4-25-2019

Good Morning All,

    Luke 15: 18-19; “I’ll go at once to my father, and I’ll say to him, “Father, I’ve sinned against heaven and you.  I don’t deserve to be called your son anymore. Make me one of your hired men.”

    Have you ever felt sorry for doing something?  Did it help or did you feel just as bad?  We often realize that we have done something wrong and then we feel bad.  We have a hard time getting over it and often we don’t.  We continue to feel guilty with little, if any, sense of relieve or respite.

     Which brings up a question, if feeling sorry for your sins doesn’t make you feel better; then what does?  Many will tell you that repentance means to feel sorry for your sins.  That is only a small part of the story.  This is also why, when we feel sorry for our sins, that we still feel empty of forgiveness and still burdened by sin.

    It is always interesting to me that the younger son in the parable of The Prodigal Son eventually realizes that the cause of his problem is life is his sin.  He didn’t blame others; he knew that his pain was caused by his sin.  So, he decides to return to his father and ask for forgiveness but expected to be a servant from now on because he had squandered what his father had given him.

    Yet here is where the remarkable part of God’s love is revealed to us.  In the parable, the father (God) is looking for the son to return every day.  When the son comes to his senses and returns, the love of the father is revealed.  The father doesn’t wait for the apology, or confession, before he forgives the son.  The son is forgiven when the father begins to look for him on the road.  In other words, he is forgiven by the father before the son realizes, recognizes or confesses his sin.

    When you come to God in confession, your sins are already forgiven.  They were forgiven long before you realized that is what you should do.  The major part of repentance is when you realize you are going in the wrong direction and the suffering state in which you now exist is the result of your sin.  It is not your parent’s fault or your spouse’s or society’s; it is your fault, your own most grievous fault.  We do not deserve to be forgiven but the love of the Father is greater than anything we have ever experienced.  Return to the Father for He has already forgiven you and He desires that you may be made whole again and part of His eternal kingdom.

Dear Father, to you alone belong the glory.  We come to you as a broken people; we are broken by sin and its guilt.  Yet through all of our failures, you forgive us because of your love for us.  We pray for those in our community who have watched loved ones return to you.  Be with them and give them your comforting Spirit.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

4-24-2019

Good Morning All,

    Psalm 103:4; “who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.”

    I was watching a movie the other night.  It was a war movie in which one scene was shot during a rain soaked period of time.  Everything was wet and slippery.  The mud was everywhere and walking was tough and driving was even more difficult.  The enemy was about to attack so as they tried to move all the equipment.  Of course, as the enemy is coming, one of the jeeps gets stuck and it takes a heroic effort to save the day.  

    It seems that rescuing the hero at the last minute is a common theme in many movies.  Sometimes the villain dies while the hero gets saved.  The scene is frequent and the result is often the same.  This seems to occur because in many ways; we recognize that we need to be rescued in our own lives.

    Man has long known that he was in desperate shape.  We see this from his earliest fears.  We recognize it by our earliest refusal to care about others.  Our only thought was to self-survival and no thought to others; hence Cain and Abel.  This is partial why we tend to show hatred to others; it is the fear that we need to be rescued and that there isn’t enough help to go around.  It is this need to be rescued that causes us to build walls around ourselves to protect ourselves and to feel a little bit secure.  We separate ourselves from others in an attempt to feel safe and secure in a slippery pit.

    Martin Luther King once commented, “People often hate each other because they fear each other, they fear each other because they don’t each other, they don’t know each other because they cannot communicate, they cannot communicate because they are separated.” This seems to be an accurate description of our human existence.  We fear so we hate.

    There is no way for us to solve this crisis.  On our own, we can only fail.  We soon see that relying on our own skills, our own power, on our own self sense of right and wrong; we soon fall into the pit of destruction.  That slippery slope just leads down, pulling us in to the quagmire of total despair.  Our hope is lost, the light is gone and we sink slowly out of sight.

    Yet God, in his mercy, pulls us from the miry bogs.  He brings us from the pit of complete despair.  God pulls us out through the blood of Jesus.  He sets our feet upon a rock.  So, we can face the world with confidence and hope.  There is nothing that the world can throw at us that God cannot or will not pull us through.  The trials of this life are just that; trials.  Through them we can see God’s hand protecting us and giving to us the blessed certainty of life eternal.

  Dear Father, you pull us from the pit and give to us the certainty of hope.  Within you is our salvation.  Keep us safe within your arms and guard us with your tender mercy.  Keep us aware that all things work for good for those whom you love according to your purposes.  Bless us with your peace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret  

4-23-2019

 Good Morning All,

   Matthew 17:5; “He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him."

    In front of a small rural church, the minister used to list the sermon titles for the next two weeks.  He had them listed like this:

                                              Jan. 20th- Jesus walks on the water

                                              Jan. 27^th- Searching for Jesus

    I don’t think this is exactly the message he meant to convey but he did.  Many people are, or at least claim to be, searching for Jesus.  They claim to be looking and listening for Jesus.  They profess to pray to him and to believe in him and yet do they?

    Many people search for Jesus but are really searching for a way or method to obtain the things of this world which they want.  They are like teenagers with Dad’s credit card.  All you have to do is swipe it in the machine and just like that you get what you want.  It couldn’t be easier.  They have no idea as to the cost or to the process of how this works.  They simply demand and get.

    There is the story of two friends who rarely attended church.  One of them got a very aggressive form of cancer.  So, these two friends sat down each day and read the Bible.  Yet when the one who got cancer died; the second friend decided that there was no God because he didn’t heal his friend.  This man had a vision of God and it was that God was to do what the man demanded.  He was searching for a God who would cover his expenses and fulfill his demands.

    Our verse is from the story of the Transfiguration.  Peter had just asked about making tents for everyone.  The voice of God told the disciples to listen to Jesus.  We should listen to Jesus; do whatever Jesus tells us.  It isn’t that hard.  Jesus tells us to repent and to believe.  We are to believe in his promise and assurance that our sins are forgiven and that we will share in eternal life with him.  That is pretty much it.  He encourages us to take advantage of the blessings which he bestows on us: prayer, Communion, the gathering with fellow believers to name a few.  Yet he calls upon us to repent and to believe.  Listen to him.  Trust in his words of hope and promise.  He will never forsake you.  Do whatever he asks of you; live your life in his hope and comfort.  Then all that you seek will be given to you.

Dear Father, too often we do not do as you ask; we go our own way and fall and fail.  Forgive us our sins and cleanse us and bring us back to you.  Guard us from all evil and give your holy comfort to those in need of your care.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret  

4-22-2019

Good Morning All,

   Isaiah 55:6; “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.”

    Have you ever seen any of the children’s book series “Where’s Waldo?”  It is a series of books where the main character Waldo dresses in red and white stripes.  He is hiding in a picture and you have to find him.  It is not as easy as it sounds.  The artist uses combination of colors and hues to give the illusion of Waldo when it isn’t really him.  You can spend hours on a book trying to find Waldo in the different areas of the picture.

    Looking for something has been part of the human experience for a long time.  The Greek cynic Diogenes carried a lantern and searched for an honest man.  Peter, Paul and Mary asked the musical question, “Where have all the flowers Gone?”  Whether it was the truth, true love or just a really good cheeseburger; people have searched for something that they couldn’t find.

    There are many times in our lives when we feel like we can’t find God.  We look around and see troubles in the world, in our nation even in our lives and we feel like we are looking for Waldo.  We see violence throughout the world.  We see hatred.  We see part of the world with more money, food and power than it could ever need or use while another part lives on pennies a day with little food and no way to control their own destiny.  We look at our nation and see a people divided on virtually every issue that exists.  We look at our own lives and see pain and problems.  We see job troubles, relationships, even our own inner peace.

    One of our biggest problems is the same as when we look for Waldo, we are easily misled and we end up looking in all the wrong places.  We look to drugs and alcohol; we look to crackpot self-help gurus; we look to our own strength and wisdom.  All these lead us down the wrong path; toward the path of destruction.  We tend to look to anything besides God. 

     The wondrous thing is that even though we look away from God; he never looks away from us.  He remains in our midst; offering us the peace and the hope to survive this world.  He is always there to lead through the difficult times; never abandoning us but always there to offer us comfort and hope.

     He does this through the creation which he has made.  He does this through the Church which he formed.  He does this through you and me whom he has redeemed.   God is always in our midst so we never have to fear.  We are never alone, even when facing our darkest fears; god is there to comfort us.  He is in our midst and we have nothing to fear.

Dear Father, you graciously live in our midst and protect us from all the devil’s ways.  Keep us safe and cause us to see that our comfort is in you alone.  Guide me that I may seek your grace, your peace, your hope and your truth.  In the precious name of the Risen Jesus we pray, amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret  

4-21-2019

Good Morning All,

   Luke 24: 5-6; “And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee,"

    I get asked the question often; where do I find Jesus?  This particular questioner went on he had read books by great thinkers or philosophers.  He had listened to all the self-help gurus; watched all the talk shows and listening to the talking heads as they ponder and pontificate the musings of the day.  Yet at the end of the day, this questioner had nothing.  He had neither comfort nor peace.  He was empty; void of any type of true substance.  Each day was a “nothing” type of day completely void of any type of contentment or fullness.

    Where do I find Jesus?  Where do I find meaning to life; where do I find the comfort at the end of the day that lets me sleep; where do I find peace; tell me where?  The very simple truth is that we find Jesus exactly where he told us he would be.  He is in his Word and in his sacraments for you.  He is not in the tomb; he is not to be found among the dead.  He is not found in the tired and worn out musings of man because God used a plan that man simply cannot understand.  God’s plan was built upon the purest form of love to exist anywhere.  God’s plan was to offer a part of himself as the perfect sacrifice to pay for the sins of all men.  Your sins are paid for; the debt which you could never pay by your own righteous deeds is paid for by Jesus.  He tells us that over and over in his Scriptures; “I come to die that you might live.”  Yet Jesus’ death was only part of the good news that day.  While Jesus’ death declares us holy before God; his resurrection opens the door of the grave so that we may have eternal life with Jesus in the new creation which was begun at Jesus’ birth.

    Remember what he told you; you are a redeemed, baptized child of God.  Because of Jesus resurrection he is victorious over death.  Death is no longer the undisputed champion; Jesus is and he has given that victory to you.  Now you possess the victory over death.  Now death to a believer is simply a sleep or a nap.  It is not the end; it is not the defining moment.  It is but a passage we experience.  But because Jesus lives; we live also.

    Remember what he told you; This victory will never be taken from you; you may possess it forever.  Your name was added to the eternal roll of heaven’s Book of Life at your Baptism.  This is a promise that God makes to you every minute of every day.  You belong to Jesus.

    Remember what he told you; he will never leave you alone.  The devil may scowl, tempt, scare and try to intimidate you but the victory is yours.  Salvation is yours; life eternal is yours.  Jesus lives and so do you!!  Alleluia!

Glorious Jesus!  The victory you have won you have now given to us that we might know the perfect love that only you can offer.  Lift up our hearts in joyous celebration.  Lift up our eyes to focus on you and you alone.  Take us to be with you; come Lord Jesus, come.  In your precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

4-20-2019

 Good Morning All,

     1 Samuel 17:45; “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord  of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.”

    This is part of a verse from the story of David and Goliath.  There is a lot about this story that intrigues me.  One of those things is the tremendous detail that the writer of Samuel goes to in describing Goliath.  Goliath was nine feet tall, his chest plate armor alone weighed 125 pounds and the head of his spear weighed 15 pounds.  The shaft of the spear was big enough to use as the main frame of a weaver’s frame.  This was one big, mean, ugly dude.  He struck terror into the hearts of the entire Israelite army, king and all the people.  He had challenged the Israelites to send out their best soldier.  That best soldier and Goliath would fight; one on one and the winner of that battle would be the winner of the war.  If the Israelite won the Philistines would be the slaves and if Goliath won then the Israelite would be the slaves.

     For forty days, Goliath mocked the Israelites and their God.  For forty days, his challenge went unanswered.  On the forty first day, David, a little shrimp of a kid, came out to do battle with Goliath and killed him with a stone and cut off Goliath’s head with Goliath’s own sword.  This is quite a story.

     This is one of those stories that many people know but always seem to fixate on the wrong part of the story.  Many people will latch onto the idea that someone was nine feet tall.  Once they read that, the entire Bible is dismissed.  Now if it matters to you, there are some older translations that have Goliath about seven-foot-tall and there are some commentaries that suggest that the way we convert the ancient measurements to our known measurements of today is off; to me it doesn’t matter because that is not the purpose of this story.  The really important part is that Goliath was a big, mean, nasty thing to meet in the dark.

    We all face “Goliaths” in our life.  It might be changes at our workplace; it might be the prospect of getting married and moving away from Mom and Dad to a new place with this somewhat new person.  It might be the health of our parents or siblings or spouse or even our own health.  For most of us the biggest Goliath we face is our own mortality.  Someday, I will die and for many people nine feet isn’t tall enough for that Goliath.  These are just a few things in our lives that strike terror into our hearts and minds.  There are many others some of which may be your Goliath.

    David gives us a clue to our answer.  Before the battle begins, Goliath gives the “trash talk” speech about how he will leave David on the field of battle for the birds and animals to pick clean.  David responds with a statement of faith.  “This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand.”   We will face many Goliaths but God has promised to deliver them into our hand.  God has promised to guard and save us.  Not matter what comes our way, we rest securely at the foot of the cross looking at the empty tomb.  God has already delivered us up from the bondage of sin and the guilt and pain that sin causes us.  So, as we face our “Goliaths”, we can do so with the same confidence that David did and be certain that God will deliver us as well.  Faith that God would deliver him the victory over Goliath is what carried the day for David.  That same faith will carry you through as well.

Dear Father, we face many “Goliaths” in our life and on our own we would fail.  Yet you sent Jesus to do battle with all the Goliaths we face and defeated them and then gave that victory to us.  Remind us of this truth as we cling only to you.  In the precious name of Jesus, we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret          

4-19-2019

Good Morning All,

      Psalm 23:4; “Even though I walk through the dark valley of death, because you are with me, I fear no harm.  Your rod and your staff give me courage.”

    Did you ever watch a scary movie or read a scary book when you were a child?  How did it go?  I remember the first couple of times I watched a scary movie; it was a Vincent Price one and I didn’t turn the lights off for two nights.  Every noise made me jump.  It is funny how the night makes our fears alive.  Here, in the wintertime, a forced air furnace house will creak and crack each time the furnace kicks on.  During the daytime, we hardly notice, but at night; it sounds like footsteps in the hall: it could be an axe murderer!!

     The night always brings about our greatest fears.  The sounds we hear but we don’t know what made them; we can’t see them and make us wonder what is out there.  This is part of the reason why the Bible always equates God with light and the devil with darkness.  It is an analogy which we readily understand.  We can get lost in the dark, very easily, and the darkness heightens our sense of loneliness.  It is at night that we often struggle the most.

     It is at night that the “worries” strike with a vengeance.  How do we pay all these bills?  Why is my child suddenly struggling in school?  How do we fix the car right now?  What will I do if we don’t get any more moisture this year than last?  Why doesn’t my spouse love me like they used to?  My health, my parents’ health, my spouses’ health just isn’t what it should be.  When the “worries” start, especially at night, the devil and our old sinful nature loves to attack. 

     One thing about the devil, he knows no mercy nor does he ever show any.  He sticks the knife in, twists it about, pours salt on the wound and then he starts all over again.  This is what the Psalmist was experiencing when he wrote our verse.  He knew fear, fear of being killed.  He had enemies all around him.  It was a scary situation.  He was outnumbered and facing suffering.  But he knew where to go for help; he knew God.

     God is here to rescue you as well.  He comes to you in his Word and he listens to you in your prayers.  The Spirit will cause us to remember all the things which Jesus said to us.  This is part of the reason why reading the Bible regularly is so helpful.  The Holy Spirit uses those special passages to bring us comfort and to remind us of where our hope comes from.  God encourages us to pray so that we can express our fears and our desires.  So, when we face those nights or days filled with the “worries” take a few minutes and yearn for God in the night.  Look to him for your comfort and hope; don’t look to yourself or any other worldly support.  Any other support will only fail.  Only God, whose love and mercy exceeds our every need can keep us safe and give us peace.

Dear Father, we yearn for your Holy Spirit to comfort us and give us peace.  Keep us secure in your arms and give to us your peaceful rest which only you can deliver.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray.  Amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret