I am on a journey of faith. This has been a difficult time for me. The last half year or so has been, perhaps, the hardest time of my life as a pastor – a dark valley to walk through. In some ways, it has been growing pains. You know, to grow healthily, you need to encounter resistance. If our muscles never encountered resistance, they’d wither – we need to exercise them. It’s the same in our lives of faith, and in all areas of life. I have been on a difficult journey of growing as a pastor, or growing in my walk with Christ. It hasn’t been easy; but God is faithful. I know I am upheld in prayer. Please know that you, too, are upheld in prayer before God. I am so encouraged by the signs of faith and signs of life at Grace. The Holy Spirit is at work in our community. New people are coming all the time. Do you know that, from October of 2008 until this next month, our church membership will have grown by about 12%? That number represents new people, new families, new couples that have become part of our church family.
I have truly been challenged and encouraged by our journey through the Marks of Discipleship. If we understand that our purpose as a church is, by grace, to grow disciples of Jesus Christ, then we should always be asking how what we do is helping to accomplish that purpose. The Marks of Discipleship spell PoWeR SuRGe: Pray daily, Worship weekly, Read the Bible, Serve at and beyond Grace Lutheran Church, be in Relationship to encourage spiritual growth in others, and Give of my time, talents, and resources.[1] I feel that the Holy Spirit is alive and active in our church community. It is time for us to focus in on what God is calling us to be and do, and be and do it!
Here are my recent sermons on the Marks of Discipleship:
2009-2-25 Ash Wednesday - Free in Christ
Deuteronomy 16:9-19:10
Regarding kingship, in Deuteronomy 17:14ff, this is an important passage to keep in mind when we get to the story of King Solomon and other kings of Israel. This is a vision of a ruler who does not get rich at the expense of the people, or have many wives, but who follows God’s law and does not lift himself ‘above other members of the community.’ I can’t help but think of the AIG executives, and other members of the super-rich stratum of our society, who seem to feel that they are ‘entitled’ to multi-million dollar bonuses, whether they have earned them or not. How long can a society flourish, with a small number of rich getting richer at the expense of the community?
Mark 15:33-16:8
When Jesus died on the cross, “the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.” The dividing wall between God and humanity was pierced, once for all, by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. This passage is the original end of the Gospel of Mark, ending with the young man’s (an angel) announcement to the two Marys and Salome that Jesus was raised from the dead, and their flight from the tomb in terror and amazement.
[1] This version of the Marks of Discipleship comes from Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Burnsville, MN.
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