C-H-A-N-G-E

Isaiah 43:18-19 (Click to read passage before reading devotion below)

The often-repeated Lutheran joke:

Q: How many Lutherans does it take to change a lightbulb?

A: (said loudly) CHANGE?!?!?

As humans, we seem to have a love-hate relationship with change.

On a biological level, it is necessary. It is actually when things mutate and change that the new is possible. Species adapt, new variations show up. Said simply, in the natural world, change is not only necessary and built into the universe, it is responsible for everything we call beautiful.

When it comes to our deepest dreams and passions, we actually crave change. This is most powerfully evident in the rituals and celebrations surrounding New Year's Eve in our culture. We crave that sense of newness, the very real possibility at a clean slate and a fresh start. We make lists of New Year's resolutions. We crave the kind of change that can usher in new life.

The problem is that the structures we build, both physical and organizational, oppose change by their very nature. Structures are built to be constant - to provide...well...structure.

So there has to be a happy medium between tradition and openness to the new...and this delicate dance has characterized the Christian Church's life since its very beginning. When do we trust that the "new" is God's action, as in the passage linked above? And when do we cling to the past to ride out the storms? There is no perfect answer, but committing ourselves to the struggle is the work of the faithful modern church.

For a much more articulate and clear statement of this same issue, click below to read the thoughts of one of our ELCA Bishops on "Insiders and Outsiders." His piece is brilliant, and if you are a member of St. Luke in Slinger, you will hear more about his words in the coming months...

Click here to read Bishop Mike Reinhart's thoughts about "Insiders and Outsiders."

Prayer:

God of grace and truth, you are always doing a new thing in our midst. Give us the trust to follow you into uncharted waters, confident that with you by our side, we will navigate any storm. Amen.

There's More to Life than Ideas

Acts 28:23-31 (click to read passage)

Reflection:

            Christianity is not a set of ideas to be believed, but a deeper reality into which we are invited to live. In the modern world, reason has been hailed as the greatest good. The scientific method, combined with deductive reasoning, tells us “truths” about our world, right? So the most important thing must be thinking the right things about God, right?

But what we must struggle to understand is that our intellect only gives us one set of truths about the world…rational thinking only reveals one aspect of reality. God is not an idea that we have to wrap our minds around, but instead the very source of love and the very source of life.

Paul is right to quote Isaiah…and Isaiah was right to list the challenges to faith like he did. Indeed, faith involves more than just intellectual assent – it involves listening, looking, and a sensitivity of the heart that perceives the goodness of God all around us.

Maybe we have been de-sensitized (literally) into thinking that thinking is all there is. Maybe the Christ child is inviting us out into deeper waters than our intellects can allow. Maybe this Christmas will be about listening, looking, and sensing with our hearts the goodness of God that comes in ways we’ll never figure out with our heads (in fact, figuring it out with our heads is not the point).

Prayer: God of love, give us the grace to trust you even when, or especially when, our intellects fail us. In that trust, re-sensitize us to your loving presence. Amen.

The World Really Is Flat (or at least it needs to be)

Isaiah 26:7-15

Reflection:

Who would have known? North Dakota may be the holiest place in the U.S.

As many of you know, I lived in Fargo, North Dakota for three years from 2005-2008. Every year, when Advent would come, and we would hear from the prophet Isaiah about “preparing a way for the Lord,” I would start to wonder if North Dakota really was a exceptionally holy place. Why? Because Isaiah tells us that “valleys will be raised and mountains will be brought low” to prepare the way of the Lord. Essentially, the Lord really likes walking on flat ground…and North Dakota is FLAT.

In the Bible reading linked above, we hear the ancient prophet explain a little more about what this means. However, his explanation challenges our modern associations with the word “judgment.”

In the passage above, Isaiah says that “the way of the righteous is level,” and “in the path of your judgments, O Lord, we wait for you…”

When I read that, I picture God’s judgments a bit like an earth mover preparing for a new freeway; filling in the low places and bringing down the high places so the roadbed is perfectly flat.

Understood this way, God’s judgments are like the judgments of a judge – case by case, making wrongs right and bringing equality and justice. It is not that God judges us like people judge us – making assumptions about us and treating us differently because of those assumptions. No, the Bible tells us that from his throne, THIS judge raises up those who are low and humbles those who are on their high horse. If the unexpected turns of life have us feeling low, this is good news – God will make the wrongs right. However, if we are comfortable and resting high above those in need, this passage can be a warning. God really prefers flat ground – where those in need are fed and those with plenty understand themselves as blessed TO BE a blessing to others.

So as I read the passage above one more time, I take great comfort in the fact that my main job is to wait in the path of God’s leveling love. Maybe, my time in North Dakota helped me see the beauty of flat ground…

Prayer: God of justice and love, if we are low, raise us up to live in your love. If we are too high, humble us and bring us into the path of your joy and abundant life. Amen.

Falling into Thanksgiving...

Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’

(Luke 22:19)

Yes, everything is for your sake, so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

(2 Corinthians 4:15)

Reflection:

As I write this, just outside my window I can see the last few leaves letting go of the trees. Even from inside, the air looks crisp with the temperatures of late fall. Even the smell of that air brings up memories of Thanksgivings past and the anticipation that Christmas is near.

Today is one of those days we all have from time to time. I am working from my dining room. My wife has the flu, my son has an ear infection, and my daughter doesn’t have school. Tonight, we are slated to be the overnight hosts for Family Promise at the church. The mounting responsibilities I must attend to, combined with the family responsibilities that were unplanned make for a stressful mix of long to-do lists and little time.

If your life is like mine (and from conversations with many of you I know that it is), you are often in situations where it is tempting to focus on what is not going right…to be upset about the ways in which things are not as they should be. I wish my wife were feeling better. I wish my son were well. I wish I had more time today to get the things done that must be done. I wish I didn’t have to work late tonight to make up for this unplanned time at home attending to my family. I wish, I wish, I wish…

Beneath all of that, though, runs a quiet sense of peace today…and the peace I feel begins with thanksgiving. Not the day, but the attitude. That sense of peace begins with a recognition of how richly blessed I am.

Every Sunday, we re-tell the story of how Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and broke it for his disciples. This part of the service is even called “The Great Thanksgiving.” Biblically speaking, being a grateful person is part and parcel of being a Christian. We live in thanksgiving – a recognition that all that we have an all that we are is pure gift. Then, like the second verse linked above, our main job as the church is to do the things that extend to others that sense of thanksgiving.

It all boils down to this; there is a simple truth that many modern self-help books will tell you – but it is a truth that existed in the pages of the Bible long before that: GRATITUDE IS THE HEART OF JOY.

So today, take 5 minutes. On a piece of paper, or a blank document on your computer, attempt to make a list of everything you have to be thankful for. Keep writing. Keep typing. We all have much to be grateful for, and intentionally focusing on that tends to put our sorrows or hardships in the proper perspective.

Then, take a moment and look at your list…and offer a simple prayer of thanks to the One who has blessed you with it all.


Happy Thanksgiving from your Pastor & your St. Luke family!

Prayer: God of every good gift, inspire in us deep sense of gratitude for the lives we have. Help us not to measure our days by what we don’t have, but live in the joy that comes from recognizing what we do have. Amen.

Which Comes First?

Romans 2:1-4 (click link to read passage before continuing on to Reflection)

Reflection:

Some timeless questions:

Which came first? The chicken or the egg?

Which comes first? Repentance or forgiveness?

Said another way:

Does repentance lead to forgiveness? Or is it the other way around?

I know for some, what I say here is going to be a little provocative – that's good. But consider the above verses. They were written to those who thought that the forgiveness offered through Jesus was like a free ticket. They knew they were forgiven, and used their freedom to cast judgments on others for their sins. Paul is reminding them that God's forgiveness, which is freely offered through Christ, is meant to inspire repentance not arrogance.

Here's the pitfall: When you think it is your repentance that causes God's forgiveness, it's an easy road to arrogant judgment of others. But when you recognize that God's forgiveness always comes as undeserved gift, it's a little harder to fancy yourself more deserving than anyone else.

So maybe, just maybe, we've answered one of the timeless questions above. Maybe we are doing it in the wrong order on Sunday morning – maybe God's forgiveness always comes first, and then leads us into a life of humility and repentance.

You'll have to ask someone else about the chicken/egg question…

Prayer: Gracious God, help us to avoid casting judgments on others – instead, help us to use our energy in humble self-assessment. Change our hearts, O God… Amen.

Declaration of Dependence

Exodus 16:11-16, 19-20

Reflection:

Take only what you need, and don’t hoard it for tomorrow.

Oh, how the promise of self-sufficiency lured the Israelites in. “If I gather a bunch now, then tomorrow I and my family will be well-fed, whether the bread comes again or not…”

For them and for us, this scripture is a lesson in dependence…and not the kind that renders us helpless, only to wait on the gifts of God – but the kind that breeds simple trust in God’s goodness and mercy.

In the grasps of our own materialism and consumer culture, it is a message we need to hear as well…So, as Steven Curtis Chapman (a contemporary Christian music artist) said years ago in a song, “This is our declaration of dependence!”

Prayer: Gracious God, help us to trust that come what may, you are faithful and your promises are sure. Amen.