Rev. Reed Lee Pedersen's
Some of you may have heard of an eating style called, The Ketogenic Diet. While it has been around for a while, it seems to have gained steam over the past year. This diet is a high fat, medium protein, low carbohydrate diet that allows the body to run on fat rather than glucose from breads and sugars. This is a form of eating I have tried and had decent success with. So we have a dilemma here. If carbs are the enemy in a keto diet then what do we do with Jesus who proclaims, “I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35)? Is Jesus the enemy to those seeking to lose weight by means of putting down the bread and picking up an avocado? Jesus continually gives his carbo-loading self to the world. He cannot seem to stop himself (even to death!) of engorging us with his love, forgiveness, power…and that bread of life. On Sunday’s we hear the words, “Body of Christ given for you. Blood of Christ shed for you.” Now these would both be keto friendly, but at the same time they are bread and wine!? Our country’s addiction to breads, grains, and sugars has led us astray and helped boost the obesity rate statistics. It seems that Jesus only wishes to further this problem by filling us with himself, the ultimate soul food, “the bread of life”. Are we going to stand for this? Are we going to allow for this carb monster Jesus from infringing his presence and mercy upon us? Are we going to allow our souls to look like Augustus Gloop being baptized in the chocolate river? Unfortunately, it has already been said, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…” (Eph 2:8). It seems that we cannot earn this bread of life, but rather it is freely given to us. This bread of life will be with us always. What are those who have sworn off grains and sugars to do? It seems as if the world is helpless in defending against this bread. The sustenance which gives us eternal life will continue to fill our souls while building up the Body of Christ and possibly our guts. I am defenseless to this bread. I am powerless to its life. Darn you Jesus, why are you so tasty!? You may be the Savior of the world, but to the band of ketonians out there you are certainly evil!! Point to Ponder:
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During morning worship on July 22nd I preached a sermon on finding rest in Jesus and thus finding rest in worship.[i] In the hassle of everyday life worship can seem like an annoyance. It can seem like another thing on the To-Do list that keeps us from enjoying life and rest. It can seem like a boring hour (or so) that could be better spent. I understand that not everyone feels this way. I also understand that there are certain things such as work and other commitments that get in the way of attending worship on a weekly basis. I also should mention those who are physically unable to go to a place for worship. Worship is important for many reasons, but I find one of its main purposes is to find rest in each other and God. When God commanded us to remember the Sabbath day it does not have to mean that God was giving us another strenuous thing to do. It could mean that God is trying to save God’s people from their own over-functioning and give them an opportunity to rest. Worship is wrapped around God’s Word. We hear it read from the Bible and hear it spoken from the pulpit. We taste it in the body given for you and the blood shed for you. All these are acts centered on acknowledging the forgiveness and eternal life we receive from God’s Son, Jesus, who conquered death for us. I find it helpful looking through the lens of Jesus when thinking of worship. Jesus invites. Jesus invites us to salvation which he has already given, invites us to the waters of baptism to be washed anew, and invites us to feast on him so as to receive forgiveness and renewal of faith. Jesus invites. It’s not easy being a casual or sparse church goer when you can feel the judgment from the regular members or the jabs about not seeing you in a while. Even hearing the words, “It’s good to see you,” can be received as a dig at the randomness of your church attendance. As a pastor I would always love to see your faces more, but I do understand the concept of business, readiness, questioning of faith, and guilt. It is also not easy being a regular worship goer and watching the number of empty seats increase on a weekly basis. It can allow fear to creep in about the church’s future and the worship experience. This fear can certainly lead towards disdain of those who are less active. This article is meant to encourage people to come find rest in Jesus through worship more often. If you cannot make it to a Sunday service, this is why we at Augustana Lutheran Church try to post each week’s sermon along with the text. It is why online churches like https://www.slateproject.org/ exist so that people can have church on their terms. This encouragement is not meant to be condemning for those who have not been to church in a while or for those who feel unready to be a part of a worshiping community. To do so would be to go against the loving, welcoming, and inviting nature of Jesus. This is an invitation to relax, refuel, and recharge yourself while gathered among God’s people. Church can feel boring for some and uplifting for others. If you do not find services at to be restful and reinvigorating I believe any church would really appreciate input on what an uplifting worship service looks like to you. By grounding ourselves in Jesus, the one who will always love you and never leave you, AND in each other we can hopefully have worship be a full place which provides rest. More importantly, we can hopefully have worship be a place of full rest in God. In Jesus you will find peace. In worship, when done in light of Christ, you will find peace. My prayer for everyone reading this is that the peace of Christ, which surpasses our thoughts and imaginations, guards each and every one of you and gives you rest. Points to Ponder:
[i] Here is the sermon from July 22, 2018 Recently Augustana Lutheran Church had their Vacation Bible School week. Our theme was, “God’s Good Creation”. The kids learned stories from the Bible that highlighted God’s Creation while pairing each day with an animal that also highlights the theme for that day. To a pessimistic eye VBS can be seen as not useful. Many (or sometimes only a few) people put a lot of time, effort, and money in to make a VBS week go smoothly. We may not get the number of kids that other churches get or that our specific church used to get. What’s the pay off? Do non-members start coming to church now because their kids had fun making crafts and singing songs? Most likely not. So what is the point? I do not wish to make all of these points in the name of pessimism. I bring this up because these are thoughts that I have had too. People brought their small children to Jesus so that he could lay his hands on them to bless them. But the followers told the people to stop bringing their children to him. Jesus saw what happened. He did not like his followers telling the children not to come. So he said to them, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because God’s kingdom belongs to people who are like these little children. The truth is, you must accept God’s kingdom like a little child accepts things, or you will never enter it.” - Mark 10:13-15 (easy-to-read version) While the pessimistic point of view may have points, what it fails to notice is that it has become like the disciples in this story from Mark. They belittle the children and do not see their full purpose. They are seen as a nuisance to our Lord and Savior, but Jesus assures them that they have it all wrong. “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them…” VBS is a time where we attempt to teach about Jesus, the bible, the church, and a lot of other aspects of a life of faith on a level the kids can understand. VBS is the one time where our church attempts to properly propel the faith of our youth without seeing them as someone who can hopefully keep the church going in 20 years. This may seem like a simple statement to you, but it is one I have really learned to come to grips with. VBS is important because it actually engages our youth today. They do not feel the guilt brought on by not attending church more frequently like I know many occasional church goers feel. They do not pick up on the social cues which can make others feel unwelcome in the house of God which I know people can encounter sometimes. They learn about God, play, eat snacks, make crafts, sing their hearts out, and dance. I do not know about you, but if that is how we are supposed to welcome in God’s Kingdom then count me in! Points to Ponder:
Have you ever felt rejected? Have you ever felt like a failure? Have you walked into a room and noticed the conversation got quiet which made you question why you are out of the loop or if they are talking about you? Have you ever had a group of friends and then suddenly wondered why they are hanging out and you weren’t invited? Maybe it was sports, academics, social media, or another social group that gave you the feeling you did not belong. Maybe it was a joke that everyone was laughing at yet you did not get the punch line. I am sure there are countless more instances where you can feel like a reject or a loser. “[Jesus] left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.” – Mark 6:1-6 (NRSV) This passage is titled, “The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth”. Jesus had already been doing miracles and teaching about God for a good amount. He had gained such a reputation that he would immediately be greeted by people asking for healing. Yet in his hometown Jesus is not welcomed with open arms. Instead, he is welcomed with people taking offense that Mary’s son would dare speak and act with such authority.
They were people that had seen this boy grow up. They had seen this manual laborer (and nothing more in their eyes) work. Who is he to act all high and mighty?! They let Jesus know his authority would not be welcomed. They let Jesus know that he is a reject and a loser in their eyes. Jesus was not only rejected in his hometown, but he would be rejected by the high ranking Jewish authorities and be made a loser by the Roman empire as he died on the cross. Jesus is very much a reject. Jesus is very much a loser. How amazing is it that in midst of rejection and losing his life for our sake he brought about true strength? He brought about a true all encompassing love that does not allow for rejects and losers, but accepts all into God’s loving arms. If you find yourself in a crowd and feel as if you do not fit please know that God’s love says otherwise. If you walk into a room and hear the mean whispers about you from people you thought were your friends please know that God’s love is loud and true in claiming you beloved. If you feel as if you cannot amount to anything and that you are one big loser please know that Jesus is the only true loser. By that loss we forever are the winners of the love of God and eternal life. Praise be to God’s Son, Jesus the Christ, King of the Rejects, Lord of the Losers!!! Points to ponder:
I had never gone too a national youth gathering as a high schooler. I had never gone to a youth gathering as an adult leader. I had never tried to plan a youth gathering and all the fundraisers that come with it. My one experience was in 2012 when I sang in the house band, but everything was planned for me. Watching all the effort it takes from both adults and kids to raise funds and plan to attend a youth gathering I was looking ahead to 3 years from now and wondering if it is even worth it. That question was answered quickly -->TOTALLY WORTH IT! Here are the reasons why: Much is accomplished in the name of Jesus. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday involved about 10,000+ volunteers every day going out to help the Houston community. The service projects ranged from fixing destruction brought on last year's hurricane (Habitat for Humanity and beautifying parks for example), teaching English as a second language, and learning more about the city of Houston so that its story can be shared. All of this is done in Jesus' name. AMEN! New Relationships were made and old ones were reinvigorated. I saw the seven youth on the trip, half of which have had minimal interaction after confirmation due to differing school districts, grow in friendship with one another. I was also stunned when their favorite thing to do during the days was to get to know other groups from different parts of the countries. They witnessed to the broadness of the ELCA by getting to know groups from Ohio, Minnesota, California, and even Puerto Rico! AMEN!
All in all, the National Youth Gathering is a highlight of a persons life for both youth and adults. If you are part of an ELCA church that does not partake in the event, I hope you find encouragement through this. If you are someone who has gone to a gathering, I am sure you can think of a million more reasons why it is amazing. One thing is for sure...You can count on Augustana Lutheran Church sending youth to Minneapolis for the National Youth Gathering in 2021. In case you are interested, here is me singing at the 2012 Youth Gathering (don't mind the offbeat clapping): |
AuthorPastor Reed is a first call pastor at Augustana Lutheran Church in Andover, Illinois. Archives
July 2019
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