Posted on Feb 19, 2025 in Mission Moment, Uncategorized |
This past month I had the privilege of hosting our fifth Harvest Workers Retreat. Ranging in age from 20-something to 70-something, a total of 24 ministry students, faculty, staff, and spouses came together from across Texas and around the country for three days of rest, instruction, worship, prayer, fellowship, and encouragement. While each retreat has been a delight in its own way, this year’s retreat was extra special for me personally. I came away from this retreat overwhelmed with gratitude to God for the immense blessing it was—not only for me, but for so many of our students as well.
As I reflected on this fantastic weekend, I wondered what made this retreat so special. What was it that caused my heart to rejoice and feel so full of joy and thanksgiving? As I reflected, the lyrics of the song “Change My Heart, O God” by Eddie Espinosa flooded my mind: Change my heart, O God; Make it ever true; Change my heart, O God; May I be like you; You are the potter; I am the clay; Mold me and make me; This is what I pray; Change my heart, O God; Make it ever true; Change my heart, O God; May I be like you.
Posted on Feb 19, 2025 in Mission Moment, Uncategorized |
In my days as a pastor of a congregation, one of my joys was planning sermon series during the different liturgical seasons of the church calendar. One year I stumbled upon the idea of doing a summer series called “Characters of the Bible.” Each Sunday after Pentecost, we started walking through the Old Testament and studied the men and women of God that we read about in the Bible. For many adult congregation members, this was the first time these stories had been revisited since their childhood days when they were taught in Sunday School classes. Unfortunately, these stories are often not the topic of the regular preaching during Sunday morning sermons.
Through this sermon series, we began to focus on a theme that we find throughout the Old and New Testaments of the Bible: that God uses ordinary people like you and me to do his extraordinary work! Sometimes we remember the Sunday School stories of these Bible characters and imagine them as superheroes. As we stand in awe at what God does in and through their lives, sometimes it is easy for us to forget that the bible character themselves was a sinful human being just like us.
Posted on Jan 2, 2025 in Mission Moment, Uncategorized |
As Jesus gathered with his disciples for his last supper, he not only communed with them, but he also served them in a unique way. Before the meal began, he took off his outer robe, knelt down with a basin of water and a towel, and washed their feet. It was a stunning act of service by the King of kings and Lord of lords! Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)
This familiar text is a reminder of what sets Jesus’ followers apart: a self-sacrificing love for one another. Jesus did not say “it would be really neat if you would be nice to one another.” He was not asking his followers to tolerate or put up with one another. He did not offer his example of humble service as a suggestion among a buffet of options. He clearly states this as a new command that is a mark of every single disciple of Jesus. Jesus makes the clear connection that this love will be noticed by the world and is key to sharing Jesus’ love and bearing witness to the Gospel to the world. So, this loving one another thing is really important for our mission in the world!
Posted on Jan 2, 2025 in Mission Moment |
Like most sports fans, I love a good comeback! There’s nothing quite like when a team mounts a comeback after falling hopelessly behind. It is thrilling to experience how the players, coaches, and fans rally to support one another and celebrate each step along the way just to get back into a position to potentially be victorious!
Recently, my wife and I came back: After a six-month absence from the church we attend when in town, we were finally able to come back to worship on a Sunday morning this month. Life and ministry commitments had us on the road since Easter and we truly missed the church that had become family to us. But the comeback we experienced was not personally thrilling for me. Instead, I sheepishly walked through those doors, wondering what people were thinking of us after all this time. I even found myself saying “the prodigals have returned” to one of my friends.
Posted on Oct 24, 2024 in Mission Moment |
Guest Author, John Waak
Weeks of worry brought a woman to the surgery waiting room. Nagging symptoms in her husband’s body grew to the point that not even manly denial could dismiss the feeling that something was not right. His wife, with womanly strength, bore the torch of hope -a hope that said, ”You’re going to the doctor!” He went. The prognosis was serious but hopeful, but surgery was required to understand what was truly going on. So, there we sat, she and I. We chatted about meaningless things, and then in words that were few, she talked about her worst-case fears. I am sure that somewhere in there we prayed. Then the Doctor came out. As compassionately as he could, and with words that plainly explained what he found, he shared that the situation was terminal and fast-acting. She was stunned into silence until at last, realizing that she needed to say something, quietly uttered a one-word expletive. In that word I clearly heard something that came from the depth of her soul. It wasn’t offensive, but honest; not dirty, but pure; not profane, but prayer. It was the most authentic prayer I have ever heard next to Jesus praying, “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”
Posted on Sep 25, 2024 in Mission Moment |
Last week I received the following email from a concerned church member offering a heartfelt and faithful lament for the mission of the church. I asked for his permission to share it with you anonymously:
I was going through some old documents at my parents’ house today. I came across an old bulletin and I was at first amazed… and then scared. I grew up in a small town in Texas. Our Lutheran congregation was the big church in town, but not the only church. As I think back, everybody I knew went to some church.
The bulletin dated December 2, 1956 showed the attendance the previous Sunday had been a whopping 255 people! And this was no fluke: the attendance on Thanksgiving Day was 212! The 1960 census population for the town was a little over 600 people. In other words, this Lutheran church had regular worship attendance of more than 40% of the whole town’s population while numerous other churches thrived nearby. Fast forward to today and that same church reports and average worship attendance in the 80s while the town’s census population grew by 30% between 1960 and 2020. Today, about 10% of the community’s population is in worship at this church. In 67 years, the attendance fell by 65% and the attendance as a percentage of population fell by 75%!
Posted on Aug 19, 2024 in Mission Moment |
I don’t know about you, but I am tired. I’m not the kind of tired that can be managed by an extra hour or two of sleep. Rather I am talking about the rhythms of a full and busy life where there are simply not enough hours in the day, days in the week, or weeks in the month to get everything done. The day-to-day activities of life, even life in ministry, can result in a weariness that can steal our joy of living the life that we are so busy living that we really aren’t actually living! Have you ever felt this way?
As I think about my weariness and the endless “To Do” lists, I recall a conversation I had with my mom 20 years ago. She had called me just to chat and I didn’t really have the time. I told her I was busy, and she asked what I had going on that day. I rattled off all the things I had to get done and she replied: “Oh, my! You are busy. It sounds like you probably need to pray.” I was frustrated with her: “Mom, I don’t have time to pray!” As soon as I said it, I realized how foolish I was. My mother answered, “Bryce, listen to yourself. You’re a pastor! You are too busy NOT to pray!”
Posted on Aug 19, 2024 in Mission Moment |
Back in 2019, leaders here in the Texas District took a leap of faith in creating Harvest Workers, our online ministry training program. The biblical inspiration came from Matthew 9 where we read about Jesus’ daily ministry: he was teaching and preaching, healing, casting out demons, forgiving sins, and calling disciples. Day after day we read about this ongoing ministry among the ordinary people he encountered wherever he went. One of these days as he went about his work, he paused and surveyed the crowd. As he looked out upon the world that he was dwelling in, I believe he saw all of the problems: the hurt, pain, brokenness, issues, division, anger, addictions, and everything else. Jesus saw all of it!
And upon surveying the world and seeing the problems, Jesus wasn’t depressed, angry, or hopeless. Nor did Jesus shame or blame people. Instead, Jesus was moved with compassion and speaks these words: “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
Posted on Aug 19, 2024 in Mission Moment |
Growing up in Eastern Iowa in the late 1980s, it was big news when a major motion picture began filming a baseball movie on a family farm. In the movie, Field of Dreams, a mysterious voice is heard from beyond: “If you build it, he will come.” As the story unfolds, the lead character plows under his crops mid-growing season to build a baseball field. Then from out of the cornfields beyond centerfield appeared a historic team from baseball lore.
The cultural impact of Field of Dreams was significant. Visionary leaders seized upon the infamous movie line and adapted it for their own organizations: “If you build it, they will come.” Even pastors and churches adopted the mantra as ministries scaled bigger and better programs and church facilities, trusting in the idea that new and bigger would attract more people. To some extent, this approach seemed to work! As churches engaged in expanding and improving their ministries and facilities, more people were attracted to it and began engaging with churches in news ways.
Posted on Jun 3, 2024 in Mission Moment |
You might have noticed the black and yellow promotional material that we’ve been sending out for a few months promoting LOVE WORKS. You might be asking, “What in the world are they talking about?” If you have, well I’m glad you asked. If you have not been curious, well I hope you are interested now! LOVE WORKS is our theme for the 15th Annual LCMC Texas District Gathering this summer, July 26-27 at Zion in Kerrville. The theme this year was born out of the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke chapter 10. Our District Council selected this as the biblical foundation for our Gathering to focus our attention on our call to love God and our neighbors.
We are excited to welcome Greg and Susan Finke to be our keynote speakers. Greg is a Lutheran pastor, author, speaker, and leadership coach who, along with his wife, Susan, has dedicated his ministry to helping the church rediscover the art of loving neighbors with the love of Jesus. Greg has authored three Joining Jesus books, with his wife Susan co-authoring their most recent book, Joining Jesus as a Family.
It was Greg who suggested the title LOVE WORKS for two particular reasons. First, we read in Ephesians 2:8-10,
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do. Therefore, while our good works will never save us nor prosper
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