Author: The Pastor

Monday morning check in — God’s power and strength

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

It is weeks like this when I am reminded of my weakness; reminded of the fact that I can not do this alone.  Last Friday my cell phone rang and when I looked at it, the call ID told me it was the funeral director.  That is never a good sign.  Upon answering the phone I was told that G had died on Thursday.  Now get this…her and her husband had been married for 72 years.  That’s right…72 years…that no typo.  I think that is absolutely amazing.  What an inspiration those two have been to many people.  One of the cute stories I have heard about them is that at the young of age 90+ they would sit out on the porch and G’s husband would sing “You are my sunshine” to her.  G is going to be missed by many.

On Saturday I got another call on my cell phone from the funeral director.  This didn’t make me as nervous since we were already planning one funeral.  But this call was about another one…this time out at Belmont.  The deceased lived in Sun City, AZ and is being flown up here for the funeral and burial.  I don’t know this woman but I know the family.

So my week is shaping up like this:  Funerals on Tuesday and Friday mornings; visitations on Monday and Thursday evenings; I have confirmation and Release Time lessons to plan; and Sunday worship and sermon prep…among with other things that come up during the week.  Like I said earlier…there is no way I can do this on my own.  I pray, God Almighty, to give me strength and focus do serve His children and provide the care that they need.  During busy times like this it is easy to let some things slide and not do your best, but when you rely on God’s power and strength, then God’s Will will indeed be done.

Praise be to God!

-edh-

Fall Theological Conference

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

I am on the road today with The Heart of a Pastor and find myself in St. Cloud, MN (here since Sunday evening).  Thank God for free wireless high speed Internet access.  But believe it or not, I am paying attention to the speakers.  I am one of those people who can multi-task.  I am listening intently (that is a very subjective description), while monitoring my Facebook site, reading the scripture for Reformation Sunday and periodically working on my newsletter article for November (Yes Vicki…I am working on it and will get it to you when I return).  Now we are on a break so I am able to write this post (adding this to my multi-task table would push me over the edge).

Anyway…I wanted to share with you a couple nuggets of information that I heard yesterday.  The speaker was Professor Rolf Jacobson, professor of OT at Luther Seminary.  I had this professor for my Psalms class during my senior year.  Yesterday, Rolf spoke about a Lutheran understanding of scripture.  Here are a couple nuggets that caught my attention:

—Scripture is the living Word of God of what God is doing RIGHT NOW…among us.
The Bible is not just some history book of what God did for his people many thousands of years ago.  I believe there are many people who hold this view.  But God is working among us now, today, right now and the Bible shows us what God is up to.

—If people don’t know the stories of scripture, then they won’t know who they truly are.
When we listen to stories from grandpa and grandma, from aunts and uncles, etc, we are not only hearing about stuff that happened to them in the past, but we are learning about who we are in this family.  When we hear the stories from scripture we are learning who we are in the family of God.  God’s faithfulness in the OT is not just some good story, but reminds us that, imperfect that we are, God is still faithful to us today.

I am constantly surprised by how many people I encounter are Bible illiterate.  We need a culture change, but how are we going to do this?

-edh-

Sunday morning prayer

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

Good morning all…long time no “see”.  I have been somewhat absent from regular blogging recently.  This past week it has been due to the fact that I have been recovering from a touch of food poisoning (don’t worry mom, I am alright) and the energy and drive to blog just hasn’t been there.  I am not sure what I ate, but for those who have never dealt with this before…well…it sucks (sorry for the language, but that’s how I feel about it).

Continuing education
Today I leave for St. Cloud, MN where I will be attending the SW MN Fall Theological conference.  This year our focus is on evangelism so I am really looking forward to what they have for us.  I should have Internet access up there so hopefully I can have some more blog entries for you this week.

Worship
October is mental illness awareness month.  It is a time to remember those who suffer from mental illness and brain disorders (i.e depression, bipolar, brain injuries, etc).  There is such a sigma out there about mental illness and I am willing to bet that most if not all people have been or know of someone who has or who has dealt with mental illness.  I have a friend who has dealt with depression.  She took medication sought and counseling to help her cope.  Today she is fine, but I remember back when she was really struggling, a friend of hers started getting after her about taking medication for depression.  My friend was told that she needed to have more faith and pray more.  That was not helpful to my friend, but it shows and gross misunderstanding that many people have about mental illness.

Depression, along with other mental illnesses are illnesses that need to be treated.  They are physical inflictions and we as the body of Christ need to be mindful of those who are struggling.  We need to be supportive and prayerful.  We need to be open and welcoming.  We need to be more understanding.  So today remember to pray for those struggling with mental illness and seek more information if need be to help you gain a better understand.

Prayer
Please join me in a word of prayer…

Healing God, today we come before you seeking understanding, compassion and empathy.  We seek these so we may better understand our brothers and sisters in Christ who struggle with mental illness.  We are created in your image and you desire no one to suffer.  Grant us eyes to see those who need your loving care ane grant us understanding, compassion and empathy to love those we sometimes push to the fringes.  Through Christ you have claimed ;  through Christ you have forgiven us; through Christ you have a place prepared for us in your mansion.  Gracious God, we give you thanks and praise.  In Christ name we pray, Amen.

Take care and God bless!

-edh-

“Give to God what is God’s”

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

This week is my week to submit a devotional for the local newspaper so I decided to expand more on what I posted yesterday.  The question I asked was, “do we spend time giving God what is God’s or do we spend way too much time debating/arguing over what belongs to Caesar?”  When it comes to taxes, government and politics, people can get really fired up and passionate but when it comes to God…well…not so much.  I mean…how many times have we heard passionate people get upset over “trivial matters” in the church, but rarely of “Gospel matters”:  “You’re not doing this report correctly”, “I don’t like those new light fixtures”, “I can’t believe so and so is doing that”.  Business matters of the church are important, but not at the expense of “Gospel matters”.

“Give to God what is God’s”
How about all those people who do not know God?  How about those inactive members?  How about discussions on who we can give our money too?  How about a discussion on what service projects we could do next?

What are we to give to God?  God demands and deserves our worship, our trust, our faithfulness, etc.  When we do this, everything else seems to fall into place.  When we give to God what is God’s “trivial matters” in the church seem to become less trivial.  When we give to God what is God’s, love and respect of all God’s people seem to take center stage.

So…”give to Caesar what is Caesar’s” but don’t forget to “give to God what is God’s” Amen.

-edh-

Monday morning check in

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

Greetings and salutations…and welcome to another addition of “Monday morning check in” (I have no clue what that was…I guess I am just in a goofy mood this morning).

Anyway…

…if anyone is curious, the Twin Cities marathon web site has some pictures posted of me crossing the finish line.  In a couple of them you can definitely see my pain 🙂  To view these snap shots simply go to the website at:  http://www.mtcmarathon.com.  Once there click on “finisher photos” under the marathon section then enter my bib number: 4387.  There are a couple picture there that are not me.  I am the one wearing the dark long sleeve t-shirt with the red hat (or the one in more pain than the others).  Enjoy 🙂

Paying taxes (Matthew 22:15-22)
How appropriate that we get a text that talks about paying taxes.  In a time of economic hardship the last thing people want to hear about is paying taxes.  Here in Jackson, taxes are a huge issue.  There is a battle currently waging about the proposed construction or renovation of the county Resource Center.  Some want to see a brand new building and others want the current one (the old high school) renovated.  Either way, taxes would go up quite a bit in Jackson.  And this is after the new school referendum passed last year that some people believe the district is misusing.  What a time we live in.

Here in Matthew 22:15-22 the Pharisees are looking for some dirt to nail Jesus with so they try to trap him with the issue of taxes.  If he says that people should pay them then his followers would get upset.  If Jesus says they shouldn’t pay taxes, then the Pharisees could bring that info to Caesar and accuse him of treason.  But Jesus is smarter than this as he responds, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what is God’s“.  So the question is what is Caesar’s and what is God’s?  Discuss…

…to be continued…

-edh-

Sunday morning prayer

/ The Pastor

Week 1 of post-marathon life is done and recovery is going well.  My legs are no longer sore.  I am still not supposed to do any running yet (that will start next week).  This week will involve some light weight lifting and some cross training (exercise bike).  I am looking forward to getting back in the saddle again and setting my sights on my next race in January at the Okoboji Winter Games 5k/10K run.  After that I plan to run the Fargo 1/2 marathon in May.  And after that…who knows.

This past week has been a light blogging week since I had a very short week.  On Wednesday night my wife and I headed to Wisconsin Dells to meet my parents and my sister and her family for a little vacation at a resort.  We got home last night.  Our time at the resort was fun and relaxing, but now I am ready to get back at it.

So with that, let’s get back into our routine and start today with a prayer.  Let us pray…
Loving and Creator God, you have prepared a lavish banquet and have chosen us to partake in this grand and eternal celebration.  But too often the trails , demands and temptations of this world distract us from the party that awaits us.  We often focus our attention on the now and forget the later.  Gracious God, turn our attention from our selfish selves and focus our sight on the cross where you gave your one and only Son so we may have life.  Help us see this amazing sacrifice so your glory may shine forth through our lives.  In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.

Take care and have a very blessed day!

-edh-

A goal accomplished…the Twin Cities marathon

/ The Pastor / 3 Comments

Thirteen months ago I set the lofty goal of running and finishing the Medtronic Twin Cities marathon.  Friends and family thought I was crazy but were still supportive.  I began training and losing weight to prepare myself for this grueling test of human endurance.  Yesterday was the culmination of that goal when I crossed the finish line in 5 hours 2 minutes and 28 seconds.  It was a wonderful experience and one that is hard to put into words…but of course you know that I am going to try…

At race time (8am) the temperature was 48 degrees with over cast skies that threatened to rain on us.  As I Stood on the street next to the HHH Metrodome, waiting to begin, I found the 5 hour pace team leader, Lori.  Lori’s Job was to help us cross the finish line in under 5 hours.  Most of the people in this group were first time marathoners with the exception of a couple who were running their 2nd.  The strategy laid out for us was that we were going to run for 5 minutes and then walk for 1 minute through the whole race.  At first I was a little annoyed with the walking part and considered leaving this group, but I didn’t…and I am glad I stuck with Lori and the team.  Those 1 minutes walks were a great way to conserve energy.

The gun sounded, 11,000 people cheered and we were off.  For the first couple miles I never gave a second thought to the fact that I would be running for 5 hours.  I just took in the whole experience:  The mass of people running, the crowds cheering along the way, and the beautiful scenery.  At about mile 2 (the Walker Art Center) the over cast skies followed through with their threat and it started to drizzle, but that wasn’t so bad…I’ve run in drizzle before.  At around mile 3 to 4 the drizzle became a steady rain and got heavier.  We rain in a semi-hard rain until around mile 8 to 9 then it started to let up.  By the half way point the drizzle was gone but it was still chilly as the wind blow off the lakes.

At the half way point I was doing great and our pace team was 1 1/2 minutes ahead schedule.  At this point I became a little anxious though…because mile 15 was approaching.  Back in August I ran a 18.6 mile race where I hit the proverbial wall at 15 miles.  I was wondering what would happen to me this time, but when I passed the mile 15 marker I was still feeling great with plenty of energy.  This was a huge emotional and psychological boost for me.  The next milestone was mile 19 which would mark the longest I have ever run.  It is also around the time when most runners hit the proverbial wall.  Mile 19 passed and I was still doing great…but that was about to change…

Back at mile 17 Lori warned us to make sure we carb up for the mile 20 hills.  So when we approached the aid station at mile 17 we took our gel/energy packs.  I ate a protein bar and took in some fluids.  I was ready for the hills.  But at 20 1/2 miles the very thing I feared the most happened…muscles in both legs started to cramp up.  I remember pleading with God, “Please God, not now…I am less than 6 miles away”.  So I pushed through the pain.  But just before mile 22 the pain became more than I could handle so I had to let my pace team go and say good bye to my 5 hour goal.  Psychologically I was devastated and felt like giving up.  But then a voice in my head (God of course) kept saying “13 months…13 months”…that is how long I had been training for this marathon.  I decided then and there I was not going to let some annoying leg cramps stop me.

After a little walking the cramps went away so I started running again, but after a minute or so the cramps came back so I was forced to walk.  And this was the routine for the rest of the marathon…4 miles worth.  At mile 24 I got an emotional boost when I heard someone call my name out…it was Connie’s sister and brother with our 2 1/2 year old nephew.  Their presence and support meant so much to me.

At mile 25 I knew I was almost there and I knew that I was actually going to do this.  When I crossed the mile 26 marker (with 0.2 miles to go) I could see the finish line…and it was all down hill (thank God).  The street was lined with cheering people and I started running.  My cramps weren’t gone yet but I decided that I was not going to walk across the finish line.  I started running and I was going to finish running.  So through the intense pain I keep my eyes fixed on the finish line banner listening to the announcers call out every name that crossed the finished line.  At this moment I became overwhelmed with emotions and tears started streaming down my face.  And…as I crossed that finish line…and heard my name…I completely lost it.  I actually finished .  For a few moments the pain in my legs did not matter…I made it…26.2 miles…5 hours and 2 minutes (and 28 seconds)…through the rain and wind and lots of pain…I made it.  I clung to my finishers medal as if someone was trying to steal it.  I made it…and no one can take that away from me.  I feel such a sense of accomplishment and it is that I can not adequately put into words.

But before I finish this post (and please excuse me for going on so long) I need to give a HUGE thank you to my family…Connie, my mom and my sister…who ran around town, dodging closed roads to cheer for me at 4 points along the route.  They stood in the rain and showed their love and support…THANK YOU.  And thank you to everyone out there that gave me well wishes and were praying for me.  Knowing that there were so many people praying was also a huge boost for me.  Thank you to friends (like Brad) who gave me words of encouragement and advice through this blog and Facebook.  Thank you to anyone else I am missing.  And of course…I need to thank God, for God alone gave me the energy and strength to complete this marathon.  THANK YOU GOD…TO YOU BE THE GLORY!

Now…what’s next?  Will I run another marathon?  Well…right now my legs are very stiff and sore so I am not thinking about that right now.  I know that my running is not done, but I am just not sure what future races I will enter.  Part of me wants to tackle those mile 20 hills again and try to finish in under 5 hours next year, but first things first…I need to heal and recover then I will set some more goals.

Thank you for putting up with all my marathon talk these past 13 months but I got a feeling it is not going to end.  Being a pastor…I encountered so my sermon illustrations yesterday that they are bound to show up here sometime in the future.

With that…I am going to get up and loosen my legs up a bit and find a couple ice packs.  Take care and God bless.

-edh-

Oh boy…

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

…this time tomorrow (Sunday, 8am) I will be being my 26.2 mile quest.  It’s hard to believe it is almost here, but first things first…tonight I get to go to the Olive Garden.  Whoo hoo!

I’ll see you next week.

-edh-