Pastor Joel's Mid-Week Reminders for 8/02/2011
This entry was posted on 8/2/2011 9:29 PM and is filed under Mid-Week Reminders.
'The Lord
was not in the earthquake... The Lord was not in the
wind... The Lord
was not in the fire; and after the silence a sound of
sheer silence.
Then there came a voice to Elijah...' 1 Kings
19.11-12 'I will
listen to what the Lord God is saying.' Psalm
85.8
We
Americans like action, noise, sound, and spectacle. We
don't do so
well with silence. It makes us kind of uncomfortable. So
we turn on
the radio, the stereo, the TV. Anything to distract us,
entertain us,
fill the void.
But in stories such as the one in the Bible about Elijah on
the
mountain, silence is the doorway to hearing God speak in the
still,
small voice. Someone has said that "Loneliness is the
poverty of the
self. Solitude is the richness of the self." Simon and
Garfunkel had
a big hit with their recording in the 1970s, 'The Sound of
Silence'.
Sometimes silence and solitude are the gateways to the
riches of God's
presence. Jesus himself sought out solitude for intimacy
with his
heavenly Father. Elijah 'listened to what the Lord God was
saying' in
the silence that followed the earthquake, the wind, the
fire. The
still, small voice of God came in that silence and changed
the course
of Elijah's life.
Silence and solitude can be a mountaintop experience for us
as well.
MORE
DAMAGE TO
THE CHURCH: Apparently the
mop sink
in the new upstairs area got blocked up this week, and the
result was
overflow that leaked downwards, ruining much of the ceiling
tiles and
insulation above the exercise room. The plumber is here
inspecting the
cause, and Al Binder is taking care of contacting Church
Mutual for the
cost of the damage.
PASTOR JOEL'S ADULT
SUNDAY CLASS: I'm currently leading a
Bible study that
focuses on the assigned readings from the Bible for each
Sunday. Together we discuss the riches of our new life in
Christ as we grow in our understanding of how we can live in
such a way
that we witness the joy and hope of being Easter Christians.
Join us
in the Commons Room each Sunday from 8:50 - 9:45am. Coffee
and
refreshments are available.
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS WORKSHOP:
Sunday, October 16, right after worship and potluck. Please
let Jonet
Schutz, our Faith Community Health Minister, know if you can
attend
this 90 minute workshop led by Arlene Janssens, former
Deaconness at St
John Lutheran Church. Look for more details in forthcoming
issues of
the Spirit Call newsletter.
DATES
AND
EVENTS TO NOTE ~
August
14.................Outdoor worship with
Baptism....and
Summerfest
August
19 -
21,,,,,,,,,,,Church Campout at Coast
**Please see the weekly
bulletin, Spirit Call, and
master
calendar for a complete listing of dates and
events.
