Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
cell phone - 907-841-4066
Home phone - 907-746-5131
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)
Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I attended seminary in the
1970’s, I was taught that God creates order, and that sin brings chaos, or
disorder. My wife might tell you that I
am ‘a little’ anal-retentive. I have
been known to quote the German proverb I heard in my youth, “A place for everything,
and everything in its place.” I find
comfort as a Christian knowing that God created all things in an orderly way. But,
sin brought chaos and dis-order. I also find
comfort in knowing that God’s law brings His plan and His love into disorderly
lives. And, I am especially thankful to know that our Lord’s forgiveness, the
gospel, overcomes the chaos created by our selfishness and rebellion. But, that is me and my feelings.
Perhaps you too are troubled as
the world around us seems to plunge more and more into chaos. The political unrest of today seems more focused
on destroying the current order, than building on the blessings we have received
and continuing to face and to deal with our problems and fix injustice. I see a world that wants to reject God and
his plan for families. I see a world
where people are focused on gratifying themselves rather than giving glory to
our Creator and Savior. For someone who finds peace in God-created order, I
grieve at the current state of our country and of our world. Perhaps it is easy to forget that Jesus
teaches this world will someday come to an end in judgement for sin.
All of that leads me to share some
joy I personally find in my current activity.
I have been spending time, a lot of it, working on my gardens. Yes, I tend to my vegetable and my flower
gardens each year. However, like rust on
a ship, like sin in our lives, keeping the weeds out and helping the flowers
and vegetables to grow is a constant chore and battle. This
year before I could roto-til my garden, I needed to remove raspberries plants which
were creeping into the garden and stealing room for my vegetables. Therefore, I took down the restraining lines
for my raspberries. I dug up the weeds
in the raspberries. Then I dug up the
raspberries out of the garden area and transplanted them into the midst of the original
raspberry patch, where I had just removed the weeds. I pounded in new stakes and re-strung the
lines holding the raspberries up. All that
took some work! After that preparation,
I was then able to till my vegetable plot and plant the seeds and starts. By the way, the starts I planted are doing
well, and spinach and radish seeds are starting to push their leaves through
the soil. I also worked pulling grass,
dandelions, and roses from my strawberries.
STILL, there is much work to do on my vegetable garden!
In the front and on the side of
our home we have some flower gardens. We
have placed rocks around these gardens to keep the grass out. Nevertheless, our lawn still invades the flowers. Dandelions seem to plant themselves everywhere. Moreover, even some of the flowers we planted
seem to take over. I do not mind the
columbine spreading. But, our daisies
now seem to dominate. I am thinning
those out. So, in order to work on these
gardens, I removed the border stones, pulled roses which had spread too far,
sprayed herbicide under the stones, and I have replaced some of them. Now, I am transplanting daisies into the west
garden which was overrun with grass.
And, STILL I have weeds to pull!
I am trying to put some order into the chaos of the weeds in these
flower gardens.
I hope I have enough wisdom to
know that not everyone has the same ideas about order that I do. Not everybody abides by the motto, “A place for
everything, and everything in its place.”
God has created each of us with different personalities, different gifts,
and different lives. Our Lord has
created us as unique and diverse people.
But, in that diversity, there are boundaries, like the stones I place in
my flower gardens. God’s boundaries are
called “the law.” God’s law shows us the
danger of selfishness, rebellion, pride, and sin. Jesus is sometimes misunderstood about his
teaching in Matthew 18. “8 If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two
feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the
fire of hell.” (Matthew 18:8-9) Jesus is not telling us to
physically maim ourselves. He is telling
us that when the weeds of sin invade our lives, then we should pull those
weeds. Or, if there are places we go,
shows we watch, or books we read, which lead to sinful thought and action,
remove those temptations from our lives.
Even better than the gift of God’s
law, is the gift of His forgiveness, or The Gospel. Ultimately, God is the real gardener of our
lives. Jesus teaches, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the
gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John
15:1-2) Jesus is the one who overcomes our sin with His death on the cross and
His rising from the dead. Thankfully, in Jesus, God works through faith to
create order out of the chaos in our lives.
I might be a little quirky. Others might exclaim, “What do you mean a
LITTLE quirky?” However, when I get down
on my hands and knees in the dirt, I am bringing some order out of the chaos
created by the weeds in my garden and my yard.
I am thankful that God’s law sets boundaries in my life, and that His love
and forgiveness weeds out the guilt of my sin.
A Child of God, Finding
Peace and Order From God in a Chaotic World of Sin,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. The St. John Pavilion was dedicated on
Sunday, June 4, after late worship in memory of my dad, Robert E. Rockey. Kathy says we fed at least 125 people with
salmon, brats, slaw, mac and cheese, rice, cake, and watermelon! Thanks to all who attended this special day! Special thanks to all who helped in so many
ways!! Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ei5EXFfbui5PgqYr9
P.P.S. The St. John Colony Days Picnic is THIS Saturday,
June 10, after the Colony Days Parade (beginning about 12:30 p.m.). There are many opportunities to provide food
donations or to help with the picnic. WE
ALSO NEED PEOPLE TO MARCH IN THE PARADE.
Please consider volunteering or donating if you have not yet done so.
P.P.P.S. As I said above, I have been working hard in
my gardens, (and also at Mary’s new home).
Here are some pictures of the gardens.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/geCBDmLwH9BP47mVA
P.P.P.P.S. I did go fishing on June 1 with the friend of
a friend, a visiting, retired professor of metal art from the University of
Minnesota. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hxyYi4ZaJb1dz5m46
P.P.P.P.P.S. Many asked at the pavilion dedication for my
sister’s macaroni and cheese recipe.
Here is the recipe:
Martha Rockey Reaves’s Macaroni and Cheese
8 oz. of elbow macaroni (or 2
cups dry)
3 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons of butter
2 Tablespoons of flour
12 oz. of shredded cheddar
cheese (grate it yourself)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heaping tablespoon of sour cream
Boil macaroni according to
directions and drain. Melt butter in a
large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat.
Add flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add milk and stir to combine flour mixture.
Cook until this just comes to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese, saving some to sprinkle on top,
and stir until melted and combined. Add
sour cream. Put macaroni in a 9 x 13
glass baking dish. Add cheese mixture and mix together. Top with saved cheese. Bake at 350 or 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1
John 3:1 a)
