December 19, 2024 – Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age

“When he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. So many gathered around that there was no longer room for them, not even in front of the door, and he was speaking the word to them. Then some people came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. And when they could not bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and after having dug through it, they let down the mat on which the paralytic lay. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” Mark 2:1-5

“It’s rather a book about the profoundly human need to believe that we live and move and have our being in the presence of God—not just the idea of God, but the God who is as near to us as the air we breathe, the light we see, and the solid ground on which we walk.” (Dreher, Rod. Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age (p. 7). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)

We struggle so much to get people to come to church anymore. We try so hard. We develop programs to get people to see how welcoming we are. We paint the outside of our buildings to make them look nicer. We put cute signs with cute sayings outside our buildings hoping people will come to their “Ch_ _Ch – because what is missing is “U R.” And yet people do not come. The statistics in the Lower Susquehanna Synod are not encouraging. We have many churches that cannot afford to call a full-time pastor. They struggle along with part-time ministry – spend what little money they have on dwindling ministries that are left-over attempts from the 20^th century to “build community”. And yet they lose another member every time someone dies. The unspoken truth is this: each death brings them closer to the death of their church. And yet they pray and pray and pray – but Jesus has not visited their church for many years.

Harsh words. Perhaps we need to speak harsh truths if we are to understand that building community requires extraordinary efforts to build relationships with people who are hurting, hungry, and in need of hope. We sit back and invite, and invite, and invite – all the while making no attempt to “rip off the roof of the church” (if that is what it will take) to build relationships with people who are hurting, hungry and in need of Jesus. If we believe that Jesus is as close as the air we breathe, if we believe that Jesus is with us in mysterious, beautiful, and profoundly awe-inspiring wonders, then we need to worship and live in ways that proclaim this reality. If we limit our worship and religion to simple moral laws established to keep people in line, we are doing nothing more than sucking the oxygen out of the enchanted world and experience Jesus’ disciples and followers experienced. 

In the season of Advent, we proclaim G-d as Emmanuel, G-d with us. He came in a mysterious, enchanted and profoundly awesome birth – shared his spirit as he defeated demons, and discarnate beings — and ascended to heaven in a manner reminiscent of Elijah and his fiery chariot. How can you and I  continue to live and proclaim this mystery to the world?  

Pastor Dave

December 18, 2024 – Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age

“Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:13–17

“Stunned by what I’d heard, I told him that I had just completed a life-changing week of miracle and wonder in Jerusalem, and that it had come to me as a gift of light and balm, just as my life had taken a dramatic, painful turn after my wife filed for divorce. Ian nodded. He got it. That’s what Jerusalem, one of the thin places of the world, where the veil between the seen and the unseen is porous, does to you. “The first thing you feel when you get here is separation,” he says. “The things that separate us from our Creator, in Jesus, are the attachments we hold to the world. I was born in London, and coming out of London, everything is so worldly. Even if you’re born again, and you’ve given your life to Yeshua Jesus, there’s still that struggle with the things of the world pulling you back to it.” (Dreher, Rod. Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age (p. 6). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)

What are the attachments of this world you would like to be released from? What holds you back in trying to clean your basement, or attic, or garage? What are the relics of your life? The things of this world that keep pulling us back – the material things that possess us – these are the things that weigh us down and hold us back – from many things. My father-in-law was a museum curator. He liked to “collect” lots of things. Much of what he collected was very valuable. And he found hiding places all throughout the house to squirrel the stuff away. He didn’t take it out to look at it. He didn’t display even five percent of his collection. But my father-in-law also had just as much stuff that was not worth a dime. And yet his home was piled high with so many relics. And he was not going to let go of any of it until he passed away.

Jesus came into this world to free us from so much – especially the things that separate us from G-d. The demons and the entities that come through the material world that cloud our thinking and make us hold onto “empty stuff” tighter and tighter are what separate us from our relationship with Jesus – or I should say a fuller relationship with Jesus.

Every once in a while we need someone to help us remove or let go of the relics of our lives. We need to give the expendable stuff to the local “resale” places, and make space for Jesus in our lives and our homes. When we free ourselves from the junk of this world we might just feel like Jesus coming out of the Jordan – renewed, reborn, and loved.

Pastor Dave