Hope

.blog

/ The Pastor

Hey all,

The Heart of a Pastor is now the owner of http://www.heartofapastor.blog.  I decided to streamline my blog address as the new .blog domain names just became available. This shouldn’t mess people up (too much). I believe my old (and longer) address will redirect you to my site.

In any case, nothing is changing with this site, just the shorter address. So to close, I am not going to leave with you just an administrative update but rather with the Word of God:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13

Have a great day 🙂

The Pastor -|—

My Rock; My Fortress

/ The Pastor

For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalms 62:1-2 (ESV)

Oh, God,
my soul waits for You,
from You comes my salvation.
Therefore You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

Many assail against me,
this culture condemns my trust in You.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

Satan seeks to draw me away,
he’s wily in all his ways.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

Many say, “put your trust in the princes of this world“;
“find your fortress in them“.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

The rulers of this world say I must be quiet;
that I must acquiesce to their demands.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

False prophets speak elegant words;
drawing many away from the Truth.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

Ill health or injury may bring despair;
bringing frustration and hopelessness.
But You are my rock; my fortress
I shall not be shaken.

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.
Psalms 62:5-8 (ESV)

The Pastor -|—

For Jacob

/ The Pastor

The Pastor’s heart is breaking and so this happened last night for Jacob Wetterling…

wp-image-2025101983jpg.jpg

We know that Jacob is never coming home now and so I pray that Jacob’s family may have a peace that surpasses all understanding that can only come through Jesus Christ. It is still going to hurt but I pray that the hope of the resurrection gives them hope in this life. Jacob is not gone or lost, just resting in God’s loving arms.

Rest eternal grant Jacob, Lord Jesus, and let light perpetual shine upon him. Amen

The Pastor -|—

The Feast

/ The Pastor

Father God,
You have prepared a banquet feast for us
through the cross
and you have invited us to the feast
through faith in Jesus.

May we run to the table as we give You thanks and praise.

And as we journey to the table
may we announce with boldness
the invitation given by You;
that all those around us may bring You praise and glory as well.
Through Jesus Christ
our risen Lord and Savior we pray,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

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 -|—

Fear and Hope

/ The Pastor

Holy God,

there is much to fear in this world.
Satan is running around
trying to lead us astray through false worship.
He is trying to drag us down into hopelessness.
At times Satan succeeds
and thus paralyzes us with fear,
so much so,
that the Gospel is not proclaimed.

But we ask that You may send Your Holy Spirit
to teach us
and remind us
of the victory we have through faith in Jesus Christ.

Show us the cross.
Show us the empty tomb.
Show us Jesus.

May we see the life we have in You
and know that death has been defeated.
May we rejoice in You
and thus share this Joy with others.
And in the end,
may You and You alone be glorified.

Now may the words of my mouth
and the meditations of our hearts
be acceptable to You,
oh God,
through Christ Jesus our Lord,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Bursting Forth ~ A Morning Prayer

/ The Pastor

Holy Father, awesome God,

Your Word is life.
Your Word is our hope.
Your Word is our very breath.
You created with a word.
The serpent deceived with a false word.
Adam and Eve were expelled with a word of curse, warning and finally hope.
You created a people and nation with a word of promise.
You gave new life with a Word
and that Word is embodied in our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ.

And so we come to this Advent season with anxious anticipation of this Word. May we not doubt.
May we not impose self-inflicted mutism when is comes to the Gospel,
but rather,
may we burst forth in praise
with what the birth of Jesus means for a dark and lost world.
May we sing the glories of your name
to a wearied people.
May we announce hope
to a hopeless word.

Send now Your Spirit, oh God,
that we may hear this Word
and be filled with awe,
so much so,
that we can’t wait to burst through these doors
and fill this world with the hope of the resurrection.
It’s through Jesus Christ our Lord, I pray,

Amen.

God bless you as you begin this Advent season. May the light of Christ shine brightly in and through your life to the glory of God.

The Pastor -|—

Soon and Very Soon ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor / 3 Comments

A prayer before preaching on Mark 13:14-31…

Heavenly Father,
Holy God,
Mighty Lord,

we praise you, this morning,
that through faith in Jesus Christ
we can sing with all confidence:
Soon and very soon,
we are going to see the King.
A place where there is no more dying or crying.

What great joy it is to sing this hymn;
hearing You speak words of reassurance through our song.

May we cling to this hope
and may we look
and wait
with longing expectation
the arrival of our King,
Jesus Christ.

May we not grow complacent
and may we not lose hope through tribulation.

And so speak to us.
May Your Spirit move through Your holy Word,
bringing faith to to those who do not believe
and increased hope and confidence
to those who call upon Your holy name.

And so may the words of my mouth
and the meditations of our hearts
be acceptable to You,
oh God,
through Christ Jesus our Lord
and coming King,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Good News in a bad news world

/ The Pastor

News

Teen dies after ‘simple, common wisdom teeth extraction’

Mpls. police investigate fatal shooting

Teen charged with murder in toddler’s violent death

Man found guilty of attempted murder at party

Heavy rain from Bill threatens new floods in North Texas

Bad news, bad news, bad news; it’s all around us. And these are just a few headlines I found on the website of a local TV station. And as you look further out into world news, it doesn’t get much better:
~ ISIS
~ Wars
~ Terrorism
~ Extreme poverty/hunger
~ Genocide

Closer to home, your news may seem even worse:
~ “Your prognosis is not good”
~ “I want a divorce”
~ “Your position is being eliminated”
~ “There was an accident…”

And just reading those headlines makes me depressed. Sure, there are those feel good stories that the late evening news shows from time to time, but it’s not enough to numb the pain and heart ache that dominates the headlines. A story of a young child saving her mother, who was having a diabetic reaction, warms your heart and puts a smile on your face, but then a following story about ISIS seemingly takes that all away.

Bad news, bad news, bad news.
We need some Good News.

He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. [Psalm 112:7]

And then I read this verse from the Psalter; not afraid of bad news. Why? Because of the Good News that the psalmist has in his heart: trusting in the Lord.

The bad news that seems to dominate headlines (because for some reason that seems to grab more ratings) is only truly bad news if your hope is only in this world. If you are putting all your eggs in one basket; putting all your senior officers in one shuttle craft, then there is much to fear when all hell seems to be breaking lose.

But…

If your hope is in the Lord; trusting in His promises, then THE Good News (Jesus Christ) will dominate your headlines and snuff out that life draining bad news that Satan is trying to promote. Feel good stories are great and give us a glimpse of God working in the lives of people, but the ultimate “feel good” story is Jesus Christ dying for your sins and then rising to New Life that you may have the hope of the resurrection. And after the resurrection; no more bad news.

I like that and now I feel much better.
Joy has been restored.
Good News trumping bad news.

So…

Bring on the bad news, Satan, for you can not top THE Good News of Jesus Christ; for it is this Good News I will focus on and thus trust in my God.

Holy God, when bad news threatens to steal my joy remind me of the Good News of Jesus Christ; whereby my hope is placed. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Living Easter (Romans 5:6-11)

/ The Pastor

[From the Easter prayer breakfast at the White House]
“We live our faith when we nurture the hope and possibilities that have always defined us as a country,” Biden said. “We live Easter — and to live Easter is to live with the constant notion that we can always do better.”

NO, NO, NO!!!

That is not living Easter; not even close.

This is living Easter:
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. [Romans 5:6-11]

The hope of Easter is not about the notion of us doing better (don’t get me though, we should want to do better all the time), but rather living with the joy that we have been reconciled to God through faith in Jesus. Jesus did better and therefore we should rejoice and celebrate that. And because Jesus did better I strive to be more like him; striving to be more Holy. But the fact of the matter is I know I will fall short. I will takes steps forward but then take steps back. Living Easter is about God and the promise of the empty tomb.

Living our faith?

“We live our faith when we nurture the hope and possibilities that have always defined us as a country,”

What a vague statement. Living our faith is following Jesus and obeying him. If that is what Biden means then great but I have my doubts whether that is what he is getting at. Call it what it is. Living our faith, Easter faith, is living in joy that despite this messed up and fallen world (which will pass away), though faith in the crucified and risen Jesus, we will not pass away. Living our faith is about glorifying God.

That is Easter faith
That is Easter hope
That is Easter joy

If it is about you getting better in this life then you will be sorely disappointed. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus and on his perfect obedience that lead him to the cross because we are not better.

Praise be to God that we can have this TRUE Easter faith and hope.

Holy God, thank You that Jesus came to save an imperfect and disobedient people. Help us become more like Your son that we may glorify You. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—