Pentecost 8c - Conclusion

Genesis 18:1-15; Psalm 15; Colossians 1:15-29; Luke 10:38-42
I’ve stopped at a Starbucks in Stephenville after four hours of driving to take a break and blog. I’m having a tall Americano no room in honor of Pr. Kyle who overcame a fear of heights on the Leap of Faith. (LoF – while attached to a rope and belayed by a counselor on the ground you climb a really, really tall telephone pole, stand on top of it and then leap off attempting to catch and hold onto a trapeze bar ten feet away.) Pr. Kyle not only climbed the LoF, he caught and held onto the bar and then, just because he could, did a chin up. A legend is born! I was busy riding a worried and distracted bay mare at the time so I didn’t witness the wonder but I imagine there was plenty of laughter when Pr. Kyle’s leap of faith proved fruitful. Not like Sarah’s first laugh, the one she denied for fear, but more like the second laugh that came after labor when God made good on the promise and a cooing Isaac was cradled in Sarah’s arms. Like Psalm 15 the holy hill of confirmation camp is about living a right relationship with God made possible by the One who stood by his oath to save us though it cost him dearly. Like the apostle Paul commissioned to reveal the mystery of God the faith of campers is brought into sharper focus through the ministry of incredibly gifted and dedicated young people who give up their summer to work long hours for little pay because they love the Lord. And finally, we who like Martha are worried and distracted by many things would do well to accept the invitation of Jesus and choosing the better part do more by doing less, which will no doubt require a leap of faith.

Pentecost 8c - Luke 10:38-42

Luke 10:38-42

Today’s camp theme is Easter. It’s also the day we take the campers on a long trail ride where they will put all the skills they’ve learned in the arena into practice. I’m riding Duce, a young, dun colored mare who is worried and distracted by many things and jumps up and away from the ones that surprise her. But as long as I’m not distracted and reassure her through clear and consistent commands she’ll be fine, even if she is convinced every bush in the hill country hides a potential predator. One of the reasons Martha is worried and distracted is because her sister Mary has left her to do all the work. On the other hand it may be that Martha is worried and distracted by things that are not worthy of worry. All we have to go on is Jesus response which only seems to be more about Mary’s choice than Martha’s demand. In the naming of the better part, the one thing needful, Jesus is inviting Martha to do more by doing less.

Pentecost 8c - Colossians 1:15-29

Colossians 1:15-29
The season celebrated at camp last night was Epiphany which had six Sundays this year or so Janelle told the assembled pastors. Pr. Kyle looked it up on his version four iPhone to confirm she was right. You can have as few as four and as many as nine and Transfiguration is always the last one. What did we do before the advent of the iPhone? Epiphany begins with the story of the star and the Magi who followed from afar. Last night the stars were so bright the Magi would have been hard pressed to follow just one. I was reminded of a night sky over Montana some thirty-five years ago when as a camp counselor at Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp the seeds of call were planted in me. Who knows what epiphanies happened last night in the hearts and minds of young campers? This morning’s theme was Lent and one of Calvary’s own, Ashley Loest, gave the message and led the morning worship with her “posse” or campers. Serving with another Calvary member, K.J. Lundgren, both young women are, like the apostle Paul, commissioned by the Gospel to be servants of the mysteries of God and through incredible energy and dedication and living faith reveal the God who was pleased to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the cross. The great gift of this week is that some years ago KJ and Ashley were campers at Ebert and to see them serving as counselors is a true joy. The only mystery I need explained is when they became old enough to be camp counselors since I’m quite sure I haven’t aged a bit.

Pentecost 8c - Psalm 15

Psalm 15

I’ve been working with horses all day and really wish the lectionary text was Psalm 32 “Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle...” On the other hand I was working with riders just as much and Psalm 15 might be just as applicable. Horses know when riders are nervous or frightened. They can also tell when a rider is not all they claim to be and will test the ability of the over confident as much as the inexperienced. Riding a horse is a relationship of trust and horse and rider are equally important when it comes to abiding in the saddle. Abiding in the tent of the Lord is not a reward for those who walk blamelessly or do what is right. Doing what is right is how you abide in the Lord. Dwelling on the Lord’s holy hill is not a reward for speaking the truth. Speaking the truth is the language of the holy hill where there is no translation for slander and evil. That is because the language of the holy hill is love written by the life of One who stood by his oath, even to his hurt, who offered himself to all of humanity without demanding payment or interest and who though innocent died for those who live by bribes.

Pentecost 8c - Genesis 18:1-15

Genesis 18:1-15
I’m blogging from Ebert Ranch in the Texas Hill country where Janelle, Pr. Kyle and thirteen of Calvary’s Jr. High Youth will be spending the week. This year’s Confirmation Camp theme is Faith 365 and each day is devoted to a season of the church year. Last night was Advent and involved singing “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” while waiting and watching “the stars at night are big and bright…” come out one by one. Abraham and Sarah had been waiting a long time for God to make good on the promise of offspring more numerous than the stars. When Sarah heard the promise repeated she laughed to herself because she figured the joke was on her. She didn’t need a mirror to know her body had been passed by the promise too slow in coming due. There are times when wearied by waiting “Is anything too wonderful for the Lord?” is beyond our ability to believe. When the check is not in the mail, when there is no good news to balance the bad, when bodies are beyond healing or relationships beyond repair we like Sarah might think the joke is on us. But at the end of Sarah’s story God will have the last laugh as she cuddles a cooing Isaac and Abraham rejoices in the gift of the son who will make the starry dream come true. The end of all our stories has been written by the One who came in swaddling cloths and for whom we wait to come again clothed in glory. When we remember the end of the story God has written for us we are able to endure the chapters yet to be written as we wait for the last laugh which God will share with us and the whole creation.

Pentecost 7c - Conclusion

Deuteronomy 30:9-14; Psalm 25:1-10; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37

I sometimes get a Word doc that was created in Word 2010 and since I’m running an older version the file has to be converted, not a big deal, although my pc also points out that some of the more nifty features might not work because I’m living in the past. The first two lessons for Pentecost 7c have to be converted by the Gospel, no pun intended. The irony is that while the lawyer appears to pass the neighbor test, Jesus and his Samaritan story would be condemned on more than one count by Deuteronomy, a book that holds racial purity as necessary for the bountiful blessings promised by the book. The psalmist would no doubt label Jesus a sinner whose rebellious ways by breaking the Sabbath laws call for instruction in God pleasing piety. But Jesus points to a new reality that has been of old and all the nifty features follow, for God’s heart has always been to rescue humans from the darkness of their own design and transfer them to reign of light and love.

Pentecost 7c - Luke 10:25-37

The Good Samaritan by Vincent van Gogh 1890

Luke 10:25-37

When parables become proverbial they lose their primary means of instruction which is a classic bait and switch. The lawyer testing Jesus is himself tested by the parable and forced to acknowledge the Samaritan as neighbor, though he can’t bring himself to state it outright. “I suppose it was the one who showed mercy.” On the other hand as long as the Good Samaritan stays a story it hardly matters, even for the lawyer who passed Jesus’ test while failing his own. The “go and do likewise” is the real point of the parable and only makes a difference if those who no longer seek to justify themselves act more like the Samaritan and less like the priest or Levite. Which means we can recast the story with a Lutheran pastor, a medical doctor and a Taliban fighter and unless we “go and do likewise” the parable has no point in being recast or retold. But if in hearing his own voice naming the neighbor the lawyer is moved to act like a priest or Levite who caring more about the bloodied man than remaining ritually pure stop to do what the Samaritan does then the parable is more than just a clever ruse to convict a lawyer. For those justified by Jesus and no longer surprised by the plot twist or fooled by the bait and switch the story is an invitation to “go and do likewise” and in so doing just maybe put the punch back in the parable.

Pentecost 7c - Colossians 1:1-14

Colossians 1:1-14

Paul makes fruit bearing sound easy but truth to be told even if worms and blight don’t destroy fruit fully grown it takes cooperation of sun and soil and water just to get the tree to bud and the bud to flower. The fruit that we enjoy comes from supermarket aisles, washed and polished, neatly displayed and far removed from the labor that produced and packaged what we take for granted. And so the fruit of faith might be better understood if we were closer to its origin which of course is what Paul is praying for. The Colossian Christians have truly comprehended the grace of God which means they understand that the fruit of faith has little to do with them and everything to do with the One who has rescued them from the power of darkness and transferred them to the kingdom of Christ. A life worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing, is a life that recognizes and gives thanks for faith fully grown and supermarket ready no thanks to our abilities but wholly dependent on the cooperation of Son and Spirit and Baptismal water.

Pentecost 7c - Psalm 25:1-10

Psalm 25:1-10
The psalmist trusting in the Lord prays for God’s great love and mercy from of old to be remembered so that youthful sin and rebellious ways might be forgotten. While the Lord remembering us in love erases the memory of our rebellion we do not easily forget our own folly or foolishness or willful acts of insolence and indulgence. Memories as fresh as the day they were recorded return accusing and condemning bringing guilt and shame. The enemy that triumphs over me lives in my own heart and mind as I remember what God has forgotten as if God still holds it against me. Forgiveness freely offered is never fully received as long as I continue to hold myself accountable for the sin God forgot long ago. Since the way of the Lord is first and foremost forgiveness the instruction of the sinner begins with trusting the Lord, faithful and loving, and in doing so forgiving self. It does not mean forgive and forget which I think is beyond our ability, or at least mine. What we can do is remember forgiveness whenever we remember what God has forgotten and in so doing be finally free from youthful sins and rebellious ways.

Pentecost 7c - Deuteronomy 30:9-14

Deuteronomy 30:9-14

If the ancestors God delighted in prospering were Abraham, Isaac & Jacob they reaped the benefits of God’s benevolence before the commandments and decrees were written into the book of the law. As it is written, “Abraham believed and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6) If that was true for them then turning to God with heart, mind and soul is not first and foremost about behavior but belief. As long as we think of observing commands as something we have to do “thou shalt not” will always be too hard and far from us. But Jesus abandoned heaven and for our sake crossed the sea of sin and death to bring the Word, his very presence, near to us. It is the heart drawn to God, the mind mesmerized by love, the soul resting secure in peace that makes observing the commands as close as your own breath. When turning to God for love of Christ compels us observing God’s commands is not something external, something we have to do, but rather an expression of who we are as those who live and breathe the law of love.

Pentecost 6c - Conclusion

Isaiah 66:10-14; Psalm 66:1-9; Galatians 6:1-18; Luke 10:1-11; 16-20

Since Pentecost 6c is not particularly patriotic making these texts fit the 4th or vice versa will no doubt appear forced. On the other hand faith and freedom belong together so maybe it won’t be such a stretch. Isaiah’s vision of the comfort of consolation offered at the bosom of Jerusalem reminds me of Lady Liberty whose lamp lifted beside the golden door beckons the homeless, tempest tossed, huddled masses yearning to be free. Psalm 66 remembers the providence of God when the children of Israel between an army and a wet place passed through the waters on foot. We remember our beginnings as a people whose victory over tyranny of king and empire hung in the balance in the winter of ’76 and only by the grace of God has the government of the people, by the people, for the people not perished from the earth. Paul’s word to the Galatians, “you reap what you sow” is the necessary word of caution and correction for each of us and in a larger sense the nation whose greatness is derived from its capacity for goodness. And finally in the Gospel the seventy sent out return rejoicing in their power which is temporary until Jesus points them to a greater truth, that God is the recorder of names in the final kingdom come. We also can become enamored by power and prestige and holding tightly to the temporary miss the eternal truth. Nations rise and fall but the word of the Lord stands forever. And so on this Pentecost 6c 4th I am proud to be American by birth and Texan by choice, but eternally grateful to be a child of God by grace.

Pentecost 6c - Luke 10:1-11;16-20

Luke 10:1-11; 16-20
To be sent out with no purse or provisions as lambs into the midst of wolves doesn’t sound so promising unless the success of the mission does not depend on the missionary. In fact, the kingdom of God comes near the house that welcomes peace and the house with the “No Soliciting” sign. Where the kingdom is recognized healing happens. Where it is not recognized the kingdom stands as sentence against the shortsighted as they are left to their own devices which is always less than what the kingdom offers. The dust shaking judgment anticipates the woes in the verses the lectionary leaves out. It is a litany of losers, where even sin city Sodom is better off “in that day” than the cities who choose not to welcome peace. But even those who proclaim peace don’t quite recognize the kingdom come near for they rejoice not in the name of Jesus but in the power they wield with his name. Jesus redirects their joy from submitting spirits to their names written in the final kingdom come. And if the one despised and rejected, the Lamb who led to the slaughter and before his shearers was dumb is the one who writes the names recorded in heaven maybe there is hope even for the litany of losers?

Pentecost 6c - Galatians 6:1-18

Galatians 6:1-16
Jesus said, “If you love only those who love you what good is that to you? Even the pagans do that.” Which means to fully fulfill the law of Christ one must bear the burden of those who you are quite happy to see weighed down. In which case the law of Christ cannot be fulfilled unless you bear the burdens of “those who want to make a good showing in the flesh” in the same way you "do not grow weary in doing what is right” for those “who follow this rule.” Maybe the apostle Paul was too close to the conflict to apply his own instruction about gently restoring those who by their transgression troubled him so. Of course it is true of our time as well when well meaning people passionate about defending the faith as they understand it violate its first principle. Love is the law of Christ. Is it any wonder that those outside the faith grow weary of our witness? If we are to be the body of Christ then to be crucified “to the world” is to be crucified for the world. When we argue over doctrine and dogma and in defending the Gospel fail to live it we are no longer defending the Gospel but violating it. Does it mean that anything goes and there are no truths to be taught? No. But if the fullest expression of the truth is love then love determines how all lesser "truths" are taught, which means Paul might have to recant his wish that “those agitators go the whole way and emasculate themselves!” (Galatians 5:12) Oy Vey!

Pentecost 6c - Psalm 66:1-9

Nicolas Poussin, Crossing the Red Sea, 1634.

Psalm 66:1-9

Psalm 66 praises the awesome works of God remembering the rescue through the sea when escaping from Egypt the children of Israel were trapped between an army and a wet place. It is the story told time and again down through the centuries. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord heard your cry and with a mighty arm rescued you from Pharaoh’s grasp bringing you to a land flowing with milk and honey. While it is remembered with shouts of joy and singing it is also the story told when the milk has gone sour and the honey runs out, when enemies are all around, when life hangs in the balance and feet are on unsteady ground. When all seems hopeless remembering in the present the providence of God in the past is how one gets through today and into tomorrow. It is remembering God’s faithfulness that preserves the life that is essential, the life of hope. It is remembering God’s mercy that places the feet of faith on the solid ground of trust. And so we remember the awesome work of God on our behalf, not a passing through the sea on dry land, but God in human flesh passing through the sea of sorrow and suffering and death. In the tomorrow that will be the day that never ends the enemy that will cringe before God is death which like the chariots of Pharaoh has been swallowed up in the sea of victory.

Pentecost 6c - Isaiah 66:10-14

Isaiah 66:10-14

Isaiah might be enamored by Jerusalem’s anatomy but I’d rather be consoled in Paris. On the other hand no city in the world seems to attract as much attention as Jerusalem, which sadly has not been the source of much rejoicing. Jerusalem, which means the city of peace, has more often been a city of sorrow. Isaiah’s vision of the exile’s return to Jerusalem to be nursed and carried on her arm and dandled on her knees was not realized and even the rejoicing of Zionist exiles reclaiming the Promised Land was short lived because of the violence and bloodshed that greeted their return. In our time devout Jews gather at the Wailing Wall to pray for the restoration of the temple as Palestinian Christians weep at walls that surround and separate them from the part of the Promised Land that is their home and all the while God weeps over the plight of all people who love Jerusalem. But in the dream of God’s design those who rejoice in her and those who mourn because of her will both be comforted by her. In the dream of God’s design Jerusalem is for all people a place of peace where the feast that never ends will begin. It may be that we have to do more than pray for the peace of Jerusalem for the dream of God’s design to come true, but not by denying the right of Jewish people to live in safety or by denying the real plight of the Palestinian people imprisoned in their own land. The hatred that exists and is the cause of such suffering will only be overcome when each sees in the other the dream of God’s design. And when God’s dream comes true Paris, although full figured, will play second fiddle to Jerusalem, the real city of amour.

Pentecost 5c - Conclusion

Pentecost 5c – Conclusion

The sanctuary of San Gabriel is ready for the faithful. With a new wood patterned floor, freshly painted walls and ceiling, the pews and altar and pulpit have been put back in place and the transformation brought tears to my brother’s eyes. I said to Pr. Jesus, “I bet you’ll have a crowd on Sunday.” He said, “We will next week. This Sunday Mexico plays Argentina at 9 AM in the World Cup.” Sounds like the 11 AM at Calvary when the Cowboys play an early game. Some things are the same in every culture. The building team finished strong, a building rising from nothing in a week and ready for the next phase which will be done by members of San Gabriel and Sam, the next door neighbor who found the church he had been searching for. As we left the fiesta the day camp kids were singing to us the songs we taught them and waving called to us, “come back.” There is no doubt we will for this week made us familia. After packing and cleaning Advent’s family life center we headed for the hotel and the Grapevine Mills Mall for a celebration dinner – the youth at Chili’s and the adults Texas Love and War. The day ended with worship. “Circled up” as we call it, sitting with our feet in the pool, singing “He Is Able”, our muscles sore, our minds tired but our spirits rejoicing that God gave us the strength to serve, considering us to be faithful and appointing us to service. (1 Timothy 1:12 –2010 theme verse) It doesn’t get any better than that.

Pentecost 5c - Luke 9:51-62

Luke 9:51-62

It’s eleven pm and my alarm will go off at four am tomorrow so I can have breakfast ready for the building crew by five. Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem. I’m setting mine towards my cot in the corner of the kitchen. But before I do I have a few snapshots of another productive and spirit blessed day. It seemed to us a “God-incident” that on the day we were to put a metal roof on the fellowship hall the sky was overcast and the temperature ten degrees cooler than yesterday. When the slip and slide sprung a leak Pr. Kyle fixed with a single piece of duct tape (of course) but the day camp kids told him to use two and make it in a sign of a cross. Oh, and they want us to come back next week and do day camp again. After the Fajita fiesta with the people of San Gabriel both Pr. Jesus and one of his parishioners spoke emotionally of what the building and the day camp means to them and how grateful they are to God for us. I told him we were the ones who have been blessed by them and are grateful that God’s plan was to bind us together. Oh, and Frank wants to go with us on our next mission trip, anywhere, anytime. He was thinking next week. But it was Pr. Jesus’ son Brian who summed up what this means for them as he talked about the children singing and laughing and learning about Jesus. “You’ve given us hope,” he said. He went on to say that now church is not just a place you come and hear the word and be bored (sorry Pr. Jesus I think my son might say the same thing) but it’s a place to have fun while you hear the Word and grow together in love. We could see it and sense it in these faithful people who had a dream that before our very eyes God is making come true. And with that I’m setting my face on my pillow.

Pentecost 5c - Galatians 5:1, 13-25

Galatians 5:1, 13-25
It’s been a long but fruitful day. Everyone’s been fed dinner, we’ve showered and now have a little free time before worship followed by well earned rest. There was fruit of a spiritual kind envisioned by Paul as well. Our youth workers who were about to begin “taping and bedding” were blessed by a family from San Gabriel who have a working relationship with the task. As we were talking about something we’ve been thinking of doing back home, Frank said maybe San Gabriel should do a mission trip to Calvary. In the joining of our time and talents lines of us and them have been erased as seamlessly as the wall board in the fellowship hall. A man who lives down the road walked by to see what was happening and stayed to work. Turns out he’s been looking for a church home and since he said he’d be back tomorrow we think he may have found one. New children turned up at day camp as the word is spreading from one cousin to another. Pr. Jesus said there were some he’d never seen before and prays for the seeds of the Gospel to be planted in their homes. There is a spirit of excitement and anticipation of the fruit that will be produced through the finished sanctuary and new fellowship hall and a week’s worth of song and scripture and snow cones. We are living the list of spiritual gifts which makes work more worthwhile, play more enjoyable, sleep more peaceful and ultimately joy more complete.

Pentecost 5c - Psalm 16

Psalm 16

“The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places.” (Ps. 16:6) I can’t say that the boundary lines of San Gabriel fall in a pleasant place, though I’m sure the native Texans will disagree. But if pleasant means comfortable today was not. The wind was blowing hot and dry and dusty and a twig of a Mesquite tree provides the only spot of shade. But with a couple shade shelters, Calvary’s faithful and fun day camper counselors and a group of children and youth and suddenly you’ve got singing and laughing and a pastor in shorts and a black cleric on a slip n slide ®. The lesson for today was Peter walking on water as long as he kept his eyes on Jesus. When I finished the story and said when we keep our eyes on Jesus we can do amazing things a small voice from the back of the group asked, “Where can I see Jesus?” I knew what he meant and I suppose we all would like to see Jesus as Peter did. But Jesus can be seen even in a boy’s question which speaks of longing and desire and need. And Jesus is in strangers becoming friends and silly songs about Creation (aka the Hippo Song) Jesus is community gathered, meal shared, Word spoken and lived by people young and old(er) serving their Lord by serving others. So I guess hot and dry can be a pleasant place. Therefore my heart is glad and my body rejoices, although I need to be a little more careful with the slip portion of the slide.

Pentecost 5c - 1 Kings 19:15-21

1 Kings 19:15-21
I’m blogging this week while on a mission trip with 62 Calvary members to San Gabriel Lutheran Church in Alvarado, TX  where we are completing the sanctuary, holding a Day Camp and building a fellowship hall. I do the cooking and day camp openings and closings and lead evening worship. With a day that begins at 4:45 AM and doesn’t end till after ten I’m not sure how timely or coherent these posts will be, but I trust the Spirit will provide. One of the challenges of this trip is that while we’re staying at Advent Lutheran in Arlington we’re cooking lunch and dinner outside on a grill at San Gabriel, so I appreciate Elisha’s resourcefulness to make boiled BBQ. Of course it’s not about using the yoke to cook rather than contain the ox. It’s about moving forward and there’s no going back to the plow once the oxen have been eaten. San Gabriel is led by Jesus Escamilla, a parish lay minister authorized by the synod to word and sacrament ministry who like Elisha heard the call to follow. It is a church that started when Jesus, a plumber by trade, began leading Bible studies in homes. We had a moment to sit and rest in a little bit of shade today and watch the fellowship hall being built by Calvary’s youth and adult mentors. Jesus said when he sees what has happened in such a short time, how San Gabriel grew from a vision and a prayer he knows that he is blessed and that with God all things are possible. I agreed but thought to myself yes, all things are possible with God, but it helps if you have Jesus to work with, and I don’t mean the second person of the Trinity.