Four Things on Friday
October 4, 2019
An Interesting
Article/Podcast
Virtue in the Wasteland is a collaboration between two
professors at Concordia, Irvine – which is not my alma mater, but they are
doing some really cool stuff out there on the West Coast. In this episode Dr.
Jeff Mallinson and Dr. Dan Van Voorhis discuss nihilism. That may not sound
like a very encouraging topic, but I think they are right in pointing out that
one of the main struggles of our culture today is nihilism – the belief that
nothing matters. A good argument can be made that this belief – or this mindset
– is a major influence in our culture today. If that is correct, the message of
hope, truth, and God’s love stand as a powerful counter-message to the world’s
philosophies. If, indeed, nihilism is one of the philosophies driving our
world, sharing in the truth of God, the love of Christ, and the comfort of the
Holy Spirit is all the more urgent.
Quote I’m
Pondering
“We do not draw people to Christ by loudly discrediting
what they believe, by telling the how wrong they are and how right we are, but by
showing them a light that is so lovely that they want with all their hearts to
know the source of it. – Madeleine L’Engle, Walking
on Water
One Good Thing
This Week
This good things starts out in a bad situation, but it
displayed something wonderful about our congregation.
I got a phone call this week that one of our members was
being evicted, and that the sheriff was selling the home and possession of the
member to cover debts that were at the heart of the eviction. What should we
do? I know nothing about eviction beyond the obvious, so I called one of the
lawyers in the congregation and gathered some wisdom. Then I went to the
member’s home. I was confused to find nothing happening there – no eviction, no
sheriff. We had gotten some incorrect information. However, as all of this was
unfolding, other members were offering to take the member in, to help pay
debts, and to provide other forms of care for the individual. And in the end,
that member felt loved and experienced the ministry of the body of Christ.
This is one of the things I love about Gloria Dei, and it
is one of the ways we show ourselves to be the body of Christ: we love one
another, not just with words, but with action. What a blessing!
Our Scripture
readings for the 17th Sunday after Pentecost are:
Over the years I have learned that those who read the
Scripture lessons and spend a little time thinking about them before church on
Sunday get more out of the service.
The sermon is: Wait For It
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