Almighty God, You who call me to prayer, and who offer Yourself to all who seek Your face, pour out Your Holy Spirit up me today and deliver me from coldness of heart, a wandering mind, and wrongful desires. By the power of Your Spirit place within me steadfast love and devotion, so that today I may worship and serve You with all my life; through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.
Anonymous
Have you heard the story about the elderly gentleman who had suffered from a serious hearing problem for a number of years? He went to the doctor and was fitted with a set of hearing aids that gave back his hearing completely - 100%
The gentleman went back to the doctor a month later. The doctor ran some tests and declared, "Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again."
The gentleman replied, "Oh, I haven't told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to their conversations. I've changed my will three times!"
Hope - you can't live without it. It's the thing that keeps us going during the darkest night of the soul, the power that keeps us moving when we're ready to give up. It moved Job, who was tested and tried, to confidently write, "I know that my Redeemer lives." Even as he faced death, it led the apostle Paul to pen, "Yet I am not ashamed because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day," That's hope - pure and simple.
Hebrews 6:19a reads: We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
Author and pastor, Richard Lauersdorf had this to say about the above verse. "Few things were more important to the sailor in a storm than a good anchor and a good ground for it. Believers in Christ have both. They have an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. Like some anchors whose strong flukes cannot be twisted out of shape, so we have in Christ an absolute strong and reliable hope."
In Christ Jesus, we have a safe harbor. The storms of life, while threatening to us, cannot destroy us. We flee to Christ. Anchored in the solid ground of His Holy Word, we can stand firm against the temptations of the old evil foe. The devil can't take our soul. Christ's comeback victory on the third day ensures us of new life now and eternal life in heaven. As author Jane Fryer writes, "Flee for refuge to Him! Take hold of the hope He offers you. Live in great courage. You are His now and forever!"
As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12
My pastor and mentor, Rev. David Schultz, was quite fond of the above verse. He wanted His flock to know of the compassionate grace of the Good Shepherd and he believed that this verse delivered that grace in great abundance.
Martin Luther believed this too. In a Christmas sermon Luther preached: We, too, know well enough that we are poor sinners. But here is the thing to do is not to look at what we are and do what at what Christ is and has done, and is still doing for us. We are not speaking about our nature now but about the grace of God, which is as far above us as "the heaven is high above the earth" and as far as "the east is from the west." If you consider it a great matter to be a child of God, do not think it a small matter that the Son of God, born of a woman and made under the Law, came that you might become such a child.
The Psalmist David points us to a very definite truth - God's mercy and forgiveness is immeasurable. Does Home Depot have anything on their shelves that can measure east from west? Of course not! God is not like the guy I used to work for who used to say, "I can forgive but I can never forget." When God removes sin, it is gone. When God forgives sin, He does not bring it up again. Rejoice in this good news - God has forgiven you. Say "good-bye" to guilt and shame today!
10) "Grow Your Church In Only 432 Steps"
9) "Guilt Trips to Try on Delinquent Members"
8) "Preach Like Whoopie Goldberg"
7) "Church Doctrine for Dummies"
6) "Pastors - How To Spend All Day on Facebook (and never get a thing done)
5) "Children's Messages - So Much Better Than A Regular Sermon"
4) "Professor Robingson's 12 Volume Commentary on Philemon"
3) "How To Be the Perfect Pastor - And Other Impossible Ideas"
2) "Timing Home Visits - Never Miss Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner!"
1) "The Stress-free Ministry"
10) Has filled up the church track rack with brochures of places he wishes to travel to
9) Has emptied out his office - and he doesn't retire for another six months!
8) Preaches each Sunday wearing a Tommy Bahama shirt, shorts and sandles
7) Adopts as his new motto, "It's 5 o'clock somewhere."
6) Calls retirement "the never ending sabbatical"
5) Says he looks forward to the day when he can't tell what day it is
4) Uses sermon prep time to get fitted for a new set of golf clubs
3) Heard screaming from his office, "Get behind me, Day Planner!"
2) Postlude for final Sunday of worship is the Beatles, "Hello Goodbye!"
1) Leaves forwarding address, "123 Anywhere Lane, Nowhere USA"
I have a friend who sends me from time to time a joke or story that he thinks might work well in a sermon. Here's an example:
An elderly man lay dying in his bed. In death's agony he suddenly smelled the aroma of his favorite chocolate chip cookies wafting up the stairs.
He gathered what was left of his strength and lifted himself up out of bed. He slowly made his way out of the bedroom and down the stairs, gripping the railing with both hands. With labored breath he leaned against the door frame, gazing into the kitchen.
Were it not for death's agony, he would have thought himself already in heaven: there, spread out upon newspapers on the kitchen table were literally hundreds of his favorite chocolate chip cookies. Was it heaven or was it one final act of heroic love from his devoted life. Mustering one final effort, he threw himself toward the table, landing on his knees in a rumpled posture.
He reached out the the edge of the table and took one of the cookies. A glass of cold milk would have made this moment perfect, but the old man couldn't wait. His parched lips parted, seemingly bringing him back to life. The aged and withered hand was bringing up the cookie to his mouth when suddenly it was smacked with a spatula by his wife.
She angerly told him, "Stay out of those! They're for the funeral!"
Let the drum roll begin...
10) It's Biblical (see Malachi 3:8-10)
9) It's an excellent way of practicing "first fruits" giving
8) It's an act of faith and trust that the Lord will always provide
7) It encourages generous giving in every other area of life
6) It ensures that God never receives the "leftovers" of your riches
5) It will make you more sensitive to the Lord's provision for you
4) It will make you more thankful for all you have been blessed with
3) It's a recognition of the First Commandment to "fear, love and trust in God above all things"
2) Enables you to focus your attention on seeking God's kingdom and His righteousness for you
1) It's an effective way of testifying that God really does own everything you have and that you are glad to give a portion back to Him
I've never met a person yet who regretted tithing a portion of their riches to the Lord. As you consider how you support the ministry of your church, pray about giving a tenth of your wealth to the Lord. Ask the Lord for the faith and confidence to follow through.
Have you heard this one...about the new Pastor who was about to preach his first sermon before His new church? He worked hard on it all week long because he wanted it to be his best work. Being conscientious, he committed the words to memory.
When it came time to preach, he climbed the steps to the chancel's high pulpit. He looked out over the congregation and boldly proclaimed, "Behold, I come!" Suddenly, overcome with fear, he froze - he forgot his prepared text. Over and over he repeated to himself, "Do not panic."
Soon the sermon returned to memory. So, he climbed again into the pulpit and announced, "Behold, I come." Once more he forgot everything. He descended down from the pulpit and sat on his chair and uttered a quick prayer.
After a short pause he sprang up the pulpit steps shrieking, "BEHOLD, I COME!" However, he jumped into the pulpit with such force that it ripped from the wall and fell to the floor. It landed with a "BOOM!"
The pastor rolled out of the destroyed pulpit and stammered out an apology. A woman responded, "No need to apologize, Pastor. After all, you did warn us three times that you were coming!"
Did you hear the story about the only survivor of a shipwreck? He was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help. But none seemed forthcoming.
Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the weather and to store his few possessions. But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames. The worst had happened; everything was lost. He cried out, "Cod, how could you do this to me?"
Early the next morning the man was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. Rescued at last! The weary man asked the captain, "How did you know I was here?" The captain answered, "We saw your smoke signal."
It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad. But we shouldn't lose heart because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, the next time "your little hut" is burning to the ground, it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.
And God is gracious! We say, "It's impossible!" God says, "All things are possible." (Luke 18:27)
We say, "No one loves me." God says, "I love you." (John 3:16)
We say, "I can't forgive myself." God says, "I forgive you." (1 John 1:8)
We say, "I'm always worried and anxious." God says, "Cast your cares on me." (1 Peter 5:7)
Please feel free to pass this along to anyone you know whose hut might be in danger of burning!
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
No merit of my own I claim
But wholly lean on Jesus' name
On Christ the solid rock I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
O Lord Jesus, whom we confess as the Way and the Truth and the Life, help us to stand on the solid rock of the truth of Your Word, so that no trial or temptation can shake our faith or our confidence in You; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Christian life is like breathing in (pulling into our souls the life-sustaining power of the Spirit) and breathing out (expending that life-giving power to others). The Christian life cannot function without both actions.
Robert Benne, as quoted in "The Calling," page 34
One night a fierce Arizona desert storm struck with rain, hail and high winds. At daybreak, feeling sick and fearing the worst, the owner of the property went out to survey the damage.
The hail had beaten the garden into the ground; the house had lost most of its shingles; the henhouse had blown away and dead chickens were scattered about. Destruction and devastation were everywhere.
As the owner tried to take in everything he saw, he heard a stirring in a pile of lumber that formerly had been the henhouse. A rooster managed to free himself from the debris. Dripping wet and minus a majority of his feathers, the rooster climbed the lumber pile until he stood on top of it. He then flapped his bony wings and proudly crowed. It was as if he was saying, "I'm still alive! I'm still here!"
As you probably know, David wrote the majority of the Psalms. The storms of his life motivated David to pray and pour out his heart to God, seeking forgiveness, help and protection. But take some time today to read Psalm 145. It's as if David is proudly crowing, "I'm still here; I'm still here! Praise God! Praise the Lord!
David praises God for His name which saves...he praises God for His goodness and compassion...he praises God for His precious promises...he praises God for His generous provision...he praises God for his protection from enemies.
As this work week comes to an end, join David and offer a sacrifice of praise to God your King!
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday is always a busy day for me. I began this morning with coffee and devotion, reading from Richard Lauersdorf's book on the six chief parts of the Catechism and praying the morning office from "The Divine Hours." After I have breakfast, I'll spend the morning preparing the Bible study for tomorrow night. I'll grab a bit of lunch and then head to the office.
The afternoon will be full - contacting new members about the upcoming Spiritual Gifts classes; reviewing the number of volunteers who have committed to helping with the resumption of the Saturday evening service; filling out an application for our District Office so I can hold the title of Pastor Emeritus (which doesn't mean too much) and getting ready for a meeting tonight with our Board of Ministry Directors.
It will be a busy but blessed day. I pray yours is the same!
Below is the sermon I preached last Sunday at Life in Christ:
God is for us!
It
was Thursday, September 13, 2001. The
congregation I was serving, Island Lutheran Church on Hilton Head Island, South
Carolina, had gathered for worship. Our
country had suffered an unimaginable terrorist attack on Tuesday, 9/11. The World Trade Center was a pile of
rubble. Rescuers made a futile search
for signs of life. The whole nation mourned
and we worried that our way of life had come to an end.
For
two days I received calls from our congregation. Some expressed anxiety and fear. One person told me they would be traveling
back home for Thanksgiving. Now, they
didn’t know if they could get on a plane.
Others wondered if other attack would follow what we saw on
Tuesday. And there was lots of anger. Someone should pay for the devastation what
was wrought in New York City, Washington DC, and in a field outside of Shanksville,
Pennsylvania.
I
had puzzled for a day over what Bible text my message should be based on. As I had paged through my Bible, I found
myself coming back to one particular chapter – Psalm 46 – words that I imagine
many of you have turned to in times of trouble:
God is our refuge and strength, an
ever-present help in trouble. Therefore,
we will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the
heart of the sea.
There is a river whose streams make glad
the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her; she will not fall; God
will help her at break of day.
The Lord Almighty is with us, the God of
Jacob is our fortress.
The
message was clear and unmistakable. Here
was an answer for our anxiety, fear, and anger.
God is for you! God is on your side. God is your mighty fortress.
I’m
sure that most if not all of you know where you were on that fateful day. And even though it’s been two decades, some
of you will never forget the anxiety in the eyes of those searching the streets
and hospitals of New York City for loved ones.
Or
the fear etched on the faces of firemen, paramedics, police officers and others
as they searched in vain for signs of life in the dust and rubble of the Pentagon.
Or the anger
laying on the tongues of those who wanted the ones responsible for this madness
to pay for the pain Americans were feeling.
And some of you
here today share some of these very feelings.
Your worried sick and wonder, “What will happen to me if I don’t get the
vaccine? What will happen to me if I get
the vaccine?” Or maybe you are filled
with fear and your world feels like a pile of rubble because of a broken promise
and relationship. Or perhaps, anger is laying
on your tongue because a friend betrayed you, your family takes you for
granted, or your employer doesn’t recognize your good work.
It's been 20 years
since 9/11/2001. But really, isn’t it
everyday that we need to hear of the comfort and love that God has for you and
me, His children. God is for us!
God is on our side! God is our mighty fortress.
As many of you
know, Psalm 46 is the psalm that inspired Martin Luther to write that majestic
hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is our God.” In
one strong stanza after another, Luther describes in unforgettable terms that “for
us fights the valiant One,” that God “holds the field forever,” and that, in
Jesus, “our victory has been won, the Kingdom ours remaineth.”
Luther’s focus is
solely on our gracious God. God and no
one else in the world is our refuge in the face of tragedy, terror, disaster,
or death. God is our first choice, not
our last resort.
God is our
refuge. The noun “refuge” is formed from
a verb meaning, “to be safe.” As events
unfolded on that faithful Tuesday, President Bush was whisked from a Florida elementary
school, taken to Air Force One, and into the skies. Vice President Cheney was taken by the Secret
Service to a secure place.
But it is not just
the President and Vice President who alone receives such privileged treatment. When we find ourselves being threatened by
anxiety, when worrisome thoughts cause us to lose sleep and hope, we have a safe
place, a mighty fortress. God is our
refuge, our safety.
You can feel safe
because God is your refuge. He is totally
and completely on your side. This is
comforting news for us Christians because we too have an enemy – the devil. Satan seeks to destroy the freedom we have in
Christ Jesus. He will use any means necessary
to take away our joy and salvation.
We have a champion
who fights for us because Jesus is greater than the devil. He defeated Satan at the cross and the
tomb. Jesus holds power over death and
the grave. Remember what Jesus said to the
synagogue ruler when the man asked Jesus to come and heal his daughter? Don’t
be afraid – just believe.
In our battle
against the terrorist above all terrorists, we feel better because we have an
ally who fights for us, our mighty God. God is for us.
His Word clearly teaches that He is the One who will take care of us
when fear is about to harm us. God is
the one who shelters us so that the evil one cannot have his way with us.
God is also our
strength. He promises to be present when
we feel weak. His Word picks us up when
we are down, His meal of thanksgiving has the power to give us strength to
stand firm in the midst of fear, anxiety, or anger.
Yes, God is for
us. God is on our side. And God is with us.
On 9/11, I was at
a church with a group of pastors in Arlington, Virginia, just five miles from
the Pentagon. We went outside and heard
the firetrucks and the paramedics and saw the smoke as a good section of the
building burst into flames.
During the horror
and hysteria of that day, our government continually kept reminding us that although
President Bush was not in Washington, he was in charge, directing the
government and first responders. It was
their way of saying, “The President is with you in this.”
While that was
consoling and what we needed to hear on that horrible day, I find even more comfort
in know that God is with you and me. He
is ever-present. The Hebrew word
has as its root meaning, “very accessible.”
Doesn’t that
describe our Lord? The Bible teaches that we can have his ear anytime we want. He gives us His undivided attention whenever
we call on Him. God knows our
fears. He’s acquainted with our
tears. So, we flee to him for
refuge. As the Scriptures, He is not far
from us.
Isn’t it good to
know that God is your refuge, your strength?
He is your safe place. When the
terrorists of fear, anxiety and anger come racing into your hearts, flee to God. He will give you shelter, care and help. You can be sure of this because Jesus
lovingly says, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will
give you rest.
This rest we first
receive by faith when, through the work of the Holy Spirit, we came to trust
Jesus for forgiveness, new life, and salvation.
He continues to give us this rest and peace as we hear the words of absolution,
as we mediate upon His Word of truth, as we come into His presence in prayer.
Did you come here
today filled with fear? Overwhelmed by anxiety? Swallowed up by anger. God says
to you, “come to me.” This we do today
and in all the days of our lives.
We do this because
God is for us! God is by our side! God is our mighty fortress!
Amen!
All of us have people in our lives that have influenced us or made a lasting impression on us in some way. Because of their faith in us or love they've shown to us, we consider such people our heroes. We look up to them. We admire the example they set for us. We want to be like them.
One of my heroes is called Father Tim. I've never met him in person. In fact, he doesn't exist - except in the pages of the Mitford series of books by author Jan Karon.
Father Tim is the pastor of the Lord's Chapel in the fictional town of Mitford, North Carolina. Each of the Mitford books follows the life of the humble and devoted pastor as he cares for the people of his little community. I appreciate the fact that Father Tim knows what people need - the Word of God. And he uses the Psalms very effectively in his minisry.
For example, as Father Tim sought to minister to a young man who had been abandoned by his mother, he prayed Psalm 32:8b: I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.
When searching for encouragement, Father Tim remembered Psalm 68:19: Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.
To the individual near death, the first verse of Psalm 27 was Father Tim's prayer: The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid.
As we embark on our mediation of the Psalms, I pray that you, like Father Tim, will find verses and chapters in the Bible that give you comfort in troubled times and peace when your heart is troubled.
It was a fearful and defeated group that met behind locked doors on that first Easter evening. They had heard the news of Jesus' resurrection from the women who followed Jesus and some of them had seen the empty tomb. Still, they did not believe the good news. It was only after the living Lord appeared that they believed. For the next 40 days, Jesus continued to be with the disciples. Slowly they began to understand all that had taken place days and weeks earlier. When Pentecost came, filled with the Spirit, they were ready to proclaim what Jesus' death and resurrection meant. Looking "backward" they understood that Jesus paid for the sins of the world on the cross and that all who believed would not perish but have everlasting life.
"Life is lived forward but understood backward." Isn't that true for us as well? We don't often understand what God's will is for our lives. Life doesn't make sense to us when we suffer illness or face uncertainty. It's only after we take a look in life's "rearview mirror" that we can see how God was at work - protecting, caring, helping - in our lives.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding," reads Proverbs 3:5. Life is lived best when moving forward in faith in God's promises to bless those who are His. That makes the looking backward all the sweeter - seeing God's hand upon your life!
While on vacation I did some extensive reading from the Psalms. In Psalm 12, I was reminded by David that as God's people we can be certain of the Lord's protection and comfort.
Lord, Your words are water living
when my thirsting spirit pleads.
Lord, Your words are bread life giving
on Your words my spirit feeds
Lord, Your words will be my light
through death's cold and dreary night
Yes, they are my sword prevailing
and my cup of joy unfailing
As you read, mediate and pray over God's Word, you might also pray the following collect that the church has prayed for centuries:
Blessed Lord, since You have caused all Holy Scripture to be written for our learning, grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
God bless your time spent in His flawless, pure and perfect Word!
“Possessions are not given that we may rely or glory in them...but that we may use them and enjoy them and share them with others....Our possessions should be in our hands, not in our hearts.”
The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands; it lays hold of me.
“God divided the hand into fingers so that money would slip through it.”
From “Martin Luther’s Little Instruction Book,” page 73
