Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Grace and peace to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
This season of Lent we are immersing ourselves in the Psalms. The Psalms offer us guidance in our prayer life, a road map for daily living and a peek into the historical context of the Hebrew people who have shaped our faith, worship life and daily living through many generations.
In midweek Lenten worship, we’ll be using the Psalms for song and meditation. In study, we’ll be using the scriptures for education and faith development.
In addition to immersing ourselves in the psalms we also are exploring hymns that are focused on discipleship and cultivating our lives of faith.
For example, not only in midweek services, but also on the fourth Sunday of Lent, we will use Marty Haugen’s “Tree of Life and Awesome Mystery” (ELW 334) as a communion distribution hymn. The verses are:
Tree of Life and awesome myst’ry, in your death we are reborn;
though you die in all of hist’ry, still you rise with ev’ry morn, still you rise with ev’ry morn.
We remember truth once spoken, love passed on through act and word;
ev’ry person lost and broken wears the body of our Lord, wears the body of our Lord.
Christ, you lead and we shall follow, stumbling though our steps may be;
one with you in joy and sorrow, we the river, you the sea, we the river, you the sea.
Give us eyes to see you clearly; make us children of your light.
Give us hearts to live more nearly as your gospel shining bright.
This desire to live more nearly to God’s will for us as individuals and as a corporate body is coming through, loud and clear, in our vision for ministry process. When leaders gathered last Saturday, they set spiritual formation as the highest priority for the congregation with financial viability and worship as second and third priorities to work on in the coming year.
I’m asking some questions, and I imagine that you have some of your own. What does it mean that we value spiritual formation as a congregation? What does it mean that we want to develop ministries in this area? As disciples of Jesus Christ, many of us have a longing to discover how we can best serve God and our neighbors in our daily life, especially in contexts where our mainline Protestant values are not shared by many in the culture around us. How do I demonstrate my love for God in my workplace? How do I practice forgiveness and reconciliation? How do I… (fill in the blank)?
Our consultant, the Rev. Rick Rouse recommended a book by Pastor Mike Foss — “Power Surge” — as a resource for making and developing disciples.
PoWeR SuRGe is an easy way to remember the marks of discipleship – both internal and external involved in the spiritual development of followers of Christ. We are called by God to Pray, to Worship, and to Read Scriptures. We are then sent to Serve, to be Relational, and to Give.
While it’s been a few years since I read this book, I want to expand on the marks of being relational and giving. Relationships in the body of Christ are about inviting and encouraging others in this walk that we share following Jesus our Savior and Lord. And giving isn’t only about the money we give to support the church, but about whole life stewardship. Giving encompasses our selves, our time and our possessions, not only to the church, but the whole world. Vocation, our calling, our purpose, is about sharing our gifts and desires with the world’s greatest needs. This is an important intersection.
So, while, you are contemplating your call to discipleship, join Immanuel on the journey where we are centered in praying, worshipping and reading scripture, and sent in love to serve, invite, encourage, and give.
May the disciplines that you adopt in this season renew your faith. And may God reveal his grace and mercy for you and for the world as you share the good news.
This newsletter is for the whole of April, not only the season of Lent, and so while I am reflecting on marks of discipleship, I want to point to the good news of Easter. The journey is worthwhile and proclaims:
Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
In Christ’s love,
Pastor Jennifer Thomas
