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Dear Friends of our Lord Jesus at St.
Peter,
24 May
2013 – Commemoration of Nicolaus
Copernicus (+1543) & Leonhard Euler (+1783), teachers
Dear Friends of
Jesus our Christ and Lord,
Have you noticed that sometimes letters and articles “write themselves” … and
other times they are “born” against their will, reluctantly, almost kicking and
screaming?
This has been one of “those times” for me.
I join Martha in being “distracted” in her busy-ness, “distracted by her many
tasks” (Luke 10:40)?
We, too, are often “worried and distracted by many things” (Luke 10:41) as
was Martha. For me that includes Kathy’s health, the health of others in our
Congregation, Council and Congregational matters, cell phone problems and
decisions, a geriatric/dying dog, plans for the summer, decisions about our
house in Rogers City, summer schedule plans, ….
Writing, thinking, acting, LIVING are progressively harder amid turmoil and
uncertainty.
As graduations and as summer plans come to us, as summer heat and humidity
bring growth and lawn mowing, as our schedules shift to summer patterns, as we
deal with change and doctor appointments … Jesus reminds us of focus. He
reminded me this morning that “there is need of only one thing” (Luke 10:42). I
am not the “one thing,” and none of those actual concerns is the “one thing.”
Jesus calls us to focus on him, as Mary was doing (“Mary has chosen the
better part,” Luke 10:42).
That starts with the call to “Be still and know that I am God” (Ps 46:10) …
and I realize that I am NOT God. It moves through sitting at Jesus’ feet as Mary
did (Luke 10:39), while her frantic sister went wild striving to be a good host.
Our winter and spring patterns do change as May graduations and June
marriages and growth touch our lives. Rhythms of the seasons and rhythms of
others’ lives change our rhythms and our lives.
Amid those changes
and tensions and needs and conflicting demands and concerns, we
are called by God. We are called from distraction
and from craziness; we are called into life, and
health, and salvation … called into Christ Jesus.
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We are called into weekly rhythms, even during summer’s
changes. We are called into Sunday worship services, no matter
where we are and what we are doing. We are called into week-day
service and faithfulness, no matter where we are.
We are called into daily rhythms, even during the summer. We
are called back into our baptism daily, called into Scripture
daily, called into
prayer daily, called into faith and joy and hope and love and
community and action daily.
Amid this summer’s changes, we are called into newness in
Jesus, called into Nachfolge (following him), called into
loving one another as parts of the creation of the one triune
God.
We are part of God’s creation, God’s one creation. Loving the
other parts of that one creation by the one God comes hard for
us in our self-preoccupation, in our self-focus. We as church,
called to love as we are loved, keep wanting to say: “I’ll love
you IF ….”
With our eyes on Christ Jesus, “We love because he first
loved us” (1 John 4:19). There is no “if” in love. We love, not
as an option, not as a possibility, but as a way of life
integral to our identity and mission.
Our congregational mission statement is:
“Go And Share The Love of
Christ.”
At the end of the summer, our question to answer is: How did
I go and share the love of Christ? Another way to ask the same
question: How did I love as I am loved?
God bless you in your life in Christ as a day-by-day matter
this summer, as you live your faith.
God bless your Easter faith and Easter worship, fueled by the
Pentecost Spirit, and poured-out into the church and the world
as you bear the Good News of Jesus.
Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Waldemar Gies
St. Peter Lutheran Church
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