Sermon prep

Repent

/ The Pastor

REPENT for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
REPENT and run away from your sins.
REPENT and never stop running.
REPENT and keep on running,
REPENT!
REPENT and strive to know Jesus better and better.
REPENT and long for God’s holy courts.
REPENT and deny your new self your old life; for you are a New Creation.
REPENT and live the Life God has given you through faith.
REPENT!
REPENT and never stop striving for the narrow door.
REPENT and keep on pressing on.
REPENT and not grow complacent in having already obtained it.
REPENT and refuse to work for your old employer – Satan.
REPENT!

Child of God, through Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven.
Isn’t that awesome!!!
Yes?
Now, REPENT…

Peace and Division

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. [Luke 12:51 ESV]

Seems like a strange thing for Jesus to say. After all, isn’t he the Prince of Peace? Doesn’t he give peace that surpasses all understanding? When the disciples see him after his resurrection Jesus says, “Peace be with you“. So why would Jesus say something like this? Well, look carefully at what he says, Do you think that I have come to give peace ON EARTH? That’s the distinction. Here on earth, there will be division on account of the Gospel. Jesus didn’t come with the intent to divide people but rather knowing that the Gospel would do just that because people are sinners. In John 15, Jesus warned his disciples that if the world hates him they will hate them. And isn’t that the truth. Yet, many people are so afraid of division. Can’t we all just get along? I am all for getting along with people, but when it comes to the Gospel, we must stand firm. We must respect people. We must love people. We must listen to people. But when it comes to the Gospel, if division occurs, then so be it. It is better to be at odds with the world than with God. Amen? The Gospel will produce division. That we have seen, but don’t mistake what Jesus says. He IS still the Prince of Peace and he DOES give a peace that surpasses all understanding. Standing firm on God’s Word in Jesus name, you can have peace in the midst of division. May your witness then, bring peace to people who are at odds with the Gospel. Amen!

One Thing

/ The Pastor

[Inspired by Luke 10:38-42]

One thing and one thing only,
that is all that’s required,
for with Jesus the Savior,
You will never be lonely.

You don’t need to add to this.
No works, no deeds, no actions.
Jesus is all that you need,
To enjoy eternal bliss.

For God’s grace is sufficient.
There’s nothing else that’s needed.
Attempts to self-justify,
will always be deficient.

So focus your attention,
and away from your attempts.
Jesus has finished the work,
to release all your tension.

Faces

/ The Pastor

Psalm 27:7–8 (ESV) ~ Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me! You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of a political leader in hopes they will acquiesce to your demands to remake this world into your image?

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of success in hopes you can build a nest egg in order to gain a sense of peace in this life?

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of a false prophet who refuses to hold scripture to a high standard and thus waters it down to make it easier for you to accept?

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of laziness so you can blindly ride the shirt-tails of cheap grace in order to enjoy the labors of others.

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of busyness in an effort to justify yourself before others and God.

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of a worldly fortress so as to secure rest, peace and comfort for your weary body and soul.

Whose face do you seek? Is it the face of affirmation so you can feel better about your life.

But…

These faces care nothing about you. They only look at you with disdain, apathy and disinterest. They make promises and they look good for a while, but eventually these faces become disfigured; sending you on another search for a new face.

But there is a face out there waiting for you. A face that shines brighter than the sun. A face of love. A face of grace. A face of truth. That face is Jesus. He doesn’t promise you the easy life, but he does promise you Life. Don’t be fooled. The faces of this world falsely promise you an easy life, but can go no farther. Only Jesus cares enough for you to give his life for the forgiveness of your sins that you may see God face to face someday. Don’t settle for anything less. Seek HIS face and truly be at peace.

Wanting Needs

/ The Pastor

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
[Psalm 23:1]

Have you ever wanted something so bad that you couldn’t think of anything else?
I really want that new phone.
I really want that new car.
I really want that job promotion.
I really want _________.
You get the point. Wants are dangerous as they redirect our attention from what we already have. For if you are part of God’s flock through Jesus Christ, then you already have everything you need. And when you see that you have everything you need, then your wants become what God deems that you need in order to glorify him. Your selfish wants won’t do that unless you need those wants to glorify God and God agrees with your wants and thus gives you what you need. If that be the case, then those wants are not selfish but needs that want God more.

[Whew, did you follow all of that?]

Basically, it’s all about God and thus God will ensure you that you have everything you need (Jesus) to want to glorify him.

Oh God, give me what I need to want You more. Amen.

Reprise/Revised: A Prayer Before Preaching

/ The Pastor

I have never done this before but I am re-posting a post. The following is a prayer I wrote on September 20, 2015. It is a post that I can tell people still visit, so I decided to read it again. And you know something, I needed this prayer.

You see, in the span of two weeks I get to preach 5 sermons: Midweek Lenten worship, funeral, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Easter. Five very different settings but with one very important purpose: The Gospel. And as a pastor and preacher, this is a task I take very seriously (as all preachers should). I don’t want to take any moment for granted. For to handle the Word of God flippantly is a dangerous thing. A messenger would never mess with a king’s message and so why would anyone take a lackadaisical approach to the Word of God; a message from our King. Too many pastors/preachers have tinkered with the King’s message and have deceived many. What a horrible thing to do. May I be found faithful with the King’s message.

And so, I pray this prayer — again — as I have four more sermons in this stretch of preaching. What an amazing opportunity to deliver my King’s message. Oh God, my King, hear my prayer…

To approach Your holy Word faithfully,
oh God and King,
is to do so with fear and trembling;
not only because it is Your holy Word,
but it convicts us of sin
through the awesome power of the Holy Spirit.
Your Word kills and gives life through Jesus Christ.
It convicts and redeems.
It’s alive.
It’s does something.

And so may I approach Your Word with great expectation;
leaning on Your promises
and joyfully basking in Your faithfulness.
May I toss off all that would hinder my hearing of Your Word;
fixing my eyes on You.
May I receive this Word with all joy,
handle it with care,
and proclaim Your glory.
May I embrace its transformative power
that gives courage in a fear-filled world.

Oh God and King
All glory, honor, worship and praise
be onto You,
through Christ Jesus my Lord,
Amen.

Belonging to Christ (Mark 9:41)

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

“For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.” [Mark 9:41]

The text for preaching on Sunday is Mark 9:38-41. And as I pray about and ponder this text I am caught by the phrase, “belong to Christ”.

And as I reflect on this phrase a few thoughts come to mind:
~ There is a big difference between Christ belonging to you and belonging to Christ.

~ Saying, “I’m a Christian” is not the same as belonging to Christ, often that simply reflects that Christ belongs to you.

~ If Christ belongs to you then you are in control of the relationship.

~If you belong to Christ, He is in control of the relationship, and you’re glad about that.

~ Belonging to Christ implies commitment and love.

~ Christ belonging to you implies manipulation.

~ If Christ belongs to you then you are less apt to share that which belongs to you.

~ If you belong to Christ you are more apt to shout this from the mountains tops and worship him.

Just a few thoughts as I prepare for the sermon on Sunday. What do you think? Does anything here resonant with you? What does it mean to you to say, “I belong to Christ”?

Here’s what it means to me:
Jesus is Lord of my life. He has saved me through his death and resurrection and therefore I owe him everything; especially including my very life. On my own I am weak and vulnerable but under Christ’s Lordship I am safe in his loving arms. But that’s not why I gather under his wings like chicks with a hen. I am drawn to Christ because of his awesome love for me; a love that I know will never fail despite the fact that I am a miserable sinner. And so therefore, I worship Christ and praise his name. I belong to Christ and gladly submit to him.

Now you’re turn…

Holy Father, thank you for coming to us in Jesus Christ. My life is yours. In Jesus name I pray, Amen

The Pastor -|—

I S_ _ _ at Sermon Writing

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

One of my favorite things to write about or tweet about or Facebook about is the process of sermon writing. It’s a process that never fails to amaze me. For each time a sermon comes flowing out of my fingers it is due to the Holy Spirit taking my fingers and putting life into them. And so hopefully you are not tired of this topic. For me, I am just tooting God’s horn and give God praise through the work of the Holy Spirit.

————————

So today is Thursday, my sermon writing day at my favorite coffee shop. I am once again at my favorite table by the front window that looks out onto the sidewalk and the one-way main street. Vehicles line the street and there is a somewhat steady flow of activity. And in the midst of writing spurts I find myself looking out onto the world to day dream and reflect. And then after my “commercial break” ends the Holy Spirit returns me to the regularly scheduled programming (sermon writing). The characters may vary slightly, the plot is the same but the way I arrive at the message varies week to week. And despite the sameness in the “programming” I never lose interest (and hopefully those listening on Sunday don’t lose interest either).

And as I reflect on this amazing process of sermon writing I am reminded of something my wife’s uncle once asked me: How do you come up with all those sermons? Without batting an eyelash I said to him, God. To which he responded, I know that but how do you come up with a sermon each week? Me: God.

I think that frustrated him enough as our conversation quickly ended through some “diversion” that caught his attention. I think what he wanted to hear about was some skill or resource that I drew upon. He was amazed but amazed with the wrong person. As Martin Luther says in his sacristy prayer, If this task were left up to me I would surely bring it all to ruin. And that is the case with sermon writing. Because believe me, when it comes to writing and public speaking,

I suck (sorry about the language).

And so without sounding cocky or proud or anything like that, I am glad I suck at writing and public speaking. For as the apostle Paul says, when I am weak it is then that I am strong. That strength?

God

But really, where does your strength come from?

God

That’s it.

Now it time to return to the regularly scheduled programming. Come, Holy Spirit…

And have a great day 🙂

The Pastor -|—

Holy Saturday ~ Limbo

/ The Pastor

I feel like I am in limbo today.

The past two days we traveled through the cross of Jesus and now today ~ Nothing. Jesus has been crucified and buried, but tomorrow, though, is the joyous celebration of his resurrection. But I’m still in today ~ so nothing, at least for now.

And so I am here in my office reflecting on the cross, my sin and Jesus’ willingly going to the cross for me. And as I reflect on this I am polishing off TWO Easter sermons.

That’s right, I am just crazy enough to do that 🙂

This is something I have never done before. You see, I have two Easter services here at Salem Lutheran Church and one out at Belmont Lutheran Church. Every year I have written one Easter sermon and preached it three times. But there are a couple “problems” that I have never addressed before:

(1) Some people that come to the Sonrise worship service at Salem will come back for the Festival worship service later (I lead the Sonrise service at Belmont in between). And so those people hear the sermon twice, not necessarily bad since I need to hear something more than once to really get it, but I have heard comments.

(2) The crowd at each service is generally different (with a few the same). And so with a different crowd, a different message is needed; a different focus, if I am going to be contextual.

And so I felt the Spirit move stronger than ever, this year, to write TWO sermons. Besides, there shouldn’t be a problem, since I have plenty of material 🙂

Praise be to God!

And so this “nothing” day is turning into something. I am reflecting on the cross and preaching to myself an Easter message in two ways (but yet the same) as I get ready to lead God’s people in worship tomorrow.

What a day
Nothing to something ~ yup, that sounds like God

Holy Saturday, a day of limbo, but also a day of great expectation and hope as we know what is coming, and I am not talking about tomorrow.

God bless you as you wait expectantly for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Come, Lord Jesus, with your glorious Kingdom and praise be to God!

Living God, what a roller coaster ride this week, and now we wait for the glorious return of our Lord Jesus. Bless our waiting, Oh God, and may we feel the passion to share this Good News every single day. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Sermon Writing in the Valley

/ The Pastor

My sermon writing routine involves walking downtown to my favorite coffee shop; seting up camp and writing while enjoying a beautiful cup (or two or three or, who am I kidding? A lot of) coffee.

(and there are other details involved here but I won’t digress)

In any case, I often get asked, “How do you stay focused while writing in such a public place?” It’s a good question, really, because I seem to get a lot more done here than I do in my office at church.

(Hmmm…interesting…)

(Focus)

My quick answer is that question is the background noise serves as a calming and focusing agent. Sounds strange but that’s how I roll. I think another answer (the longer version) is that I am reminded of my vocation.

As I preach the Gospel on Sundays (and throughout my week) I do so in the midst of community; in the valley, not isolated from it. It’s through talking with people and interacting with the public and hearing noises that I am brought back down to reality where the Gospel desperately needs to be preached. It’s the “transfiguration on the mountain and then back to the valley” thing at play here. Peter, James and John saw Jesus transfigured before them on that mountain, but God doesn’t allow them to build three tents there. Instead, Jesus leads them back down the mountain, to the valley, where they encounter a demon possessed boy that the others couldn’t cast out.

That’s reality.

And so it is through these distractions that I think and pray through a text before and while the Holy Spirit spews out words through my fingers and onto my computer screen. Really, it’s a beautiful process. Praise be to God!

Case in point, I have had a few “distractions” already (including this blog post) that has inspired some word spewing onto my keyboard: People walking by reminding me of situations they are dealing with. A Facebook conversation with a person recovering from another surgery. The busyness of main street reminding me of the faith distractions of many.  All of these noises/distractions are “holy distractions”.

My church office is so quiet that I sometimes just can’t seem to focus on the Word and the valley out there. Sometimes you just have to get out in the valley in order to be reminded of who you are called to be. Mountain tops are great but we are valley people and so this pastor writes in the valley to the praise and glory of God; all the while enjoying  A LOT of coffee (which might partially explain why I can handle multiple distractions).

And so there’s your long answer to a short question, but being a pastor, long answers go with the territory 🙂

Happy valley dwelling and praise be to God!

The Pastor -|—