Devotions - Wednesday, April 30

Moses leads the people out of Egypt and to the River Jordan. At the banks of the Jordan, he realizes that he will not cross the river himself. He has done all he can, to prepare them. But, he cannot take this last step with them. He gives them final instructions. He shares with them what God has told him. He says, "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."

I have visited with several of the graduating students. I have heard their anxiety (understandable anxiety) at this next stage in their lives. I do not mean to diminish the challenges they face, but I would offer them the assurance Moses offered the children of Israel. "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."

Other conversations this week have addresses personal struggles and injuries to psyche. I do what I can, but I also know my limits and know when it is time for my pastoral care visits to be supplemented with work with a counselor or therapist. The promise I offer to those beginning to examine their lives and it darker corners is Moses' words: "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."

If we only read Joshua, we would think that the Israelites cross the Jordan and everything is perfect. When we read I & II Chronicles, we see that there were setbacks and disappointments. Both depictions are accurate - Chronicles speaks of the events; Joshua witnesses to the power of faith.

The days ahead may have many challenges. They may be filled with trials and disappointments. Looking at them through the eyes of faith we can stand firm and overcome whatever comes. "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."

Devotions - Tuesday, April 29

The appointed Lectionary has us reading from Deuteronomy and from I Peter. I am not sure that the parallel is intended, but it struck me to read from these two books on the same day.

The section from Deuteronomy is Chapter 5. We find repeats of some laws given in Exodus, here they are expounded upon.

From I Peter, I read Chapter 3:8-12. Understanding the New Testament as the clarification of how it is that God wanted His people to see him and interact with him, I am struck by the way in which the writer starts this section. In lifting up guides for our lives he starts by saying, "Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind."

When discussions are had as to what it means to be a Christian, what is required of a Christian, what God expects of Christians, I wish this were the list talked about. I think it is a much better approach at how it is that Christ instructed his followers to live. I think it is a sharper understanding of the new life Christ desires for us. Unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind - these are gifts of God which make possible the community which bears the name of Christ.

May God bless you with these attributes; may God bless you with a community in which these traits are the guiding principals; may God help all of us develop these habits in our lives.

Devotions - Monday, April 28

In Genesis 9:8-17 we read of God's covenant with us, after the flood. God promises to never again allow the flood waters to destroy the earth. As a sign of this covenant, God places the rainbow in the sky. God says, "When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh."

God sets up a "reminder" of what he has promised. God establishes a marker which will remind him of what he has said he will do.

As a child, I remember hearing this story. As a result, when I saw a rainbow, it comforted me. It was an indication to me that I was safe from the kind of destruction described in Genesis 7 & 8. I looked upon the rainbow as a thing set there to comfort me. But that isn't what the text says. It says that the rainbow is a reminder for God.

I think we could learn something from God.

We make promises. We make many promises. Some promises are short lived; others are to last for the rest of our lives. Sometimes, we forget our promises. Sometimes we fail to remember, at the critical point in time, what we have said we will do. Might we consider establishing a marker, a reminder, of our promise?

This might take any number of forms. It might be a ribbon we tie on the radio antenna of our car. It might be a ring or pen attached to our clothing. In other instances it might be a note card, kept were we will see it -or- given to the person we have promised.

Promises are very important. Particularly promises made to those most intimately connected to our lives. Remembering the promises we have made may serve as a guide when we find ourselves engaged in difficult encounters. The marker/reminder we establish could help us to remember our guiding intentions, even when the immediate situation at hand might cause us to ignore the promises we have made.

Outside my window, it is raining pretty hard right now. It may be cloudy all day and no rainbow will appear. I will be looking for one, however, and be reminded of the promises I have made. I will use God's method in order to find ways to remind myself of the promises I have made.

Sermon - April 27, 2008

6th Sunday of Easter - Year A

Acts 17:22-31 & John 14:15-21

Speaking of the "unknown god"

Paul stood in front of the Areopagus... The next time someone asks me what campus ministry is all about, I think I will pull out this reading from Acts 17. This chapter's imagery - as well as its content - captures what it means to speak the Word of the Church amid a pluralistic and segmented society.

Paul stood in front of the Areopa­gus... The words them­selves conjure up images of Greek architecture and learned old men; of deep thoughts and meaningful conversation.

Paul stood in front of the Areopa­gus... Here we have a wonderful state­ment of the work of the Church - a perfect lead-in to discuss the contrast between presumed importance and that which really matters; to address the distinction between that which is valued and that which is truly valuable.

Paul is in the city of Athens (that's the ancient Greek city of Athens, not the one with a cute little bulldog and sometimes surpris­ingly good football team.) But ancient Athens, by the time Paul got there, had lost much of its former glory. While it was once the seat of great schools and the home of wonderful philosophers, in the first century of the modern era Athens had no real political significance and commercially it was outshone by Cor­inth. It is living off of its legends. And its legend is substantial. Aristotle, Epicurus, Plato, Socrates - their lives had touched this city leaving behind a legacy of prominence sufficient to sustain the city for many generations to come. Regardless of its current political or economic status, Athens was still a place of importance.

The text informs us that Paul is making his impassioned speech in front of the Areopagus. This would be the Athenian equivalent of a house of lords. This was the gathering of the elder statesmen of this city-state. Here, were the venerated leaders who had completed their elected term as archons (ar-chons.) They spent their days entertaining new thoughts and philosophies. Paul had been invited to speak because some of the Epicurean and Stoic philoso­phers had heard him in the agora (market­place.) They had wanted to know about this teaching of his - these proclamations of foreign divinities, as they referred to them. Verses just before those read for us this morning note that Paul had been telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.

It was a favored pastime of the Athenians to tell and hear something new. So they invited Paul to come and tell them more about this new teaching.

I promise not to do a word-by-word analysis of Paul's entire address, but one of the first words he speaks is of tremendous impor­tance. Look at it if you will. Paul begins his address, "Athenians, I see how extremely RELIGIOUS" [this is the critical word] "how ex­tremely RELIGIOUS you are." The Greek word has a double meaning. It can be inter­preted "religious" or "devout," a word of compliment; or it could refer to one who is "supersti­tious," which would be somewhat of an insult. Paul would no doubt look upon Athens as a hotbed of superstition, but would not have wanted to antagonize his hearers at the outset. So he carefully selects a word which allows them to feel good about them­selves while also planting a seed for where he wants this speech to go.

Paul communicates a deep and abiding respect for the knowledge of his hosts. He is well aware of the advances which have been possible as a result of their study and dedication to their disciplines. Paul does not enter their midst and insult them by dismissing the importance of that which they have made their life's work. He stands in their midst and speaks kindly of the work with they have accomplished. He honors their disciplines. But, he calls into question the ability of their philosophies to finally provide the key to understanding life and our role in the cosmos. That wisdom, he says, is to be found somewhere else.

Paul makes use of a sight he has seen in their city. He reports that while walking around Athens he had located an altar with the inscrip­tion, 'To an unknown god.' Paul tells them that this god which is unknown to them is the God who has revealed himself in Jesus.

The Athenians' fascination with new ideas and teachings proves to be fertile soil in which Paul can plant the seeds of fresh discovery. He wants to help them to see this altar to an unknown god as an expres­sion of the desire to know the true God, the God whom they had been unable to capture in their statues of gold, silver or stone; the God whom they had been unable to identify in their elaborate philosophies.

"What therefore you worship as unknown," Paul tells this assembly of venerated elders, "This I proclaim to you."

Paul's being invited to speak to the Areopagus probably had something to do with comments he had made while in the agora. Even here he uses a few phrases which are right in line with the philoso­phies of his hosts. Those who invited him may have done so as a way of further their own philosophical argu­ments. He speaks of God as one who is not served by human hands, a point of contact with his Epicure­an listeners who stressed God's self-sufficiency. His next words describing God as the author of life and breath and all things would have met with the approval of the Stoics in the crowd. Paul is allowing them to see the good aspects of their world-view. He is complimenta­ry of their attempts to understand what life is all about. But, he goes on so as to allow them to see that in Jesus the unknown god whom they seek has become knowable.

Paul is sharing he same conviction written by John in our Gospel lesson for today: "You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you."

In the end, this is the undoing of the Areopagus' willingness to listen to Paul. Our reading for today ends with verse 31; verse 32 reads: When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some scoffed; but others said, "We will hear you again about this." At that point Paul left them.

Paul had exposed the limits of where their thoughts and theories could take them. Paul had addressed the opportunities available just beyond the borders of where their reasoning could go. Paul points out the foundations shared by their beliefs and his word about Jesus. And then Paul invites them to embrace the opportunity to know that which till now has been for them an unknown god.

Stoics and Epicureans are rather difficult to come by in our day and time, but there are others systems of belief with have taken their place. Self-sufficien­cy is probably more of an issue for us than for any society which has gone before. There remain many who find their gods in items fashioned out of gold or silver or stone. Maybe now-a-days the material of choice is silicon. I am grateful for all the advances which have been made by dedica­tion to lofty ideals and great aspira­tions. But with Paul we need to affirm that these pseudo gods have their limits. Christ is the God, unknown by far too many, who holds the package together.

Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, "...I see how extremely religious you are in every way." What would Paul say to us? Are we religious (as in devout) or merely superstitious? Do we come before God, at this altar to express our thanks and offer our praise for the One in whom we are placing our final confidence? Or, do we come because we fear the consequences of not coming? Is our offering an offering of ourselves to God? Or, is it a tax, paid so as assure us a place in the sweet-by-and-by?

Presumed importance remains on the side of gadgets and devices which make our lives more comfortable. Valuable are those who can organize and structure our interactions so as to result in the greatest good for the greatest number of people. And yet, Paul's words claim there is but one thing which is important. His presentation to the Areopagus states that the Word of God is the thing of greatest value.

Amen.Post Options

Devotions - Thursday, April 24

The appointed readings for this morning included a passage from Genesis 6. This is the beginning of the stories of Noah and the flood. As with yesterday's reading, I was struck with one particular word.

In describing God's frustration with the creation, the description says that "the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence." (verse 11) Again (in verse 13) God says "the earth is filled with violence because of them." God realizes that the violence brought onto the earth because of humanity has soured His hopes for the creation.

Religious types have their favorite topics. There are issues deemed "essential" to the Christian witness. Where, on such lists, is violence found? Do we lift our voice against this?

Part of our reluctance may be the realization that violence is both personal and systemic. There is the personal violence done by one person to another; and there is the systemic violence, done by us as a society. We know, deep in our hearts, that personal violence and systemic violence are linked - that we can't condemn one without looking at the other.

The reason God chooses to act (according to Genesis 6) is the violence that "flesh" has brought upon the earth. It pains me to image how God must feel about the violence He sees when he looks at the earth today.

I don't know how to put an end to all the violence. I believe we start by acknowledging that it grieves God to see all this; we gain a foothold by realizing that the Bible's greatest act of retribution comes on the hills of God's desire that violence be eliminated from the earth. Maybe such awareness will allow strategies for response to emerge.

Devotions - Wednesday, April 23

In John 8:31 Jesus says, "You will know the truth and the truth will make you free."

One must always be careful not to too quickly jump on particular words in an English translation of the Bible. It is best to consult the Greek - and I need to acknowledge that my Greek isn't strong enough to know what word is translated into English as "free." Having said that, I do want to lift up Jesus' choice of a word to express what it is that he does for us. He makes us free.

We might be, in our "heaven is my home" mindset, tempted to say that he means we are "free from our fear of death." We might quickly assume that he is referring to the freedom we have over our graves. He might be.

Or he might be expressing something grander than the events likely to follow the cessation of blood flowing through our veins. He might be telling us that his presence and his Word brings the liberty we need to live life now. His promise to us is that we are not bound, not bound by death or anything else which would hold us captive.

I was in a conversation yesterday with a student. We were discussing how often Christianity and Church become the haven for those seeking to abide by a code of conduct demanding enough to merit eternal rewards. I was encouraging Church participation as a way of making friends and finding mentors. "But that seems selfish to me." was the reply. "They aren't going to like it if I show up and say, 'I'm here because if don't want to be alone.'"

I think this is exactly what Jesus would have us do. I believe that for Jesus eternal relationships are the bonus we discover at the end of a life lived happily among those who have been set free. I believe that Jesus was concerned, not simply with our eternal life but with our life now. I believe Jesus meant it when he said that what he brings us is freedom. He wants us to be free. Free to love and to be loved. Free to do and to say. Free to see ourselves as the lovable children we are - in the eyes of God. The Church of Jesus Christ is the Church which makes it possible for us to live our lives free.

Devotions - Tuesday, April 22

Having read, on Sunday, the story of the stoning of Stephen, the lectionary this week has been recounting the events leading up to that execution. This morning I was reading part of Stephen's sermon, the sermon which enraged the religious leaders. He speaks of all the wonderful things that God has done. He speaks of God's care and God's grace. He speaks of God's love.

This message, as gentle as it sounds, leads to conclusions which many are not willing to embrace. It leads to a Messiah willing to die rather than see anyone left outside. It leads to a way in which power is forsaken and those of low degree become the honored guests. It tears at everything held precious in "the world."

And "the world" cannot tolerate the voice which calls for change.

So much of contemporary Christianity is devoted to maintaining. The Church is erroneously liked to attempts to maintain social institutions. The Church is a bastion for ensuring that things will remain as they have always been. The Church which bears the name of Jesus would be true to its name when it is that collection of persons insisting that the poor be seen and acknowledged. The Church is true to its name when it insists that justice be our prime concern and that equality be the norm.

Stephen spoke to the crowd of God's way of doing things. And he was put to death. Inspired by his martyrdom, others took up the message and proclaimed the Good News. The Way survived because there were not a few isolated persons who understood the heart of Jesus' message. Jesus' Word will survive our day by the same path - when it is known and lived by all those who accept his call and join in the procession of followers.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Thursday, April 17

My friend and colleague at VA Tech had shared with us that what he worried most about the first anniversary of the outbreak of violence there was the media attention. He remembered that last year some of the strongest expressions of emotion were toward those who were interviewing every student who walked across campus. "It is hard to grieve in the public eye," he said.

I intentionally did not write about the incident yesterday. Today, I thought it might be appropriate.

As people of faith, we must lift our voices to God out of care and concern for all those who lost their lives, for all those whose lives were forever altered because of that day in Blacksburg. What happened there is opposed to what God intends for His creation.

As persons united in a community of faith, we need to pause and understand that community can do much to prevent that kind of an outbreak. It is in community that our horrific fears are set aside. It is in community that we learn to respect each individual as a valued member. It is in community that we consult with others when interactions turn sour or painful. Communities of faith do much more than make choirs sound full, communities of faith provide opportunities for God to instruct us on living together.

Our LSM Group has a lot of fun when we are together. We also spend considerable time in prayer and bible study. But, let us hope, it also provides that place where we can learn life together. It is that opportunity to explore the wonders and mysteries of life on planet earth, arriving at answers and/or solutions to that which reduces us and/or our life together.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Wednesday, April 16

This morning's reading is from Matthew 20:17-28. Here, the sons of Zebedee ask that they might have the choice seats, at Jesus' right and left. Jesus' response is the well known, "whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave."

This is not the response anticipated by those who ask for positions of privilege. They might have known they were risking rejection, but how could they have anticipated that Jesus would turn the whole concept of power positions on its head.

There is a song, popular among those planning worship for campus ministry events. The course goes as follows:

Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you?
Pray that I might have the grace to let you be my servant, too.

What I like about this song is its two edges. On the one hand, there is the prayer that I might have the strength to follow Christ and be servant. That is a role we seldom seek. Even knowing what we know about Christ's instructions, we still have a tendency to want to be in positions of honor. How powerful it is when we experience God's grace and are truly able to follow, to be servant to another.

Once in that position, we may become tempted to take pride in it. We may become preoccupied with being servant and fail to remember that everyone who follows Christ is called to that role. We may find it difficult to allow another to be our servant, too. We may be unwilling to accept the service offered us.

We are held in tension between our call to serve others and our willingness to accept the Christian service of others. Held in this tension, we are lifted up. Held in this tension, we are most likely to live the life of discipleship.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Tuesday, April 15

Ezekial 34 speaks is God's promise that he will send a shepherd to his people. The promise includes showers to water the earth; vegetation for food; and protection from those who would devour them. During my prayers, my mind was drawn back to a news story I heard yesterday morning.

The reporter was speaking of a world-wide food crisis. From Haiti, he drew examples of how this was affecting many of the world's poor. In a country where most live on less than $2 a day, the cost of a cup of beans has risen to 40 cents. Even the woman selling beans in the square said she cannot afford to feed her own children.

We take so much for granted. We assume a high degree of luxury. Separated as we are, we may find it difficult to understand the promise contained in portions of the Bible, like Ezekiel 34. The promise from God, to shepherd and to protect rings hallow in our ears.

There are many causes of this world-wide food crisis. One of them is increased demand. When demand goes up, it is those with the money to buy who disadvantage those who lack financial resources. In essence, those who are rich and fat are part of the problem.

I felt, in reading Ezekiel 34, that I might be a bit like those self-righteous persons in Sunday's gospel lesson who did not perceive that Jesus was talking about them. I worry, that I might be sitting my comfortable chair, praying for the world's hungry populations and failing to understand my role in their being so.

The life of a disciple includes bible study and prayer. It certainly also includes self-examination and self-evaluation. How do my behaviors reflect the hope and promise of the One whom I call Lord? Am I assisting His efforts at shepherding? I have no answers this morning. Only a concern. My answers may come when I step back and examine my life and my actions in caring for the least.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Monday, April 14

I Peter 5 speaks to those who are "elders" among the people. (One ancient translation address "Those who are older.") Peter says to them that it is their responsibility to care for the newer members of the community. It is the task of the elders to look out after those who younger.

It is the curse of being in my age bracket - I often wonder whether I should assume the role of "elder" or understand myself as one of those being cared for. This past weekend I was in North Carolina for my niece's wedding. As an Assisting Minister in the wedding, I clearly had a role suggesting that I was an "elder" participant. But my other task was to care for my mother - helping her into her wheel chair and guiding her from worship service to reception. Here, I experienced the comfort of the familiar role of child and son.

Within the community of faith, we find ourselves falling into both roles as well. Most of you reading this are students participating in the campus ministry program at Clemson. As such, you look to me as elder and teacher. But then, during the course of a single day, the roles will change. You will, at some point today, find yourself in a situation where you will be called upon to provide care. You will have many opportunities to calm the fears of another. You will be called upon to fulfill Peter's instructions.

A sister denomination has a motto which reads, "Each one teach one." It is a beautiful statement of life within the community of faith. Each of us is a student - someone serves as our teacher. But each of us is also the source of insight, instruction, and understanding. We share what we have first received. We should not shy away from either role. Both are essential to the circle which binds us together as God's people.

Pastor Chris

Sermon - Easter 4, April 13, 2008

John 10:1-10

Hearing the Shepherd=s Voice

I have been away for a long time – four weeks. In addition to being in Germany, I have also made a trip to Nashville. That is where I was last weekend. The Nashville event was the Annual Campus Ministry Conference. While I hated being gone for another week, the Campus Ministry conference is my favorite event of the year. Attended by ELCA campus pastors and Church College Chaplains, the Campus Ministry Conference is a combination of continuing education and gathering of old friends.

It has been a tough year, for campus ministers. We gathered a few weeks shy of the first anniversary of the shootings on VA Tech’s campus. This was the first time we had been together since Diane Dardon and the campus ministry at Northern Illinois responded to the outbreak of violence on the NIU campus. Our time together renewed our appreciation for the task of speaking the shepherd’s voice. We reminded each other how essential it is that these little ones be trained to recognize the words of the One who comes to give life – the one who comes to give abundant life.

Jesus says, “The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice.” In a world which can be confusing and deadly, it is essential that we have a guide to lead us to life. We need a shepherd who will lead us. That shepherd can only perform the shepherdly function if we have listened to his voice and learned to recognize his word. The shepherd, the one who cares for the sheep, knows that it is his task to lead us to life, to lead us to abundant life.

We all need a shepherd. We need to be guided to the places where God is ready to tend to our wounds and fill our lives. We need to have shepherds. Without someone to guide us, we become helplessly lost.

Sheep are dumb animals. I am sure that I have given at least one sermon in which I talked about how stupid sheep really are. Without someone to guide them, sheep will simply lie down in the field and die. When hungry, they don=t go looking for food; when thirsty, they don=t go looking for water. They simply lie down and ba-a-a-a themselves to death, waiting for someone to come and lead them. Sheep are stupid – but God gave them the ability to know one thing. They are smart enough to learn to listen for the voice of their shepherd. When they hear the shepherd’s voice, they follow.

They still lack the ability to discern for themselves whether the shepherd is a good shepherd, whether the shepherd is worthy of their trust. That is where the analogy breaks down. This is where those who heard Jesus speak would have had the advantage over us. They had enough working knowledge about sheep to know that they can be fooled, they can be trained to follow one who poses as a shepherd but is really a bandit and a thief.

This is a bit tricky. It is more than a little difficult. There are a lot of voices out there claiming to be the voice of our shepherd. There are a lot of folks out there claiming that they are speaking for God when at best what they are speaking are half-truths. Half-truths means exactly what the word suggests: a good portion of what they are saying (maybe even half of what they say) is true. It sounds Aokay@ because the part that is often spoken the loudest is that part that is true. But then there is that other part, the part that is false. Maybe even half of all that they are saying is false. By half-truths we are lured and mislead.

Half-truths can get a grip on us only when we don=t know enough to oppose them. Half-truths can take hold only when we don=t know the whole truth. All too often we wait for something terrible to happen. Then, in a fit of desperation, we look for a passage or an image or a story that will make sense of it all. We search our Bibles for something that will meet our immediate need. That would be okay if this were a math problem. But, this isn=t a math problem. It is life, and life is immanently more complex.

When the horrible and terrible happens in your life, you have to have a prior familiarity with the shepherd=s voice. You=ve got to have a reservoir from which to draw. You can=t wait for the fire to erupt and then devise a plan for containing it.

We began planning the LSM Retreat for next February. During the conference call, I asked the students whether they were as familiar with the Bible as they felt they should be. Most agreed that they didn=t know the content and were often at a loss biblically to defend their faith. I gave them a challenge; I hope what I gave them was permission. You don=t need to master the whole Bible - all you need to do is to read one book. Pick a book - maybe one of the Gospels or Paul=s letter to the Church in Rome or good old Genesis. Select a book and read it. Read it a couple of times. Give yourself a whole month to come to some understanding of what this book is saying.

We can=t move from where to we are to where we want to be in one giant step. We have to get there by degrees. We have to start where we are in establishing an ability to discern between what is the Word of God and that which is the rambling of some self-absorbed broker of false piety.

If you want to test whether someone speaks for Christ, a good place to start is by asking a few questions about the manner in which they speak. Jesus reserved his strong words of condemnation for those who were confident in their own piety. He did not begin his interaction with sinners by condemning them and warning them about the fires of hell. Those warnings were for the Pharisees and Sadducees and those who kept the books of law.

Christ came so that we might have life and have it abundantly. Far from scaring us into God=s arms, the voice of God is one that invites us into a loving and caring relationship. This Word of the Shepherd we don=t say often enough or loud enough. Some recent converts to Christian faith may be here because they are afraid of the consequences - but few stay for those reasons.

There are many who would like to serve as gatekeepers. There are many who would like to decide who is in and who must remain out. Sometimes, these distinctions are difficult to make. Sometimes, there is no reason to make them at all. It terribly important that we learn to recognize the voice of our shepherd - we must have someone to guide and lead us. We will never recognize that voice unless we spend some time listening to it. The life that God wants us to have is a precious gift. It is a glorious thing. It is an abundant life, a full life a life of meaning and purpose. It is a life saved from the futility of trying to prove myself and amass symbols of power and strength.

This is the promise of our God. This is the Word of the Lord.

Amen.

Devotions - Tuesday, April 8

I Peter 2:1-3 speaks of the "living stone," rejected by some, but used by God to construct our eternal home. This "living stone," is the corner upon which we are encouraged to build our lives.

I was taken back, once more, to our time in Germany. The churches which we visited are visited each year by thousands of tourists. The difference is that they see the stones and marvel at the buildings. We were allowed to see the life within those stones, the life which flows from the faith of those for whom those buildings represent a community of faith.

How often do we make reference to the buildings, when someone asks us about our church? How easily do we allow the bricks to become a poor representation of the community which gathers inside.

The Church is built upon a Living Stone. With this foundation, it is itself alive. Think of this Living Stone, when you speak to others about your faith and your faith community. Think of this Living Stone when you examine that upon which your own life is built.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Monday, April 7

One of the presenters at this weekend's campus ministry conference was Amy-Jill Levine. An Orthodox Jew, who teaches New Testament at the Vanderbilt Divinity School, she had many interesting insights.

One of the questions asked of her went something along the lines of, "You have referred to the Good News of Jesus Christ several times. As a scholar, as a non-Christians, how would you describe that 'Good News?'"

We hear a lot of talk about the Good News. You have probably heard me say that Good News must always be good news: News which lifts up, news which builds up, news which brings life. Amy-Jill finally settled on the word (for that morning she pointed out) of freedom. The Good News, she said, is the news which sets us free: Free from our fears, free from our doubts, free from systems or mindsets which oppress.

This morning I was reading I Peter 1:23-25. Peter quotes Isaiah 40:6-9, then makes a comment about good news: "'For the word of the Lord endures forever.' That word is the good news that was announced to you."

So much of what we experience in life is temporary. My weekend conference is the annual gathering I most look forward to - and yet it ends so quickly. As a student community, we know that our life together is only 15 weeks long - that with the end of the semester some will graduate, some will go on coop, some will be forced to schedule a class for Wednesday evening. During the years in which we struggle to find and identify ourselves, friendships end quickly. When we head home for a long break, we discover that the friends with whom we shared so much during high school have also experienced life-changing events.

Certainly, the Good News of Jesus Christ contains more than an assurance of permanency. But it does contain that. It is the promise that as things around us change, God's Word will remain. We never have to venture far in order to find the assurance sufficient to anchor our lives.

Pastor Chris

Devotions - Tuesday, April 1

It is great to be back home. Our two weeks in Germany were a blessing, but there is nothing as wonderful as coming back home and being among those who know us best.

Those of you on this list for a number of years will doubtless recognize the themes upon which I am likely to reflect in the weeks to come. We experienced God much the same as on our last trips - through the people. The members of Sts. Peter & Paul and St. Andreas welcomed us into their homes and into their lives. We experienced the Church as a place of great history and as a community alive in service.

Helga is the matriarch of the parish. She directed our work in cleaning the churches. As we did so, she spoke of the buildings and told stories of how the history affects current church life. We learned at in the alter of St. Andreas there are bones (human bones it appeared) which were in a reliquary at St. Nicholas Church. The exact origin of these is unknown, but the stories included reference to St. Nicholas. The presence of those bones, and the care in making sure that they remained in the sanctuary of the worshiping community, served as a reminder that the community of saints includes those who live and those who have gone before.

Herr Herman hosted three of our group for dinner one evening. His English is weak, his witness is strong. He was one of those involved in the Candlelight Revolution, the movement which brought down the Berlin Wall. He told the students of his trip to Berlin, to take a swing at the wall and dislodge this barrier to freedom.

When looking for assurance of God's presence, we so often look to the heavens. It is at God's people that we should direct our gaze. It is among them that we are able to see the hope and promise which sustains us in our own journey. It is among them that we are able to see the spirit which directs our days and our deeds.

It is good to be back home. I look forward to seeing (with renewed eyes) God's work among all of you.

Pastor Chris