Our Lord Jesus Christ says, "If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed. You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free" (John 8:31-32).
all the men who will receive vicarage assignments and calls from congregations to serve as pastors, and all the women who will receive deaconess internships or placements, during the Placement Services being held at our seminaries tonight and tomorrow night. These men and women have sacrificed a lot to get to this point of hearing the Lord of the Harvest answer their plea, "Send me," by placing them into the congregations (or, mission fields) where He bids them serve. Having gone through this myself just five years ago, I still remember the feelings of both anxiety and excitement waging war within me and tying my stomach all up in knots. I'm betting there's a lot of that going on inside many of the candidates to be placed this year as well - and, not just inside the candidates themselves, but, in many cases, their spouses and children, too. It is a scary, most humbling experience to give yourself over to the will of the Lord in this manner, not knowing where you'll be called to serve or what the conditions will be when you get there. And yet, that's just what these men and women have done, solely by God's grace, of course. Anyway, keep them in your prayers.
Also, be even more diligent in your prayers for the many men who will not be receiving calls these next two evenings, simply because there is a shortage of calling congregations. These men are trained, able, and willing to serve, but will have to wait until something opens up somewhere before they can be placed. I know a little bit about this, too, since I was contacted a week before Call Night and told that there was a shortage of calls that year and that, since I was on a delayed vicarage, they were asking those of us in that situation to not report for Call Night, but to stay put until they could place us. Long story short, I was, thankfully, called on the Saturday before Call Night and told that they did have a call for me after all, and to come on down. But, that week was very trying on me and on my family, as we did not know what the future held for us. I can only imagine how trying it would have been on us had we had to suffer for longer than that week, as many of these dear brothers and their families will have to do. My heart goes out to them big time! Please, please, please keep them in your prayers!
You can tune in and watch the Placement Services streaming online (I'm actually watching the Vicarage Placement and Deaconess Internship Service at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne which started a few minutes ago right now; the Candidate Call Service will be held in Ft. Wayne tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m.; Concordia, St. Louis has its Call Service tonight at 8:00 p.m. EST). Simply go to the seminary websites linked below:
I'm sure most people have figured this out by now, but when you see a comment for a post which has weird characters in the name, a short note (e.g. "I do like ur article!"), and a nameless link with a series of underlined dots (.............), just ignore it, as it will send you to an Asian (Chinese?) site, which displays half-naked women inviting you to chat, etc. I've noticed this appearing on several Christian blogs, including my own, with more frequency of late. Obviously, some people have nothing better to do with their time and must think this is funny or something. Anyway, as I said, most people are on to this, but some may not be, hence the heads-up. I will delete these posts as soon as I see them, but they may appear for a while at times, since I am often away from my blog for extended periods of time.
Call me crazy, superstitious, backwards, ignorant, or whatever else you will - I believe in the Triune God who reveals Himself to us in the Bible. I believe that He created the heavens and the earth. I even believe that He did so in six, literal days, as revealed in Genesis. I further believe that He has always been, and remains, firmly in control of the universe. I believe Him when He tells us that the earth will be here until the Last Day, when Christ returns in great glory for the final judgment, and to usher in the new heavens and new earth - the new creation which will take the place of the old, and which will be the eternal dwelling place of all the saints and holy angels with their Creator and Lord.
As I said, call me crazy, etc., but that's what I believe. And, because I believe that, I'm not all that concerned with "Mother Earth" and "her environment." The "religion" of "environmentalism" is a religion that adheres to several tenets that are in stark contradiction to the Christian religion. Its popular "preachers" (the Al Gores, Oprah Winfreys, Bill Mahrs, etc.) proclaim a message that puts sinful human beings in the place of God, making it their responsibility to care for, sustain, and even save our planet. The "prophets" of this "religion" are the scientists who work from the pre-conceived notion that there is no God and that Darwin's theory of evolution is a fact. They provide data, based on these pre-conceived notions, which become the "sacred writings" from which these "preachers" proclaim their message to the world.
Last week, the "high feast day" of this "religion" was observed. That is, of course, "Earth Day." This was the fortieth anniversary of this "sacred festival," and the whole world joined in the celebration ("Earth Day" was begun in 1970 here in the U.S., but went international in 1990). Actually, though, this "high feast day" is not all that celebratory in nature. It's really a day of fear-mongering and guilt-laden reminders to the human race about its responsibility to quit killing its "mother" and to become active in the cause of healing, and saving, her. "Love Your Mother - Earth"; "Save the Planet"; "Show You Care - Hug a Tree"; "Go Green - Stop Global Warming"; "Be Responsible: Recycle and Restore!"; and so forth, are the "sermons" preached on this "high feast day." And the message comes through loudly and clearly: If we don't take action, we'll soon have no place to live!
The "religion" of "environmentalism" flows from godlessness. It is crassly narcissistic. To think that we human beings are both the cause and the cure for the supposed peril of our planet is the height of narcissism and leaves absolutely no room for the God who created all things. Not only that, but "environmentalism" lacks the consistency to sustain it as a viable "religion" worth the time for anyone to take very seriously, even though many actually do. While the core message is always there, namely that we human beings must work together to save our planet, the threat and suggested action required to eliminate the threat is always changing.
When I was a young chap, the threat was over-population. If we didn't do something about that, by the time the 21st century rolled around, our planet would be so overrun that it couldn't possibly survive our existence. That, of course, proved to be a myth of epic proportions. Then there was the insistence that we were destroying our forests and would soon run out of trees, which would, of course, mean our certain extinction, since we can't breathe without trees. Then we were destroying the Ozone layer because of our pollution. Remember that? When I was a teenager, this was a HUGE deal. We were melting the Ozone layer away and, if we kept that up, we would all soon fry. Enter the Greenhouse Effect, which is still promoted as something to fear and resolve, and has supposedly led to the "greatest peril our planet has ever faced" (according to the Official Earth Day 2010 Campaign), namely "Global Warming" (a.k.a. "Climate Change"). A few months back, in what has become known as "Climate-Gate," it was revealed that many scientists were "cooking the books," so to speak, in order to sell "Global Warming" to the world. But, that hasn't stopped the advancement of the promotion of this latest threat in the least. It's everywhere. It's constantly in the news; it's entrenched in our politics; it's supported and promoted by Hollywood, and so forth. To speak out against it, even if you are a reputable scientist who has the data to back up your opposition, is to be cast aside as an ignorant baffoon, not worth listening to (kinda like when you speak out against the theory of evolution). Never mind the fact that it has been proven that our planet has gone through cyclical periods of both cooling and warming throughout history, Global Warming is something new that is solely caused by us and must be solely solved by us. It's the latest threat which is sure to keep the "religion" of "environmentalism" thriving in the years to come (which has a lot to do with the amount of money to be made in its promotion and acceptance - just sayin').
Sadly, many Christians have been bewitched into believing that they can adhere to Christianity and "environmentalism" at one and the same time. But, this is quite impossible, since they are wholly incompatible. Either you believe in the Triune God who created all things, continues to sustain all things, and promises to sustain all things until the Last Day, or you don't. And, while the "religion" of "environmentalism" will happily allow for you to believe in whatever "god" you choose to believe in, it requires that you believe that your "god" is not in control. In other words, you are free to be "Christian," so long as you don't actually believe that the Christian God is in control of our universe, since, well, that would most definitely contradict the basic tenets of "environmentalism."
None of this means that we Christians shouldn't be good stewards of God's creation. But, our motivation for doing so must never be rooted in the vain, ridiculous idea that we are somehow participating in the saving of our planet. We try not to pollute or litter not because we believe our doing so will result in our planet's destruction, but rather because it makes God's creation ugly. We don't recycle because we believe that we are going to run out of natural resources, but because it is a more efficient use of those resources. We don't plant trees because we believe it is necessary for our survival, but because our God has given us the ability to do so and it is good for us to replenish the resources we use. And so on.
The point is that we should care for God's creation as we are able. He commands us to do no less. But, we do so always recognizing that He is in control of all things and never out of fear that our existence depends upon us. We are not alone. We are not in control. We are neither destroying our planet nor would we have the capacity to save it if we were. We have no need to fear Global Warming or any future threat imagined and promoted by the "preachers" of "environmentalism." God is able to handle things just fine without us. We will be here until the Last Day when Christ returns. God promises so, and He has shown time and time again that He is always faithful to His promises.
As I said, call me crazy, etc., but that's what I believe. I'll keep singing that old classic Christian children's song, "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands," even while the "religion" of "environmentalism" changes the lyrics to, "We've Got the Whole World In Our Hands."
With all that said, here's a video for your enjoyment, which I stumbled upon visiting Pr. Randy Asburry's blog:
Originally, I had a video embedded in this post, but found out that it was loading automatically in Internet Explorer (wasn't doing so in Firefox). Anyway, after spending a little time trying to fix the html code so that it wouldn't autoplay, but having no success, I decided to remove the video and just provide the link, which is here. If you haven't watched this video yet, check it out - it's pretty cool! :)
It has become a Friday morning custom for me to read a portion from the most excellent book, "At Home in the House of My Fathers", by LCMS Presidential Nominee Rev. Matthew Harrison. This morning, I read "On Pure Doctrine for the Salvation of Souls," which was the opening sermon preached by C.F.W. Walther before the first official meeting of the Synodical Conference, held in Milwaukee July 10-16, 1872 (pp. 193-201).
Wow! Would that Walther's voice was heard loudly and clearly in our synod today, for surely it is as relevant now as ever. He preaches in this sermon on the importance of clinging to, and persisting in, pure doctrine if the chief object of the Synodical Conference is truly going to be the salvation of souls. The text he preaches upon is 1 Timothy 4:16. He makes it vividly clear that the salvation of souls is absolutely dependent upon pure doctrine. If pure doctrine is forsaken, so is the salvation of souls. The mission of Christ's Church is accomplished through pure doctrine. Mission and doctrine go hand in hand; you can't have one without the other. In fact, for Walther, pure doctrine is the essential and vital key to mission.
I dare say that, were Walther alive today, he would be labeled by many in our midst as an "ultra-conservative purist." He would be accused of not having a proper love for the lost, for he would not be willing to do "whatever it takes" to reach them, if doing "whatever it takes" called for the forsaking of pure doctrine in any way, shape, or form. The mantra of many in our synod today is in agreement with the words spoken by our own synodical president, Rev. Gerald Kieschnick, at his installation in 2001 (and repeated several times since):
People, this is not a game. Our incessant internal purification at the expense of the eternal destiny of the souls of men and women for whom Christ died must stop!
For Pres. Kieschnick and company, the commitment and desire to adhere to, and maintain, pure doctrine is seen as a stumbling block to the mission of saving lost souls. Indeed, I have had numerous conversations with LCMS pastors and laypeople over the years, who have made it very clear that they believe that we Lutherans need to quit worrying so much about keeping our doctrine pure and start worrying more about reaching out to the lost in whatever ways necessary. So it is that, today, there are a plethora of Lutheran pastors and congregations whose zeal for reaching the lost has come at the expense of maintaining pure doctrine.
Remarkably, even though it can be clearly seen that these pastors and congregations have forsaken pure doctrine, they believe that their actions and practices are defensible since they have created a new definition of pure doctrine, which involves nothing more than an adherence to a basic set of fundamental or essential doctrines. They have no doubt been influenced in this regard, too, by leaders like Pres. Kieschnick, who repeatedly maintains that our synod is blissfully united in the essentials, providing, time and time again, detailed lists of what he deems to be the essential doctrines in which, in his estimation, we are united in agreement. He almost always follows this up with statements about how our unity on these essentials is the envy of many other denominations. Clearly, for him, and for all like him, agreement in essentials is enough, and to wrangle over specifics, or to strive for purity in specifics, is not only unnecessary, but detrimental to reaching lost souls for Jesus.
Not so with Walther. Not even close. Listen to him. Here is a portion of the most excellent sermon he preached - a sermon that still needs to be preached and heard in our midst today (it's a lengthy quote, I know, but you would be most edified to take the time to read it):
As you know, my brethren, it is a common saying in our time that the continual urging of the doctrine is a most pernicious tendency, only hindering, yea, destroying the kingdom of God. People say, "Instead of disputing so much about the doctrine, you ought rather to think of taking care of the souls and of leading them to Christ." But all who speak this way certainly do not know what they say and what they do. As it would be folly to chide the tiller of the ground for his diligence to obtain good seed, and to demand that he should be eager only to obtain good fruit, so it would be folly to chide those that take heed unto the doctrine above all things, and to demand of them that they should rather endeavor only to save souls. For as the tiller of the ground must be eager to obtain good seed above all things, if he wishes to reap good fruit, so must the Church care for sound doctrine above all things, if she wishes to save souls.
For if we wish to save men, we must make them poor sinners first. But this can be done only by the pure doctrine of the Law. Then we must lead them to the true faith in Christ, and preserve, establish, strengthen them in that doctrine. But this can be done only by the pure doctrine of the Gospel. And finally we must induce them also to thank God with a truly Christian life for their salvation, which His free grace has granted them, and to make their calling and election sure by the same. But this can be done only by the pure doctrine of sanctification.
However, many say, "We acknowledge indeed that for these reasons, it is certainly necessary to cling firmly to those great general truths upon which the salvation of souls depends. But should not liberty be granted to everyone in reference to all other doctrines? What can the result of controversy about subordinate doctrines be, but that the body of Christ is torn and the work of the salvation of souls hindered?" But also all those that speak this way certainly do not know what they say and what they do. For the holy apostle does not say in our text, "Keep a close watch on the chief doctrines," but "Keep a close watch on the doctrine," that is, unto everything that is taught in the Word of God. "For," he adds, "by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers." For god has not revealed only this and that doctrine but His whole Word for the salvation of men. "Thy testimonies," says David, "are very sure" [Psalm 93:5 KJV], not only this or that testimony. Therefore also the great apostle of the Gentiles testifies: "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for ever good work" [2 Timothy 3:16-17]; and in another passage he declares that only therefore he is "pure from the blood of men," because "I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable" and "I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God" [Acts 20:27]. And finally, Christ Himself says, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" [Matthew 4:4]. Behold, in every word of God, therefore, life is enclosed as in a germ, namely, temporal as well as eternal life. The Word of God is an immensely rich storeroom, filled with manifold inviting meats for mankind, living without God and without hope. When his hour comes, God invites one man by this meat and the other man by that one. Who are we, then, to dare to despise the riches of God's goodness and to sacrifice even a single one of His saving words?
Finally, add to this the following: As every doctrine of the Word of God is a heavenly seed of regeneration for everlasting life, so on the contrary, every human doctrine is, in matters of salvation, a hellish seed of satanic birth to everlasting death. Alas! Many a soul has been led by a single false doctrine forever into a wrong way to eternity, by a single false consolation forever to a false hope of salvation, by a single false threatening, warning, and reproof forever to a false fear and to perfect despair, and thus, finally, to the loss of souls and salvation!
Oh, how important it is, therefore, my brethren, that we make the salvation of souls above all things the chief object of our joint labor in the kingdom of Christ! Then it will be impossible but that we "keep a close watch on the doctrine," and we will thus be kept from ever violating our faithfulness toward the Word of God. Whatever doctrine we may be called upon to conceal. or at least to suffer to be contradicted, or to yield, we then shall always declare: Shall we take away from the man who is dead in sin even a single means that God has given him which might resuscitate him from death? Shall we take away from the man who grieves at his sins even a single consolation that God has granted him which might comfort him? Shall we take away from the man who is ill of sin even a single medicine that God has afforded him which might restore him to health? Shall we take away from the man who struggles for his salvation with sin, the world, and Satan even a single weapon that God has tendered him, with which he might defend himself and gain the victory? Shall we take away from the man who errs, groping about in the darkness of this world, even a single star that God has lit for him, which might be his guiding star to the blessed goal? In short, shall we "take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs" [Matthew 15:26]? No. No, we then shall exclaim, as we value our salvation and that of our fellow redeemed, that we will faithfully keep the Word, this good thing which is committed unto us, to the last iota, so help us God!
Scary how it almost seems as though Walther is addressing our synod today in 2010, isn't it? Actually, he is, and we would do well to listen to him!
Here are some pics taken during my visit to the hospital this afternoon to see and hold Mabel Diane and to congratulate Larry, Annie, Ben, and family, on their beautiful new addition:
I had the honor of being interviewed by Pr. Todd Wilken yesterday on Issues, Etc. about the first in a series of four articles I've been asked to write for Higher Things magazine. The series is titled "Feasting with Our Lord" and will take a look at some of the Old Testament Feasts and how they find they're fulfillment in Christ. This first article was focused on the Feast of Passover and Unleavened Bread.
I have a ton of respect for the Weedons, Cwirlas, Wolfmeullers, Petersens, and many other frequent IE guests, who do such a fabulous and faithful job contending for the faith within the unscripted (for the most part) and "off the cuff" format of the show, which, by the way, makes it the excellent show it is, for it always rings genuine and true. I wonder if they play the "I should have said that; I wish I would have said that differently" game, like I was playing after I hung up with Jeff. Anyway, after listening to the playback this morning, the interview didn't turn out nearly as bad as I thought it had gone, which is a testament to Pr. Wilken's unique ability to make his guests feel at ease and lead them along at their pace and according to their responses. I still have that feeling of wishing I would have said this or that differently, but, all in all, it went well, and I was honored to be on. You can listen to the segment below:
I promised to post a message here as soon as I heard anything, so here it is:
Larry left a message on my cell this morning - Mabel was born at 5:56 a.m., 7 lbs. 4 oz., 20 in., both baby and mommy doing well (daddy sounded okay, too).
Heavenly Father, receive our heartfelt thanks for this child, a gift of Your grace and love for us in Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Send Your holy angels to shield her from all dangers of body and soul. Preserve her according to Your good pleasure until that day when she is brought to the waters of Holy Baptism to receive the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the same Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
CONGRATS Larry and Annie (and Ben)!
Update - Larry just sent me this first pic of Mabel:
A brother, Pr. Matthew Uttenreither, posted links to the following videos on another forum with the introductory note, Here are two youtube videos that shows the divide that exists [within the LCMS]. I've posted the video from LakePointe on this blog before, but the contrast really becomes clear when posted next to the video from Grace Lutheran in Tulsa. Notice the stark differences at work here. Listen to the pastors. Where is their focus? What is the congregation they serve all about? Listen to those interviewed as well. Where is their focus? What is the congregation they attend all about? And then, after watching these, ask yourself: How can these two congregations exists side by side in the same synod? And then, after asking yourself that question, ask yourself this one: Why is it that the congregation that doesn't identify itself as Lutheran in its name (let alone in its doctrine and practice) is the one that has been put before our synod by President Kieschnick and others as "a perfect example" to follow?
On his blog this morning, Pr. Weedon posted the following:
The notion that everything in the Divine Service should be utterly clear, transparent, and understandable to the unbelieving and uncatechized person who happens upon it, is absolutely and totally destructive of the faith itself. Illumination comes THROUGH the Spirit's use of the Word; not TO it. What part of "and the darkness did not comprehend it" is incomprehensible to these liturgical innovators???
Exactly! The impetus to pitch the hymnals and remove all "obstacles" (you know, "obstacles" like vestments, candles, pulpits, altars, hymns, Creeds, sermons, Law and Gospel, sin and grace, reverence, etc.) in order to make "church" more appealing to unbelievers comes straight from the pit of hell. The old evil foe delights greatly when people set out to make church a place for people who don't like church. Nothing pleases him more than to see Christians consulting unbelievers to see what they want and desire in a church, collecting the data, and then designing their "worship experience" around it. Were Wormwood to write and inform Uncle Screwtape that he had convinced his "patient" to let unbelievers set the agenda for what is done in the "patient's" church, I dare say Uncle Screwtape would be most heartily pleased with Wormwood's efforts.
I've said it before and I'll say it again (and again and again) - the Divine Service is FOR THE CHURCHED (believers), not FOR THE UNCHURCHED (unbelievers). It consists of a language that must be learned, for that language is a heavenly language recognized only by those with Spirit-wrought faith. The Divine Service is the gathering of the faithful children of God around His Holy Word and Sacraments to receive the Divine Gifts He graciously and lovingly desires to distribute to them. In response, the faithful pray, praise, and give thanks to God, speaking back to Him the Words He has given them to speak. One must be catechized to understand what is truly going on the Divine Service. If an unbeliever walks in off the street, what is happening in the Divine Service will be foreign to him. If it's not; if it's all too familiar, then something is woefully wrong.
None of this means that we don't do our very best to make visitors feel welcome or take measures to help them at least try to follow along during the Service (a detailed bulletin with page numbers goes a long way toward that). We should also make sure to identify visitors and greet them after the Service, etc. But, to design the Service around them - to change the language and remove all perceived "obstacles" so that they feel right at home - is destructive of the faith itself, as Pr. Weedon notes, but it also fails to benefit the visiting unchurched, unbelieving person as well, for it passes the faith off as something it is not and deceives them into believing that the church is no different from the world, and so on.
Besides all this, there is the whole Lutheran thing at play here. Lutherans do not "do church" like others. They can't, since their confession of the faith and theology of worship, which flows out of that confession, differs from the confession of the faith others make (or, go out of their way not to make). Thus, it should go without saying, but sadly needs to be said these days, that the following slogan should never, ever - no, not EVER! - be uttered by a Lutheran:
Actually, I should include Annie . . . so, just for Meggers and Annie, both of whom are waiting for the next time I will be absent on a Sunday so that they can get their "liturgical dance" on. Or, is it "praise dance" these days? Whatever. I just thought this would be a helpful resource for them as they conspire plan their performance praise offering via the medium of dance. They'll have to figure out how to turn this solo into a duet on their own - this is all the help I am willing to provide. :)
I mentioned to a friend earlier that I was looking forward to watching the Red Wings playoff game this afternoon (which I'm doing now), and she said, "I've never been into hockey. I just don't understand the game." Well, here ya go - all the explanation you need is contained in this clip from "Slapshot":
(If 80s rock ballads aren't your thing, you can simply ignore this)
The problem with choosing the greatest 80s rock ballad is that there were so many great ones from which to choose. For that reason, it is perfectly acceptable to put together a plethora of top ten lists which differ vastly in content. What is NOT acceptable, however, is to leave Tesla's "Love Song" off of any top ten list, since, well, it is THE Greatest 80s Rock Ballad. If you don't want to put it on top, in its rightful position, fine, but you are not allowed to compile a top ten list without it. Nope. Unacceptable, indeed! :)
(Note: Even without the extended guitar intro, it's still the greatest!)
Our Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11–16).He is not like the hireling, who cares nothing for the sheep and only for himself, who flees when he sees the wolf coming.Rather, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks out His scattered sheep to deliver them (Ezek. 34:11–16).He gathers them and feeds them in rich pasture.He binds up the broken and strengthens the sick.He lays down His life for wandering and wayward sheep.On the cross, Christ bore in His body the attacks of the predators of sin and death and the devil for you that you might be saved.He now lives to restore your soul in the still waters of baptism, to lead you in the paths of righteousness by the voice of His Gospel, to prepare the table of His holy supper before you, that you may dwell in the house of the Lord forever (Psalm 23). “For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25).
Collect of the Day
O God, through the humiliation of Your Son You raised up the fallen world. Grant to Your faithful people, rescued from the peril of everlasting death, perpetual gladness and eternal joys; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Hymn of the Day: LSB 709 "The King of Love My Shepherd Is"
I received an email yesterday from a reader who is concerned about the fact that her congregation is sending their youth to the LCMS National Youth Gathering which will take place in New Orleans this July. She was worried about the impact this would have on the youth. She explained that the congregation to which she belongs is a traditional/liturgical congregation and she is afraid of having the youth exposed to the kind of contemporary worship which will be on display at the Gathering. She also informed me that her pastor was just as concerned as she was, but that he, being only in his first year of service there, didn't want to cause waves by suggesting that the congregation break their tradition of sending their youth to the Gathering. I know exactly how he feels and don't blame him a bit. I also know how this woman feels. She is right to be concerned.
That's so sad, isn't it? That we have to worry about sending our youth to our own synod's National Youth Gathering, I mean. It's not only sad; it's a downright shame.
Why the worry? some might ask. Well, because for the last couple of decades, those who plan our Gatherings have gone out of their way to mimic the youth conferences held by Americanized "evangelicals." I know. I've been to those conferences. I'm not proud of it, but back in the nineties, I led the youth of the LCMS congregation I belonged to at the time to two "Acquire the Fire" conferences. Anyone who wants to argue that our synod's Gatherings have not become increasingly more like those conferences is gravely mistaken. They have. And, that's the danger and reason for worry. Those conferences are put on by those whose theology is vastly different from our Lutheran theology. The whole point of those conferences is to play on the kids' emotions in the hope that they will be so moved through the power of the "worship" and "testimonials" and "dramas," and so forth, that they will make a decision to accept Jesus as their Savior (or, for those who have already "made the decision," to "rededicate their lives" to Him). And, as someone who has experienced this live and in person, I'd be lying if I didn't admit that these conferences had a profound impact on my emotions. Heck, by the end of the first "Acquire the Fire" conference I attended, I was ready to rush the stage and "give my life to Jesus."
But, it's all superficial and shallow. It doesn't last. It didn't have a profound impact on any of our youth. How could it? It's just a show. It's rock-n-roll, dude. You "get down with Jesus" for a couple of days, are moved by the beat of the music and the heart-rending testimonials, and pumped up by the speakers who egg you on to "really let it all out and worship the Lord"! But then, all of a sudden, it's over. And so is the emotion. That feeling you experience - that so-called "spiritual high" you think you had - dissipates as fast as the drummer had smacked his drums during your favorite "praise song." Think of going to see your favorite rock band (or whatever other musical genre suits your fancy) in concert - that "high" you experience (and, no, I'm not talking about that kind of "high") lasts about until you get to your car in the parking lot (okay, if it was a really good concert, maybe till you get home). Then, it's gone - it quickly fizzles away. Emotions and feelings are fickle that way, you know.
For the life of me, I cannot fathom why it is that those who plan our synod's Gatherings do not understand this. They have an awesome opportunity to impact our youth with the Gospel, but instead seek ways to play on their emotions, just as the "evangelicals" do. They have a chance to present substance, but are content with providing a superficial experience. What's worse, they do not see the dangers of subjecting our youth to the false doctrines so prevalent in many of the rock-n-roll ditties performed by the bands they acquire to entertain lead the kids in "worship." It is as if they are ashamed of being Lutheran and want to give the youth something more exciting and adventurous.
Hopefully, the youth from this woman's congregation won't be as impacted by this as she fears. Hopefully, they'll just chalk it up to the "fun-fest" it is, and nothing more. Hopefully, once that "spiritual high" wears off, they'll just forget about the "experience" and return unfazed to the true Lutheran theology of worship followed in their home parish. But, again, it's so sad that we have to hope that our own synod's National Youth Gathering doesn't have an impact on our youth.
Thank God we have an alternative available in our synod today in Higher Things. Both the woman who emailed me and her pastor are hopeful that they'll be able to send their youth there in the years to come. I told her that she would be very pleased if that panned out. Having been to three Higher Things conferences myself, I cannot recommend them highly enough. The good folks at Higher Things are not ashamed of being Lutheran and do not, in any way, shape, or form, attempt to cloak their Lutheranism in some other guise. In fact, their motto for the youth is, "Dare to be Lutheran!" Imagine that! A Lutheran youth conference for Lutheran youth that actually practices Lutheranism. A novel concept, that.
Anyway, if you are still wondering why all the fuss, here are a couple of videos to watch. The first one is a clip from the 2007 LCMS National Youth Gathering, where the youth are being led to sing, "Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord," which is a popular "praise song" that has no business being sung by Lutherans (I apologize to all of you who like this song, but, well, it's the truth - the theology carried along by the lyrics is just simply awful, and most definitely not in line with Lutheranism). The second video is the promo for this year's "Acquire the Fire" Conferences, just to give you an idea of where those who plan our synod's Gatherings get their ideas (I know several LCMS pastors and leaders who have attended these just for that purpose - oh, and by the way, "Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord" has been sung at many "Acquire the Fire" conferences - just sayin'). Notice the crass decision theology which comes through loud and clear in this video. Do we really want to mimic this? Really?
