Joy Lutheran Church Ocala, Florida

Last week, at vacation bible school we learned about God mending the world and one of the areas on which we focused was how God and Jesus healed Their people. I decided to share this important lesson from our bible school with you.

The Bible is full of stories of Jesus healing people. We can read about Him healing the man with leprosy, the little girl who lay dead in her bed, two blind men, the woman who was bent over for 18 years, His friend Lazarus, the paralyzed man, a Gentile woman’s demon-possessed daughter and a man with a withered hand to name a few.  The one thing all of these healings had in common was they were all based on faith. Sometimes the faith was in the person being healed and sometimes it was in Jesus Himself.  Every single person who came to Jesus seeking healing received it.

All of these people were broken physically and Jesus healed and changed their current existence. When He provided the Israelites water in the desert He said, “I am the Lord, who heals you” (Exodus 15:26). Because of words and His actions, we know we can trust His mending powers to bring us newness, health and wholeness.

Because we know of His goodness and power, we can bring our aching bodies, grieving and broken hearts and anxious minds to Him for His restoring touch. He can renew  what we fear might be hopeless, wrong and beyond repair. But, we are not damaged goods and broken beyond repair. He will heal us and give us a glimpse of heaven where we will all be healed and fully alive forever.  Let yourself ask for healing and know through your faith, there is hope with God who loves you unconditionally. Our hope is in You, the Great Life Giver and Healer. Thanks be to God!

Patty

I know that we generally make an excuse for lots of rain, saying “Well, we do need it.” Yes, that is very true, we cannot live without water.   

However, I admit to being very grateful for God’s promise to Noah that He would never again destroy the earth by water. Although, I bet there are those who will debate that promise. It has been a wet summer so far. An unpredictable summer, with bright hot sun in the morning and then dark gray clouds, strong winds, heavy rain and thunder by mid-afternoon. Not what is generally expected in a northern New England summer.  

For me, I like a nice rainy day occasionally. It gives me a chance to catch a nap on the porch and enjoy the gentle tapping on our tin roof. I will emphasize “occasionally” because this is a very small cottage that is right on a big lake. When it rains every day, laundry cannot be done because the W/D are in a cabinet on the deck. Getting to the car is a wet challenge that makes me give up before I start. I must climb 25 stairs to a garage-less car. Sorry, I am whining. Time for a gratitude check. 

I have loads of gratitude for having a car, a safe dry house, warm clean clothes and plenty of food to eat. I also enjoy living on a beautiful lake with the most amazing sunsets and the cleanest water for recreation.  

I know that God has a plan in action. A plan that I do not profess to understand, although I would like to make some corrections to it. A plan that does mean I need to take some responsible actions as pertains to this wonderful world in which I live; like recycling, using a reusable water bottle, keeping the organic wastes out of the waste stream, donating food and clothes to non-profit organizations for those who don’t have as much. Trying to be kinder to the earth and those who inhabit it. 

Remember that God loves you unconditionally. In times of doubt, trust in the Lord with all your heart and revel in His love.  

Terri 

In a sense these devotions that I write are like tiny sermons for me, except I don’t get in nearly as much trouble with them as I did with sermons. Someone came to me one Sunday and complained that I had been preaching about her and she was really angry about that. I was absolutely dumbfounded. This person never entered my mind when I was writing the sermon, and I had no idea she was experiencing an issue that I mentioned in my sermon.

The truth is that most of the time in sermons and blogs I’m talking to myself. I preach out of my experiences. I was told early on this was a bad practice, but I do it anyway. I look at my experiences with an eye to what might be common to everyone, some aspect of the human condition. Sometimes I have resolved some problem in my life, so I have a solution to share. Other times I am still engaged with solving the problems. Other times I still don’t have a clue of the solution. I’m not afraid to tell people I don’t have the answers.

My not having the answers really bothered one of my early sermon critics. He believed a sermon should always tell people what to do. I think it would be arrogant for me to tell people what to do when I don’t know what to do myself. Instead I see it as my task to tell the truth as best as I understand it.

So, if you want the truth,

Read John 3:16 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne

My father called it the “dot painting.” The proper name in English is “A Sunday Afternoon in the Island of La Grande Jattee” by Georges Seurat.

Both names tell you something about the painting. Dad was intrigued because close up you could see that the entire painting consisted of very small dabs of paint. There are no lines or areas of a single color. When you back up (and you really have to back up because the painting is almost 7′ by 10′), there is a scene of people enjoying themselves on an island in the midst of the river Seine.

In a way, looking at this painting is metaphor for reading Scripture. We can look very closely at a small part of the Bible or we can examine of a whole section of the Bible. Both approaches are helpful, but the close up method always needs the context of the broader scope.

Frequently we approach the Bible through isolated verses. This is problematic since the Bible wasn’t written in verses. Reading single verses without the larger context can be misleading. The mother of a friend often quoted John 11:35 (“Jesus wept”) when her son related some predicament he had gotten into. But the words are really about Jesus emotional reaction to the death of his friend Lazarus.

We have to back up and see the whole context of a part of Scripture to understand it. Pastor Art does this so well in his sermons. To understand the Bible we need the big picture.

Read Matthew 13:1-23 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Posted by Wayne in July 2018

The horrible tragedy of an assassination attempt on a former President running again. Unlike the last one over forty years ago meant to impress a famous actress, this one is a wrenching reminder of what has become way too commonplace. The glorification, the twisted mental culture of assault weapons. Surely this incident will finally change the trajectory (poor euphemism) of the continuous mental health crisis, that of loners living in isolation, being fed the lies and emptiness of seeking revenge. Surely now, finally, things will change – right?

These blogs are meant to uplift you. It is a blessing to be a part of this ministry. Yes, I believe in the power of prayer. Prayer is what changes minds – especially God’s. Nineveh comes to mind. Isaiah. God desires all good things for us. His heart is grieved when we continue to live, speak, and act in antagonizing ways. If we will yet turn to him while we still have the opportunity, He will not despise or destroy us. Could this finally be the wake-up call our country needs? Only time will tell. I have great hope in our innate goodness. We will only come through the darkness of our souls when we seek the light of Christ. The door of promise and new life is always open. We can be ambassadors, emissaries of the kingdom of God here on earth. We wait for God to act. That never means that we don ‘t have to do anything. Praying is not an inert platitude without action. I believe God wiIl relent from the consequences we deserve, as He did on Calvary. Each day is a new present, a precious gift of grace. What a glorious inheritance we have, measured out daily in His unconditional love for us!

Pastor Art

A few weeks ago, my son visited with his daughter.  It was so good to spend time with them.  One of our favorite activities was pouring through boxes of “treasures.”  We found old photos, school reports, newspaper articles, toys, and cherished wedding and baptismal items.  Some were sentimental, others comical.

We found the doll that was my daughter’s favorite when she was a little girl.   The doll still spoke when the cord was pulled.  But then there was her golden hair.  Her two older brothers had once taken a scissors to the doll’s beautiful curly locks.  Let’s just say that their skill at barbering was not too good, and their poor little sister had been furious.

Now, fifty years later, the brothers still could banter about whose idea it was, who started it, why they did it, and who should have known better.   Fortunately, now in good fun.

It did make me think of other deeds done, mine included.  Why did I do that?  Whose fault was it?  Did someone else instigate it?  Do I still carry pangs of guilt for what I said or did?

Repent, says our Lord and accept his forgiveness.  Sometimes the latter part is the most difficult.  We hang on to our guilt, not able to accept the total forgiveness Jesus offers.   We can be encouraged by the words of this song by Rob Hayward, “I’m Accepted, I’m Forgiven.”  The God who loves you unconditionally holds out this forgiveness to you.  You don’t need to earn it.  You can’t earn it. You can only humbly bow and accept it.

Judy

In my teen years, I took 5 years of French, just hoping to become an U.N. interpreter, but that was the thought of a 17-year-old. Then, life took a different direction and I found myself working at 19 years old at a Deaf and Blind School, and becoming an interpreter for the deaf. Learning Sign Language fascinated me.  Since those years, always loving languages, I have added a slight smidgen of Russian, Portuguese, Spanish and Mandarin. In my retirement I began teaching Sign Language to others.

All of this brought me to wondering who interpreted the Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek scrolls or historic finds to give us the Words of our Lord and God’s messages to us? Interpreting is so very important. Conveying not YOUR message but what was clearly meant in the original context and language. Believing in the Bible and its powerful messages, we believe those authors, scribes and interpreters were led and directed by God.

I take interpreting for a deaf person very seriously, always trying my best with signs to repeat the exact message. Stopping to check for understanding and any needed clarification.

Trust God’s chosen writers, David, Paul, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and the others, that their observations and instructions from God were blessed with meaning that has transcended to us, God’s Children. I would not have wanted that job or responsibility, but I am certainly glad they accepted His direction and were led to share the Good News with us.  Be blessed.  Read His Holy, powerful Word. It is His Word. His love is unconditional.

Jill

Our church just finished a week of vacation bible school yesterday. We had a group of delightful young people with whom we shared God’s unconditional love for us.  The theme of the week was “Operation Restoration” which focused on how God mends the world for His people and how he wants us to help repair the brokenness too. Our lessons focused on how Jesus fed people, healed them, taught them about forgiveness, taught them how to pray and how God instructed us to “rest” after six days of hard work.  He even made this one of the Ten Commandments.  Remember the Sabbath and keep it Holy.

The young people were excited when they arrived each morning and ready to learn more about God through songs, lessons, crafts, playing and praying. It was fun to see their understanding of what they were learning each day and how it applied to their own lives.  They were eager about everything and as always, we learned from them as well. We saw things through their eyes with their excited and sometimes quirky take-aways, but they were always honest and curious.

We are all children of God, no matter our age. We could learn things from these small children. In fact, it is recommended that we do so in the Bible. In Mattew 18:1, the disciples ask Jesus who is the greatest in the Kingdom. In Matthew 18:3, He tells them, Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Childlike faith is a virtue as is childlike trust in the Father. Children first trust their earthly fathers and mothers for wisdom, provision, protection, order and vision  and then learn to trust their heavenly father in the same way as they grow and learn more about God’s unconditional love for all of us. Let’s take a lesson from these young children and reconnect with their innocence, wonder and enthusiasm for all God provides for us. Become childlike in your faith. Thanks be to God!

Patty

The story of Lazarus and the rich man is such a vivid lesson in how I should treat my fellow travelers in this life. I have always felt sad for the rich man with his fine clothes and hearty meals – and confused by how he could so callously ignore poor Lazarus starving at his gate. I remain confused today when I read about the careless and cruel ways that we continue to treat the most vulnerable among us.

It is a trap to think that because I am comfortable that I can insulate myself from the sorrow and needs of others. Modern media doesn’t allow this to happen. The lesson of this reading doesn’t allow this to happen.

If I had been the rich man appealing to Abraham, I also would have argued to have him send Lazarus to warn my brothers and sisters about the place that awaited them. For the rich man, it is the light of hindsight shining through. As Abraham points out, they have had Moses and the prophets warning them for generations, why would they now listen to the man who died at their gate?

As a child, these verses were scary and convincing that I should care for the needy because there was an unpleasant and unacceptable consequence waiting for me, if I didn’t. As an adult, I am reminded that compassion and caring for others are part of Christ’s life instruction for me. These are directions for how to behave towards one another — not because of the dire consequences, but because this is the way that God wants me to live.

Because God’s unconditional love is for all His children, not just the ones “in purple and fine linen.”

Read the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man in Luke 16:19-31

Terri (Originally posted in June 2019)

Today is the commemoration of Benedict of Nursia (480-547).  He was a monk who lived in central Italy. People recognized a special holiness in him. He established a number monasteries including the great Monte Cassino. He wrote a rule for his monasteries that is still used by Benedictine and Cistercian monks.

The first word of the Rule of Benedict is “listen.” Goodness, how important listening is. All pastors take a program called Clinical Pastoral Education where we learn about pastoral care usually for hospitalized people. I think the most important lesson I learned from the program was to listen to people, to really listen to them, to make sure I have heard what a person is saying.

Once I went to someone for help and was utterly frustrated because the person wouldn’t listen. I had only gotten a few words out before he was telling me what my problem was and what I should do. I felt worse after talking to him than before.

The Psychologist Carl Rogers wrote: “When a person realizes he has been deeply heard, his eyes moisten. I think in some real sense he is weeping for joy. It is as though he were saying, ‘Thank God, somebody heard me. Someone knows what it’s like to be me.’”

It’s good advice for Christians. The first thing to do to help another person is to listen to them, really listen to them. Let them know you care enough to shut-up and hear them. It’s amazing how much it helps.

Read Proverbs 18:13 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne