God in nature

As I was thinking about a time when I experienced God in nature I had a few came to mind but the one that most stuck out was the encounter with a microburst at Camp Luther in Ohio. This was Monday, July 21, 2008, and the start of a week few of us present will ever forget. We actually have a book of stories and pictures from this week. It was a time I saw God bring people who may have never met before the day before together. We spent a few days with generator power from generators that were purchased for the camp by campers and worshiped together and didn’t let the cleanup keep us from remembering why we were there, to deepen our faith and get closer to God.

Here is my story from that night from the book we all wrote during the week.

Krista and I went to see what the adult program was. We arrives late, and heard from Scott Morris the name of the game was Star Power. We stuck around as I was intrigued by this game and wanted to see how this was going to come out. Well, the third round ended and discussion ensued. And about 11:00 the game wound up as some of the adults were leaving to check on their kids as there was lightning and thunder coming closer. Dave Kettlehake said he was going to get a flashlight and we should be ready for an uplifting game. Soon after he left, the wind picked up. I heard Krista say, “that was a tree.” I thought she saw one fly by the window, but she heard one snap. The lights went out and the staff started heading us towards the basement of the lodge/dining hall. I asked Marta and Kali what about the kids in the cabins? Corey said we had to go to the basement, and about that time Scott came in the front of the dining hall saying a tree was down and on fire. Corey said to ring both bells and get people in shelters. I looked back at Corey and said I’m going to get my children in the cabin, I need a flashlight. Krista and I went out the side door of the dining hall to be met with sheets of water, like buckets being dumped constantly. I was handed a little lantern, that was doing nothing. I screamed I need a real flashlight, and was handed one from Krista from Eddie who was ringing the dining hall bell. We headed directly from the dining hall towards the pine grove cabins. Our children Charis, Carina, and Calea were asleep, we hoped, I’m Martha. The direct path to our girls was right through where we would find out the trees had fallen. When I ran into the first tree only with the thought of my girls being afraid in the storm, I went under it with Krista following me. To do this we had to crawl on the road, in a puddle of water. The trees had brought down the power lines, so we were in water with downed power lines, crawling around trees that were on fire. When we went under the first tree, we came to the second one and went under it. When I got to the third tree I was wondering where Krista was, I could hear her behind me, but I couldn’t hear her behind me. I stopped and thought I had lost my wife in the midst of these trees that were in puddles and had power lines in them. I shined the light back to find her and finally I saw her after what was probably 2 seconds but felt like 5 minutes to me. During all of this time some one is yelling at us to get out of the trees, they were on fire and have downed power lines on them. My only thought is getting to my children, and Krista and I go over the last tree and I stand there and yell now where do we go? Krista sees the exit light on the laundry room and she says to head for that, we get to the cabin after running through inches of water on all of the camp. Our children are still asleep, as I run in the cabin and scream at them to get up and get their shoes on. Krista is telling me to be calm, and I just want all of this to be over. I was worried that I was going to lose my family. I wanted them to be safe. We got our girls up and shoes on and had them come out of the cabin and headed towards Bumpy’s basement. We rounded the shower house and got to the barn, and Kathy is saying to go back to the cabin. I send Krista with the girls back to the cabin, and I head over to talk to Kathy to see if there is anything I can do. And we look up into the sky and see the stars, it was like nothing ever happened, it was a beautiful night. I walked with them down the road to the trees and saw Scott there yelling at those in the lodge/dining hall to stay away from the trees and thought I would stay there to help him. Dan came by and so did Alex. Alex was saying that his feet were hurting because he was running across the field and was running into stuff that shouldn’t be there. Scott, Alex, Dan, and I stood there and told people to stay out of the trees. We talked about how this came out of nowhere and how we were lucky that no one had been hurt. Dan and Scott left to check on short-wave radios and I remember telling Alex that no one had checked the parking lot to see if there was any damage there.

Bumpy came driving through camp to check the damage. Dan and Scott returned and we all stood there and made sure no one else came through the trees. We talked and laughed about how the storm came on quickly and felt the lord’s presence. I give thanks for the counselors I spoke with that night, as we talked and laughed and they showed me the mercy and love God had for us in the fact we were able to stand there and talk about how Krista and I had just come through the trees, with downed power lines in puddles of water. Dan was talking to Corey on the radio. I remember hearing him say that the staff could go to bed, the emergency personnel had been contacted and the staff would need their rest. Dan and Scott went off to check on something else. About that time Bill Diehm came through and said they had just come from the parking area. He said there was only one car with damage and that was a blue minivan. My heart sank, as I thought about my blue minivan. I turned and walked to the parking area, and found my van with a tree on top of it. The back window was busted our, and the tree covered the top. It was the only vehicle in the parking lot with damage. I walked back over to the gate where Kathey and the others were gathered and I asked if I could get some garbage bags and tape to tape up the back window on my van. Bumpy’s daughter and one of the counselors helped me find these items in the barn, and I taped up my back window. I talked a little more with Dan, Kathy, Corey, and other counselors and decided it was time to go to the cabin, not that I would sleep, but I wanted to see my girls and know that they were fine. I told my wife we had a tree on our van, We thought it might be totaled. I wondered how we could replace if we needed to. Then I remembered it had about a half tank of gas, and I had just paid $70 to fill that tank before coming to camp. SO somebody needed to use that gas if the van was totaled.

The next morning I woke about 7:20 and wondered if I had missed the bell ring. I got dressed and emerged from my cabin to see coffee being set up outside the laundry room. I remember seeing the camp and thinking about how the trees had come down. It was interesting to see the pine tree in front of the chapel, and the three trees Krista and I had climbed under and over on the road. I went and took pictures of the van and wondered how we would get home. I called our insurance company and reported the damage. I remember hearing about the RV of the Dean’s. How they had branches through the top of their camper. I heard about the Flicks, and how their tent went up off the ground. How Eddie was lifted off the ground in the staff cabin. I remember walking around camp that morning in a haze, wondering why all of this had happened, but remembering that God kept us all safe. There were bumps and bruises, but we would all leave camp by our own power.

This storm changed my outlook on a God who is just for life. We were all called to Camp Luther that week. God kept us in the palm of his hand and showed us his awesome power. God brought us together as a family/ Bound us together and gave us a unity that many seek. God gave us a wonderful week, through all of the wind. The howling winds showed us God’s power and his love was evident in the faces of all the campers.

We encountered the power of nature and the awesomeness of God.

From God

We didn’t repeat crafty myths when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Quite the contrary, we witnessed his majesty with our own eyes. He received honor and glory from God the Father when a voice came to him from the magnificent glory, saying, “This is my dearly loved Son, with whom I am well-pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice from heaven while we were with him on the holy mountain. In addition, we have a most reliable prophetic word, and you would do well to pay attention to it, just as you would to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Most important, you must know that no prophecy of scripture represents the prophet’s own understanding of things, because no prophecy ever came by human will. Instead, men and women led by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. (2 Peter 1:16-21, CEB)

We do not share our own thoughts or crafty stories.

We share what God has given us and what we witness.

That is why we can boldly share the story of God with the world.

Because the Holy Spirit speaks through us.

Speak. Boldly. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak through you.

Loving People. Loving God.

it’s a trap

Some Sadducees, who deny that there’s a resurrection, came to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies leaving a widow but no children, the brother must marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first man married a woman and then died childless. The second and then the third brother married her. Eventually all seven married her, and they all died without leaving any children. Finally, the woman died too. In the resurrection, whose wife will she be? All seven were married to her.” Jesus said to them, “People who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy to participate in that age, that is, in the age of the resurrection from the dead, won’t marry nor will they be given in marriage. They can no longer die, because they are like angels and are God’s children since they share in the resurrection. Even Moses demonstrated that the dead are raised—in the passage about the burning bush, when he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. He isn’t the God of the dead but of the living. To him they are all alive.” (Luke 20:27-38, CEB)

Sadducees who do not believe in the resurrection ask Jesus what will happen in the resurrection. Seriously?

If you do not believe it will happen why does it really matter what will happen during it? And how is a woman having 7 husbands any different than a man having 7 wives, which is biblical marriage.

God is the God of the living not of the dead and even those who are dead are not dead but resting. And we will all be called together in the fulfillment of the kindom.

Love while you can and help others see God’s grace.

Loving People. Loving God.

What is the answer?

On one of the days when Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and proclaiming the good news, the chief priests, legal experts, and elders approached him. They said, “Tell us: What kind of authority do you have for doing these things? Who gave you this authority?” He replied, “I have a question for you. Tell me: Was John’s baptism of heavenly or of human origin?” They discussed among themselves, “If we say, ‘It’s of heavenly origin,’ he’ll say, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘It’s of human origin,’ all the people will stone us to death because they are convinced that John was a prophet.” They answered that they didn’t know where it came from. Then Jesus replied, “Neither will I tell you what kind of authority I have to do these things.” (Luke 20:1-8, CEB)

By what authority did Jesus do these things?

And why not answer a question with the answer that is correct according to what you think? If you are merely putting on faces to keep up appearances is there any real power? It is only perceived power and will not last so why maintain a facade any longer?

They didn’t say heaven because then they would have to answer why they didn’t get baptized, or so they think. Maybe Jesus just would have said God if they said heaven. kind of like this:

Chief priests, scribes, legal experts, and elders discuss the question and say, “John’s baptism is from Heaven.”
Jesus says, “God, the father.”

How did they know he would ask them why they didn’t get baptized. And they must have thought that it came from heaven otherwise why would they fear the people because obviously, this group of learned men would be able to explain to the simple crowd why the baptism wasn’t from heaven and of human origins.

Do not put on false pretenses. Speak the truth and never worry about remembering what you said.

Loving People. Loving God.

Be ready

The governor nodded at Paul, giving him permission to speak. He responded, “I know that you have been judge over this nation for many years, so I gladly offer my own defense. You can verify that I went up to worship in Jerusalem no more than twelve days ago. They didn’t find me arguing with anyone in the temple or stirring up a crowd, whether in the synagogue or anywhere else in the city. Nor can they prove to you the allegations they are now bringing against me. I do admit this to you, that I am a follower of the Way, which they call a faction. Accordingly, I worship the God of our ancestors and believe everything set out in the Law and written in the Prophets. The hope I have in God I also share with my accusers, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. On account of this, I have committed myself to maintaining a clear conscience before God and with all people. After an absence of several years, I came to Jerusalem to bring gifts for the poor of my nation and to offer sacrifices. When they found me in the temple, I was ritually pure. There was no crowd and no disturbance. But there were some Jews from the province of Asia. They should be here making their accusations, if indeed they have something against me. In their absence, have these people who are here declare what crime they found when I stood before the Jerusalem Council. Perhaps it concerns this one statement that I blurted out when I was with them: ‘I am on trial before you today because of the resurrection of the dead.’” Felix, who had an accurate understanding of the Way, adjourned the meeting. He said, “When Lysias the commander arrives from Jerusalem, I will decide this case.” He arranged for a centurion to guard Paul. He was to give Paul some freedom, and his friends were not to be hindered in their efforts to provide for him. (Acts 24:10-23, CEB)

Could you do what Paul did in the text here?

We should all be ready to give a testimony of who we are and why we do and believe the things we do.

In an earlier chapter in Acts Paul said he was on trial because of hope. And in this chapter, he says because of the resurrection of the dead.

But I say hope and resurrection from the dead are the same things. The hope we have is in the fact that we will be raised with Jesus. That is the hope.

And that is the thing we all need to be ready to stand and give testimony of.

Are you ready?

Loving People. Loving God.

on trial because of my hope

The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they shouted, “Away with this man! He’s not fit to live!” As they were screaming, throwing off their garments, and flinging dust into the air, the commander directed that Paul be taken into the military headquarters. He ordered that Paul be questioned under the whip so that he could find out why they were shouting at him like this. As they were stretching him out and tying him down with straps, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Can you legally whip a Roman citizen who hasn’t been found guilty in court?” When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. He asked, “What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen!” The commander went to Paul and demanded, “Tell me! Are you a Roman citizen?” He said, “Yes.” The commander replied, “It cost me a lot of money to buy my citizenship.” Paul said, “I’m a citizen by birth.” At once those who were about to examine him stepped away. The commander was alarmed when he realized he had bound a Roman citizen. The commander still wanted to know the truth about why Paul was being accused by the Jews. Therefore, the next day he ordered the chief priests and the entire Jerusalem Council to assemble. Then he took Paul out of prison and had him stand before them. Paul stared at the council and said, “Brothers, I have lived my life with an altogether clear conscience right up to this very day.” The high priest Ananias ordered those standing beside Paul to strike him in the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God is about to strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit and judge me according to the Law, yet disobey the Law by ordering that I be struck.” Those standing near him asked, “You dare to insult God’s high priest?” Paul replied, “Brothers, I wasn’t aware that he was the high priest. It is written, You will not speak evil about a ruler of your people.” Knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, Paul exclaimed in the council, “Brothers, I’m a Pharisee and a descendant of Pharisees. I am on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead!” These words aroused a dispute between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. This is because Sadducees say that there’s no resurrection, angel, or spirit, but Pharisees affirm them all. Council members were shouting loudly. Some Pharisees who were legal experts stood up and insisted forcefully, “We find nothing wrong with this man! What if a spirit or angel has spoken to him?” The dispute became so heated that the commander feared they might tear Paul to pieces. He ordered soldiers to go down and remove him by force from their midst. Then they took him back to the military headquarters. The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Be encouraged! Just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so too you must testify in Rome.” (Acts 22:22—23:11, CEB)

Paul is on trial because of his hope.

Paul was arrested by the Romans to save him from the Jews. It seems that no one at this point likes Paul. Here as we approach the end of the book of Acts and the history that Luke is giving us. The story of a man, crucified and the followers of him scattered across the regions of the world sharing his story when Rome has its christ as Ceaser. The Followers of the Way really were not the victors in the story and yet the gospels and the book of Acts make it sound like they got along with the powers that be, when in reality, Paul was killed by Nero for his preaching of Jesus. We didn’t win and Christians were not held in honor, but Luke paints a picture to allow the books to be seen and heard and the message to continue.

That is hope.

The other day I watched Rogue One, A Star Wars Story. And one of the lines from that movie is “Rebellions are built on Hope.”

Paul was on trial for hope.

The whole followers of the way was built on hope.

Really hope is all we need.

Share your hope!

Loving People. Loving God.

Why and what?

As they listened to this, Jesus told them another parable because he was near Jerusalem and they thought God’s kingdom would appear right away. He said, “A certain man who was born into royalty went to a distant land to receive his kingdom and then return. He called together ten servants and gave each of them money worth four months’ wages. He said, ‘Do business with this until I return.’ His citizens hated him, so they sent a representative after him who said, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’ After receiving his kingdom, he returned and called the servants to whom he had given the money to find out how much they had earned. The first servant came forward and said, ‘Your money has earned a return of one thousand percent.’ The king replied, ‘Excellent! You are a good servant. Because you have been faithful in a small matter, you will have authority over ten cities.’ “The second servant came and said, ‘Master, your money has made a return of five hundred percent.’ To this one, the king said, ‘You will have authority over five cities.’ “Another servant came and said, ‘Master, here is your money. I wrapped it up in a scarf for safekeeping. I was afraid of you because you are a stern man. You withdraw what you haven’t deposited and you harvest what you haven’t planted.’ The king replied, ‘I will judge you by the words of your own mouth, you worthless servant! You knew, did you, that I’m a stern man, withdrawing what I didn’t deposit, and harvesting what I didn’t plant? Why then didn’t you put my money in the bank? Then when I arrived, at least I could have gotten it back with interest.’ “He said to his attendants, ‘Take his money and give it to the one who has ten times as much.’ ‘But Master,’ they said, ‘he already has ten times as much!’ He replied, ‘I say to you that everyone who has will be given more, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for my enemies who don’t want me as their king, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’” (Luke 19:11-27, CEB)

I’ll be honest when I started reading this parable today it seemed a bit off or odd. I wasn’t used to this translation of the text. I do not remember there being 10 servants that got money, and since there were 10 servants why are there only 3 responses?

And what are we really to learn from this anyway?

All 10 servants get money of four months’ wages, to do business with as they please.

And we can discern from the people not wanting this man to be their king that he probably wasn’t good at leading, or was not a good person.

But 1 servant does something with the money and increases it 1000 times. So the master puts him in charge of 10 cities.

The second servant does something with the money and increases it 500 times. So the master puts in charge of 5 cities.

And another comes and says ‘Master, here is your money. I wrapped it up in a scarf for safekeeping. I was afraid of you because you are a stern man. You withdraw what you haven’t deposited and you harvest what you haven’t planted.’ Why don’t the people want this man to be king? and what does this slave know? It seems a little weird there are 10 servants with money but we only hear about one that increases the money 1000 times, one that increases the money 500 times, and one that hides the money to not lose any. It was more important to this person not to lose anything because the master is stern than to risk gaining.

Do we feel that way about what God has given us? That we are afraid of being told we didn’t do good enough and we should have tried harder? Are we hung up on hearing God say, “Welcome home, well done good and faithful servant,” that we don’t try because we are afraid we will fail?

Obviously, this master is not God or not like God, but Jesus told this parable to help us understand we can not just hide away. We need to use what we have been given. If we lose it, big deal, we tried and showed the world what we got.

Do not be afraid to fail. Put yourself out there and live love out loud.

Loving People. Loving God.

All Saints

Jesus raised his eyes to his disciples and said:

“Happy are you who are poor,
    because God’s kingdom is yours.
Happy are you who hunger now,
    because you will be satisfied.
Happy are you who weep now,
    because you will laugh.

Happy are you when people hate you, reject you, insult you, and condemn your name as evil because of the Human One. Rejoice when that happens! Leap for joy because you have a great reward in heaven. Their ancestors did the same things to the prophets.

But how terrible for you who are rich,
    because you have already received your comfort.
How terrible for you who have plenty now,
    because you will be hungry.
How terrible for you who laugh now,
    because you will mourn and weep.
How terrible for you when all speak well of you.
    Their ancestors did the same things to the false prophets.

“But I say to you who are willing to hear: Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on the cheek, offer the other one as well. If someone takes your coat, don’t withhold your shirt either. Give to everyone who asks and don’t demand your things back from those who take them. Treat people in the same way that you want them to treat you. (Luke 6:20-31, CEB)

Happy are they who are:
poor
hunger
weep
rejected

Not the normal list we think of when we think happy or blessed.

But the Kindom of God isn’t like our world.

God’s Kindom is a place where the lowly are lifted up and the proud are brought down. It is a place where we are all equal. It is a place where there is nothing that separates us. We are all the same.

Know that you are a saint of God surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses and saints gone before us.

Do not let this world pull you down but be lifted up in the love of God.

Loving People. Loving God.

Charismatic

What aspect of the charismatic tradition resonated with you, and how could it continue to be part of your spiritual journey?

It is interesting to me that the Charismatic movement is the movement that seems to follow the Holy Spirit more than others and the word Charismatic has Charis in it, which is grace. When you look up Charismatic though the current definition doesn’t mention grace. But it is interesting to me that grace is the undergirding for this movement that looks to the involvement of the Spirit to lead and guide the members.

And that is what resonates with me from this class, the moving of the Spirit. We get so caught up as Lutherans about doing things the right way and sometimes stifling the Spirit. We are so caught up in making sure we are showing good practice and not seeming like we are just off on a whim. And sometimes we need to give up good practice and follow where the Spirit is leading.

We had a discussion about baptism and the coming of the Spirit and if that happens during water baptism or some other time. Our service from the ELW seems to say that when we place the mark of the cross on the forehead of the person being baptized at that moment that is when the Spirit comes, and honestly, I can say that that happens, but I am also very overwhelmed by the power that places through me. I believe that the Spirit comes when the Spirit comes and no words will make the Spirit do anything. Now, when we ask for the Spirit to be present God is present, but that is not telling God what to do, that is inviting God into our midst. But saying that we control the Spirit in baptism is overwhelming for me.

But on that note, I want to follow the leading and guiding the spirit more. I follow the guidance of the Spirit when moving calls, and other big decisions but there needs to be a following of the Spirit on a moment-by-moment basis. I feel like as Lutherans we push the Spirit aside and do not follow the guidance of God because it doesn’t seem to be good orthopraxy. I need to be more open to the flowing of God. I know that God moves us and works through us. I have said several times and believe that God’s will will be done through us or in spite of us. But that doesn’t mean I follow the guidance of the Spirit.

Maybe if all of us actually followed the Spirit and do what the guidance is what would the world be like? Would peace really reign?

This would be the piece that I would like to incorporate more into my life. To let go of my control and allow God to actually have the control that I say God does. Can I let God actually have control? This is something that is really scary because we want to always have control, but ultimately we do not. Even though we want to make it seem we do have control.

Reformation

Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, in order to shut every mouth and make it so the whole world has to answer to God. It follows that no human being will be treated as righteous in his presence by doing what the Law says, because the knowledge of sin comes through the Law. But now God’s righteousness has been revealed apart from the Law, which is confirmed by the Law and the Prophets. God’s righteousness comes through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who have faith in him. There’s no distinction. All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory, but all are treated as righteous freely by his grace because of a ransom that was paid by Christ Jesus. Through his faithfulness, God displayed Jesus as the place of sacrifice where mercy is found by means of his blood. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness in passing over sins that happened before, during the time of God’s patient tolerance. He also did this to demonstrate that he is righteous in the present time, and to treat the one who has faith in Jesus as righteous. What happens to our bragging? It’s thrown out. With which law? With what we have accomplished under the Law? No, not at all, but through the law of faith. We consider that a person is treated as righteous by faith, apart from what is accomplished under the Law. (Romans 3:19-28, CEB)

We are all sinners in the eyes of God, but when we are covered by Jesus, God doesn’t see our sins, God sees Christ’s perfection.

You see there is no amount of good works any person can do to appease God, to pay the price of our sinfulness. We can not ever do enough good. And no matter who we are we have sinned and caused ourselves to not be in right with God. Even the angels have to cover their faces to not see God, and God mooned Moses when Moses got the tablets on the mountain. None of us are ever going to be worthy on our own.

But thanks be to God for Jesus who was faithful to the plan and made a way for us to be right with God.

Share the grace you have been given and love the world.

Loving People. Loving God.