“Be silent before the Lord God!
For the day of the Lord is at hand;
the Lord has prepared a sacrifice,
he has consecrated his guests ….
At that time I [the Lord] will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the people who rest complacently on their dregs,
those who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
nor will he do harm.’” —Zephaniah 1:7,12, New Revised Standard Version

“But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; for you are all children of the light and of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness …. For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him.” —1 Thessalonians 5:4–5, 9–10, NRSV

MEDITATION

With each passing week, we draw closer to the end of the church year and to the beginning of Advent, the time of anticipating the coming of our Lord in his birth, in the life of the Church, and in judgment at the end. The readings for this Sunday, November 13, speak to us of the end of this world in ways that may give us discomfort.

As we overhear Zephaniah’s prophecy, we easily can find ourselves among those who—in the secret places of their hearts—don’t really trust that God is at work in their daily lives. We say to ourselves that we are on our own to make our own fortunes, to fix our own problems, to plan our own futures. “The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm.”

This saying captures the sometimes-subtle shape that our disbelief assumes. Think back over our conversations in the meetings of our task force. How often do we focus on the mundane: the tallies of our demographics; the patterns of our culture; the influences of our marketing; and the predictions flowing from our habits? We leave God out of our reflection. He is there, somewhere, but what matters most is our effort and insight. “The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm.”

We tend to believe, or at least to act upon our convictions, as if God cannot and will not take that surprising, day-of-the-Lord action to upend our congregation’s life and to do something new and wonderful, something that purifies with judgment and rejuvenates with grace. When we trust in this conviction, we cling to an illusion.

Zephaniah calls us to “be silent before the Lord God!” He reminds us that “the Lord has prepared a sacrifice, he has consecrated his guests.” As Christians, we cannot help but be reminded by these words that the Father prepared Jesus Christ to offer himself for all of humanity—including you and me—as a sacrifice for our sins. Then, by virtue of our baptism into his sacrificial death, we arise from the waters as his consecrated guests, both at his Eucharistic Table and at the gates of his heavenly city.

This is why St. Paul reminds us that we are “children of the light and of the day.” He proclaims that we have been adopted into the family of the God and Father who “destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” His reminder helps dispel the notions we might want to hold, that we are on our own, that God has withdrawn his guiding hand from our lives, and that we must trust only in our own efforts and plans.

In these dark days, conflict and confusion threaten to rend our world, our lives, and our congregation. We find ourselves succumbing to the temptation to travel only along the paths that we have picked out for ourselves. But by faith, we hold in a creative and uncomfortable tension these two truths of God’s work in our lives: he punishes us in our complacency and he destines us for salvation.

REFLECTION

• When will you “be silent before the Lord God?”
• Where in your life do you find yourself trying to make your way on your own? How have you pushed God to the margins of your life?
• What can we do as a congregation to turn us from relying on our own powers and solutions to trusting the work of God to help us to live as children of the light and the day? What can you do in your own life to make a similar change?
• What prayers will tell God of your desire to live as a child of the light and of the day?

PRAYER

Gracious Father, bless us with the silence we need to hear your voice. Help us to abandon both our complacency and our trust in ourselves so we may rely upon your promise to work your will in our lives. Inspire us, by your Holy Spirit, to trust in your Son’s sacrifice to consecrate us to live as children of the light and of the day; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

AUTHOR

David Frye is a member of the Spirit-Driven Task Force and its Steering Committee.

NOTES

The people of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Hickman, Neb., have organized a Spirit-Driven Task Force, bringing together almost forty members who have committed to a year of study, prayer, reflection, and deliberation to discern how God is calling the congregation to renewal for the sake of his mission.

This is the twenty-sixth of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” —Matthew 11:28–30, New American Bible

MEDITATION

Twice in just two sentences Jesus promises his followers rest. Like any true gift, the rest that Jesus gives comes to us and to all his followers as an act of grace. He gives it freely to all who need it, all who “labor and are burdened.”

Our labors are varied and our burdens are many. We labor for pay in our work, yet we also labor silently to carry out tasks with no hope of pay, no promise of glory, and no end of responsibility. Some of these labors bring us joy, while others bear down upon us as burdens, loads to bear.

The promise Jesus offers is a simple one: come to him and he will give us rest. He does not promise an end to our labors, but instead he promises us a new way to bear them. He fits us with a yoke and he shows us how to wear it, how to bear our burdens in meekness and humility. When we do, we will—he promises—find rest.

This is rest of a strange sort. It is not the rest that brings to us the end of labor, the release of burdens, and the ease of leisure. Instead, the rest that Jesus Christ promises comes only by his grace, under his yoke, and in his footsteps.

When we realize how this gift of grace promises to change us, we see that following Jesus, living as his disciples and bearing his yoke, is not a quick and simple fix, a cheap solution to our problems that waves a wand and makes them go away. Instead, the grace of the yoke is costly because it is cruciform.

In his book, The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran pastor and martyr, wrote,

Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life …. Grace is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (p. 45)

Right there is the distinction between cheap and costly grace, between pointless and worthy burdens, between aimless wandering and Christian . When we shoulder the yoke that Jesus gives us by his grace and follow him, then we find the yoke makes each day’s burdens bearable and life’s journey purposeful.

REFLECTION

• What are your burdens? How do you labor? What does the yoke of Christ look like in your life? Along what path does he call you to follow him?
• What could we say and do as a congregation to tell others that Christian discipleship is a gift of costly grace, that Christ calls us to lives of meekness and humility?
• Who do you know who needs your prayers for the courage to submit themselves to the yoke of Christ? If you have not been praying for them, what stands in your way?

PRAYER

Gracious Father, open our ears to hear your Son’s promise to give us the gracious gift of his yoke. Stir up your Holy Spirit in us so that we may find rest in bearing our burdens under that yoke, while following in his footsteps. We pray to you through your Son, Jesus Christ—our Savior and Lord. Amen.

AUTHOR

David Frye is a member of the Spirit-Driven Task Force and its Steering Committee.

NOTES

The people of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Hickman, Neb., have organized a Spirit-Driven Task Force, bringing together almost forty members who have committed to a year of study, prayer, reflection, and deliberation to discern how God is calling the congregation to renewal for the sake of his mission.

This is the twenty-fifth of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him.

The black walnut trees north of our house have shed their leaves. Only a few walnuts still cling to their branches, silhouetted against the blue skies we have enjoyed the past few weeks. Amid the leaves on the ground, the fallen walnuts—husks green, but mottled with brownish black—lie scattered. When I go outside and wait patiently and quietly, I can eventually spot the resident squirrels at work, burying here and there carefully selected nuts, treasure they will reclaim when they follow the maps they have committed to memory … or entrusted to instinct.

A squirrel’s life has purity and simplicity: find nuts, eat some, hide others, elude predators, raise up little squirrels. Our lives confront us with more complexity and, sadly, less clarity of purpose. Even so, much of our lives and energy remains committed to finding, gathering, consuming, storing, and worrying about our walnuts, our treasure.

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches, “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be” (Matthew 6:21, New American Bible). By that he means that when we want to know what matters to us—what we value, what drives us, what we choose to honor—we need look no further than the reflection glinting off of our treasure. Our treasure is not a hoard of walnuts, but rather the object of our attention, the recipient of our devotion, the focus of our dedication.

How do we use our time? What excites us? On what do we gladly spend our money? Where do we choose to use our talents? What topics of conversation entice us? These are the questions that help us to learn the truth about our treasure. Do we desire treasure that really doesn’t last much longer than walnuts buried beneath the leaves? Do we seek treasure that distracts us from devotion to God? Jesus reminds us, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19, NAB).

Our Lord desires for us to treasure him. He knows when we hold him most dear, when he lives in the center of our lives. He knows, too, when the pursuit of other treasures occupies our thoughts and drives our desires. The wise advice King David gave to his son Solomon applies equally well to us:

… know the God of your father and serve him with a perfect heart and a willing soul, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands all the mind’s thoughts. If you seek him, he will let himself be found by you; but if you abandon him, he will cast you off forever (1 Chronicles 28:9, NAB).

This month presents us with at least two occasions to reflect on the treasure in our lives. First, when we gather as a congregation to consider our 2012 budget, we can ask ourselves, “How does this plan for ministry reflect the treasure in our life together? What does it say about how we use the time and the talent and the money God has given us? When God looks at our budget as a testimony that reveals what lies in our hearts—both as individuals and as a congregation—what does he see?”

Our second occasion is our nation’s Day of Thanksgiving. As we gather with friends and family, we can offer our prayers of gratitude to the Father who grants us life each day, who enriches our world with abundance, who blesses us with grace through his Son’s sacrifice, and who sustains us by their Holy Spirit. These are the great treasures God alone can and does give to us, his children.

David M. Frye, Stewardship Ministry

This is the twenty-fourth of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him.

Author
Pastor Ron Drury, a member of the Spirit Driven Task Force and advisor to its Steering Committee.

Scripture
“Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD all the Earth. Sing to the LORD, bless the name of the LORD; proclaim God’s salvation from day to day. Declare God’s glory among all nations and God’s wonders among all peoples. For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised, more to be feared than all gods. As for all the gods of the nations, they are but idols; but You, O LORD, have made the heavens. Majesty and magnificence are in Your presence; power and splendor are in Your sanctuary. Ascribe to the LORD you families of peoples, ascribe to the LORD honor and power. Ascribe to the LORD the honor due the holy name; bring offerings and enter the courts of the LORD. Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness; tremble before the LORD all the earth.”—Psalm 96:1–9, Evangelical Lutheran Worship.

Meditation
Martin Luther is given credit for proclaiming—”When you sing you pray twice!” I once read similar words from St. Augustine when I was in Seminary.It really does not matter who first declared this truth,unless we see the wisdom within. In singing our praises to God we are honoring and glorifying the Almighty with more than mere words. The rhythmic movement of our bodies through breathing and the joyous sound that bends the airwaves enhance and empower the letters that are woven together. Singing often brings delight to the singer, to others who may be raising their voices together and any creature who may hear from near or far. When I was a camp youth counselor in the wooded hills of northeast Ohio, our head counselor would awake us every morning with or without campers on site with the refrain from the opening number of the musical Godspell: “Prepare Ye The Way of The Lord!” Even as I type this, joy fills my heart as I recall awakening each morning all summer long to the vibrant notes of what we were called to be about that day and everyday! Music can be a very powerful motivating force to direct and bring joy to all creation!

Reflection

• How can you “tremble before the LORD” to find new songs and sing to God joyfully here and throughout God’s creation in “majesty and magnificence”?
• What music warms your heart and motivates you to better serve God each day?
• How can we work together more in harmony even when we have different notes in our heart of hearts to sing to praise and glorify God together?

Prayer
Direct us, O God, to gather together to sing your praises joyfully empowered by the Holy Spirit to better proclaim and bear witness to the Savior of all—Jesus the Christ! Amen.

This is the twenty-third of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him. You can find an archive of these meditations on the Web at http://widesky.biz/blog/ephemera/spirit-driven-task-force-meditations.

Author
Kurt Kechely, a member of the Spirit Driven Task Force and its Steering Committee, shared this devotion from the ELCA’s periodical, “Christ in Our Home.”

Scripture
“I am with you to save you and deliver you.” —Jeremiah 15:20.

Meditation
No matter how devoted you are to serving Christ, you can’t please all the people all the time. Several negative comments can make you question your decision to lead a committee or continue in ministry. Yet when you feel at your lowest, someone may come up to you and tell you how much you have influenced his or her life. Words like these are a soothing lotion on dry and parched skin. They refresh one’s sense of purpose.

Those who work in the church—whether they are pastors, teachers, administrators, or workers on a mission project—will always know the sting of critics nipping at their heels. It’s part of working with people.

Jeremiah also felt the frustration of working with people who were negative. He wanted to please the Lord, but some days were harder than others. Yet, a word from the Lord encouraged him. He heard words that brought joy, delight, and affirmation that God had called him to this work.

God is faithful when the call to serve sends us to share the message of the gospel. We are delivered as we are encouraged by others through the Word.

Prayer
Faithful Lord, renew the call you have placed on my heart to serve you, and let me know its joy, through Christ. Amen.

A quartet of 4¢ Remington commemoratives and a trio of 7¢ air mail stamps on a 1961 air mail cover with special delivery that took a round-about route to its destination: Dallas—Indianapolis—Savannah.

As an “Artist of the West,” Frederic Sackrider Remington received posthumous notice when his work appeared on the U.S. Post Office Department’s “first multicolored portrayal of a piece of fine art on an American postage stamp” (Commemorative Stamp Ceremony Program).
The Oct. 4, 1961, 4¢ issue marked the centennial of the artist’s birth in Canton, N.Y., showing a portion of his 1905 painting, “The Smoke Signal,” masterfully rendered on the Giori Press.
Remington died in 1909 at the age of forty-eight. In a relatively short life, he produced an amazing number of works as an illustrator, painter, sculptor, and author.
Two of his illustrations appeared in the 1898 Trans-Mississippi series: “Troops Guarding Train” on the 8¢ stamp and “Western Mining Prospector” on the 50¢ stamp. Remington called his original version of that image “The Gold Bug.”
Remington himself appeared on the 10¢ issue in the 1940 Famous Americans series.
In 1981, Remington’s 1902 bronze sculpture entitled “Coming Through the Rye” appeared on an 18¢ commemorative.
In 1998, the U.S. Postal Service used the Trans-Mississippi issues of 1898 as the basis for bi-color renditions of those stamps in a souvenir sheet, putting two of Remington’s works onto stamps for the second time.
The final appearance on a U.S. stamp of Remington’s work came in 2001 with a detail from his 1889 painting, “A Dash for the Timber,” appearing in the American Illustrators sheet of twenty 34¢ commemoratives.
These eight issues provide a glimpse into the prolific work of a beloved American artist whose creations recorded life in the West and still shape its images in the mind’s eye.

This is the twenty-second of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him. You can find an archive of these meditations on the Web at http://widesky.biz/blog/ephemera/spirit-driven-task-force-meditations.

Rod Koehler, a member of the Steering Committee and the Task Force, recommends “Beyond the Status Quo.”

King David’s life contains much that speaks to us as a caution to avoid, rather than a cause to embrace. And yet, despite his many flaws that show him to be as frail as we are, he embodies a deep faith and a powerful trust in God.

At the end of his kingship, David speaks to the people, pledging his wealth for God’s temple—a temple God told him he would not build, because of his sins. After leading by the example of his giving, he asks the assembly to follow him one more time: “Now, who else is willing to contribute generously this day to the LORD?” (1 Chronicles 29:5b, New American Bible)

God inspires the people to respond. They give and then they celebrate: “The people rejoiced over these free-will offerings, which had been contributed to the LORD wholeheartedly” (1 Chronicles 29:9a, NAB).

In response to their generosity, King David does not thank them. Instead, he blesses God, saying:

Riches and honor are from you,
and you have dominion over all.
In your right hand are power and might;
it is yours to give grandeur and strength to all.
Therefore, our God, we give you thanks
and we praise the majesty of your name (1 Chronicles 29:12–13, NAB).

If we can imagine ourselves gathering in this assembly, we might be tempted to feel pride. Here is our great king and there is an amazing pile of riches for the construction of a beautiful temple to the God who has chosen us from among all peoples. But our king knows our hearts and so David prays to God,

But who am I, and who are my people, that we should have the means to contribute so freely? For everything is from you, and we only give you what we have received from you. For we stand before you as aliens: we are only your guests, like all our fathers. Our life on earth is like a shadow that does not abide. O LORD our God, all this wealth that we have brought together to build you a house in honor of your holy name comes from you and is entirely yours (1 Chronicles 29:14–16, NAB).

Soon we will enter our season of meditating upon our calling to serve as stewards of the time, talent, and treasure God has entrusted to us. King David’s witness reminds us to pray for our leaders, so they may lead by example, asking us to do only what they themselves have first done. Second, God calls us to rejoice over our wholehearted giving to him. Third, we do not give in expectation of receiving thanks for our gifts, but rather as a way to create the opportunity to bless God and to give him thanks. Finally, King David reminds us that everything we have—absolutely everything, even our lives—comes from God and is his always and forever. What a privilege to offer our all to him and his glory!

On this day, when we remember the sight of our security and sense of invulnerability rising to the heavens in a plume of smoke and a cloud of ash, we recall, as well, the lives of all who died on that day. We give God thanks for the time they spent in our midst, living among us as fellow children of our Father in heaven.

God calls us to times of prayer. We pray for our broken world, for all who act in anger or who harbor hatred in their hearts. We pray for all who suffer the pain of grief and the gnawing loss of loved ones. We pray for all who place their lives in jeopardy to protect their fellow citizens and to promote freedom and justice.

And as we pray, we recall the Psalmist’s words from Psalm 141, “Let my prayer be incense before you; my uplifted hands an evening sacrifice.” We give thanks that our prayers rise, sweet-smelling, to mingle with the prayers of God’s people in all times and places, so that “in all things God may be glorified.”

This is the twentieth of a series of weekly meditations with the aim to inspire reflection and encourage conversation among the members of the task force as we journey together in obedience to our Lord’s calling to serve him. You can find an archive of these meditations on the Web at http://widesky.biz/blog/ephemera/spirit-driven-task-force-meditations.

Author
Pastor Ron Drury, Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, a member of the Spirit Driven Task Force and advisor to its Steering Committee.

Scripture
“But Joseph said to them, ‘Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as He is doing today. So have no fear; I myself will provide for you and your little ones.’ In this way he reassured them, speaking kindly to them: (Genesis 50:19–21, New Revised Standard Version, Reading for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost)

Meditation
This is and has been for many years one of my favorite Old Testament stories. I see so much power in these words and, more importantly, the amazing grace of God at work in the lives of God’s people thousands of years ago and now! There is so much cheating, cruelty, deception, disobedience, favoritism, lying, and sadness throughout the first book of the Bible … that it is such a blessing to end with this account of forgiveness, grace, mercy and trust in the Almighty!

The story of Joseph being almost murdered and then sold into slavery by his own brothers causes me to ponder how I treated my sisters. I know I made mistakes with my three little siblings (and still do), yet I take some comfort in the fact that I was nowhere near as cruel to them as these sons of Jacob were to each other. Even Joseph jerked his brothers around before telling them who he really was, when they came to Pharaoh’s second-hand man for assistance.

Genesis makes it very clear that it is God who is in control! The loving Lord of all brings good out of the worst situations—even when we cause them or bring them upon ourselves! Not one of these humans is blameless or righteous in these stories, only God is continually working to bring righteousness to all!

Thirty-four years ago this weekend people gathered at the Norris School for our first worship celebration with Pastor Robert Fedde. We have come a long way here on 68th … and are called to continue to move forward in faith! Trust in God, mercy, grace, and forgiveness have taken us this far, and it is the only path that will lead us faithfully into the future. Ten years ago, terrible tragedy struck this great nation of ours and since then so much has changed. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have been, are and will continue to be with us and the steadfast love of the Lord has not changed! May we be inspired by this scripture to give thanks to God, share forgiveness, and to “do mission” with Jesus!

Reflection

• Who in your life needs to realize that you regularly give thanks to God? Invite them to worship next Sunday, September 18, for “You have a friend here Sunday!” Worship at 8:30 and 11:00 a.m. with our Learning Hour in between.
• Who would be blessed by your sharing with them a forgiving moment or word?
• How can we allow the Holy Spirit to empower us to be in mission together in Jesus?

Prayer
Merciful Maker of all, move us to an attitude of gratitude as we, through the Spirit, share forgiveness and you remove fear so we can see the good you desire for all to do mission in Jesus. Amen.