Category: Current Events

by The Rev. Mark E. Sell

In a few months, the citizens of the United States will elect a new president. Are you afraid? Does the idea of a close race make you worry about your home being burnt down? Will protesters murder anyone in your family because they voted the wrong way, or are the wrong ethnicity or race? Thanks be to God, this isn’t something we usually have to worry about after elections in our country.

If you were living in a place like Kibera, Kenya, you might wake up while it’s still dark, next to three of your siblings on the dirt floor. Actually, it’s not really dirt on the floor, but rather a mixture of dung and mud covered with a soupy concoction of water, dirt, and more dung. Once dried, it hardens the surface to avoid dust or breaking apart.

Kibera is the second largest slum in the world, where one million people live in six square miles of poverty, disease – and since the elections December 2007 – dangerous political unrest.

This morning, like most other mornings, you rub your eyes and roll out of “bed”, trying not to hurt your brother. It’s early and you’d rather sleep, but as you look around your one-room home you know that the younger kids won’t eat today unless you feed them.

After scrambling around for a kerosene lamp (assuming you had money to buy kerosene this week) you light it so you can see to start breakfast. Once your eyes adjust to the light, you would probably squat over the hole in one corner of your home and go to the bathroom, which runs under the wall and spills out into the “ditch” running in front of every home in the neighborhood. It’s the closest thing to a “sewer system” in your city.

By 5:00 a.m. the wood needs to be lit so you can boil water for porridge. If you’re fortunate, you have chickens (which run around outside during the day, but at night they sleep inside the house with you) and can cook some eggs too. You glance around, automatically looking for the school uniforms – oh, that’s right, no school today.

There is no school not because of snow or a national holiday, but because protesters looted and burned the school building.

It’s not safe for children to go outside and play today because the rioting thugs might attack them, or even rape the girls.

You daydream about walking the kids to school again – maybe next week. As you think about getting the kids back to school, you hope you might be able to go to school too some day.

If only life could get back to normal. You wouldn’t look at anyone on the street, you know better than that. The gangs might find out that you’re a member of the wrong tribe and beat you up. They’d figure out where you live and steal the few things you own. They’d take your home or burn it down. Then what?

Call the police? The police are busy trying to restore order in Nairobi, 20 minutes away. They don’t bother with the slums of Kibera.

The day unfolds with daydreams of peace contrasted with the sights of suffering. You hope to get more food, but doing so is difficult because protesters looted and torched most of the shops. Thankfully, Springs of Life Lutheran church was handing out food, or you would be even hungrier. Hopefully the medical clinic at church will reopen soon. One of the kids is getting sick and the medicine they gave you last time was so helpful.

At least Pastor Meeker said he would have church on Sunday. Finally, a little bit of normalcy. You will pray together for help, order, and mercy. It’ll be great to see friends and know you’re safe for a while, even though it still smells like smoke. There is order in church. It is the one thing you can count on right now. The familiar words of the liturgy feel safe because they are from scripture. You need God to be present in your life, especially now.

You learned how the words of the liturgy bring mercy and grace with the hope of your salvation. It brings peace and the presence of God in Christ’s resurrected body and blood in the midst of the riots, rapes, and turmoil. It brings heaven, even to the slums of Kibera with all of its sinful problems. Even though you’d be sitting in the hellish reality of your burned-out church building, it is the Kingdom of God present right here for you. Church is a feast that never runs out and heals the diseases of the soul.

When you see Pastor Meeker, you might wonder why an Iowa farmer married a Kenyan and serves in the slums. You might wonder what America is like, where they don’t kill people when the elections get messed up.

So starts an average day in the Kibera slums since the presidential elections on December 27, 2007. When school starts again, students will learn to read and write in a room with no roof, the smell of smoke and wet ash hanging in the air, and probably half of the children missing… hopefully just because they moved away from the rioting. But in just a couple of months, over 1,000 Kenyans have died throughout the country since the rioting started.

Thanks be to God! He blesses us with such good government and peace in Christ. The Lord has given us a life of great blessings, abundance, and peace. We pray for the children, youth, and adults of our sister churches in Kenya, confident that our Savior will continue to forgive and renew them with His Holy Gifts!

Copyright Mark E. Sell, 2008

Ed. Just a couple weeks after the turmoil, a handful of children and a few teachers resumed school in the Springs of Life Lutheran Church basement. As time has passed, greater numbers are returning. The Lord continues to bless them in the midst of this trial. –RAH

The Rev. Mark E. Sell is Executive Director of TheFriendsOfMercy.org. Pastor Sell blogs regularly about mission work among people of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya at The Friends of Mercy. He posts many ways in which others can support the Lord’s work in Kenya through their prayers and gifts.

Why do these things happen? Why do college students die? What motivates someone to do something so horrific? And on Valentine’s Day too! We cry out to God for an answer, and He is silent. He says nothing. What then? What do you do when something hits you so hard that you have no clue why God did that or even allowed for that to happen?

Christ. That is what we know about God and what He does. All that we know about God, is revealed in Christ. Outside of Christ, we have no idea why things happen. Outside of Christ, this world is just a violent, turbulent place. Outside of Christ, God can seem like He doesn’t even care what happens.

Our God does indeed care about what happens to us in this world. He mourns with us. Sighs with us. He is horrified with us. Cries with us. How could He not? After all, He gave up His Son!

Cling to that Word. Hold fast to it. In a world where everything is upside down, Christ alone is the ground of certainty. Christ came for you. Christ lived for you. Christ suffered for you. Christ died for you. Christ rose for you.

What He did was made yours in your Baptism. That’s where the “for you” becomes “for me.” That’s where the Lord gives to your all that He achieved and won for you on the Cross.

Why did God allow such a thing? I don’t know. Sin? The Devil? The world? Take your pick. I don’t know why things happen in this fallen world.

All I know is that the Father sent His Son for me to save me from sin, death, and the power of the devil. To make me a child of God, to wash my sins away, to deliver me from this veil of tears. He saved you too.

After that, there’s nothing that can be said. In fact, in times like these, that’s all we can say. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

God loved the world in this way, He gave up His Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).

by Jon Kohlmeier

This past weekend I attended the Higher Things Retreat, “Watermarked” hosted by Trinity Lutheran Church in Sheboygan, WI. It was as great as everything else that Higher Things has to offer.

We worshiped! We got to pray such offices at Matins, Vespers, Evening Prayer and Compline. Another great gift that those in attendance received was the opportunity for both Private Confession and Absolution and also a service of Corporate Confession and Absolution. Many who were at “Watermarked” had never gotten to experience this. The Pastors laid their hands on our foreheads and said, “In the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”

Wow! Thats AWESOME! Hands-on Absolution!

So what does my title “All Means All” have to do with this? One of the most memorable quotes from Pr. Borghardt was this: “Lutheranism is simple; all means All, is means IS, and I forgive you means I forgive you!” It’s true! Christ tells His apostles in the last verses of Matthew: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” All means all! All nations means all nations. From a small infant to a tall adult and everywhere in between. All means All! When we each received individual Absolution the pastor forgave all of our sins. All of them! The ones we committed when we were very young to ones we committed just minutes ago to ones we will commit on our death beds. All of them! Christ died for ALL of them before we were born. ALL means ALL.

The next part of the quote, “Is means IS,” talks about Communion. When Christ instituted Holy Communion He said, “This IS My Body,” and “This IS My Blood.” IS means IS! When we receive the Lords supper we receive His Body and Blood for the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting. And, best of all, “I forgive you” means just that! I forgive you!

Baptism is a very important thing. In Mark 16, Christ says, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Christ commands that “all nations” are to be baptized. Christ died for the sins of the world. Here he says whoever believes AND is baptized will be saved. In his Small Catechism, Luther suggests that the first thing we do when we wake up is make the sign of the cross in remembrance of our baptism. He also suggests that the last thing we do before we go to sleep is make the sign of the cross in remembrance of our baptism.

So we worshiped, we worked, but what about play? Didn’t we have any fun the whole weekend?! This was a youth retreat after all. If you asked the youth who attended Watermarked, most of them would probably say that they enjoyed the worship and Bible study as much, if not more, than the fun that we did have. On Friday, we had a “Meet and Greet” activity. Each of us had a name put on our back and we had to go around asking yes or no questions to figure out who we were. There were people from theology (I was Martin Luther), pop culture, even animated commercial characters like Pr. Borghardt who was the Geico Gecko.

On Saturday, we all got to experience a Sheboygan Brat Fry. Then, of course what better thing to do at a retreat called “Watermarked,” than play in water! Saturday afternoon was spent at the Blue Harbor Indoor Water Park. Of course there was a certain Texan playing in a more frozen form of H2O every time he walked outside. Pr. Borghardt just seemed to find the snow amazing.

“Watermarked” was a great experience for all who attended. We made new friends and met up with old ones. We learned some great things about what God has done for us. We rejoiced in our Baptism and all the gifts that Christ freely gives!

God’s Own Child, I Gladly Say It – LSB 594

4. Death, you cannot end my gladness: I am baptized into Christ!
When I die, I leave I leave all sadness To inherit paradise!
Though I lie in dust and ashes Faith’s assurance brightly flashes;
Baptism has the strength divine To make life immortal mine.

5. There is nothing worth comparing To this lifelong comfort sure!
Open-eyed my grave is staring: Even there I’ll sleep secure.
Though my flesh awaits its raising, Still my soul continues praising:
I am baptized into Christ; I’m a child of paradise!

Jonathan Kohlmeier is a Freshman at Concordia University – Wisconsin. He volunteers with Higher Things Internet Services, serving as myHT content manager. Jon has also written O Love, How Deep.

by Darrell Wacker

        The BCS Championship game between Ohio State and LSU was played last night and what a performance by the “Bayou Bengals.” While taking Ohio State’s best shot in the opening minutes, LSU remained steady, stayed true to their game plan, and ultimately dominated the Buckeyes. As a long-suffering University of Kentucky football fan (I know, I know!) I am always in a distinct minority here in southwestern Ohio, where they think that “The Ohio State University” reigns supreme. I must admit my sinful nature feels a sense of satisfaction in seeing LSU manhandle the Buckeyes, if for no other reason than to say “I told you so” to all these Buckeye fans I live and work with.

I see many similarities between that football game and the game of life. I’m sure both teams were really excited about the opportunity to play for a “national championship,” and both teams endured a grueling season and many hardships along the way to put them in that game. And both teams lost during the season, with the champion Tigers losing twice. Neither team was perfect – in fact, they weren’t even close to perfect.

We aren’t perfect either – in fact we are far from it. We endure hardships, trials and temptations. We are barraged with sexually suggestive messages constantly. Alcohol use is rampant in high schools, and drug use is always around. Celebrities are front page news for their sinful lifestyles and lurid behavior, yet our society almost worships them. Peer pressure to look, act, or dress a certain way or do things which we know are wrong is a constant trial for most of us.

Like the early part of the football game, it seems that the world has taken a huge lead. When we look around us and see all of the things going on in our schools, our communities, the world at large, and yes, even the Church, it seems that Satan has a huge lead and is threatening to run away from us and win.

Thankfully, however, the game is not over. Better yet, we already know the final score, that in Jesus Christ, God has already fought and won the victory for us. Now He desires to give us freely the fruits of that victory – not a trophy made with hands, but eternal life, forgiveness of sins, and salvation from the hardships, trials, and temptations of this world.

Like LSU when they were behind, Christians need to remain steady and endure the hardships that will surely come. Christians shouldn’t be afraid to stand against the wind, resisting a culture that becomes seemingly more immoral every day. We shouldn’t be afraid to stand against pre-marital sex, drugs, alcohol, cheating, or any of the other temptations that come our way because Christians know that God has won the victory over those things already, Satan and his tricks are judged, the “deed is done”, the victory remains ours in Jesus Christ.

Jesus will return on the last day, and all believers will rise to meet Him, while unbelievers will be cast away with Satan. Our faith in the obedient life, death, and resurrection of Jesus will allow us to enter into the presence of the God who created us without sin or imperfection, just like God intended us to be when He created Adam and Eve.

All of us will fall prey to sin and feel the sting of its consequences, but that’s not where it ends-the Church is where forgiveness and absolution is found, unlike the world that often condones or excuses sin. St. Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 to “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing…abstain from every evil.” So, Christians need to pray continually that God would give us the fruits of His victory in Jesus Christ. He gives these fruits to us at the Divine Service. There, God gives us His gifts and we are strengthened for our own daily battles. The Church is where God comes to us in the very body and blood of Jesus in, with, and under the bread and wine for the forgiveness of sin. The Church is where we are reminded over and over again of our Baptism and that we are part of a larger family that loves and supports us.

God uses our fellow believers to console us and encourage us. Being surrounded with other believers is a tremendous blessing and a defense against the Evil One. God can use our Christian friends to help us resist worldly temptations. God also gives us loving and forgiving parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles who love us in spite of the selfish, sinful things we do. While it may be hard to believe, they have faced many of the same temptations as you, and they might have even given in to them as well. For those of you who don’t have someone that close or are uncomfortable with talking to a relative, your Pastor can be a great person to talk to. He will give you the comfort and peace that comes from God’s Word.

God has provided many tools to help us stay steady and stay faithful. It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can come to faith, and it is only by God’s grace and mercy that we can remain in the faith, standing against Satan and the world. When we inevitably fail, it is only God who can forgive and restore us through Jesus. Finally, God will also raise us to new life on the last day to spend eternity with Him. Come Lord Jesus!

A Pastor’s Wife Visits Christ Church, Erfurt

by Glenda Mumme

While in Germany we visited many churches. Some were Lutheran, some weren’t. Some were very ornate, some were not. The one thing all of them made me do when I walked inside was look up. The grandeur of the building, the soaring sides to the very high ceiling added to the sense of majesty and holiness of the space.

But the one church that, by far, was the most beautiful and precious to David and I was Christekirche in Erfurt. Not because of the way it looked, because it was the plainest, least ornate church of all we had seen, but because of what we received, which was more beautiful than anything we had seen.

Christekirche is a member of the SELK, the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church, in Germany. SELK is our “sister synod,” in full fellowship with the LCMS.

Cousin Jonathan Mumme had spent a year as a vicar in Berlin. He gave Paul a church and pastor’s name to contact. Paul was able to email Pr. Schneider and ask if it would be okay for 50 Americans to come and worship with them on Sunday morning. Pr. Schneider was delighted to welcome us.

While in Eisenach the day before, we met another group. Pr. Gier, who knew Mark at the seminary, was leading 16 from his church on a Lutherland tour. When he found out where we would be worshipping on Sunday morning, he was able to work it out with his tour guide to join us. Therefore 76 Americans descended upon Christekirche on Sunday morning, Nov. 4, 2007.

We arrived early and had the opportunity to look around at the church and for Paul, Mark, David and Pr. Gier to visit with Pr. Schneider. The church was in need of repairs having been under the communist regime for many years. There were flyers in the narthex informing members of upcoming fundraisers to help with the repairs.

The outside and inside of the church were very plain compared to other churches we had visited and would visit in the coming days. No beautiful paintings or stain glass windows. No ornate crucifixes or pulpits. It was all very “plain” to the eye.

It was also chilly. Stone walls do that. Once all the Americans were settled in the pews and were given some hints as to what to expect, some of the German parishioners began to arrive.

Every one of them came to the vestry to announce to Pr. Schneider their intention of communing that morning. All smiled genuinely at us, welcoming us with their faces. At the beginning of the service, Pr. Schneider welcomed the congregation in German and then also in English.

We had their hymnal, similar in size to the new personal editions of LSB. David was able to follow along and point where we were so that he and I were able to try and pronounce the German liturgy and hymns.

All came forward to receive absolution with Pastor laying his hand on each parishioner announcing God’s grace, mercy and forgiveness. He said it in German for his parishioners and in English for us Americans. Notice there aren’t any railings, although there is a cushion to kneel upon. That was a bit tricky for some of our older members to get up and down without the aid of a rail.

The German parishioners sang and sang well. They didn’t need prompting for when to stand, kneel, or respond with an “Amen”. There weren’t ushers. When it was time for the absolution, everyone came forward to fill a “table.” It was the same for receiving the sacrament. Once a table was dismissed others came forward to fill the next.

Pr. Schneider preached in German. But he had translated his sermon into English. One of his parishioners stood to the side and after he preached in German for about a paragraph, he would look at her and she would read in English what he had just said. A couple of times he stopped and looked at her, she shook her head “no,” he continued. then when she spoke, it was only a few words. The look on her face made us think she was thinking that we would never believe that all those words he had just spoke in German were only a few in English.

I also loved how many of the chant lines were the same, especially the proper preface. When Pastor Schneider began chanting, I could sing along and know what he was saying. “It is truly, good right and sal-u-u-tar-r -y,…..”

After the service Pr. Schneider welcomed us and asked us to stay for refreshments and to visit with the members. Unfortunately we had to go. But we were so thankful to have been blessed to worship with the saints in Erfurt. Hopefully we will again one day on earth, but if not, we look forward to the day we will worship with them and the whole company of heaven for all eternity.

Why was this the most beautiful church in Germany? Why did it impress me more than the soaring spires, amazing detail, and incredible artwork of many other churches and cathedrals? Because here God came to me in His word preached and in His Body and Blood given and shed for the forgiveness of my sins. There isn’t anything more beautiful or precious than that!

Glenda is the wife of the Rev. David Mumme. She homeschools their five children who now are dreaming of the day they get to visit Germany.

by Darrell Wacker

“For my eyes have seen your salvation
     that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
     and for glory to your people Israel.”
Luke 2:30-32 ESV

A recent story in the news recounted the story of three University of Texas students who had gone spelunking-or cave exploring-and became lost and disoriented. The students were plunged into complete darkness for nearly 30 hours in a world completely foreign to them-dark, damp, quiet, devoid of life. As their fear increased and the hours went by, doubt of being found began to set in, despite the fact that they had left clues for anyone who might come looking for them.

It seems our three explorers must have had a hunch something might go wrong, because they left items behind on their way into the cave, marking their path. Rescuers found empty water bottles, cell phones, and fresh leaves to indicate where the cavers had been, and used those items to eventually find them muddy, wet, hungry, and thirsty, yet otherwise unharmed.

I am sure that more than once during their ordeal one or all of the students wished they had a flashlight or a match-anything at all that could provide a glimmer of light that would comfort them, calm their fear, perhaps show them the way out.

Light comes in many forms-from the warm rays of the sun on a summer day, to the flickering of a flame on a candle. All of us rely on light to accomplish the tasks of each day, and we often take it for granted. After all, flipping a light switch to turn on a light certainly isn’t remarkable-its only remarkable if the light doesn’t come on. Lights are all around us, a part of our very existence.

There was a time, though, when that wasn’t the case. As a matter of fact, there was a time when light itself didn’t even exist. The earth was dark, formless, and empty-only the Spirit of God existed. With four simple words, however, God changed the universe eternally-“Let there be light.” Thus began the creation of the earth, the stars and planets, the creatures of the seas, and finally, man, the pinnacle of God’s creation, created in God’s own image.

Unfortunately, that’s not the end of the story, for if it was, the earth would still be perfect, basking in God’s light, with no sickness, war, or death. The story continues not with a happily-ever-after tale, but instead with rebellion, sin, murder, and judgment. Adam and Eve plunged our world into darkness of a new kind, one that had never been known. It is the darkness of separation-separation from the God who created us, who loves us, and who grieves over our sin.

Although not a perfect comparison, that darkness is in some ways similar to that the three Texas students found themselves in-utter, lonely darkness, and complete separation from the world they knew, with no light whatsoever.

Sin drives each of us into that same sort of darkness-separated from the God who loves us, and separated from the persons we have sinned against. Just like the cavers who wanted to descend into the cave, our sinful nature plunges us into sin willfully, not thinking about the consequences. Sin leaves us in a deep, dark hole that leads to fear, loneliness, and ultimately death.

Thankfully, God doesn’t leave us in the deep darkness of sin. Unable to rescue ourselves, God knows just where we are, who we are, and more importantly, whose we are. He seeks us out, not because we deserve it, but because of His mercy and grace, and He provides us the true Light-Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the Light that shatters the darkness of our sin, allowing us to emerge from the shadows to new life in Him. The perfect life, death, and resurrection of Christ accomplishes that what we cannot do ourselves-defeat of sin, death, and the devil-and in turn gives each of us a new life, both now and for eternity.

Through the proclamation of God’s Word, our Lord casts light where there is darkness, proclaims freedom to the captives of sin, and reveals the true Light-Jesus. Through the waters of Holy Baptism and the body and blood of our savior in the Sacrament of the Altar God gives forgiveness of sins, and creates new life and light in each of us.

God’s Word can be harsh at first, showing us our sin, pointing out where we fall short. It’s harsh when a light is turned on first thing in the morning, and it was even harder for the cavers to adjust to the bright light as they emerged from the darkness, and so it is with the Word. Yet with the harshness also comes salvation as revealed in the person and work of Jesus on the cross. Once the Light has been revealed, we can sing with Simeon “my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people.”

Darrell Wacker is a member of St. Timothy Lutheran Church in Huber Heights, Ohio, where he serves on the Parish Education Committee and as a Communion Assistant.  He works for the YMCA of Greene County as a Grant Writer and as a freelance sports writer covering high school sports for Times Community Newspapers in Dayton, Ohio.  He is the husband of Barbara, and the father of Matthew (19) and Daniel (7).

by The Rev. George F. Borghardt
http://blog.higherthings.org/borghardt/article/2938.html

It’s the HT-wake or HT-afterglow. It goes like this…

The Lord takes His Word and flings it haphazardly at 2200 kids and their counselors. He gives them the FOR YOU delivering faith where and when He pleases in those who hear the Gospel (AC V).

The Lord splashes the youth with His Words and promises and their pastors get caught in the wake of His splashing. Into their ears goes forgiveness, into our ears goes forgiveness too. Joy into their lives, joys into our lives too. Light in darkness for them. Light in darkness for us.

It’s not why we do what we do, the Lord does what He does through us for the sake of the youth. But, as He’s flinging seeds around and they are bouncing off walls, they even land into our ears.

Or the light goes on in a youth’s mind. “Pastor, that’s just what I learned in confirmation. Pastor, that’s the same Gospel that you taught me. That’s just what you preached!” You get it. We sees you get it. Talk about sharing all things with the one who instructed you!

And for a moment, no one is complaining that someone looked at them funny in church. For a second, no one is trying to remove us because we said their son’s name wrong in the prayers. No one is asking us to commune their pentecostal uncle who really loves Jesus but doesn’t believe that Jesus actually gives His Body to eat and His Blood to drink in the Sacrament.

Is it the theology of glory? No, the Light of the World shines so brightly that His light reflects off the faces of the kids and our eyes even see it. It’s like a cup of water for the least of these dear little ones…

Is it dangerous? Sure. There’s always danger when we sinners do our thing. Oh how wonderfully popular I have become! Look at me! Praise me!

But it’s not about me, is it? Never was. Always Christ crucified for them. In the wake of His love for them delivered in the Word and Sacraments, even pastors go home changed.

It’s the HT-wake or HT-afterglow. From Christ to the kids and then to their pastors. You can see it on the face of your pastor who is smiling a bit more than he did before the conference. INI. Amen.

myHT thanks the Femlems for the use of the photo of the new Conferences Executive (Pastor Borghardt) receiving a heavenly massage!

The Rev. George F. Borghardt III is the assistant/youth pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church in Conroe, TX.  Pastor Borghardt is also the former Internet Services Executive for Higher Things, now enjoying (too much?) his new post as HT Conferences Executive.