Scotcheroos, coffee and sermon prep

/ The Pastor

Ah…sermon prep time at my favorite location in Jackson ~ Coffee Choices.

Each day at 10:20am I pack up my laptop and sermon prep materials and head downtown.  I walk into Coffee Choices and I feel like Norm walking into Cheers.

O the joy of small town life.

I setup camp and greet my scotcheroo that is waiting for me (See lower left part of photo. I have a standing order every Thursday).  I also order a cup of coffee (of course) and then place my lunch order to be ready at 11am.

Each Thursday ~ the same routine (unless I let Coffee Choices know ahead of time).

Some days it is busy and noisy.
Some days it is quite peaceful (like today).
Whatever the case I don’t care. The Holy Spirit can work in any condition.

If this routine is disrupted, though, I almost panic ~ thrown for a loop.  But the sermon still gets written.  I don’t know how.

(actually I do…refer to my previous Holy Spirit comment).

But what makes Thursday sermon prep so special (outside the Holy Spirit working through me to prepare a message from God to preach to God’s people)  is…well…

…the scotcheroo, the coffee and the Cheers like feeling.

O the joy of small town life.

And now…lunch time 🙂

-edh-

Not that bad…really?

/ The Pastor

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.
(1 John 1:8-10)

Maybe you have never said that you are without sin.
Maybe you have never claimed to be perfect.

But…

Have you ever said or thought:
“At least I am not as bad as that person sitting over there”
“At least I am not living in sin like that couple.”
“At least I attend worship more than that person.”
“At least I don’t________” (Fill in the blank).

Sin can be a tough thing to talk about or listen to because many people don’t want to hear that they are sinful, they want to hear how to make their lives better.  Our society today has been so inundated with the prosperity gospel that any talk of personal sinfulness has become very offensive to people.

“Don’t tell me I am sinful, tell me how to be successful.”
“Tell me how to have a better marriage.”
“Tell me how to be blessed by God.”
“Tell me how to be happy in this life.”
“Tell me that, deep down inside, I am a good person.”

Go to the self-help section of any bookstore and you will see book after book after book that uses scripture to “teach” you how to be successful, to be happy, to get ahead in this world.  These authors claim that God wants to bless you and this is how you can make that happen.

Really?

The Good News is not that God wants to bless you, but the Good News is that because we are SINFUL God has blessed us with his Son, Jesus Christ.  There are no steps or actions we must take, but…

Jesus has already died on the cross for you.
Jesus has already risen from the grave for you.
Jesus has already made the offer for forgiveness.
Jesus has already gone ahead to prepare a place for you (John 14:1-7)

And Jesus has done all of this because we really are that bad.  We are sinful, evil people.

[Sorry if I just burst your bubble.  Well…actually…I am not sorry.]

Being happy and successful in this life is something Jesus never promised.  But what Jesus has promised is that we can have a PEACE that surpasses all understanding and HOPE in this life of eternal life.  And it is this PEACE and HOPE that sustains me in this life…even when things are not going my way because I know that there is more than just THIS life.

Admit your sinfulness and know that God is faithful and just and will forgive your sins through Jesus Christ.  For in the end, that is all we truly need.

Dear sinner…have a great day basking in the love of God through Jesus Christ our Lord 🙂

-edh-

Doughnut holes

/ The Pastor / 10 Comments

Today I helped serve doughnut holes.  It was nothing fancy just some regular, sugar and powered sugar doughnut holes.

There was also juice and coffee…and a Kleenex or two (which came in handy).

So what was the occasion?

Today was the first day of school for the Jackson County Central school district.  And we served doughnut holes.

Why?

You see…Riverside Elementary School is right next door to Salem Lutheran Church and the most convenient way that parents can drop off/pick up their kids is via the church parking lot.  Late August through mid-May; five days a week; and twice a day; dozens of cars (lots and lots of people) are coming to our property.  So I challenged the church council last week.

And they stepped forward.

We (Salem members) set up camp in the church parking lot by the sidewalk that leads to the school.  And there were the doughnut holes (and the juice and the coffee).  And…a box of Kleenex (parents…you can probably figure out why).

We welcomed kids and parents with a cheerful smile and a invitation to enjoy a doughnut hole and a beverage before school.
Some happily accepted.
Some didn’t know what to think of us.
Some declined and wished they hadn’t just eaten.
Some wished they hadn’t just stopped for coffee.

And…many smiles were seen.

All in all it was a good morning.  But none of this had anything to do with us.  It was all for the glory of God; to share the love of Christ with people in a practical way.  I know it may sound like I am tooting our own horn here but that’s not what I am doing.  I want to encourage others out there to find creative ways (as this church council did) in sharing the love of Christ with their communities.  After all…being the Church is about going out into the world and telling people about God’s love through Jesus Christ.

We didn’t preach sermons this morning, we just served doughnut holes….with a smile.  Most people can do that without getting too nervous.

How is God calling you to serve in your community?
How is God calling you to share the love of Christ in a practical way?

-edh-

Who is Jesus?

/ The Pastor

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
(Matthew 16:15)

Who are you Jesus?

You are not a genie in a lamp.
You are not a creation of my imagination.
You are not a “get rich quick” scheme.
You are not simply a way to live care-free.

Who are you Jesus?

You are not a law-giver.
You are not a soul-condemner.
You are not a distant ruler.
You are not an uninterested observer.

Who are you Jesus?

YOU ARE my…
Savior
Lover of my soul
Grace-filled Lord
Friend
Teacher
Patient Father running out to meet me ~ a prodigal.

You are more than I can imagine.
You are more than what I could have possibly hoped for.
You are more than anything this world can promise.
You are the Son of God.
You were dead but didn’t stay that way.
You are my life.

——————–

But what about YOU…who do YOU say Jesus is?

-edh-

Firm footing

/ The Pastor

Psalm 62:1
Truly my soul finds rest in God;
my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

I have never experienced an earthquake before but from what I have heard from others it is an unsettling experience.  Something that is supposed to be firm, stable and safe is all of a sudden shaky, unstable and dangerous.  The ground is supposed to be a safe haven.

This same mentality is true in other areas of our lives where we put our ultimate trust in people or things.
–Financial markets
–Relationships
–Career
–Talents
–Family
–Intelligence

…and the list could go on.

I am reminded of the verses from 1 Corinthians 10:12 that reads, “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you do not fall!”  Paul goes on to talk about temptation and how God won’t allow us to be tempted beyond what we can handle; always providing a way out for us.  But the problem comes when we become over-confident in our so-called firm standing.  A firm standing that is outside any relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

There are many well meaning people who think they are standing firm based on their worldly success and material possessions.  But as we have seen in this fragile economy, worldly success can come crashing down very quickly.
–People of high social standing can succumb to temptation and fall.
–The strongest of relationships can be torn apart.
–Careers can come to an end in a blink of an eye.
–A pop of the knee can end a promising athletic future.

Earthquakes of all kinds happen…and they happen everyday.  People we never thought would fall have fallen.

Maybe even you.

But…

When we find refuge in God.
When we place our future in God.
When we stand on God’s promises.
When we trust in God’s faithfulness.
When we find our treasure in God’s love.
When God is our fortress…

…then we will not be shaken.  As Psalm 46 says, “…though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging…” we will stand firm.

In the midst of a shaky world, find your rest in God through Jesus Christ.  Find stable footing on the promises of our faithful God; for the foundation of God is the only thing that will ultimately stand.

-edh-

From the heart

/ The Pastor

Matthew 15:10-20
10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ” 12 Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?” 13 He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” 15 Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 “Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. 17 “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18 But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20 These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean.’ ”

Let us pray…

Gracious and loving God, you call us to good works.
   You call us to proclaim your glory,
   you call us to serve others,
   you call us to worship you.

But much of what we do, we do in order to receive praise from people.
   We deliver meals to the hungry ~ and people thank us.
   We teach Sunday school ~ and parents are appreciative.
   We serve on the church council ~ and people are thrilled.
   We serve in the community ~ and stories are written about our kind hearts.
   We live “biblical” lives ~ and people think we are people of faith.

But you alone know our hearts.  You know our intentions.  You know our motives.  You see what others do not see.  You know what others do not know.  And what matters more than praise from people is the fact that Jesus went to the cross:
Was beaten
Falsely accused
Spat upon
Beaten some more
Had nails pounded into his body
Hung in agony
And slowly died…and then won the final victory through his resurrection.

Why?

Because of his great love for us.

May all that we do go to show this love.  May our good works point to the cross and what Jesus did there.  May our hearts reflect the praise of this world and proclaim your goodness and grace.  Heal and change our hearts so that you and you alone are praised, worshiped and glorified.  For you are indeed worthy.  Through Jesus Christ, your dear Son and our Lord, I pray, Amen!

-edh-

Jesus was homeless

/ The Pastor

I am still in Branson, MO on family vacation getting some much needed rest.  It has been great to slow down these past couple weeks to recharge the ole battery. But the reason I am writing today is to reflect on something my wife shared with me last night.  She was searching the Internet for various ministries in the Branson area and came across a ministry called “Jesus was homeless” (see http://www.jesuswashomeless.org).

Why do I bring this up?

Well…I am sitting here on the patio at this really nice resort, sipping my diet dew all the while there are homeless people nearby trying to find shelter from the rain that is falling.  We are enjoying time resting, reading, swimming, playing volleyball and eating too much while others struggle to find something to curb their hunger.  Then I saw a quote on the Jesus was Homeless website that read “We worship a homeless man on Sunday but avoid the homeless on Monday”. 

Interesting and true.  It makes me wonder if we should add another “activity” to family vacation. 

What would it look like if when we planned a vacation we checked out local ministries first and arranged to volunteer there at least one day?  How would that change our outlook of vacation and change it’s purpose?  But more importantly…how would it change your outlook on God’s children who can’t enjoy vacations like you and me?

I have never considered that before.  Rest and renewal is important but this life is only temporary. 

Amazing what one thinks about when life slows down.  Maybe I need to find more moments like this to listen to God.

-edh-

Communion WITH God

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

An interesting question was posed to us at the Okoboji Lakes Bible and Missionary Conference last week.

The speaker was talking about a relationship WITH God and asked us: “How would your life be different if you were always aware of God’s presence?”.  He went on to talk about prayer as not just communication but communion WITH God…thus enabling us to “pray without ceasing”.

I was struck by that question. How would my life be different?

How would it affect my daily decisions?
How would I treat those who are difficult to love?
How would I deal with temptation?
How would it affect my T.V. viewing choices?
How would I speak about others?

Does this awareness affect your decisions because of fear of punishment?
Does this affect your decisions because you hope God will do something for you?

Or

Does this awareness affect your choices because of your love for the one who died and rose that you may have life?

I guess it all depends on how you look at the Gospel.  Who is God for you?

For me? 

God is Holy.  God is love.  God is life.  And my hope and prayer is that I respond out of love and worship for God.

What is your communion with God like?

-edh-

What we need to hear

/ The Pastor

2 Timothy 4:2-5
“Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”

There are many reasons to stay in the word; to study it and meditate on it but the one that concerns me today is the very thing that Paul warns young Timothy about.  There are so many “gospels” floating around out there.  There are so many “preachers” out there leading people astray; saying things to people that “their itching ears want to hear.”

The problem is that what people WANT to hear and what they NEED to hear are two completely different things.

What we hear so much about today are what prosperity gospel preachers are trying to tell people:  If you live right you can be successful and happy in this life.  They hold up the Bible, quote scripture and give you 7 ways to have your best life now.  People may WANT to hear that message but it is not what they NEED to hear.  Happiness now is fine but there are two keys problems:  (1) Jesus never, ever promised that things would be great in this life (he actually told his disciples that they would experience hardship and persecution) and (2) When this life is over then what?

What we NEED to hear is that God, through Jesus, has over come this world.
What we NEED to hear is that Jesus has reconciled us to God through the cross.
What we NEED to hear is that there is hope beyond this life.
What we NEED to hear is that we have nothing to fear in this world with God.
What we NEED to hear is that God is madly in love with you and with me.

Prosperity gospel preachers do not preach this message but rather disguise the Good News with something that people can use now to be happy and successful.  As Paul warned, the time has come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.

So we need to be even more diligent.

Let’s take Paul’s charge to Timothy and make it our own.  Stay in the Word; meditate on it; study it and remain faithful to the Word.  “…keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. “  Tell people what they NEED to hear, not what they WANT to hear.

May God be praised in all we say and do.

Preach it brothers and sisters!  Amen!

-edh-

The water tank

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

For someone who is so used to preaching and teaching on a regular basis, it is so nice to just sit and listen to someone preach to me and teach me…and fill my water tank.  Sometimes I forget that if you keep pouring water out of a glass that eventually the water will run out. The temptation is to think that I have an endless supply of “water” to give…after all I am the pastor.

What faulty reasoning because…

I am a human being.
A finite creature.
And more importantly…I am not God.

It is during times like this week when I am reminded of this and that I am not a failure if I need to rest and get away.

We all need to be fed.
We all need nourishment.
We all need to be cared for.
We all need to be “refilled with water”.

Who ever you are make sure you are taking time each day to allow God to “fill your water tank” so you can be a blessing to others…all for the glory of God.

May God forever be praised.

-edh-