Time to Gather, Celebrate, and Pray

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” – Hebrews 10:24-25
 
Each summer hundreds of members from Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ come together from across Texas for what we call our Annual Gathering. In a few short weeks on July 29-30, we will once again gather in Victoria to celebrate and pray for our mission, and you are invited to join us! Our theme this year is PRAY EARNESTLY based on Matthew 9:38: “Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Our objective is always to equip and encourage one another in mission for Christ. This year we are focusing on how to faithfully respond to our Lord’s invitation in our theme verse by praying with a missional mindset, discipling and equipping leaders, and working in the harvest.
 
We are blessed to welcome keynote speakers Jeremy Walloch, Lead Pastor of Olivet Lutheran Church in La Crosse, Wisconsin and LCMC’s Service Coordinator Mike Bradley from Gilbert, Arizona. We will be led in worship by our two Victoria host congregations, Our Saviour’s and First English, and receive messages from preachers Lalahery Andriamihaja, Senior Pastor of Our Saviour’s and Julie Smith, LCMC’s Coordinator for Districts and Fellowships from Springfield, Minnesota.


Make Time for New Friends

I recently had the opportunity to preach on Jesus’ parables from Luke 15. Sometimes referred to as “the gospel within the Gospels,” Jesus’ parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son are well known for powerfully communicating the relentless pursuit of God’s love for the lost, even for those who have turned their back on God. We treasure these stories as they strengthen and encourage our faith and bring great comfort in knowing that God loves us so much, even when we are unlovable.
 
In these parables, I believe Jesus is not only bringing comfort in the message of the gospel, but he also admonishes and teaches using what Lutherans refer to as the third use of the law. Luke sets up all three of these parables in verses 1-2: “All the tax collectors and sinners were approaching to listen to him. And the Pharisees and scribes were complaining, ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” In other words, Jesus is really addressing the complaining scribes and Pharisees who did not appreciate the company he kept.
 
Jesus always told parables to make a point. The question we must ask is “What’s the point?” These verses give us clues as to Jesus’ purpose in sharing these stories in the first place: he wanted to encourage religious people to not be afraid to make time for some new friends! Truth be told, it is quite easy for those of us inside the church to look at those outside the church with a similar judgmental spirit as the scribes and Pharisees who looked down on the “sinners” that Jesus hung out with. Even though we identify as Christians (“Christ ones” or “little Christs”), our heart for “sinners” all too often does not reflect Jesus’ own heart of openness, love, and compassion for those who have yet to join in following him.


An Invitation to Pray Earnestly

My alarm went off on my phone this morning at 9:38. Every Monday through Saturday since February my phone has made its obnoxious beeping noise to interrupt whatever I had been doing. It has startled me, annoyed me, and, on a few occasions, awkwardly interrupted something important. But ultimately, I thank God for these alerts that ring loudly each and every day. Why?
 
Because that alarm reminds me of Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 9:38 to pause and “pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” At the end of July, over 250 folks gathered in Victoria for our District’s Annual Gathering around this theme and Jesus’ invitation to “Pray Earnestly.” Together we studied this bible passage as speakers and preachers led us in pondering deeply what this means and what it would look like to live into Jesus’ invitation.
 
So why the alarm? This past winter I had the honor of asking Jeremy Walloch to join us this summer as one of our keynote speakers. He immediately accepted and went to work on his outline. Soon thereafter I received a text message from Jeremy. He sent a few of his initial thoughts about his talk, but he shared a sense of conviction for having neglected Jesus’ invitation in our theme verse. As so often happens, conviction is really God’s way of pointing us to Christ’s invitation or call to live in faith. Jeremy asked me to join him in setting a daily alarm to go off at 9:38 a.m. everyday and to covenant with him to pause whatever we were doing and pray.
 
And so it has been ever since. Every. Single. Day.


Think Like a Missionary

I have the distinct privilege of teaching the Church Planting & Revitalization course for Harvest Workers, our
online ministry training program. Recently, my first two students successfully completed the course. It was an
absolute joy to teach them, mostly because I had a front row seat to watch them grow!
 
Every Harvest Workers course has a list of expected demonstrated competencies that we hope to observe in
all students by the end of each class. For my class, there are several specific areas that I have listed. As I
supported these first students through the course, I discovered that there is a single, over-arching hope that
summarizes all that I desire for my students: that each begins to think like a missionary.
 
Missionaries the world over strive to bring the life-giving Gospel of Jesus Christ to people who have no idea
that it is at all necessary or relevant for their lives. Some may have never heard of Jesus before while others
may be familiar but have either rejected the faith or have yet to respond. Either way, missionaries need to
figure out how they can meaningfully connect and communicate with those outside of faith in Jesus Christ.


And Who is My Neighbor?

“Then an expert in the law stood up to test him, saying, ‘Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ ‘What is written in the law?’ he asked him. ‘How do you read it?’ He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ‘You’ve answered correctly,’ he told him. ‘Do this and you will live.’ But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’” – Luke 10:25-29
 
If you’ve spent much time at all in the church, chances are high you are quite familiar with this text. This conversation between a lawyer and Jesus serves as the introduction to what is perhaps Jesus’ most infamous parable: The Good Read more…


Accepting the Savior’s Invitation

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30
 
I recently returned to my day-to-day duties after 2 months off on sabbatical. This was my first sabbatical in my 20 years of ordained ministry and a much-needed rest. I am forever grateful to the District for providing this season of rest and renewal. I knew I needed a sabbatical… but I needed it more than I knew!


Where Do Pastors Come From?

Note: This guest post is by David Mayer. David is the interim pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Seguin, Texas, and teaches New Testament for Harvest Workers.
 
Every year there are more pastors retiring. So, where do new pastors come from? Where are the gardens in which future pastoral candidates are grown? Apart from one candidate who I helped nurture and mentor, I admit that I have acted as if pastors “just keep coming,” as if there were an automatic stream of people eagerly filling the ranks left empty by retiring pastors. Is this how congregations think? Is this how pastors join the ranks, always from somewhere else, but never from any place in particular?


Reflecting on Advent & Christmas

Note: This guest post is by Kari Malinak. Kari serves as the Associate Pastor of Living Word Lutheran Church in Grapevine. Kari was elected to the District Council in 2020.

Happy New Year! Well, as I write this, happy new liturgical year! With Advent, the Christian Church begins a new cycle of seasons and liturgy. Advent is a special season filled with hopeful anticipation, expectation, and joy knowing the celebration of Christ’s birth is only a handful of weeks away. Advent is also a penitential season in which we reflect on the need of God entering this sinful world and our own sinful nature. In our modern world, though, we can lose the meaning in a hectic holiday season. So, writing this now, I hope we can appreciate Advent and Christmas in a calmer time.

Read more…



WWJDIHWM?

Note: This guest post is by Jeremy Walloch, instructor of preaching for HarvestWorkers.net and lead pastor of OlivetLutheran.org.
 
I was raised in the era of the “What Would Jesus Do?” bracelets. Anyone else? Still have yours? It’s a great question, but it can be problematic. Why? Because Jesus was an unmarried, childless rabbi in the first century.
 
He was not a single mom. He was not a retiree. He was not a product designer, photographer, or dog groomer. He did not have a smartphone or Instagram account. So, to answer the question “What Would Jesus Do?” I do not advocate you trade in your Adidas for sandals and trade in your current career to be an itinerant preacher. So, maybe a better question is, “What Would Jesus Do If He We Me?”
 


Sabbatical Time

This article is going to be a little different than most. This month I share from my hurting—yet hopeful—heart as I look forward to what I think may be one of the most significant seasons of my life and ministry. In case you have not yet heard, I am extremely honored to be able to take a sabbatical for the first time in this my 20th year of ordained ministry and 7th year of ministry here in LCMC Texas. I will be taking two months of sabbatical and two weeks of vacation time and will be totally unplugged from my job responsibilities from November 1 through January 15.