April Pastor's Ponderings

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Liturgy translated from the Greek means: work of the people. It is my desire to see more of the congregation of Immanuel Lutheran Church involved in the liturgy of the church. The “Prayers of the Church” are to indeed come from the people, members of the Church, not just the pastor.

With the start of Easter, the laity offered the “Prayers of the Church”. I will have the prayers printed, ready for you to offer to the congregation in prayer. But there is a place during the prayers where we are invited to offer our own petition or intercession. I would invite the one who is praying to offer an intercession that addresses our concerns and is part of the context of our lives here in Absarokee, Montana - Stillwater County. If you can not offer one or are uncomfortable in offering extemporaneous prayer, that is OK. Our ability to offer public prayer intercessions is an activity to be nurtured and learned. It does not come to us like a bolt out of the blue.

I would also welcome others to participate in the Kyrie at the beginning of our service. We have many fine voices that can be lifted up to God in worship, not just mine. Participating in our liturgy gives life to our worship; it is an expression of our love of God and our love of the faithful assembly. This is a joy to be shared and offered to others who gather not just to the pastor alone. We worship God together.

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Amos 8:11 - The time is surely coming, says the Lord GOD,
when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the LORD.

That famine exists with us today. There are people who are hungry for the words of the Lord. But how are they to hear the words of the Lord? We invite them to come and hear, to come and see for themselves how the words of the Lord – in word and deed – can feed the hunger of those seeking spiritual nourishment. I will do my best to offer spiritual nourishment to those who hunger the words of the Lord. But I can not do it on my own. You, the people of Immanuel Lutheran Church – I rely on you to invite; I rely on you also to offer the word of the Lord to those around you in your life. The nourishment and joy you receive – proclaim and share it with others. You are indeed God’s messengers of the Good News.

We have just celebrated Easter: the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Through the blood of the cross we are redeemed, liberated from the bonds of sin. Through the resurrection we have the promise to us of life eternal, sharing in the Glory of God. This is indeed Good News for us. This news is too wonderful to be hoarded, covered up or ignored. We are nourished so completely by the word of God. The joy of engaging the words of the Lord are so boundless that hoarding them makes no sense, but rather we share, we proclaim the Good News – the joy of hearing the words of the Lord and what this means for us in our daily lives. This joy is infectious – how can others not become excited about the Good News of Jesus Christ when we are filled with the joy and love of the words of the Lord. This joy and love of the words of the Lord is like manure – the more you spread, the more things are nourished and grow.

March Pastor's Ponderings

The Gospel lessons we are hearing from John this season of Lent, are stories of people who are seeking to understand God’s truth. Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night, the Samaritan woman at the well comes to Jesus at noon, the man blind since birth, Jesus seeks, Mary and Martha come to Jesus when he arrives at the tomb of Lazarus. These people hear the words of Jesus or they experience the wondrous miracles of Jesus – they become changed people. Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman at the well do not understand at first. The woman at the well however does have an epiphany, she realizes that Jesus does indeed offer ‘Living Water’ and she goes out to share the Good News. Not many of us are like the Samaritan woman, or the man blind from birth. We do not boldly go forth and proclaim all that Jesus has done. Even if we are as devoted as Mary and Martha, we may underestimate the power of Jesus in our lives; we may short change what Jesus tells us, we may have blinders on. The blinders of preoccupation, of doubt, of despair. But Jesus does not abandon us, Jesus will patiently and lovingly come back to us. In all these stories from the Gospel according to John, Jesus never offers derision or disdain to those who come to seek him out or who he encounters. Jesus is present with them as they grapple and come to grips with just what sort of person Jesus is, and just what he offer us.

Nicodemus is more like us. He is a seeker, he is trying to fathom just what kind of person Jesus is. Is Jesus a prophet, a teacher, a miracle worker, is he indeed the ‘Son of Man’ and ‘Son of God’? With Nicodemus, it will take time for him to understand who Jesus really is. Nicodemus will defend Jesus from unjust accusations and after the crucifixion he will care for the body by bringing spices and aloes. Nicodemus is afraid to become a disciple of Jesus; he is afraid to totally commit himself to follow Jesus. Yet in the end he will serve Jesus and care for him. He will serve Jesus in a way that no respectable pharisee would ever do for anyone. He will care for the body of Jesus.

During our Lenten journey we also try and fathom just what sort of person is Jesus and just how do we relate to Jesus? It is not easy to try and fathom the truth of Jesus. We are unique in our understanding of how Jesus comes to us and how Jesus relates with us. We may be slow to realize who Jesus is, like Nicodemus. We may have an epiphany of Jesus like the Samaritan woman at the well, we may have a life changing experience with Jesus and be challenged by others who are skeptical, like the man blind from birth. We may be followers of Jesus and at times lose our way, or lose hope like Mary and Martha. We are not given promises that our journey of understanding Jesus in our lives and our relationship through Jesus to God is an easy process. On the contrary it is at times difficult, frustrating, even painful, yet even in times such as these we encounter Jesus.

Our Lenten journey is a time of contemplation and reflection upon our lives and how Jesus relates to us. As we engage in Holy Week we will experience the entire spectrum of where we encounter God. We encounter God as we experience the joy and ecstasy of Jesus’ joyful entrance into Jerusalem. We encounter God as we understand the intimacy we have with Jesus as he washes the disciple’s feet on Maudy Thursday. We encounter God as we experience the pain of betrayal, hostility, despair and abandonment, as Jesus is crucified on Good Friday. We encounter God as we experience the promise and love of God for us with the joy of the resurrection of Jesus on Easter. This spectrum of emotions we encounter in our life, Jesus experienced . We can know Jesus in any one of them as well as countless others we experience in life. Jesus is with us, Jesus knows our joy, our despair, our pain, our frustration. Jesus promises to be with us, he promises us God’s love and a time when we will know and share the glory of God with all the saints, past and present.

Pastor Robert

Lenten Pastor's Ponderings

Lent comes very early this year. Ash Wednesday is the first Wednesday of February, the 6th. As we begin our Lenten journey, we will not be tested so much by worldly temptations, other than wanting to take a trip to a warmer clime, our endurance to winter and cold weather will be our test during this time of Lent. Is that so bad? This time of winter does give us time to be introspective, to contemplate our journey as a disciple of Jesus. What does it mean for us to be a disciple? How do we respond to the love of God, and to all that Jesus teaches us?

During Epiphany, Jesus calls us to repent, to change our ways, to change our mind, to turn from what takes us away from God and to turn to God and obey God. It isn’t easy, it is a hard path to follow. Where Jesus leads may be scary at times, boring at times; it actually may resemble life as we know it. God does not expect perfection, God knows our limitations, our short comings; yet God will continue to be with us always. God will continue to offer us help, guidance, and consolation when we are frustrated, succumb to temptation, or when we are hurt by others in our effort to obey God.

We currently are taking our Sunday Gospel lessons from the book of Matthew. The Gospel of Matthew emphasizes righteousness; Jesus calls us to righteousness; righteousness is obeying God. Lent gives us this opportunity to contemplate what it means to walk in righteousness with Christ. We are given the opportunity to explore, investigate and discern how we can live righteous lives, how we can obey God in our life. Just as Jesus was tested/tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, we to are tested/tempted. In our case it does not last 40 days but a lifetime. But we are not evaluated/judged upon this test of life. Christ invites us to live life fully. We do not have to do anything to merit God’s grace. Jesus will continue to guide us, bring us back and light our way on the path of righteousness. Jesus gives us the freedom to fully live a life of righteousness, a life lived in joy, loving and obeying God.

The most important thing to remember about our Lenten journey is that we do not engage it alone. We come together as a community to walk with Jesus. We each have the gift of the Holy Spirit. Are we sensitive and aware of Christ’s presence in our lives as we listen and are guided by the Holy Spirit? Do not be surprised if you find the Holy Spirit speaking to you from another person on this journey. God works in wondrous ways his works to perform. Lent gives us the chance to be a witness to these works of the Holy Spirit. Lent give us the chance to contemplate our walk with Jesus. Lent give us the chance to be a witness for others of what God can do when we turn and obey God and engage our journey with Christ. Happy trails to you on our Lenten journey.

Pastor Robert

Christmas Time Pastor's Ponderings

The cold reality of winter is finally settling in around the area of lower Stillwater County. We are all getting ready for the Christmas holidays; we start our holiday season on Saturday, 1 December when we go to gather our Christmas tree and the ladies of the Faith Circle participate in a holiday bazaar at the Cobblestone celebrating Absarokee’s Snowflake Festival. We will have snow and cold, just what such an event calls for.

But this year, things are not quite as economically carefree as in years past. Gas prices are above $3.00/gallon, diesel is above $3.50/gallon, living here in Montana if you don’t have a car, you don’t go anywhere. Getting anywhere is getting a lot more expensive for us here. We will continue to pay the price for fuel, but either we do not drive as much, we cut down on expenses of other items, or we do both. We may grumble that our billfold is emptying out faster than it used to; but what about those who do not have much in the way of financial resources? How are they fairing in this cold hard reality of winter in Montana?

This past fall I’ve helped people who have come to the parsonage looking for shelter as they travel through the area. I have been able to refer them to Project Hope in Columbus for help with shelter overnight. Project Hope rents one of the cabins at Riverside Cabins for those who need temporary shelter. I was able to make use of this gracious resource twice this past fall. The people receiving this aid, where traveling through the area, they are not residents of Stillwater County, yet they received aid from Project Hope.

We may not be getting folks traveling through the area when it gets cold, windy and can snow at anytime, but there are people here in Stillwater County that need our help and assistance. Because we live in such a sparsely populated rural area, they are harder to find or see. But they are among us. By our collecting food during the season of Advent, we can help Project Hope provide food for those in need. Project Hope is centrally located in the county, they are staffed with volunteers who can provide assistance during business hours, they are there to help those who are seeking help. That is their call and that is their mission.

At this critical time of the year, we can offer our assistance to this organization. I would urge us to consider supporting Project Hope in any way we can through out the year. The need does not go away. If fuel prices keep rising into the $4.00/gallon range, the service Project Hope offers will even be in more demand. Support the only aid organization in the county that is staffed and available to people on a regular basis. They are only open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Support Project Hope with your time, with your financial resources as you are able, and with any extra food or clothing. They in turn can make it available to those in need. Jesus calls us to help our brothers and sisters who are without food, shelter or clothing. It is an ongoing opportunity for us to work to bring the Kingdom of God near. Let us work to make life a little better this Christmas for those in need, and the rest of the year as well.

Pastor Robert

A Christmas Thank You

As we come to the end of 2007, Susan and I want to thank the community of Absarokee, and south Stillwater County. We have lived in the area one full year; we have seen a complete cycle of the seasons. It has been a full and rich year for us and we are blessed to live here, serve God’s people, be a part of the community, and witness the grandeur of God’s creation. Thank you to this community of Absarokee and the warm welcome you have offered us.
We offer our thanks to the congregation of Immanuel Lutheran Church who have been so kind and generous to us in their outpouring of Christian love and fellowship. We praise God from whom all blessing flow, for being blessed in serving this community of faith. This past December we as a community have mourned the loss of long standing members of our congregation, family and community; we have been a witness to the rampages of cancer among those whom we truly love and care. Yet we have been a witness to new life – baptism into the faithful assemble, the body of Christ, the Church. We as a congregation have together shared our sorrows, mourned our losses, rejoiced in our blessings. As a pastor, I have been a witness to the power of the Holy Spirit working through and with our congregation. At such times, I feel affirmed in my call to be a pastor to God’s people here at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Absarokee. To be a witness of the power of God at work in, with and through God’s people is truly an awesome, humbling and holy experience and I thank God, the congregation and the community for this honor.
During this season of Christmas, we thank the many people of Immanuel and Absarokee, who have offered their kindness and generosity to Susan and myself. I thank all who have worked to make this be such a festive and joyous season of the Church year at Immanuel. I thank this community of faith for caring for one another as Jesus calls us to do. I thank God for being a witness to this vocational expression of our faith in Christ Jesus – our living the Gospel. I pray for God’s blessings on this community and congregation as we engage in another year, witness another cycle of the seasons, in Absarokee, Montana.
God’s blessings and God’s peace be with you.

Pastor Robert Kieffer Leaverton
Immanuel Lutheran Church of
Absarokee, Montana