has so graciously provided. (French, p 54)

When we pray “your will be done…” we are truly praying for God’s will to be done in the whole world. We are praying for everyone to have what they need, and we are praying for the strength and grace to be able to be a part of that biblical justice.

I believe God’s will for our lives doesn’t necessarily involve our daily activities. God wants us to be happy, and comfortable, and to have enough. But I don’t think God concerns God’s self with issues such as winning a baseball game, finding out about a job, or even something as important as our health concerns. These things will happen for the better or for the worse. God doesn’t cause them, and God doesn’t fix them. God’s will is that we love and care for each other in the imperfect world in which we live, and that we love God, who strengthens us and walks with us in our joy and in our sorrow.

Prayer for today

Gracious and loving God, help me to remember that you are with me in everything that I experience in my life. Help me to understand your will on earth, and to hope for the time when I will see it clearly in heaven. Amen.

French, Henry F. book of faith Lenten Journey; 40 Days with the Lord's Prayer Augsburg Books, 2009

2009-03-11T17:55:00.001-05:00

"With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6: 6-8)

“Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we pray in the words Jesus taught us. But what did Jesus mean when he said, “your will?”

There has been many a discussion about the will of God in our world. “It was God’s will” is a phrase that people use to explain why all kinds of things happen, from success and happiness, to tragedy and destruction. When we presume to understand the will of God in the specific events of our lives, we have a very good chance of getting it wrong, of misunderstanding the phrase, “your will be done.”
It has been said that tonight’s scripture passage from the prophet Micah contains “the will of God in a nutshell.” (French, 52)

Micah was speaking to the people of Israel while they were in the midst of some trouble. Things had been going badly for them, and in an attempt to turn things around, they were trying to figure out what they could do to make God happy with them again.

They were trying to bargain with and bribe God. They were trying to figure out exactly what God would have them do in order to change their situation. They thought that, perhaps if they offered sacrifices, God would be satisfied and things would get better.

Perhaps you’ve been in a similar situation, trying to figure out what to do so God will provide the outcome you desire. “God, if only … I will never … again. You fill in the blank.

It was Micah’s job to remind them of exactly what God required – that is, God’s will for them, which is also God’s will for us. Micah didn’t mince words.
God has told you what the Lord requires of you. Do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God.

God’s will for us is for our well being, and for the well being of all of God’s creation. When we pray for God’s will to be done, we should remember that “the good and gracious will of God is done in the world without our prayer, but we pray that God’s will might also be done by us.” (Small Catechism, Third Petition of the Lord’s Prayer)

Micah reminds us of that God wants, and so we pray that we not only do God’s will – do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God, but that in doing God’s will, we will realize God’s kingdom on earth.

When we pray “your will be done,” we are not asking that things come out right as we want things to come out, but rather we are asking that God’s will be done. Too often, we are conditioned to think of prayer as asking God for what we want… But now, in praying that God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven, we are attempting to school ourselves to want what God wants. (French, p 57, quoting Willimon and Hauerwas)

We can only imagine what our world would be like if every person, every leader, would pray each day for God’s will to be done.

Prayer for Today (written by Thomas Merton)

MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust you always
though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

2009-03-10T22:44:00.002-05:00

“Your kingdom come…”

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. (Revelation 21:1)

Henry French writes, “When we think about the coming of the kingdom, we think of human life brought to perfection.” (p 47)

We get an image from scripture of the kingdom of heaven being perfect, a place where death will be no more, mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away. It is certainly something to which we look forward. Perfection, no suffering, is what we are promised.

But the kingdom of heaven has broken in to our imperfect world in the person of Jesus to remind us that although we anticipate perfection, we live now in a world that falls short of that perfection and even still, the kingdom is among us.

Tonight, I am writing late, after the lights should be out. But I am waiting for my deliciously fragrant broth to finish simmering on the stove so I can strain the vegetables out and have the makings of a lovely homemade soup for dinner tomorrow night. While I wait, I’m watching the March snowstorm blow against my windows, and I’m so thankful for a warm house and the relative peace inside.

Do you remember the apocalyptic groups who were trying through violence in late 1999 to bring about the second coming of Jesus, and the end of the world? Even if they could have had some kind of influence on that event, I wonder why they would have wanted to end their short time on earth. By paying attention to the way that God breaks into the world in the small but amazing pieces of our everyday lives, we get a glimpse of the kingdom. It is here, among us.

Prayer for today

God, help us to see how you have broken into the world to show us the kingdom in our everyday lives. We thank you for the gifts that you give us during our short time here, and we wait with great anticipation for the perfection of the time when we will see you face to face. Amen.

2009-03-09T11:02:00.003-05:00

"Your Kingdom Come…" (Matthew 6:10)

“The kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea which collects fish of every kind.” (Matthew 14: 47)

In The Large Catechism, Martin Luther teaches us that when we pray these words of the Lord’s Prayer we are praying that the kingdom of heaven “may come to those that are not yet in it, and that it may come by daily growth here and in eternal life hereafter to us who have attained it.”

Sometimes, I believe, we feel like we are always striving to realize the kingdom of heaven in our lives. We seek ways to become more holy only to feel disappointed, like we have failed, when we inevitably resume in our sinful human ways.

We will rest in God’s grace when we finally realize that the kingdom of heaven includes each and every baptized child of God, whether or not we act in ways which qualify as “holy.” God’s net catches everyone, and it’s not for us to judge who is in and who is out. Our earthly measure of what is holy may be very different from God’s.

Roberta Bondi writes, “In God’s profound love and profound valuing of my life and every other human life,… holy beauty is simply given. Doesn’t the very fact of the incarnation declare God’s love of the ordinary as well as the extraordinary parts of our lives? … My life as a human being, made in the image of God, is holy because God loves it and has always loved it, and so in some mysterious way it is the site of God’s beloved, holy presence.” (p 46)

The kingdom of God comes to us and through us. We find the kingdom of God in ourselves and in each other.

Prayer for today

Teach me how to treat myself and everyone I meet as the incarnation of your kingdom. Amen.

Bondi, Roberta C. A Place to Pray; Reflections on the Lord's Prayer; Abingdon Press, 1998

2009-03-08T18:41:00.001-05:00

Reflections will be posted here at least five times a week. It is quite easy to create an account so you can be part of the devotional conversation by posting questions or comments.

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Please email me with any questions - I appreciate your interest in Trinity's Lenten devotional!

carries@trinitylonglake.org

2009-03-07T15:25:00.002-06:00

"Your kingdom come…"

"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. (Luke 6: 32-35)

A friend of mine recently shared with me how she had lifted up in prayer someone with whom she was angry. She said it was as if, after her prayer, God took away her anger. She felt like her relationship was soothed, and she gained a new perspective on the conflict with this person, and she also had a renewed feeling of love and appreciation for the person, realizing that each of us are children of God, part of the kingdom, imperfect sinners.

I don’t know if this relationship was perfectly healed and restored by this one prayer, but a window was opened that let the light of the gospel in. Love and forgiveness are elements that the kingdom of heaven brings into our lives. Jesus teaches us that because we are part of the kingdom, with God as our ruler, we are free to bring our sins, our hurt and our anger to him, and to be refreshed with his grace.

Prayer for today

Grace filled God, fill our lives with your grace. Teach us that because you forgive us, we are free to forgive others, and that when we see even our enemies as your children, we realize that your kingdom is big enough for us all. Thank you for your guiding presence in our lives. Amen.

2009-03-04T15:56:00.002-06:00

“Your Kingdom Come…”

So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4: 16-18)

We live in what is sometimes called “the time between.” God’s kingdom has come into the world, and we have a very real sense of what that looks like, because we have a very real sense of Jesus. It was in the person of Jesus that God burst into the world, God with us, bringing all that God promises us right in the midst of where we actually live. We don’t need to imagine God’s love because we have the words and the actions of Jesus right in front of us, making it perfectly clear. “The kingdom of God is among you.” (Jesus’ words in Luke 17:21)

But, still, we are between. Jesus has come, and he will come again. What we are anticipating is the fullness and completion of the kingdom, the time when all of our questions will be answered and all will be made right. We are anticipating that eternal weight of glory beyond all measure that cannot now be seen.

That doesn’t mean that we are not able to experience God’s kingdom in this life. We certainly can, every day. We are promised that God’s kingdom is here among us, and it shows itself in many different ways.

Roberta Bondi writes that each of us experiences the kingdom “according to what we are able to receive.” (p 43) If we are not open or willing, we might miss it – it’s there, but we might not notice.

Prayer for today

God, help us to be mindful of how you are working in our lives. We are living in unsure times; help us to be sure of your kingdom. In Jesus name, Amen.

2009-03-03T15:37:00.004-06:00

“Hallowed be your name…”

The name of God is holy, there is no doubt about that.

In Jewish tradition, God’s name is so holy that it cannot be spoken by human lips, or even written by human hands. “Lord” or “God” is translated in the Old Testament in place of the name which God gives God's self, Yahweh, the Hebrew word for “I Am.”

It might be intimidating to think of holiness, especially of the holiness of God, and especially as it relates to us. I have always considered myself less that holy, simply because of the way I live in the world. I am not always as prayerful or pious or even as kind and considerate as I think God would have me be.

Acquiring the title of “Reverend” when I became an ordained member of the clergy seemed quite inappropriate for someone, some regular, unholy person like me.

I have come to realize that the holiness of God is not something that is out of our reach. It is also not something to which we should try to aspire. The holiness of God is found in the name of God, and in God’s presence in our lives, which means that everything we do is infused with the holiness of God. Even while I shop for groceries or shovel snow or clean the bathroom, the mundane tasks of everyday life, God promises to be present. That promise makes those tasks holy.

And then there might be those extraordinary moments of awe and wonder, the moments of peace and beauty, when we can actually feel the presence of God. It is in those moments that we are blessed to know that we are standing on holy ground. But I don’t think that makes them any more, or any less holy then the everyday.

Roberta Bondi writes, “An experience of God’s holiness is an experience of God’s holiness whether we name it or not.” (p 40) Our lives as children of the great “I Am” are hallowed, simply because we are God’s children.

Prayer for Today (French p 34)

Holy God, enable me to see that all ground is holy ground for you are always with us. Amen.

2009-03-02T07:18:00.004-06:00

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (Matthew 23:37)

“Our Father in heaven…” (Matthew 6:9)

From these two passages of scripture we get two different images of God. The first is a worried mother. Jesus speaks as a prophet for God, and uses the image of a mother hen, who longed to care tenderly for Israel and protect her.

The second is from the Lord’s Prayer, the image of Father. Henry French reminds us of the patriarchal context of Jesus’ world, where a father image for God would probably by the only image that people would take seriously. But Jesus also boldly uses the image of a mother who longs to gather her children together to keep them safe.

Both images are in the bible. Both images of God are “correct,” images that we can use when we think of or pray to God.

Once, about 10 years ago, while preparing a sermon on the Holy Spirit, I decided to use the word “she” every time I mentioned God or the Holy Spirit. I was trying to stretch my own and my internship congregation’s imaginations when it came to thinking about God. In the end, I didn’t use the feminine language because I thought it would be too shocking for people.

I’m now ready to talk about God as a mother, or as a sister. French writes that some people, because of events in their lives, have a hard time thinking of God as a loving father. “If calling God “mother” opens a wounded soul to the experience of divine love, then why not? After all, God is neither male nor female, but completely transcends gender distinctions. The words father and mother both make the point Jesus was making when he taught his followers to pray “Our Father.” We are dependent upon God as a child to a parent.” (p 25)

Our image of God is our own. God doesn’t care how we think of her, or of him. Our relationship with God depends on a connection with God that not only holds us accountable to a loving parent, but also makes us feel valued, safe and protected.

What is your image of God?

Prayer for today

Gracious and loving God, help us to trust the depth of your love for us, as a mother or a father loves their child. Help us to know you as a loving parent, guiding us and holding us in your hand. Thank you for your unconditional and steadfast love. Amen.

2009-02-26T11:26:00.006-06:00

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name…”

In the Lenten devotional, 40 Days with the Lord’s Prayer, Henry French reminds us of the importance of the little words that we find in the bible. Today, take a moment to ponder the important little word “our,” as in, "Our Father." French writes, “It implies something in common, as in, “We went to Europe for a week but our flight was delayed, our baggage got lost, our accommodations were terrible… Two or more people with a common experience, a common possession, a common hope, a common fear, a common joy, a common sorrow.” (p 23)

In my first call, I worked with single’s ministry, and I became keenly aware of the family orientation of the church. Many ministries are devoted to families, children and couples. There are lots of stories and descriptions of how “we” did this in “our” lives. For people who weren’t part of a couple, or didn’t live with a family, the church might become a painful and exclusive place.

My husband grew up in the Roman Catholic tradition and he calls the Lord’s Prayer “the Our Father.” It’s a good and descriptive name. It reminds us that whether or not we have a specific person to share our experiences, we are never alone. When we pray “the Our Father,” we are reminded that we share a parent with all of our brothers and sisters in the family of Christ. As we pray, we are praying together with those brothers and sisters, and they in turn, are praying with us.

[There is] one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:6

Prayer for Today
Lord God, open my eyes that I may see other people part of your family and so, part of the family to which I belong, all loved by you as much as I am loved by you. Amen.

2009-02-25T10:58:00.006-06:00

Ash Wednesday Sermon
Pastor Carrie Scheller
Feb 25, 2009
Joel 2: 1-2, 12-17
Matthew 6: 1-15

Today is Ash Wednesday, a solemn day of prayer that begins the forty- day season of Lent. I’ve often heard Ash Wednesday being compared to the Jewish Day of Atonement, the day on the Jewish calendar set aside for people to acknowledge and confess their sins, and also to atone for them, and to reconcile themselves to God. A Jewish friend of mine once tried to explain the day to me, reminding me that it was not really a holiday, but a day to afflict the soul, to remind oneself of all of the sins committed during the past year, and to try to make things right with people and with God by offering reparation or apology. He warned me, “Never wish anyone ‘happy day of atonement.’

I don’t think we would ever wish anyone happy Ash Wednesday either. It’s on this day that Christians also make a special effort to remember and confess our sin. It’s the beginning of the season on our church calendar when we are invited to carry out the Lenten discipline, practices of fasting, prayer and works of love. It’s also on this day that we receive the sign of the cross, made with ashes, on our forehead. This ancient symbol of repentance reminds us of our mortality. Returning to God’s mercy and grace, marked with the cross of Christ, we make our way through Lent, longing for the baptismal waters of Easter, our spiritual rebirth. (ELW p 248)

This Lenten season our focus at Trinity will be on prayer, specifically the Lord’s Prayer. Each week, Pastor Kent and I will speak about the way that our lives and our faith are shaped by this very important prayer that Jesus taught us with the expectation that we pray it. A Lenten devotional will be posted on the Trinity website that will guide you through an aspect of the Lord’s Prayer each day during Lent. Together we will discover that this prayer contains many facets and nuances.

We’ve become very familiar with this special and wonderful prayer. It was probably one of the first things that you memorized in Sunday school. It might contain the comforting words that you turn to first when you are worried, or scared, or in danger of any kind. It’s the prayer that we all know. It doesn’t matter where I am, if I invite people to pray with me in the words that Jesus taught us, they know what I mean, and they know what to say.

This Lenten season and beyond, I invite you to start to ponder, as you pray the Lord’s Prayer, what it means to you, and for you, and for the rest of the world. Jesus didn’t give us this prayer so we had something easy to memorize and so we wouldn’t have to think in order to pray. As we pray and study the Lord’s Prayer, we will discover that it not only describes, but challenges our life together with each other, and with God.

In giving his disciples, and us, the gift of this prayer, Jesus wasn’t laying down the law or telling us what to do – Jesus was inviting us into relationship with God that would be challenging and comforting, and filled with grace. This relationship would judge us and empower us and save us. The more comfortable we become in this relationship by staying connected to God and trying to understand God’s love us and will for our lives, we will be delighted as we discover how far God’s forgiveness goes, far beyond our expectations. (French, p 12) All this will come simply by praying, and thinking about, and talking about the words that Jesus taught us.

The Lord’s Prayer is a prayer which is common to and connects all Christians. We are reminded at the very beginning of this prayer that when we pray, we are never alone. In our individualistic society, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that my spirituality and my prayer is a private matter involving nobody but myself and God. (Bondi p 24)

The Lord’s Prayer reminds us that God is “OUR” Father, and sharing a parent makes us all a part of the same family. In a little book called “A Place to Pray: Reflections on the Lord’s Prayer,” scholar and theologian Roberta Bondi considers what this means for our lives. She writes, “My unity with other Christians, after all, isn’t something that I must make happen myself. Whether I want it or not, the fact is, whenever I speak the words ‘Our Father, give us this day our daily bread,’ by virtue of my baptism I am praying as part of the people of God, and in return, they are praying with me… ‘Our Father’ teaches us we have a place in the family of God to which we belong simply because we are human beings.” (Bondi p 27, 28)

Let us pray
Jesus, you taught us to pray. Now, please grant us the faith and courage not only to boldly pray in the words you taught us, but to follow you in the way of God. Amen.

references:

Bondi, Roberta C. A Place to Pray; Reflections on the Lord's Prayer Abingdon Press, 1998

Evangelical Lutheran Worship Augsburg Fortress, 2006

French, Henry F. book of faith Lenten Journey; 40 Days with the Lord's Prayer Augsburg Books, 2009

Trinity Lutheran Church Lenten Devotional

2009-02-10T15:04:00.003-06:00

In an answer to a question from his disciples, Jesus taught us how to pray. His prayer is found in Luke 11: 2-4, and in Matthew 6: 9-13. Below, you can read the Lord’s Prayer from three different translations of the bible. There are many more. This is a short prayer, but it has been called a summary of the whole gospel.

During Lent, not only will we pray together in the words Jesus taught us, but we will try to discover, together, what this prayer means and how, by praying words that are so familiar, we can deepen our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Please check back starting February 25th, Ash Wednesday, for a daily Lenten Devotion.

Pastor Carrie Scheller

The Lord’s Prayer – Three translations

With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this: Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are. Set the world right; Do what's best - as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You're in charge! You can do anything you want! You're ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes. (Matthew 6: 9-13 The Message)

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (Matthew 6: 9-13 King James Version)

"Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. (Matthew 6: 9-13 New Revised Standard Version)