As we emerge from the pandemic, many aspects of our life together will reemerge as well. One such event will be our annual Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper. Our Lutheran Men will serve as our cooks for the evening, providing a delicious breakfast for our supper time meal. The pancake supper will begin at 7 PM on Tuesday, March 1st in the Fellowship Hall.
I recently read the book, Chasing Francis: A Pilgrim’s Tale by Ian Morgan Crone. The book tells the story of a man facing his crisis of faith by following in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi, and although fictional it raised a lot of thought-provoking ideas about faith and worship. One that stood out to me was the question of when worship begins. Crone suggests that worship begins when you get into your car to head to church. He says that worship starts when you begin to step away from the worldly thoughts and enter into God’s presence. This struck me because I’d never understood why the alarm goes off at 5 AM on Sunday mornings, I’m not a morning person, or why there isn’t much conversation over coffee before heading out to church. I was intrigued by this passage because I realized that this is when David begins to enter into worship, and I wondered, when do I? As I prepare to meet Jesus on my own personal road to Emmaus so that He can open the scriptures for me and explain all that has happened so far, when do I start to put aside all the worldly thoughts that will keep me from focusing on what He is about to share. Perhaps it is worry over children, or bills, or the to do list that seems to grow longer each week that distracts me. It may even be excitement about upcoming activities that need to be put aside.
When do you begin to step away from the world and prepare for worship? I would expect most of you are like me and that’s not at 5 AM. For several of you it begins in Sunday School when you start to study God’s word. For most, this probably happens as you step into worship. Our worship service begins with an opportunity to do this, the prelude. Although this is often a time when we catch up with people we haven’t seen all week, the prelude is there to give us a moment of quieting our mind. It’s a chance to put away all those thoughts that will keep us from hearing what Jesus has to tell us and to be fully present with our Lord. We are so fortunate to have it played so beautifully by an extremely talented musician, Sarah. I encourage you to take advantage of this moment to prepare for worship and to consid er this week, “when do I begin to enter into worship with my Lord?”
God bless you all,
Angela
We are beginning to prepare music for the Easter season. Please come join us. I’m still praying for you to hear God’s call to serve.
The Congregational Care Team is actively seeking members. If you are willing to serve on our team, please contact Billy.
St. Jacob’s senior’s group, Up and Going, is in need of a new group leader. Helen has served in this position for a number of years and is planning to step down from the role. Anyone who is interested in stepping up should contact Helen for a description of what it means to be the leader for Up and Going. Pastor David is also willing to lend any assistance necessary.
Mid-week Morning Bible Study will resume on Wednesday, March 9th beginning at 10 AM. Our study will focus on an in-depth reading and study of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus. Traditionally, the church reads the Passion narrative of Jesus on Palm Sunday. This became the norm as people began wandering from attending worship during Holy Week. Without such services, there is no scriptural bridge connecting Palm Sunday to the celebration of the Resurrection of Our Lord. In our study, we will follow the events of Jesus’ final week of earthly life before his crucifixion, hear the words of the prophets and follow Jesus in his journey to the cross. All are welcome to participate in this study. Invite your friends and loved ones to come with you.
The Lutheran Women will meet on Sunday, March 20th at 4 PM in the Fellowship Hall. Looking forward to seeing you all.
Our mid-week Morning Bible Study will resume on Wednesday, February 2nd beginning at 10 AM. Our topic will be a based on a book “Reviving the Aging Church” written by our friend, Pastor Brad Hales from the NALC Staff. We will take a close look at the scriptures pertaining to God’s blessing the faithful with long life and many years. This will be a great study and produce good fruit for our congregation as we live into the “golden” years. There are no special materials needed, just bring your Bible and a desire to explore God’s Word with members of your church family.
The Lutheran Men will meet on Sunday, February 20th at 6 PM in the Fellowship Hall.
The Lutheran Women will meet on Sunday, February 20th at 4 PM in the Fellowship Hall. We are looking forward to meeting on a regular basis again.
Trouble with the Church
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. 1 Peter 2:12
It’s obvious; the world has trouble with the church. In virtually all aspects of human life, two messages prevail. The first message seems to be “Get what you can and keep it for yourself.” The second is like it, “Do what you want, when you want.” Of course, these messages are contrary to the gospel; therefore, the world has a problem with the church.
Sadly, it seems Christians also have trouble with the church. Often, someone will make the statement, “I don’t need to go to church to be a Christian.” Others say, “I experience God in my own way.” Such statements are contrary to scripture. It’s for this reason I say even Christians have trouble with the church.
A common reason people remain unchurched is because they don’t see any appreciable difference in the way Christians live their lives. Too often, Christians, especially those who go it alone, fall into the worldly pattern of living according to worldly expectations rather than God’s calling. We do what we want, when we want. We get as much as we can get and keep it for ourselves. We only give to those whom we deem “worthy.” It is no wonder the world has trouble with the church.
All people are sinners and face temptations. Even the most devout and spiritual Christians need to be encouraged in their faith. Thinking you can remain faithful on your own is perhaps Satan’s most potent weapon. Keeping our faith “private” and not gathering for worship with other Christians causes many to believe they are living according to a higher standard, when in reality, they are living according to a worldly standard. By ourselves, lone Christians become easy prey for the powers that defy God.
Peter exhorts Christians to live as people who are freed from sin in Christ Jesus, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, selfish attitudes, and behaviors, but living as true servants of God. The community of faith is a Christian’s sure defense against the powers of sin. The very nature of being Christian means we worship together, have fellowship with one another, and strengthen one another in faith. We study the Holy Scriptures together, learning more of the ways of God. Just think of what it might look like if the church was known for its faithfulness, love, and compassion, rather than having the world characterize it as a gathering of hypocrites. That’s the kind of trouble I would love for the world to have with the church.
How great would it be if the powers that defy God looked upon St. Jacob’s saying, “Look at those Christians and how they love their God and show mercy and compassion to their neighbor.” To have our community see St. Jacob’s as a living, breathing, example of the power of God’s love within our community and wanting to become a part of who we are is just the sort of trouble with the church that I would love to encounter.
Am I just dreaming? Perhaps, or perhaps not. I believe our congregation is quite a collection of God’s people blessed with many gifts and talents to become known as just such a place. All we need is prayer and commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many who were here before us built St. Jacob’s while living in the face of similar doubts and challenges. My prayer going into this New Year is that we would become just the sort of congregation the world would have trouble with, trouble understanding how we can find such joy in serving our neighbor through the love and compassion of our Lord Jesus. Yes, that is the sort of trouble with the Church I believe the world needs to experience.
Grace to you and peace,
Pastor David Nuottila
