Living Fearlessly in a Fear Filled World

“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2

It was a dark night.  Shepherds were out in the fields around Bethlehem.  They were, Luke tells us, “keeping watch over their flocks.”  The stillness was broken only by their conversations.  Who knows maybe one or two were watching the sheep while the others slept.  Suddenly the quiet was shattered.  “An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. Now this word “fear” is no small thing.  This does not mean that they were simply startled by the angel.  This is the word for real deep-seated terror.  A literal translation of the text would read, “they feared a great fear.”

What does that mean?  All you need do is think back to what happened just south of here last May in Santa Fe, Texas.  Do you remember the school shooting?  I am sure that every parent with a son or daughter at Santa Fe High School that day “feared a great fear…” I remember a night when the police called us. Ben had been in an accident.  They were taking him to the hospital. But they couldn’t tell us his condition… couldn’t even tell us if he was alive.  As we raced the 18 miles to the hospital Linda and I feared a great fear.  There are many such moments of fear great and small – knowing they are laying off at work, then finding out that the boss wants to see you… Or having the doctor tell you they found stage 4 cancer… or getting the call you dreaded in the middle of the night… the call that one of your parents is gone… or knowing that you have to tell the truth to someone… confess a wrong you’ve done to someone you really care about… there are many moments when we fear a great fear!

This shouldn’t surprise us. Fear is the natural fruit of being sinners in a sinful world.  The very first mention of fear in the Bible comes immediately after the first sin.  Adam tells the Lord, “I heard the sound of you in the garden and I was afraid…”  Sin, you see, is having the audacity to say no to God… its believing you don’t need Him, that you can handle life on your own.  The trouble is you can’t say no to God and get away with it forever.  Sooner or later it will catch up with you.  That’s why Isaiah was so afraid when he had His vision of God in the temple.  Isaiah literally feared a great fear.  “Woe is me!” He cried out, “For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”     You may think you can handle life on your own, but sooner or later you come up against something that is too big for you, something you can’t handle.

This past week I have had conversations with 2 ladies who have come up against things in life that they can’t handle on their own – Cheryl Webb from Fishers and my sister Lois.  Cheryl’s husband is recovering from a heart transplant.  Instead of bringing Wes home, his health has gone from bad to worse.  My sister has spent the month caring for her husband. He has started chemo – not to save his life but to make it last a little longer.  This has been a very different Christmas for both ladies.    Instead of parties and Christmas cookies and decorations – there have been ups and downs, setbacks, worries and fears.  Yet as I visited with each of them, our conversations have made clear that when everything else got stripped away, the heart of Christmas has remained. The message of the angels has resonated in their hearts.  What they can’t handle… what we can’t handle on our own – God has handled for us.  He has given His own Son to be born of Mary in Bethlehem.  “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  It is not by coincidence that when the angel offers the shepherds “great joy” it’s the same word used to describe the shepherds “great fear.”  Even as the shepherds feared a great fear God invites them to “joy a great joy.”  In that good news of the birth of Jesus He invited those shepherds… He invites Cheryl and Lois… He invites us to live fearlessly, even joyfully in a fear filled world.

One thing that makes this joy so great is that it’s a gift, not a command. Two Sundays ago, I told you about the mother who kept yelling at her little girls to smile for their Christmas photo. In the end all they could do was cry.   That mother discovered what God already knows. We can’t just rejoice on demand.  We can’t just summon joy on command.  So, He doesn’t demand joy! Fear Not, He gifts it to us.  He gives it to us “wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”  The joy He gives is a person - His own son Jesus Christ our Lord! God Himself comes into the midst of our fears… into the midst of our worries and sorrows.  He becomes one of us to walk with us through it all.  A couple of weeks ago, before he got so very sick I sat and visited with Cheryl’s husband Wes.  He shared with me the most amazing testimony to faith – “No matter what happens,” he told me, “whether for life or death, I am not afraid.” “How?” I asked.  “Why?”  “Because,” He said, “I know that God is with me.  I know what my savior has done for me.”  That’s the heart of the Christmas message.  That’s what the angels are telling us.  In Jesus God has become our Immanuel… He has become God with us!  That’s the joy of Christmas that drives out fear.

That joy is no fleeting emotion.  It’s not at the mercy of life’s changing winds.  It’s much more than a wish on a Christmas card. The joy God gives is real and lasting.  It’s as real as the flesh and blood of that little baby in the manger.  This child is God Himself taking on our fears.  Taking our flesh and blood… living our lives... carrying our sorrows, our failures, our wounds, our deepest and greatest fears to the cross.  This gift is Jesus rising again triumphant over it all, triumphing over sin and death.   It’s not by chance that the first words of the angels on Easter morning are the same as those of Christmas – “Fear not! For I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen…  Jesus is the joy that has defeated all that we fear. 

After one of these many school shootings, one of my former students described the fear that she and her husband were feeling - the same fear many parents have felt.  They tried to shield their first grader from all the news.  But he went to school and heard all about it.  When the little boy came home he told his father, “Don’t worry daddy. I’ll be okay.”  Choking back tears the father asked him, “How do you know Gideon?”  “Because Daddy, Jesus loves me.”  That little boy at that moment was God’s Christmas angel sent to speak joy into his daddy’s fears. 

We live in world filled with fearful headlines – war in every corner… terrorism… shootings in schools and churches… the list is endless.  Even worse are the personal fears and worries that plague your heart and mine – about struggles at home, about friends who are hurting, about the future, about your job, your kids, your finances – you know what they are.  Well tonight we celebrate the new story that pushes that fear completely off the headlines and out of our lives.  It’s good news… an invitation to live fearlessly in this fear filled world… and invitation to joy a great joy… a joy that defies our fears… a joy that defeats every enemy.  Of all things it’s a birth announcement.  An angel came to certain fearful shepherds.  His wonderful words speak to all of us tonight. “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  This is the news that defies every enemy and every worry.  This is the good news of great joy that casts out all fear forever.   Jesus the savior is born!  Merry Christmas!  Amen!

Dreaming of a Blue Christmas?

Hebrews 4:15–16 (ESV)

^“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

We have all heard of a “White Christmas,” made popular by the Irving Berlin musical.  But have you heard of a “blue Christmas?”  The phrase, I think, was made famous by the Elvis Presley song about a love he will dearly miss at Christmas time.  A blue Christmas is a Christmas that falls short of what people hope or expect Christmas to be.  Instead of joy it is marked by sadness or loneliness or depression.  There can be all sorts of reasons for this – a death, a divorce, loss of a job, being far from family, an illness, financial troubles, conflict and so forth.  Some of us have such high expectations of this season, that it’s bound to disappoint.  Nostalgia so idealizes our childhood memories of Christmas that the reality can never live up to the ideal.  Many look for Christmas with all its parties and decorations and gifts to be an escape from life’s troubles.  Instead those troubles don’t go away.  In fact, they are amplified by the season.  If you are struggling with finances, how disappointing is it when you can’t afford to buy all the presents you are supposed to buy for your children?  I know people who lost a loved one at Christmas time, who simply couldn’t bring themselves to go to church at Christmas.   For many a “blue Christmas” is a disappointing Christmas, a failed Christmas.

I wonder, however, if there is a different way to approach a “blue Christmas.”  Could a “blue Christmas” in God’s hands be the best Christmas ever… a Christmas through which God brings healing and hope to whatever pain you are experiencing? 

That healing, I believe, begins with seeing Christmas for what it really is.  God didn’t send His Son so that once a year we could escape, and pretend life’s troubles aren’t really.  He sent His Son because those struggles and problems are real.  Jesus came to stand in our place, to face and conquer those problems for us.  “He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows… But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” 

Our Lord understands what we are feeling and struggling with.  When you stop and think about it, there were many aspects of that first Christmas and of His life that were very “blue.”  I am sure no one believed Mary’s story that she was pregnant with God’s Son.  Joseph was ready to divorce her.  When they came to Bethlehem, ready to have the baby “there was no place for them in the Inn.”  Her first child’s first crib was a manger for feeding livestock.  The King tried to have her child killed and they had to flee to a foreign land.  In life, Jesus had no place to lay his head… no home of His own.  He was rejected by the religious leaders. He wept at a friend’s tomb. His own home town wanted nothing to do with Him.  One of His closest friends betrayed Him.  He was convicted on the basis of lies, whipped beaten, crowned with thorns and crucified.  Talk about a “blue Christmas!”  That’s good news for us in our blue Christmas.  He understands exactly what we are experiencing.  Jesus is able to “sympathize with our weaknesses for He was tempted in every way as we are…”

There is no need to deny the struggles we may have at this time of the year.  To paraphrase a passage of Scripture – “If we pretend we have no struggles, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us, but If we admit them to Him, He is faithful and just and will bring forgiveness or hope  or comfort or healing – whatever it is we need.”   Indeed, the Lord whose birth we celebrate came to conquer our struggles by His life, death and resurrection.  He invites us to bring our “blue Christmas” to Him.  “Come unto me,” Jesus says, “all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” 

Don’t run from your blue Christmas.  It’s real… no use in denying it. But also, don’t live that Christmas alone.  All of us experience it.  Let’s walk it together, holding each other up, as we approach God’s throne of grace “that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” That’s what Christmas is really about – not running from life but facing it with God who loved you so much that He took on flesh and blood, and became a part of this life, that you might have life.  That’s the true joy of Christmas – blue or white.

On Saying "Merry Christmas"

“And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation…”

2 Corinthians 5:19b

Over the last several years, at this time of year, you hear a lot of conversation about the “war on Christmas.”  Most of this centers around what is perceived as an effort to take Christ out of Christmas.  People get concerned because some public schools now have to call it “Winter break” rather than “Christmas break.”  In some schools the children are not allowed to sing Christmas songs that make reference to Jesus and His birth.  They can only sing secular songs like Jingle Bells and so forth. In some stores clerks have been instructed to wish people a “happy holidays” not “Merry Christmas.”  The stores, I guess are worried about offending customers who aren’t Christian.  All of this has many Christians offended.  “What right does the world have to take “Christ” out of Christmas.  This is our Christian holiday, the celebration of our savior’s birth.”

I, however, want to share with you a different perspective on all of this, one that is growing in my heart over the years.   In my humble opinion, we believers in Jesus should be neither surprised or offended that the unbelieving world sees no need to wish us a Merry Christmas.  When someone wishes me a “happy holiday season” I am grateful for their kindness and wishes for my happiness. 

What?  How can you not be offended that they are taking “Christ” out of Christmas?  The reason is simple.  It’s not the job of the unbelieving world to keep Christ in Christmas.  It’s my job and your job as believers in Jesus.  Read the text for this blog today – God “has committed to us the message of reconciliation…”  He has made known to us the great good news that “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting men’s sins against them.”  He has brought us to faith in the good news that “savior has been born who is Christ the Lord.”   His calling in our life is to share that wonderful message of Christmas with a world that doesn’t know about Jesus.

In other words, if Christ is being left out of Christmas, than we who believe in Jesus should look at ourselves… then that means we are failing to share the good news of great joy with a world that doesn’t know Jesus.  The Lord has convicted me that it’s not the world’s job to wish me a Merry Christmas.  He has called me (and you) to speak that wonderful greeting to the world. For me to be offended when the people don’t wish me a Merry Christmas, does not reflect very well on that wonderful message.

So, this is my thought today.  If you and I want Christ to be in Christmas, then He needs to be at the center of our hearts, of our words and our witness.  His love for us should be reflected in our response to and our love for the people in our schools, in our workplaces, in our neighborhoods and communities.  Let me suggest a better response when someone wishes you a happy holiday.  First, say thank you.  After all, isn’t it nice that someone would wish you happiness?  Then, wish them a Merry Christmas.  Maybe you can be even more bold and tell them “I pray that God would bless you this Christmas as we celebrate the birth of Jesus our savior.”  After all that’s the work and witness God has called us to give!   

There are Things More Important than Politics

Proverbs 17:17

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity”

You know when I was young I can remember my mom telling me, “There are two topics you never want to talk about with people – religion and politics.”  I always thought that seemed like a strange thing to say.  Why can’t you talk about those two topics?   As I have grown up I have come to understand that people have personal, strongly held opinions and beliefs about these matters.  Because people take these topics so seriously, conversations, especially disagreements about these topics can very easily become heated, even angry and divisive.  I guess that my parent’s generation decided it was better to avoid these topics than risk losing a friendship.

Now don’t get me wrong.  I am not sure that this was the best way to deal with difficult topics.  People should be able to talk about their beliefs and opinions.  We should be able even to disagree without losing a friendship.  We should be able to disagree without being disagreeable.

That’s what prompted me to write this devotion/blog this morning.  Somewhere along the line we have lost this.  The conversation in our culture, especially around the topic of politics, has become so toxic that friendship are being destroyed, families divided over political opinions.  We have become intolerant of disagreement.  I am not just talking about people defriending or unfollowing people on social media.  I have heard of good friends that won’t talk to each other, won’t even see each other anymore because of political disagreements.  I see this even among believers… in the church.

Could it be that we are all losing perspective?  When our political opinions are so important that we are willing to sacrifice friendship over those opinions- could it be that our opinions have become an idol, a false god in our lives?  Have we forgotten that there are things that are more important that politics?

I love these words from Proverbs 17 – “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Maybe it’s just me, but having a friend is far too valuable to sacrifice them on the altar of my own belief in the correctness of my political opinions.   Relationships, friends, family are some of the most valuable gifts God gives us.   

He certainly places a high value on those relationships.  Indeed He so desires to have a relationship with us… for us to have a loving relationship with each other that He became the “friend who loves at all times.”  He became the “brother born for adversity.”  God was in Jesus “reconciling the world to Himself.”  He came into this world to break down the dividing walls of hostility that divide us from one another… to reconcile us to each other by His cross.  That’s right our relationships with Him and with each other are so important to God that He gave His own Son.  His Son shed His blood on the cross to restore and heal those relationships.  He did that… He loves you and me regardless of our political affiliations and opinions. 

There are things that are more important than politics, than my opinions or yours.  People – the people God brings into our lives to know, to befriend, to love – they are far more valuable.  Jesus once said, “No greater love has any man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.  You are my friends.”  He has been for us a friend who loves at all times… loves us no matter what our opinions.  Now He calls us to place that same high value on the people around us, the people we work with, live with, play with, go to school with… even the people we disagree with.  I think it might help us to remember this. There are things that are more important than our politics.  The people God gives us to love – they are more important.  

A Blessed Thanksgiving

“O Give Thanks to the Lord for He is good and His mercy endures forever.”

Psalm 118:1

Thanksgiving is a uniquely American Holiday.  Though most churches celebrate the day with a worship service of some kind, Thanksgiving in America is a national, not a religious holiday. It is a day set aside for us to stop and remember something we should remember every day – all the things we have to be thankful for!  For we who believe – that means giving thanks to the good and merciful God who gives every good and perfect gift.

Today marks the first time Linda and I are celebrating Thanksgiving in America since 2013.  That doesn’t mean we haven’t celebrated these past 4 years.  Though American Thanksgiving is a work day in Germany, we celebrated every year – inviting our colleagues from the Trinity staff to join us for a traditional thanksgiving feast.  In addition, every year, the members of Trinity, from all over the world, would gather for a Thanksgiving Feast at Church on the Saturday before or after.  We would feast on Turkey yes, but also on Curry Chicken from India, on gluten free and vegetarian dishes, among other great dishes. 

Over there, the same things were important – family, friends, good food and grateful hearts!  We will treasure those thanksgivings in Germany.

Now we are back in America, celebrating this year with Beth and Jason, John and Robert. We are so grateful to be close to Ben's family and Steven.  Of course we miss Jon and Dora and Kellan. Once again, God has blessed us with a great congregation to serve and wonderful staff to serve alongside.   I think back over our lives so far – all the places he has taken us too, all the churches we have served, the 4 wonderful children, 3 in-laws, sisters, brother, 6 grandchildren (soon to be 7) and the list goes on.  But the truth is, what really makes for a great heart is faith – living in the assurance that no matter what He has loved us with an everlasting love… He will never leave us or forsake us. 

So for all our family and friends, now around the world (literally) Lind and I wish all of you a blessed Thanksgiving. 

The Secret of a Thankful Heart

Philippians 4:12-13

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. 

We complain a lot.  At least I do.  We complain because we have too much to do.  We complain because there is nothing to do.  We complain because our kids won’t listen to us.  They complain because we won’t listen to them.  We complain about our jobs – They expect too much.  They pay too little.  We complain about having to cook every night.  Then at the restaurant we complain that the service is too slow.  We complain about the weather – it’s too cold.  It’s too hot.  It’s too wet.  It’s too dry.    We complain because we want a new cell phone. Then we complain because the battery doesn’t last.  At school College students complain about missing their families. At home , they complain about their families.

The common denominator in all these complaints is you and me.  Could it be that the problem is not entirely with the things we complain about?  Could it be that at least part of the problem is with you and me?  The story is told of two little teardrops floating down the river of life.  One teardrop asked the other, “Who are you?”  “I am teardrop from a girl who loved a man and lost him.  But who are you?”  The first teardrop answered, “I am a teardrop from the girl who got him.”  The problem is not always what we have or don’t have.  The problem is that we are not content with what we have. 

There is a hole in our lives we are struggling to fill.  People try all sorts of things to fill that hole.  Some of us revolve our whole lives around our spouse, or our kids, or some other friend.   That’s way too much pressure.  All those relationships will fail us.    Some fill that by making ‘internet friends.”  But most of those relationships are fake. Some try to fill the hole with things -  money, the latest gadgets, the nicest clothes – yet enough always seems to be more than what we have right now.   Or we may seek to move away from our problems – moving away to college, to a new house, to a new job, a new marriage, or even a new church - yet our problems seem to follow us.  None of these things can fill the hole because this hole is a God shaped hole. 

“Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee, O Lord.”  That’s Paul’s point.   I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.  The secret of a content and thankful heart is not what you have or don’t have.  The secret is who has you, who holds and watches over you.  The secret is to know and believe in Jesus Christ.  He alone is able to fill that hole.  After all He along took the emptiness of our sinful lives into Himself on the cross.  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by Himself becoming a curse for us.  There he let the emptiness of our lives drain Him of life.  Then on the third day Jesus filled that emptiness new life. 

Now He comes to fill your life and mine with His love.  For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.  He invites us, Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.  He works through the word and sacrament to give your life a full and complete relationship with Him.  He gives you what you will never find in any human relationship, not even your marriage. Baptized into Christ you are fully accepted, fully forgiven, adopted into His family. I have called you by name, He says to you, “You are mine.”  In Jesus God gives you the bread that truly satisfies.  “I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die.  I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”  The treasures of this world are wonderful but always temporary.  Moth and rust destroy them.  Thieves break in and steal.  But the treasures of God in Christ – forgiveness, love, a place in the family of God, an eternal purpose for you lives – to live for Him who died for you – an eternal home in heaven – In Christ, these are yours forever! 

When God has you in Christ you are like the evergreen.  An evergreen never loses its color no matter how the weather changes.  It is green in the heat of summer as well as the cold of winter.  So also, in Christ our lives are content and thankful during the heat of a high-pressure week or when relaxing on vacation… when feeling great or when sick in bed… on the day of our wedding… or the day of a funeral.  Jesus is the secret of a thankful heart. In Christ no matter what we have or don’t have, God has us! Paul is right, I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.   Amen!

Getting Lost in the Crowd

“Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” 

Ephesians 1:13-14

We had a problem when I coached my son’s little league team.  Each kid had a red baseball cap with a big C on the front.  Whenever the boys came into the dugout they would take off their caps and throw them in a pile. Then when they had to go back out onto the field it was inevitable that someone wouldn’t be able to find their cap.  Sometimes two kids would fight over the same cap.  They couldn’t tell which hat belonged to whom.  What we finally did was write their names under the bill of their cap.  The same thing happens when young boys go to summer camp.  When little boys undress they don’t pack their dirty clothes away.  They throw them into a pile on the floor.  In a room full of 8 to 15 boys, by the end of the week you end up with one big pile.  Your child inevitably comes home with the wrong stuff, or missing stuff.  Moms though know how to fix this. Before sending their boys to camp, is they write or sew their boy’s name into everything.  That wat his stuff won’t get lost in the pile.

That can happen to people too.  People can easily get lost in the crowd.  This is such a big world.  There are so many people. The world has become increasingly impersonal.  People sit in their houses.  They don’t know their neighbors.  They feel more comfortable chatting on a computer than visiting face to face.  One lady, mentoring a kid in school, told me that the only way her student will talk to her is while playing on the computer. It’s easy to feel as if all you are just a social security number or an e-mail address, not a real person.  That’s one of the reasons why my parents wanted me to attend Concordia for college instead of going to a big state school.  They didn’t want me to get lost in the crowd. That can happen in a church too, even our church.  You can have been coming here for a while and still have people wonder - Are you a member or a visitor?  You can still have people not know your name.  You can be missing and sometimes people won’t notice.  You can be hurting yet no one sees the signs. 

Getting lost in the crowd confirms our worst fear about ourselves – “Why should anyone care about me?”  Our worst fear that that there is no good reason why you or I should be all that important to anyone.  My first year at Concordia  I arrived at school to find my picture on a poster under the words proclaiming, “Happy St. Braun’s Day.”  Part of me smiled. I knew that this was an expression of love from the students.  Yet part of me also thought.  “Yeah, right!.  If they only knew!  I’m no saint.  Just ask my mom, my wife, my kids.  That’s our fear.  We know the truth. We know what sinners we truly are.  Why would anyone care about us.

God’s answer is quite simple.  He has placed His seal of ownership on you.  He has given you His Holy Spirit.  He has called you by name.  He has written His name on you.  Listen to this word from Ephesians 1.  Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.  That’s what happened the day you came to faith.  That’s what happened when You were baptized.  God placed His seal of ownership on you, giving you His Holy Spirit. At that moment He said to you, “I have called you by name. You are mine!” Do you understand what this means?  One day a teacher asked her Sunday School class what you needed in order to become a saint.  One of the student’s wasn’t sure but he thought you had to be dead.  That’s not true.  As one for whom Jesus died and rose again, as one having believed in Jesus, as one baptized into Christ, you are a saint right now!

Giving you His Holy Spirit, God has given you a down payment on all His promises to you.  He put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.    When Linda I made an offer on our house we had to put down earnest money to show we were serious.  At closing we had to make down payment.  The down payment we made at closing was our promise to the loan company that we were committed to making our monthly payments.  That is what God has given you in baptism.  By the gift His Spirit He has given you a guarantee that you are one of His saints.  He has guaranteed to you that You are more than a number to Him.  You are His own child.  He will never lose you in the crowd.

What’s more God has not left you alone in this crowded world.  By the gift of His Spirit He has made you a member of His family.  He has made you part of this community of saints.  I love the theme song from the old TV show Cheers.  It talks about our desire, no our need to be where everyone knows your name… where everyone is glad you came.  That’s is what God intends the church to be…  One of the things I love about the small groups in our congregation, is how they look after one another, take care of each other, keep track of one another. That’s what God wants your church to be -  a place where you are known… a safe place where you can seek help when you are hurting… a place where you are noticed both when you are here and when you are missing… a community of saints where God works through each one of us to make sure no one gets lost in the crowd. Amen.  

Who is Looking After You

Matthew 10:29–31

²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. ³⁰ And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹ So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

I am writing this blog on November 1 – All Saints Day 2018.  For me this is always a day that brings to mind people, believers, whom I have loved and lost – my oldest sister, my mom and dad, Linda’s folks and others.   This coming Sunday, in worship, we will pause in worship to remember the members of Fishers who have passed since Nov. 1, 2017 – Barbara Frazer and Christine Knopp.  All Saints day is a day for celebrating God’s saving work in Jesus Christ by whom He takes sinners and makes us His saints.  It’s a day for celebrating those believers who have finished their course on earth and now await the final victory promised by Christ – the glorious resurrection on the last day.

As a Pastor I get lots of questions about believers who have died and “where” they are between now and judgment day. In fact, I got asked one such question last Sunday at the end of Bible class.  Someone in class remarked, “Pastor I often hear people who have lost a loved one say that they think their mom or day or whoever is up in heaven looking down on them and looking after them.  What do you think Pastor?  Are they looking after us?”

To answer that question, we need to think about what happens to us when we die.  Where are we in that time between death and Judgment Day?  The truth is that the Bible says very little.  Yet there are some passages.  One that is often pointed to is the promise Jesus makes to the thief on the cross next to His – “Today, you shall be with me in paradise.” Paradise sounds like a pretty good place to be.  Being with Jesus sounds great.  Does this mean that we die and immediately go to heaven to await the resurrection?  Or does it mean that dying the next thing we know is it is the last day and we are with Jesus?  I don’t know but either way sounds good to me. 

The Scriptures also talk about the dead in Christ as those who have “fallen asleep in Jesus.”  Is that what happens – our souls in the hands of God, as we “sleep” until the last day?  Or does that a metaphor for death that simply affirms that one day we will “awaken” that is be raised from the dead?”  In my eyes, that is the most likely meaning. 

Whichever way you go with this, the final victory is the last day – Judgment Day – the Day when Jesus comes again to “raise up me and all the dead and give unto me and all believers in Christ eternal life.” (Luther’s explanation of the third article of the Apostle’s Creed, The Small Catechism).    That’s where all history is heading.  Read St. Paul’s description of that Day in 1 Corinthians 15. “Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,  in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.  For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:  “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Did you notice?  There is no passage that talks about those who died looking after their loved ones who are still alive.   The closest passage is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.  In the parable the rich man, who is in hell, asks Jesus to send Lazarus back to warn his brothers so that they don’t end up in hell with him.  Pay close attention to the answer the rich man receives.  “He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’ ” 

So how did I answer that question?  My dad is with Jesus, awaiting the resurrection.  He now knows better than anyone that He doesn’t need to be watching over me.  He knows that our Father in heaven is watching over me.  Dad is free to “be asleep in Jesus”… to rest in the joy of paradise… awaiting the day of the resurrection when our God welcomes all His saints home.  In the meantime our God who loved us and gave His Son for us… our Almighty, gracious God who can handle anything promises, Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.   At one time, the Lord used my dad to watch over me – while dad was alive.  Now that work is done and my dad ‘rests from those labors.  He rests in peace.  Indeed you and I can also rest in the peace of knowing that God is the one watching over us every day!  

Thinking About My Sixtieth

“So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”

Psalm 90:12

Tomorrow is my 60^th birthday, so I have been thinking a lot about these words from Psalm 90 - “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”  How does one do that?  How does God want me to number my days?  As of tomorrow I will be 60.  I will have spent 38 of those years married to Linda.  I have been a Pastor for 34 years.  As of tomorrow, I will have lived 21,916 days.  (That included 16 leap years).  I have lived in Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Nebraska, Texas and Germany.  I have served 6 congregations and 1 campus ministry.  We have raised 4 children.  They are now grown.  We have six grandchildren and a seventh on the way.  This is the last day of my 6^th decade.  I have one day left… till I am 60.  I have one more day.  I have yet another day.  How should I number my days.

I think maybe there are a number of ways to do that.  One way would be take life one day at a time. That’s the way you are given your days.  We spend or should I say, waste too much time worrying about tomorrow and not enough living the day God has given us.  Jesus said,  “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”  I like the way the NIV translates that – “each day has enough trouble of it’s own.”  Worry is a big time waster.  What good does it do?  It robs us of the opportunities God gives us right now.  Jesus asked the question - And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?   Much better is to give your worries to the Lord and live the day He gives you.  After all, we don’t need to know what tomorrow holds.  We only need to know that the God who loved us and gave His Son for us – He holds tomorrow!

Another way to count our days might also be with a sense of urgency.  A member of the church in Flower Mound lived his life that way.  Al Senter was a teacher of the Scripture… teaching adult Bible class in several churches for over 60 years. For the last several years Al battled heart disease.  He had a real sense that his days were numbered.  So he spent his last years doing a 168 day podcast through the whole Scripture and then writing a two volume book based on those podcast… so that others could continue to grow through his teaching.   Because he knew that his days were few – he had a sense of urgency about getting that finished.  Could that be what Paul meant when He wrote to the Ephesians – “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil?”

Perhaps numbering our days means welcoming each day with gratitude and praise to God.   Perhaps it means seeing each new day and all the ones that have already passed as gifts from God.   The truth is God has been so good to me – loving parents, great sisters, a beautiful loving wife, adult children who love an believe in Jesus, two wonderful daughters in law and one great son in law, 6 grandchildren, 6 churches that have all been a joy to serve, giving me four years in my dream ministry – as campus pastor, a life time of friends (many of whom I am still in contact with), the opportunity to serve in Germany and to travel all over the world, the great privilege of preaching and teaching about Jesus and more.  As a Pastor the Lord has given me the privilege of being a part of every important event in people’s lives.  In difficult times, like the death of parents, He has watched over me and my family.  All the bazillions of times that I have done, said or thought something wrong – He has forgiven me again and again.  I could go on.  He has been so good to me.  So perhaps each new day can be greeted with “Good Morning Lord!”  No “Good Lord, it’s morning!”

Finally, I think numbering my days means looking forward to what God has promised.  For because of Jesus, when my last day in this life comes, He has in store for me an eternity of new days without number.  Jesus promised,  In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.   I am really looking forward to that day!  Amen!

The Gift of Confession

James 5:16 (ESV)

^“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed...”

Last night I had the opportunity to speak to our student ministry and teach confirmation class.  For me it was a blast.  Towards the end of the evening, one of the students asked me a great question.  “If God already knows my sin, why do I need to confess it to Him?”  The answer is really quite amazing.  God invites us to confess because we need to confess.  His invitation to confess our sins to him privately in prayer… publicly in worship… or when needed confidentially to a pastor is a gift… a precious gift.

Think of the story of our first parents in the garden, in Genesis 3.  God knew what was happening.  When they were hiding from Him among the trees, God knew they were hiding and where.  Yet still He called out, “Where are you?”  He already knew they had sinned.  Yet still He asked them, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”   Why?  Because they needed to recognize, to repent of what they had done.  The Lord wanted to give them the first promise of a savior.  But for that to mean anything… for them to fully appreciate God’s promise of a savior, of grace and forgiveness – they needed to admit to themselves and especially to Him what they had done… how far they had fallen.  Then He was able to give them that very first promise, I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” His invitation to confess was a gift!

The same is true in the story of King David.  After He had compounded sin upon sin – adultery, lies, murder and more, David’s soul was tortured with guilt.  He tells us in Psalm 32, “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.”  So what did God do?  He sent Nathan the Prophet to confront David with His, to call David to repentance.  Why?  Because more than anything God wanted to offer David grace and forgiveness.  He wanted to lift David’s burden of guilt from His shoulders.  For it was when David finally confessed his sin, “I have sinned against the Lord.” That Nathan could then say to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.  Psalm 32 is really a Psalm in which David celebrates the wondrous gift God gives us in confession and absolution.  “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit…         I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.”

This is a gift He offers every day to you and me.  Anytime, we are troubled by some sin of thought word or deed, we are free to come to Him confessing our sin.  Every Sunday during worship, He opens His arms.  He gives us the opportunity confess together that we have “sinned in thought word and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone…” that we “deserve His temporal and eternal punishment…”  He invites us to confess not because He is anxious to condemn and punish but because His chief desire to forgive and justify.  He desires that so much that He gave His own Son Jesus to pay the price for our sin by His innocent suffering and death on the cross.  His word promises, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The gift of confession doesn’t stop with private prayer or public worship.  Our Lord also offers us the gift of private confession to a pastor, an elder or another trusted Christian.  Some ask, “Do we have to confess our sins to another person?”  My friends, this is not a “have to”, it’s a “get to.”  No you and I are not conscience bound to confess every sin to a Pastor.   But there are times when some sin or struggle is really troubling our souls.  This is what was happening to King David.  This is the meaning of the words from James 5:16, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed...”  There are times when we really need to speak the truth of our sin to another person… when we are really struggling with something and it will help to have another trusted believer to walk along side us in that struggle.  There are moments when we need to speak the truth about ourselves to another person and both see and hear that living breathing person say, “God knows all that. Jesus paid for that sin too. You are forgiven.”  I will never forget when I was a teenager, taking aside a trusted adult leader and sharing with him my confession.  What a great gift it was for him to tell me, “Wayne you are forgiven in Jesus’ name.”  He never mentioned it again to me or anyone else.   For me God lifted a great burden.  That’s one of the reasons God gives us Pastors, DCEs, Stephen ministers, trusted Christian friends and the like… people we can trust and lay bare our souls… That’s why confession is such a great gift – for with that gift God gives us an even greater gift – His love, His grace and His forgiveness. 

A Walk in the Dark

Psalm 119:105 (ESV)

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

The last couple of mornings when I went for my walk with Molly it has been pitch black dark out there.  You almost couldn’t see a thing.  That always makes me nervous, especially with all the places where one piece of sidewalk has settled lower than the one next to it, leaving a little ledge to trip on.  Or what if I run into an animal on the path or even a snake?  What if I step in something I didn’t see like a puddle or worse. Well I went anyway.  After all, if I was going to get my walk in, I had to walk in the dark.

Well it struck me that the same is true about our lives in this world.  This world is a dark place.  This past year with all the “me too” headlines… all the news about sexual misconduct about priests… school shootings… the vitriol and hatred being spewed by the entire spectrum of partisan groups – has been a reminder.  Then there is the darkness that goes on in our own lives – depression, addiction, adultery, marriage problems, abuse, lying, betrayal, jealousy.  I am sure each of us can point to some temptation, some form of spiritual darkness that we encounter in our own personal worlds… perhaps in ourselves.  We live in a dark world.  Living in this world, is by nature a “walk in the dark.”   Far too often making right choices is difficult.  There are times when seeing the right path to take is not easy.

That got me to thinking.  I did just fine on the “walk in the dark” with Molly.  What might I learn from these early morning strolls that might help us in our walk through this dark world?  Well the first and most obvious is that light matters.  When I am out for a walk in the dark – the street lamps and the lights from the houses help a lot.  I also have the flashlight on my I-phone. 

Light is also important for our walk through this dark world.  Fortunately, God has provided one.  In Psalm 119:105 we read these wonderful words.  “Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light to my path.”  God’s word does two very important things.  It is a lamp that shows us where to take our very next step.  This is to keep us from stumbling over things that are right before us… to keep us, if you will, from spiritually “stubbing our toes.”  The word also serves like a flashlight, showing us the path ahead, where we are heading in our journey.  In other words, God’s Word is the light we need to help us discern right choices, make good decisions and choose the right path.  It may not give us specific direction in life’s big choices, but it does help us to know right from wrong.  The word reminds us of what are the really important questions to ask, such as, “How will this impact my family?  Will this help or make it harder to practice my faith?   Why am I doing this – jealousy?  Anger?  Love?”  God’s Word helps us to see through all those things.

Second, when I am walking in the dark, I have Molly with me.  She sees in the dark better than I do and guides me away from things I should avoid. Well she does most the time.  She is prone to walk straight through a puddle.  In life, you and I have an even better guide… one who walks with us, who never leads us wrong.  We have Jesus, our Savior who loves us and gave Himself up for us.  He sees in the darkness much better than we do.  He has walked through this darkness ahead of us, overcame the darkness and made a path for us through this life to His eternal home.  Trust your guide!

Third, when I walk in the dark I stick to paths I have already walked in the daylight.  Having walked this way before I know what to expect on the path ahead of me.  I know when the path makes turns and where the sidewalk has a slope to it.  This is important in life too.  When you practice your faith daily, you learn the right paths through life.  You know what to expect and where to go in the dark, because you have walked that way in the daylight.  If you are a person who prays regularly, then in times of trial and darkness, your first instinct will be to pray.  You will be like the father I love to tell about. A car suddenly swerved straight towards his car.  His first instinct was not panic.  It was not to cuss.  His first instinct was, “Lord, help us.”  If you walk God’s path daily, you will know that path even in the dark.

Plus, you will learn from your mistakes.  Last Spring I was out for a walk, not paying attention to what my feet were doing.  I suddenly hit a place where the sidewalk buckled.  I went straight forward and did a face plant in the grass.   Now, when I walk, I pay closer attention to where my feet are stepping, to what the path looks like in front of me.  In the same way, if being with a certain group, or taking just one drink leads you to trouble – learn to avoid those things. Stop going in that direction.  In other words, “Flee temptation.”

Yes, our walk through this world is a walk in the dark!  Thank God that we have Him to guide us and lead us through this world to the place where His light shines forever.  

Faith and Citizenship

“Our Citizenship is in heaven…”

Philippians 3:20

The partisan politics in our country have really gotten kind of ugly – on all sides.  On TV you see whole programs devoted to people arguing.  You hear politicians saying horrible things about one another.  On social media people express opinions in words that indicate no respect or tolerance for those who disagree.  I have heard of friends, life-long friendship that have fallen apart over political differences.  It’s not simply that people have different partisan political opinions.  There is nothing wrong with that. What concerns me is that those differences have become justification for hateful, hurtful words and deeds towards one another.   We are tearing our society apart.

That has had me struggling with our role as Christian citizens in the midst of all of that.  Jesus has called us “salt of earth” and the “light of the world.”  How are we to be salt and light in this world?  St. Paul tells us that “our citizenship is in heaven…”  Well as citizens of heaven, as followers of Jesus Christ, how are we to participate in the politics of this world?  What is our role as Christian citizens?  What can we do in our culture and society to bring God’s healing, reconciling love to bear?

God’s Word has guidance that has helped me and I would like to share with you.  In fact, the guidelines for our role as Christian citizens is quite simple.  They are the same two guidelines God gives us for how we live our lives – the two great commandments.  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  I believe that those two commandments tell us the most important things we need to know about our role in this culture… about how our faith in Jesus should affect our citizenship.

First, keep the main thing the main thing. God is to be God of your life and mine – not our political opinions, not our partisan politics, not even our love for country should come before Him.  There is nothing wrong with having opinions, with believing in our politics, or for loving our country.  But when those things become so important to us, that we get angry and hateful towards others who believe differently – that tells me that I am letting those things become too important.  I am giving them a place in my heart that should belong only to God.  He knows what a danger this is for us. This why He gave His heart for us – gave His own Son Jesus to live, die and rise again.  That’s how badly our God desires to claim first place in our hearts.  When He has that place – then all those other things fall into proper perspective.

Second, “love your neighbor as yourself.”  This is what should govern our political words, actions and decisions – what choice, what words will be the most loving and beneficial for my neighbor?  That means first of all, that no political opinion should ever lead me to act hatefully towards someone else. That person, them knowing about God’s love in Jesus is way more important than me being right about some opinion.  You and I are called to let others meet Christ in us… .  Jesus says, “By this all men will know you are my disciples, that you love one another.”  Second, love for your neighbor, not simply your own interests should guide you and me in our political choices.  After all, we need not worry about ourselves.  Our citizenship is in heaven.  We are God’s children through faith in Christ.  He is watching over us. We need not act out of selfishness.  Remember what John tells us about when Jesus got up to wash the feet of the disciples.  He wrote that Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist and began to wash the feet of the disciples.”  Like Jesus, knowing that we have come from God and going back to God… knowing that we are loved and watched over by Him, we need not worry about ourselves. We are free to act in love for others.

I believe our role as God’s salt and light in this world is to refuse to start acting out of the anger and hatred that prevails in our political world.  Our role is to act in a manner completely foreign to the world around us… to act and live as citizens of heaven… to respond to the vitriol and hatred we encounter with the love of God that can alone heal and bring reconciliation.