Thoughts, thoughts and more thoughts - not all at once.

As I have been preparing for the next round of residential work in pursuit of the D.Min., I have been amazed at the reading that I have had to do - not the amount of it but the insight of it. Much of what I have read I would never have touched in the work of regular parish ministry. There is too much going on in daily congregation life to spend much time on reading some of the books and articles in preparation for the residential work. After all, weekly sermons need preparation (not just thrown together at the last minute), services need worked out (so they are uplifting for those who attend worship), Bible studies need to be prepared (with the supporting study and work), visitations need to be made, classes need to be taught, children need to be shown the wonder of the life in Christ (as they world around them tells them that living in Christ isn't worth it), meetings need to be prepared for and attended, follow up needs to be done, hospitals and nursing homes need to be visited, phone calls need to be made, and so on. Who has time to read about the "Global South" or "The Domestication of Transcendence"? Ugh. I wouldn't do it on a normal day. So I was challenged to do in preparation for next week.

And in doing so, I have been challenged, refocused, overturned and frustrated. All of those feelings and more run through me as I prepare for the two classes I will be taking. I am glad that I am being challenged because it makes me rethink and rework what it means to be a Christian and a pastor. It leads me to wonder about the state of Christianity today. It frustrates me in the I see much of what is being said as being true and not being able to make the changes needed in our churches today. I can understand what is being said and yet I can also see that there is no way that we, modern Christians in North America, will listen to what is being said. We are content in the type of Christianity that we have developed. It is very self-centered, me oriented and when it doesn't go our way (in health, work, finances, personal life, sex, play, life and death) we turn on God, try to remake Him, challenge Him and even "damn" Him. He is not "God" to us. He is not the One that we turn to in life and death. He is no longer seen as the One who truly knows what is important. Nor is Christian faith seen as the ultimate goal - life in heaven through death and resurrection. It is all about now, what I want, and when I want it.

How do you change that thinking? When I look at the Global South (Africa, Asia, Latin America), I am amazed at  how they view the Word, God and faith. We "moderns" would say they are backwards and behind the times. But are they? Are we not leaving behind the faith when we discard the Word, when we make religion in our image and when we bring God down to us (refusing to let Him remain God).

Just saying. Just wondering. Just challenged in my own personal life of faith. Just challenged as a pastor. Thanks Lord, for the challenge.

One more time

Hello again. One more time I am saying that we will not school on Wednesday, Jan. 8th due to the poor condition of the roads in the Troy area. Be safe out there. Watch out when you do get out because it will be a mess on the sidewalks and in the parking lots.

I plan on being in the office in the morning. Catching up on the things I put off during the holidays. Oh how I am ready to get back to a regular routine. School will return on Thursday. We will see you all then.

Another Snow Day

Hello all! School will be closed again on Tuesday, January 7th. It is still cold, snowy. They are working to get our walks cleared and the parking lot open. John Stille is plowing our parking lots. Thanks John! Todd Moore and Curtis Moore will be cleaning the walks this evening. Thanks guys!

Be warm, watch out when you get out, because I know that you will. School will be open on Wednesday, January 8th. Chapel will be at 9:00 a.m. And we will hit the ground running. I am sure that our teachers are preparing an exciting and uplifting time for all our students. They are getting ready to teach our students in the 2nd half of the year. So parents, let's get our kiddos ready and face the rest of this school year.

Snowy Sunday

Just to let you know, the worship services and SS/Bible class has been cancelled on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014 due to inclement weather. God be with all of you.

Welcome 2014

A new year has begun! I know that isn't news to you as you have already been through one day of 2014, but it is exciting to enter into a new year. What will this year hold? What will happen? Will all the things that I have planned come to fruition? What things will fail? Will this be a healthy year? Will there be sickness?

Within the congregation of St. Paul's, we can ask those very same questions. There have been goals set by the Planning Council. What will happen to those goals? Will we meet them? What will need to be adjusted due to situations that we couldn't foresee? Then comes the question of health - who will be healthy this year and who won't? What children will be born this year? Who will pass away? When the year comes to a close, what changes will have taken place?

That is one of the things that concerns us when it comes to the start of a new year, or even the start of a new venture - the unknown. We can make all the plans we want but we do not know how they will play out. IT is like today, we have been planning on taking Penny's mother to Bloomington to meet the sister from Chicago. She will then go on to Chicago with the sister. It is a good plan, except that it snowed overnight. There are several inches of snow here in Troy and more to the north. Wasn't counting on that! It won't stop us but it will make it to where we will have to take it much easier traveling to the north. You just don't know what will happen to your plans.

In cases like this, as in everyday life, I find it best to say with the words of Scripture, "Lord willing, we will do..." "Lord willing I will see you tomorrow." Lord willing I will drive to Bloomington today." I know that for many people, they do not see how the omniscient, omnipotent God could get involved in the trivial affairs of mankind. Does He really care about what I do on a day to day basis? Or does He leave some of that up to the whims and the foibles of fate? The answer is that as hard as it is to understand (or explain), God is involved in our day-to-day life. He does not withdraw His hand from our lives. At the same time, He has given us free will to chose what we are going to do. That really gets overwhelming to figure out. I just spend time reading a book that dealt with this very issue and let me tell you, theologians, philosophers and many others have spent years trying to give an answer to how this might be and in the end, it comes down to faith - trusting the Word of the Lord and letting God be God. So I do say, "Lord willing, I will..." And I know that the Lord is with me in whatever happens - whether I get to do the specific thing or not.

Sorry for waxing so philosophical this morning. That is just where my mind went. Know this, the Lord is with you this year, just like He was with you last year. I have some thoughts on that too. Perhaps I will share those tomorrow.

Have yourself a great 2014. Know that the Lord is with you in whatever happens. The epistle reading from New Year's Eve worship is so wonderful. Romans 8:31-39. In all things you are more than conquerors. As Christ Jesus has overcome, so in Him, you too will overcome. Neither height nor depth, the present nor the future, neither life nor death is able to separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. If you believe in Jesus, then you are His and He is with you in whatever happens. Never forget that!

A blessed and wonderful 2014 to you. I look forward to whatever this year brings.

Tolerance

I have been listening to all the banter about Phil Robertson and A & E  and the interview he gave where he was asked his thoughts and beliefs about homosexuality and marriage. I have been appalled at the response from the A&E network and from the lack of response from Hollywood, the homosexual community, and a whole host of others.

I would think that the Hollywood would be upset with A&E. I would also expect for the homosexual community to be upset with them as well. Notice I didn't say they should be upset with Phil Robertson. They might not agree with him (and I doubt that they do), but they should be upset with the intolerance, censorship and discrimination shown to Phil for his beliefs and his way of life.

If Phil can be treated this badly because of his beliefs, then would it not be safe to say that the homosexual community could be treated just as poorly for their beliefs? In there is intolerance to one person's beliefs, would it not stand that there would be intolerance to all people's beliefs? If on can be fired for accepting the Christian belief about homosexuality, could on also not be fired for accepting the liberal belief about homosexuality? Could there also be intolerance shown to the non-Bible quoting homosexual who speak against the heterosexual relationships and traditional marriage?

I know that this would never happen. We live in a time and culture that is anti-Christian, anti-Bible, anti-moral. Anything that smacks of traditional Christian beliefs will be torn apart and ridiculed and not tolerated. If it is liberal, homosexual, anti-Christian, it is accepted and encouraged.

That is so hypocritical. Often the Christian is accused of hypocrisy but the reality is, Hollywood, the media and the homosexual community is hypocritical. They claim tolerance - as long as it is their view. They claim fairness as long as it is for them and not against them. They claim love as long as you hold the same view as they do. But say or do something that goes against their view, and they will attack you and do everything in their power to destroy you.

My friends, welcome to the kingdom of this world. As Christians, we forget that we live in this world of which Satan is the prince. Do not expect tolerance to what is morally right. Do not expect fairness to what is godly. Do not expect to be treated fairly because you follow Christ Jesus in your life. Our Lord warned us that this is the way it would be. Don't be surprised. Instead, stand firm in the faith no matter what is said. Hold firm to Jesus Christ as you Lord and Savior. Proclaim the truth as given by His Word. And in the end, know that you will attacked on all sides.

Also remember that He who is in you is stronger than he would is against you. For Christ has already won the victory over sin, death and the devil in His death and resurrection. On Christ the solid rock we stand! All other ground is sinking sand.

The Call of the Baptist

"Repent! for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" That is the call of John the Baptist. This last Sunday we sang the Advent hymn "On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry." He called out to the people of his day - calling them to prepare their hearts and their lives for the arrival of the kingdom of heaven. He didn't mince words. He wasn't politically correct. He didn't care if a person was "influential" or "lowly." The message was the same for all - repent, prepare, get ready.

That message is for us today as well. We are called to repent of our sins, to prepare our hearts and lives, and to get ready for the kingdom of heaven, for it is near at hand, closer today than ever. That message is for you, whoever you might think that you are - powerful, insignificant, rich, poor, or whatever. John calls to you to turn from your sin.

Do you have any sin to confess? Do you have any sin from which you must turn? Take a look at your life, a look at your words, a look at your thoughts and then answer that question. If you say, "No," beware! You have just told the Baptist, nay, not just the Baptist, you have just told Christ Himself that you have sin for which you must repent. And while Christ tells you that you are a sinful creature, sinful in thought, word and deed, you are telling Him you are not! The One who looks into your heart, has said, "You are a sinner. You sin daily in a variety of ways. I have come to save you from you from your sin," and you are telling Him that He doesn't know what He is talking about. Really? Is not pride a sin? Is not self-righteousness a sin (Jesus denounced the Pharisees for just that sin!).

Each of us, myself included, is a sinner, a person who is called by the Law of God to repent. Falling on these poor, aching knees, all I can do is cry out to the Savior, "Jesus Christ, be merciful to me, a sinner." And that good news is that He is! He is merciful to me. The very reason that we celebrate this Advent and Christmas season is that the Son of God is merciful to us. He is full of pity. He came into this world, born of a woman, born under the Law, to save those under the Law, to save me, to save you! He doesn't come to give us a nice holiday to celebrate. He comes because He is merciful. He came to be the Savior of all mankind. He came for me and for you.

Having repented of that sin, we now turn to that life of faith. John calls us to bear fruit in keeping with repentance. We are called to live today in faith, in Christ, in the wonder of all that He has done for us. that means we turn from our sinful actions and begin to live as a child of God. Are you having hateful thoughts about another person? Turn from them. Are you thinking lustful thoughts about another person? Put those thoughts from your mind. Are you doing illegal drugs? Stop. Are you worrying about what will happen tomorrow, worrying so much it has become your sin? Then give it over to God. You can't change the situation by your worry. God can! Are you drinking too much? Are you taking from work? Are you playing games on your computer instead of doing your work? Are you talking poorly about someone? Are you sharing the "truth" about someone when you should hold your tongue? Turn from that sin and do as the Lord calls you to do.  That is the message that John gives to the people and to us.

Can't do any of those things? Of course you can't. Your sinful nature makes it hard, if not impossible. That is where the Holy Spirit comes in. Through those blessed Means of Grace (Word and Sacraments), the Holy Spirit empowers you to live your life as a child of God. He does not expect you to do it on your own. If fact, He knows you cannot do it on your own. So He comes to you, He abides with you, He strengthens you, He give you the power to live as a child of God. He does that through the Word (make it a daily part of your life), through your Baptism (daily recalling and walking in the waters of your Baptism) and through the Lord's Supper (receive it often for the forgiveness of sins and the strength for daily life).

John calls. Are you listening?