To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (Revelation 1:5-6NRSV)
Apocalypse?
According to basic cable television, we only have one year left because the Mayan calendar runs out in 2012. According to the weather channel, the “snowpocalypse” is upon us, and as the Middle Eastern revolutions take hold, I am sure that there will be much talk of an upcoming battle of Armageddon.
In common parlance, the word “Apocalypse” means ultimate destruction. This is quite unfortunate, for the Bible uses the word in a completely different way. A Greek word, “apocalypse” simply means “revelation,” an open showing of the true situation and nature of things. The Apocalypse of John is in fact a common and accurate name of the last book of the New Testament. It is probably because of superficial readings of the book of Revelation that the word apocalypse has had a change of meanings over time.
One of the main themes of Revelation is that our current world is mortal. It, like us will have an end. The cause of that end will be the sin that has led ultimately to death. Focusing on that truth to the exclusion of the rest may lead us to confuse apocalypse with destruction. However, when we do this we limit the truth of what the Bible is trying to reveal to us. So when we read the Bible do not just focus on the big picture, but look for what God wants us to know about the little daily things that may have an impact on our selves, the world, and others.
Real Time Help
Before John even begins to speak about the end times, he teaches the seven churches whom he writes to about how to deal with their contemporary circumstances and daily challenges. Far less ink has been spilled and press given to the first three chapters of Revelation as the more dramatic visions that will come later in the book. This is unfortunate because they contain a key Biblical truth. The current state of your faith relationship matters.
How you treat people in this very moment is important. If you are not walking closely with God now, then how will you have any hope when things get bad? John gives each church both a word of affirmation and a word of challenge because the closer you hold to God, the less likely you are to be rattled by the headlines. For example, he writes to the church in Ephesus “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance…. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. (Revelation 2:2-4) It as Rick Warren has spoken “your character today matters in eternity.”
Walking in the Light of Christ
A central premise of the book of Revelation is that the closer you walk with God the less you have to fear. The book and the Bible as whole close with John of Patmos’ vision of the New Jerusalem where “there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 22:5)
When we participate in the classic practices of the Christian Faith, such as prayer, Bible reading, and service to the vulnerable, we work on living in God’s light. When we do this, we are reminded that we can be close to God. Whenever we are close to God, we understand the hope that has been given to us through Jesus our savior. So I invite you to keep the faith and continue to live hope in the light of Christ with us as we follow Jesus, the Christ.
Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Built up For Peace
Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. (Acts 9:31 NRSV)
Back on track!
When I went to the gym this week, I noticed that I was not alone. In December, I had free run of the place, and at night it could almost be a place of contemplation as only the truly dedicated were around. Now the gym is full, it is noisy from the equipment being used and the conversations people are having while trying to get in shape. People seem to be using the New Year to get back on track. To build themselves up again, perhaps so they can feel better about themselves and have peace.
The verse in Acts above serves as a simple transition between the story of the conversion of Paul and the story of Peter bringing the Gospel to the gentiles for the first time. Luke who wrote Acts often uses verses like this to provide for a smooth transition between parts of the church’s story. However, they do more than that; they communicate the virtues and values of the early church that Luke finds so important.
Built up for peace!
Luke tells us that the church was built up and had peace. Since so many of us are looking for these exact two things in our own lives, perhaps we should look to what he says. What we find in Acts 9:31 is that being built up and having peace in our lives is conditional. The condition that allowed for this to happen in the churches of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee was that they were “walking in the in the fear of the Lord.” They understood that God was present and close. They understood that God was working with and among them. They also respected what God was doing with them.
Just as important, they were walking “in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” The word we translate to mean “comfort” in the original Greek version of the Bible also means to counsel, to advise, or to advocate. Thus they were allowing the Holy Spirit guide and direct their decisions every moment of the day. The results were startling they were built up to become the people God had created them to be and they had peace, which in biblical terms means that they were completely whole once more.
Where to turn?
That the gym is full is sign to me that people are looking to be built up and have peace. That the churches are empty in January is a sign that people are looking in the wrong direction. The myth that you can whip yourself into shape without God and the power of the Holy Spirit is a lie of our culture. If you accept this temptation, you do so at your peril. For in reality the true Christian knows that there is in reality no self-help; there is only a path to follow. The path that our Savior trod to the cross and resurrection. By the first week in February most will abandon the gym again and it will quiet once more (good for me!) as people learn that being built up and having peace requires more than exercise.
For self-help will never be answer to our mortality, and until there is answer for that you will have no peace. So don’t leave the church just for the truly dedicated, come be built up and have peace which the world cannot give, but Jesus does.
Back on track!
When I went to the gym this week, I noticed that I was not alone. In December, I had free run of the place, and at night it could almost be a place of contemplation as only the truly dedicated were around. Now the gym is full, it is noisy from the equipment being used and the conversations people are having while trying to get in shape. People seem to be using the New Year to get back on track. To build themselves up again, perhaps so they can feel better about themselves and have peace.
The verse in Acts above serves as a simple transition between the story of the conversion of Paul and the story of Peter bringing the Gospel to the gentiles for the first time. Luke who wrote Acts often uses verses like this to provide for a smooth transition between parts of the church’s story. However, they do more than that; they communicate the virtues and values of the early church that Luke finds so important.
Built up for peace!
Luke tells us that the church was built up and had peace. Since so many of us are looking for these exact two things in our own lives, perhaps we should look to what he says. What we find in Acts 9:31 is that being built up and having peace in our lives is conditional. The condition that allowed for this to happen in the churches of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee was that they were “walking in the in the fear of the Lord.” They understood that God was present and close. They understood that God was working with and among them. They also respected what God was doing with them.
Just as important, they were walking “in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” The word we translate to mean “comfort” in the original Greek version of the Bible also means to counsel, to advise, or to advocate. Thus they were allowing the Holy Spirit guide and direct their decisions every moment of the day. The results were startling they were built up to become the people God had created them to be and they had peace, which in biblical terms means that they were completely whole once more.
Where to turn?
That the gym is full is sign to me that people are looking to be built up and have peace. That the churches are empty in January is a sign that people are looking in the wrong direction. The myth that you can whip yourself into shape without God and the power of the Holy Spirit is a lie of our culture. If you accept this temptation, you do so at your peril. For in reality the true Christian knows that there is in reality no self-help; there is only a path to follow. The path that our Savior trod to the cross and resurrection. By the first week in February most will abandon the gym again and it will quiet once more (good for me!) as people learn that being built up and having peace requires more than exercise.
For self-help will never be answer to our mortality, and until there is answer for that you will have no peace. So don’t leave the church just for the truly dedicated, come be built up and have peace which the world cannot give, but Jesus does.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Merry Christmas 2010
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it… And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory…. John 1:5 & 14 NRSV
Many Christians can tell you from experience that it is truly wonderful and inspiring to share the story of Christmas with others. In John’s Gospel, the essential point of the Christmas story is made without the details we find elsewhere in the Bible. He simply states that Jesus came to live with us in our sometimes-dark world so He could bring us back into the light of God our Father in Heaven. When we hear the message of hope that Jesus brings, we do not lose heart even when our world may at times seem dark.
This Christmas we will celebrate Jesus who is the light of the world. This light cheers our spirits, reveals to us the truth of who we are, shows us where we need God, and invites us on the way to go forward in faith. If you sometimes feel that the world is dark and hurting, look to the light that is Jesus. He has come to give light to all who call on him. The people of the Bible and Christians today have hope because we know that there is light in Jesus our Savior.
As Senior Pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church, I wish you a very merry Christmas and a blessed New Year. We hope that the Spirit of Jesus Christ may enlighten you this Advent and Christmas season and that you may be filled with the joy of knowing our Lord and Savior.
We of Holy Cross Lutheran Church invite and welcome you, your family and friends to come and see the glory of Christ as we worship him on Christmas Eve.
We hope you can be with us to experience the wonder and the joy of the season with your family and friends. We hope that you will hear, taste and see God’s message of hope for our world. The carols we will sing and Candles we light remind us that Jesus is “the true light which enlightens everyone.. (John 1:9).
Our Friday, December 24th Christmas Eve Schedule is as follows.
3:00PM Living Nativity on the Church Lawn
4:00 PM Family Christmas Eve Service
7:00 PM Christmas Candlelight Worship and Communion
Wishing you a blessed Christmas in the name of Jesus Christ,
Pastor Knecht
Many Christians can tell you from experience that it is truly wonderful and inspiring to share the story of Christmas with others. In John’s Gospel, the essential point of the Christmas story is made without the details we find elsewhere in the Bible. He simply states that Jesus came to live with us in our sometimes-dark world so He could bring us back into the light of God our Father in Heaven. When we hear the message of hope that Jesus brings, we do not lose heart even when our world may at times seem dark.
This Christmas we will celebrate Jesus who is the light of the world. This light cheers our spirits, reveals to us the truth of who we are, shows us where we need God, and invites us on the way to go forward in faith. If you sometimes feel that the world is dark and hurting, look to the light that is Jesus. He has come to give light to all who call on him. The people of the Bible and Christians today have hope because we know that there is light in Jesus our Savior.
As Senior Pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church, I wish you a very merry Christmas and a blessed New Year. We hope that the Spirit of Jesus Christ may enlighten you this Advent and Christmas season and that you may be filled with the joy of knowing our Lord and Savior.
We of Holy Cross Lutheran Church invite and welcome you, your family and friends to come and see the glory of Christ as we worship him on Christmas Eve.
We hope you can be with us to experience the wonder and the joy of the season with your family and friends. We hope that you will hear, taste and see God’s message of hope for our world. The carols we will sing and Candles we light remind us that Jesus is “the true light which enlightens everyone.. (John 1:9).
Our Friday, December 24th Christmas Eve Schedule is as follows.
3:00PM Living Nativity on the Church Lawn
4:00 PM Family Christmas Eve Service
7:00 PM Christmas Candlelight Worship and Communion
Wishing you a blessed Christmas in the name of Jesus Christ,
Pastor Knecht
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Party on!
First, I wish everyone a blessed thanksgiving! I hope that your holiday will be blessed with good food, good company, and lively fun. Yes fun! Whether you celebrate thanksgiving with your family, friends or even strangers I pray you have fun. This is not merely a good wish. This is health for your spirit and rest for your soul. Genuine thankfulness always leads to fun. If you give thanks in a dour or dreary way, are you really being thankful?
When Jesus preached his first sermon in his hometown, Luke tells us that he started from the following text from the prophet Isaiah:
The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor… Isaiah 61:1-2 NRSV
The most succinct sermon ever delivered simply said: "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:21 The plain meaning that the Messiah had arrived to bring the Good News to life is all that needed to be said. So it’s time to party!
The hoped for response sadly did not occur as people were not able to get the party started. Jesus, setting the example for his later teaching, would move on to the next town in Galilee to find some more lost souls to party with. Sadly I must confess that at times I have behaved more like those sticks in mud at Nazareth than a joyful disciple of Jesus. My sin turns me inward to worry too much about tomorrow rather than being thankful for what God has so richly blessed me with right now.
In his book “the Church in the Power of the Spirit” the German theologian Jürgen Moltmann makes the point that when we through the Holy Spirit meet the risen Jesus we join the party without end. This party is the celebration of the freedom from sin and death won for us at the Cross. Our earthly lives are then transformed by our anticipation of our attending Jesus’ unending party in the next life. Through Jesus we are always free to have a twinkle in the eye and cheerful voice.
For this reason I pray that Jesus be the center of your thanksgiving and you realize the joy that comes from knowing him. I also hope that his Spirit will be with you. The Bible reminds us that during his earthly ministry he rarely passed up a good meal, so invite him into your heart and home this thanksgiving. Then you too can party on!
First, I wish everyone a blessed thanksgiving! I hope that your holiday will be blessed with good food, good company, and lively fun. Yes fun! Whether you celebrate thanksgiving with your family, friends or even strangers I pray you have fun. This is not merely a good wish. This is health for your spirit and rest for your soul. Genuine thankfulness always leads to fun. If you give thanks in a dour or dreary way, are you really being thankful?
When Jesus preached his first sermon in his hometown, Luke tells us that he started from the following text from the prophet Isaiah:
The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor… Isaiah 61:1-2 NRSV
The most succinct sermon ever delivered simply said: "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:21 The plain meaning that the Messiah had arrived to bring the Good News to life is all that needed to be said. So it’s time to party!
The hoped for response sadly did not occur as people were not able to get the party started. Jesus, setting the example for his later teaching, would move on to the next town in Galilee to find some more lost souls to party with. Sadly I must confess that at times I have behaved more like those sticks in mud at Nazareth than a joyful disciple of Jesus. My sin turns me inward to worry too much about tomorrow rather than being thankful for what God has so richly blessed me with right now.
In his book “the Church in the Power of the Spirit” the German theologian Jürgen Moltmann makes the point that when we through the Holy Spirit meet the risen Jesus we join the party without end. This party is the celebration of the freedom from sin and death won for us at the Cross. Our earthly lives are then transformed by our anticipation of our attending Jesus’ unending party in the next life. Through Jesus we are always free to have a twinkle in the eye and cheerful voice.
For this reason I pray that Jesus be the center of your thanksgiving and you realize the joy that comes from knowing him. I also hope that his Spirit will be with you. The Bible reminds us that during his earthly ministry he rarely passed up a good meal, so invite him into your heart and home this thanksgiving. Then you too can party on!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Pastor's Letter to Holy Cross Summer 2010
"Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (NRSV)
Ask
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus gives us some simple and direct recommendations for prayer. The first component is simply to ask God for what it is we need. The presupposition of this recommendation is that God is good. Martin Luther recommended in his Small Catechism that we do this boldly and confidently because God is a good and loving Father. For example, since the annual congregational meeting in June I have been asking for God’s favor that we reach 220 in worship a year from now. I do this because I believe that God has given us a mission to proclaim Jesus Christ as the light to the world. I also believe that people who know Jesus need to be part of a community of people that help them live out their hope and remain in Christ’s light. In your personal prayer life, you can be direct about what it is that you need. One need not be embarrassed to ask God for anything.
Search
Jesus then instructs us to search. Searching paradoxically requires both action and waiting. It requires action because we need to be paying attention. Active listening through prayer is used so we remain humble and hopefully we learn that we are not just asking God to simply acquiesce to our wishes or desires. Searching through Scripture reading, worship, prayer, and faith conversations is all about being open to God’s Word for your life. It is a test to find out if what we are asking for is what we really need. Therefore, in our searching we need to be diligent in seeking the Holy Spirit’s answer, but also still enough to hear His voice so that we are not just confirming our own selfishness.
As I bring my prayer for 220 in worship at Holy Cross, I must be humble enough to receive the Holy Spirit’s answer. If the Spirit tells us that this prayer is only about our pride, then we must be gracious enough to listen to the truth. If however God responds that this is a genuine prayer for what we as a church need, then we must work to make it so. Sometimes the Spirit may actually be leading us into a place in between, so that for which we pray may be transformed into something holy. So in asking God’s favor for 220 in worship we are asking that each person who arrives is coming for God’s reasons and that each will genuinely find healing, hope, and renewal through Jesus. Following Jesus’ recommendations in the Sermon on the Mount ultimately means asking God to transform our longings to conform to His purposes.
Knock
Jesus teaches that once we have asked and search then we must knock. We are called to embrace God’s reality as presented to us. We do this by responding to what God is telling us. For example, since starting to pray for 220 in worship, I have become more proactive about inviting people to church. In social situations and casual encounters where previously I would have been content just to be friendly, I now directly ask people to come to Holy Cross and give them my card. What made the change was the simple setting of the numerical goal and praying for it. The Spirit immediately laid on my heart that I had previously been too passive. God is inviting me and giving me the privilege to work for what I am praying. I have used an example from my ministry to provide an illustration of Jesus’ principles of prayer, and to invite you to join with me in this prayer for 220 in worship.
Please know that the most important aspect of this article is following the pattern of prayer laid out by Jesus. This pattern of prayer will have unlimited applications in our daily lives. If you pray for a new career, to raise healthy children, to understand the purpose of your life, to be healed, given peace, or anything else concrete, or abstract, the same pattern will apply. As Christians we boldly ask, we search to find God’s answer, and we knock so that we can work with God along our path of discipleship. As those of us who have been doing this a while will tell you, God will not always give us what we ask, but our loving Father in heaven will always give us what we need. The truth is that we will never know the difference until we ask. Therefore, I invite you to ask, search and knock for anything that is on your heart to bring to Jesus this day.
Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Pastor Knecht's Annual Letter to Holy Cross
Pastor’s Annual Report to the Congregation 2010
For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw-- the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done... Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:11-16 NRSV)
There is no better time to be the church than today. There has never been a greater need for people to come and know Jesus Christ than now. There has never been a more important time to teach people who would like a closer walk with the Lord how to call on His name, listen to His Word, and be His hands than this very moment. There is only one reason to be the church and that is to learn how to live with God every minute of every day. My wish for Holy Cross this coming year is simple; I hope that we will walk with God.
I am ever hopeful that we will be able to heed Jesus’ voice to follow because I have seen the fruit of those who are working to build on the foundation laid by Christ at Holy Cross. I have seen those working to call our congregation to prayer. I have seen others give of their limited time and resources make sure that knowledge of God is passed on to the next generation through our Christian Nursery School and Children’s ministries. I have seen our small groups work to help our church know that we must live out our faith in between the Sundays if we are to be counted among Jesus’ faithful disciples. I have seen a dedication and passion for worship among our four worship teams and our worship arts volunteers. I have seen faithful groundwork being done by our ushers, counters, trustees, and property volunteers to help make sure that we are good stewards of our resources so we can continue with the mission to bear Christ to our community. We are currently planning to restart our youth ministries as soon as we can so that our teenagers will both have the opportunity to learn about Jesus in a deeper way and also witness to us what God is doing in their lives. I pray that as God continues to build us up we will be able to follow faithfully in new areas of mission.
As we work together to build on Christ’s foundation we will face some challenges. Our ongoing financial struggles are still with us. Our leaders have diligently prayed and discerned how best to live within our means and have helped us to reduce our operating expenses as much as possible. We will need to continue to address these issues for the foreseeable future; we must follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance to find ways for us to continually fund our mission and ministry. I would ask you to be in prayer in how you can help us respond to this challenge.
Our second challenge will be learning to live according to God’s expectations rather than our own. The world attempts to measure success by accessing various statistics. When they are on the rise, the world tells us that we can puff out our chests and justify ourselves in the illusion of our own achievements. However, God does not demand success, but asks for faith. We are called to follow in faith and trust that the results are in God’s hands. This means that we must live in hope. Living in hope is a good thing because it means that we are waiting for and relying upon God.
This past year our communication team gathered to work on how best to communicate the vision and mission of Holy Cross to those our neighborhood. This led the group to discern not only strategies, logos, and colors but to prayerfully examine who we are at this time and come up with a way to talk about it so our community can understand. The tagline that they came up with is simple yet profound. Holy Cross is “living hope in the light of Christ”. We are living hope in that we are by our actions demonstrating that our hope is Jesus Christ. Therefore, we call each other to prayer and worship, we teach the faith, support each other and serve our neighbors in need because we have hope in Christ. We do this in the light of Christ as we realize that Jesus is the only way that we can go forward. This light is both joyful and illuminating. The hope we have in Christ allows us to examine ourselves for who we really are and also understand the truth of what Jesus has done for us in the cross so we can have faith and be joyful in all circumstances.
In order to continue to foster our future growth we have begun a process to access the overall health of our church. Some of you will have already taken a church health survey. The natural church development survey monitors the quality of church life in eight areas demonstrated to be vital for a church to grow. The eight areas are empowering leadership, gift-based ministry, passionate spirituality, effective structures, inspiring worship, holistic small groups, need-orientated evangelism, and loving relationships. The process would then be to focus some of our effort to address the area in which we need the most work. Often congregations are not able to grow because there is some issue of which it is not aware. Our goal is to have the courage to address any issue that stands in the way of our being a community that spreads God’s Word faithfully. After we receive our results there will be an effort to involve the entire congregation to work together to help address the area where God is calling us to work toward.
I am confident that God is calling us to a particular mission in this place and time. I am also sure that we are being tested in the fire of adversity, however I know that if we are in prayer God will continue to lead us through any dark valley. He has brought us so far already; I have no rational reason to doubt his continued presence and help. In conclusion, I ask you to be in prayer for our church and each other. I ask you to remember the blessings that God the Father has so richly showered upon us. I also ask you to pray that God see us through any adversity we might face. May our Lord Jesus be with you.
Submitted to you faithfully in Jesus Christ,
Pastor Knecht
For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw-- the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done... Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:11-16 NRSV)
There is no better time to be the church than today. There has never been a greater need for people to come and know Jesus Christ than now. There has never been a more important time to teach people who would like a closer walk with the Lord how to call on His name, listen to His Word, and be His hands than this very moment. There is only one reason to be the church and that is to learn how to live with God every minute of every day. My wish for Holy Cross this coming year is simple; I hope that we will walk with God.
I am ever hopeful that we will be able to heed Jesus’ voice to follow because I have seen the fruit of those who are working to build on the foundation laid by Christ at Holy Cross. I have seen those working to call our congregation to prayer. I have seen others give of their limited time and resources make sure that knowledge of God is passed on to the next generation through our Christian Nursery School and Children’s ministries. I have seen our small groups work to help our church know that we must live out our faith in between the Sundays if we are to be counted among Jesus’ faithful disciples. I have seen a dedication and passion for worship among our four worship teams and our worship arts volunteers. I have seen faithful groundwork being done by our ushers, counters, trustees, and property volunteers to help make sure that we are good stewards of our resources so we can continue with the mission to bear Christ to our community. We are currently planning to restart our youth ministries as soon as we can so that our teenagers will both have the opportunity to learn about Jesus in a deeper way and also witness to us what God is doing in their lives. I pray that as God continues to build us up we will be able to follow faithfully in new areas of mission.
As we work together to build on Christ’s foundation we will face some challenges. Our ongoing financial struggles are still with us. Our leaders have diligently prayed and discerned how best to live within our means and have helped us to reduce our operating expenses as much as possible. We will need to continue to address these issues for the foreseeable future; we must follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance to find ways for us to continually fund our mission and ministry. I would ask you to be in prayer in how you can help us respond to this challenge.
Our second challenge will be learning to live according to God’s expectations rather than our own. The world attempts to measure success by accessing various statistics. When they are on the rise, the world tells us that we can puff out our chests and justify ourselves in the illusion of our own achievements. However, God does not demand success, but asks for faith. We are called to follow in faith and trust that the results are in God’s hands. This means that we must live in hope. Living in hope is a good thing because it means that we are waiting for and relying upon God.
This past year our communication team gathered to work on how best to communicate the vision and mission of Holy Cross to those our neighborhood. This led the group to discern not only strategies, logos, and colors but to prayerfully examine who we are at this time and come up with a way to talk about it so our community can understand. The tagline that they came up with is simple yet profound. Holy Cross is “living hope in the light of Christ”. We are living hope in that we are by our actions demonstrating that our hope is Jesus Christ. Therefore, we call each other to prayer and worship, we teach the faith, support each other and serve our neighbors in need because we have hope in Christ. We do this in the light of Christ as we realize that Jesus is the only way that we can go forward. This light is both joyful and illuminating. The hope we have in Christ allows us to examine ourselves for who we really are and also understand the truth of what Jesus has done for us in the cross so we can have faith and be joyful in all circumstances.
In order to continue to foster our future growth we have begun a process to access the overall health of our church. Some of you will have already taken a church health survey. The natural church development survey monitors the quality of church life in eight areas demonstrated to be vital for a church to grow. The eight areas are empowering leadership, gift-based ministry, passionate spirituality, effective structures, inspiring worship, holistic small groups, need-orientated evangelism, and loving relationships. The process would then be to focus some of our effort to address the area in which we need the most work. Often congregations are not able to grow because there is some issue of which it is not aware. Our goal is to have the courage to address any issue that stands in the way of our being a community that spreads God’s Word faithfully. After we receive our results there will be an effort to involve the entire congregation to work together to help address the area where God is calling us to work toward.
I am confident that God is calling us to a particular mission in this place and time. I am also sure that we are being tested in the fire of adversity, however I know that if we are in prayer God will continue to lead us through any dark valley. He has brought us so far already; I have no rational reason to doubt his continued presence and help. In conclusion, I ask you to be in prayer for our church and each other. I ask you to remember the blessings that God the Father has so richly showered upon us. I also ask you to pray that God see us through any adversity we might face. May our Lord Jesus be with you.
Submitted to you faithfully in Jesus Christ,
Pastor Knecht
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Will the church be there for me?
This is a question that is in the minds of many who attend church around the world. Every church no matter what denomination or persuasion will have people that answer this question in three ways.
It is interesting that the Bible does not answer this question! There is no guarantee, rather there is an imperative. Jesus asks us to be there for each other. "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35 NRSV)
According to the Bible the church is those who gather in Christ. The truth is this; if we are not there for each other, the church will not be there for you.
Right now because of the economy and where we are in our journey of faith as a church, we need to be there for each other. Some ways that we can be there for each other that God may be calling you respond to are:
Holy Cross is not a thing, it is us. We are Holy Cross. We are the people who God has called together in this place and time. We are God’s household in the here and now. We are called to depend on God and be there for each other so please be in prayer for how you will respond.
Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht
This is a question that is in the minds of many who attend church around the world. Every church no matter what denomination or persuasion will have people that answer this question in three ways.
- Some will confidently trust that it will be so. They will participate faithfully trusting that it will be so. They will faithfully work to make it so.
- Others will find it harder to trust that it is so, their experience of having expectations let down will give them pause. They may even answer that the church will not be there for them and depart from the church or from a life of faith all together.
- Some however, will not even ask the question. They will assume that church will be there. The church has always been around so why worry. There are more important things in life anyway. “I can always come back to church when I need to.” Afraid to miss some chance that life has placed before them, they ignore the place that can hold their whole life together.
It is interesting that the Bible does not answer this question! There is no guarantee, rather there is an imperative. Jesus asks us to be there for each other. "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35 NRSV)
According to the Bible the church is those who gather in Christ. The truth is this; if we are not there for each other, the church will not be there for you.
Right now because of the economy and where we are in our journey of faith as a church, we need to be there for each other. Some ways that we can be there for each other that God may be calling you respond to are:
- Make Sunday worship a priority (if we don’t show up we can’t be there for each other);
- Join a small group (we can be there for each other in a more meaningful way);
- Consider an increase in financial giving to ensure that we have the resources to reach to our community with the Good News of Jesus Christ (so we can have the joy of getting to know new people in Christ);
- Step up to help with a volunteer ministry (so we have time to be there for each other).
Holy Cross is not a thing, it is us. We are Holy Cross. We are the people who God has called together in this place and time. We are God’s household in the here and now. We are called to depend on God and be there for each other so please be in prayer for how you will respond.
Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)