Claimed, gathered and sent

The gospel reading for this Sunday is Mark7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 Here is the message I'll be sharing with the people of God at Bethel Lutheran Church,, Portville, NY where it is my privilege to serve as pastor.             Jesus has been busy in Mark’s gospel. He has already fed the 5,000, walked on water, and healed the sick. Jesus was like a rock star. The people would not leave him alone. The verse preceding today’s reading says, “ And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak …” (Mark 6:56).      Some of the scribes and Pharisees had come from Jerusalem to observe Jesus. He and his disciples were in Gennesaret, in the Galilee. That is over 97 miles away! It was no easy trip to get there in Jesus’ day. Why did the scribes and Pharisees go to Galilee? The crowds followed Jesus every...

This is the message I preached yesterday at Bethel Lutheran Church, Portville, NY. The service was followed by our church picnic and ice cream social. It was a great day indeed! The sermon is from John 6:56-69 .                                              We have been on quite an adventure with Jesus, his followers, and his adversaries over these past five weeks in John’s gospel. Many things have happened since that first passage in John 6. Jesus’ disciples witnessed a feeding miracle and Jesus walking on the water. The audience has changed from being the crowd to being the Jews. Today, they are the disciples and the twelve. Jesus’ audience called him a variety of things. Jesus challenged and shocked his audiences by declaring he is the Son of Man, the one ap...

On Sunday I had the privilege of leading worship and preaching at the church I'm serving and also a neighboring congregation. Our two churches are close geographically and for many years shared a pastor. This is the message I shared at my congregation. The text was John 6:51-58.             Our church has quite a reputation. Last week, for the celebration of Portville’s 175 th anniversary, many people made pies and other delicious baked goods. From what I have heard, many people were specifically looking for the goodies we made. They had purchased pies or fudge from us during the Heritage Days celebration. Our baked goods have achieved renown in the community.             We are a church who enjoys food and knows how to eat. Before I was officially called to be Bethel’s pastor, Ray and I had dinner together with the church council at Sprague’s. Pr. Dan Rumfelt shared th...

  One of the most wonderful and humbling experiences of being a pastor is that people let you into their lives. I love hearing their stories and they in turn hear mine. I have been a pastor a little over a month and I am continually amazed at this great privilege God and God's people afford me. So...what have I been doing since my first week? I have been visiting in people's homes, in the hospital, in the nursing home, at the Portville Heritage Days. I've been to a funeral and a memorial service (on the same day) without any official role other than support and non-anxious presence. We have had church council meetings and committee meetings and have been planning worship for the fall, which will include a Blessing of School Backpacks on the first Sunday of September. Sunday school and confirmation will be starting up again and we'll be full swing into our program year. I have with some trepidation take on a preaching series on the gospel texts in John, the Bre...

This was my first week as pastor of Bethel Lutheran Church. Last week was my ordination. In this picture, Bishop Marie Jerge is praying with and for me while everyone else sings a hymn of invocation of the Holy Spirit. This is something unique to the Upstate NY Synod and Bishop Jerge.  As I read the difficult gospel text assigned for this Sunday, I was reminded of the ordination and installation vows I had taken regarding my call to preach the Word faithfully to God's people in Portville. So, with that challenge and the encouragement of prayer, I have finished my sermon for tomorrow, on the beheading of John the Baptist. The text is Mark 6:14-29 and my sermon is below.             God you have to be kidding! Where is the good news in today’s gospel? You want me to preach about the beheading of John the Baptist?   Believe me, I tried to avoid it. After all, there are the other readings. I like the book of Ephesi...