Here is a link to the sermon I gave at Trinity on Sunday for those interested in reading it.
Have a blessed holiday!
Monday, December 20, 2010
Friday, December 17, 2010
Semester 1 Done!
Well I survived my finals week! I felt it went pretty well. Overall I took one essay test covering 1400 years of Church history and wrote over 25 pages of papers. I still have to finish up my online Greek class, but that is not due until Monday. So overall, I am finished with the semester!
Its quite exciting. I will be home for over two weeks now. It will be great to hang out with Chad and spend time with family over Christmas. I will get to rest and take some time for reflection.
Onto Christmas now! Katie and I are working on a present for our parents. We are recording a CD (mostly for my mom). :) It will be fun. We are doing it at a semi-professional studio in Tomah.
I hope everyone has a blessed Christmas and holiday season.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Immanuel
After finishing classes this week, I am amazed by all the work that is left to do for finals next week. But I am also amazed that the semester is nearly over! It seems to have flown by. We are already in our second week of Advent, preparing for the celebration of Christ’s birth. Along with this preparation and finals, I am also preparing a sermon for the 4th Sunday in Advent that I will be giving at Trinity for our 10:30 service.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Thanksgiving!
I had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. It was a blessing to be able to spend time with family and friends, and of course eat good food! Unfortunately I came down with a bit of a cold at the beginning of the week, but I am feeling better now. Katie and I had a lot of fun watching Charlie's 8th grade basketball game last Monday. They went into four overtimes, but could not pull out the win! But Charlie hit a few threes and the boys played well. Coach Brandt did the best he could. :)
Today at Trinity we had two baptisms in the service in which I am a worship leader. It was exciting to be able to assist with the baptisms. We have never had a baptism in that service before, and it was a wonderful addition to our worship to be able to share in this Sacrament.
I have been reading two books for class over the holiday break. Both focus on the "New Missional Era" as Keifert describes it. These ideas of the missional Church are very groundbreaking. They address the issue of how to help Churches change and adapt in a new age of pluralism and postmodernism. To do this the emphasis is on discernment of God's Spirit and change in culture rather than organizational change.
Hope you all had a blessed holiday and were able to take some time to rest and relax!
Today at Trinity we had two baptisms in the service in which I am a worship leader. It was exciting to be able to assist with the baptisms. We have never had a baptism in that service before, and it was a wonderful addition to our worship to be able to share in this Sacrament.
I have been reading two books for class over the holiday break. Both focus on the "New Missional Era" as Keifert describes it. These ideas of the missional Church are very groundbreaking. They address the issue of how to help Churches change and adapt in a new age of pluralism and postmodernism. To do this the emphasis is on discernment of God's Spirit and change in culture rather than organizational change.
Hope you all had a blessed holiday and were able to take some time to rest and relax!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
The Voice of the Stranger
Yesterday my group presented our project to the pastors at the Church we are studying for my Reading the Audiences class. Reading the Audiences is all about how to do ministry in particular contexts. We have talked about new ideas of a missional Church and how to do Church in a changing and pluralistic culture.
For the project we studied the demographics of the Church and local area while also looking at their ministries and outreach. We then present the findings to the Church and "wonder" with the Church about what ways they could grow their ministries, and attempt to wonder what God might be up to in their midst.
The pastors we presented to were overall really receptive! Still, there was some defensiveness as we talked about their Church from an outside perspective. I found it really hard to be the voice of the "stranger" and give the outside perspective. We don't know all of the inside complexities of the Church and the trials and joys the congregation has faced over the years. Still, I think its really important as a Church to be able to hear the voice of the stranger. By hearing this voice, we can understand better how to reach out to people outside the Church. So I am thankful that they were willing to hear our voices.
Jesus often pointed to the voice of the stranger as a voice of truth. Consider the Pharisees response to Jesus' teaching to love your neighbor as yourself. Who is our neighbor? Jesus then tells the parable of the good Samaritan. To the Jewish audience this would have been revolutionary. Samaritans were foreigners who were shunned by mainstream Judaism. Here the Samaritan is a neighbor to the man in need when fellow Jews left him stranded.
Question to ponder.... Who's voices are we not hearing in the Church today?
For the project we studied the demographics of the Church and local area while also looking at their ministries and outreach. We then present the findings to the Church and "wonder" with the Church about what ways they could grow their ministries, and attempt to wonder what God might be up to in their midst.
The pastors we presented to were overall really receptive! Still, there was some defensiveness as we talked about their Church from an outside perspective. I found it really hard to be the voice of the "stranger" and give the outside perspective. We don't know all of the inside complexities of the Church and the trials and joys the congregation has faced over the years. Still, I think its really important as a Church to be able to hear the voice of the stranger. By hearing this voice, we can understand better how to reach out to people outside the Church. So I am thankful that they were willing to hear our voices.
Jesus often pointed to the voice of the stranger as a voice of truth. Consider the Pharisees response to Jesus' teaching to love your neighbor as yourself. Who is our neighbor? Jesus then tells the parable of the good Samaritan. To the Jewish audience this would have been revolutionary. Samaritans were foreigners who were shunned by mainstream Judaism. Here the Samaritan is a neighbor to the man in need when fellow Jews left him stranded.
Question to ponder.... Who's voices are we not hearing in the Church today?
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Tending to the Spirit
Well I survived midterms which is a great feeling! I have been hard at work on a few papers and a group project. Today my goal for the day is to get a good start on my Church history term paper, as soon as I get home. The choir is singing in chapel this morning so that will be a great inspiration for my week. Its a wonderful experience to have the whole community come together for communion.
Last week I started a spiritual direction group which will meet once a month. I think it will be a great opportunity for me and my group members (who are also first year students) to tend to our spirits. It can be hard to take time out each day for prayer and reflection amidst our "busy schedules." But our spiritual director, Colleen, helped us see that those are the most important times for rest.
Here's a thought that I will be meditating on today from St. Therese of Lisieux:
Our Father gives himself as generously to the least of his children as to the greatest.
Be well. :)
Last week I started a spiritual direction group which will meet once a month. I think it will be a great opportunity for me and my group members (who are also first year students) to tend to our spirits. It can be hard to take time out each day for prayer and reflection amidst our "busy schedules." But our spiritual director, Colleen, helped us see that those are the most important times for rest.
Here's a thought that I will be meditating on today from St. Therese of Lisieux:
Our Father gives himself as generously to the least of his children as to the greatest.
Be well. :)
Friday, October 22, 2010
Reading Days... not for reading
This week at Luther we had a few days off for "reading days" to continue stuyding for midterms which was great! I have to admit I did not spend much time reading over reading days. It was great to spend the week at home and spend time with Chad and my sister Katie and go to Church at Trinity on Wednesday evening.
This week in the lectionary the gospel text is Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector praying in the temple. The Pharisee thanks God that he is not like the other sinners, including the tax collector. The tax-collector admits his sin and asks God for mercy. In the end Jesus says, "all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted." This parable has made me think a lot about God's grace this week. Its amazing that God calls us and loves us as we are! I wanted to share this exerpt of a devotional from Luther Seminary that was really inspiring:
"... Yet I also see myself as the tax collector, "the sinner." If I am honest with myself I admit I do things I really do not want to do. A selfish part deep at my core hurts the people I love the most. It is then that I cannot even look up to heaven and all I can murmur is "God, have mercy on me, a sinner!"
When I realize that this part of me that I really do not like is not something I can change, I surrender. I cry out to God, "Have mercy." And then transformation begins. God begins to work. When I hear the words "you are special," "you are mine," and "I love you" each week as I worship God takes hold of me. I am transformed from "pathetic sinner" to God's loved, special child."
taken from:
http://www.luthersem.edu/godpause/
God is Good!
This week in the lectionary the gospel text is Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector praying in the temple. The Pharisee thanks God that he is not like the other sinners, including the tax collector. The tax-collector admits his sin and asks God for mercy. In the end Jesus says, "all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted." This parable has made me think a lot about God's grace this week. Its amazing that God calls us and loves us as we are! I wanted to share this exerpt of a devotional from Luther Seminary that was really inspiring:
"... Yet I also see myself as the tax collector, "the sinner." If I am honest with myself I admit I do things I really do not want to do. A selfish part deep at my core hurts the people I love the most. It is then that I cannot even look up to heaven and all I can murmur is "God, have mercy on me, a sinner!"
When I realize that this part of me that I really do not like is not something I can change, I surrender. I cry out to God, "Have mercy." And then transformation begins. God begins to work. When I hear the words "you are special," "you are mine," and "I love you" each week as I worship God takes hold of me. I am transformed from "pathetic sinner" to God's loved, special child."
taken from:
http://www.luthersem.edu/godpause/
God is Good!
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