Advent Devotional:  December 5, 2014
Reading: Psalm 40: 4-5
Written by: Cyd Law

As a new Grandmother I am experiencing the joys of watching my 16 month old grandson explore Gods world.  He chases the Sand Hill cranes down the driveway yelling “bir, bir, bir” as he tries to catch the birds that are twice his size. On walks with him he collects all the acorns he can find and we have to remind him that he needs to leave a few for the squirrels as it’s their food for the winter.  Then the other afternoon he spent 15 minutes turning in circles stamping on a storm drain because he liked the sound it made.  My biggest joy is when he first arrives and I call his name and he comes running into my arms with that big smile on his face.

I know that God, as my heavenly father, probably feels the same way when I as his child see his world through his eyes.  When I find joy in watching a mother deer nurse her fawn on my front lawn;  When I take the time to open the door for someone who might be handicapped or just has a heavy load; and  When I trust him for everything and stop worrying about tomorrow.  In our busy world we need to take the time to appreciate all that God has done for us and will continue to do for us just because we are his children.  We need to thank him for all he has done and will do.

Dear God,

Thank you for being my father.  Thank you for creating this beautiful world for me to care for and enjoy.  Thank you for sending your son Jesus who has helped me  know you better and understand that you want me to have a real relationship with you. Please continue to guide and direct me in your ways.  Amen

Advent Devotional, December 4, 2014
Reading:  Luke 1: 67-79
Written by:  Sue Leffin

A Promise Fulfilled

The day I brought my new baby home from the hospital, I must have held him for hours.  I just couldn’t let him out of my arms.  As I counted his perfect little fingers and toes, I felt my life being transformed by the love of this tiny gift from God.  Nothing would ever be the same.

I wonder, then, how two women 2000 years ago felt as they held each other and talked about the babies they would soon bear.  Elizabeth, an older mom (like me), who thought she would not have any children, is now expecting a son who will pave the way for the promised Savior.   A Promise she had been hearing about her whole life.  And, then, her relative Mary visits and she knows that God’s Love is embodied as a tiny baby.   These small miracles that they hold near to their hearts will transform the world.  How awesome.  Nothing would ever be the same.

The Lord has given so many abundant gifts to us.  But the Gift of Love in the form of a tiny baby is the most miraculous gift of all. 

Have a blessed Christmas

Advent Devotional, December 3rd, 2014
Reading:  John 13: 34-35
Written by:  Yolanda Butler

Jesus commands us to love one another as he loves us all. What a powerful command! 

These words are spoken after Jesus identified Judas as the disciple that would betray him. The other disciples mistake Judas' departure with a bag of coins as an opportunity for him to purchase more for the feast or to give to the poor.  We, of course, have learned through bible study that Judas was using that bag of coins to, in fact, betray Jesus. We also have learned that Jesus continued to love Judas and all mankind as he sacrificed his life for our sins.

The Advent season brings about the feeling of LOVE. Families gather to exchange tokens and to share meals, charities benefits, pets are adopted, and feelings of generosity seem to permeate the air. I try to reflect daily on how I love year round. I love my relatives. I love my friends. I love my church family. I love my co-workers (most of the time) :-) And, I try very hard to love my enemies. I do my best to do as Jesus has commanded.
Jesus has commanded that we love. He showed, through his actions, how to love all. If only our world would follow the example given to us.

Prayer- Dear Lord, you loved us all so much that you sent your son into this world to teach us how to love unconditionally. Help us to follow the commandment to love one another as you have loved. Thank you for showing us that "All you need is love". Show us how to let our love shine to all we encounter in good and bad times.  This we pray in the name of Jesus our greatest teacher. Amen

Advent Devotional, December 2nd, 2014
Reading:  Isaiah 35: 3-6a
Written by:  Shirley Evans

This chapter of Isaiah has been titled “Joy of the Redeemed” in some translations.  It refers to the Israelites return from Exile, but it also illuminates our role in carrying the “Good News.”  It is referenced in Matthew 11:4-6 when John the Baptist was in prison, discouraged and wondered if Jesus is really the Messiah.  John’s disciples ask Jesus, who replies “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.  Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.” (NIV) 

I’ve often looked at these passages as proof of Jesus’ miraculous works and proof of his Messiah-ship – and even a prophesy of Jesus in the Old Testament; but it can take on a far different meaning.  By the Spirit of Christ and God’s grace, the spiritually blind are enlightened, they are able to hear the word of God – and then able to spread the Word.  We should take strength and courage in the Lord when needed in times of trial ourselves, but, more importantly, give strength and encouragement to others.  Carry forth – leap like a dear and shout for joy.

Lord, Let me have strong hands, steady knees and not fear, but know that you will give me courage this day and every day.  Let me share my joy with others who need courage and strength.  Amen.

Advent Devotional,  December 1st, 2014
Reading:  1 Corinthians 1: 3-9
Written by:  Dennis McClellan

In our crass commercial existence, a discussion of gifts seems appropriate, when addressing the season leading up to Christmas. Paul tells us that God has bestowed upon us all an array of gifts through Jesus the Christ. These gifts reveal the immense, immeasurable love (agape) that has been given to us that, unless we unwrap these gifts, and put them to use, we fail to honor the grace that has been given to each of us. So honor these gifts by opening them in the faith God gives to us, sharing them, through service to others. Giving gifts -- not receiving gifts -- that makes this season even more meaningful.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Help us to recognize the gifts you have given us so we can put them to good use in your name.  Amen.

Advent Devotional - November 30th, 2014
Reading:  Matthew 1: 18-25
Focus:  Joseph
Written by:  Elaine Cornelius

Have you ever gotten information that changed all your perceptions or all of your plans? This is exactly what happened to Joseph. He is planning his wedding and preparing the home for the love of his life.  Everything is going according to plan. Then Mary comes to him and says she is pregnant with the Messiah. He loves her, but now he is questioning his judgment, her fidelity, and scrutinizing every conversation he has had with her. Was she really to be believed?  What had he missed that she would betray him? Her explanation wasn’t possible, was it?  He was hurt and confused and not at all sure what he should do about this situation and when he thought he had figured out a solution, he went to sleep. And his dream changed everything.

God didn’t just choose Mary as Jesus’ mother, the Lord also chose Joseph to be Jesus’ earthly father.  God chose a family for Jesus where love reigned in thought and action. He chose parents who were willing to humble themselves in obedience to God, even when it would make things more difficult in the short term and change their lives forever.  God had a plan then and He has one now. God will help us to stay on His path, if we are willing to pay attention and listen to Him.

Prayer

Lord, Keep my mind open to all Your possibilities. Help my heart be obedient to Your will especially when my plans may not be what You have in mind for me and remind me that Your will is always for my good. Amen. 

Joseph – Joseph was called to be Jesus’ earthly father…to love him like a son, to train him up in the family business and be a positive influence in his life. However, it is also true that God was Jesus’ heavenly Father. Joseph’s task was to raise Jesus in a way faithful to God and faithful to religious customs. Who has helped to share faith I your family? Is there a grandparent, aunt, or cousin who tells others about Jesus’ love for them? Who I your family acts like Jesus?  Are there any family Christmas Traditions you share together that pass on the faith?

a challenge to millennials from a millennial

Here are some common perceptions about Millenials, their money, and their relationship to the church, followed by what I believe to be the kernel of truth in each and then a challenge to other Millenials (I’m one of them) who are trying to live faithfully in uncertain times.

1. The church is guilty until proven innocent.

Truth - Every thinking adult 18-118 can recite several scandals and atrocities that have chained themselves to the public image of the church. But where older generations might be able to juxtapose a positive image of their childhood church or a pastor that they remember well, Millenials generally aren’t. Or if they’re lucky enough to at least have that (as I do) it is regularly humiliated by the majority opinion of their peer group.

Challenge – As a generation, we pride ourselves on our ability to keep a conscious check on our biases. But how many of us are paying attention to all the clergy collars anywhere there is a peace protest or a rally for equality? How many of us are thinking of Dorothy Day, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Oscar Romero, Desmond Tutu, or Martin Luther King Jr. when we level our critiques of the church? I’m not saying we have to turn a blind eye to the church when it screws up as our grandparents might have been guilty of doing from time to time. Just be fair. And at least recognize the good with the bad.

               

The Church is not a Millenial’s primary clan

Truth - President Obama was wise to promote his health care law on “Between Two Ferns” with Zach Galifianakis not because it shares any deep resonance with his overall message but because the sardonic irony of its presentation is code for a deeper rooted cultural awareness. The intended message was clear: “You can trust me. I’m one of you.” The church has no such social cachet. The churches meeting in some hipster bar or coffee coop might be short term draw for a few, but they’re no Regina Spektor.

Challenge - If you want to follow Jesus but need a community more rooted than “pub theology” and not backward like fundamentalist Christianity, and you don’t believe that your down-to-earth neighborhood church gets you, your worldview, or your cultural mindset; then change it. Millenials are certainly too enlightened to be ageist, no? So give Beverly and Ethel some credit. As a pastor of multiple generations, you’d be amazed how many Beverly and Ethel’s I’ve met who, it turns out, were yearning for the words I had to say when, previously, I might have assumed that I was far too radical for them. Repeatedly, I’ve been all hopped up on my “radical Gospel” only to discover Beverly’s who are on the no fly list for protesting The School of the Americas in the eighties and Ethel’s who have spent decades teaching school for almost no compensation in Mali and Columbia. Lesson learned: I’m not that radical. But I can be, if I get some skin in the game and maybe even humble myself to learn from these people.

Millenials don’t want to pay a mortgage and electrical bills for a church when they could be giving directly to a cause that they care about

Truth - Fair enough.

Challenge -  This is not an either/or, and most of us give so little to the “causes” that we say we care about, it would be laughable to claim that it is. Beyond that, how many Millenials realize that Lutheran Services in America is the single biggest charitable organization in America in terms of revenue? Last fall, at the drop of a hat, my congregation raised $45,000 to bring 29 families out of extreme poverty in the central plateau. A crowd-funding internet campaign would have required ten or twenty times as many participants to generate that kind of investment. Why was this possible? Because we had been paying electric bills and a mortgage so that we could gather week after week as a community, hear stories, and develop a common vision around a God whose heart is always first and foremost with the poor and who suffers no either/or-s when it comes to their sake.    

Millenials have no money

Truth - Millenials have no money, mostly.

Challenge - Giving money away faithfully doesn’t require a steady income and sure handle on the future. In fact, the word faithfully implies just the opposite. And no one is asking you to compete with the empty nesters in the fourth pew whose house is paid off, and their one child got a full ride to Yale, and now they’re left with nothing but disposable income. A leap of faith for you might be $5 more per week out of your scarcity where another $100 to them is nothing. The church is the only institution in our society that deals with money whose president and CEO (forgive the language, Jesus) actually gets more excited about the $5 than the $100 (Mark 12:41-44).

Millenials are anxious about the future

Truth – Delayed careers, student loan debt, housing crash; the whole bit.

Challenge - It’s commonplace in our society for us to entrust our future to our money. The theological term for that in which you place your future well-being is a “god.” This nation may have spent centuries going to church on Sunday, but when it came down to the serious business of actually surviving, Christ has never seriously competed with our everyday financial planner for the position of high priest. But money is a particularly unforgiving god whose mercy never overrules his cold, calculating logic He will repossess your stuff and evict you cold and naked the second you anger him. So Jesus’ challenge to people with money anxieties was both counter-intuitive and elegantly logical, get rid of it. Putting money into the plate is an act of defiance against that copper god. In some sense, we’re literally getting rid of him in hopes of discovering a God who is far more gracious.

- Pastor Jared