Postings from Pastor Brad

The Kind of Church We Hope to Be

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 19:00:00 +0000

Old Spokes

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:53:00 +0000

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Ministry Musings: Fired Up

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:55:00 +0000

This past week the adult education class on Sunday morning started to study the book of Acts. It is the story of what happened after Jesus ascended into Heaven and the Holy Spirit showed up in His place. It’s filled with some crazy stories. It is the story of the beginning of what we know as the church. It is filled with wild stories.

This past Sunday they started with Acts 2. If you haven’t read it lately I encourage you stop right here and read it, then come back. Am I wrong or is that wild, chaotic scene? There was a great wind, tongues of fire, preaching in all the languages of the world (by people who didn’t know those languages), and some 3,000 people were baptized. Think about for that many to be baptized there must have been friends baptizing each other, parents baptizing their kids… and that many people all in one place? This was not orderly. However, as I read it I sense and feel a great energy and enthusiasm present in that place.

Last year at this time we were wrapping up what many are calling an historic election. One of the things that carried the election was an enthusiasm that followed along with President Obama. Do you remember his mantra? (He recently brought it back in regards to health care.) He would get the crowds at his rallies chanting after him, “Fired Up! Ready to Go!” Can you imagine being in one of those stadiums with 17,000 people enthusiastically chanting that? You couldn’t help but leave there energized. It’s the kind of energy and enthusiasm that I could imagine being present on that Pentecost day in Acts 2.

What keeps us from that kind of enthusiasm when it comes to our faith? What would it take to get you/us “Fired Up! Ready to go!”? How might the world around us be different if we were so moved by the Holy Spirit that we could no longer contain ourselves?

Motivation

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:56:00 +0000

How might you see this playing out in your setting? In the church?

Ministry Musings: Stewardship

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:40:00 +0000

My son turns one year old today. It’s amazing how quickly a year can pass by. We are so excited by what a blessing he has been in our life. While he has learned a ton of stuff over this first year of life, one of the things we hope he will learn in this second year is sharing.

Isn’t sharing the essence of what we in the church call stewardship? It starts with the concept that in the beginning God created, therefore all belongs to God. We have been entrusted, then, as caretakers of all of God’s creation from the plants and animals to the gifts and talents we have been given to work and serve others. So in a very simple sense stewardship is about how we share these wonderful gifts given to us by God.

One of the neat biblical concepts that you will hear us talk about from time to time around the church is first fruits giving. It’s the concept that you give your best to God. Farmers will often tell you that the first cut of hay is the best cut of the season. Hunters will tell you that the young animals provide you the best meat. That is first fruits giving, giving that first cut of hay that first born (the young one) to God. First fruit giving is the notion that if you are willing to share with God your very best then you are willing to share everything… and why not if it all comes from God in the first place?

How do you plan to share what God has given you? What are you doing to care the earth? How are you being wise about sharing your finances? How might you share your gifts for listening, building, etc. for the betterment of God’s children?

Ministry Musings: Size Matters (2)

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:18:00 +0000

It’s funny how when you’re in the church business you so often here things about how numbers don’t mean much, but one of the first questions pastors like to ask each other is how big is your church? How many do you worship? I want to agree that size doesn’t matter, but I’m afraid that on a certain level it kind of does.

Membership size probably doesn’t mean a whole lot since different congregations count membership in many different ways. A more accurate comparison perhaps is worship attendance because that gives an indication of how many are actively involved on a weekly basis. Still, how much does that mean? If you live in a growing suburb like Cottage Grove you have more people to draw from than an unincorporated town like Rome. At the same time worship attendance speaks perhaps to the width but not so much to the depth of the ministry.

Where I think size does matter is in measuring growth. A church is an organization, which comes from the same root word as organism. The church is a living community. That, to me, means that if you are not growing you are dying. Jesus came so that we might have life and have it abundantly. Therefore we need to be looking for signs of life: Growth in the number of people participating in worship and other ministries of the church; Growth in the depth of faith through prayer, Bible study, and service to others; Growth in the number of people empowered to take on ministry leadership; or Growth in excitement for sharing the Good News of Jesus among signs. Of course, none of these are easily measured, but I suspect you recognize these signs of life in a congregation when you see them.

Where do you see our congregation growing? Where do you see signs of life? How are you contributing to the life and growth of the kingdom of God?

Mark 6, Evangelism, and Play

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Looking at Sunday's gospel reading from Mark 6, I see a call to evangelism. Using Jesus' sending the disciples as a model for evangelism you might simplify it to say, "Go with a friend and make a friend." It then seems to me we most often make friends through play (whatever form that might be).... which connects to something I read more recently about "seeker" services. How often are people really "seeking" Jesus intentionally? However, we know we have a savior who intentionally seeks us. Perhaps our roll then is to play. When we play we are much more likely to invite people to come and play with us. (As a kid did you ever knock on the neighbors door and ask them to come out and work? You did ask them to come out and play.)

Ministry Musings: Size Matters

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:29:00 +0000

One of the reasons I love being Lutheran is our embrace of the priesthood of all believers, that notion that all of us are called to minister to our neighbor. In the church, ministry isn’t just done by the paid professionals (i.e. the pastor), but by all of us. Unfortunately, over time the church has abdicated the responsibility for ministry to the pastor, and in some occasions to lay staff. We see this especially when a congregation grows.

Experts who study how congregations function tell us that worshipping size of a congregation dramatically effects how a congregation needs to function. One of those dividing points comes around 150 people in worship, right about what we are averaging. Generally speaking the biggest changes as a worshipping community becomes a large congregation are the addition of staff to keep up with the changes and the shift in the pastors responsibilities to be more administrative.

What this means is that as a congregation grows a pastor will spend more time training and supervising ministry and less time doing hands on ministry. You can imagine the objections that arise as this happens (i.e. less personal time with the pastor, etc.). You may have raised them yourself. This can certainly be the downside of growth.

On the other hand this can be a real blessing that comes out of growth. To keep ministry happening more people are forced to get involved leading ministry that they were called to because they can no longer sit on the sidelines and wait for “pastor” to do it.

As we strive to grow as a worshiping community of Christ where are you getting involved with your call to ministry?

Don't Eat the Marshmellow

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 18:03:00 +0000

Where do you need to work on delaying gratification? Where have seeds been planted and you need to wait for God to grow the seeds yet for the harvest?

Changing the Conversation

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 20:04:00 +0000

At a recent church council meetings we've been talking about changing the entire culture of our congregation. We need to work on developing an atmosphere where we all realize that we live out our faith on a daily basis and don't just turn it over to the pastor and a few, select church leaders. We need to work on creating a climate where people are excited about their faith and willing to talk about it.

During one of these conversations I floated the idea of approaching conversations with friends just slightly. Instead of asking people how their week was why not ask something like, "Where was God at work in your life this week?" Instead of asking what they have coming up this week why not ask something like, "How can I be praying for you this week?" I wonder what difference it might make if we all starting asking such questions. It seems to me, by shifting the focus of the question we are reminded of the presence of God in our daily life and it can serve as a reminder of faith being lived out on a daily basis and not just on Sunday. Perhaps we should try and experiment.

Line of Vision

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 07:58:00 +0000

Those of you who have been around me recently know that I think my son is the most amazing child ever. However, from time to time I find myself wishing he would look up at me more. It seems looking down is a lot more exciting. I think it's because he can see himself, see what he's propped up on, and far more likely to find something he can grab and shove in his mouth. I think it's interesting that this is our natural instinct (including shoving our foot in our mouth) for most of us as babies.

As we were sitting out on the grass the other day and I was trying to get his attention it struck me that spiritually we are often the same way. We focus down on ourselves, where we are at or where we have been, and looking around for things we can get our hands on. Meanwhile we could change our line of vision and look up into the face of our heavenly father. I wonder why we don't do that more? I think I need to remember to give that a try.

Worship Attendance

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 16:27:00 +0000

We recently got to talking about worship attendance around here. It was noted that part of the struggle is that we lead such terribly busy lives that we desire down time. Often, that means in the summer we sleep in or spend time away at the cabin. I think I can totally understand that.

However, I think I have a slightly different perspective. First of all, I wonder why worship can't be that time of recharge for people who live these busy lives? Isn't there something about standing in the presence of God that fills one with life? Secondly, and related to that I think, is something that developed for me in college. I was fortunate to go to a school where we had daily chapel. I was there just about every day. From what I can remember the preaching wasn't always top of the line. It never really is, is it? Yet on those days when the sermon wasn't perhaps as inspiring as others I didn't view it as a waste of time. At the very least I got to pause in my day read the Bible, focus on the cross, and join together in prayer. On a weekly basis here we also add the Lord's Supper. So on those weeks when the sermons don't inspire or the hymns don't soar, there are still plenty of good reasons to be in worship.

Giving

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 18:47:00 +0000

The other night we were watching a rerun of "Friends" and there was an interesting debate that arose. Joey suggested that there was no truly selfless good deed, only selfish. Phoebe spent the episode trying to prove him wrong by attempting to do something completely selfless. The defining argument was that when you do a good deed you feel good about yourself having done it and therefore it is not selfless, but selfish.

Now, I don't totally agree with that argument, but it is interesting to note how self-centered we tend to be in our giving. How quick are we to get receipts for our donations so we can write them off on our taxes? It is incredible to watch how important it is for families to have memorial moneys go to something specific that can have the family name on it. What ever happened to giving it to the church and allowing the leadership to decide how to best use the money to make ministry happen?

The problem develops, then, that our memories get tied up in the stuff. You see it on the organization shows on HGTV, TLC, etc. You see it in the church when it comes time to make changes to the physical space and it effects the light, window, or other item given in memory of Grandma Myrtle. Which brings it back to being about what the individual wants for what they gave...a self-centered act.

I wonder how we got this way?

Ministry Musings: Hospitality

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:57:00 +0000

When was the last time you were new somewhere? What sort of things did you look for? What kind of things were you wondering about? How quickly, and easily, your concerns and questions were addressed went a long ways in determining their hospitality, which probably went a long way in determining whether or not you returned.

We have talked about a desire to grow here at St. Luke's Lutheran Church, which means we are going to hopefully have people visiting for the first time and they will be asking questions on their way here, and as they enter. How easily they find answers will go a long way for them feeling welcome and wanting to return.
I know when I am going places I’m wondering things like: Where am I going to park? Where am I supposed go in? Can I find the bathrooms easily if the need should arise? Will I be warmly welcomed? Will I be able to follow along? How will I know what to do so I can blend in? What are the unspoken rules? Will there be a place for me to take my child to quiet him down or change a diaper?

How are we doing with out hospitality at St. Luke’s? If you are a visitor coming for the first time, showing up as worship is about to start, is there a clear place to park? Is there clear signage as to where to enter and where to find things around the facility? What are our unspoken rules about where people sit, how we take communion, how we interact, etc? How many people introduce themselves to new faces and how many speak only to family and friends? Is there something we could be offering first time visitors, like a gift or a cup of coffee?

Over the course of the summer I encourage you to invite a friend or family member to come as a “spy” and see how we are doing with hospitality. I also invite you to attend a different congregation (perhaps when you’re away on vacation) and make note of what that experience is like as a visitor, making note of things we can do to help welcome the stranger (something Jesus encouraged us to do by the way). It’s amazing how far a little old fashioned hospitality will go.

Who Is Obama

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 21 May 2009 04:01:00 +0000

This is for a friend, I think he knows who he is...

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Believing

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:29:00 +0000

Yesterday in the sermon I talked about how Jesus saying to Thomas, "Have you believed because you have seen? Blessed are those who have not seen yet believe" begs the question of us today, "What do you believe?" The reading from Acts then also begged the follow-up question of "What difference does it (what you believe) make in your life?"

Now that you've had some time for it to settle in a little, what is it that you believe? What difference does it make in your life? Where do you see your faith lived out in your day to day life? I would to hear some of your thoughts and stories, so please post a comment and we'll see where the discussion might lead.

Sunday's Comin'

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:03:00 +0000

Some people struggle with calling today "Good Friday" because they want to know what's so good about it? This is a sad day, or sad week, in the church year. I am tempted to say that it's not so much sad as serious, but that's probably a subtle difference that doesn't matter much. However, in regards to what is so "good" about this Friday let me offer the following video clip.

Maundy Thursday

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:12:00 +0000

So the word "Maundy" gives us the word, "Mandate" and so today we celebrate this new mandate that Jesus gave us at the Last Supper. This "new" mandate? To love one another. Is that really all so "new?" I am no Biblical expert, but I recall something in Deuteronomy saying, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind and love your neighbor as yourself." If you ask me, that sounds awful similar, and not exactly "new."

On that same night, Jesus removed his outer robe and got down and washed the feet of the disciples, a humble act of service one would not expect from the Son of God. Only a few short (or long, I suppose depending on your perspective) Jesus was suffering on the cross on our behalf a selfless act of love like no other. If this is the level of love that Jesus was referring to, and I believe He was, then maybe it is a "new" mandate after all.

How will you be celebrating this new mandate, Maundy Thursday, today?

The Gift of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:28:00 +0000

Here is a video I came across encouraging our worship to be "genuine," that it be about the object of our worship and not about us. I like the line at the end that invites us to come and gaze and the cross.

I like the sentiment of the clip, but not so much the music included. I found another version here with music I prefer, if you would rather, but I don't know how to embed it in this blog.

Communion Follow-Up

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 18:47:00 +0000

Here is an excellent reminder of the context in which Paul shared the words of institution in his letter to the Corinthians.

Communion

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:22:00 +0000

On Thursday our readings will lead us back to the night in which Jesus was betrayed and shared, for the first time, what we no know as communion. So this morning I've been thinking about communion. I wonder if we as a church have soiled the practice through our traditions that attempt to keep "good order?" I find it interesting that over the years, because we hold communion in such high estate, we have decided that we need to put stipulations on who is allowed to participate and who is not. The chief deciding factor seems to be a clear understanding. That's why in some denominations you need to be a member of that church or in other denominations you need to be of a certain age so you can take the class to be allowed to participate.

I am sure there is good reason for this, but I also find it somewhat comical. For one, a big dividing point that has created a variety of different denominations is disagreement over the what communion means and what is really happening. When we gather around the table is it just a symbolic act? Is Jesus somehow "magically" appear in the bread and the wine? These are some serious differences, but also differences that brilliant church leaders and theologians have been unable to agree upon. How then can we require people to understand what is happening in communion if we don't even know? Does that mean none of us are eligible until we're dead and can ask God?

I also wonder about this need to understand to participate when I think of the disciples on that night. Do you suppose it all made sense to everyone of them in the moment? I imagine there was a lot more confusion than there was understanding. I can only imagine that as they were out in the garden waiting upon Jesus as he went off and prayed that there were a few whispered, "What the f*@# just happened in there?" between disciples. What makes us think we can understand it all?

Then there is this whole deciding who gets to participate and who doesn't business. How did we become so arrogant? I don't recall Jesus stipulating who was participating nor specific people that He died for in lieu of others. The words I speak each week are, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin." Who, then, are we as a church to limit how "all people" should include?

It just kind of makes me wonder.

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noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 13:41:00 +0000

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Ministry Musing: The Cost

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 13:43:00 +0000

Have you ever heard the expression, “You’re going to have to pay for it one way or another?” It holds true for most of life, even ministry. As we talk about our hopes and dreams for ministry we need to keep in mind the other part of that expression, “Nothing in life is free.” Generally speaking, I believe we have to pay for ministry in one of three ways.

The first way we pay for ministry is the obvious money. We need to pay for staff, both those leading the program and the ones supporting the program. Depending on the ministry we may need to pay for supplies and/or space to carry out the ministry. We will need to pay for them either through the church budget or generous donations, either way they will need to be paid for, which leads us to…

The second way we pay for ministry is through our time. If we don’t pay to hire a youth minister then we need people to volunteer their time to lead the youth. If we don’t hire a children’s minister to work with our youngest of children then we need people to volunteer their time to teach the children. Even when we add paid staff to run programs we need to people to volunteer and work with people. We all have our limits of the number of people we connect with and as the ol’ saying goes, “Jesus had a youth group of twelve and apparently that was one too many.” The paid ministry, then, largely becomes the resident expert who can help the volunteers stay up with the latest, most effective ways of doing ministry in their specific areas.

The final way we pay for ministry is the one we pray we might never have to use, it just simply doesn’t happen. If we desire to send a group on a mission trip and we don’t pay for a leader through one of the first two ways then it won’t happen and we pay by not having that experience. If we want to see our youth ministry grow and we don’t hire a youth minister and nobody comes forward to lead then we pay price of not nurturing the faith of our youth.

The choice, really, is ours to make. We want ministry to happen. We want ministry to grow. How will we choose to pay for it?

Quick Update

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 18:41:00 +0000

OK, so I haven't died or anything, I've just gotten swept up in the chaos of Lent. For the sake of my sanity I need to return to a regular practice of updating this Blog. I don't know what others think, but for my sake and for the sake of clearing my head I need to spend a little more time here each day. So I hope, in the days and weeks ahead to be more regular once again with my updates... and hopefully that will make everyone happy.

Natural Highs

noreply@blogger.com (pb) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 01:55:00 +0000

I got the following e-mail listing natural highs. I thought there were some good ones. What are your favorites? What might you add to the list?

1. Falling in love.

2. Laughing so hard your face hurts.

3. A hot shower.

4. No lines at the supermarket.

5. A special glance.

6. Getting mail.

7. Taking a drive on a pretty road.

8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio.

9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside.

10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.

11. Chocolate milkshake (vanilla or strawberry).

12. A bubble bath.

13. Giggling.

15. The beach.

16. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.

17. Laughing at yourself.

18. Looking into their eyes and knowing they Love you

19. Midnight phone calls that last for hours.

20. Running through sprinklers.

21. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.

22. Having someone tell you that you're beautiful.

23. Laughing at an inside joke with FRIENDS

24. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.

25. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.

26. Your first kiss (either the very first or with a new partner).

27. Making new friends or spending time with old ones.

28. Playing with a new puppy.

29. Having someone play with your hair.

30. Sweet dreams.

31. Hot chocolate.

32. Road trips with friends.

33. Swinging on swings.

34. Making eye contact with a cute stranger.

35. Making chocolate chip cookies

36. Having your friends send you homemade cookies.

37. Holding hands with someone you care about.

38. Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change.

39. Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you.

40. Watching the sunrise.

41.. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day.

42. Knowing that somebody misses you.

43. Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply.

44. Knowing you ' ve done the right thing, no matter what other people think.