March 2, 2022 – Ash Wednesday

“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. “So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:1–6, 16–21

Let’s do a small exercise.  I want you to take out a piece of paper and a pencil or pen. On that sheet of paper, I want you to write down all of the things that you hear, all of the noises, all of the sounds that you hear in the next minute. Get ready……..go.

How many do you have?  I bet you have a few things…and that is just sitting wherever you are, on a week day or night, before or after dark. Think about the distractions that we all face throughout our days – and our lives. There are so many noises in our lives. We must fight against the distractions, the weariness, apathy, anxiety, or other temptations that would lead us away from our chances to listen to G-d – to experience the presence of the Spirit in our daily lives.

As adults we hear on average about 20,000 messages a day. How can we fight against these nosies, these distractions, these things that interfere with our relationship with G-d?  On our own, it will be a challenge, but remember, with G-d, anything is possible.

Martin Luther stressed justification by faith through G-d’s grace – it is the center-piece of our Lutheran understanding of salvation. It is by faith that we are justified, made right with G-d – it is not by our works. But this word justification has another connotation – it also means to grow closer to something. When we want to move our words on a page closer to one side or the other, we make sure that it is either right or left justified. Paul also used the word faith interchangeably with the word listen. In other words, “Justification by Faith” can also mean that we draw closer to G-d by listening to G-d – listening with our full attention. 

And so we begin this season of Lent by returning to G-d’s word, by remembering our baptisms as we trace an ashen cross in the very spot where we were marked and sealed with the cross of Christ on our first day as G-d’s holy children, and by making a decision these next forty days to be more attentive to hearing G-d’s voice in our daily lives. 

But first, we are reminded that we are dust, and that one day we will return to dust again – and will be in the presence of G-d.  So we are dead, but yet, even more alive in Christ. This is the great mystery of our faith. We die with Christ on that cross, yet through that death we have life. The cross seems to be a crushing defeat, yet it is the symbol of victory now held high for all to see.  And for this cross, ashen now on our foreheads, permanently marked on our hearts, can we not find twenty minutes of each day to pray – and to listen? It is like any discipline, like any habit, the more intentional we are, the easier it will become.

Let me leave you with these words, from a hymn found in the With One Voice Hymnal, number 712:

“Listen, Listen God is calling, through the word inviting, offering forgiveness, comfort and joy.”

Pastor Dave

March 1, 2022 – “Stress”

In my efforts to try to come up with topics for devotions that not only are interesting to read, but might challenge us in our daily conversations, I am going to take the next few weeks to address division — and perhaps find some talking points that might make us all stop and pause – before shouting back “You Millennials, get off my lawn.”

“Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’” He looked all around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” Mark 5:25-34

We are talking about the phrase “OK, Boomer”, and digging deeper into the reasons for why people from different generations do not always agree with one another. And, we are asking the question: “Why do people resist change?” Well, here is the second of four possible reasons:

2. People feel overwhelmed or stressed during times of change, and many often feel overwhelmed and stressed every day.

Fatigue can be a killjoy for change. Fatigue and stress can be a serious health concern. But, what is fatigue? We can experience fatigue in three different dimensions: mental fatigue, physical fatigue, and emotional fatigue. Mental fatigue is what we feel after exerting ourselves cognitively, using our brains to solve tasks. We can experience mental fatigue doing simple, repetitive tasks, or more complex tasks like writing a paper or completing an exam. We often experience physical fatigue doing tasks that really tire us out, like running a marathon, or doing heavy labor. Physical fatigue comes from the depletion of stored energy to power our limbs. Emotional exhaustion is perhaps most difficult to define because it often affects us physically and mentally as well. It is the fatigue that stems from stress as well as social demands, like when you have to smile even though you are not happy. When we gather together as the people of G-d, or even in a business meeting, we may be a gathering of people who are fatigued and stressed just from life. This can be one of the reasons people may resist change — simply because they’re tired. And when people are tired, they tend to be cranky, angry, and irritable (though this never happens in the church, right?). When this is the case, leaders have to be understanding of people’s complaints and attentive to their stress levels throughout the change process. And when we can move the reasoning for change away from the part of the brain that deals with emotion, and confront it with facts and reasoning, then we may find people will be more accepting of change.

The woman with the bleeding disorder was tired and at her wits end. She was desperate for change – and in particular a change in her luck and in her health. She was physically fatigued for she had suffered for so many years. She was mentally fatigued because she had worked through all the people she thought might help her, and she was still sick. And she was emotionally fatigued because she was at her wits end. And so she turned to Jesus. She had heard of his ability to change people’s lives, and she figured she had nothing to lose. We shouldn’t wait until we are so mentally, physically, or emotionally fatigued that we turn to Jesus out of desperation. Instead, like the woman who heard about Jesus, we should take the time now to investigate his love, mercy and grace – and we shouldn’t let anything stand in our way. Jesus is waiting for us to finally decide we do not need to face this life alone. And when we go to Jesus in faith, he too will say to us “Your faith has saved you, and will make the difference in this life, and in the age to come.”

Let us Pray,

Lord Jesus, you are the calm that seeks to relieve our stress. You are the balm that seeks to bring new life to our fatigue. Continue to send your spirit to each one of us to help grow our faith. Amen.

Pastor Dave