Well I tell you what, I have not had the greatest weekend, so you might say that 2011 is leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth. But to try and sum up the whole year in terms of it ending badly would not particularly be honest. In fact, 2011 is like most years, I suspect. There have been challenges, ups and downs, blessings, and difficulties, things to rejoice about, and things to mourn.
In 2011 our seminary class from Concordia, St. Louis celebrated 10 years in the ministry. We also lost several of our colleageus-who are now with our Lord enjoying eternal life with Christ. In my own ministry-the Lord has blessed us this year with a DCE intern. This was my first venture into being an internship supervisor. It has been both challenging and rewarding--not to mention a huge blessing for our youth at Peace Lutheran. Ministry continues to be challenging and rewarding as well--though I can't think of another thing that I would want to do. I certainly do enjoy being a pastor, even at the most difficult and frustrating times. Because in the end, I get to feed people with God's Word, and help them to get to know Christ Jesus and the love that God has for them.
This year also saw the death of my grandmother--Ruth Joost. She had been battling Alzheimer's disease for a very long time. We were saddened by her death, but know that she is no longer suffering, and is with our Lord. It was also good to get to see everyone again, even if for such a short time, and at a funeral. I am very thankful for my church family at Peace, who made the trip home possible.
In happier news, 2011 was the year that my wife Amy and I were finally both able to go to Disney World. But we were both mostly thankful that we were able to take our children there to experience it in their youth. Though I have to say, I felt like a kid again a few times while we were there. There are so many people to thank for us being able to have such a great experience and wonderful vacation, that I would probably leave too many people out if I made a list--so I will thank EVERYONE who helped us have an awesome vacation, but especially Jenna Nagel and the Nagel family.
The very end of this year has not been the greatest, as I already mentioned. I won't go into detail, but I will just say that dispite the difficulties, I recognize that God will be using these things for the good of His purposes--though we might not always know what those might be, especially not right away.
All in all, I guess 2011 wasn't so bad. As I mentioned, it is probably like most years with lots of ups and downs. I certainly have learned a lot this past year from both good and bad experiences. I hope that you have to. And I will take with me what I have learned into this new year. I praise God for all of the expereinces that He has given me, and I look foreward to what 2012 will bring.
God's continued blessings to you all in 2012. Happy New Year everyody, and thanks for reading!
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
And it came to pass....
Luke 2:1-20
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. [2] (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) [3] And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. [4] And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) [5] To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. [6] And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. [7] And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. [8] And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. [9] And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. [10] And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. [11] For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. [12] And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. [13] And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, [14] Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. [15] And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. [16] And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. [17] And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. [18] And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. [19] But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. [20] And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
I have preached many a sermon in the last 10 years on this text. There is a whole lot to preach on in it. You can approach this text from many different angles. Good thing too. It can be difficult to give a fresh new message each year when you are telling the same story basically. But the thing about the birth of Christ is that it never gets old.
I would have to say that my favorite angle to take is probably that of the shepherds. Here they are, minding their own business, watching their sheep at night, and all of a sudden their whole world is changed in an instant. They have no idea what is in store for them that night as they lay on the ground trying to catch a few z's.
Just a few lowly unsuspecting guys tending some smelly, dirty sheep in a field outside of Bethlehem. And what to thier wandering eyes should appear? No, not jolly old Saint Nick and 8 reindeer. But an angel. Actually The Angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord showed around them.
And thier reaction? A typical reaction to angels....they were filled with great fear. But also typical of angel sightings in the Bible--they are bringing Good News! And that good news of great joy was for all people. And the angel said that "Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord."
And these shepherds who were filled with fear just a moment before, were now filled with joy and excitement at the news. And then at that moment a multitude of angels appeared praising God in the crisp night sky. Can you imagine?
And the response of the shepherds was to stay frozen in fear right there in their tracks in that field....NO! Their response was "Let us go and see this thing which HAS HAPPENED." It's important to note that they believed what the angels told them, and did not say "to see IF this thing has happened."
And they went to see this Christ child and worshiped him. "Come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ the newborn King!" And then they left, and WITNESSED to everyone they saw about what had been told to them.
We have the same opportunity as the shepherds you know! I think that's what draws me to the shepherds in this story. We are not unlike them. We are told about Christ. We have the opportunity to GO and experience Him and celebrate His birth. And we have the opportunity to worship Christ and to tell others about the salvation that the Lord sent down to us in human flesh.
I pray that you would find a place tonight or tomorrow to go and worship the Savior who is Christ the Lord, born to save us from our sin. Celebrate the gift that God has given to you in His only Son Jesus! And the peace of Christ be with you all!
Thank you for reading and God bless us every one!
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. [2] (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) [3] And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. [4] And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) [5] To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. [6] And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. [7] And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. [8] And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. [9] And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. [10] And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. [11] For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. [12] And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. [13] And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, [14] Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. [15] And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. [16] And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. [17] And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. [18] And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. [19] But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. [20] And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
I have preached many a sermon in the last 10 years on this text. There is a whole lot to preach on in it. You can approach this text from many different angles. Good thing too. It can be difficult to give a fresh new message each year when you are telling the same story basically. But the thing about the birth of Christ is that it never gets old.
I would have to say that my favorite angle to take is probably that of the shepherds. Here they are, minding their own business, watching their sheep at night, and all of a sudden their whole world is changed in an instant. They have no idea what is in store for them that night as they lay on the ground trying to catch a few z's.
Just a few lowly unsuspecting guys tending some smelly, dirty sheep in a field outside of Bethlehem. And what to thier wandering eyes should appear? No, not jolly old Saint Nick and 8 reindeer. But an angel. Actually The Angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord showed around them.
And thier reaction? A typical reaction to angels....they were filled with great fear. But also typical of angel sightings in the Bible--they are bringing Good News! And that good news of great joy was for all people. And the angel said that "Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord."
And these shepherds who were filled with fear just a moment before, were now filled with joy and excitement at the news. And then at that moment a multitude of angels appeared praising God in the crisp night sky. Can you imagine?
And the response of the shepherds was to stay frozen in fear right there in their tracks in that field....NO! Their response was "Let us go and see this thing which HAS HAPPENED." It's important to note that they believed what the angels told them, and did not say "to see IF this thing has happened."
And they went to see this Christ child and worshiped him. "Come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ the newborn King!" And then they left, and WITNESSED to everyone they saw about what had been told to them.
We have the same opportunity as the shepherds you know! I think that's what draws me to the shepherds in this story. We are not unlike them. We are told about Christ. We have the opportunity to GO and experience Him and celebrate His birth. And we have the opportunity to worship Christ and to tell others about the salvation that the Lord sent down to us in human flesh.
I pray that you would find a place tonight or tomorrow to go and worship the Savior who is Christ the Lord, born to save us from our sin. Celebrate the gift that God has given to you in His only Son Jesus! And the peace of Christ be with you all!
Thank you for reading and God bless us every one!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
With God All Things Are Possible
It never fails....more often than not, God does some excellent planning and things just seem to all come together at the same time, without my even planning on it. Well, it has happened again this week. Tomorrow, I have my Thursday morning Bible Study, in which we are studying Genesis. We are on chapter 18, in which 3 "visitors" come to spend some time with Abraham and Sarah. The purpose is for an announcement [annunciation] that Sarah will have a son. The story contiues with Sarah laughing (again) at this prospect, because "After I am worn out and my lord is old shall I have pleasure?" And the answer from the Lord: "IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?"
Take that together with the fact that I am holding chapel for our preschoolers tomorrow, and what should we be learning about but Luke 1:26-38. That's right! The ANNUNCIATION of Jesus' birth to Mary from the angel Gabriel. Though she did not laugh, Mary's reaction was one of shock and awe, and doubt: "How will this be, since I am a Virgin?" And Gabriel's answer to Mary was: "FOR NOTHING WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD!"
We sometimes place limitations on God based on our own abilities, nature, logic or any other human estimations we may use. Like Sarah and Mary, and anyone else for that matter, we tend to have momentary lapses where we forget that God is ALMIGHTY, and what that actually means. It means that God has the power to do what He says....the power to keep His promises.
During this season of Advent [of preparation and waiting] let us be mindful of all the promises that He has kept (and not just to Sarah and Mary)--but to us all. Especially let us remember that He promised a Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord; who has promised to return in glory to judge the living and the dead. May we trust in those words that "Nothing will be impossible with God," as we await His return in faith, hope, and love.
Thank you for reading, and God bless your Advent and Christmas season!
Take that together with the fact that I am holding chapel for our preschoolers tomorrow, and what should we be learning about but Luke 1:26-38. That's right! The ANNUNCIATION of Jesus' birth to Mary from the angel Gabriel. Though she did not laugh, Mary's reaction was one of shock and awe, and doubt: "How will this be, since I am a Virgin?" And Gabriel's answer to Mary was: "FOR NOTHING WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD!"
We sometimes place limitations on God based on our own abilities, nature, logic or any other human estimations we may use. Like Sarah and Mary, and anyone else for that matter, we tend to have momentary lapses where we forget that God is ALMIGHTY, and what that actually means. It means that God has the power to do what He says....the power to keep His promises.
During this season of Advent [of preparation and waiting] let us be mindful of all the promises that He has kept (and not just to Sarah and Mary)--but to us all. Especially let us remember that He promised a Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord; who has promised to return in glory to judge the living and the dead. May we trust in those words that "Nothing will be impossible with God," as we await His return in faith, hope, and love.
Thank you for reading, and God bless your Advent and Christmas season!
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