Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon I preached Sunday, 9/25 at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran Churches. The text is 1 Timothy 6:6-19 .   Have you ever had a conversation with someone that started out like this, “Jim, how are you doing? I haven’t seen you in so long.” Jim replies, “I’m living the dream!” Sometimes it seems to mean the respondent is doing great. Other times I’ve heard people say this in a sarcastic way because they’re in a very hard place. I would like to make one small change to that statement so that it says, "I'm living the life." At first glance, we think it's obvious that this passage is about stewardship; and it is. But it is about so much more. There is a little phrase at the very end of the passage that I cannot shake. Every time I read this passage it hits me again and again: “…take hold of the life that really is life,”(v. 19b). What does that mean? Does it mean that those who are going their own way, not following Jesus, a...

This is the sermon I preached at S t. Timothy Lutheran Church on Sunday, 9/18. The scripture text is Luke 16:1-13 . What in the world is Jesus talking about in today’s parable? There is nothing easy to understand about it.                                                Is this an early example of a debt settlement offer? How ideal for our culture of consumers who are overspent, overextended, and stretched beyond reason. We ’ve probably all heard the ads on the radio or TV. “Call 1-800-BYE-DEBT and let us deal with your creditors.” They make it sound so easy. However, we all know there are no easy fixes and that if it sounds too good to be true, then it is. Money issues are complicated. Why does Jesus tell this story? Is Jesus praising dishonesty and r...

This is the sermon I preached On Sunday, 9/11 at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran churches. The gospel text was Luke 15:1-10 . There are all kinds of ways of being lost. Any of you that know me very well, know that I have a poor sense of direction. Maps don’t help me. I easily get lost. To me, one of the greatest inventions ever is the GPS. I know that if I mess up and miss a turn, Garmin will still get me where I need to go…at least most of the time. There is a song that wonderfully describes our life at times. It's called "This is the Stuff." I lost my keys in the great unknown And call me please 'cause I can't find my phone This is the stuff that drives me crazy This is the stuff that's getting to me lately In the middle of my little mess I forget how big I'm blessed This is the stuff that gets under my skin But I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing Might not be what I would choos...

This is the message I shared with the folks at St.Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran churches on Sunday, 9/4. The gospel text is Luke 14:25-33.  Have any of you ever joined a book club, cd club or dvd club or another organization without reading all the fine print first? It can be difficult to figure out exactly what is expected in order to get the great bargains. After a while you realize how much money you have to spend in order to save. That wasn’t made clear in the ads, was it?  Unlike slick advertising agencies or those who proclaim a cross-less faith, Jesus clearly spelled out the cost of being his disciple. There was no small print or hidden fees. Please don’t misunderstand; our salvation is a free gift of God and we can do nothing to deserve it. Jesus was talking about the lives of those who are truly his followers. This is about how we are to live out our lives of faith. At times, Jesus was like a rock star. People followed him like groupies of today. The...

This is the message I shared with the folks at St.Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran churches on Sunday, 9/4. The gospel text is Luke 14:25-33.  Have any of you ever joined a book club, cd club or dvd club or another organization without reading all the fine print first? It can be difficult to figure out exactly what is expected in order to get the great bargains. After a while you realize how much money you have to spend in order to save. That wasn’t made clear in the ads, was it?  Unlike slick advertising agencies or those who proclaim a cross-less faith, Jesus clearly spelled out the cost of being his disciple. There was no small print or hidden fees. Please don’t misunderstand; our salvation is a free gift of God and we can do nothing to deserve it. Jesus was talking about the lives of those who are truly his followers. This is about how we are to live out our lives of faith. At times, Jesus was like a rock star. People followed him like groupies of today. The...