Praying for Peace, Not Death...

This is another departure from my usual devotion...sorry. I'll get back to those later this week. I simply feel like there is a Christian voice that has been missing from all of these discussions and I wanted to add my 2 cents...

In the May 5 edition of the Benton County Daily Record an article titled "Religious Leaders Weigh in On Bin Laden's Death" got me all fired up.   In the article 5 religious leaders from NW Arkansas were quoted. The Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist leaders all renounced the celebration of his death, calling instead for continued prayer and reconciliation.  The 2 Christian leaders they quoted left me absolutely speechless (well for about 2 minutes) and then infuriated.

One evangelical pastor said that bin Laden's death came as a result of answered prayers for justice, that God chose bin Laden's death. He went on to say "God chooses how he answers prayers...when justice is served, as I think it was in this situation, we do give thanks for the answer to prayers." Another Baptist pastor said (and I quote) "My initial reaction was 'Thank you, Lord,' because we needed something, considering the bad economy and the controversy over the current president's birth certificate, war, heavy rain and all the other things.  We also celebrate the death of wickedness as an answer to our prayers."

So I was upset...upset enough to do something I have never done before...write a letter to the editor. It was finally published today...so here it is...

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I am writing in response to the article titled “Religious Leaders Weigh In on Bin Laden’s Death” in the May 5 edition of the Daily Record. The article, as I read it, seemed to be lacking the grace-filled Christian voice of peace that I hear from my friends and colleagues.

I join my Jewish, Buddhist and Muslim brothers in calling the actions of the past week a call to justice,  peace and healing & reconciliation.  As a Christian I certainly do not see Bin Laden’s death as an answer to prayer. I, for one, never prayed for him to die. Scriptures call me to love and to pray for my enemies (Matthew 5:44) - while it is the hardest thing I do, I know that only God has the power to change people. Violence, hatred and war do nothing to change the hearts and minds of people - only God’s unconditional love and grace can do that.  My fervent prayers continue that God will accomplish this.

As a Christian leader in our community, it is my responsibility to draw people together.  To bring unity by declaring the Good News of the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ for all people; not to draw lines of division and hatred. Celebrating the death of our enemy only strengthens the lines of division and increases the distance between us.

I am relieved that a source of evil has been defeated however, to think that the news of his death wipes out the fears of a faltering economy, overcomes the sadness surrounding the destruction of homes and lives by violent weather and will hush the voices who continue to question our leadership is absurd. Evil still exists, hatred and fear run rampant...and it will continue until we can learn to live together in peace, respect one another as God’s children and learn to pray for the unity of ALL.

My ultimate rejoicing comes in knowing that God has promised that, on that final day, love will overcome hatred, peace will overcome violence and God’s justice will finally unite all people of the earth. Until that day, I will continue to pray for our communities, our country, our world, and yes, even my enemies.

Rev Stacy Seger

Pastor, Christ the King Lutheran Church

Bentonville, AR

National Day of Prayer...couldn't have come at a better time...

This isn't my typical blog post - it's actually a letter that I sent out to members of my congregation today...my heart has been heavy as we've been through a rough week together, so I thought I would share...peace...

"Joy finds its fullest and deepest expression not over a human death but in God’s promise to unite all things in heaven and on earth, to reconcile the human family and to bring God’s reign of peace." 

Presiding Bishop of the ELCA, Mark Hanson

Dear members & friends of Christ the King -

This week has been one of varied emotions for all of us. The events of this week have left some feeling relieved, joyful or victorious while others were left feeling heavy-hearted, fearful or disillusioned. Perhaps you felt a combination of all of these. In any case, emotions and spirits were running high this week and I believe that Bp Hanson's words were a powerful message of hope and security for a darkened world.

Regardless of how you feel about the events of this week, your emotions are justified; they are your own and are to be respected. Each opinion and feeling is as unique as the person who owns it. As Christians, however, we can come together around the sure and certain promise of God to reconcile the entire human family to Himself and bring an everlasting peace to all. We have the awesome responsibility and opportunity to enact that now.

Today marks the 236th National Day of Prayer since the first one was called in 1775 by the Continental Congress. Since then, throughout the years, there have been prayer rallies, marked days of prayer and assemblies. 2003 marked the beginning of the organized, national activities we see today. I urge you this day, on this National Day of Prayer, to take time out of your schedule to pray. Pray for those who lost their lives due to acts of violence or hatred. Pray for all those who have lost loved ones. Pray for the church that we may be a beacon of hope in a dark world. Pray for all military members and their families that they might be filled with God's spirit of justice and peace. Pray for our community that we may shun violence and hatred. Pray for our world that love would overcome hate. And, finally, pray for those who would seek to hurt and destroy out of hatred and vengeance.

Praying for our enemies is one of the hardest things we can do - yet one of the most effective. For Jesus commands in Matthew 5 Love your enemies...pray for those who persecute you....Praying for miracles, for God's action in our lives or the lives of others is not fruitless, for only God is powerful enough to make change like that happen.

Grace & Peace to you, my friends.

Pr. Stacy

I am a runner.

The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you."

- Jonah 3:1-2

 The story of Jonah has always been intriguing to me...not so much because of the whale or that Jonah survived for three days in his belly but because of how far Jonah was willing to go to 'out run' God and how far God was willing to go to find him.


We know that this second time that God came to Jonah occurs after Jonah heard him once and didn't want to go to Nineveh and in his running away finds himself in an unfortunate situation with some surly sailors in a boat on a stormy sea. Jonah gets thrown overboard; sure to drown in the rough waters. God, however, has other plans. A giant fish shows up, swallows Jonah, and there he stays, safe and sound until he can take no more and cries out to God for help. God hears him and orders the fish to spit him out.


THIS is where we find dear Jonah when God says to him a second time "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you."


Sound familiar? You hear a calling, feel a nudge, have a sense of something greater - then run; as far and fast as you can only to get caught up in some sort of quandary where the only way out is to pray. So God does what God does best and He rescues you...only to issue the same calling, nudge the same nudge, urge you to something greater.


This is where I often find myself during Lent. The examination of my faith journey, the review of my sins and the resulting repentance and the call to discipleship I hear during Lent is often heavy and I find myself wanting to run. Run to a place of comfort, of solace and of grace - back into my comfortable life of worship, prayer, Bible study and service without the need for self-examination, repentance and witness. I am a runner. I am an evader. I am Jonah.


But thankfully, God is God and God will pursue me to the all corners of the Earth, even to the depths of the ocean where He will send a giant fish to swallow me up to keep me safe until I realize that I am utterly, 100%, completely and totally dependent upon God's grace and mercy rather than my own skills and abilities. Then I will be spit out and God will, once again, ask me to be a faithful disciple and witness to my God of grace and mercy.


That's all that God asks of us.


Let us pray:
Lord God, thank you for being persistent in chasing us down, as we run far and fast. Help us to trust in your grace and mercy to lead us to places of growth and prosperity. Amen.

A Little Light Over Here, Please?!

O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God. 

- Psalm 43: 3-4

Lent - it’s not a season of the church year that I look forward to...and I don’t think I’m alone in that. I feel like Lent is the ‘black sheep’ of the church-year family, like people go out of their way to avoid thinking about it or acknowledging it or we simply don’t understand what it is really all about.  I’m trying to approach Lent in a different way this year...

Usually Lent is approached with a solemnity that is quite appropriate for a time of fasting, prayer and meditation.  But it is usually more than solemnity that we have - we often approach Lent with a solemnity mixed with anxiety, fear, trepidation and despise. Because, after all, isn’t Lent all about giving up those things that we love the most; chocolate, wine, cookies, pasta....

I’m approaching Lent this year as a season of searching - I’m not giving anything up. As a matter of fact, I’m adding something, a spiritual discipline, meditation. Now, before those of you who know me well laugh hysterically at the thought of me trying to sit still and quiet ALONE for any lengh of time, hear me out.  I’m going to try meditation so that I can focus in on God’s voice and God’s light during my time of fasting, prayer and preparation.  I’m going to spend time in silent solitude and try to see the light and the truth that is guiding me down this path called life.  Along the way I may experience some ‘noise’ or some ‘darkness’ but that is ok, because I know that God will lead me back to God. I know that my path, while sometimes curvy and hilly, is a path that leads to God’s grace and goodness.  

I pray that during my Lenten journey I am able to learn something about myself; I don’t know what it might be because if I knew it I wouldn’t have to learn it, right? I also pray that God will reveal something new to  me...something about the path that I am on. And I pray that what I learn and what is revealed will cause me, on that glorious Easter morn, to praise God, my exceeding joy and give Him thanks and praise for a safe and spiritual Lenten journey.

May it be so with you, as well.

Let us pray:

Guiding God - I pray your blessing upon your children as we begin our Lenten journeys.  Guide us with your light. Grant us courage to continue the journey, even when it’s rough, and bring us to an everlasting joy.  Amen.

You Want Me To Do WHAT?!

For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. - 1 John 5:3-4

There are many things in life that weigh us down; jobs, responsibilities, health concerns, money troubles, relationship issues...the list could go on and on.  Yet the one thing we let REALLY get us down is following God’s commandments.  When the disciples asked Jesus Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the law? (Matthew 22:36) Jesus answered them simply: LOVE.  Love the Lord your God, Love your neighbor.  

The commandments are simple...to love, as God first loved us. Nothing crazy or grandiose.  Nothing that requires any special tools or large amounts of cash.  Just love. Love without limits, without conditions, without expectations.  The greatest gift we receive is God’s daily, unending, limitless love. 

The 2nd greatest gift we receive is the gift of the commandments. We often see the commandments as burdens; as things meant to make us feel guilty or to so constrict our lives and actions that simply ‘living’ is out of the question...however, the exact opposite is true.  God’s commandments give us a road map on how to live our lives.  They guide us in our relationships with God and with each other. They remind us of what is important: God and His desire to love and bless the whole world and our ability to get along with one another and live fruitful lives.

Imagine a world where we were able to let go of all the burdens that weigh us down so that we might love one another...

Paul pleads, in his 1st letter to the church at Corinth:  You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common. (1 Cor 1:10) Human disagreements, fights and arguments are not anything new. They were as common to the ancient world as they are to us today. Why is it that when we look to our neighbors we see natural enemies rather than natural friends; we prefer to draw lines of us vs them rather than see each other with the same love and grace that God looks upon us with.  

I urge you, friends - we cannot solve all the worlds’ problems of fighting and violence, but we can start here...with us.  Recognize the great gifts we are given in God’s love and in the commandments - and then simply live and love one another.

Let us pray:

Gracious God - there are things in this world that weigh us down, that burden our lives and keep us from keeping your commandments.  We lift all that to you now, trusting in your grace and mercy.  In our new found freedom, make us bold to love; to love you above all else, and our neighbors as ourselves.  Amen.

Battery running low - plug in here.

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. God does not faint or grow weary; God’s understanding is unsearchable. 

- Isaiah 40:28

I’ve had contact lately with a lot of people who seem tired; not sleepy tired, but worn out-depleted-exhausted tired, emotionally drained and mentally tapped out.  

I remember in seminary they told us that after the exhausting Advent/Christmas season there is a ‘breather time’ to catch up before Lent and the exhausting season of Easter. I beg to differ. There is no ‘breather time’ between any season, any day or, really, any hour that I can find. Life keeps going, things keep happening and a plethora of activities and responsibilities clamor for our attention. LIFE is exhausting. 

It seems like we are always looking for new ways to refuel and reenergize...energy drinks that pump us up, fancy exercises and meditation designed to stretch our brains while stretching our muscles, creative ways of sleeping so that we can get by on fewer hours of sleep to add more hours of productivity...blah, blah, blah. It’s hard enough to find time to breath, spend priceless moments with loved ones or just relax without taking up time by experimenting with new techniques.

There is one way to refuel and reenergize - one place where we can spend a few minutes and get some much-needed ‘charging’ - it is tried and true, no experiments, no energy drinks and no fancy sleep techniques. Are you ready for it? Prayer.

Prayer.

I know it’s hard to imagine finding time to pray but it’s KEY to a well-balanced, full, energized life.  It doesn’t have to be formal or lengthy; it just has to be real. You and God...in conversation. Instead of hitting the snooze button for another 9 minutes of sleep when your fancy sleep techniques fail, spend some time talking to God. When you are driving to pick up your child from soccer practice, turn off the car radio and talk to God. When you are waiting for the #7 bus to pick you up, talk to God.  

God’s energy is endless. God’s store of resources is limitless. God doesn’t get tired of hearing from you. God doesn’t grow weary of your conversation. God loves you. God understands your needs, desires and exhaustion. 

Let us pray:
Eternal God - Help me to find time to plug into you today. Help me, as I struggle with daily schedules and responsibilities to find time to rest in your endless mercy and grace. Fill me with your energy so that I may continue to be of service to your world.  Amen.

Thanks for surfing by...come again.

⁵Beloved, you do faithfully whatever you do for the friends, even though they are strangers to you; ⁶they have testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on in a manner worthy of God; ⁷for they began their journey for the sake of Christ. 

- 3 John 1:5-6a

Like a lot of others, moving away from my home state and beginning my first call as a pastor in a small church in NW Arkansas caused me to lose touch with many people I considered friends.  I was not able to keep up on what was happening in their lives, the blessings and challenges they were facing, and then Facebook happened. Through Facebook, I have been able to follow the joys and challenges of many of my friends and family all around the world.  While it’s not as personal as sitting down over coffee or picking up the phone for a chat, it is what works for many of us now that we are busy and wrapped up in our families and vocations all over God’s world. I do admit that I would much rather be able to spend time visiting in person, but I have found a special joy in logging into Facebook to read updates, blogs, posts and seeing new pictures.

With this new convenience of technology comes blessings beyond measure, but also responsibilities.  I have found some things that people post to be hurtful or condemning or downright hateful.  To be honest, that sucks some of the joy right out of Facebook, and other social networking means, for that matter.  

This verse from 3 John puts things into perspective for me.  While the epistle writer was writing specifically to his friend Gaius about the manner in which he had just welcomed a group of traveling missionaries, it has something to say for us, too.  The writer thanks Gaius for his hospitality while they were visiting, but also reminds him, that as they are traveling in the name of Christ, Gaius is called to send them on in a manner worthy of God.  While it is most likely that he was reminding him to send them with food, supplies and money, perhaps, it is also a reminder to send them on with prayers, encouragement, support and love.

Each day we have a number of people, either on purpose or by stumbling, who visit our Facebook page, blog, MySpace, website or other social networking site.  What message do we want to send with them? What image would we like to portray? One of love, grace and discipleship? One worthy of God? When they go on their way to the next website/page, what we have shared with them may have an impact that could be spread to countless others.  It’s up to us to faithfully treat all people as friends and to send them on in a manner worthy of God.

Let us pray:

Welcoming God - each day you welcome us anew into your family with love, acceptance and grace.  Help us to be bearers of the same to each person we encounter; in person or virtually.  Fill us with your spirit, God, we pray.  Amen.