There is an old story that claims years ago a ship on theAtlanticwas in distress because its supply of fresh water had run out. It had sailed for nearly three months along the coast of NorthAmerica, through the Gulf of Mexico and now was several nautical miles off theshoreofBrazil. The ship was floating listlessly on a completely still sea. The crew was near starvation but even worse, they had been floating without fresh water for nearly two days. You can live a long time without food, but water of course is a necessity. The crew faced a horrible death from the thirst, and the great irony was there was water all around – alas – only sea water all around them.

When hope was almost gone, they sighted a small fishing vessel powered by oars approaching them. At once they hoisted distress signals. But the only answer they got was dip it up. What heartless mockery, they thought to themselves. Dip it up? To dip up buckets of salt water! They again began to despair. A second time they signaled to the smaller fishing vessel and again came back the answer – dip it up! They signaled one final time, but received the same answer.

Finally in despair, they lowered a bucket. Imagine their amazement and joy when it turned out to be fresh, living water! They didn’t know it, but they were less than two miles out from the mouth of the mighty Amazon River, whose fresh water flows far out to the sea. All they had to do was reach out and dip it up and they would live!

I believe this is a terrific metaphor for our lives. So often we feel like we are floating through life listlessly and dying – and yet we are surrounded by living water. All we need do is dip it up! There are so many times when people share with me their experiences of hopelessness. They feel that their prayers are unanswered and life isn’t turning out the way they had dreamed. In moments like this I wonder if the scriptures aren’t calling them to stop for a moment and breathe in and out –simply to breathe in and out and feel the breath of life filling them up. The Spirit of God is all around us and all we need do is dip it up. So too, there are people who share with me their feelings of loneliness and solitude. They walk through life often times feeling as if they are all alone. In moments like this I wonder if the scriptures aren’t calling them to look – really look – at all the people who pass by them on the street; who serve them at the grocery store; who care for them at the doctor’s office. There are lonely people all around us – so many who are just waiting to be seen and spoken to, acknowledged and affirmed. The Spirit of God is all around us and all we need do is dip it up. And every day there are folks who share with me their physical trials. They are absorbed in their real pain, their death and their dying. And while these feelings are valid, I wonder if the scriptures don’t call us to remember that every moment is a gift. That we are not dead yet! Nature reminds us that we live in a springtime world of rebirth and the Spirit of God – the Spirit of Life is all around us and all we need do is dip it up.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning in one of her great poems has affirmed it well:

Earth’s crammed with heaven,

And every common bush afire with God:

But only he who sees takes off his shoes.

Browning is simply proclaiming what Jesus proclaimed to his friends, the Kingdom of God is within you. And this then is the challenge of Pentecost. We must begin searching for the Spirit of God who is promised to be with us always  . Pentecost reminds us that earth is crammed with heaven, that God is walking with us at this very moment, that the Spirit of God surrounds us and all we have to do is dip it up. And so this summer when you are feeling listless and dying – breathe in the breath of life. This year when you are feeling lonely or abandoned – look into the eyes of another and reach out. In the months ahead when you are feeling pain or your mortality – look around at a world being reborn and remember you are not dead yet. The Spirit of God is everywhere – dip it up!

Popping up quickly to face the muggers, Jim discovered that there were four of them, all young teenagers, no one more than fourteen years of age. The youth circled Jim, and the youngest one, who couldn’t have been more than twelve years old, clearly had watched a lot of television, because he began to flail away at Jim with earnest but ineffectual karate kicks. Noting that the youth weren’t carrying weapons, Jim decided to confront them with what they were doing. Stop it! Just stop it! Jim scolded them. You guys have got to quit terrorizing people like this. The young teens, taken by surprise, dropped their hands, so Jim continued, I’m a pastor. You boys want to try and beat up a pastor and take his money? Come on ahead. Take your best shot. At that they fled down the street, but the little karate kicker turned back, looking directly in Jim’s eyes with a sad expression and saying in a sincere voice, Pastor, ask God for a blessing for me!

Jim Wallis says this: Who among us does not yearn for a blessing from God? Even those we are tempted to write off as too tough, too entrenched in their destructive behavior – buried deep beneath the hardened exterior there s a yearning for a blessing. Whether a troubled youth, one struggling with addiction, or the “respectable” person fearful of giving voice to his or her own inner struggle – whatever our situation in life, we ache to know God’s blessing.

Jesus was a man very much aware that the whole world “aches” for God’s blessing. In this Season of Easter we hear such wonderful stories about his Apostles bringing the blessing of God to a world “aching” for such a gift. They stand before Gentiles and Jews, they stand before Roman centurions and jailers, they stand before judges and tribunals, and even in the face of death, they bring the blessing of God. And of course forty days after Easter we find Jesus standing with his disciples at the moment of the Ascension and he tells them to go out and baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Jesus doesn’t say: Hey guys, bring my blessing to just the good folks, those who are deserving, and those you love – NO – Jesus says: Go out to the whole world and baptize…bring God’s blessing. Jesus was aware that the world, the whole world aches for that blessing.

What a tremendous challenge for us as we strive to live like Easter people! It’s easy enough to pray for and bless the people whom we love in our lives. The harder part is to bless those whom we don’t even know. We dismiss so easily the co-worker who is irritating or the loud mouth at a football game, or the thoughtless driver who cuts us off. What if we took these opportunities to bless them? What if we asked God to bless them? Would we not be carrying out the Great Commission of Jesus? We dismiss so easily the immigrant, and the person who doesn’t speak English, and the homeless and the one asking for a handout. What if we offered more than our tolerance? What if we asked God to bless them? Would we not be carrying out the Great Commission of Jesus? We dismiss so easily the ex-spouse, the ex-partner, and the ex-friend. What is we took a moment to bless them? What if we put aside our bitterness and hurt and simply prayed that God might bless them? Would we not be carrying out the Great Commission of Jesus? Even more, we might find that we have been blessed in the blessing of others.

Easter is the Season to remember again the Great Commission of Jesus – a commission that he gives to each of us – we are called to bring the blessings of God to the whole world, to a world that “aches” for blessing!

        

Chaim’s mother however had a different idea. She wanted her son to go to university and become a doctor. Often she would encourage young Chaim: Son, I know you want to be a writer. But I want you to think about surgery. Become a surgeon. You’ll make your family proud. You’ll make lots of money. And you’ll keep people from dying. Chaim listened to his mother’s desire and responded: No, Mama, I want to be a writer.

Still, like all mothers, Chaim’s mother would not give up. So every vacation break from Yeshiva University, she would repeat her comments in always the identical way: Son, I know you want to be a writer. But I want you to think about surgery. Become a surgeon. You’ll make your family proud. You’ll make lots of money. And you’ll keep people from dying. And Chaim would respond: No, Mama, I want to be a writer. Shortly before his graduation in 1950 his mother still had hopes of Chaim becoming a doctor. One more time she took him aside and began to speak her mantra: You’ll make your family proud. You’ll make lots of money. And you’ll keep people from dying…and Chaim cut her off with exasperation, and with great passion he told his mother: Mama, I don’t want to keep people from dying! I want to show them how to live!

By the time Chaim Potok died in 2002 he was considered one of the great writers of the 20^th century, and as he suggested to his mother, he had spent his literary career showing people how to live.

In the month of April as we celebrate the Feast of the Resurrection are we not remembering that Jesus came to show us how to live? All too often we frame the story of Jesus’ resurrection as one of the next life. We lift up the resurrection narratives as hopeful signs of the eternal life that it promises. We look to the empty tomb and the stone rolled away and the appearance of the angels as signs of the great promise of the next life. And while all of this is certainly part of the Christian story, the resurrection is as much about this life as the next. The resurrection story shows us how to live!

The women who arrived at the empty tomb were told to fear not. In other words they were told that every day should be lived courageously – as a great adventure of faith, and that discipleship means living with a confidence that God was in them and around them. They were also instructed to go to the Apostles and tell them that the Lord is risen! And God is alive – they were to encourage and inspire those closest to them, their community of love. And finally, the Apostles were instructed to go out to the whole world and tell the story of Jesus baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit – that they were to continue the work of Jesus. The resurrection challenged them to have a purpose in life – that they were to be bearers of Good News to a broken and frightened world. The resurrection was not about keeping them from dying; rather, it showed them how to live.

This Easter, the Feast of the Resurrection shows us how to live as well. We so often live with great anxieties and fears. We worry about the future and our health; we worry about the world and its problems; we worry for our children and our families. The resurrection reminds us to drop the fears and remember that God is with us and around us. Fear not!

We are so caught up in our own concerns and problems that we forget to pay attention to those around us. Yet the Feast of the Resurrection reminds us that God has given us a community on this journey of life and the people near to us need our support, our encouragement. We need to inspire our family and friends.

And finally, we can get so caught up in our daily routines that we forget that God has called us to the Great Commission – to proclaim the love of God to all people. We are called to show our faith and the reason for our courage and the source of our hope to a broken world. This is our purpose! In the end the resurrection is certainly about God’s victory over death, yet as much as this; the resurrection teaches us how to live. Fear not! Love your community of faith, your friends and your family! Bring hope to the whole world! Happy Easter my Messiah family.

Once upon a time there was flock of wild geese that rested upon a pond near the beginning of autumn. As they were resting one of the geese came to close to a wealthy person’s garden and the goose was captured by the gardener, who clipped its wings as punishment and then released it. When the geese started to resume their flight, the wounded bird tried frantically to fly off with them but couldn’t get off the ground.

Instead of flying away without the wounded bird, the flock circled around the pond and came to a water landing back where they had started. They were not going to leave without their ‘silly’ goose, their wounded compatriot. Fortunately the gardener’s clipping had not inflicted permanent damage, and after several days the damaged feathers had grown back well enough to allow the goose to take flight.

The flock’s loyalty to its wounded member touched the gardener’s heart and made him realize that he had been wrong to hurt a bird that had done him no harm. In, fact, as Schweitzer wrote, the gardener’s heart was changed as he gladly watched them as they finally rose together and resumed their long flight.

Albert Schweitzer would often use this parable, this fable when he spoke of the meaning of life: By having a reverence for life, we enter into a spiritual relation with the world. By practicing reverence for life we become good, deep, and alive. Moreover, a man is ethical only when life, as such, is sacred to him, that of plants and animals as that of his fellow men, and when he devotes himself helpfully to all life that is in need of help.

Each year during the Season of Lent I write about the spiritual disciplines of this holy season Lent. These are simple ways of allowing God to change our hearts – to make us more like Jesus. Every year the church asks us to give alms (that is, care for the poor), and pray and fast that we might be more attentive to the needs of the world around us. Still, in a much larger sense, I think that the disciplines of Lent call us to a reverence for life that is much greater than service to only those in need. When we give of our money, we remind ourselves that everything we have is a gift, and in fact the entire world is a gift that should never, ever be taken for granted – Lent calls us to have a deep reverence for the earth. When we pray, we are reminded that we are creatures before God and we stand with all the creatures of the planet – Lent calls us to a deep reverence for our fellow creatures. Ethics has to do not only with how we treat one another, but how we treat animals as well. We must have a reverence for life – all life! And when we fast, we remember not only the gift of food and that so many in our world go without food – Lent calls us to stand in reverence for the plants that sustain us. We are called to a reverence for trees and flowers, for the fruits of the earth and sea, for everything – everything that lives.

So even as Lent is a call to change our hearts in how we love our neighbors, Lent is equally a reminder that we are part of the created world and we must reverence all life around us. How might we do that this year? Perhaps we will be impelled to donate to the Animal Shelter or foster an abused or forgotten animal. Perhaps we will listen with more tolerant and understanding hearts to the justice cries of our vegetarian and vegan brothers and sisters and re-examine our use of food. Perhaps we will be more intentional with our prayers of grace before meals or spend more time walking in beauty of the natural world. Perhaps we will plant a garden, or make a commitment to recycle, or bicycle to work. There are so many ways to reverence the life around us. This year we must find a way to be more attentive to the call to reverence. As Dr. Schweitzer has reminded us:

By having a reverence for life, we enter into a spiritual relation with the world. By practicing reverence for life we become good, deep, and alive. Moreover, a man is ethical only when life, as such, is sacred to him, that of plants and animals as that of his fellow men, and when he devotes himself helpfully to all life that is in need of help.

Each year I use the February Column to reprise my Annual Report. As we enter this new year we pledge to support one another, prayer for each another and celebrate the good work that God has begun in this parish community. Peace my friends. Pastor Jeff

One man challenged another to an all-day wood chopping contest. The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised and annoyed to find that the other fellow had chopped substantially more wood than he had. I don’t get it, he said. Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did. But the winning woodsman just smiled and replied, But you didn’t notice, that every time I sat down to rest – I was sharpening my ax!

I know it seems a bit of an odd story to begin a pastor’s Annual Report, but this year I’d like to reflect less on what has taken place in the last year, and more on what is before us. I wish to share some thoughts about my upcoming sabbatical. From Mid-June throughout the month of July I will be away from my work here as pastor for a six week sabbatical. Sabbatical comes from the Hebrew word – Shabbat – literally, to cease. In the book of Genesis, a Shabbat is taken by God on the seventh day. God ceases from creation and rests. In the Book of Exodus Shabbat is the first command given after the flight from Egypt. In the Book of Leviticus, God commands that every seventh year is a time of Shabbat. In fact the command to Shabbat is given 170 times in the bible! And certainly you can not read the gospels without understanding that Jesus was a person of Shabbat – a man who often ceased what he was doing to rest.

These past ten years at Messiah have been a wonderful adventure. There have been so many great memories, great liturgical experiences, joyful gatherings and of course God has blessed this community in abundance. We are growing so quickly and in so many different ministries. Still, I know that to pastor a growing community into the next decade I need to sharpen my ax. I need to Shabbat – to cease from my daily activity and spend some time learning, reflecting, praying and resting. The ELCA recommends a sabbatical time every seven years for a rostered pastored and the Pastoral Parish Council and I have planned mine for this summer.

Starting in mid-June, Melissa and I and the children will be traveling to the Rocky Mountains as I will be enrolled in the Luther Academy of the Rockies. For two weeks I will be in class with seminary professors and theologians updating my understanding of the church and sharpening my theological ax. Afternoons will be spent with family, hiking, exploring nature and enjoying the beauty of the Rockies. Melissa and will then return home for a couple of weeks for family visits before heading off to the east coast. We’ll travel to Washington DC to re-visit my old university, spend time in historic Williamsburg, Va. and then spend a few days near the ocean on Virginia Beach.

During this time of Shabbat, Pastor Gil will be covering pastoral emergencies and presiding at Sunday liturgies. He will preach some of the liturgies and we will have guest preachers for some as well. The Pastoral staff will continue their great work in keeping the parish alive and healthy. I am aware that few people in life have the opportunity to take a sabbatical. I am grateful for the church’s financial support and for the council’s encouragement in this time of rest. During these six weeks I will pray for you, my Messiah Church friends, and trust that you will continue to gather faithfully every Sunday morning and lift me and my family in your prayers as well. God has done great things through our common ministry. I believe that God has even greater plans for us in the next ten years.

There is so much truth in Steve Jobs’ philosophy of time. The time we have is limited and thus so very valuable. I read recently:

• To realize the value of a year, ask a student who failed a final exam.
• To realize the value of one month, ask the mother of a premature baby.
• To realize the value of a week, ask the editor of a weekly magazine.
• To realize the value of one day, ask a daily wage laborer with kids to feed
• To realize the value of an hour, ask two people in love waiting to meet
• To realize the value of a minute, ask someone who barely missed the train
• To realize the value of a second, ask the person who just avoided a crash
• To realize the value of a millisecond, ask the person who won the Olympic silver medal

All time is limited and thus so very valuable. And still we waste time! As Steve Jobs so deeply believed, we waste time by striving to live someone else’s life – when we spend all of our days trying to live up to other’s expectations of us – our parents, children, spouses or our bosses. It isn’t wrong to please other people, but we have to be authentic people. We have to claim who we are and love who we are and live who we are!

We waste time when we get caught up in dogmatic thinking. This is especially true of churches. Dogmatic thinking keeps us from looking at the future with a newness and freshness that brings life. Just because that is the way it has always been done, doesn’t mean that it’s the only way to do it! In our church community and in our personal lives we have to try new things, and begin new adventures, and dream new dreams because our time is valuable!

And mostly we waste time when we ignore our inner voice and fail to follow our hearts. Steve Jobs wasn’t a particularly religious man and yet he believed that there was something sacred within each human being that I call the voice of God. Every Sunday I finish the liturgy by blessing you. I remind you that God goes before you to guide you and is behind you to encourage you; that God is above you to watch over you and beneath you to support you. And then every week I end by saying: And may you discover the power of God within you and know that God will always be your friend. What I mean by that is that the sacred is within you, and if you reflect and listen to this voice, then God will lead you well.

And so as we embark on yet another year I pray that you will use this year wisely. I pray that you will again realize how precious is every year and month, every day and hour, every single minute and second. Do not waste this time. Dream great dreams for yourself and stop trying live up to everyone else’s expectations of you. Do not plod through another year dogmatically doing things the same way – take some risks, strike out anew, and live differently. And most of all listen to that voice within you – the voice of the Divine. Have courage to follow your heart this year and may you discover the power of God within you and know that God will always be your friend. Happy New Year my Messiah Church friends!

I remember her patience and kindness to me when I first arrived at Messiah. There were afternoons when my then infant son Ben would be in my charge, and I would have him jumping in a bouncy seat between our offices. It’s always fun to have an infant around, that is of course unless you’re trying to answer phones and put together a newsletter and deal with office details – and Bev never once complained. I’ll remember too the day that Melissa called me at the office and told me that she was pregnant with our second son Joey. I ran into Bev’s office to tell her and she hugged me and cried with me and only later did it occur to me that she knew of this great news before my own Mom did – even more shocking – before my mother-in-law did! I remember how humbled I was the day that I discovered that Bev knew the names of all the mail carriers who dropped off mail; or the one’s who stopped just to use our restroom; or the people that fixed the office machines; or the sales people who dropped by to sell their products. These are people that I walked by so often and yet she took time to know their names. That is a true gift.

            I remember all the birthdays and Boss’s Days that I would walk into my office to find a chocolate donut sitting on my desk because she knew I had unhealthy eating habits and loved donuts. And I won’t forget the laughter that was always present when I would share a goofy email, or God forbid, try out one of my Sunday jokes. It was a joy as well to hear stories of her family, her husband Arlo, her beautiful daughters and her love of being a grandma.

            When you share workspace with someone every day for ten years, they see the best and the worst of you. Aside from Melissa, Bev has seen the worst! It’s the side of me that can be frustrated and worried when something goes wrong; tired and terse when weariness sets in; angry or controlling when things aren’t done the way I want (usually when I haven’t eaten!). Bev has seen it all and accepted it with grace. I’ll remember that as well.

            Still, perhaps more than anything else I will remember the hospitality that she showed to those who walked into the office simply to shoot the breeze. It’s a rare gift to make people feel as if they are not an imposition or a distraction and to listen to them. Bev is a great listener…and I supposed God knew that I needed a listener.             All of this and so much I will remember and in remembering I will show my gratitude.

            On Sunday, December 11^th in between the liturgies, we will be having a small celebration to honor Bev and the twelve years of ministry that she has offered to this parish community. Come and join us in the Gathering Space for cake and coffee and of course great conversation.

            So the question becomes: If Bev is retiring, who is managing the office? After accepting resumes and interviewing candidates, the pastoral Parish Council offered the position of Office Manager to Anna Eherenman. Anna has a background in Office Management and volunteer coordinating. She has an in depth knowledge of graphic design and has worked in church environments before. Aside from her family she has a passion for exercise and fitness (she has completed two Iron man races!) She also has a deep love for animals and has worked with the Dane County Humane Society. Anna and her husband and two children live in the Heritage Heights neighborhood. I’m pleased that Anna will be working on the Pastoral Team.

            Again, please join us on Sunday, December 11^th as we show our appreciation for Bev. Stop by and say hello to Anna in the New Year. Most of all take some time to remember those who have touched your lives. Remember, and in remembering you will show your gratitude. After all – Gratitude is the memory of the heart

Now Maya’s grandmother operated a General Store and would often call for Maya when one particular person made a purchase. After her grandmother asked: How are you? – The customer would whine and complain about the weather, the economic situation, his wife, his kids or one of a dozen other things. Always he came in and complained. Her grandmother always turned to make sure that Maya was listening and paying attention.

One day, after Maya had listened yet again to the complaints and after the customer was out of earshot, Maya’s grandmother spoke these words: Sister, there are people who went to sleep last night, poor and rich and white and black, but they will never wake again. And those dead folks would give anything at all for just five minutes of this weather, or ten minutes of difficult plowing. So you watch yourself about complaining. What you’re supposed to do when you don’t like a thing is change it. If you can’t change it, then change the way you think about it!

Well Maya grew up and rose from the poverty of ruralArkansas. She refused to be defined by the barriers of a segregationist South; she embraced her color and her history; she survived sexual abuse and the sexism of her culture; she was at the forefront of the civil rights movement and she’s stood on the side of those oppressed – women, children and the poor for seventy years; she has been nominated for a Pulitzer prize and has received 30 honorary degrees! Through it all she refuses to complain and she continues to inspire others to move beyond their perceived limits – to live, and to love, and to rise.   

Out of the huts of history’s shame, I rise
Up from a past that’s rooted in pain, I rise
I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear, I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear, I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise, I rise, I rise.

            The optimism of Maya Angelou’s poetry is inspiring to me. Each time I read her writings I am invited to change the things that I can change; to adjust my attitude when faced with the unchangeable; and to rise, always to rise. Maya’s poetry, like the words of Jesus remind me that every moment and every second and every breath I take is a gift from God and that there are hurting people in the world, and dying people and lonely people who would give anything for my little complaints. I am reminded to stop complaining and start living – to rise – and live. That was the message of Jesus throughout the gospels. He would so often tell people rise and sin no more, or stand up and walk, or be on your way, your faith has saved you. Jesus was always encouraging people to change what they could change, to adjust their attitudes in the face of the unchangeable, and most of all, to start living, to rise!

            Perhaps this month as we celebrate Thanksgiving Day this should be a part of our gratitude – a commitment to stop our complaining and start living. Gratitude is an attitude and attitudes sometimes need to be adjusted. This year on Thanksgiving Day I will take stock of my complaints. I will change what can be changed. I will adjust my attitude in the face of what I can not change. I will be grateful for this moment – and like Maya Angelou – I will rise. I will rise up and live.

All our discontents about what we want appear to spring from the want of thankfulness for what we have.

Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe

 I think I was in middle school when I first read Robinson Crusoe. It seems so many years ago and yet the story is a profound one that sticks with me. Perhaps Daniel Defoe gave us some good advice through his fictitious character Robinson Crusoe. The first thing that Crusoe did when he found himself on a deserted island was to make out a list. On one side of the list he wrote down all his problems. On the other side of the list he wrote down all of his blessings. On one side he wrote: I do not have any clothes. On the other side he wrote: But it’s warm and I don’t really need any. On one side he wrote: All of the provisions were lost. On the other side he wrote: But there’s plenty of fresh fruit and water on the island. And on down the list he went. In this fashion he discovered that for every negative aspect about his situation, there was a positive aspect, something to be thankful for. It is easy to find ourselves on an island of despair and self-pity. Every once in awhile it is time that we sit down and take an inventory of our blessings.

To take an inventory of our blessings and to acknowledge that we are blessed by God is the beginning of true stewardship. Stewardship is really an act of gratitude, a time when we put our discontent and problems aside to reach out to others. It’s that time of year again – the time when we, as a community of faith, count our blessings and give back a portion of all that we have received.

I have always been so grateful for the stewardship that I have witnessed here at Messiah Church. So often I hear pastors speak of their trials with finances. There is never enough money to meet the salaries, or to pay for the roof repairs, or to replace the old furnaces – and rarely ever enough to meet the needs of programming and charitable outreach. I can say with relief and joy that this has never been my experience here! Every year you impress me with your generosity for which I never cease being grateful. It isn’t that we are a community without problems, or that our lives haven’t been touched by tragedy, or we haven’t felt the effects of a difficult economy – no – our faith community is like all others. Still, I have found this community to be a family deeply aware of its blessings. We have so many committed volunteers, a caring and passionate staff, a facility that is beautiful and functional, liturgy that is vibrant, and moments of fellowship that are meaningful. Most of all, I know that you are aware of the Spirit of God that moves through here in a way that touches and changes lives. It is a tremendous honor to be your pastor.

In this year’s Stewardship Campaign I am going to ask you to remember these blessings and to be generous yet again. In the weeks ahead at liturgy, you will hear the call to Stewardship from Louise Fosdick and Vince Borleske, the co-chairs of our Debt Reduction Appeal and Stewardship 2012 Campaign. You will receive in the mail a Question & Answer leaflet explaining the three-year pledge commitment. Toward the end of the month you will receive a Hoped for Gift Letter and two Commitment Cards. Finally, on Sunday, November 13^th I ask that you bring your pledges for the Debt Reduction Campaign and your pledges toward the 2012 Stewardship Appeal and place them on the altar during liturgy. We will celebrate Commitment Sunday with our wonderful Harvest Meal, a Thanksgiving celebration for our entire faith family. There is no cost for the meal – this is simply a Sunday to celebrate what God is doing here at Messiah Church.

In the weeks ahead take a moment to remember how we are blessed as a church. Remember what God has done in your life. Remember how we are blessed to be a blessing for others and pray about your pledges to our Debt Reduction Campaign and for the 2012 Stewardship Appeal. The Spirit of God is alive at Messiah. God is doing great things with us and through us. There is so much more to be done!

Why would I travel with all those things? I’m just passing through.

            I thought of that story just the other evening. I was out for a motorcycle ride and enjoying some of the breathtaking scenes of an August evening in Wisconsin. The rolling fields of wheat and corn and soybeans all providing a beautiful overture to a perfect sunset. The evening was spectacular. Just by chance I stopped by New Life Church just down the road from us and was surprised to find that they had built a labyrinth on their church property.

Have you ever walked a labyrinth? The labyrinth is a prayer tool that began in medieval times. In their desire to draw closer to God, people often took pilgrimages to the Holy Land or other sacred sites. Some of these were thousands of miles from their homes. For many people, most people, this kind of journey was impossible, so they built labyrinths, often in the floors of their great cathedrals to symbolically represent their pilgrimage journey. New Life’s labyrinth is modeled after the labyrinth built into the floor of the Chartres Cathedral in France. The labyrinth is a large circle (75 ft. diameter) of winding paths. There is only one entrance and one exit. It is not a maze with tricks and dead ends; rather, it is an elegant and beautiful winding path that leads to a center point. The idea is that to walk the winding journey helps one focus inward and creates a spiritual stirring within. In walking the labyrinth you are reminded that we are on a journey to God – or better – we’re just passing through.

As I walked the labyrinth on that beautiful evening I spent some time praying for the people who have asked for my prayers; I prayed too in gratitude for my children and my wife; I remembered the people of Messiah Church as I took in the beauty of the sunset. As I ended my time in prayer however, I thought of that story of Gandhi and remembered that I’m just passing through. I wondered if I’m carrying too much baggage on my journey. There is the baggage of possessions to be sure. Like so many people, I sometimes long for a bigger house, a nicer car and the newest gadget. Is all the “stuff” I carry with me really necessary? I carry as well the baggage of worry about the future. I worry perhaps too much about things over which I have no control – the future for my children, or the health of the greater church, or my health and the health of those I love. Does any of this worry help me in living the fullness of this day or is it simply weighing me down on my journey? I know that I carry around memories of past mistakes and some regrets of things I failed to do. I sometimes dwell on old wounds and allow anger to get the best of me. There are moments when I’m too concerned with what others think of me and fail to make the difficult decision. Isn’t all of this unnecessary baggage that keeps me from growing and holds me back on my journey of faith? You see, all of us have unnecessary baggage that we carry and we often forget that we are just passing through.

Perhaps in the next few weeks you might find a moment or two to reflect on your own journey. You might even want to take a ride out to the labyrinth at New Life and take a reflective stroll (you don’t need to ask permission or check in at the church – just pull into the parking lot and look for the entrance to the prayer area). However you reflect, think about the extra baggage that might be weighing you down or holding you back. Remember the story of Gandhi. Remember the importance of each day. Remember that we’re all just passing through.