There are celebrations throughout the church year that happen on days other than Sundays. In preparation for Staff Meeting devotions this week, I realized that this is a week that celebrates community in the early church. January 25 is the celebration of the Conversion of St. Paul. January 26 is the commemoration of Timothy, Silas and Titus, missionaries, and January 27 is the commemoration of Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe, witnesses to the faith.
1 Corinthians 12:4–12
4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
12For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
As I read about the Conversion of St. Paul on the road to Damascus, the Commemoration of Timothy, Titus and Silas, missionaries, and the commemoration of Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe, Witnesses to the Faith, I was struck by how Paul, following his conversion on the road to Damascus, ended up gathering around him, and taking with him, people with such varied gifts. Timothy traveled with Paul on his second missionary journey, and was commissioned by Paul to go to Ephesus. Titus accompanied Paul to the council of Jerusalem; both of these men then became bishops. Silas was imprisoned with Paul at Philippi, and they were delivered by an earthquake, and they baptized the jailer and his family. After they were released from jail, they went to stay with Lydia.
Lydia was a seller of purple cloth, very expensive, who had been converted, and had offered her home to Paul and his companions. They seem to have stayed at her home several times. So she is known for her faith and her hospitality. Dorcas, or Tabitha, was known for her compassion in making clothes, especially for poor widows. Phoebe was a deacon in the church at Cenchreae, who took great care of people in the church, and is looked to as a role model by the Deaconesses and Diaconal ministers. They were all a part of a community, but probably rarely, if ever, were all in the same place at the same time.
Sometimes Paul noticed the gifts of others, and invited them to come with him. Other times, as in Lydia’s case, she noticed Paul and his coworkers, and offered to help. So it is with each of us, as we have been gathered together with our various skills. We bring our strengths and our individual needs to our ministry, and must cooperate to help each other. Always we are blessed when we can help others. We will be even more blessed as we invite others into ministry with us. Last Sunday afternoon, four members of OWLS joined Pastor Jeff and me in a worship service at Beaumont. Undoubtedly, they were blessed, just as they were a blessing to the residents they encountered at worship.
PRAYER: O God, by the preaching of your apostle Paul you have caused the light of the gospel to shine throughout the world. Grant that we may follow his example and, like Timothy, Silas, Titus, Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe, use our varied gifts to witness to the truth of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
May you be blessed as you share Ministry in your daily life!
Bess Sproul
Christians approach Christmas from many different viewpoints. Some make an annual church visit. Some primarily focus on Santa and holiday traditions. Some preach that Jesus is the Reason for the Season. Some view Christmas as an assimilation of pagan traditions and avoid any celebrations. I’m sure that an internet search would reveal lots of other ways that people respond to Christmas but Lutherans experience Christmas from a Theology of the Cross perspective – God is revealed in the last place human beings would reasonable look: in a manger. Why was the King of Kings born in a barn and placed in a dirty food bin? Why was the Son of God born into a life of poverty and oppression? The Incarnate God fully comprehends our darkness and weaknesses. Jesus lived it and overcame it all for us because He loves us! He is the King of Kings and has power to overcome anything in our lives. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12: 8-9… My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness. So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
So sing “Glory to God in the highest” joyfully because God is with us, Emmanuel. Merry Christmas and God bless us all everyone!
I am extremely fortunate to be the Parish Secretary at a fantastically strong community based church such as Good Shepherd. I get to see God’s face daily; his miracles and grace, both here and at home with my own family. Despite my job, my family and my faith I don’t always see these things as clearly and as impressively as I did this morning. Today I saw something that filled me with the true meaning of faith, the grace of God and the fact that there is no luck or coincidence in life, but God in everything we see, hear, smell, touch and feel.
A mom and her youngest son from church, whose dog died recently, came to talk to pastor this morning because of his questions about death and get some closure. The grace, love, compassion and caring that God bestows on all of us each and every day unraveled before me with such power and beauty it took everything I had to hold back my tears of joy until they left as to not confuse or scare this young child.
I witnessed God in three distinct things. First, how mom related a story how a family trip, to see her ailing father, showing me how God was gracing this young boy with the life lesson of compassion. She spoke lovingly and proudly of her son’s awesome love for his grandfather saying ‘he said, Grandpa is confused mom, but he knows I am here and I love him,‘ and how her father reacted to his grandson’s love. Second, how this soon to be 1st grader wanted to talk to Pastor about death and how to accept what had happened to their cherished pet. Lastly, as they were leaving, another congregant with a wonderful dog of her own showed up and how this young boy got down to the dog’s level to pet and love on this dog. As the boy loved on the dog, the giggles that ensued from the dog kisses were priceless. God again graced this boy and his family in their time of grief. Even the dog’s owner was touched because as she admitted, “she (the dog) is choosy about who she gives her kissed to!” What a phenomenal way to see God; I am so blessed to have been able to be here for this extraordinary experience.
God is good . . . . All the time! Open your eyes and witness the awesome grace and love God has for all of us; What we take for granted everyday is there!
Visiting other congregations while we are away from home can be a really neat experience. There are no Lutheran congregations within 50 miles of where we are. So, last Sunday, we found a small Episcopal church. It was a wonderful experience. Barry and I went in and sat down. The man in front of us turned around to welcome us. He told us what to expect in the service. He explained that everything was in the bulletin so that we would not have to worry about finding our way through the service book and the hymnal. He told us a little about the congregation and his own particular ministry there. By the time worship began, we felt like we had made a friend and were right at home. There were only about 50 people there. The service was well done and not rushed. The have an Interim priest. It was only his second Sunday with them. After the service, we were greeted by more people. It took us over half an hour to get out the door. I learned about their prayer shawl ministry and their Parish Nurse. They are very low on prayer shawls. So, I am working on one for them. All in all, it was a wonderful experience. Barry and I will go back there again.
The welcome we received made all the difference. The People at King of Peace proclaimed God’s love very effectively by the way we were received. I hope you will find a congregation to visit while you are on vacation this summer. The experience will help you look at how we are doing at Good Shepherd. I hope our visitors leave as excited about us as Barry and I were about King of Peace.
Reciting some holy words isn’t all there is to prayer. Prayer is a conversation. We talk and God talks. He wants us to hear Him. Sometimes it’s hard work to listen. Active listening takes a quiet mind and an expectant heart. Active listening isn’t easy.
I’d like to parallel a time in Elijah’s life and ours. Elijah’s life around the time of 1 Kings 19 isn’t comfortable. The Powers of the Day are King Ahab and his wife, Jezebel. They worship Baal. Given that Elijah worships, hears, and obeys the true God he exposes Baal as a false god on Mount Carmel and has Baal’s priests killed. Ahab and Jezebel’s response is to hunt down Elijah to kill him. Elijah is on the run, depressed, and wants the Lord to end his life. The Lord tells him to go to Horeb, the mountain of God. Elijah obeys. He stays in a cave. God tells him to stand on the mountain because the Lord is about to pass by. Then winds, earthquakes, and fire happen. Elijah is exposed to powerful and extreme elements.
We pray. We listen. We do our best and what happens? Tornadoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and devastating fires happen. Catastrophes happen!
So is Elijah’s experience any different than ours? Whether we experience wind, shaking, or fire figuratively or literally it’s not! It’s what happens next that gives us hope. Elijah steps to the cave entrance because he hears a gentle whisper (NIV) / sheer silence (NRSV). Now he knows that the Lord is passing by. The Lord comforts Elijah and directs his next steps. In your own devotional time or during our Prayer Vigil on Good Friday actively listen to the Lord, who comforts, sustains, and shows us the path of real life.
Our middle school Sunday School classes have started a new unit . . . . HOME and FAMILY. The first lesson on March 27th was centered on Ephesians 6:1-3 – obeying and honoring our parents. It used the Bible story of Noah and his sons (Gen.9:18-29) to illustrate how we have the ability to help and encourage our parents. One of the activities was to complete the Adult Stress Check. From a list of 20, students checked off every stressful situation that they thought their parents had experienced during the past year. One of the 20 was checked off by all the students – Busy Schedule. Conflict with a Sibling was a very close second. Conflict with Me was ironically a distant third along with Household Repairs, Job Instability or Pressure and Health Problems with a Loved One. Any surprises?
Peace is elusive. It’s hard to get and even harder to maintain. During Lent consider making time in your daily schedule for meditation and reflection. It takes discipline to withdraw from the noise around us, to choose quietness, and to rest in silence. You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal. Psalm 26:3-4
Try noticing a rock. Use that to focus your mind back to the words of Psalm 26: the Lord is the Rock eternal, and what that means to you.
Recently I was reminded of just how exciting it was to go to school in the evening as a child. I also remember when my students would come to school at night for a special program. There was always an air of anticipation and downright giddiness. I’ve seen that same excitement here at Good Shepherd several times during the past two months. Pageant rehearsals, Christmas School and the Talent Show brought lots of our children to church at a time when they usually don’t come. Attending the different events brings a high energy level and excitement; and it’s also a time when it’s easy to identify those children who feel at-home at Good Shepherd. They demonstrate a comfort level and confidence well beyond their years. Jesus meant a lot of different things when he told the disciples to let the children come to him. I’m sure encouraging them to come to church often and feeling at-home in God’s House would rank near top
Many of our documents are in PDF format. Most browsers and computers are already set up to view PDF files. If you have trouble opening PDF documents, 