Waiting: I'm Working on It!
In adult Sunday school this past Sunday we watched the fifth DVD in Rob Bell's Nooma series. It's title was "Noise" and the invitation was the reflect on noise and silence and how we're called to the latter as an act of faith. Bell also reflected on how difficult it is to enter into and enjoy this silence, because we are so inundated with noise. I think we do this at our own peril, for to avoid silence is to avoid listening for God and being present to God.
If listening is a difficult and under-appreciated virtue in our culture, waiting is perhaps even less valued. I have had to wrestle with this again as our family awaits the arrival of our new child. We're in the "it could be any day" time frame. Truth be told, it's a hard place to be for this guy who likes to plan things, to schedule things, to know when and where. Waiting, you see, does not come naturally to me. There's too much that's unexpected; there's too much out of my control; there's too much trust in God involved. Ever been there?
What do we normally think of when we think of waiting? Standing in line at Cedar Point? Killing time in the doctor's office, thumbing through a magazine we're not even really interested in? Living for tomorrow? Waiting, it seems, is something to be avoided. But what if "waiting" (not just passing time, but truly being present while actively waiting) is something that God calls us to do? What if these "pre-birth" days (or hours) in my life and the life of our family are not something to be gotten through, but to be lived and embraced and enjoyed?
What if waiting is actually a spiritual discipline to be practiced?
One of the best pieces I've heard on waiting is a series of reflections by the late J. Henri Nouwen and is called A Spirituality of Waiting. He does a remarkable job of talking about waiting in light of God's presence and activity. He takes as his texts the first two chapters of the Gospel of Luke and speaks of waiting for God... then looks at the last several chapters of Luke and describes the waiting of God. We often focus our our waiting (or the avoidance of it), but Nouwen invites us to consider God's patient waiting for us.
A friend of mine who spent some time as a missionary in Cameroon, Africa says that he has to constantly remind himself that sometimes our notions of time in this part of the world are not accurate. We speak of "spending" time and "wasting" time. What if time itself is God's gift to us, given so that we might be present with one another, that we might grow to love God, and that we might discover, in the waiting and the silence, what is the heart and mind and will of God?
Will you wait and pray with me this week?
+Pastor Matt
Our Big Backyard: Happenings in the Wider Church
Revival: December 4-5, 2008 in Bowling Green
On December 4 and 5, 2008 our entire Synod is planning a revival! That's right, at a Lutheran gathering there will be a revival at St. Mark's, Bowling Green, Ohio. Our theme is "Revive Us Again!" This is based on the Ezekiel chapter 37 passage concerning the "dry bones."
Pastor Katherine Love from the church-wide offices in Chicago is a former Baptist who (years ago) fell in love with our Lutheran Confessional Theology and very much ministers to folks who are "feeling dry in their Christian walk" and who long for the Living Water of Our Lord Jesus Christ to fill them and revive them for the abundant life. Mark these dates on your calendar.
Conflict and Faith: Retreat Opportunity
Join Bishop Marcus Lohrmann and Pastor Amy Little as they lead sessions on how to reduce damaging conflict and how we can look to our faith for answers. We'll explore Lutheran Confessions and Conflict Resolution and what is revealed in how we handle conflict. Join us for "How Can We Redeem the Day?" Weekend Retreat August 15-17th at Our Lady of the Pines in Fremont, Ohio. Hurry, Space is Limited! Click here for more information and registration.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Church in the Home
Church at Home
Did you know that Sunday school was started originally for poor or disadvantaged children who did not have the privilege of Christian instruction in the home? Now we really want it to do most of our teaching of the faith. I think if we are to take Jesus' call to make disciples seriously, it involves reclaiming the central location of the home as a place of Christian prayer, devotion, instruction and virtue.
I'd like to share some reflections about what we do in our house, not so much as a prescription for what you should do, but rather as a launching point for a conversation about what the "church in the home" might look like in your house.
Evening Devotions
Advent seems to be a wonderful time for our family to do evening prayer after dinner. I know it is a crazy time of year and perhaps that is why I love the season so much. It is almost as if these times of prayer are a wonderful oasis in the stormy sea of all the pre-Christmas hullabaloo. We use a very simple and abbreviated service. It amazed me how quickly our children memorized the hymn Phos Hilaron (a hymn to Christ the Light). I'm in the process of adapting this service for use year round as part of prayer booklet for families with small children.
Devotional Resources
Where do I begin? I am a bit restless when it comes to devotional resources. The two I use most regularly are one published by the Fellowship of St. James and a series called For All the Saints. I like both because I'm immersed in the Gospels, the New Testament and the Old Testament every day. I usually use the Service of Morning Prayer in the For All the Saints volume, which is similar to the one in the green Lutheran Book of Worship. For noon or afternoon prayer when I'm in the church building I use the service of Responsive Prayer in the red Evangelical Lutheran Worship book, our new hymnal. For the readings I use the Augsburg Fortress guide Bread for the Day. Cindy and I also find it refreshing to use the service of Compline (night prayer) in For All the Saints (also found in both hymnals). Concordia Publishing House has a great laminated "Daily Prayer Card" for services at morning, noon/afternoon, evening and night.
Meal Prayers
Our meal prayers, because of the ages of our children, tend to be quite active affairs with lots of sign language and singing. One we recently invented to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" goes like this:
Thank you, Jesus, you are bread. By your hand the world is fed.
Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.
Thank you, Jesus, you are bread. By your hand the world is fed.
Perhaps I'll share more of our table prayers in future posts.
May God bless you and your homes that they may be Sanctuaries of the Holy Spirit.
Did you know that Sunday school was started originally for poor or disadvantaged children who did not have the privilege of Christian instruction in the home? Now we really want it to do most of our teaching of the faith. I think if we are to take Jesus' call to make disciples seriously, it involves reclaiming the central location of the home as a place of Christian prayer, devotion, instruction and virtue.
I'd like to share some reflections about what we do in our house, not so much as a prescription for what you should do, but rather as a launching point for a conversation about what the "church in the home" might look like in your house.
Evening Devotions
Advent seems to be a wonderful time for our family to do evening prayer after dinner. I know it is a crazy time of year and perhaps that is why I love the season so much. It is almost as if these times of prayer are a wonderful oasis in the stormy sea of all the pre-Christmas hullabaloo. We use a very simple and abbreviated service. It amazed me how quickly our children memorized the hymn Phos Hilaron (a hymn to Christ the Light). I'm in the process of adapting this service for use year round as part of prayer booklet for families with small children.
Devotional Resources
Where do I begin? I am a bit restless when it comes to devotional resources. The two I use most regularly are one published by the Fellowship of St. James and a series called For All the Saints. I like both because I'm immersed in the Gospels, the New Testament and the Old Testament every day. I usually use the Service of Morning Prayer in the For All the Saints volume, which is similar to the one in the green Lutheran Book of Worship. For noon or afternoon prayer when I'm in the church building I use the service of Responsive Prayer in the red Evangelical Lutheran Worship book, our new hymnal. For the readings I use the Augsburg Fortress guide Bread for the Day. Cindy and I also find it refreshing to use the service of Compline (night prayer) in For All the Saints (also found in both hymnals). Concordia Publishing House has a great laminated "Daily Prayer Card" for services at morning, noon/afternoon, evening and night.
Meal Prayers
Our meal prayers, because of the ages of our children, tend to be quite active affairs with lots of sign language and singing. One we recently invented to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" goes like this:
Thank you, Jesus, you are bread. By your hand the world is fed.
Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.
Thank you, Jesus, you are bread. By your hand the world is fed.
Perhaps I'll share more of our table prayers in future posts.
May God bless you and your homes that they may be Sanctuaries of the Holy Spirit.
Bathed in Resurrection Light
Last week we mourned the death of one of our members. His funeral was last Thursday. Normally there is a chance for family and friends to pay their respects with an open coffin in our narthex before the worship begins.
Because we had Vacation Bible School in another part of the church building, it made sense for this funeral to place the coffin in the rear of the sanctuary itself. This placed the body squarely beneath a huge stained glass window with three scenes: the Crucifixion, empty tomb and Risen Christ (see photo on right). Though I see the window on a regular basis, the whole scene took on a whole new meaning as the body was bathed literally in Passion and Resurrection Light.
May we walk all of our days in the single Light of Christ, the Crucified and Risen One, and may we rest in the same Light.
Because we had Vacation Bible School in another part of the church building, it made sense for this funeral to place the coffin in the rear of the sanctuary itself. This placed the body squarely beneath a huge stained glass window with three scenes: the Crucifixion, empty tomb and Risen Christ (see photo on right). Though I see the window on a regular basis, the whole scene took on a whole new meaning as the body was bathed literally in Passion and Resurrection Light.
May we walk all of our days in the single Light of Christ, the Crucified and Risen One, and may we rest in the same Light.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School begins this week, June 16-20 and will be held at Bethlehem from 9 am - 11:30 am. We will have an adult component this year on prayer. See the sidebar to the right for the stories we'll be exploring as we learn to serve God and neighbor.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Week of June 9-15: Summer Worship
It is almost summer. The school calendar says we are just days away. The seasonal calendar says we have until the 20th of June or so. The weather outside says that summer is already here. As we enter into this new season and we take a break or put a hold on many things, I encourage you not to take a break from weekly worship. Wherever you happen to be, search for the gathering place of the Body of Christ and join the gathering.
A pastor I know reminded me of Martin Luther's words in the Large Catechism about regular worship. He cautions that it is in fact spiritually dangerous to go without Holy Communion, for in it we receive the gift of the LORD himself, the medicine of immortality.
So why don't you send me the stories of your summer worship adventures? See you at the Table!
A pastor I know reminded me of Martin Luther's words in the Large Catechism about regular worship. He cautions that it is in fact spiritually dangerous to go without Holy Communion, for in it we receive the gift of the LORD himself, the medicine of immortality.
So why don't you send me the stories of your summer worship adventures? See you at the Table!
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