Come Home: God Is Here

Our Advent focus this year has been on the theme of “coming home.” Sometimes it feels as though I am doing anything but that! Last weekend, Lisa and I were in Colorado to celebrate our son’s wedding and all of the delightful family-filled activities around it. Treasured memories abound! Next week, we are headed to Portland for a few days to spend time with our first grandchild and family again, as we were made aware it is the only window to do so on the near horizon. On the road again!

On Christmas Eve, we are again invited to “come home.” No doubt, many in our midst will have done just that. We will recall, however, that above all of our travels and gatherings this year (or to the extent that Covid-19 allows), Christmas is first about “God Coming Home” to us in the person of Jesus. God loved us so much that God was willing to walk in our shoes and invest in our flesh and bone. We’ll explore some of the implications of that willingness, which encourage us to “love as God has already loved us,” and how we might best do some of the preparation long after Advent is behind us which allows God to use us in all of our messy humanity. We help each other recognize how God still believes in us, even when we may struggle to believe in God.

I hope that you and your family can join us in the sanctuary at 1:30, 3:30, 5:30 or 7:00 this Christmas Eve, You can even join us on Facebook Live at 1:30. Either way, we experience the comfort of being a community in Christ! I offer a hearty thanks in advance to all those who have and will serve to make it possible. I pray that we won’t take them for granted.

I should remind you that we will share a single service on Sunday, Dec. 26th, at 9:00 a.m. that includes familiar carols and a special Christmas message from our Bishop Amy Current. A pre-recorded version of this service will also be available on YouTube and our website by 9:00 a.m. Sunday. Hope that many of you can be a part!

No matter whether your travels are taking you home this year or others are making their way to your doorstep, or whether you find yourself in the midst of faces only distantly familiar, know that God has promised that you won’t be alone. For “unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Tim

Come Home to Hope

Dear Friends,

Many times, in my life I have celebrated Christmas in July just for fun. But July in December? Wow! I pray that the winds have been gentle to you and your home. We pray for the people who have experienced loss, damage, and fear from the storms that have occurred across many states. Please see the message below from Lutheran Disaster Response. Making a donation to this ministry to those who are hurting, may be the most meaningful Christmas gift you share.

This week our Advent theme is Come Home to Hope! Our ministry partner this week is Safe Families. Safe Families partners with churches asking for prayer, support, and encouragement for the families who host and foster children of all ages with so many different stories. They ask for prayer for the families who are in the midst of challenges and transitions. We are thankful for the opportunity to celebrate what God has done and continues to do through the lives of the many servants, known as foster families. When life seems all but hopeless, Safe Families shine God’s message of Hope!

Let’s connect the dots from the ministry of Safe Families to the story of Mary, speaking with the Angel of the Lord in Luke 1:46-55.

And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me,and holy is his name.

His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things,

and sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

The music in my office continues to play, over and over again, Fill This Place, by Red Rock Worship. It may not be a Christmas song in your mind, but it is for me. You can imagine the sleigh bells in the background and imagine how they sang this song on the roof tops waiting and waiting for a miracle. I hear the words over and over again,

…Father we are on our knees with every heartbeat…

We bring you this offering…Father we’re crying out…

Glorious love surrounds us, Lord come and fill this place...

They cried out and we cry out in our own time for God’s gift of hope right here and now. It is indeed God who fills this space by filling each of us with the gift of hope, the gift of God’s grace! This is a message of hope we invite our family, friends, and all neighbors to celebrate on Christmas Eve. Please plan to join us at one of our four services. We expect the 7 p.m. service to be smaller in attendance if you are hoping for more social distancing space.

Peace to you always,

Pastor Katie

Come Home to Peace

We are already into the heart of December and the darkening days of the Advent season; yet it has already been one rich with possibility and ministry. The invitation to “Come Home” to both love and to joy over the past two weeks has awakened us to be mindful of the needs of our neighbors and to help them experience “home” in fresh new ways.

Last week’s furniture-building effort in support of “Houses into Homes” proved to be a great example of generations working together to create a few of the elements needed to transform a space into a welcoming abode and inspired several of our member families to donate their own gently-used furnishings to the cause - and even an entire hotel’s furnishings. Way to go! Those gathering last night (Dec. 8th) for “worship and work” repackaged a veritable mountain of urgently needed diapers and tissue for the North Liberty Food Pantry, which is attempting to keep up with growing community need. Many thanks for your inspiring efforts and to the Thrivent members who helped purchase the supplies. What teamwork was evident again! (See the picture of the supplies packed into a truck for transport to North Liberty Community Pantry. Even the front seat was full!!)

This Sunday, we will be highlighting “Come Home to… Peace,” and noting the many forms which “peace” can take, especially in light of the Hebrew concept of “shalom” or harmony. It’s a far richer vision than I have often treated it and one that is both inviting and inspiring in ways both obvious and otherwise. One of our focused responses to the issue will be to highlight the needs and opportunities to help welcome those fleeing war-torn Afghanistan, who have experienced little of it in recent decades. For those of you who are able, we’ll be continuing our discussion of refugees in the Sunday forum at 9:30 and engaging in advocacy and encouragement activities for them next Wednesday. We would welcome your presence!

Meanwhile, our Visioning Council has been actively sharing their gratitude for those who submitted a “Faith Promise” for the 2022 ministry year. Your efforts to get your pledges submitted really helped them to craft an initial budget proposal. While we still have a way to go to meet our goal, the fact that over half of families elected to raise their support of our Ministry Fund next year (by 9% collectively) has truly provided encouragement to pursue our mission through ever more creative means in these challenging times. Many thanks!

What shape will “peace” take within your own life and home this week? Let’s see how we might envision that together this Sunday! See you in worship!

Pastor Tim