Light in Darkness

/ The Pastor

God of power and might,
There is much in this life that causes me to be at a loss for words.
At times I feel like hiding in a cave until Jesus returns.
At times is seems easier to just be quiet
and acquiesce to the demands of this world.
At times I wonder,
just wonder
why.

But nothing is a surprise to you.
Jesus still reigns.
The hope of the resurrection is real.
Strengthen us,
Oh God,
and may Your light shine the way in our lives
as we navigate the chaos and evil in this world.
May we be examples;
beacons of hope.
May we bring glory to Your most holy name.

I pray this in the name Jesus Christ our Lord,
who reigns forever and ever,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Our Longing

/ The Pastor

One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. [Psalm 27:4]

Watch the news
Peruse social media
Read the paper…

…and it doesn’t take long to get depressed or angry or worried or concerned about the direction of our nation and society. Culture seems to plummeting faster and faster into the abyss. Satan seems to be setting up his throne for a tyrannical reign.

And then there are those stories of the government reaching farther and farther into the religious liberty camp in order to destroy it. Can the government really legislate what the church teaches? It sure seems like they are trying. Being a Christian is getting more and more uncomfortable in this world.

But thankfully this world is not home.

For the Christian, your focus should not be on worldly comforts but rather on the longing that the psalmist talks about:
Dwelling in the house of the Lord
Gazing upon his beauty
Inquiring in his holy temple.
I reflect on these and suddenly I feel at ease. I feel excited and hopeful. I feel empowered and encouraged as I remember that even though this world seems to be going to hell in a hand basket, Jesus still reigns.

For…

…through faith in Jesus Christ the Christian can have the hope of dwelling in God’s house, gazing upon his beauty and inquiring in his temple. And when you reflect on this and ask God for the faith to receive this promise, then and only then, can you put everything in perspective. For you see, it’s not about putting our faith in our leaders to save us and provide for us but rather praising and worshiping God for already saving us and providing for us. And therefore it’s our job and joy to share this Good News with the world in order to give others hope, because it doesn’t take long to see that one can not put their hope in this world.

Don’t long for things and people of this world, but rather long for God.
Don’t worry and get depressed, but rather long for God.
Don’t get scared or concerned about what the world can do to you, but rather long for God.

Ask and seek
Dwell
Gaze
Inquire

And…

…praise God always and forever.

The Pastor -|—

Reminders

/ The Pastor

The sun is shining,
Your Son shines.

The breeze is moving,
Your Holy Spirt moves.

Reminders all around me,
drawing my attention to You.
Reminders all around me,
to show me You are true.

The birds are singing;
singing Your praises.

The flowers are blooming;
reflecting Your beauty.

Reminders all around me,
drawing my attention to You.
Reminders all around me,
to show me You are true.

This day is beautiful,
You are glorious.

This day is peaceful,
You are peace.

Reminders all around me,
drawing my attention to You.
Reminders all around me,
to show me You are true.

The Pastor -|—

To Follow

/ The Pastor

Holy God,
through Jesus Christ You call us to action,
as You call us to follow.
But road is not easy
and the task is daunting.
We are tempted to give up
or take shortcuts so not to offend people.

May we never do so.
May we always be faithful.

Grant us Your Spirit
that we may fix our gaze upon Jesus,
so much so,
that his glory is reflected in the world
through our faithfulness.
May our actions shed light
in a dark world
and
may our words speak peace and hope.

You call us to follow,
may we do so now without hesitation.
All praise, glory and honor
be unto You,
Creator God,
through Christ Jesus our Lord,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

The Morning

/ The Pastor

The scene
A quiet house
The sound of chirping birds drifting in through an open window
The words of Scripture marinating in my soul
And a good cup of coffee to top it off

God’s blessings to start the day
God’s presence to renew my soul

The prayer
Oh God,
Your mercies are new everyday
Your blessings abound
Your love is wide and deep
Your grace is unending

Your Son, Jesus, is Lord of all
My Savior, Jesus, died for me

Renew my faith this day
Embolden my witness
Bless my words
Guide my decisions

May Your mercies and blessings;
Your love and grace
Be evident to all

Glory and honor be unto
You
Oh God
This day and always

Amen

The Pastor -|—

Raining

/ The Pastor

As the rain drops fall upon my head,
that are way too many to count,
I am quickly chased inside,
but maybe I need to stay out instead.

For as the countless drops of rain,
fall upon the ground,
I remember Your varied blessings,
that bring healing to my pain.

For the sting of death is beaten away,
the joy of life is given,
and even though Satan still roams free,
I can live with hope today.

For the ultimate blessing is Jesus my Lord,
who crowns me with glory and honor,
and therefore I rest assured with peace and joy,
that I am set free from Satan’s hordes.

And so I listen to the falling drops of rain,
as I hold tightly to Your promises,
and remember with all joy and peace,
that Jesus will forever and always reign.

The Pastor -|—

Standing

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

I stand.

I stand condemned under the weigh of my sin,
with no logical defense to make.
I stand condemned as a violator of Your holy law,
oh God.
I stand condemned.

I stand condemned as glory-stealing,
honor-withholding sinner.
I stand condemned as an non trusting kingdom builder,
oh God.
I stand condemned.

And as I stand condemned I see my Savior,
my Lord,
my advocate,
my Jesus.

Jesus stands with me.
Jesus intercedes for me.
Jesus takes the judgment for me.
Jesus dies for me.

And…

Jesus rises for me.

I now, through faith, I stand liberated,
I stand free,
I stand hopeful,
I stand forgiven.
For Jesus, my Lord, took the weight of my sin
and made my defense before You,
oh God.

And now I no longer stand,
rather,
I fall on my face to worship You,
oh God.
I fall on my face to honor You,
oh God.
I fall on my face to praise You,
oh God…

as I stand on Your promises.

The Pastor -|—

Laughing

/ The Pastor

We turn our eyes away from God,
and Satan laughs.
We fight among ourselves,
and Satan laughs.
We seek our own agendas,
and Satan laughs.
We put our needs before other’s,
and Satan laughs.
We build earthly kingdoms,
and Satan laughs.
We worry,
and Satan laughs.

We do anything and everything but seek the glory of God,
and Satan laughs.

But…

Let’s look to God,
let’s seek reconciliation,
let’s seek God’s will,
let’s humble ourselves,
let’s seek to advance God’s kingdom,
let’s trust God.

Let’s do anything and everything we can to bring glory to God’s holy name through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Let’s laugh at Satan and tell him to go to hell. Our Lord, Jesus, reigns.

Praise be to God!

The Pastor -|—

Send Me

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

You have sent me out
to make disciples

of ALL nations.

You have sent me out
to lead people to You.

ALL people.

You have sent me out
to proclaim forgiveness

of ALL sins.

You have sent me out.

But I am judgmental
I am sinful
I am weak
I don’t know it all

Why, oh God, why,
have you sent me?
Certainly there are others more qualified.
Certainly there are others more faithful.
Certainly there are others who are smarter.
Certainly there has to be someone else.

But yet You have sent me.

Oh God,
lead me,
forgive me,
empower me,
gift me.

 For you sent me unqualified,
but,
only You can qualify me.
So in the name of Jesus
send me qualified in Your eyes,
so the eyes of others can see you.

Who shall You send?

Send me!

The Pastor -|—

Installed and Restless

/ The Pastor

This pastor is officially installed. My wife giggles at this because it sounds like I’m an appliance or something.

I just nod and smile 🙂

In any case, I have been installed as the Senior Pastor of Living Word Lutheran Church in Puyallup, WA; a LCMC (Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ) congregation serving in the south Puget Sound area. And what a blessing it is to be here serving with these brothers and sisters in Christ. It was definitely God thing that my family and I got connected to this congregation. Yesterday was also special because my good friend, Pastor Dan Taylor, flew out from Iowa to preach and preside at my installation. We began serving our first calls in the same small MN town at around the same time (2 months apart and at different churches) nearly 12 years ago. It was fun to serve with him then and a joy to spend time with him this past weekend; listening to him share the Word of Christ with my new congregation.

And now, as I sit here writing this, I am beginning my 3rd week at Living Word. I am learning more and more names. I am learning the rhythms of the congregation. I am learning the lay of the land. And I am even starting to get used to city life; and that is a huge leap for the small town, rural Minnesota boy. I remember not so long ago saying that I would never ever live in a city.

(cue the chuckling)

Evidence, right there, that God has a sense of humor. I imagine God smiling when I was talking like that, but I am glad God took this small town boy out of his element and placed me somewhere outside my comfort zone. It forces me to fall back and rely on God even more because at times I am scared silly. Driving back from the airport last night in Seattle, I remember thinking, “Wow, everything moves so fast“. But God didn’t place me out here to abandon me, but rather to do something amazing. And for that I am excited. I just hope I never get comfortable here, so much so, that I cease relying on God to guide and strengthening me.

And so I look forward to learning more of what God is up to here. I look forward to getting to know people better and better. I look forward to seeing amazing things. And I look forward to more restlessness as God continues to place his hand upon me as He continues to put me at ease.

Oh God, may I always be restless but yet cling to you. Amen.

The Pastor -|—