“And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.” – Acts 2:2

The third great celebration of the church year comes in June this year, and no, it is not “summer vacation”!  It is Pentecost, the celebration of the Holy Spirit’s presence in the church and in our lives.  Unfortunately this great celebration, this earth-shaking, life-changing, God empowered event is met too often with a sense of apathetic distraction.  It’s almost as if we are too preoccupied with lesser things than ready to receive God’s gift of forgiveness and life.

But God’s Spirit is still very much at work in our lives, and in our congregation.  Don’t dampen that fire by attitudes that look for excuses to be negative.  Don’t miss that breath of life because you’ve fallen prey to the distractions of lesser things.  As we move into summer make sure you find a balance of time to get away, and a time to come together.  Just like an ember dies when removed from the fire for too long, we too can grow cold in faith when we stay away from the fellowship of worship for too long.

Most of all find reasons to celebrate the goodness and grace of the Lord our God in creation, family, and our church.  Find space to feel the breath of God’s grace warming, forgiving, and filling your heart.

Hear this prayer for Pentecost:

Come Holy Spirit, our souls inspire and lighten with celestial fire. Ignite our hearts, inflame our souls, and kindle our spirits that we may burn anew with your love. Overcome our timid and tepid faith with these encouragements of your presence and gospel. Warm up all that is cold or frozen in us. Give us the flame of lively living and believing. O Spirit of God, take our words and speak through them; take our minds and think through them; take our hearts and set them on fire. Amen.

In God’s Spirit,

Pastor John Twiton

Donald Juel, professor at Luther Seminary, reflecting on the resurrection account in the Gospel of Mark, once wrote that:

“None of the Gospels can really end the story of Jesus.  The whole point is that it continues–and that its significance continues.” (Mark (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1990) 234).

I like this point of view, because Jesus is raised, and lives even now, the story does not end.  The question for all of us who have experienced this good news is this:  “How does Jesus’ story, the good news of victory of life over death, continue to be seen in our lives day after day?”

We do a pretty good job of celebrating Easter.  The flowers, the music, the celebration of the day are wonderful.  But how quickly do we allow the story to be pushed aside by our hurry to get on to other things?  How often do we go back to living as if fear, guilt, and death are more powerful that the light and love of Easter morning?

The story of Jesus will continue.  Because he lives, we continue to be blessed by the grace that gives life.  Because he lives, we continue to be forgiven and made new.  Because he lives, we have the promise that he is with us always.  Because he lives, we are called to be about the work of his kingdom even now

How will you continue in the story of Easter?  Each of us has gifts and opportunities to share:

• To reach out to the lonely and the lost.
• To offer forgiveness and reconciliation
• To worship and invite others along
• To feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and work for justice
• To build up the body of Christ.

Blessings on your continuing journey in Christ’s resurrection!

 

Pastor John Twiton

When someone asks:  “How are things going at church?”, what kind of answer do we give?  At a recent pastors’ meeting a speaker asked about how we evaluate our ministry.  He said we often fall into the practice of counting “nickels and noses”.  That is, we spend a lot of time with the numbers of attendance and contributions, and too often we don’t ask the bigger question:  “Are we growing in faith, hope, and love?”

When our thinking becomes limited to ‘nickels and noses’, we risk becoming like the Pharisees that Jesus addressed in Matthew 23:23-24:   “‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. ²⁴You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!”

It’s not that we shouldn’t track numbers like attendance, and giving, but they do not give the final picture of faithfulness.  Even when things seem a little chaotic, and when there are questions all around about our direction, I am always impressed by the faithfulness, service, and hope shared in and through this place.

It has been amazing to see people step forward for the GIFT program, sharing talents and gifts to make things happen.  We will do well to use this opportunity to get to know more of our church family, focus our attention on ways to serve more effectively in our community and world, and set a course for the future ministry of our congregation.

But most of all, our ministry is to about growing in our relationship with our Lord Jesus.  Day after day we are given the opportunity to be witnesses to power of forgiveness, grace, and joy that Jesus brings, and to celebrate the victory of the resurrection whenever we gather in his name.

 

Peace,

Pastor John Twiton

During my years at First Lutheran in Pine River, MN, at the end of each choir practice, the group would join hands in a circle, and Marvin, a retired businessman from the Twin Cities, would always ask:  “Whose Father?,” and the group would respond “Our Father, who art in heaven……”

Throughout the upcoming Lenten season, we will focus on that very familiar prayer we know as “The Lord’s Prayer”.  We will take a petition each midweek worship and ponder what it is we are praying as those familiar words roll off our tongues.  Using Luther’s Small Catechism as a guide we will look anew at the breadth and depth of this prayer, and I encourage all of you to spend some time thinking about this prayer, and your prayer life in general.

The scene of the senior choir in Minnesota always reminds me that our Christian life is never something lived in isolation from others.  It is never only MY Father to whom I pray, but from the outset Jesus reminds us that while we belong to God, at the same time we belong to each other.

In a society where the individual seems to be the focus of so much attention, Jesus’ prayer begins with the bold statement of our relationship to each other in faith.  We print on our weekly bulletin this statement of faith:  “A family in faith, reaching out to share God’s love with all people.” As a family we must always look for ways to help one another, listen to one another, and work together to show Christ’s love.

Let’s use this Lenten season to focus our hearts and minds on this task, and take time to worship, pray, and reflect in the presence of  “OUR FATHER”

Peace,

Pastor John Twiton