Real People

Our mission at Community Lutheran Church is defined with eight words:

Real People

Inclusive God

Radical Grace

Inspired Growth

Over the next four weeks, we are going to be taking a deeper look at each of these phrases individually. This weekend we will try to gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be Real People. 

On one hand, being Real People is perfectly obvious. We can only be ourselves, and trying to be anyone else is ridiculous. However, we can spend a ton of time trying to hide our failures or even the truest parts of ourselves from others. It is not easy being vulnerable, and can be hard to admit that we are not perfect. 

A couple weeks ago, I had a conversation with a handful of teenagers. I asked how many of them had people in their lives they could talk honestly to. About half of these kids said they wouldn't share their deepest secrets, or their truest selves, with anybody. They had learned not to trust, and they believed they were more likly to end up worse off if they opened themselves up to being vulnerable.  

Now I know this group of kids is not a statistically significant sample, but there are plenty of people who feel this way. If we can't trust others, I don't think we will ever realize our full potential. As a chuch, we are called to embrace everyone. We shouldn't judge others for their misteps, and we shouldn't judge ourselves. We all need to take time to recognize that God beleives in us, and Christ loves us just as we are. 

Today I hope we can see ourselves honestly. It is okay to be imperfect. Let's be gracious to one another, and let's take a little extra time to share God's Love with a broken world. We all need to hear this Good News.

Blessings!

Brian Ward

Holy Week

Do you consider these days holy?

Where are you searching for the resurrection?

Where do you see God today?

In the church, we believe it is important to remember the difficult path that Jesus took to the cross. When I was younger, I did not really like all the somber Holy Week services. I wanted to play outside with my friends and enjoy the first days of Spring. Instead, I would go to church and sing countless verses of the hymn:  "Jesus in Thy Dying Woes." I knew these services were important, but I really wanted to be somewhere else...

There are moments in life that we all want to skip. No one wants to dwell in the moments of defeat and failure, but the Scriptures tell us to remember these times. It is not healthy to pretend that life is perfect. It is not safe to say that we do not need grace. Jesus took time to pause with his disciples and sit in the difficult moments. Jesus stayed with them in their fears and doubts, and he taught them how to love. 

Over the past few weeks there have been several members of our church who have faced illness and tragedy. Plans made with joy just months earlier, have fallen apart. As a church, it is impossible to pretend these difficulties did not exist. We need to stay beside each other. We may feel more questions then answers, but we also trust that God is with us. I know that the moments I have spent with people in these times are incredibly holy, and I would not want to be anywhere else.

Although we may not always want to dwell in the moments of despair, Jesus showed us compassion. I think these worship services during Holy Week are incredibly important, and they are a reminder for us to share Christ's Love. I am reminded of how important and even sacred it is to sit with people in the midst of their suffering. I don't think any of us are able to show a perfect love, but together we can offer hope. 

Today I pray you can all take the time needed to have compassion for the people near you. There are going to be people you meet who need to hear of Christ's Love. There are people who need to know they are not alone. I hope our church can offer a bit of hope in a world filled with pain. We are not always called to provide the answers. We can simply offer a love in the midst of all the questions. The resurrection is coming, but let's take time to share God's Love along the way.

Shalom,

Pastor Brian

Grace for the Journey

In 2005, I led a backpacking trip in Colorado. During that trip, I would often remind the campers not to focus too much on the destination. Everybody wanted to make it to the top of the mountain. We all understandably wanted to complete the journey and return home victorious. However, I knew if we were not careful we would miss countless moments of beauty along the way. There were going to be unexpected vistas, sunrises, flowers, and conversations shared together that would all point to the presence of God. 

In our sermon series, Jesus is on a journey from the north of Israel down to Jerusalem. This week we are going to hear the story of Christ after he arrives in the city of Jericho. Things were really becoming exciting for the disciples at this point. There was energy moving through the crowd, and people could not wait for Jesus to get to Jerusalem. 

I think it is wonderful for people to be excited, but the crowds in the time of Jesus were missing the point. They were expecting their version of a fairy tale. They wanted to crush the Romans and live happily ever after. They were not expecting a cross. They were not looking for God's Grace on their journey.

It is interesting that Jesus never becomes overly exasperated with his followers. He simply reminds them of the blessings that were present along the way. In the city of Jericho, the crowd was pushing Jesus forward, but Christ stopped to listen to the voice of a blind man crying out for help. It can be easy to ignore the voice of the downtrodden. We like to listen to influential and powerful people, but Christ hears everyone's voice. He reminds us not to get so focused on our destination, that we lose sight of our neighbors. 

My time leading backpacking trips were incredible. There were a number of mountaintop moments that I wouldn't ever trade. However, there were also hail and lightning storms. There were sick kids. There was even a time when the kids forgot their tent, and we had to sleep outside in swarms of mosquitoes. Nothing ever turned out exactly like we planned it, but it was a joy to experience the unexpected. I think there is so much to the journey of life that we don't want to miss. God is near to you today. Are you taking it all in?

Blessings!

Brian Ward

Finding our way

Where is God's grace leading you? 

At the beginning of this month, I was able to celebrate the 7th birthday of my son. It was so amazing to see his energy and excitement. It was also the perfect day for a party. He was able to run around with his friends, eat birthday cake, and feel a lot of love from his community. Celebrating these milestones is a wonderful experience, and it makes me feel like we are all a part of something wonderful. I love taking these moments to pause and think about all the ways we can develop and improve as a people. I believe in celebrating the multitude of gifts we have and sharing them with each another. 

However, I can just as easily look at the world with distrust and fear. There are a number of very real concerns in our world, and we cannot just pretend these things don't exist. There is war in Ukraine and a threat of nuclear escalation. We are still in the midst of a pandemic, and there are a number of other mental and physical illnesses that are impacting us. 

Where are we being led? What is going to happen? Who are you turning to?

In our sermon series at Community Lutheran, we are on a journey with Jesus to Jerusalem. When Christ took a path that led him to the cross, he decided to live for what really mattered. He was not going to just share God's grace with his friends, he was going to share this gift with all people, even his enemies. Along his journey, there were moments of difficulty. Some of the people who followed Him didn't want to face the pain. However, Jesus told them that God's love would still provide. Those early followers saw a lot of danger and despair, and it certainly seemed like Christ's death was going to steal any hope they had of victory. Hope was fading, but there was a light in that darkness. Death was not the end.

Today, we are facing real trials on our journey of life, but God has promised to be there for us. There are going to be trials and difficulties, but I believe there is also hope. It is my prayer that we would all find a way to have faith in this season. There are blessings in the world around us. There is grace in the world around us. There is Good News that we need to share. Let us offer a bit of light to the world, and let us live with a bit of faith in God's Love.  

In Christ,

Brian 

Happy Spring!

We are entering into the season of Lent as a church. This season remembers the journey that Jesus took to the cross. Many people also view it as a somber time when followers are encouraged to give something up. Some of my friends are fasting from things like chocolate, alcohol, or social media. These individuals remember the suffering of Jesus, and they become a little more tuned in to Christ's work in their lives. 

However, Lent is so much more than giving something up. The word Lent actually means "Spring" in Latin. This is a season all about new life and new opportunities. Jesus taught that there needs to be a time of letting go. There needs to be a time when it is okay to say goodbye to all of the things we think we need. There is a season when we need to experience a kind of death. If we don't have a place where we can leave our ego and sense of entitlement behind, we can lose sight of the things that truly matter. 

Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who lets go of their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

-Jesus in John 12:24

Jesus taught us about love, but He also taught us about vulnerability. If we don't take time to open our hearts to the new life being created, I think we are also going to miss out on the grace being shared everyday. Therefore, I do not believe Lent should only be about suffering and lament. This is a season to grow. This is a season to discover a new identity in Christ. So it doesn't matter if you are giving something up or enacting a new practice, this is a season of hope. You are becoming someone new, because you are loved. Let us enter into this season with vulnerability and grace. 

God is with you! Happy Spring!

Pastor Brian

What truly matters...

Last night my son was working on some of his first-grade homework. He had to write about a place that was meaningful for him. After thinking for a while, he chose to write about a trip we took to Florida to see his Great-Grandpa before the pandemic. We did a lot on that trip two years ago, but it was interesting to see what he remembered. He was only four years old when we took that trip, so it isn't surprising that he can't remember every detail. He did not have a great recollection of Lego Land or some of the other touristy things. Instead, he remembered eating ice cream with his Aunt, seeing his grandparents, and going on long walks through the "jungle" with his family. It was its own kind of mountaintop experience. He was able to see the world in a new way, and he found a new perspective. It also highlights the fact that sharing these moments with loved ones was the most important part for him.

There are times we forget the significance of the Love that surrounds us. We search for meaning in the small or insignifcant stuff. In the Bible, there is a story of a Samaritan woman who was finding meaning in all the wrong things. Jesus speaks to her saying:

"A time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem… The true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth."

-John 4:21, 23

This unnamed woman in the Bible would have been seen as an outcast. By talking to Jesus, she realized that she was focused on all the wrong things. She was worried about where she fit in. Jesus tells her to come to God with honesty. God values the love she brings, and she does not have to hide her imperfections.

I think we all get caught up in the details. It is important for each of us to open our hearts and take note of God's Love. Let's take time to notice the grace that is present in our lives, and let's take time to experience these blessings with the people around us.

In Peace and Hope,

Brian Ward

Following Love

“My people have been lost sheep;

their shepherds have led them astray.

-Jeremiah 50:6

Have you ever felt led astray? In our scripture passage this week, God’s people listened to the voices of false prophets. They wanted to hear an easy message that told them that everything would be all right. They wanted to hear that they could blame their mistakes on someone else. They didn’t want to see the victims of their own injustices, and they didn’t want to hear about their responsibility to make things better…

This text was written over 2,500 years ago, but it is still one of our most relevant passages. Today, we live in a different context, but there are still a lot of similarities. Humans have always wanted to pin their mistakes on someone else. Like Adam and Eve, we want to hide from our own sin, but God is still calling to us:

God’s people will ask the way to home

and turn their faces toward it.

-Jeremiah 50:5

Are you listening to the voice of the Good Shepherd? The shepherd who is calling to us to learn from our mistakes. Jesus came to tell us that there is always a new path, but we have to face our own sins with vulnerability first.

This past week I spent a lot of time working from home with a three-year-old boy. Our daycare had to shut down for a while to stop the spread of Covid. This has sent me right back to life in quarantine and a lot of frustrating situations. I am getting pretty anxious to get back to normal. However, it has also led to a lot of one on one time with my three-year-old. It is hard to get a lot of work done when he is around, but he is certainly cherishing every moment. He is also really tuned into the things that matter. He knows exactly where I am putting my attention and love. He will catch me immediately if I grab my phone or try to tune him out to do something “important.” 

There are so many distractions in this world that try to keep us from the love that is right in front of us. These distractions, or false idols, try to lead us astray from Love. They say they can give us happiness or joy sooner and better than anything else. However, the scriptures tell us that the greatest gift is love. God is with us. Let us take the time to follow the Good Shepherd and find God’s Love in our own lives.

Blessings,

-Brian