Claimed, gathered and sent

This text leaped out at me as a continuation of God's word to the congregation I'm serving, Bethel Lutheran Church in Portville, NY. It's from First Peter .  Here's the message: Our world is full of suffering. We see it in the senseless deaths of university students in California. We see it in the abduction of 200 plus Nigerian schoolgirls by extremists. Parents send their children to school every day fully expecting them to return home safely. But these children in countries separated by language, customs and many miles did not.Many in our own congregation are suffering physically or emotionally with diseases of all kinds. Suffering is pervasive in our world. The letter of First Peter frequently addresses this aspect of the Christian faith. Both ancient and modern interpreters consider this letter to be one of exceptional clarity in the way it articulates the gospel. Martin Luther ranked it among “the true and noblest books of the New Testament.” T...

I have been making great progress with rehab after a total knee replacement. In one week, I have gone from not being able to move my leg to permission to walk (with walker) unassisted throughout the facility. I can't help bur think of the Southwest ads, "You're now free to move about the country," or for me, the facility. Last week, I could not slide my heel toward me (aka doing a heel slide) and now I can get out of bed unassisted. A week ago, my leg bent 60 degrees out of 90 and now it's 76 out of 90 degrees. Progress does not come without pain, however. The big turning point was yesterday, which began with the Mac truck. With knee replacement, it's essential to get and keep the joint moving so it doesn't freeze. To accomplish that requires aggressive, often painful therapy. Yesterday as my PT Charlie was pushing to get that bend to where it needs to be, it involved pain like I have never experienced in my 52 years. I cried. Dear Charlie, along with tw...