Prepare Ye

e_26nov_message_ed.m4a Download File This is my sermon from November 26 on the Reign of Christ Sunday, and the lesson is Jeremiah 29:1,4-14. Above is a recording of the sermon from Emmanuel. It is hard to be the bearer of bad news. It is painful to have to tell a person or people what they don’t want to hear. Just talking about it, I fell that sinking feeling in my stomach, that heaviness in my heart. I’ve had to tell people they have lost their jobs. I‘ve had to tell people a loved one has died.  I’ve told people a loved one is in a dire situation and may not live. I’ve been in the room when people have been told they are probably going to die soon. I’ve been in the room when people have been told they don’t have a job. When delivering bad news, it is human nature to try to find a positive. You want to leave the person with some hope, with something to hold onto while their world in crumbling. This is what the prophet Jeremiah tries to do. The Souther

This is my article from the December 2017 - January 2018 Newsletter. A Few Things That Are Going On … We have several things going on in December and January. Please take time to go through the articles and calendar to see what you may want to take advantage of participating in. One of the things that I want to note is that I will be going to Houston at the end of January. I will be attending the ELCA Youth Extravaganza in Houston. This is a conference for youth and family ministries. It is a conference I attended three years ago in Detroit. It is held in the host city of the Youth Gathering in those years, and will give me an opportunity to scout the sites in Houston. It also has some sessions I am looking forward to attending. The downside is that I will not be able to be at the annual meetings for Nazareth and Our Savior’s. I plan to have everything prepared for these meetings before I leave. In preparation, Kay and I will be preparing annual reports and for th

This is Ananias' article from the December 2017-January 2018 Newsletter. My Big Guy read me another Bible story; this one has a connection to Christmas. It was before Jesus was born, right after his mom, Mary, found out she was going to give birth to Jesus. She went to visit her cousin Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptizer. When they met, Elizabeth shouted her blessings, and Mary responded with a song. (Luke 1.46-55) I’m not really sure if this is a song, or a poem, but it really means a lot to My Big Guy. He said it is called “the Magnificat.” But I think it is magnificent. Mary talks about what her son is going to do. She says that her soul magnifies God, and that God has chosen her from the lowly people, and she will be called blessed. It amazed me when My Big Guy told me that Mary was probably just a teenager when she became pregnant, about the same age as the kids in his C+LIFFE class. That is a lot of trust for anyone, but especially someone that yo

naz_19nov_message_ed.m4a Download File This is my sermon from Sunday, November 19. The lesson was Isaiah 9:1-7. A recording of the sermon from Emmanuel is above. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness— on them light has shined. Darkness is a horrible place to be. It doesn’t matter what the darkness is, or where the darkness comes from. Darkness is a horrible place to be. It doesn’t matter if the darkness comes from violence, economic struggles, personal struggles, emotional battles, or deep depression. Darkness is a horrible place to be. It isn’t just a lack of light. It is a weight that slows you down. It is a chill that you can’t warm up from. It is a barrier between people. It is a lack of hope and a loss of desire. Darkness calls you to hide and withdrawal. Darkness isolates and separates. Darkness divides and destroys. Darkness takes away light. Darkness takes away warmth. Darkness takes away re

Here is my sermon manuscript and two recordings of my message from Sunday, November 12. I was not happy with my final manuscript and did not use it at any of the services. The lessons for today are Amos 1:1-2; 5:14-15, 21-24 and John 7:37-38. Below are two recordings. I preferred my message at Nazareth, but the volume is poor. It was even worse at Our Savior's so I'm not including that. The volume was best at Emmanuel. naz_12nov_ed.m4a Download File em_12nov_ed.m4a Download File An immigrant worker comes from the south to its richer, northern neighbor. He looks around at the opulence of their homes and their places of worship. The people have winter and summer homes, both of which are extravagantly adorned. They are fitted with the finest fabrics and inset in imported ivory. They dine on the best foods, having turned their fields of sustenance crops like grains into vineyards and orchards for exotic fruits

This is Ananias' article from the November newsletter. My Big Guy gave me a homework assignment while he went to the Lutefisk Dinner at Our Savior’s. He had read Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes ( Matthew 5:1-12 ) to me the night before, and said I write my article about that lesson. But it makes NO SENSE! Jesus is saying all of the people are blessed, but they are dealing with difficult circumstances. They are pour in spirit; they mourn; they are meek; they hunger and thirst for righteousness; they are merciful; they are pure in heart; they are peacemakers; they are persecuted and reviled. How are those things supposed to be a blessing? So he left me to chew on that, plus a few toys and bones. I thought about these beatitudes, and wondered if our attitude might play a part in these blessings. If we are poor in spirit, we are humble, and realize we can’t do it ourselves, we have to put our trust in God. If we mourn, we understand loss, and can better receive an