Misunderstandings abound, with regard to the resurrection. In Matthew 22, Jesus encounters a group of Sadducees. They pose to him the scenario in which a man dies without having produced any children. As required by Jewish law, his brother marries the widow in order in hopes of a child for his brother. The second brother dies, as does the third, and a fourth. There were seven brothers in all; none are blessed with a child. “Whose wife will she be in the resurrection?” they ask Jesus.
“You are wrong,” Jesus tells them. “For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage.”
Misunderstandings abound.
My thoughts and prayers this morning returned to a popular theme – we tend to answer these questions in a way which holds forth what we most want to hear. We think of the resurrection as a reward for living rightly rather than seeing it as an opportunity to praise God 24/7. Such thinking puts heaven of – it becomes a future event.
Responding to a video clip on Facebook, I found myself speaking of a differing understanding of resurrection. Such an understanding is reinforced by Jesus’ repeated acknowledgement that “the kingdom of God is at hand.” Resurrection, heaven – these are not future rewards for a life lived a certain way here and now. These are present realities for those who know themselves to be participants in “The Way.” In becoming a disciple of Jesus, we are already transformed into residents of heaven. Our resurrection has begun.
Sure, I look forward to that day on which what I see now dimly will be fully revealed. Yes, I anticipate a joy which bursts open the sense of joy I find in my life today. But that fuller expression has already begun in what God is doing in my life right now.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Sermon - December 6, 2009
Advent 2 - Year C
December 6, 2009
Philippians 1:3-11 & Luke 3:1-6
Anticipating God’s Joy
This wooden sign (a carving which bears the simple words "Pastor Christ") has moved from location to location in my office. For the past several months, it has been leaning against the bookshelf behind the door. It has suffered a bit of damage, during the remolding. But it has been in my office ever since I got to Clemson. It was also in my office in Houghton for the last three years I was there. As you can image - and as you are about to find out - this sign has sentimental value to me. It meant a lot to me at the time and (on those days when I might feel otherwise) it reminds me why I am a pastor.
This sign was a gift to me from Randy. Randy’s name won’t show up on the roster of any of the churches where I served as pastor - I don’t think he ever came, even once to a worship service or a bible study. And yet, he made this sign for me and ever since, I have kept it very close by.
Randy was in the Houghton County Jail. I honestly cannot remember the charges which resulted in his being arrested. I do know that he had been there for a while and that he wasn’t getting many visitors. He decided that he would like to have a pastor come talk to him. I wasn’t the first to be asked to visit with him. In fact, our little church was so small that few even knew we were there. A guard at the jail had started making calls, trying to find a pastor who would come to visit with Randy. He went, first of all, to the larger congregations in town. With no commitment to visit, he decided to call the preacher at that little church - the one that used to be a house. And so, I started visiting Randy.
Randy had started reading the bible, but he didn’t understand what it meant. He wanted someone to help him understand what he was reading. I would sit with him in the snack room and respond to his questions about this verse or that chapter. I tried to help him understand God’s love for him and to encourage him to be strong in his hope for a return to a “normal” life. Finally, after months in the county jail, he was released. Not completely set free, he went to the home of a friend where he was under house arrest. He had one of those ankle brace things, connected to the telephone. The phone was connected to a machine which could dial up the house and tell whether or not Randy was there.
When Randy got out of the jail - others began to come and visit with him. Some of them weren’t too keen on this new-found church friend (me) and if I happened to be there when they dropped by, it was very uncomfortable. And so, after a while, Randy and I stopped getting together.
It had been a while since I had seen Randy when he stopped by the office one day. He was carrying this. He handed it to me and he thanked me. And then he told me that things weren’t going so well for him. He knew it was a lot of different things - some things of his own making, others which he was powerless to control. But he had made the sign for me and he wanted me to have it. He told me how he missed those months when he was in the Houghton County Jail and we were visiting and talking and he was so close to capturing a sense of hope for his life.
I never saw him again. I heard later - a year, maybe six months - that he was back in jail. This time it was the State Penitentiary in Jackson. He wrote me one letter from there. He never replied to my reply.
I keep this sign in my office, as a reminder. It reminds me that sometimes the most meaningful events in our lives are marginal events. Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by its outward appearance.
John, son of Zachariah, could not be evaluated based on his outward appearances, either. He comes to be known as John the Baptist, and he has the distinction of being labeled as the Messiah’s messenger. He is the one who gets to tell everyone that their savior is coming. But his proclamation of that message isn’t in the comforts of his own little village or its temple grounds. No-o-o-o, he has to go out into the wilderness, out in the barren countryside where he eats a diet of locust and wild honey. He gets to tell everyone that they are about to see the salvation of God, but he has to speak these words while standing knee-deep in the muddy waters of some back-wash little stream.
Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by traditional indicators of a good time.
This insight is revealed in the book of Philippians. The letter is known for its continual reminders of the “joy” which had infected Paul’s life. He says, “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you.” Later, he encourages the Philippians to make my joy complete by having the same mind and being in full accord. Paul speaks of this joy, even though he writes the letter from prison. He is in jail, and yet he is filled with joy and must find some way to let this joy be known to those in Philippi.
Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by its outward appearance.
Paul was in prison, and yet he encouraged others to join him. John looked like a raving maniac, and yet the crowds flocked out to hear what he had to say. These were not attractive men living exemplary lives. And yet, there was something which drew others to them. What was it?
In a very short writing, addressing the same reality of which I now speak, Joseph Sittler said what was so attractive about these men was precisely the joy of which Paul writes. Sittler says that joy is a highly desirable gift. It attracts us and draws us close. Those who possess joy are a marvel and we want to get enough in hopes it will rub off onto us.
Sittler is very careful to point out that joy is different from happiness. Happiness is contingent upon the circumstances of our lives. We are happy when good things happen to us; we become sad then things don’t go too well. Joy, Sittler writes, is something different; something lasting; something not dependent upon the waxing and waning of lives’ circumstances. Joy, he says, is the awareness that we are part of something larger than ourselves. Joy is the gift which comes to those who know they are valued and that this value can never be questioned. Joy, is a trait which belongs to those who have experienced the depth of God’s love.
St. Paul was filled with joy. He wasn’t very happy about his imprisonment - but he was filled with joy. He knew that in all things, God would be with him and would care for him. John didn’t go out to the wilderness because he thought it would be a great place to establish an amusement park. He went out there in order to remove the detractions of a life consumed with the agendas of our own making. It is with joy that he proclaims the arrival of God’s salvation. My friend Randy wasn’t happy in that Houghton County Jail cell, but for a little while he was allowed to believe that his life could be meaningful. He glimpsed the joy, seeing enough to at least know what he was missing.
We can work really hard, and through our efforts a great deal of happiness can come into the lives of those we love. By our attention to detail, we can craft celebrations which will bring a smile to the faces of those around us. We can bring a great deal of happiness by purchasing and placing under the tree just the right gift. We should do such things - it is appropriate for us to bring as much happiness as we can into the lives of those around us.
But Joy is a gift which comes from knowing that we are part of something larger than our own lives, more encompassing than our own well-planned social events, longer lasting than the glitter which adorns our homes and shopping malls. Joy is knowing that God has taken notice of us and in response to our needs, God is coming to make his home among us. We sign of this reality every time we intone: “Joy to the World! The Lord has come!”
I am looking forward to this evening’s congregational Christmas party. It is a fun event, and one that brings much happiness. Particularly happy are the students, as they gobble up the food and watch their stockings fill with good things. But, it isn’t the happiness which comes as a result of our efforts which matters. Happiness isn’t enough. We gather in order to celebrate the joy which has entered our world and now seeks to enter our individual lives.
The same is to be said with regard to all our gatherings. We should strive for happiness in the lives of God’s children. But it is our connection with God which will brings Joy. Joy is God’s gift to us; it is the confidence of knowing that our lives have greater significance than might be revealed in outward appearances.
Let’s not worry so much about making everybody happy. Focus instead on bringing joy into their lives. Focus on bringing joy into your own life. When we focus on the joy, it becomes much easier for us to bring happiness into the lives of those around us.
Amen.
December 6, 2009
Philippians 1:3-11 & Luke 3:1-6
Anticipating God’s Joy
This wooden sign (a carving which bears the simple words "Pastor Christ") has moved from location to location in my office. For the past several months, it has been leaning against the bookshelf behind the door. It has suffered a bit of damage, during the remolding. But it has been in my office ever since I got to Clemson. It was also in my office in Houghton for the last three years I was there. As you can image - and as you are about to find out - this sign has sentimental value to me. It meant a lot to me at the time and (on those days when I might feel otherwise) it reminds me why I am a pastor.
This sign was a gift to me from Randy. Randy’s name won’t show up on the roster of any of the churches where I served as pastor - I don’t think he ever came, even once to a worship service or a bible study. And yet, he made this sign for me and ever since, I have kept it very close by.
Randy was in the Houghton County Jail. I honestly cannot remember the charges which resulted in his being arrested. I do know that he had been there for a while and that he wasn’t getting many visitors. He decided that he would like to have a pastor come talk to him. I wasn’t the first to be asked to visit with him. In fact, our little church was so small that few even knew we were there. A guard at the jail had started making calls, trying to find a pastor who would come to visit with Randy. He went, first of all, to the larger congregations in town. With no commitment to visit, he decided to call the preacher at that little church - the one that used to be a house. And so, I started visiting Randy.
Randy had started reading the bible, but he didn’t understand what it meant. He wanted someone to help him understand what he was reading. I would sit with him in the snack room and respond to his questions about this verse or that chapter. I tried to help him understand God’s love for him and to encourage him to be strong in his hope for a return to a “normal” life. Finally, after months in the county jail, he was released. Not completely set free, he went to the home of a friend where he was under house arrest. He had one of those ankle brace things, connected to the telephone. The phone was connected to a machine which could dial up the house and tell whether or not Randy was there.
When Randy got out of the jail - others began to come and visit with him. Some of them weren’t too keen on this new-found church friend (me) and if I happened to be there when they dropped by, it was very uncomfortable. And so, after a while, Randy and I stopped getting together.
It had been a while since I had seen Randy when he stopped by the office one day. He was carrying this. He handed it to me and he thanked me. And then he told me that things weren’t going so well for him. He knew it was a lot of different things - some things of his own making, others which he was powerless to control. But he had made the sign for me and he wanted me to have it. He told me how he missed those months when he was in the Houghton County Jail and we were visiting and talking and he was so close to capturing a sense of hope for his life.
I never saw him again. I heard later - a year, maybe six months - that he was back in jail. This time it was the State Penitentiary in Jackson. He wrote me one letter from there. He never replied to my reply.
I keep this sign in my office, as a reminder. It reminds me that sometimes the most meaningful events in our lives are marginal events. Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by its outward appearance.
John, son of Zachariah, could not be evaluated based on his outward appearances, either. He comes to be known as John the Baptist, and he has the distinction of being labeled as the Messiah’s messenger. He is the one who gets to tell everyone that their savior is coming. But his proclamation of that message isn’t in the comforts of his own little village or its temple grounds. No-o-o-o, he has to go out into the wilderness, out in the barren countryside where he eats a diet of locust and wild honey. He gets to tell everyone that they are about to see the salvation of God, but he has to speak these words while standing knee-deep in the muddy waters of some back-wash little stream.
Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by traditional indicators of a good time.
This insight is revealed in the book of Philippians. The letter is known for its continual reminders of the “joy” which had infected Paul’s life. He says, “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you.” Later, he encourages the Philippians to make my joy complete by having the same mind and being in full accord. Paul speaks of this joy, even though he writes the letter from prison. He is in jail, and yet he is filled with joy and must find some way to let this joy be known to those in Philippi.
Sometimes, the significance of an event cannot be measured by its outward appearance.
Paul was in prison, and yet he encouraged others to join him. John looked like a raving maniac, and yet the crowds flocked out to hear what he had to say. These were not attractive men living exemplary lives. And yet, there was something which drew others to them. What was it?
In a very short writing, addressing the same reality of which I now speak, Joseph Sittler said what was so attractive about these men was precisely the joy of which Paul writes. Sittler says that joy is a highly desirable gift. It attracts us and draws us close. Those who possess joy are a marvel and we want to get enough in hopes it will rub off onto us.
Sittler is very careful to point out that joy is different from happiness. Happiness is contingent upon the circumstances of our lives. We are happy when good things happen to us; we become sad then things don’t go too well. Joy, Sittler writes, is something different; something lasting; something not dependent upon the waxing and waning of lives’ circumstances. Joy, he says, is the awareness that we are part of something larger than ourselves. Joy is the gift which comes to those who know they are valued and that this value can never be questioned. Joy, is a trait which belongs to those who have experienced the depth of God’s love.
St. Paul was filled with joy. He wasn’t very happy about his imprisonment - but he was filled with joy. He knew that in all things, God would be with him and would care for him. John didn’t go out to the wilderness because he thought it would be a great place to establish an amusement park. He went out there in order to remove the detractions of a life consumed with the agendas of our own making. It is with joy that he proclaims the arrival of God’s salvation. My friend Randy wasn’t happy in that Houghton County Jail cell, but for a little while he was allowed to believe that his life could be meaningful. He glimpsed the joy, seeing enough to at least know what he was missing.
We can work really hard, and through our efforts a great deal of happiness can come into the lives of those we love. By our attention to detail, we can craft celebrations which will bring a smile to the faces of those around us. We can bring a great deal of happiness by purchasing and placing under the tree just the right gift. We should do such things - it is appropriate for us to bring as much happiness as we can into the lives of those around us.
But Joy is a gift which comes from knowing that we are part of something larger than our own lives, more encompassing than our own well-planned social events, longer lasting than the glitter which adorns our homes and shopping malls. Joy is knowing that God has taken notice of us and in response to our needs, God is coming to make his home among us. We sign of this reality every time we intone: “Joy to the World! The Lord has come!”
I am looking forward to this evening’s congregational Christmas party. It is a fun event, and one that brings much happiness. Particularly happy are the students, as they gobble up the food and watch their stockings fill with good things. But, it isn’t the happiness which comes as a result of our efforts which matters. Happiness isn’t enough. We gather in order to celebrate the joy which has entered our world and now seeks to enter our individual lives.
The same is to be said with regard to all our gatherings. We should strive for happiness in the lives of God’s children. But it is our connection with God which will brings Joy. Joy is God’s gift to us; it is the confidence of knowing that our lives have greater significance than might be revealed in outward appearances.
Let’s not worry so much about making everybody happy. Focus instead on bringing joy into their lives. Focus on bringing joy into your own life. When we focus on the joy, it becomes much easier for us to bring happiness into the lives of those around us.
Amen.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Devotion - Thursday, December 3
One of the difficult things about being a pastor is making sure that your own view of Christian theology does not prevent you from giving voice to the whole of Christian theology. While we each have our personal interpretations, in order to be a respectable teacher we must also speak of differing interpretations.
I thought of this as I reflected on last night’s discussion of the Advent 1 lessons. A student raised the feeling that the lessons had some very scary images associated with the coming of Messiah.
Was it my influence, or would the conversation have moved on its own to a more hopeful interpretation of those images? For this is what it did. Moved toward the thought that these scary images are but reminders that nothing can possibly stand in the way of God. Moved away from any suggestion that these images ought to instill fear in us.
There is a part of Christian theology which speaks very openly about being fearful. It is the fear associated with God’s demand for righteousness. It is a fear of being made aware of how distant we are from that righteousness.
Advent is a time to anticipate God’s arrival in our lives. This does not mean that is to be completely void of any examination of our sinfulness. As we celebrate the abundance of God’s gifts in the giving and receiving of presents we must avoid the temptation to ignore the needs of others.
There is a scary side of Messiah’s coming. It is the realization that Messiah will reveal all things – including our abandonment of God’s call to share our bread and offer care to our neighbor.
I thought of this as I reflected on last night’s discussion of the Advent 1 lessons. A student raised the feeling that the lessons had some very scary images associated with the coming of Messiah.
Was it my influence, or would the conversation have moved on its own to a more hopeful interpretation of those images? For this is what it did. Moved toward the thought that these scary images are but reminders that nothing can possibly stand in the way of God. Moved away from any suggestion that these images ought to instill fear in us.
There is a part of Christian theology which speaks very openly about being fearful. It is the fear associated with God’s demand for righteousness. It is a fear of being made aware of how distant we are from that righteousness.
Advent is a time to anticipate God’s arrival in our lives. This does not mean that is to be completely void of any examination of our sinfulness. As we celebrate the abundance of God’s gifts in the giving and receiving of presents we must avoid the temptation to ignore the needs of others.
There is a scary side of Messiah’s coming. It is the realization that Messiah will reveal all things – including our abandonment of God’s call to share our bread and offer care to our neighbor.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Devotion - Wednesday, December 2
If, as suggested in yesterday’s offering, there is impatience among Christ’s followers, a notion of “What have you done for us lately,” perhaps it arises from the years which have passed between now and the promise from Jesus that he would come again. 2 Peter 3 speaks of this very problem.
It seems that the Church in the first century had persons asking why it was taking so long. Peter warns that “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” We have no way of knowing when the visit with occur; there is even the suggestion that the arrival will come at the very time we least expect it.
The coming of Christ anticipated by the early Church and written about by Peter is the final coming; the event referred to as the “end of time.” They were looking for that great cataclysmic event at which all things will be handed over to God.
It is often suggested, that in looking for that one great, final event we miss many epiphanies along the way; that in our desire to see the one great arrival, we might be missing the visits of Christ which are perhaps less dramatic, but no less meaningful.
Pastor Hartsell’s sermon on Sunday spoke of Jeremiah’s response to the impending doom of Israel. He goes out and purchases of piece of land. The big picture is re-interpreted through the small, simple act. We might wait for the final arrival of Christ. We might better understand what that arrival looks like were we to notice the expressions of grace set before us each day.
It seems that the Church in the first century had persons asking why it was taking so long. Peter warns that “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” We have no way of knowing when the visit with occur; there is even the suggestion that the arrival will come at the very time we least expect it.
The coming of Christ anticipated by the early Church and written about by Peter is the final coming; the event referred to as the “end of time.” They were looking for that great cataclysmic event at which all things will be handed over to God.
It is often suggested, that in looking for that one great, final event we miss many epiphanies along the way; that in our desire to see the one great arrival, we might be missing the visits of Christ which are perhaps less dramatic, but no less meaningful.
Pastor Hartsell’s sermon on Sunday spoke of Jeremiah’s response to the impending doom of Israel. He goes out and purchases of piece of land. The big picture is re-interpreted through the small, simple act. We might wait for the final arrival of Christ. We might better understand what that arrival looks like were we to notice the expressions of grace set before us each day.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Devotion - December 1
“But what have you done for us lately?”
Typically, we hear this comment in jest. But sometimes, there is a bite to its utterance. When present, even if not expressed, it gives birth to the horrible feeling that one could never do enough.
My heart ached this morning with the thought of God, peering into our hearts and lives only to discover an attitude of “What have you done for us lately?”
It started with the prophet Amos, who in the 3rd chapter chides his readers with “The Lord God has spoken, who can but prophesy?” How can those who have heard God speak keep silent? How can those who have beheld God’s grace turn inward upon themselves and say not a word?
I wonder if a terrible misunderstanding of 2 Peter 1:21 explains our silence? We read, “no prophesy ever came by human impulse, but those persons moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” Do we make the outlandish claim, “If the Spirit were more active, then I would speak.”?
What more must God do? God, who set aside the comforts of heaven, comes to us at Bethlehem. God, who created all that is took on the form of those who are so that we might never doubt our worth. What more must God do? What more could God do?
My heart ached this morning when I wondered if we have allowed the events of Christmas to become a long-ago historical event. One which wowed those who were its first observers but a historical event we associate with the past. “Sure, that was wonderful. But what have you done for us lately?”
What has God done?!?! God has done it all! Who can but prophesy?
Typically, we hear this comment in jest. But sometimes, there is a bite to its utterance. When present, even if not expressed, it gives birth to the horrible feeling that one could never do enough.
My heart ached this morning with the thought of God, peering into our hearts and lives only to discover an attitude of “What have you done for us lately?”
It started with the prophet Amos, who in the 3rd chapter chides his readers with “The Lord God has spoken, who can but prophesy?” How can those who have heard God speak keep silent? How can those who have beheld God’s grace turn inward upon themselves and say not a word?
I wonder if a terrible misunderstanding of 2 Peter 1:21 explains our silence? We read, “no prophesy ever came by human impulse, but those persons moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” Do we make the outlandish claim, “If the Spirit were more active, then I would speak.”?
What more must God do? God, who set aside the comforts of heaven, comes to us at Bethlehem. God, who created all that is took on the form of those who are so that we might never doubt our worth. What more must God do? What more could God do?
My heart ached this morning when I wondered if we have allowed the events of Christmas to become a long-ago historical event. One which wowed those who were its first observers but a historical event we associate with the past. “Sure, that was wonderful. But what have you done for us lately?”
What has God done?!?! God has done it all! Who can but prophesy?
Monday, November 30, 2009
Devotion - Monday, November 30
One of the battles we lose in campus ministry is honoring the liturgical calendar. The academic calendar trumps any attempts to follow the wonderful flow of the Church year.
You may have had opportunity to attend worship yesterday, before returning to campus. But any talk of building expectations during a four-week journey together was lost on those who knew they would soon exit the community and relocate somewhere else.
Because of the approach of final exams, we have scheduled our Christmas Party for this Friday. In order to share a joyous time with you, the congregation has scheduled its Christmas Dinner for this coming Sunday.
We lose the battle in honoring this liturgical season.
Today is Monday of the week of Advent 1. Advent, the four weeks prior to Christmas, is a time to make ready our lives and our world for the entry of our Christ. It is an essential time, a time to examine where it is in our lives that we will make room for the Christ child. It is a time to reflect on what his birth will mean.
The Gospel lesson for this day is the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Read Matthew 21:1-11. Envision the one we call Messiah, seated on a donkey. It was only after they saw (and perhaps understood) what Jesus was doing that they began to spread their coats and leafy palm branches in his way. The scene is of an unimposing, simple servant, entering.
Deitrich Bonhoeffer wrote: “God is the beyond in the midst of life, not simply where human powers give out at the borders, but in the center of human achievement and joyous living.”
Jesus enters our world as unassuming as possible. His entry is designed in such a way to communicate that he does not desire palaces and places of honor but the chance to be with us in the dirty and dusty streets.
Moving too quickly to some grand and glorious Hallelujah chorus might cause us to miss the significance of what is happening. God is not simply where human powers give out; God is in the very heart of all that we do and are. He is the source of our joyous living.
You may have had opportunity to attend worship yesterday, before returning to campus. But any talk of building expectations during a four-week journey together was lost on those who knew they would soon exit the community and relocate somewhere else.
Because of the approach of final exams, we have scheduled our Christmas Party for this Friday. In order to share a joyous time with you, the congregation has scheduled its Christmas Dinner for this coming Sunday.
We lose the battle in honoring this liturgical season.
Today is Monday of the week of Advent 1. Advent, the four weeks prior to Christmas, is a time to make ready our lives and our world for the entry of our Christ. It is an essential time, a time to examine where it is in our lives that we will make room for the Christ child. It is a time to reflect on what his birth will mean.
The Gospel lesson for this day is the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Read Matthew 21:1-11. Envision the one we call Messiah, seated on a donkey. It was only after they saw (and perhaps understood) what Jesus was doing that they began to spread their coats and leafy palm branches in his way. The scene is of an unimposing, simple servant, entering.
Deitrich Bonhoeffer wrote: “God is the beyond in the midst of life, not simply where human powers give out at the borders, but in the center of human achievement and joyous living.”
Jesus enters our world as unassuming as possible. His entry is designed in such a way to communicate that he does not desire palaces and places of honor but the chance to be with us in the dirty and dusty streets.
Moving too quickly to some grand and glorious Hallelujah chorus might cause us to miss the significance of what is happening. God is not simply where human powers give out; God is in the very heart of all that we do and are. He is the source of our joyous living.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Devotion - Tuesday, November 24
The Thanksgiving Break begins this afternoon. You are probably already in Thanksgiving mode, having spent the last couple of days working out travel plans and getting assignments turned in. Now, you are heading home for a few days and the chance to reconnect with family.
(Let me add a note that I realize not everyone will be doing so. While we have the image of the holidays as times of family cheer that is not the reality for far too many within our midst.)
This brings me back to my prayers from this morning. In this explanation to the 4th petition of the Lord’s Prayer, Martin Luther writes, “Daily bread includes everything needed for this life, such as food and clothing, home and property, work and income, a devoted family, an orderly community, good government, favorable weather, peace and health, a good name, and true friends and neighbors.” That is an impressive list. It is an honest list.
We believe and teach that all things come from God’s hand. We believe and teach that God (as also stated in Luther’s Small Catechism,) “gives daily bread, even without our prayer, to all people, though sinful, but we ask in this prayer that he will help us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with thanks.”
May we realize all that God has given us, and receive it with thanks.
Here is a thought. When Luther wrote his small catechism he intended it to be posted in the home so parents could teach their children its wisdom. Why not make a slight reversal, print this devotion (or open your copy of the Small Catechism) and on Thanksgiving Day invite the family to recite together that 4th petition and its explanation. Your dinner table conversation could recount the ways in which these many and varied expressions of daily bread have come into your life.
Have a wonderful break. Be safe. See you next week.
(Let me add a note that I realize not everyone will be doing so. While we have the image of the holidays as times of family cheer that is not the reality for far too many within our midst.)
This brings me back to my prayers from this morning. In this explanation to the 4th petition of the Lord’s Prayer, Martin Luther writes, “Daily bread includes everything needed for this life, such as food and clothing, home and property, work and income, a devoted family, an orderly community, good government, favorable weather, peace and health, a good name, and true friends and neighbors.” That is an impressive list. It is an honest list.
We believe and teach that all things come from God’s hand. We believe and teach that God (as also stated in Luther’s Small Catechism,) “gives daily bread, even without our prayer, to all people, though sinful, but we ask in this prayer that he will help us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with thanks.”
May we realize all that God has given us, and receive it with thanks.
Here is a thought. When Luther wrote his small catechism he intended it to be posted in the home so parents could teach their children its wisdom. Why not make a slight reversal, print this devotion (or open your copy of the Small Catechism) and on Thanksgiving Day invite the family to recite together that 4th petition and its explanation. Your dinner table conversation could recount the ways in which these many and varied expressions of daily bread have come into your life.
Have a wonderful break. Be safe. See you next week.
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