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Categories
Pop. Culture & the Arts

Crazy Days and Crazy Hair

by Kimberly Grams

A few months ago when I heard about Cashmere Mafia (Wednesdays on ABC) and Lipstick Jungle (Thursdays on NBC), I thought “Cool! That’s an article!” Both are basically the same show about power women in New York City, and people on both projects had ties to Sex and the City. The article was going to be Cashmere Mafia vs. Lipstick Jungle. Better title? Best shoes, best cast, best plot, best acting. You know, compare them in several categories and see which one comes out on top.

I was really busy, but I wedged in some time to watch the shows. Cashmere Mafia had a few episode head start. It’s watch-able, but kind of like Desperate Housewives in the City, without the clever wittiness. Lipstick Jungle is almost cringe-worthy – the writing is clichéd, and the cast can only do so much with it. So I start thinking . . . there’s not really an article here. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend either show to Higher Things readers. And then our illustrious editor, the Rev. Richard Heinz, asked the same question: Is there an article here?

He had a GREAT idea for a different topic (which will be coming to you shortly), and so I started mentally switching gears. I mean, I have NOTHING in common with the women in these shows – not really anything to identify with. I’m not a single girl in the city or a work-outside-of the-home mom. I’m not a power executive in fashion, finance, or film. No one in Scottsbluff, Nebraska cares what I’m wearing, and there won’t be any nasty articles in the paper about my life or work. I’m not eating in the car while rushing to something else. Oh wait, I do that sometimes. But that’s not really an article.

In the middle of my brain transition from one topic to the other, I got the worst headache ever—the kind of headache that lasts a week and triggers multiple migraines—the kind that keeps you in bed and sometimes you can’t even think through it. So I emailed the aforementioned editor with the news that I was not going to make my Monday deadline; that really bothered me, because I take my commitments seriously. My schedule for February was already booked to the hilt, and the article was the only thing I could put off.

To give you an idea of what I’m talking about, in the last TWO WEEKS I have: sung for a major fundraiser (complete with a REALLY CRAZY 60’s hairdo and literally a half a can of Aquanet); sold 40 dozen enchiladas for my kids’ school; written my previous article; had workmen replacing the windows in the kitchen of the parsonage; choreographed and taught the opening number for the 4th grade musical; had two family birthdays and my 10-year-old daughter’s first sleepover (where the basement was transformed for an “Under the Sea” theme; went to NINE stores looking for a Whitman’s chocolate heart with a stuffed Snoopy (don’t ask – that would be a whole other article). Oh yeah, and it’s Lent. Plus the headache.

This week I have: the piano tuner here as I write this; an exam for our life insurance; two more numbers to choreograph and teach to 4th grade non-dancers (my specialty); a houseguest arriving for a long weekend; delivery of the 40 dozen enchiladas; a speech about being a writer for the annual “Friends of the Library” meeting. That is my February – and that’s not including everyday things like kids’ activities, church stuff, laundry, etc. I’m just a little overwhelmed. Why do I do so many things? They are all important to me in different ways and most are limited-time commitments. I do it once or for a certain time period and then I’m done. God gave me gifts, and I want to use them.

Somewhere around the fifth time my husband told me to stop worrying about not meeting my article deadline, I realized something. I DO have something in common with some of those women. One of the themes for some of the characters is trying to balance their work and home lives – and they are clearly over-committed and have WAY too many things on their plate. One of the Cashmere episodes even had a woman who was trying to plan her son’s Laser-tag-in-the-park birthday party while doing about 200 other things. That sounds a tad familiar. My schedule is booked up through the end of July, and although most of it is not as bad as February, some of it is close. I have very little room to cram more in or take care of anything that goes wrong.

Why should you care about my February to-do list? Because we all over-do it at some time, especially women and work-a-holics. I heard a joke once that goes something like this: I know of IRREFUTABLE proof that God is a man and not a woman . . . on the 7th day of creation he RESTED. I know there are some of you out there – both guys and gals who haven’t had a break that really need one.

So if you’re one of those people, I recommend skipping both Cashmere Mafia and Lipstick Jungle. Put your feet up and watch something else. Read a book. Take a nap. Do anything that doesn’t involve checking something off your list. My article is being turned in a day late – but on Sunday I actually took a break. Watched some shows with my girls AND finished a book. And tomorrow, after teaching choreography – I’m going to the library to get some more. Because sometimes it IS a jungle out there – I just don’t always have time for the lipstick!

Kim Grams is a writer and pastor’s wife who lives in Scottsbluff, NE. A dancer and an avid reality TV viewer, she debuted with the article Diary of an American Idol Junkie. 

Categories
Higher Homilies

“God’s Silence and His Speaking”

By the Rev. Todd A. Peperkorn

Matthew 15:21-28

Silence. Complete and utter silence. That was Jesus’ response to her. Her daughter was terribly vexed with a demon, a horror we can only imagine. She was at her wits end. All the parenting skills in the world could not help her daughter. She was at the end of her rope. She went to the one Man who could help her. She went to Jesus, the Son of God, the Messiah. Surely He would help her! Surely He would look at her plight and would have mercy upon her by healing her daughter.

But God’s answer before her was silence.

Have you been there? Have you reached a point in your life where there is nowhere else to turn, nothing to do, and so you finally go to God? You reach out, you go to Him in prayer, and the answer is not what you want. Silence. More heartache and pain. Difficulties abound. Perhaps things even get worse. Where are you, God? Why don’t you answer me?

Our Lord’s ways are certainly not our ways. There are no quick and simple answers to why God does not make all the problems of life disappear as soon as we ask. But we can glean some answers from His Word on how He works and why things happen in this life the way they do.

First of all, we have to remember what God’s goal is for your life. God’s goal for your life is not that it be without troubles. That may be our goal for life. I think sometimes that all we really want is for there to be no problems or worries. That would make life pretty easy, wouldn’t it? No, God’s goal for your life is to bring you to heaven to be with Him forever. That is a very clear goal for him, but the problem is that because we are beset with sin, we cannot always see the path. What may be the most direct route for us may look like a terribly hard road. It’s kind of like looking over the top of a hill. You just can’t get too much of a sense of how much is left or even what’s on the other side as long as you are on the journey.

This goal of God’s, to bring you to heaven, is much more important than short-term fulfillment and happiness. He doesn’t want you to be without problems. He wants your life to be fulfilled and complete with Him. But in order to get there, sometimes God’s silence has to come before His voice of the Gospel.

That’s what St. Paul is talking about in our Epistle lesson for today:

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Romans 5:1-5 NKJV)

What this Canaanite woman understood was that when everything else is stripped away, when her trust in herself is gone, when her trust in her family and lineage is gone, when every ounce of self-worth and fulfillment lie in the dust, then, and only then, can God’s work of healing and life begins. In other words, she had hope in Christ and not in herself.

We call that repentance. It is a profoundly Lenten word, and it is a word that Christians often forget, neglect, or act as if it doesn’t exist. Repentance, though, is absolutely central to our lives and growth as Christians. You can’t be a Christian without repentance. In fact, there is no such thing as faith apart from repentance, because in order to have faith in Christ you need to lose your faith in yourself.

I think that’s why God’s silence before this Canaanite woman is so important for you and I to understand today. God speaks with two voices, Law and Gospel. He speaks His word of Law to you to crush you, to destroy your self-reliance, to make you uncomfortable in your sinful skin, and to bring all of your self-made gods come crashing down. That Word of Law may come in many ways. Death is certainly the most obvious, but every time your life falls apart, every time things don’t go as they ought, it is our Lord at work using these horrible things that happen in life for good. For good? Yes. For our God glories in using Satan’s work and using it for His glory and your eternal life.

Our Canaanite woman had nothing to cling to on her own. She had no family. She had no name. She had no resources. Doctors couldn’t help. Nothing could help her daughter. All she had was God’s promise of mercy. And she grabbed on to that like a dog to a bone. She would not let God’s promise for a blessing go, no matter what. Just like Jacob in our Old Testament reading, she was willing to wrestle with God Himself in order to receive the blessing that He had promised.

Our Lord Jesus Christ says to you this day, repent! Repent of your self-made worth and fantasies. Repent of your thoughts that you can make everything work out as long as you try hard enough. Repent. But His Word to you does not end there. He also says to you, believe. Believe my word of promise. Believe that when I come to bless you, it will be a blessing that will last for all eternity. Believe.

Our Lord gives you and I the food that falls from His Table. We are unworthy to receive even the crumbs, but He gives us more than crumbs. He gives us His very body and blood as a sure pledge and guarantee of His love and forgiveness. This is no dog’s meal; it is a rich feast, and a full supper of life and salvation for your eternal good. Come to His Table, eat of His body and drink of His blood. The problems and trials of this life are but passing. But the gift He gives you this day, it will last for a lifetime. Believe it for His sake. Amen.

 

The Rev. Todd Peperkorn is pastor of Messiah Lutheran Church in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He has contributed in many and various ways to Higher Things.

 

Categories
Current Events

Dear God, Why?

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).

Categories
Pop. Culture & the Arts

Chaplains of Another Gospel

by The Rev. Rich Heinz

In her Pop Culture articles for Higher Things, Kim Grams has spoken of promises she made to herself. Several years ago I too made a promise. “If Carter ever leaves E.R., I am done. That’s it!” They have killed off or written off every original character, it seemed, and that would be the last straw.

Somehow I find myself breaking that promise; and I find myself more and more disappointed. To begin with, the show has always had an extreme-left skewed view of politics and morals. The E.R. staff has had more than its share of unquestioned extra-marital affairs, and the show just doesn’t let up on its pro-abortion and pro-homosexual agendas. That should be reason enough to call it quits.

Nevertheless, I had been watching until the writers’ strike, and this final slap in the face to Christian clergymen takes the cake. This season has seen the introduction of a new character, a female “chaplain,” Julia Dupree, who seems to embrace a belief system that comes from a spiritual “buffet” mixing many religions into one big mess.

Set aside that three-quarters of the world’s Christians belong to churches that take the Bible seriously and respect God’s decision for ordaining only males for the Holy Ministry. Try to forget that this girl has no sexual morality, and enjoys “free love” too much for any divinity school graduate. And never mind that a Christian pastor should never be searching for the latest Zen Buddhist meditation techniques nor attempting to comfort someone with a generic Christ-less “love.” What is left to admire about “Chaplain” Julia? Nothing!

I have disliked her character since she was introduced. Now I do not simply dislike her; she turns my stomach. One of the last episodes shown this year was called: “Atonement.” It featured a cancer patient named Truman who had been a prison doctor. Dr. Truman had executed prisoners by lethal injection. He now had a tortured, misguided conscience that caused him to believe he had broken the Fifth Commandment. Now he was trying to track down all the affected families to apologize, and feared dying under God’s wrath.

Instead of properly helping him cope with the Law that he felt, and giving the man the Gospel of Christ who atoned for us all, “Chaplain” Julia had some New Age hodge-podge of touchy-feely “religion.” The beauty of it all – the patient called her to the carpet! After she tells him that it is up to each person to interpret what God wants, he challenges her and says, “So people can do anything? They can rape, murder, they can steal, all in the name of God, and it’s okay?” After her inept response, he ends up shouting: “Well, what are you saying? Because all I’m hearing is some new age, God is love, one size fits all crap!”

“Chaplain” Julia has a tragic flaw – she does not know Christ! The burden that this doctor felt was unbearable. He needed the pure, healing Gospel of Jesus, assuring him that no matter how horrible the sins, (or how horrible the just actions of serving the government that God had ordained), he was completely forgiven. Ironically, this dying, scared man could have helped this “chaplain” toward the right knowledge of God.

The true God is not one size fits all. He is not open to every individual’s interpretation. There are not many paths to paradise. The teachings of religions outside of Christianity are false, plain and simple. The seminary is not the “Mega-bar” from Ryans, where you choose what you want and leave the rest. Christ Himself says: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 ESV)

“Chaplain” Julia is the perfect example of what we call “post-modern” thought. This is a belief that you can pick and choose what you want, because there is no absolute truth. Anyone can have their opinion, and no one is “wrong,” because it all is about individual points of view.

Sadly for her, and for the many others who believe this, it is not so. God does have absolutes. Jesus IS the Truth! There is no salvation apart from Christ.

As I ponder that I should have kept my promise to myself in the first place, I urge you to be on guard against such (ordained or lay) “chaplains” of another gospel. Do not give in to the thought that there is no such thing as absolute truth. Do not be run over by those who would tell you that the Bible is all subject to individual interpretation. Do not be overwhelmed by those who say there are many roads to heaven.

Instead, dear friends, be comforted. Trust in our Lord who never lies, that He is the way, and the truth, and the life. Rest assured that He has paid for your sins, and you will never have to atone for them, as Dr. Truman worried. Pay attention to the chaplains of the true Gospel! And begin to realize how choices in your television viewing may affect your opinions and moral positions if you are not careful. In the end, be assured that no matter who you are, no matter what you have watched, no matter what your past transgressions, our loving Savior is your Way, Truth, and Life!

 

The Rev. Rich Heinz is senior pastor of St. John’s Ev. Lutheran Church & School in Lanesville, IN. He serves Higher Things as the front page editor and in his free time blogs some at http://revfrheinz.blogspot.com/.

Categories
Higher Homilies

The Word Crushes the Serpent’s Head!

by The Rev. Mark Buetow

Genesis 3:1-21

Dear children of God: Never let go of God’s Word! It will keep you safe! Never stop hearing God’s Word. It will protect you from the Evil One. Adam and Eve show us our repentance for this First Sunday in Lent. They let go of God’s Word. They ignored it. Adam didn’t preach it when he should have. Eve didn’t hold on to it when tempted. Together they let God’s Word go and then they were sitting ducks for the Serpent. You, dear Christian: cling to God’s Word. Hold on to it as the greatest treasure. Please, hear my plea, today, brothers and sisters in Christ. NOW is the time of God’s favor, NOW is the day of salvation. Don’t put it off. Don’t wait. Don’t think that learning God’s Word is something you can find time for later. Parents, please! Don’t let your kids avoid God’s Word in Sunday School and Catechesis. Don’t teach them that there are things that are more important and can scoot God’s Word to the side. Adults, we have Bible Study twice a week in addition to Catechesis on Wednesdays. Please don’t think you’ve learned enough or have nothing else to hear from God’s Word. Children and youth, listen! As you grow older, as your time gets filled up with all sorts of other things, don’t think that you don’t need God’s Word. Keep coming to hear it preached. Come and study it and learn it. All of you Christians, don’t be like Adam and Eve who listened to the Devil, and gave up God’s Word. Rather, come and hear it. Read it every day. Learn it. Study it. Cling to it. Make your pastor answer your questions about it and teach it to you. Make it your highest treasure and joy! Of course I can’t make you hold on to God’s Word. And in fact I know that neither you nor I will do it. We will fail, as Adam and Eve did. So listen carefully today, again, to God’s Word. To the Promises of Christ which save us by His Word.

The story of Man’s fall shows us clearly three things which befell Man when they let go of God’s Word. But the Lord was right there to give His promise of salvation in the One born of a woman. So Jesus comes and undoes what we have done and saves us. First of all, Adam and Eve didn’t listen to God’s Word. They knew it but they didn’t follow it. There’s our first repentance. We have God’s Word. We’ve learned our Catechism. We know the Commandments, the Creed and the Lord’s Prayer. But when the devil, the world and our sinful flesh get going tempting us, we forget all about that. What the world says we should do and get and how we should, that’s what sounds better. We struggle through life as if the Word of God doesn’t teach us how to live and act and behave and get along with our neighbor. Even worse, we let the world tell us about God instead of learning about Him from God’s Word. When we reject the Word like that, we deserve nothing but eternal death. So Jesus comes. And He takes on flesh. And He gets baptized and then He goes into the wilderness. The devil twisted God’s Word and caused Adam and Eve to fall into sin. The devil comes to Jesus and also twists God’s Word. But this time, the devil doesn’t win. This time, the Man wins. Jesus holds fast to God’s Word. He clings to what His Father has said. And it drives the devil away. When you despise God’s Word, recognize it! Confess it! And hear the Good News: Christ has kept it. His keeping and holding on to God’s Word counts FOR YOU.

When Adam and Eve gave up God’s Word, then they were suddenly ashamed of their nakedness. They were exposed. You and I know the feeling. We do things we don’t want anyone else to see but we’re always looking over our shoulders. We do things we should not have done and we are quick to hide it. Cover it up. Quick switch to a different computer screen. Or bury that bad report card at the bottom of your backpack. Or blame the problem on someone else’s work. We hide and run from our sins. But God sees. The Lord knows what you have done. He sees what you have done and His eyes penetrate into your sinful heart and mind where you think no one can get to. The Lord beholds your nakedness behind your silly fig leaves. He sees and in His mercy He covers you. The Lord killed some sheep or goats and made shirts for Adam and Eve. He covered their nakedness. And He covers your sins. Your nakedness. By the death of another Lamb. The Lamb of God. The Lamb who is His Son. When Jesus sheds His blood, it is so that you will be covered. When you are Baptized, the Holy Spirit puts Christ on you, clothes you with Jesus, covers your sin-nakedness with the Son of God. So that neither you nor God have to look at yourself exposed by sin but covered by the forgiveness of Jesus.

When Adam and Eve sinned, God brought punishment and a curse to them and the world. Suffering, heartache, pain in childbearing, the toil and drudgery of daily work to eek out a living, thorns and thistles and sickness and death: These are the things our sin has earned. And they are no different for us. When we get sick, when we fail, when we die, when nothing is as we wish it were, then pay close attention: you are witnessing the punishment of God upon sin upon earth. The Lord has cursed this earth so that we will never trust in it. It won’t save us. The Lord is punishing His creation for what Adam and Eve have done. And we bear that punishment and suffer it because of our own sins. Dust you are and to dust you will return. And what is dust? It’s what the Serpent gets to eat! So Jesus comes to take that punishment upon Himself and free us from God’s wrath. Jesus comes to wear a crown of thorns to show that He is carrying the curse not for Himself but for all of us. Jesus comes to offer Himself as a target for the Devil. And why? So that the worst and final punishment of God—eternal death—is not given to us. Jesus suffers the punishment for our sins so that we are set free. When you eat Jesus’ body and drink His blood, remember that He has taken your punishment. Adam and Eve ate the fruit which brought them death. Jesus feeds you with Himself, the fruit of the tree of the cross, flesh and blood given for you that give you life and rescue you from the punishment and torments of eternal hell.

Do you see the ways in which Adam and Eve’s sin was undone by Jesus? Pay close attention to those ways in which the faults and transgressions of Adam and Eve were cured and fixed by Jesus. See how what was ruined by Man is made right by the Son of God. And know this: the way in which the Lord saved Adam and Eve is the same way that He saves you. Before Adam and Even fell into sin, the Lord gave them His Word. They abandoned that Word and plunged the world into death. But the Lord gave them His Word again. More Word. This time a Word of promise and salvation: The Seed would come and crush the Serpent’s head. The Lord saves Adam and Eve by His Word. That is how He saves us. By giving us His Word. Word and Water. Word and Supper. Word in the Bible. Word preached and taught. Word. Word. Word. No matter how much you despise it, ignore it, don’t want it, that’s what the Lord has for you, dear Christian. His Word. Words that call us to repentance for despising His Word. Words that give us life by absolving us of our sins. Everything, dear Christian, and I mean everything in your life, is by and about and through the Word of God. Give that Word up, ignore it, despise it, cast it away, find other stuff that’s more important—well, go ahead and you’ll see what happens. A life lived apart from God’s Word is a life of misery and hopelessness. So pay attention to God’s Word. Hold on to it. Treasure it. Believe it. It’s your true and only defense against the devil who wants you to be nothing more than dust for him to munch on. But Jesus has come, the Word in the flesh, and He has crushed the Serpent’s head. God’s Word says so!

On this first Sunday in Lent, brothers and sisters in Christ, parents and kids, and all Christians, learn your repentance from Adam and Eve. Learn what happens when you pay little or not attention to God’s Word. Learn what happens when you let God’s Word go and listen to the whisperings of the devil. And repent of that awful sin! And learn what God does about such things. Learn how God continues to give us His Word. Learn How He clothes us. How He takes the punishment we have coming. How in every way and from every angle, our Lord Jesus rescues and saves us from our sins and makes things right with God. Lent has begun. All eyes and ears on Jesus who is the Word. The Word God the Father has given to save us! The Word who crushes the Serpent’s head. The Word who crowns your head with glory! Amen.

Categories
Catechesis

Give it Up For Lent!

by The Rev. Mark Buetow

Give it up for Lent! The season of Lent is usually associated with “giving something up”, or not eating meat on Fridays. One year I gave up television for Lent. I figured I spent too much time just sitting around and channel surfing. So I figured I would deny myself that pleasure (and waste of time) and use that time for better things…like surfing the web! Then I went to school with my daughters one day. One of their fellow kindergartners asked me, “Pastor why did you ground yourself from TV?” Good question! Why did I give up something for Lent? (With the writers’ strike, giving up TV this year wouldn’t really be giving up much, would it?) Should you give something up for Lent? If so, why? What should you give up? What about fasting? Let’s answer these questions in a way that points us to Jesus and the the forgiveness of sins!

On Ash Wednesday, we at Higher Things Internet services, joked that we had “given up” graphics and fancy websites for Lent. (We didn’t really, as you can tell by looking at our amazing new site!) People have the idea that the reason you give up something for Lent is to make yourself feel bad. Or to deprive yourself of something you like or that makes you happy. Since Lent has to do with Jesus suffering for our sins, people figure it’s a good time to try and make themselves suffer like Jesus. That is the WRONG reason to give up anything for lent! The only suffering that does us any good for is the suffering of Jesus for our salvation. HIS suffering accomplishes our salvation. HIS pain and anguish take place in order to win for us the forgiveness of sins. Our salvation and sanctification and holiness don’t come because we somehow make ourselves suffer “with” Jesus. The forgiveness of sins is ours because Jesus suffers FOR US. In our place. As our Substitute.

Got Lent?

Lent is all about meditating upon and learning more and more about what Jesus underwent FOR YOU. Giving something up for Lent isn’t about feeling guilty or trying to take away something you like so that you can feel bad about what Jesus did for you. Observing the holy season of Lent is all about receiving more and more of those very gifts that deliver salvation to you: living in your baptism, confessing your sins and being absolved, hearing the Word taught and preached, eating and drinking Jesus’ body and blood which was given into death for the forgiveness of all of your sins! That’s why most churches offer additional times during Lent to hear the Word preached and to receive the Sacrament.

So if Lent is all about Jesus, why give something up? There are two main disciplines in Lent: Fasting and Abstaining. Fasting means not eating for a certain time (or eating less than usual – a kind of diet). Abstaining means giving something up or going without something you normally have. Why would you do these things if they don’t matter to God? Does fasting or abstaining from something mean you’re somehow more holy? That you get more sins forgiven? Of course not! Fasting and abstaining don’t make the Lord love you any more or any less! The Lord’s love FOR YOU is a done deal in Jesus Christ.

Ash Wednesday

So why fast? Why abstain from something? Simple: for the benefit of your neighbor. The truth is, our lives are filled with things which satisfy US, they make US happy, and provide enjoyment–for US! But to give up things that we normally do or use in order to use the extra time or money for prayer, for hearing and studying God’s Word or for doing good to those around us–now THAT is something useful.

Just think of what a joy it would be to others if instead of spending your time watching TV, you spent time doing something with them, like talking to your parents, or spending time with a little brother or sister who looks up to you. Or maybe giving up your video game night for awhile in order to take advantage of the extra opportunities at church for worship and Bible Study that are available during Lent. Or maybe giving up fast food a few times a week and putting the money toward an offering at church. Or maybe not eating meat on Fridays to remember that it was His flesh that Jesus gave for the life of the world. Giving things up during Lent isn’t about doing something for YOU, it’s about learning from Christ to put all of our hope and trust in His word and to love and serve our neighbor in whatever ways they need us.

This is what Lent is really all about: learning what it is to be a Christian, that is to be baptized.. To have a cheerful hope and live in confidence that Jesus takes away our sins by His suffering and death. That’s why the Catechism tell us, when we get up in the morning, to remember our baptism and “go to work at once and in good cheer.” Because there is simply no need to ever worry about how it is with us and the Lord. It’s all a done deal in Christ. And becausewe are the Lord’s, we serve our neighbors, pointing them to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and helping and serving them in whatever ways we can.

However you celebrate the season of Lent, whether you give something up or whether you fast or even if you don’t do any of these things–don’t do them for God, as if that makes Him more satisfied with you. He’s already pleased as punch that you are His child in Jesus! Your baptism says so! Don’t even do these things for yourself, as if by your being miserable somehow makes you a better Christian. During Lent, if you give something up, do it for your neighbor who needs you and your good works more than ever. All eyes off of yourself and all ears on the Gospel, which gives us Jesus going to the cross to rescue us from sin and death. A blessed holy season of Lent to each of you, in Jesus!

Categories
Pop. Culture & the Arts

It’s My Party and I’ll Cry if I Want To! Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

by Kim Grams

Twenty tissues. That’s my record of tissues used while watching Extreme Home Makeover. It was the episode about the cop who got shot and is now in a wheelchair. The boy with the “glass” bones really got to me to. They all get to me, which is weird because I almost never cry.

When you have a chronic pain condition, you do a LOT of blocking. I have to block out huge amounts of pain, so I can focus and actually get something accomplished each day. When the pain is intense, you can’t filter out just the pain – you end up blocking a lot more. And you’re not just blocking out sad, sometimes you’re blocking happy too. I’ve heard other chronic pain-ers talk about feeling “flat”. That’s what we do to get by.

And just for the record, I’m not usually one of those whiny people who are always complaining about their health. But it’s a fact of life for me, and I’m not afraid to share. For me, as a writer, if I’m going to write about Pop Culture and how it affects us, then I have to start with how it affects me.

When I was younger, I was such a GIRL. I cried about the stupidest stuff. Now I almost never cry. If I cried whenever something was hard or painful, I’d never stop. My kids know that if something makes mom cry it must be pretty bad. Until we started watching Extreme Home Makeover, they’d probably seen me cry twice – once when I hit my head REALLY hard and then at my Dad’s funeral.

And then came the conundrum that is Extreme Home Makeover. Hadn’t watched it, and wasn’t interested – I’m not really into “weepy” shows. But one of my daughters caught a clip and asked “What’s that”? And I said, “It’s this show where they help people and fix their houses”. Then she said, “That’s cool! Can we watch it?” And then I (reluctantly) told her we could try it. We watched one episode; not only did I bawl the entire time, but we got COMPLETELY hooked.

I thought they fixed houses. I had NO IDEA how much more it was than that. They demolish the entire pre-existing house, build a new one – often specially designed for health conditions or particular needs. They tailor the rooms to the specific hopes and dreams of each person in the family. And the houses are the most amazing, creative things you’ve ever seen. They aren’t just building dream houses; they’re building dreams. They are helping each family get out of a horrible situation by wiping the slate clean. They give the family a fresh start.

Now I don’t know why I cry uncontrollably whenever I watch this show. I mean, yes, it’s very touching and emotional, but, like I said, I’m not really a crier. But then the family on TV is crying, and the design team is getting choked up and then next thing I know, I’m crying. Maybe after so much blocking, I need an emotional release under controlled conditions to get it out of my system, instead of letting it pop at inopportune moments, like when I’m trying to cook dinner. OK, that’s a bad example because after a couple fires, stitches, and some truly inedible food I don’t really cook – I heat. But you get the point. I can’t afford to get distracted by pesky emotions in the middle of everything I’m trying to do.

So I’ve been thinking about this show from a cathartic, emotional perspective, but it’s also educational. We’ve learned about rare diseases, environmental stuff, and geography. And as far as entertainment value, we love to see how they demolish the houses and the design aspects of each room, especially the theme bedrooms – often for the kids – that give them the perfect room. And if they have career aspirations or a hobby, Extreme Home Makeover outfits their room with all the necessary tools to pursue their dream.

So one day, out of the blue, this random thought hits me – this is what it will be like in heaven, only times infinity. We can’t even dream big enough for our brains to comprehend how absolutely amazing it’s going to be. Jesus is preparing a place for us. What came before will be completely demolished, and everything will be perfect. “In my Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:2).

And THEN I realized that I won’t have to block anything out more. There won’t be sad or hit-by-a-tank pain. “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Rev. 21:4). There will be pure, unadulterated joy. PLUS, I’ll get to see my dad again! Not only is that what waits for me, but I don’t need to make a video to send to ABC and hope I get picked. Everyone gets picked. Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ, and Him crucified will get an “Extreme LIFE Makeover”. Our home, our bodies will be new. Every bad thing will be wiped away. Demolished. A fresh start.

I have a lot of shows I watch for fun, but I think I NEED Extreme Home Makeover. Not just for an emotional release, but for the reminder of the promises that have been made by our Savior. “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body”. Philippians 4:20

In the meantime, while I’m waiting, pass the tissues please!

 

Kim Grams is a writer and pastor’s wife who lives in Scottsbluff, NE. A dancer and an avid reality TV viewer, she debuted with Diary of an American Idol Junkie. 

Categories
Higher Homilies

The Season with Ashes

by The Rev. Rick Sawyer

2 Peter 1:2-11

Dear Christian, you have nothing to prove – not to me, not to yourselves, not to anyone. Not even to God. What I mean is this: Your life is already guaranteed in Jesus. Now – with nothing to prove – begin the season with ashes, with fasting and praying and rending your hearts.

You have nothing to prove by that. That’s why you are the only ones who can do them freely – without drawing attention to yourselves, without the selfishness of those who think they have something to prove.

The world’s religions talk about good works as if they are necessary to salvation, instead of its fruit. I have many conversations with Christians who are bothered that we Lutherans say that works contribute nothing to salvation, that heaven depends entirely on Jesus. Apparently, many think they still have something to prove.

Tonight, Our Savior says to practice your righteousness, but not so as to be seen by men. He says, give to the needy, but don’t even let yourself take too much notice. It’s your NEIGHBOR who needs your works. Do them for YOU and they aren’t good any more!

Give as people have need. Give as the Gospel requires – so the Gospel is always preached and the Gifts of Christ are readily available – here and all over the world. Then, forget you ever gave.

Pray also, even in church, but not to be seen. Not for a show. Not so people are impressed by your faithfulness. If you come to be seen, you have your reward, says Jesus. Still, come and pray. Beyond this, pray in private, where no one can see but God. You have nothing to prove.

The same is true when you fast . . . Our Lord doesn’t seem to think we shouldn’t fast. We need self-discipline. We need to learn that man does not live from bread alone, but from every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God. So, fast. Give up the food you crave and learn some hunger for the Word of God. How will your neighbor be served if YOU don’t learn to live completely from God’s Word?

You have nothing to prove by any of this, dear Christian. Do these to PROVE something – so people see and believe you are Christian – so God is convinced you are His – and you have done NOTHING. Our works are only good for something when we have nothing to prove.

St. Peter tells us why this is. He says . . . “May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us ALL THINGS that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him . . .”

You already HAVE ALL THINGS, dear Christian. So, what’s there to prove? GOD is not waiting to see something in you. He has ALL that pertains to your life in Him. He has Jesus, His Son. He has all things that pertain to your life and godliness. He has the innocent suffering and death of His Son in your place. THAT’S the only proof and evidence God needs to say: “Your sins have been forgiven. You will live and not die. You are godly and holy – because of Christ Jesus.”

HIS fasting – HIS prayers – HIS giving of Himself in behalf of the needy. THAT has granted to you ALL things that you need.

Then, WHY do any of these things, dear Christian? If they aren’t needed to MAKE you a Christian, to PROVE things with God or with men – why do them? Why fast? Why pray? Why give to the needy? Why show up on a night like this and receive ashes on your foreheads? Why commit yourselves to the Faith as outlined in the Catechism? Why come on Sundays and Wednesdays? Why devote yourselves as families and as individuals to the things of God every day?

St. Peter tells us. Because, “through His precious and very great promises, you become partakers of His divine nature!”

What does THIS mean?

It means the Life of Christ is YOURS, dear Christian. It was laid over you in Holy Baptism. You were grafted into it, clothed with it, crucified, died, buried and raised anew in it. The Life of Christ is YOUR life now. And Jesus – with nothing to prove before God or men – freely went to His Father in prayer. He fasted and prayed, as we will hear in the Gospel this Sunday. He gave gifts to the poor. He is Jesus. And your life is hid in Him. In fact, it is no longer you but HE Who lives!

How can you NOT be about the things that Jesus mentions in our Gospel reading for tonight? Through Baptism, you have become partakers of His divine nature. Here – at this altar – you become partakers of the same. You eat and drink His Flesh and Blood in bread and wine. These are the Body and the Blood of Christ, Our Savior; true Man, true GOD. The Flesh and Blood that fasted so that YOU’D be saved, that prayed so YOU would not be subject to the devil anymore . . . The Flesh and Blood that gave to the needy – not only for this life but for eternity – The Flesh and Blood that stretched out on a cross and died  . . . THAT Flesh and Blood is placed into your mouths this evening.

By them, you ARE partakers of His divine nature!

How can you NOT fast and pray and give to the needy? How can you NOT rend your hearts over all the ways you fail at that? How can you NOT think more about each other than you do about yourselves? How can you NOT devote yourselves to the things of God?

You are partakers of His divine nature!

Rend your hearts, dear Christian, for losing sight of this. You don’t wear ashes on your foreheads to prove anything. Take them as reminders that you’re heading back to dust, but you are partakers of His divine nature, so if you die with Him, how shall you not also be raised in Him? “Whoever eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood HAS eternal life, and I WILL raise him up at the Last Day!”

What gets in the way this? YOU do! Your hearts. Your sinful, fallen natures. Your Old Adam, who only wants you forgetting that you’ve been cleansed from your former sins and the world’s corruption.

Fast? You mean, give up my food and drink? To pray?

Give alms to the poor? You mean, devote a tenth of what I make to GOD and to the help and service of my neighbor?

Pray? You mean, DAILY? You mean, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Our Father, and other portions of the Scriptures? DAILY?

We show ourselves to be such sinners! If we DON’T have to do these things, we think: “Why do them?” If we DO these things, we think: “Somehow, someone ought to see, take notice. Commend me for trying!”

Be careful, dear Christian. St. Peter tells you that through God’s promises in Jesus, you are now partakers of His divine nature. You have “escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” Then he says, “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.”

Why do these things – if our salvation is completely guaranteed in Jesus? Why do these things – if we have nothing to prove to God?

The Life of Christ included all these things, dear Christian. Read the Holy Gospels this Lent. None of what He did MADE Jesus the Son of God. He did them anyway. Because WE needed Him to do them!

There’s your repentance and faith this season. You do these things – freely – as Jesus did. Not to prove yourselves with God and men, but in praise of God, and in service of others. You do them, not selfishly to be seen, but selflessly to serve! You do them, because even the sinless Son of God fasted and prayed for strength against the devil. What easy targets WE are when we treat our Life in Christ complacently.

Our Lord fasted and prayed for US – that we might be delivered. So that He might have something to give to the needy. To sinners.

He did not rescue you so that you should be ineffective, dear Christian. St. Peter says, “if these qualities (virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection and love) are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” If you lack these things, if you ignore these things, your forgetting God’s forgiveness. Please repent.

Unlike Jesus, you and I are sinners. We have the Old Adam, constantly warring against our life in Christ, and tempting us to be unfruitful, ineffective – that means – to live for no one but ourselves!

You have no reason to do anything to gain something for YOU. You have all things in Jesus. That means you have a Father to call on in prayer; His Words to devote yourselves to and live from like food and drink. You have a life of service and love, by which you rule over your passions and do good for your neighbor. Do all of this in the most Jesus of ways, dear Christian. I mean, FREELY. With NO thought of gaining heaven from God or praises from men, but SERVING, HELPING, living – as if your calling and election are sure because of Jesus. So there is nothing for you to do this side of heaven than this: bear fruit – to the glory of God and for the sake of your neighbor. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

Reverend Rick Sawer is Pastor at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Brandon, Missssippi.

Categories
Life Issues

Mardi Gras, Carnival, and Christianity

 by The Rev. Larry Beane

People who don’t live in New Orleans have a lot of misconceptions about Mardi Gras and Carnival. The stereotype is that it’s a pornographic display of public nudity and drunkenness. Church groups even send “evangelists” to try to convert the revelers.

We saw a couple guys dragging large crosses mounted on wheels on Bourbon Street. One of the observants of this protest called it right: “Jesus didn’t have wheels.”

Two years ago on “Fat Tuesday” my Roman Catholic mother-in-law was in town for a visit, and we took her to Mass at St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter. There were a group of dour sign-bearing protestors trying to convince people that Jesus doesn’t approve of the merry-making. The funny thing is, the protestors were standing outside the cathedral where the Mass was to begin in five minutes. I invited some of the stony-faced “Christians” to come into the cathedral and actually meet Jesus. Nobody took me up on the offer. Maybe they distrusted me, a “fool for Christ” in my silly hat and beads…

Anyway, Mardi Gras is a religious festival – French for “Fat Tuesday,” signifying the last day of feasting before Lent begins the next day on Ash Wednesday. It is elsewhere called “Shrove Tuesday.” It is a time of joy and feasting – a time to “get it out of your system” before the season of self-examination, self-discipline, and mortification of the flesh of the six-week Lenten season prior to Easter. Carnival (“farewell to flesh”) refers to the several weeks between Epiphany (January 6) and Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is the pinnacle of the Carnival season.

So, our misguided Christian brethren don’t get it. Perhaps they are unfamiliar with the Church’s ancient traditions and calendar. But as Scripture tells us “to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1ff) there is a time for joy and celebration, as well as a time for introspection and self-examination. Carnival and Mardi Gras are times for the former, and we will indeed participate in the latter, long after they have packed away their signs and loaded their wheeled crosses into the attic.

Indeed, if you’re looking for sinners, you can find them everywhere (in fact, the very best place is our own mirrors!). If you’re seeking out those who abuse times of joy and warp them into self-destructive and sinful behavior, you can sure find it – whether on Bourbon Street in New Orleans or Rural Road 1 in any corn town in the Midwest. Most of the time, people who carry signs and bullhorns are looking for attention.

And attention is hard to get during Carnival! I guess that’s why they try to be just as garish as the rest of us who are enjoying ourselves. But truly calling folks to repentance just isn’t dramatic and theatrical

Maybe the protestors ought to leave that to us “fools for Christ” who wear the black robe and white collar. We’ll be here during Lent when they are long gone. We’ll also be here for Easter when we celebrate the resurrection anew, and the joie de vivre (joy of life) will return again to New Orleans and the world

So for now, “Throw me somethin’ mistah!” and let the good times roll!



The Rev. Larry Beane is pastor of Salem Lutheran Church in Gretna, Louisiana. Even post-Katrina, he and his family truly celebrate the joie de vivre of life in greater New Orleans. 
Categories
Current Events

All Means All: A Review of the HT Watermarked Retreat

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.