Joy Lutheran Church Ocala, Florida

The day I wrote these lines, a full pot of homemade vegetable soup simmered away on the stove.  The welcome aroma filled the house.  There’s nothing like a good bowl of hot soup on a chilly day.  I’ll add a little grated cheese and some crusty fresh bread with butter.  For me, that’s comfort food, it feels like home.   I’m not so sure why this feels so much “like home,” because growing up I don’t remember Mom making soup, and I know I never ate soup at grandma’s house.  Even in our home, that pot of soup was not welcomed by three kids who disliked it and would go to great ends to avoid eating it.  Hardly comfort food!   But that was then, and this is now, and that hearty soup puts a smile on my face.

A bowl of hot soup was a comfort food even back in Biblical times.  In Genesis chapter 25 we read that Jacob was cooking some soup.  Esau came in from the fields “in great need of food” and Jacob served him a warm bowl of the soup he was cooking.  Many interpreters believe it was Lentil Soup.  (one of my favorites).

It seems we’re in good company when we find comfort in that hot bowl of soup.  I thank God for this simple blessing and the joy it brings.  Sometimes his unconditional love for us comes to us in very humble ways.  Thanks and praise to our wonderful God!

Judy

Being able to go to my “happy place,” is relatively easy for me.  I’ve had significant times where it was necessary to just let my mind go to another “place,” and feel His peace and comfort. On a cruise, a friend invited me to share a spa visit.  She just loved the “hot beds,” in the spa.  Well, I had never done this before, so there I was in a cuddly terry cloth robe, resting on a curved, hard lounger with heated tiles.  Soft music was playing and I decided it was a perfect time for a “peace-filled moment.” I closed my eyes and let my prayers and thoughts of God begin. Suddenly, there was a snort. My eyes fluttered when I realized that was me, snoring!  What?!? People in the spa area were snickering. LOL Fast forward to my recommendations for you, even if you doze off, it’s ok. Your peaceful moments with God are Spirit-filling for certain. 

I Peter 5:6-7 “If you will humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, in his good time he will lift you up.  Let him have all your worries and cares, for he is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you.”

We are loved unconditionally, always and forever. Humble yourself. Empty your head of “stuff” and focus on Him. Find the “happy place” in your mind. Allow our Lord to receive your worries and calm your spirit.  ( PS  Try not to snore.)

Jill

If you watched the Super Bowl, I’m sure you watched the commercials that are often better than the game itself.  Some are humorous and many have celebrities hawking their products, but my favorite for the third consecutive year was the commercial that focused on the theme “What is Greatness?”.  The commercial invited us to consider the definition Jesus spoke and modeled, the contrast to how culture often defines greatness today and what that might mean for each of us.

Greatness is identified in our culture, through concentrating on wealth, achievement, status and power which is a stark contrast to how Jesus defined greatness. This commercial encourages us to remember Jesus is good which the gospel teaches. It tells us Jesus is God, God is love, we’re called to love as He loved and we need the Holy Spirit to love others.

The commercial ended with the words “He Gets Us.com”. This commercial appeared on television at other times as well, but the Super Bowl reached so many more people, the message went out even further.

Psalm 139 gives us these promises. Oh Lord, you have searched me and know me!  You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with my ways.

God knows that we’re tired. He knows we are doing our best. He knows we don’t know what the future holds. But He sees us. God knows what we need. He has a plan for us and will make a way. He wants us to remember He loves all of us unconditionally and wants us to love others as He loves us. HE GETS US! Thanks be to God.

Patty

Here is a Valentine’s Day Card just for you, Charlie Brown. After all the years that you have suffered through the trauma of not receiving even one Valentine from your friends, teachers or relatives, I hope that this little story, written for you, convinces you that you are loved, you are important, and someone values you for who you are. 

The legend of Valentine’s Day is cloaked in mystery and a confusing history, as are many of the early saints’ celebration days. Just like Christmas and Easter, the Roman Catholic Church made changes to the popular pagan Roman festival of Lupercalia. Now, this doesn’t mean that there wasn’t an actual saint, in fact there appear to be multiple saints who performed acts of love and mercy that are honored on this day.  

Three saints with the name of Valentine or the Latin name Valentinus are found as saints in the church. All three men were martyred for defying Roman law. One continued to perform marriage ceremonies for Roman soldiers after marriage was outlawed for serving soldiers.  

One was imprisoned for attempting to free prisoners from the horrible jail that they were held in. Before his execution, it is said that he wrote a letter to a young girl whom he loved. It was sign “From your Valentine.” A phrase that is still in use today. The history of the third Valentine is vague as we are looking at people who lived around 3 B.C with spotty records.   

 So why the month of February? February has long been known as the month of love. This legend may stem from the celebration of Lupercalia, which is a fertility festival celebrated on February 15^th.   Priests of the Luperci met in a cave thought to have sheltered the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, when they were infants and where the she-wolf or lupa raised them. After sacrificing a goat and a dog, the goat’s hide was stripped into strips and soaked in blood. The priests would then walk through the streets, gently tapping the women and sprinkling the fields.  

This was a celebration that was welcomed because it was thought to make women more fertile for the year. Legend has it that later that day, the women put their name in a jar and the men each pulled out one name. The man and woman were paired for the year. These pairings often ended in marriage. 

As you can see, this Roman festival presented many practices that were at odds with the Christian church’s teachings. It was Pope Gelasius, at the end of the 5^th century, who set the date of February 14 to celebrate the death of Valentine. 

On Valentine’s Day we express our love for each other. It may be a sweetheart, or it may be our children or next-door neighbor, or someone who has been mean to us. Yes, everyone is our neighbor.  

The teachings of Christ instruct us to one love another. So why can’t poor old Charlie Brown receive one little Valentine’s Day card from anyone? I think that is a very cruel trick to play on him, although there seem to be many cruel tricks played on that little boy. It is love and kindness that Christ asks us to demonstrate to everyone we meet, regardless of the day. 

Because He loves you and everyone, He has created past, present and future unconditionally. That will never change. Happy Valentine’s Day. I love you! 

Terri 

The first Lutheran congregations were organized in Florida in 1859, in Lake City and Long Swamp which was located near present-day Belleview. Pastor Charles Bernheim reported that there were 24 white and 20 colored people. The book Masters and Slaves in the House of the Lord concluded that almost half of the first Lutherans were enslaved persons.

There is no escaping that conclusion. Several of the early Lutheran settlers in Marion County were slave holders including Adam and Wade Eichelberger and Adam Summer. Summer, by the way, gave his name to the town of Summerfield in south Marion County. It’s hard to comprehend that some of the first Lutherans in our community were enslaved people.

The Rev. John Bachman, one of the leaders of Lutheranism in South Carolina, was visiting Adam Summer in 1860. He wrote to his wife on April 1, “I preached today, (Sunday), and baptized Bachman Hazelius a boy of twelve, with skin as black as a Corvus-Americanu.” That’s the earliest record of a Lutheran baptism in Florida.

How much choice did a slave have about being baptized? There must have been some because not all enslaved people became church members, but still, they were regarded as property. I know that some Black people remained members of another nearby Lutheran church after the Civil War. It didn’t last because, according to a story I heard, the church was burned to the ground because Black and White people worshiped together.

These are facts about Lutheran history rarely mentioned. It’s something to think about during Black History Month.

Read John 8:36 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne

When you look at others do you see “the light within?” Do you recognize the good in them?

At one point in my life, I had the opportunity to co-teach in a developmental kindergarten class. (a class of youngsters who had just missed the cut off date for their birthdays and didn’t make the entry to kindergarten but would the following year).
My friend and I loved these young “munchkins.” Our goal was to each day find something good and positive about each child to share with them at the end of the class. Honesty prevails here so, some of those little rascals made it a challenge once in a while. We would laugh wondering if we could just say they had adorable ears or a cute grin because their behavior had been so poor, finding something positive wasn’t easy.

If we are made in God’s image, what do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you see joy, peace, love, forgiveness and traits of our Lord? Do you see a smile or a frown?
Folks these days seem consumed with taking “selfies.” Do they see themselves as God sees them?

Our heavenly Father wants us to see Him in others. Boy, that’s tough! Some folks are grouchy. Some are mean-spirited. Some are cranky, know-it-alls. How in the world can we see God in them? When someone snarls at you and spits out a sharp-tongued retort, do you see how very much God loves them unconditionally? Not easy!

God loves every one of us unconditionally and wants us to see His light within ourselves AND others. Look past the ears and grins and see if you can see the inner beauty of Emmanuel, God within!

Jill Previously posted in February 2019

Oxymoron? Contradiction?

How can we be slaves and still free? “The Christian is a perfectly free slave to all, subject to all,” says Luther. We are partners in Christ’s death and resurrection. Being free does not mean being self-centered, but “slaves to one another” (Gal. 6:13). Luther got what Paul said; in fact, it was the book of Romans that changed Martin’s life.

God employs the oxymoronic and contradictory, the exact opposite of what the world expects. The cross stands in the midst of everything. It is a better way, a more fruitful way to yes, struggle and suffer. As partners in the mission of God, we are perfectly free to endure all things and hope all things. It is the ultimate victory that helps us get through the defeats. We need not be shaped by the news of the day, letting differences become personal attacks. Dare I say we should celebrate our enslavement to the Gospel, not matter what it costs and where it takes us?

The Son makes us free, so we are free indeed. We worship and serve not because we have to but because we get to. Even when we are held to account for doing the right thing, it credits to our favor in the end. Everything the world tells us is gain, we can toss into the trash.

 The unconditional love that claims us as God’s priceless possession also sets us free from the care and anxiety of this world.  

Pastor Art

Moving is common ground for many of us retirees in Florida.  Whether or not we experienced frequent moves in our lifetime, coming to Florida was a move.  It was often a major move, north to south.  Sometimes it was difficult: new neighbors, new doctors, new stores, new bank, and yes, new church.  After we’ve been here for a while, another move often ensues.   As we age it may be a move to live closer to family, to live with adult children, to reside in an assisted living facility.  Any move is stressful.

Oh yes, one final move cannot be overlooked.  The day will come when our earthly residence gives way to the welcoming arms of our Lord who has promised us room in his heavenly kingdom.  We anticipate the beauty, the renewed bodies, and the reconnection with our loved ones.  But perhaps, we’re not so sure about the “preparation” for the move.  Will it involve sickness, will there be pain, how much will we have to endure?  The “moving process” isn’t always so easy.

Whether we anticipate a move to another living arrangement or our final departure to our heavenly home, we can be fully assured that our God walks with us.  How else could we take these difficult steps?
We read in Joshua 1:9 – “Have not I commanded thee?  Be strong and of good courage, be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

The unconditional love of our Lord will follow us every step of our lives.  Amen.

Judy

Right next to my PC, I have a cubbie with slots for “office stuff” and places for scotch tape, scissors, post it notes and other office goodies. Also taped all over my mini storage area are “sayings.” Several of these were given to me by friends.

“I did the best I could do, for the person I was, at the time that I did it.” “Everything is going to be alright. Signed, The Source.” “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go.” “Nothing in all creation will be able to separate you from My love.” “I will meet you and your needs according to my glorious riches.”

I am so blessed to have friends who care enough to supply me with kind words, note cards, verses that I need to hear and read exactly when I need them.  Do you think God is instrumental in supplying my needs? I sure do!

We are loved unconditionally and even if we know that truth, sometimes we need those reminders. My “sayings” taped all over my supply cubbies, give me just those needed boosts and reminders. I thank God daily for my family and friends. What a blessing to know they KNOW HIM and share His good news so beautifully. 

So my saying goes: “My friends are His children and a GIFT to me!”

Jill

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11:3

I recently read this article from Hope Healing Hands and I thought it was worth sharing as it presents the creation in a reader friendly manner.

What is harder to believe? Someone created and crafted everything on the earth as well as the earth itself? Or that the entire universe came to be from a single explosion? To some, they both seem impossible, and others favor one over the other. However, in a world where we praise inventors and creators, does it seem so impossible that someone would have created the universe we live in and breathe in?

Every living thing, every cell in our body was created by someone who put great thought and care into each detail. Doesn’t that make more sense than everything being random and explicit details forming out of nothing? Why wouldn’t we believe that we were created by the Lord Almighty? Isn’t it possible that if He created the entire Universe, then He also made man to think and create just like Him?

Both beliefs require faith, but the difference is that one faith is a faith that ends with how the world came to be and the other faith is a faith that continues on and grows as the created walks with its Creator. Which do you choose to believe? Do you want a faith that goes beyond believing that the world came to be out of a giant boom? Do you want a faith that starts by believing there was a Creator who created someone He could love and care for?

That faith can be found in Christianity. God our creator, designed everything around us, gave us a beautiful world to live in, and longs to walk with us daily. All you need is faith.

I thought this explanation was inciteful and interesting and I loved the way it was laid out in a simple, yet impactful manner.  This is just another way to assure of God’s unconditional love for all of us.  He did all this AND gave us His Son Jesus to give us the even greater gift of salvation.  Thanks be to God!!

Patty