6-7-2022

 Good Morning!    

       Zechariah 10:8; “I will whistle for them and gather them in, for I have redeemed them, and they shall be as many as they were before.”

    I have always been fascinated by very well-trained dogs.  I have watched shows on well trained hunting dogs and well-trained sheep dogs and well-trained cow dogs.  I had a neighbor that had a border collie that used to “watch” the gate as he drove in and out to feed his cattle.  None of the cows ever got out.  He used a series of whistles and commands to get the dog to do what he wanted the dog to do.  The dog heard the whistle and understood what it meant.  Anybody else whistling and the dog just sat there, but as soon as the owner whistled, the dog’s ears stood up and it became attentive and alert.

    The dog hears the whistle of the master and responds.  This whistle may mean a meal or a task to accomplish.  It is a response to the call of the master.  It means that there is a great connection between the master and the dog.  The dog relies on the master for everything.  The master feeds the dog, gives it a shelter, protects it from enemies and guards it from all harm.

    In many ways we are like this dog.  We are protected by God from our enemies.  Even if we are scattered throughout the whole world, we hear God’s call, we hear his whistle and know that it is him.  Through the Spirit, he gathers us together into the safety of his body, the Church.  Through his Son, he has redeemed us bought us back from the sinful, selfish desires that used to control our lives to be his dear children.

    So as a good Lutheran we ask, what does this mean?  No matter what we do or where we are, God knows, and he doesn’t let us out of his sight.  His grace is always there for us; to comfort us to guard us to defend us.  When the challenges of life come at us and we fear them, we are scared of what they mean, God whistles for us and gathers us in, like a mother hen gathers her chicks.  He does this because he loves us.  We are his children, and he protects us from all that the devil throws at us.  All of our fears, all of our worries, all of our desperate cries and laments of despair are heard by God, and he calls us to his home to his place of safety.  God whistles and we know it is his call and this call, the promise of forgiveness and the certainty of our salvation, gives us hope.  

    We need to hear his words of hope and trust his promises. “Cast all your anxieties on him” “Let not your hearts be troubled” “Come unto me all you who labor and are of heavy laden and I will give you rest.”  Hear God’s words for you, listen to the whistle.

Gracious Father, you call us every moment.  Let us hear your call that we may be secure in your arms and guarded by your love.  Be with those who are especially in need of your grace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret         

 

6-6-2-22

 Good Morning!    

       Luke 22: 31-32a; “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.”

    “Sift you like wheat.”  This is a reference to how farmers at the time of Jesus would finish the harvest of wheat.  First the farmer would go out into the fields and with a scythe cut down the wheat and stack it into bundles which were then carried up to the thrashing floor.  Here the farmer would take the bundles and then beat them against the floor in order to loosen the kernels of wheat.  After they did this, they would then take a winnowing fork and throw the wheat, chaff, broken straw mixture into the air.  The wheat would fall to the floor as the chaff would blow away in the wind. 

    This was a rigorous process.  Yet, in the end, all you have is kernels of wheat, but it can be a very, very stressful event, especially on the wheat.  It gets thrown up into the air and then crashes to the floor only to be tossed up into the air again.  It is a trying and tumultuous event for the wheat, but it is necessary to separate the wheat (the necessary part) from the chaff (the waste).  This also happens in our life, sometimes very painfully.

    Many of you have experienced being sifted.  There are times in our lives when our faith is shaken to the very core.  The death of a child will rock you like an earthquake.  Sometimes, the stress from our everyday life shakes us.  Health issues in our family, especially big ones, can really shake you.  Placing a parent or a spouse in a nursing home can make you shudder.  Having your job disappear can be devastating.  Having the company that you worked for all your life suddenly go bankrupt and take your retirement with them can really hurt.  Put two or three of these together and you are sifted.

    When being sifted our confidence can be shaken.  One thing that it does is that it can cause us to seek our god.  Luther defines a god as “That from which we seek our ultimate source of security, that which we cling to with all our heart.”  So, what is your god?  Is it your money, your intellect, your spouse, your parents, your government, just plain you?  What is your god?  Because when we get sifted, the chaff all the false gods, blow away in the wind.  Finally, we are left with only the kernels.  Only the true God, Yahweh the triune God, is left and that is all we can cling to.

    So, we cling to the God who died for us, we cling to the God that redeemed us, and we cling to the God that loves us and promises to never forget us.  So, if you are being sifted, pray for God’s grace, talk to your brothers and sisters in Christ and remember who your only source of hope and security is and that is Christ.  You will be sifted, maybe many times, but through them all God holds you close and protects you from the devil and his attacks.

Father, we often feel sifted.  Protect us from all that the devil throws at us and keep us safe.  Give us the certainty of your hope, the certainty of your grace and the wonder of your comforting Spirit.  Be with those who are currently being sifted.  Give them the consolation they need and the comfort of your saving grace.  In Jesus precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

6-5-2022

 Good Morning!    

          Ephesians 2:8; “God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God”

    Everyone loves to receive gifts.  We look forward to receiving items from our loved ones.  It can be things as simple as a card or a flower.  When our sons were little, we used to wrap up socks and t-shirts at Christmas time so they would have a few more presents under the tree.  They were excited about them.  We all love to receive presents, and some are especially meaningful.

     Many years ago, my in-laws gave me a hand-crafted chess board.  It was made by an older member of our church out of the wood from the trees that grew around his farm.  This older member died a couple of years later.  This gift is special because of who gave it and who made it.  Another special gift I have received is from my father.  He gave me the pocket watch my grandfather received when he was confirmed.  I keep this in a special place and hope to give it to my grandson when he is confirmed.  Yet the most precious gift that I have ever received is the love and companionship of my wife of over 30 years.  It is the best gift I have.  I need it and rely on it each day.  Even at those times when I don’t treasure it as I should, it is irreplaceable.  

    Some gifts we receive, and we treasure them.  Some we toss away and some we hide in the closet.  So how do you view your salvation?  Being saved is a gift from God but do you truly appreciate it?

    Do you take that gift and use it every day, relish it, cherish it, and rely on it all the time?  Do you take it and place it on the shelf of your closet, out of sight and out of mind?  This is a choice we have.  God’s salvation is a tremendous gift; it gives to us each day.  God’s salvation brings us into God’s family, reconciling us back to him.  We receive his love, his comfort; he listens to us and gives us hope even at those times when we don’t treasure it as we should.  God gives us this faith to trust his salvation to allow us to cope with each day. 

    The devil and our own sinful nature love to drag us down and to see our life as empty and without meaning or hope but God uses our faith to encourage us, to help us see and understand that we are his children, loved by a gracious God.  This is a gift that keeps giving but only helps us today if we use it today.  Too often we think of God’s grace and salvation as being good when we die; the truth is God’s grace is there for you right now; there is no need to wait.  It provides for us this very minute.

    It is also a gift which, when you possess it, you should share it with those whom you love.  Share with them the certainty of salvation, the comfort for today and the promise of tomorrow.

Gracious Father, you give to us the greatest gift through your Son Jesus.  You give us life and hope.  Give us the wisdom to use this gift every day.  Give us the presence to trust this wonderful gift and to keep it precious in our life.  Lead us to share this gift with those around us, especially those most in need of your care.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

 

 

6-4-2022

Good Morning!    

       Exodus 20:12; “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”

    A student is listening to his history teacher and thinks to himself “What an idiot!”  An employee looks at his boss and thinks to himself “What an arrogant jerk!”  A woman finishes talking to her mother and thinks “Another crazy old lady!”  We do it all the time.  Sometimes we don’t even think about it.  We curse under our breath as someone blocks the bread aisle in the grocery store.  We roll our eyes and quietly mutter when the person ahead of us in the checkout line gives the checker girl a wad of coupons.  You can almost hear Aretha Franklin in the background “R..E..S..P.. E.. C.. T, find out what it means to me.”

    As we look at our verse, and really the whole of the Commandments, they all involve one basic element: respect.  The Commandments show us how to live with respect for each other.  Far too often we look at the 10 Commandments as “Law” what we have to do to please God.  Yet this is only partially how we should look at them.  It might do us better if we look at them as what they do to live in harmony with each other.

     After sin entered the world, man soon turned against man.  The story of Cain and Abel is the first story after Adam and Eve’s fall, it is not a coincidence.  Immediately, man went from seeking companionship and a healthy relationship to a creature that sought to control, manipulate, and seek only self-serving pleasure.  So, when God brought Israel to Mount Sinai, he had to re-teach them how to behave as loving, children of God should act.  He had to teach them how to live a life that would be fulfilling, one of contentment, one of peace and promise.  So, he gave them, and us, the 10 Commandments as guidelines or rules for a good life, one filled with the contentment and joy that God has designed for us.

     What would be nice for the world, actually best for the world, is to see that our relationship with others should be built on respect.  Before we can love, like, or even tolerate another person, we need to respect each other.  Basic respect is the very building block of all our relationships; without that we have nothing.  God, through the 10 Commandments, shows us that.  It is his truth, and we need to accept this for what it is, the beginning of living in his kingdom.  Without respect, we have nothing but pain and sadness.  The devil sees to this.  God calls upon you and me to treat each other with respect as the basic block to build our relationships on.  Through God’s grace, we can become the people that God designed us to be.  We can live together in peace and contentment.

Dear Father, your will for us is that we may live a healthy life content and meaningful.  Give us the wisdom to follow your commands.  Teach us to love, teach us to respect each other as you love and respect us.  Guard us by your grace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

6-3-2022

 Good Morning!    

         John 13:35; “Everyone will know that you are my disciples because of your love for each other.”

    Some of my favorite songs are ballad love songs; I cry every time.  Marty Robbins has some of the best especially “My Woman, My woman, My Wife;” that has to almost be the best.  The funny thing was that in the mid-70’s every hard rock group had at least one love song.  KISS had “Beth,” Styx had “Lady,” Alice Cooper had “I’ll Never Cry.”  Love ballads have always been the staple of country western forever.  Like one wag once noted, if you play a country western song backwards; the wife comes back, the dog comes back to life, it quits raining and I get my job back.   

    We are fascinated by love songs just as we are fascinated by the whole idea of love.  Yet what does “love” mean?  We use the word so freely that, for some, it has very little meaning.  I love my job; I love my wife and I love pizza; are these all the same?  Most would say “no,” but some might not be so sure.  So, what is love?

     Our verse is part of the “Upper Room” discourse in John.  This took place on Maundy Thursday just before the institution of the Lord’s Supper and then Jesus’ arrest.  Jesus told his disciples to “love one another” this was his “new commandment.”  Everyone will know by the love we have that we are His disciples, but what does this mean?  It simply means to forgive and to not judge.

    We show our love best by forgiving each other.  Forgiveness is a lifelong process; it is critical to becoming a disciple of Jesus.  For some, this is the hardest thing to learn.  We end up forgiving the same offense over and over but that is love; to forgive and then move forward.  This is what God does for us; He forgives us and then we move forward, onward in our journey with him.  This is how we continue in our journey with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ; we forgive and move forward.

    The second is to not judge one another.  Never look at someone else’s situation and think “Well, they had it coming;” “That is what happens with bad choices;” “You reap what you sow.”  We never truly know why someone is in the situation that they are in; what we do know is that God wants us, his Church, to reach out to each other and help to heal.  We are to share with each other, the physical needs of food and water and shelter as well as the emotional need of caring and comforting as well as the spiritual need for the comforting word of forgiveness and salvation from God and his Word. 

    This is love, to forgive and to leave judging to God.  By this everyone will know we are disciples of Jesus by how we love one another.

Dear Father, teach us to love as you love us.  Show us that this leads us through the path of life which you desire us to live.  Help us to reach out to those who are most in need of your grace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

6-2-2022

         Good Morning!    

        Psalm 35:22; “You have seen, O Lord; be not silent!  O Lord, be not far from me!”  

    For as much as we claim to crave silence, it is difficult to experience.  Silence can make us very uncomfortable.  If you have ever heard a sermon where the preacher just stops and says nothing for a minute, it can seem like an eternity.  When I teach confirmation class, I will sit and just wait, silently; it doesn’t take long for the kids to begin to fidget and soon talk.

    Silence can be a very painful thing to experience.  If you have ever had a medical test and waited for the results, you know what that is.  If you have ever been in a hospital bed waiting for the doctor to come speak to you, you know the excruciating silence of the wait.  If you have ever gone to the emergency room, you know what that is like.  You can sit there and watch the clock as it slowly ticks, and nothing happens.  We know that the time isn’t standing still, and we know that everyone is doing the best that they can do but the silence seems to destroy us.  Where is the answer?  What is going on?

    For some of us, we have sat and poured out our heart, relayed all of our fears to God and then listened and heard nothing.  We cry to God and then listen, and it is silent.  Why do I have cancer?  Why did I lose my job?  Why did my partner have to leave me?  Why did my child die?  Those are some painful questions and often, as we ask them, there is only silence.  We call to God and experience only deafening silence and our pain continues to grow.

    Yet God is never far from us and even though we don’t hear; he continues to speak to us.  Often times it is because we are too busy speaking that we do not really listen.  We do not hear his words of comfort.  We do not hear his words of hope.  Yet he speaks them.

     Sometimes we don’t hear God because we don’t want to hear what he is saying.  We pray to God; we cry out to God, but it is not a prayer to him it is a list of demands for him.  We want these things to happen; we will not be happy unless these occur, so we don’t hear.  We experience self-imposed silence.  God speaks to us, but we don’t hear his words of comfort because we don’t want them.  We have our desires and God had better provide for them. 

     Yet through all of this God is always near us.  He never leaves us and always speaks to us with his voice of hope, his voice of comfort, his voice of consolation.  He is our only shelter in this broken world.  He gives us that hope that no one else can.  He is our salvation.

Father of all mercies, we cry, and cry and we find only silence.  Give us the understanding and the wisdom to see that we are only not listening.  Give us the faith that we may trust to hear you in all of the grace that pours out from you.  Guide us as we live the life that you give us by your mercy.  Be with those who have sat in silence for too long.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret        

6-1-2022

 Good Morning!    

             Mark 14:37; “And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour?” 

     Gentlemen, have you ever noticed how when your mother, then your wife, get upset with you that your name gets longer?  For example, if your name is William Robert Smith, everyone will call you Bill or Will or Smitty.  But leave the toilet seat up once and you will hear WILLIAM ROBERT what did you do?  It happens every time.

     Our verse has an element of that.  Peter starts out as Simon; actually, he is Simon bar-jonah.  This means Simon the son of Jonah.  Now if you look at Scriptures there are a lot of Simons.  There is another disciple who is Simon.  There was a Simon who was a leper, Simon of Cyrene carried the cross, there is a Simon the magician.  There are lots of Simon.  But after a profession of faith, Jesus begins to call Simon Peter.  Sometimes he is Peter, sometimes he is Simon and sometimes he is Simon Peter.  What gives?

     The name Simon is used when they speak of his secular life like his fishing business or his house.  He is called Peter when he is professing faith in Jesus most elegantly.  Then there are times when we aren’t quite sure which Peter is there, so he is called Simon Peter.  So, it would appear that when Peter is faithful and living his life according to God’s will, he is called Peter.  When he lapses back into his sinful, pre-disciple nature, he is called Simon.  When he is kind of both, he is Simon Peter.  Notice in our verse he starts as Peter but when Jesus rebukes him it is as Simon.

    The thing about Peter is that despite his stature in the Bible as the leader of the church for most of the early years, despite the fact that he is among the closest of Jesus’ disciples, he stills falls back every once and a while and reverts to Simon.  Just like you and I do.  That is one thing I hope you see as you read the Bible, even the “heroes” of the bible are human; they still fall into sin.  They still have their “Simon” moments.  In fact, all of us are really the “Simon Peter” we are sinners and yet the same time we are justified saints. 

    God calls us to be Peter to boldly proclaim Jesus’ death and resurrection and the saving grace we receive because of it.  Sometimes we do a decent job but sometimes we fail.  Sometimes we fall flat on our face.  There have been times in our lives when we have failed miserably yet God calls us back just like he did Peter.  God continually calls us back by his grace.  Even as we slip back into our “Simon” mode from time to time, we are still God’s children; he still holds us as Peter.  He still holds as his beloved.

Gracious Father, we continually fall back into our old sinful nature yet through your grace you call us back into your family.  Give us the strength to remain faithful to you.  Lead us to boldly proclaim your message of forgiveness and reconciliation to a broken world.  This we ask in Jesus’ precious name, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret