Dear Fellow Children of God,
On a Friday morning in the Spring of 1981 I woke up with plans
for a full day of worthwhile activities ahead of me. I was pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in inner
city St. Louis, MO. My wife, Kathy, was
leaving for work as I was in our basement showering because of interesting
plumbing in a 1926 vintage church owned house.
Kathy hollered “Good-by!” as she left for work and told me that our 2
month old son, Josh, was in a baby carrier on the ground floor. I finished my shower quickly and ran up the
stairs. But I found the door from the basement to the ground floor locked. I ran outside in pajamas to try the back
door, but I found the back door locked. Kathy
had automatically locked the house as she left for work, the way we normally did
when we left home. The only difference was
that I was still in the house. Only, now
I was locked in the basement and our son was one floor above.
I checked out the basement door again, but the hinges
were not visible. I heard Josh starting
to cry. Friday chapel service would also
soon be starting at our church parochial school and I was to conduct this
chapel service. There much else planned
for the day as well. Finally, I broke
the door knob on the door to get out of the basement. Now I could take care of Josh and attend to
the day’s activities.
But I was late to chapel service. I rushed into the church with Josh in a baby
carrier as everyone was waiting. Then, as
I was putting Josh and the diaper bag down, I spilled coffee all over myself. For the rest of the day everything seemed to
go badly. At the end of an evening marriage
enrichment retreat, the pastor and counselor who led the retreat asked me on
the way out of the door why I was angry.
I guess it showed. That morning I
had a promising day in front of me. But one thing after another seemed to go
badly. I do confess that I was frustrated,
and yes maybe even a little angry.
I tell this story because I believe that everyone has had
one of those bad days. We expect good,
but sometimes event after event causes trouble and our troubles make us throw
up our hands in frustration and wonder.
Can you remember one of those days in your life where it seems
everything went wrong?
This
Sunday, however, we are told of a day when people expected loss and sorrow, but
instead God’s power and love worked victory and life and joy. The women went to the tomb of Jesus to anoint
His dead body. They had seen Jesus die on
the cross and were convinced that evil had won. Yet when the ladies arrived at the grave they
found the tomb empty, and an angel told them, "Don't be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who
was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.” (Mark
16:6)
Instead of expecting good and having everything go wrong,
the ladies expected grief and were surprised by God’s love. The ladies were so surprised that they had
trouble believing that Jesus had risen.
But, Jesus did rise, even if it took the ladies and the disciples days
and weeks to fully comprehend the blessings and victory of Jesus’ resurrection.
In fact, Jesus’ rising from the dead changes all the bad
days we have ever faced. We may have
faced loss and sorrow, grief and struggle, but God’s love is victorious. Jesus took our sins to the cross and paid for
them, sins which cause life’s trials. And
on Easter, Jesus rose from the dead defeating sin and death, and promising
eternal life in heaven for all who believe in Jesus’ victory over death.
When Kathy came home from work on that Friday in 1981 she
instantly apologized after I told her that I had been locked in the
basement. I confess, and the retreat
leader saw it, it took me a little longer to apologize, but I did too. But, as Christians who know Jesus forgives us
and has heaven waiting, we know we can face anything. As Christians who know Jesus’ Easter victory,
we are able move forward in faith because, no matter how many bad days life
brings, God has forgiven us and has eternal life waiting as we believe in
Jesus.
I pray that this Easter you again realize that when Jesus
rose He has assured His love for our lives eternally. Jesus’ rising from the dead overcomes all of
our bad days of the past, and all our bad days to come. We get to live in His love and victory and
joy!
A Child of God, Seeking to Live in Jesus’ Resurrection
Victory,
Pastor
Jonathan
P.S. Here are pictures from the Basic Teachings of
the Bible / Adult Member Class, last Saturday, March 28.
P.P.S. Here are pictures from Stephen Ministry
Commissioning last Sunday, March 29. https://plus.google.com/photos/114993745799525883148/albums/6132567565160737057?banner=pwa
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ABOUT ‘THOUGHTS FROM THE PASTOR’
- I am sending these e-mail messages, hopefully weekly, to all St.
John members and friends whose e-mails I have. (I am always adding new
names of friends and members – in case you are just receiving this e-mail for
the first time.) However, if you don’t want to receive this e-mail,
please let me know, and I’ll gladly leave your name off my list for this
message. . .
****
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