Do you remember?

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to his own town to register.4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. [Luke 2:1-7]

Do you still remember?

Manger scene

Do you still remember what this season is all about?

Do you still remember why we run ourselves crazy and tired this time of the year?

Do you still remember?

For the past week or so, my wife and I have been preparing for our Christmas open house that we host every year at the parsonage.  I look forward to spending time with people over some Christmas goodies, hot apple cider (and of course some Christmas themed coffee) and some Christmas cheer.  I enjoy receiving people into our home and visiting.  But the preparations can be stressful… especially this year with more on our plate:
~ We are in the adoption process so we have paper work all over the place (not to mention the emotional toll this process takes).
~ My wife is recovering from minor knee surgery and is not as mobile as she would like to be.
~ Then there’s all the baking and cleaning (that my wife tries to do in her “limited” condition).

All of this adds up to stress and frayed nerves…

And many of you can probably relate to this.  I know I am not the only one running around trying to get a multitude of things done.  It’s crazy…and sometimes we forget.

This is why I am diving into the Christmas story EVERY day.  I don’t want to lose sight of the joy of this season.  I don’t want Satan to turn this season into something that it is not.  I don’t want to strive to make myself look good but rather God.  After all…

This is about a baby
This is about a Savior
This is about God’s amazing love.  And…

This is not about me (and it is not about you).  This is about what God has done and will do for you and for me.  We just can’t lose sight of this.  People around us (whether they know it or not) are counting on us not to lose sight of what this season TRULY means.

So I challenge you and encourage you to take some time EVERY day to read the Christmas story.  Soak in the wonderfulness and joy.  Bask in the grace and love of God.  Receive and be filled…and…

…remember.

It’s Christmas time…PRAISE BE TO GOD!

The pastor -|—

Waiting and questions

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

My wife and I are in the adoption process.

We started this journey back in June but didn’t tell the congregations I serve until October.  For me those fours months were long.  A couple very close friends knew (as they were praying for us) but I was looking forward to being more open about what we were doing.  My wife, on the other hand, wished we could keep this quiet for a little while longer.

You see ~ one of things that we were concerned about was all the questions we knew we were going to get.  Not just the initial questions following the news release but the follow up questions, “Any news yet?”  This would be especially hard if this process dragged out…and compound that with the number times that well-meaning people asked the question.

It has been nearly 2 months now since our announcement and the questions have come just like we thought.  Not everyday but I do get a couple questions per week.  Usually from someone I haven’t seen for a while.  But as time has gone on I have come to a realization…

…I look forward to those questions.

I thought it would be hard but it’s not.  The reason I look forward to those questions is because it tells me that Connie and I are not the only ones anxiously waiting.  We are not waiting alone.  And that feels good.  People are praying for us.  And there is something about waiting together that is powerful and encouraging.

And when I contemplate this waiting I can’t help but think of the season we are in: Advent.  This is a season of waiting as we await the celebration of the birth of Jesus AND await Jesus coming again…to bring us home.  It’s an anxious waiting and an exciting waiting.  But the difference between this waiting and our adoption waiting is that we have Good News to share right now:

Jesus has come.
Jesus will come again.
Hallelujah!

So we wait patiently and expectantly, knowing that our faithful God will come through for us.

So when I get that “Any news yet?” question maybe I should say, “Yes…there is Good News.  Jesus is coming.” And then say, “But we are still waiting.”

Waiting together.

So please keep asking the questions.  We appreciate your support and prayers.  And soon (God willing) I will have some “other” exciting news to share with you…but all in God’s timing.

Happy waiting and praise be to God 🙂

The pastor -|—

A season of…

/ The Pastor

It’s Advent…a season of:
waiting
watching
anticipation
hope

We are waiting for Christmas.
We are watching for Jesus.
We are anxiously anticipating God to fulfill all his promises.
We are hopeful in this cold, dark, chaotic world.

We can feel this way because the very thing that allows us to feel this way has been done.

The cross and the empty tomb.

Jesus died and rose FOR YOU and FOR ME.  In Jesus’ very own words:
“It is finished!”

But we wait for other things; other things that sometimes distracts us from what truly matters.  It is not that those “other things” should be forgotten about or that they are not important.  Its just that those “other things” should not become the gods we are waiting for. Sounds strange to say something like that: 

“The gods we are waiting for.“

If I’m playing baseball and I am up to bat; what I should be waiting for is the pitcher to throw the ball over the plate so I can attempt to hit it.  In that situation, if I am not waiting for the pitcher to throw the ball then I will definitely miss the ball.  The batter needs to be patient, wait and watch in order to be ready.

What are you truly watching and waiting for?
Are you watching and waiting for Jesus or some other worldly god?

During this Advent season fix your eyes on the manger.  Fix your eyes on Jesus.  Fix your eyes on God’s love.  Let this be what we are truly waiting for.

Happy Advent!

The pastor -|—

Beck and call

/ The Pastor

My wife had knee surgery on Tuesday.  Nothing serious…actually it was a procedure that took about 25 minutes.  She was able to walk out of the hospital but for 48 hours she had to stay off her knee as much as possible and ice it every hour.  It has been driving her crazy to be so limited.  Today she can start walking more and do more of her knee exercises, but still has to take it easy until Monday.

So for these past 48 hours I have been at my wife’s beck and call. She has not been able to get what she needs as easily.  Going downstairs to retrieve ice packs in the deep freeze would not have been a good idea for her to do. Thank God I live next door to the church so I can run back and forth as needed.

But through this process I have been learning and re-learning a few things that I wanted to share with you.  A few things about serving others in need:
(1) There are people in our lives that can’t get what they need without our help.  Maybe they could find someone else to assist them (or maybe not), but why put them through that.

(2) With someone I love, I haven’t thought twice about caring for my wife in her time of need.  If we truly love our brothers and sisters in Christ why is it that we sometimes whine about or avoid serving them?

(3) Some people find it difficult to ask for help.  When my wife looks at me and asks me to get something, I can see in her face that she is uncomfortable asking.  So I have been trying do things for her before she asks.

(4) Serving and being served is humbling.  I think this speaks for itself.

(5) Serving draws you closer to the one being served.  I definitely feel the pain, discomfort and frustration that my wife is feeling.  I imagine myself in her situation and I don’t like it.  What if we imagined ourselves in the place of the homeless person down the street?

(6) Is this what Jesus meant when he commanded us to “wash one another’s feet”? Actually…I literally did this today after we took the bandage off her knee. She said “I know this grosses you out but can you wash my heel?”  (It didn’t gross me out)  But there have been times where I have felt uncomfortable or avoided “washing someone’s feet”.

(7) The more you serve and help someone the better you understand their situation.

I’m not saying that we are commanded to become the butlers of this world but we are commanded to “wash feet”.  We are to show Christ’s love through our words and actions.  We are to humble ourselves for the glory of God.  Serving others may go unnoticed to most in the world but it won’t go unnoticed to the one being served (or to God).

What would it look like to be at someone’s beck and call without them “becking” (I don’t think that is a word) or “calling”?

Much to think about…but first… it’s time to check on my wife.

The pastor -|—

Cyber Giving

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.
[2 Corinthians 9:6-8]

Apparently today is Cyber Monday; a day dedicated to “amazing” online deals.  Millions of people will flood the Internet in search for those must have items for themselves or for Christmas gifts.  I can not even begin to imagine the amount of money that will be spent today on stuff.  Sure…there is stuff that I want, but is there stuff I absolutely need?

I can think of many people who need stuff that I take for granted.  I can think of many charities and ministries that need assistance that I take for granted.  So instead of cyber spending I am going to be cyber giving today (leave it to me to buck the trend).  Instead of spending money on myself or on stuff, I am going to be spending money on others.  And I challenge you to do the same.  In the midst of your Cyber Monday shopping remember to do some Cyber Giving; remembering those who are less fortunate.

Here are some ideas on how to celebrate Cyber Giving Monday:
(1) Commit to give a certain percentage of your total Cyber Monday shopping total to a charity/ministry.  (i.e. Giving 10% — Spent $200 — Total gift $20)

(2) Take your Cyber Monday spending total and give that amount to a charity/ministry.

(3) “Cyber shop” (not actually buying anything) and give that amount to a charity/ministry.

(4) If you buy toys for your children also buy some toys to give to your local Toys for Tots.

(5) Cyber shop for someone in your community that can’t afford to buy presents for their kids.

And I am sure there are many more things you can do on this day to help someone out.  Most of us have enough stuff, but others do not.  Let’s  cheerfully cyber give to the glory of God.

The pastor -|—

Christ the King

/ The Pastor

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.” “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
[John 18:36-37]

Today is Christ the King Sunday (according the the common lectionary).  This is considered the last Sunday of the Church year (with Advent beginning a new cycle next Sunday).  But whatever the so-called Church calendar says, I still want to get you thinking this morning what it means for Jesus to be the king of your life.

~ Does Jesus rule your whole life or only parts of it?
~ Do you go to Jesus with your hopes and dreams; joys and sorrows or do you look to worldly saviors?
~ Does Jesus get your complete worship or are there other “kings” you worship?
~ Do you seek Jesus for direction and guidance in your life or look to day-time talk shows or the self-help section?
~Do you celebrate and hold onto worldly kingdoms or seek the Kingdom of God?
~ Does Jesus sit on the throne in your heart or have you reserved that for something or someone else?

May this “Christ the King” Sunday shine a light on the defeated gods/lords/kings of this world that continue to seek your attention and alligence; and may your true KING, Jesus Christ, shine forth.  The gods/lords/kings of this world have lost but Jesus has won.  And because Jesus has won we also win through faith in him.

Jesus IS King!
Jesus IS Lord!

Alleluia and Amen!

edh -|—

Give thanks

/ The Pastor

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[Psalm 136:1-3]

And don’t just give thanks today, but rather every single day of the year.

Why?

for his steadfast love endures forever and ever and ever and ever…

Have a Happy Thanksgiving 🙂

edh -|—

CHRISTMAS tree…a pastor’s rant

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

The pastor needs to rant a little bit today so I hope this is worth your time to read:

I saw a post on Facebook today that said the White House, for the first time this year, has referred to the Christmas tree as a “Holiday tree”.

Here we go again…

This bugs me to no end.  Our country’s leadership is trying to be politically correct by saying “holiday tree” when all the awhile they are being oppressive to Christians.  They are trying to be inclusive of all faiths all the while they are excluding Christians.  Our leadership is doing everything possible to respect and honor other religions but refuse to honor Christianity.  Apparently it is O.K. to recognize other faiths but heaven forbid we recognize Christians. I understand the separation of Church and state, but there is a point where that is taken too far.

Now…I totally understand that Christmas trees are not biblical but this renaming of the Christmas tree is just one more reminder of how our government is doing everything they can to do away with anything Christian related.  You see…the Christmas tree tradition was created to celebrate Christmas, not New Years or Hanukkah or any other holiday.  This brightly lit and beautifully decorated pine tree is meant to help us celebrate Christmas, so don’t call it what it is not meant to be called.

Be proud and bold in your Christmas traditions and let’s not let those in power try to take those traditions away.  Say “MERRY CHRISTMAS!” and not “Happy holidays”.  Be full of Christmas cheer and remember the reason we celebrate this time of the year.  Be sure your actions reflect the love that God first showed the world through the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

It’s Christmas…plain and simple.

There…rant done 🙂

Have a great day and a blessed Thanksgiving weekend.  Be safe.

edh -|—

Roller coasters

/ The Pastor

The appeal about roller coasters for me is the:
speed
quick turns
anticipatory climbs
sudden drops
and the upside down views.

The feeling of exhilaration is so much fun.  I especially like those roller coasters where you can’t see what is coming next – like Space Mountain at Epcot Center.  That is a fun roller coaster.  It took a lot of convincing from my dad to get me to try it when I was young, but once I did I didn’t want to stop.

Roller coasters are fun.

But when you are on that proverbial life roller coaster then those things that once held appeal for the real thing become heart-wrenching and hard.

I am not a fan of those “roller coasters”.

But praise be to God that I am not riding this one alone.

edh -|—

Holy buzz

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

We tried something new yesterday at Salem.  Shocking…Lutherans trying something new.  Wow 🙂

Anyway…what we did for the first time was have coffee fellowship time BEFORE worship.  I know that this is not a revolutionary thing as I have experienced this at other churches in the past, but it was new for us.  And from what I heard from a number of people this was a big hit.

[By the way…I take no credit for this idea.  I wish I could.]

When people arrived they seemed pleasantly surprised by the crowd in our small narthex.  When I told them about the coffee time a smile quickly formed on their face 🙂 Many people grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down to visit.  Before long there was a holy buzz in the narthex.  People were talking and laughing.  One of the cool things I noticed was that there were people participating in this holy buzz that normally don’t stay after worship for coffee fellowship time.  That put a smile on my face 🙂

At about 10:10 a.m. (worship begins at 10:15) I began to wonder how I was going to break up this holy buzz.  I almost wanted to have worship out there in the narthex (but there were people in the sanctuary waiting to begin).  So I walked inside; waited for the organist to stop playing; and I starting talking.  People quickly filed in as I shared the morning announcements.  It was a smooth transition.

As worship continued I quickly noticed something else (something others shared with me later).  There was a different kind of “energy” in the sanctuary.  It’s hard to explain but that pre-worship holy buzz drifted into the sanctuary and something happened.  One person said, “It felt warm“, and I would agree. Following worship some people continued to hang around in the narthex for another cup of coffee and another quick treat.

More holy buzz.

All in all it was a great morning.

I think it is so easy to take Christian fellowship for granted.  Worship, scripture reading and prayer are important and essential but so is taking time to visit and listen to people.  I know we can not recreate last Sunday but I think it is safe to say that pre-worship fellowship time is going to continue…and definitely with my blessing.

edh -|—