Joy Lutheran Church Ocala, Florida

I believe Lutheran historian Martin Marty said you could only understand Lutheranism if you sat around the campfires and sang the songs. There is some truth to that. It has been both a strength and a weakness of Lutheranism that there is a “Lutheran culture” that surrounds many of its practitioners–although what that culture is like varies a good bit depending on if you grew up in a Lutheran church is, say, Trappe, Pennsylvania or Stoughton, Wisconsin.

I know about singing the songs. What could be more Lutheran than singing “A Mighty Fortress”? However, I was astonished when I was at a Reformation celebration where that hymn wasn’t sung in the way I had learned, but in the manner Luther had written.

Luther wrote the text and tune sometime between 1527 and 1529. The occasion for the hymn is a mystery. I find it a great hymn of encouragement in difficult times. It directs us toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

Did we in our own strength confide,
our striving would be losing,
were not the right Man on our side,
the Man of God’s own choosing.
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth his name,
from age to age the same;
and he must win the battle.

I hope this hymn is more than a cultural artifact. It should be an inspiration for all of us who faces the challenges of a world that rejects God. Stand firm. Face whatever comes.

God’s truth abideth still;
his kingdom is forever! 

Read Psalm 46 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne

It was my granddaughter’s prom night. Her dad texted pictures – beautiful young women in gorgeous long dresses, escorted by handsome young men in tuxes. It’s said that “A picture is worth a thousand words.” The prom pictures were proof of that. Words could not convey the sparkle in her eyes, the delight that beamed from the photos. I got a warm glow just looking at how happy she was.

Sometimes I just wish we had photos of our Lord Jesus. I think of His ride into Jerusalem. Crowds gathered to watch, but they waved palm branches. Not one held out a cell phone to capture the moment.

Artists have given us many different interpretations of Jesus’ appearance. Often the image reflects that of the painter and the people of his time and place. The paintings are beautiful, even inspiring, but probably not authentic. We do know that Jesus was a Jew, so He likely had dark skin, dark eyes and dark hair – and that’s about all we know.

The disciples spent three years with Jesus. They knew Him the best. Surely they could have described His physical appearance. None of them did. Perhaps it just didn’t seem important. They wrote of His actions, His words, His feelings – but not what He looked like. Actually, they did give us a beautiful portrait of His love, kindness and compassion.

Just suppose the apostles were writing about us? If they wrote of our actions, our words, and our compassion – how would we look? Fortunately for us God loves us, flaws and all. His love is unconditional, and He gives it freely to me and to you!

Judy

I confess that as a life-long Lutheran I often incorrectly assume that all who worship know about our eponymous leader, the great reformer Martin Luther. With so many of our parishioners coming from Roman Catholicism, of course they have much knowledge on the man! What an interesting life, what an interesting man Herr Luther was (Herr is Mr. in German).

Deep in October, we reflect on the event that unofficially began the Protestant Reformation, that being when Luther nailed 95 statements or theses on the church door in Wittenberg. Every 500 years, give or take, something seismic happens in Christendom. Maybe a Google search will be helpful about the details. For this blog post, I will only focus on a few insights about his personal life. As I said, he was indeed an interesting man with an interesting life…and an interesting wife.

Katherine von Bora was born in 1499 in poverty. As a nun, she was one of nine convent sisters who fled in April 1523 to Wittenberg. Martin was essentially a third choice for a suitor. The marriage was considered a very bad idea for both. The jurist Hieronymus Schurff commented, “if this monk gets married, the whole world and the devil will laugh, and he himself will ruin everything that he has accomplished”. But Martin Luther was anything but conventional (get the pun, “convent-”).

The Reformer knew the unconditional love that was Luther’s assurance and comfort. Your life is no less extraordinary than his, in the eyes of our Blessed Redeemer.

Pastor Art

Did you ever get a speck of something in your eye?  It really hurts.  And, if you’re not able to wash it out with tears or eyedrops, it can cause an abrasion or scratch on your cornea.  Now try to picture a log in your eye.  I can’t do it, can you?  It’s too big; it just doesn’t happen.

Well then, whatever was Matthew talking about in chapter 7:3-4?  “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye?”

Oh, we’re so quick to judge others.  We see their faults, the apparent error in their ways or words.  If only they would let us change them, to be more like us, to see things the way we see them.  Ah yes, we just feel obliged to remove that speck from their eyes.

Oops, Matthew did mention that there is a log in our own eye.  But surely that cannot be.  We’re careful in our thinking and believing.  We trust in the Lord, we pray for his guidance.  We are generous and caring.  But . . . just maybe, do we take pride in that?  Do we judge others and attempt to remove “that speck”, as a way of justifying ourselves and our actions?

In the parable of the “speck and the log” Jesus tells us to focus on our own faults before criticizing others.   Sounds like a bit of humility is called for here.  Time for prayer Lord.  We can ask how, when or if he wants us to deal with the speck in our brother’s eye?  And maybe more importantly, ask for forgiveness for that “log” in our own eye, the pride in our own judgements, the certainty that we always have the right answers. 

“Speck or log,” God loves us unconditionally.  Let’s walk humbly and let him be the judge, before we hasten to judge others.

Judy

Wikipedia tells us: Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthaginians, and Romans, among others. Many of us are fully aware of the horrific death our Lord suffered as He was crucified. Prior to the actual nailing of Him to the cross, he was beaten, whipped, spit on, forced to have a crown of thorns shoved into his head and tormented by many. There are movies that recreate the horrific picture of this cruel punishment and subsequent death. I find some of them too disturbing to watch.

We are all human and all sinners.  Each and every one of us sins. Can you even fathom the suffering of Christ? The agony of gasping for air to breathe, as His body was being pulled by gravity, tugging at the nails. His lungs were slowly being stretched down as He could no longer pull himself up to breathe. His unbelievable death was for each and every sin you have and or will commit. What? Yes, Jesus gave His life for me and every sin I have/will commit.

Fill your heart with His unconditional love for you. Expand your lungs, breathing in LIFE. Raise your hands to heaven and shout HALLELUJAH! You’re are a child of the most high God, who sacrificed His Son for you. What a gift! Conjure up the horrific picture of His crucifixion and then feel the joy from His sacrifice. It was for YOU! You are His! It is ok to smile.  It is ok to shout. It is ok to breathe in the breath of God. Allow your senses to experience the joy His love will bring you. Your sins are forgiven. Woohoo…hallelujah! Thank you, God, for the gift of your Son. Help me to know Him!

Jill

I came across this story when reading some posts I had gotten recently. I will share a
snippet of it which led me to my thoughts for this blog. It hit home to me as I think about
how I sometimes act when I am in a hurry and feel put out.

On my way to work one morning, I drove behind a small car with a handwritten
note taped to the back window: “Learning to drive stick. Sorry for any delay.”
As soon as I read it, my impatience dissolved. I stayed calm through every shaky
start, every cautious gear change and truthfully, they were driving just fine.
But then another thought surfaced: Would I have been so patient if I hadn’t seen
the sign? Probably not.

In my own life, the memory came back to me of my parents. My dad, who had less than
stellar hearing trying to understand what the clerks or waitresses were saying to him,
then fumbling around with his wallet trying to pay a bill. In the last years of my mother’s
life, she would often say inappropriate things in restaurants (or wherever we happened
to be) and feeling embarrassed for her. Both of my parents were clearly quite elderly
and my mother had dementia, but I only hoped people would understand and be kind to
them.

Most people don’t go around with signs explaining what they are struggling with. You
can’t see: “Going through a divorce.”, “Lost my spouse.”, “Fighting depression.”, “Just
diagnosed with cancer.”

If pain were visible, I wonder if our world would be gentler. Sadly, kindness shouldn’t
need an excuse. We should follow the words from Ephesians 4:32: Be kind to one
another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

God loves us unconditionally, even though we often don’t deserve it. His mercy and love
shine brightly in our lives every day. Let’s follow His example of goodness and treat
others as we would like them to treat us…with patience and kindness as God instructs
us to do. Thanks be to God for His everlasting love!

Patty

This caring concept is an ancient one. It is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew (Chapter 10:40-42), “and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple – truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.” 

Our Stephen Ministers spend a whole training session on this concept. Learning how to offer various forms of the “cup of water”, not because they want the promised reward (although we all do), but because of the admonition from Jesus to offer this comfort to those in need. This is an action that Christ would take to bring solace to His children in need. We try to imitate Christ in all the ways that He demonstrates for us. 

The cup of water can literally be a refreshing drink, but it can also be a smile, a word of encouragement, a funny story or a caregiver’s consoling presence in the time of crisis or recovery. The lesson here, of course, is that this course of action is appropriate for all people; you really do not need special training to offer this comfort. 

Is it hard? Sometimes, yes. It can be difficult to smile at someone who has been difficult in the past. It is not always easy to strike up a conversation with someone who looks sad or angry. We are often reluctant to intrude on their privacy. My personal feeling, when confronted with a difficult situation, is that I need to look to the Holy Spirit for guidance in these cases. Turning my will and my life over to God with each request and then listening for the suggested action. 

And, you know what? That smile, joke or handholding is a physical demonstration of God’s love for the person in need. How wonderful to be the bearer of that beautiful, powerful message! Read Matthew 10:40-42 and remember that God loves you unconditionally! 

Terri 

Today commemorates James of Jerusalem, the brother of Jesus. Whether brother means a younger full brother, an older step-brother or a cousin is a matter of scholarly debate.

James is mentioned several times in the New Testament. He is also mentioned in a non-Bibilical source, the Antiquities of the Jewish historian Josephus. According to Josephus, James was stoned to death at the instigation of the high priest Ananus.

It troubles me how often people in power use their position to suppress someone who challenges them in some way. Of course that is the story of Jesus and so is at the heart of Christianity. It’s unfortunate that Christians often have learned little from their own history with the result that they have tried to use their own positions of power to impose their beliefs on other people, and sometimes attack other Christians because they don’t practice the faith in the same way. That’s not what Christians should do.

James played a prominent role in a dealing with a problem that arose in the early church about whether Gentiles had to practice circumcision in order to be Christians. James announced that these new Christians should not be troubled by this requirement.

There’s something important to learn from the example of James. Christians aren’t out to trouble people, but to offer them the good news of Jesus. Not everybody will hear and believe, but I think we’ll have greater success if we avoid presenting ourselves as crabby, judgmental, bossy people, but rather as caring, kind, joyful people because Jesus is our Lord.

Read James 2:8 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne

“Sing to the Lord, all the world! Worship the Lord with joy; come before him with happ6y songs!” Psalm 100:1 (TEV)

Who doesn’t know Psalm 100? No doubt many of us grew up with this as a Sunday memorization project. Music is my joyful noise. My Mom was an extraordinary pianist. She learned to play the organ by a home study course. I, and my siblings, grew up with all genres of music, from classics to boogie woogie. She also taught music and wrote more than one piece of music. You get the picture. Mom instilled a love of music in all her children. I was 8 – 10 years old before I realized my sister and I could clean up after the evening meal without Mom playing the piano. We had sing-a-longs when we could choose favorites from the Baptist and Methodist hymnals.

So, what’s my point? Joy Lutheran! We make a joyful noise unto the Lord. Joy is blessed with a variety of musicians. Silas Daniels on the piano and organ. I’m always glad to hear him play the organ in his sock feet (Mom played in her stockings). Melissa, Silas and the bell ringers make beautiful music. It’s always a thrill to hear them perform. Linda Aker and the choir make beautiful music. And then there are the soloists, quartets and other music makers. I am especially fond of hearing Ray Ilenberg on the accordion (that was my Dad’s instrument of choice). Janet Voyles makes beautiful music on the clarinet.  The congregational singing is joyful. No doubt, I have missed somebody. That was not intentional. It pleases my soul to enjoy the music at Joy. It is no accident, the music at Joy Lutheran brings Joy to many of us. I am grateful for the Joyful Music we make unto the Lord.

Carson

My father, a machinist, could look at a blueprint and use it to turn stock metal into intricate machinery. Like my father, I took classes in drafting and machine shop, but unlike him most things I made didn’t turn out the way the blue print said they should. I did not have my father’s skill as a craftsman.

Maybe my deficiency is what makes me take note of Bezalel. He’s mentioned in Exodus 31 as the person who made the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant, and all the objects necessary for the Israelites to worship the Lord. God said of him: “I have filled him with divine spirit, with ability, intelligence, and knowledge in every kind of craft” (Exodus 31:3). Wow! It must have been nice to be gifted in that way.

I discovered that the Hebrew word translated as craft, melakah, also appears in the creation story where is said that on the seventh day “God ended his work (melakah).” What the craftsman did was somehow like the work of God.

I think there is something God-inspired in all creative work, but I wouldn’t limit creativity to artists and craftsmen. Anybody who can make donuts gets creative credit in my book. Poets count, too, as well as musicians, teachers, gardeners, comedians, Stephen Ministers, and pretty much anyone who can comfort or encourage another person. I’m just scratching the surface.

I find it amazing that we humble human beings should share in the work of creation. God bless you as you do your part in creating the world.

Read Exodus 31:1-11 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne