Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the message I shared with St. Timothy and St. Mark's Lutheran churches. The scripture was 2 Corinthians 4:3-6.      Do any of you ever have bad dreams? Sometimes they seem so real, especially when you wake up in a pitch-dark bedroom. The darkness just exacerbates your fear. You begin to imagine all kinds of things. Maybe someone has broken into the house. Maybe there’s a monster hiding under the bed or there’s a ghost hiding in the bedroom closet. Neutral images take on malevolent qualities in the dark. It is difficult to relax until we have turned on a light. Then we can see clearly—no one with evil intent is standing next to our bed. That large scary image you saw—that was just your dresser and there are no monsters under the bed. And that scary monster under the bed was only the cat.   The presence of light informs our perception of the reality of the nightmare threat. Light makes all the difference. That is what our readings are all about. In the reading f

  This  is the message I preached last night at our Christmas Eve service. The gospel text is Luke 2:1-20. Have a blessed Christmas and New Year. Finally, we’re here. Our Advent journey is completed and now we have gotten to the part of the story we love so much—baby Jesus has been born. Now we can answer the question that we’ve been hearing for so long, it’s Christmas!!!! At the time of Jesus’ birth, society was very class-oriented. There were distinct stratum of society and shepherding was among the lowliest of occupations. Shepherding in Jesus’ time was far different than it is today.   It was a 24 hour a day job outside despite wind and weather.   These shepherds in Luke’s gospel slept outside with their sheep! They couldn’t go into the house, take a break and go back to the sheep when they felt like it. Because of their working and living conditions, they were probably very smelly. After all, these were not well-to-do men who lived in the lap of luxury. She

No fear! ELCA Daily Bible Reading

Things have been very interesting weather-wise in our country lately. Places that never have tornadoes have experienced devastation beyond what we can fathom. Several times in the last week we've been under tornado watches and warnings. Last night was one of those times. We considered how seriously we should take the warning. Do we go down to the basement or just go to bed as usual. We decided to err on the side of caution and gathered up a few necessary things (including the dog and cat) and went to the basement. Ray was attuned to the weather radio and I kept watching the updates on my laptop. I experienced a couple of different emotions and thought processes last evening. First off, I didn't think I was so materialistic. Going through a mental checklist of what we HAD to have downstairs with us brought me to that conclusion. And how would I live without my stuff (including clothes) if we did get hit? Secondly, I struggled with the issue of knowing that God takes care o

Embracing the Universe Living a spiritual life makes our little, fearful hearts as wide as the universe, because the Spirit of Jesus dwelling within us embraces the whole of creation. Jesus is the Word, through whom the universe has been created. As Paul says: "In him were created all things in heaven and on earth: everything visible and everything invisible - all things were created through him and for him - in him all things hold together" (Collosians 1:16-17). Therefore when Jesus lives within us through his Spirit, our hearts embrace not only all people but all of creation. Love casts out all fear and gathers in all that belongs to God. Prayer, which is breathing with the Spirit of Jesus, leads us to this immense knowledge. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Join our online book discussion of Reaching Out . Starts November 22nd. Visit HenriNo