April Pastor's Ponderings
one
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.
two
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.
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.
two
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.
posted by RevLev at 1:01 PM
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