Traveling the Way of Jesus: A Publicly Engaged Church

Lutherans profess that we are a publicly engaged church. A gathering of God’s people joined to Christ in the waters of Holy Baptism. A people empowered with the gift of the Holy Spirit. A true ecclesia – an assembly of “called out ones” equipped and sent to do God’s work in the world. Ours is an active, participatory, relational, and lived faith.

Guided by scripture, we pursue justice and seek peace no matter how long the journey or wide the chasm. Because we are grounded in God’s love and forgiveness, we are freed in Christ to live and serve here and now, in the world, with all its complexities, tensions and ambiguities.

We do so confident in the knowledge that God is with us. There is no aspect of life in which God is not active, no place where God is not present. And this is exactly where we are called to participate in God’s work — in the messiness of everyday life, embracing individuals, families and communities that are hungry for hope and healing, justice and peace, advocates and partners.

Our Christian faith and our call to boldly serve and love our neighbor take us into some interesting and challenging aspects of life: advocacy, corporate social responsibility, racial justice, science and ethics, peacemaking, justice for women, social issues, and community organizing. We are drawn into every corner of life, society and its institutions to bring the good news of Jesus Christ and to work for lasting, positive change that upholds the dignity of all people.

All of us, whatever our current situation, have an important role in God’s work in the world. May the year 2021 challenge each and every one of us to take seriously the invitation that Jesus extends to disciples of every time and place; the invitation to “Come and follow me.” Traveling the way of Jesus is not for the faint of heart or the timid. Many of us know this reality all too well. But, then again, Christian discipleship is not, and has never been, a spectator sport. May we faithfully journey together the pilgrim path that generations before us have trod trusting the promise that the One who invites us also journeys with us every step of the way.

This reflection was inspired by the faith statement found at Publicly Engaged Church – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (elca.org).

Walking in Darkness

The people walking in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
    a light has dawned. ~ Isaiah 9:2

On Christmas Eve we will begin our Service of the Word with a pronouncement from the prophet Isaiah proclaiming the good news of the righteous reign of the coming king; a child who has been born for us, the “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

It’s a promise of hope that so many of us long to hear this year as we continue to be the church together in the midst of a global pandemic. The darkness of this past year has pushed many of us to the breaking point. Physical distancing mandates, the abrupt disruption of our social networks, and suspension of in-person worship services has challenged many of us to trust that our God, Emmanuel, with us IS!

In the midst of everything that has happened we pray for the strength to trust that God is at work in our world, in our congregations, and in our lives. The darkness and doom of the world cannot, will not, diminish or extinguish the glory of the Lord that comes to us this Christmas.

This is the message of Epiphany; the glory of God revealed in the person of Jesus Christ proclaimed for all nations and people. Like the light of the star that hovered over Bethlehem to guide the magi to the infant Messiah, the light of Christ illuminates the darkened spaces of our lives and our world; even in the midst of an ongoing pandemic, economic uncertainty, and death. And because of this reality, the reality of the radiance of God’s ongoing presence in our lives, we move forward together in faith, living into the reality of the good news of Isaiah’s promise: The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them light has shined.

The light of Christ dispels the darkness and reveals who we truly are, beloved children of God who are claimed, washed, and empowered with the gift of the Holy Spirit in the waters of baptism. And though we may forget, or hesitate to live into this reality, God’s restless Spirit repeatedly sends us, each and every one of us, out into the world’s darkness to reflect Christ’s radiant light as we share the good news of God’s love to all people.

Daring to Love

Photo by Juan Pablo Serrano Arenas on Pexels.com

As we move more fully into the second week of Advent, we transition from the promise of HOPE to the call to LOVE.

Advent is a time of active, patient, hopeful, and joyful expectation. A time when we look for, and then expect to find, the Christ child breaking into our lives and our world in new and completely unexpected ways.  

Thank goodness for this time of preparation and intentional time of pausing for prayer. A time set aside to help us re-focus on the things that really matter. A season in our lives offering each one of us an opportunity to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and to open our hearts once again to the gift of God’s love; a love made real for us in the birth of a child.

Hope for a “messiah” – or anointed one of God — arose in difficult times long ago when the people of Judah (Israel’s southern kingdom) lived in fear and uncertainty about their future. Yet, in the midst of the people’s restlessness, fear, and worry notice what God does. In the midst of war, turmoil, and tremendous loss, a time when many wondered if God had forsaken God’s people, God sends the prophet Isaiah to herald a new era.

A renewed promise of God’s steadfast love.

A new way of being.

A new way of relating – to God and to one another.

A transformation initiated by God.

The promised sign of God’s ongoing presence and God’s steadfast love that comes to us is a child; Immanuel, whose name means God is with us. The child, the hoped-for Messiah, brings transformation, healing, and restoration. The child who invites you (and me) into relationship.

During Advent, we, like Joseph before us, are called to LOVE the child.

To LOVE more fully.

To LOVE more deeply.

To LOVE the “least of these.”

To LOVE others as God in Christ loves us.

A child – one seemingly vulnerable and unprepared to lead by worldly standards, IS the one God sends to begin the in-breaking of God’s Kingdom. For Christians, Isaiah’s prophetic vision born in the midst of great earthly turmoil and uncertainty, is fulfilled in Jesus’ birth.

This is the promise we cling to in the midst of the world’s darkness and brokenness. This is the promise that we cling to in the midst of an ongoing global pandemic. That is why, especially this Advent, we GATHER (albeit through the miracle of modern technology) we PRAY, and we TRUST.

We trust that God in Christ through the Spirit’s power is at work in our lives, helping you and me – saints and sinners each and every one of us – to LOVE. To LOVE others as God loves us. To LOVE as God loves the world. To LOVE, even when we don’t feel it.

Advent Hope

Advent, a season marking the start of a new church year, often begins with the lighting of the first candle on the Advent Wreath. The first candle, has over the years, come to represent HOPE – a hope centered on an expectant mother — Mary carrying Jesus. She is, at first glance, the most unlikely of women in the most unlikely of circumstances. Advent hope is grounded in the assurance that God is about to do something exciting. Advent hope is a persistent, resilient, reason-defying trust in what God is up to in the world. Not only some 2,000 years ago in a land far removed from ours, but right here, right now.

Advent hope is anchored in the promise of scripture.

            That God is faithful.

            That God stops at nothing to reconcile all things to Godself.

            That God has not forgotten or forsaken God’s people.

Advent hope is not some pie-in-the sky pipedream. It is not a cross-your-fingers wish that things will ultimately turn out well. Nor is it merely an expression of personal desire or a longed-for expectation. The Advent hope that God offers us is different. Isn’t it?  One might dare say that Advent hope is a dimension of the soul that TRUSTS that God is in control.

This is the promise of Advent and this is our HOPE.  The promise that God is with us. Coming to us in word and sacrament. Accompanying us in the midst of all that is unfolding in our lives and our world. In this season and in every season of our lives.

Advent hope is grounded in the reality of what God has done, is doing, and will do for the world God came to save in the person of Jesus the Christ!

Advent hope looks for, and then expects to find, the many and varied ways that the holy breaks into the daily. Advent hope gives us the strength to live even when conditions seem hopeless; especially during the times of our lives when God appears to be absent. Advent hope helps us think about fresh possibilities, new beginnings, and human wholeness.

Advent is a time when we open ourselves once again to active anticipation and joyous expectation. It is a time in our lives together when we tenaciously cling to the promise that God bears all our afflictions. Advent is a time when the Spirit helps us to trust that God comes in Jesus to free us from whatever burden we are carrying, whatever pain we may have, and whatever we issue we are currently struggling with. Advent is an active time when God-in-Christ through the Spirit’s power awakens, strengthens, embraces, heals, and guides. Giving us the strength and the faith to sing: “I believe in the sun, I believe in the sun, even when, even when it’s not shining.”

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