A Little Christmas Honesty

Have a holly, jolly Christmas;
It's the best time of the year
I don't know if there'll be snow
but have a cup of cheer
Have a holly, jolly Christmas;
And when you walk down the street
Say Hello to friends you know
and everyone you meet.



Oh Ho the mistletoe
hung where you can see;
Somebody waits for you;
Kiss her once for me
Have a holly jolly Christmas
and in case you didn't hear
Oh by golly have a holly jolly Xmas this year

These classic words clearly explain the expected Christmas mood.  This is a season for love, joy, and family.  It’s a time to be merry and excited about life.  It’s a time for warm, cozy feelings.  We expect our days to be merry and bright.

It can be hard to live up to those high expectations.   The truth for many people is that Christmas becomes a time of disappointment, anxiety, and depression.    

A number of years ago I found myself leading a Christmas service at a funeral home.   It wasn’t a time to talk about ‘a cup of cheer’!  For those who have lost loved ones, Christmas abounds in loneliness.  Memories of those who no longer gather around the Christmas tree bring tears to people’s eyes. 

Many families get together to celebrate Christmas.  Quite often these Christmas gatherings produce more anxiety and hurt feelings than ‘comfort and joy.’  People who avoid each other all year long suddenly sit together expecting everyone to be happy.  It doesn’t happen.  Old resentments bubble over (or simmer under the surface).  People wonder, “Why can’t I have a NORMAL family?”  Perhaps this family anxiety IS normal!!

Many people will spend Christmas alone, far from family and friends.  They will feel that ‘everyone is happy except me.’ 

Some couples will acutely feel the pain of infertility as they imagine presents for little ones under a tree.  “If only we had children to celebrate with.”

Some divorced families will experience the frustration of the battle over ‘who gets the kids on Christmas Eve.’

How do we learn to manage expectations?  We SO want Christmas to be perfect in every way.  We want happiness and joy at every turn.  Let’s be honest with ourselves: Christmas doesn’t always live up to the hype.

We live in a broken world.  We live in a world where relationships are strained, where death rips people away, where loneliness abounds.   We can’t just wish someone ‘Merry Christmas’ and expect all that pain to go away.

2000 years ago God chose to come into this broken world.  His parents had to leave home to travel to Bethlehem.  They couldn’t even find a decent place to spend the night.   The baby Jesus entered that anxiety to bring hope.

God lives among us even as we suffer.  As we focus on the Christ who came to live with us, we can look at the Christmas season with honesty.  Jesus did not come to have it be ‘perfect.’  Jesus came to live with us, wherever we might find ourselves.

This Christmas, feel free to lay before your newborn king your joys & sorrows, your excitement & pain, your contentment & loneliness. 

Welcome to the manger!  Unto us a child has been born!

Time for Rest...I think God means it!

Last week we headed to Shannon’s folks to celebrate Thanksgiving.  While we were there some strange events unfolded.  I played several games of Hearts.  I joined others in watching Jeopardy (without multi-tasking once).  I slept in.  I relaxed.  I even laughed at REALLY bad jokes (What is green, has 4 legs, and will hurt you if it falls out of a tree on you???  A pool table!  What is brown, has 4 legs, and sees just as well out of either end?  A horse with its eyes closed!!  Yes, my mother-in-law’s jokes!).

I love playing cards with others.  I enjoy hanging out and telling fun stories.   I don’t even mind groaning at really bad jokes.  Shouldn’t these be normal activities in my life?  Shouldn’t they be things I do on a regular basis?  Why did it feel so strange to let my hair down (figuratively, of course) to relax and enjoy life?

Sadly, last Friday was probably the first real ‘day off’ that I’d taken in months.  I’ve been caught up in the myth of busyness!  No matter how hard I’ve worked, the to-do list has not gotten smaller.

It’s been quite a fall: completing and moving into a new building at Peace Lutheran Church, kick-starting a myriad of fall ministry opportunities, working with new ministries throughout the synod, travelling to several overnight conferences from Omaha to LaCrosse to Watertown, SD (in a one month span I slept in 9 beds!).  Throw in some cross country meets, my niece’s confirmation, and the usual ‘need to get done’ home activities and it’s gotten out of control. 

I’ve coped with it all by entering ‘purpose mode.’  I’ve focused on getting things DONE.   Every day felt like a success or failure based on how much I got done.  I became a working machine with no spare minute wasted.  I plowed through an amazing amount of work.  I’m really good at this!  Success, right? 

Not so much!  I didn’t have time for people…I only had time for projects.  I didn’t have time for relationships…I only had time to ‘accomplish things.’  Frankly, life became pretty lonely!  A to-do list is a pretty poor substitute for actual friends and family.

I truly believe that God used the fun and relaxation of last Friday to open my eyes, reminding me that life is not lived to simply accomplish many tasks.  God calls me a life filled with rest and joy…not a life with my nose to the grindstone.  In August on this blog I wrote about the importance of taking time to rest.  Apparently God needs to keep sending reminders. 

I’m looking forward to more games of Hearts…and more bad jokes!  Thank you Jesus!

Letter to God - Struggling to Find Meaning in Pete Stellpflug's Death

Dear God,

When I stopped by the bank yesterday I received the terrible news that Pete Stellpflug died yesterday morning when his tractor rolled on top of him.  I still have a hard time believing it.  I worked with Pete on the Eyota Days Committee and marveled at his passion and energy for the City of Eyota.  Pete served as the banker for Shannon’s business and always made sure she was taken care of.  Every time I’d stop into the bank I’d feel compelled to poke my head into Pete’s office to give him grief.  He had a great sense of humor. 

Lord, how can things like this happen?  How can a good, caring, man of faith have his life so quickly snuffed out?  He had family and friends that loved him and depended on him.  It doesn’t seem right. 

Are YOU the kind of God who causes these tragedies?  As people try to find meaning in this mess it can be easy to lay the blame at YOUR feet. 

·         “Everything happens for a reason” – Really?? What reason could possibly justify such pain?

·         “It was part of God’s plan” – Seriously?? YOU planned to cause a family to experience this kind of grief?? 

·         “God needed Pete in heaven” – I think his family needed him down here!

·         “God needed another flower in God’s garden” – I’d think that YOU could grow your garden without causing so much pain!

God, if any of these remarks are true then YOU caused Pete’s death, which makes YOU into a God who enjoys seeing people suffer.   That doesn’t sound like YOU at all!  YOU are the God who came to earth in Jesus to DEFEAT suffering and death...not to CAUSE it! 

But God, if YOU didn’t cause this tragedy, does that mean that YOU didn’t have enough power to prevent it?   If YOU don’t have the power to stop a tractor from rolling over then YOU can’t be trusted to have power over greater things.  YOU reveal YOURSELF in scripture as the God who created all things…who works in all things…who conquers sin and death.  That’s a lot of power!  If the words of the Bible have ANY meaning for us at all, then we must reject any notion that YOU are powerless to act.

If YOU didn’t cause the tractor to tip over on Pete…and if YOU have power to prevent it but didn’t…then that must mean that you chose to allow it to happen.  We obviously live in a world where bad things occur.  Pete’s death hits close to home, but we’re not the only ones suffering today.  Tragedies like this happen every day.   We live in a world of pain and death.  My feeble attempts to find explanations or deep meaning leave me empty. 

God, I’ll be honest.  I don’t understand how YOU could allow such suffering in the world!  The one thing that I DO know is that YOU came in Jesus to conquer sin and death forever.  I am simply left with this promise for Pete…and for me:

Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. ⁵ If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. (Romans 6:3-5)

I cling to this promise with my entire being!

Your Child,

Pastor Pete

Discernment is Easier in Hindsight!

November 1^st will mark my 8 year anniversary here at Peace.  I arrived in 2003, excited about what God had planned for this congregation.  It’s interesting to look back on the ways that God has worked among us.  I found this newsletter article from September, 2004:

In the past week, Peace Lutheran Church received perhaps the most significant letter in its brief history.  In a letter from David Groth, Dover-Eyota superintendent, he wrote, “It is the expectation of the school district that, by the end of the 2004-05 school year, you will no longer be renting our facilities for your Sunday church services.”  Without knowing it, Mr. Groth may have been speaking God’s word to this congregation!

Many people at Peace have discussed and debated the merits of building on our land for some time.  Some have wanted to charge forward, others have wanted to hold back and wait. At the beginning of 2004, the church council agreed to table all discussion of building until 2005 to allow the congregation to grow strong and vibrant.  We thought we had some control over when the building would go up.  Perhaps God had other ideas.

In the next few weeks the church council will begin discussing our options.  The way that I see it, Peace can do several things:

1)    Build a church building

2)   Find another place to worship

3)   Try to negotiate with the School Board to be able to stay longer

At this point, every conversation that I’ve had has focused on building.  But instead of just thinking about this among ourselves, we need to keep God in the process.  WE NEED YOUR PRAYERS!  God will lead us in the right direction.

It’s an exciting time at Peace.  Our worship in August saw the biggest crowds since 2001, and the second biggest ever!  Our youth ministry is about to explode with great things.  New members are coming aboard. 

We believe in a God of great surprises!  This is what makes the ministry so fun!  Let’s see what God has in mind for the next year!

We were SO ready to build back in 2004, but it didn’t happen.  When we attempted to move forward with a building program, we were told in no uncertain terms, “Build a congregation, not a building!”  God worked through Mr. Groth’s letter to shift our focus.  God worked to build the awesome congregation that we have today.

God didn’t work on our time schedule.  For a decade we thought we were ‘two to three years away’ from building.    At LONG last, the time has come.  The office is a jumble of boxes.  Deliveries of new furniture come daily.  So much is going on!  Only a few weeks to go now!

Together Before God's Throne

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.  And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”  Revelation 7:9-10

Last Wednesday night I got to be part of a counter cultural activity. 

The middle school youth from Peace meet at Arbor Gardens (Eyota’s senior living apartment building) for their youth ministry activities.  Every week we take some time to enjoy some activities with the residents of the apartments.  We often play games, but last Wednesday I decided that it could be fun to have some ‘reminiscing’ time.  Instead of just DOING things together, what would it be like to TALK with each other? 

We spent the time answering questions like “What is the most interesting place you’ve ever visited,” “What is your favorite parade,” and “What is the favorite gift that you have ever received?”  I was nervous as we started.  Talking sounded like a great idea in theory, but what if everyone felt too uncomfortable to get into it?  What if the youth found the whole exercise to be ‘stupid’?  What if the seniors got annoyed by the squirreliness of 6^th grade girls?  What if the two age groups didn’t know what to do with each other?  I prepared for disaster. 

To my amazement, both groups, young and old, thoroughly enjoyed the conversation.  The kids enthusiastically answered the questions (and had to be encouraged to pipe down a bit) and seemed to enjoy the senior’s answers (they were VERY intrigued by the woman who had travelled to many places in the world).  The seniors had fun pondering the questions…and smiled at the energy that the kids brought.

When you think about it, how often does something like this happen?  We live in a culture that divides us based on age, race, political preference, income level, or profession.  We watch news shows that agree with our perspective on the world.  We surround ourselves with people like us…people who agree with us…people with similar life experiences as us.   We worship with people who look like us…who worship like us…who live like us.  We don’t often experience the diversity of God’s creation.

As Revelation reminds us, as we stand before God’s throne we don’t simply join with people just like us.  We join with young and old.  We join with people who speak English, Spanish, German, French, Mandarin, and Dinka.  We join with people with light skin…and with people of all shades of brown.  We join with people who live in large houses and people who live in mud huts.  We join a diverse family of faith in praising God!

Last Wednesday’s youth event at Arbor Gardens was just a taste of what God has in store for us.   I felt blessed to watch as 8^th grade boys and 75 year old women shared their very different life experiences.  Each came with different perspectives on life…perspectives that are important to hear.

The church is one of the last places where generations still meet together.  In that diversity, God gives us glimpses of that final day as we all join before God’s holy throne, praising God!

How can we all learn to step out of our comfort zones to encounter people of vastly different ages, cultures, languages, or colors?  We’ll find that if we take the ’risk’ we will be blessed to get to know some wonderfully different people.

Frustrated by Football!

What a lousy weekend!

·         On Friday night, Dover-Eyota had a 3^rd quarter lead over Lewiston, but let it slip away and ended up losing by 10.  Frustrating!

·         On Saturday, my Northwestern Wildcats had an 18 point lead over Illinois, only to let Illinois come racing back to take the lead with 6 minutes left.  I had a ray of hope with 3 minutes left when Illinois fumbled, setting up Northwestern’s  go-ahead touchdown with a minute left!  I literally danced around the family room…until Illinois miraculously scored with only a few second left, giving me a crushing defeat.  At least the Wildcats were close (unlike the Gophers!).

·         On Sunday, the Vikings continued their pathetic ways.  They couldn’t even beat a Kansas City team that had been HORRIBLE all season.   It was pretty hard to watch.

Each loss left me down in the dumps…angry that my teams had chances but wasted them.   Needless to say, I wasn’t a lot of fun to be around.

I love football…but did I really need to let it ruin my weekend?  Perhaps, instead of focusing on the negativity of football, I could have looked around to see the blessings God brought my way:

·         The weather was just glorious

·         I got to be a part of one of the most fun weddings I’ve ever been to...with AMAZING food (and I love to eat!).  Congratulations Jim & Dana!

·         I had some time to quietly putter in the yard

·         I got to be a part of one of the last church services in the gym!

·         I actually had a chance to catch up on sleep (a rarity in my life)

There’s nothing wrong with enjoying football (or any sport, for that matter).  The problem comes when I allow it to dominate my life…when I can’t be happy when my team is losing. 

God works in my life in many ways.  May I learn to focus on the blessings God brings my way…and not on the frustrations that the world abounds in.

Running for fun...and service!

Early last week I was out doing some jogging on a beautiful fall day.  I thought back to the Gladiolus Days 5K run that I'd run in St. Charles in late August.  I’d started slowly that day and had WAY too much energy for the final ‘kick.’ I knew I could do better!  I wanted another chance to push myself harder, but I assumed that the 5K race season had ended. I felt bummed.

The next morning I received an e-mail from Sheila Mix asking me to sponsor her team in last Saturday’s Lupus Foundation run / walk. Lupus is a long-term autoimmune disorder that may affect the skin, joints, kidneys, brain, and other organs. It’s something that may flare up once and never show up again…or it may keep attacking the body. My mother died of lupus in 1979, with her body basically ‘rejecting’ her kidneys as if they were transplants. There is no known cure. Sheila and her family looked for support for their team of walkers and runners as they worked to raise money for lupus research.

In an instant, two things came together for me: the desire to run another 5K…and the desire to find a cure for lupus. Instead of donating to Sheila’s team, I decided to form my own! Ben and I signed up and had a GREAT time running.  I got off to a good start and held my own throughout the race!  Out of 42 people, Ben finished 4^th and I was 9^th!   Just as importantly, people signed on to sponsor our running, raising over $100 for lupus research.

I got to do something that I enjoy to raise money for what I care about. Pretty good combination!  I think that’s what’s called ‘using your gifts to serve God!’

No pain…no gain.  When I’m running, a little pain helps!  It shows that I’m pushing my body to grow stronger.   I’ve definitely felt pain in the past 6 months as I’ve gotten back into shape…but it’s been worth it.

No pain…no gain.  Does the same theory apply to a life of faith?  Not always.  God gives us all unique gifts and passions that can be used in God’s service.  Last weekend I took a passion (running) and used it to raise money for something I found very worthwhile.  Every week I take a love of public speaking and use it to preach.  I take an excitement for God’s work in the world and I use it to help African ministries get started.  These things bring energy and joy to my life…not pain! 

Life in God’s service need not be misery!  God has given you gifts, passions, and abilities that you can use in God’s service…to help people in need…to tell people about God’s love for them…to teach the faith…to be a leader.  Use them...and enjoy the results!

The 'Kinky' Side of the Bible

How beautiful you are and how pleasing,
my love, with your delights!
Your stature is like that of the palm,
and your breasts like clusters of fruit.
I said, “I will climb the palm tree;
I will take hold of its fruit.”
May your breasts be like clusters of grapes on the vine,
the fragrance of your breath like apples,
and your mouth like the best wine.

This morning I woke up early to read a little before heading off to play basketball (calling ALL players to the D-E High School gym from 6:00-7:00 on Wednesday and Fridays)…and the quote above is part of what I read.  How’s THAT for interesting morning reading?!

No, I’m not into Harlequin novels (ick).  I don’t get into books of love poetry (too sappy).  It’s not a quote from a kinky website (don’t even GO there).  These words, surprisingly, come from…the Bible!  Really!  Look at Song of Solomon chapter 7!  Pretty sensual for scripture, wouldn’t you say?

We come from a culture that has MAJOR hang-ups with sexuality.  On the one hand, sex is all around us.  It sells! How many commercials abound in scantily clad women?  Every time I drive back from the Cities, the strip club in Cannon Falls has a full parking lot.  Pure Pleasure billboards scream for us to come check them out.  Internet porn is quick and easy to access.  Sex…sex…sex…everywhere you look.

On the other hand, we have a puritanical side of our culture that pushes back against such sexualizing of the world.  Churches have been at the forefront of the battle, often bringing a ‘Just Say No’ attitude towards anything sexual, viewing the whole topic as dirty or obscene. 

Yet here, smack dab in the middle of the Bible, we find the Song of Solomon (aka the Song of Songs).  This book tells of two lovers who just can’t get enough of each other.  It’s amazingly explicit…you don’t have to have much of an imagination to understand what they desire. 

This coming Sunday we will read the story of creation from Genesis 1, and we will hear God’s command to the first people, “Be fruitful and increase in number.”  In crass terms, God tells them to “Have sex and make babies.”   That IS the method God created for people increase in number!

Genesis 1 and the Song of Solomon both teach us that sex is good.  Yes, it can be perverted in very harmful way…we see the harmful effects of that every day.  But sex is not inherently dirty or obscene.  In the proper context, it is a beautiful gift of God. It is something to celebrate.

God is good!

Faith: Running with Others

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Hebrews 12:1-3

This past spring I got back into running with a goal in mind: I wanted to put in a good showing at the Eyota Days 5K road race.  It took a few months of training to get in shape, but by the middle of July I felt pretty good.  Ben and I ran the 5K trail several times prior to the race.  By race day, I was ready to go!

After the Eyota Days race, I grew busy…it got hot…I was out of town…(excuses…excuses…).  My running regimen disappeared for a while, so when Ben asked if I would run with him in St. Charles’ Gladiolus Days race, I wasn’t so sure.  I’d done some running, but nothing near the 3 miles that the race required.  After putting off a decision for a while, on Thursday I finally decided to bite the bullet.  My goal…to finish!

On Saturday morning I lined up with all the other crazy runners.  As the gun sounded I found a comfortable pace and plodded along, winding through the streets of St. Charles.  At about the halfway point of the race I found myself in a ‘gap.’  I had a few runners in my sights ahead of me.  I couldn’t sense anyone behind me.  I ran alone and felt myself fading.  I didn’t have the energy to catch the person ahead of me.  I soon heard the footsteps of someone coming up from behind.  I’d fallen back.  As the runner moved to pass me, something in me clicked.  I wasn’t about to let someone blow by me!  As he moved by me, I picked up the pace to keep up.  Before long I started to pull away from him, but he hurried to keep up.  For the last 1 ½ miles of the race, the two of us ran side by side.  When one person fell behind, he’d kick it in gear to catch back up again.  Together we moved up on the pack and, one by one, we passed the runners ahead of us.  On the home stretch I was able to blow by the winner of the 12 and under girl’s division (so yes, I AM faster than a 12 year old girl!  Barely!).

Had I run the second half of the race alone, I know that would have faded back into the pack.  Once I had someone to run with, I found extra energy.  I had someone to keep up with!  After the race I tracked my fellow runner down and thanked him for ‘picking me up.’  He had a funny response, “I was just trying to run your pace and keep up.”  He pushed me.  I pushed him.  Together, we finished strong.  He helped me to do what I wanted to do all along…run well!

That race is a microcosm of my life of faith.  When I feel ‘alone’ in faith, it’s easy to fade...to lose motivation.  A few years ago I tried (on my own) to read the Bible in a year.  I didn’t come close to making it!  This year we have a group of people all doing it at once.  As of today, I’m up to date!  They are helping me to do what I want to do.  God continually puts people in my life to ‘push’ me in my faith life.  They challenge me to be the person I want to be.  They remind me of the goodness of our Lord. 

I need others to help to throw off everything that hinders me and the sin that so easily entangles me.  They run with me as together we fix our eyes on Jesus.

A life of Christian faith isn’t a solo journey!  Others run with us.  Thank God!

God had a day of rest, so why don't I??

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Genesis 2:2-3)

In six days God:

·         created the heavens

·         created the earth

·         created plants

·         created animals

·         created people

On the seventh day God rested.

In six days I:

·         write sermons

·         plan church events

·         organize church youth activities

·         do a zillion behind the scenes church things

·         oversee new ministries in the synod on behalf of Bishop Usgaard

·         do projects at home

·         cook

·         clean

·         do some laundry

·         run my son from event to event

·         garden

·         take care of the yard

·         etc…etc…etc…

On the seventh day, I have just a few one or two more things to take care of.

I think God is on to something! 

We live in a culture that doesn’t know when to stop, and I’m as guilty as anyone else.  The list of things to do never ends.  I wake up early to have some time to catch up.  I often get to bed later than I’d like because I have ‘just one last thing to do.’  I measure the ‘quality’ of my day by how much I accomplished.

When my family goes away to our cabin for a few days, a new list appears: move some rock…push the cattails out of the way…repair the boat…  Last Friday I thought I’d try something different.  After a few 13 hour work days, my family and I headed north.  For one day, I ignored the to-do list.  I slept in…I fished…I grilled lunch...I read a book…I napped…I went jogging…I played cards. Imagine – a whole day without feeling any obligation to get stuff done…a day of rest!  It was lovely! 

I know that when I have some time to relax I’m happier, I’m more fun to be around, I’m a better parent, and I actually get more done.    Why don’t I do that more often?  Why do I keep running the rat race?  It makes no sense.

If God can rest after six days of work, why do I feel the need to keep charging ahead?  My challenge for this fall, as my schedule fills up with new activities, is to find a time of rest.  God created us to take time to unwind and enjoy God’s world.  God calls us to times of peace and reflection.  God reaches out to us in worship and prayer.

I suspect I’m not the only one struggling here!  There’s no glory in having the busiest schedule.  The list of things to do will still be there tomorrow…it doesn’t need to be done now.  Let us join God in a weekly day of rest!  God knows that we need it.

Cancer - Creation Groans!

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. (Romans 8:22).

Right now my life is surrounded by cancer.  My wife has lived with ovarian cancer for 7 ½ years.  My mother-in-law has endured 17 years of cancer treatments and soon will have yet another surgery.  Joe, my good friend and pastoral coach endures some nasty lung cancer treatments.  Larry, my synod-staff colleague from Southwestern Minnesota, was just diagnosed with a lymphoma.  Enough already!

Last Friday night my family went to the Freeborn County Relay for Life.  A large crowd gathered to raise money for cancer research.  Over 5000 luminaries honored those fighting cancer…and remembered those who succumbed to it.  Cancer touches so many lives.  Enough already!

Everywhere I turn I run into cancer and the horrific treatments that people endure to fight it.  The reality is that chemo and radiation are poisons.  Yes, they fight against the cancer cells, but they also overwhelm the body.  The list of side-effects from most chemo treatments is frightening.  I’m convinced that in 20 years we’ll look back at today’s methods of fighting cancer and say, “How barbaric!”  Sadly, it’s the best that we have right now.  While brilliant researchers work to find better options, people still have to continue enduring the agony of treatment.

The question often arises, “How could God allow cancer?”  The reality is that we live in a broken world.  We live in a world overrun by sin.  Sin is much more than some people doing some bad things.  All of creation groans under sin.... it permeates all things.  Everything in creation works to rebel against God.  People push away the God who created them, preferring to live lives of anxiety and pain.  The earth has the capability of unleashing horrific pain in earthquakes or floods or tornadoes.  Even the DNA of human cells mutates, causing tumors to grow…and destroy all around them! 

All of creation has been groaning as in the pangs of childbirth.  That’s a good way of describing it.  We live in a broken world where pain and suffering will always exist.  Modern technology has helped alleviate some of this…but it will never go away.  There will always be something.  Human progress will never get rid of suffering and death. 

Some people find this world a depressing place to be (and I admit, it stinks sometimes!)…but this is the world Jesus came to live in.  This is the world that God works to redeem.  In the midst of despair, God acts to bring hope and life.  That doesn’t mean that we’ll be cancer free.  It doesn’t mean that we’ll avoid tragedy in life.  It does mean that God doesn’t leave us alone.

Jesus came to earth to walk with us.  Jesus came to wipe away our tears.  Jesus came to earth to destroy death forever.  In the midst of cancer and pain, we as people of God proclaim hope.  The sin that permeates our world will never drive God away.  God acts daily to save God’s people, both in this world…and in eternity. 

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? ³³ Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who then can condemn? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:31-39).

Not even cancer can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ.  For that, I thank God!

God, the cancer is back!

Dear God,

My wife Shannon’s ovarian cancer is back.  It never really went away, did it?  Last November the oncologist couldn’t see any cancer, so Shannon was taken off of chemo.  She’s had a great eight months of gaining strength, getting to travel and enjoying life.  We knew that it wouldn’t last.  Deep down, we’ve been expecting this cancer to return.

This cancer has put my family on a roller coaster over the years.  God, I thank you that you helped Shannon to notice those lumps back in 2004.  You gave her an excellent surgeon who cleaned out the cancer and prepared her for chemo.  That first chemo was nasty stuff, but we had great hopes that you would use it to make the cancer go away forever.  It didn’t.  Six months after that chemo regimen ended the cancer returned.   Another surgery and more nasty chemo followed.  Again we hoped that the cancer would go away.  It didn’t. 

Lord, I can never forget the conversation with her oncologist after the cancer returned that second time.  She explained that Shannon had a type of cancer that was resistant to the standard therapies.  The oncologist told us that Shannon didn’t have many options remaining.  There were just a few experimental therapies available for her type of cancer.  None of them had a track record of getting rid of cancer.  They sometimes slowed its growth. That was the best that could be offered at the time.  It didn’t sound good.

I admit that when that happened I was pretty scared.  My mother died when I was in second grade.  It seemed likely that my family history would repeat itself.  In the midst of that dark time, you taught me something very important.  I learned to live in the moment.  Every time that I looked into the future I only saw darkness.  I didn’t want to lose my wife!  I learned that I can’t live life like that.  I learned to pay attention to the present, to enjoy the time that I had with Shannon.  The darkness lifted and we learned to live with cancer.

Lord, you’ve worked miracles with her chemotherapy.  One treatment that normally only worked for people for a few months before becoming ineffective kept the cancer at bay for over a year.  Another treatment that was only expected to keep the cancer from growing actually diminished the tumor to the point where they couldn’t see it anymore.  The number of options for treating the cancer continues to grow.  You are giving great wisdom to people who work to find an effective cure to this awful disease.  Thank you!

Now that the cancer is back, I will need help in prioritizing things in life.   The chemo will sap Shannon’s energy, and I will need to set aside those frivolous things which take so much of my time and energy.  You’ve helped me to it before…help me again!  Cancer has a way of cutting through the clutter and helping me see what’s essential in life.

You have given Shannon strength to deal with over seven years of cancer.  Shannon’s mom has endured something like seventeen years of fighting ovarian cancer…and she’s back in treatments again.  The two of them share the same oncologist…the same cancer…and now the same chemo schedule.  Mother and daughter will sit side by side on Mayo Clinic’s Gonda 10.  Help them to strengthen each other as they live with ovarian cancer.

God, you have walked with my family through this whole cancer journey.  Give Shannon and her mom the strength to live with the chemo.  Give their oncologist wisdom to find the most effective treatments.  Give the researchers wisdom as they explore ways to battle cancer.  Give me energy to handle my added responsibilities around the home.

We put ourselves in your hands, Lord.  What else can we do?  Thank you for being with us through this whole ordeal.

 

Pete

Independence at Last! Thank God!

A little over a week ago we celebrated the birth of our nation.  235 years ago our forbearers fought for independence and freedom.  About 4,400 people sacrificed their lives for the cause in the fighting that took place.  Today, we enjoy the fruits of their decade long struggle.  As we look back, we see the hand of God at work in the midst of the pain and despair, bringing freedom to many people who had not known it before! 

This past Saturday, I had the honor of celebrating the birth of another new nation: The Republic of South Sudan.  In my work with new ministries that I do for Bishop Usgaard I spend a lot of time with Sudanese refugees.  These men and women have taught me much about the struggles that they faced in the civil war that raged since 1983.  They talk about being machine gunned while worshipping.  They talk about children eaten by alligators as they fled the fighting.  The talk about the staggering death toll: over 2.5 million people died in the conflict.  To put that in perspective, if you add together all of the war-time deaths from every war that America fought in our history, from the Revolution to the Civil War to World War II to the Gulf War…less than 1 million Americans who have died.  When you hear of the horrific deaths in Darfur (another part of Sudan), somewhere around 300,000 have died.  Against that perspective, 2.5 million deaths is hard to even imagine.  Few in South Sudan have not been touched by the pain.  Entire villages were wiped out.  Families were shattered.  People starved.  Despite all the pain, people fought on.  People prayed that a new day would dawn: a day of peace and hope.

On Saturday, July 9^th, God answered their prayers!  Following a peace agreement in 2005 and a referendum in January of this year, the Republic of South Sudan joined the nations of the world.  No longer will the Africans be second class citizens to the Arabs who controlled Sudan for decades.  No longer will the Sudanese government be able to send troops into the villages of the south, killing people with abandon.  The South Sudanese have the opportunity to choose their own leaders and their own freedoms.  God worked to bring peace!

Last Saturday I was honored to be invited to a gathering in Rochester where the people of South Sudan who live in southern Minnesota got together to celebrate! Tears flowed as the flag of South Sudan was raised.  Some elderly women slowly walked to the front and then burst into dancing with their canes held high.  I couldn’t help but get caught up in the moment!  After years of amazing hardships, God had acted to bring peace and independence.

We proclaim a God who works in the world…but we also proclaim a God who gives humans the freedom to make choices.  The Sudanese government made choices that led to 2.5 million deaths.  Choice has consequences.

After decades of pain, despair, and death, God has worked through imperfect people like Omar Bashir and John Garang to bring peace.  May God continue to use imperfect people to bring about peace in places like Iraq, Palestine, Syria, Libya, and Afghanistan.