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).
Last night, in the midst of a family Texas Hold 'Em game, my sister's boyfriend, Mike, shocked everyone by returning from a trip to the bathroom with a ring and a proposal, which Brandy happily accepted. He further announced that they would be heading to Toledo today to tie the knot in front of the Justice of the Peace, which they did and are now officially husband and wife. They have been dating for over a year now and always appear to be far more happy than any couple should be. :) Seriously, I am thrilled for both of them. This will be the second marriage for both and I am confident that they are committed to remaining together for as long as they live. Mike is a great guy and treats my sister wonderfully. He is a lot of fun to be around and we have all enjoyed getting to know him and welcome him with open arms into our family. They are expecting their first child in October, which is nothing short of a miracle, since it was all but certain that bearing children would not be possible for Brandy. I am anxiously awaiting the birth of my first nephew or niece and pray that all goes well with the remainder of the pregnancy and delivery.
Of course, part of the dilemma of having a brother who is a pastor is that they'll just have to put up with my nagging them to get their butts into a Lutheran church where they, and their child-to-be, can receive the blessings our Lord has in store for them. Sorry guys, that's just the way it is. :) So, congrats! I am very happy for you, but I fervently hope and pray that you will get yourselves to Christ's church, that your marriage and your child(ren) would be blessed by God.
A pic of the happy couple in the moments following the surprise announcement last night:
Yesterday, during Divine Service, we took time before the Prayer of the Church to recognize, pray for, and bless Sarah, my daughter, upon graduating from high school. This is a tradition we observe every year when we have members graduating from high school; this year, Sarah is the only one.
Heavenly Father, we thank You for graciously bringing Sarah to this point of formal education. For all the efforts of parents and teachers through these years we praise You. We ask wisdom and guidance for Sarah as she makes decisions about her life that will have implications for years to come. Give her a rich measure of Your Spirit as fields of study and opportunities for employment become available. Help her accurately assess the gifts and abilities You have given and bless the choices that she makes. May she ever grow closer to You in faith and with her life honor the name of Your only Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Sarah, the Almighty God, Father, + Son, and Holy Spirit, be with you now and always to strengthen you with His grace unto life everlasting. Amen.
A pic of Sarah and me after the Service:
Alma's graduation ceremony took place yesterday afternoon. It was a nice ceremony, and much shorter than I anticipated it would be, lasting only about an hour. Sarah had plenty of family and friends in attendance to whoop it up when her name was announced (I'm guessing that we came in about third place for loudest whooping :). Here are a few of the hundreds of pics taken:
During the procession; Sarah is the one in the yellow stole on the end of the fifth row looking up at us (this is the best I could do with my zoom-less iphone; can't wait to get pics from those who were using real cameras)
The diploma - after Sarah's Open House, this will surely find its way into a box in the attic never to be seen again, just like all other high school diplomas :)
A proud family
Sarah with Grandma Sally and Papa Clay (my parents)
Sarah with Grandma Maxine and Aunt Juanita (Lisa's mom and sister)
Sarah with Great-grandma Joyce (my grandma)
Sarah with her god-mother, Bernice
Sarah with Aunt Brandy and, as of today, Uncle Mike (my sister and brother-in-law)
Sarah and Jordan (that guy she's hung around with for the last couple of years :)
Sarah with friends, Jaycee and Haley, in their best "Manly Pose"
Haley, Chelsea, Janelle, and Sarah - "Jumping for Joy - Part I"
Haley, Chelsea, Janelle, and Sarah - "Jumping for Joy - Part II"
Last night was Honors Night at Alma High School. It's an event that provides parents, faculty, and members of the community the opportunity to recognize students (especially graduating students) for their outstanding achievements. Our daughter, Sarah, was one of the students recognized and honored.
I am so very proud of Sarah and what she has accomplished during her high school career. She has earned a 3.981 GPA (suffering only 2 A-minuses) even while taking as many AP courses as she could, has been involved in many extra-curricular activities, lettering in three different Varsity sports, leading a section of the elite Chamber Choir for three years, and serving as a choir teaching assistant during her senior year, among many other activities which could be listed. Sarah has certainly excelled and well deserves being honored.
Sarah received the Senior Academic Achievement Award, which is given to all who have earned a 3.6 GPA or above, and the President's Award for Educational Excellence, which is accompanied by a letter from President Obama and is given to all high school graduates who have earned a 3.5 GPA or above and at least an 85% in a nationally recognized test in reading and math. She didn't get chosen to receive any of the other scholarships and awards given out last night, which is a little disappointing, but not surprising. Some of those certainly went to students more deserving than Sarah, others to students who excelled in very specific areas, and others to students whose achievements, while certainly honorable, fall well below Sarah's, but who are fortunate enough to have the right family ties, if you know what I mean. I suppose a certain amount of nepotism is always to be expected, especially in small communities such as ours, but that doesn't make it right, and it is always a difficult lesson for young people to learn. Oh well. Such is life in this sinful world.
Anyway, again, I am so very proud of Sarah. Her plans are to attend Michigan State University (the best school in the land - just sayin') and work toward a degree in secondary education. Her dream is to teach high school and coach girls' basketball and she would be excellent at both. Now, if we can just figure out how to pay for all this! If there are any millionaires out there who want to adopt Sarah for the next four years, please let me know. :)
Haven't had the chance to do much blogging lately (as a few of you have been all too eager to point out :). That is partly due to the internet connectivity issues we've been facing lately (ugh!), but also due to being a little busier than usual, and to spending some time away.
Anyhoo . . . we were blessed to include the Rite of Confirmation during Divine Service on Pentecost Sunday a couple of weeks ago (May 23). Our sole confirmand this year was Natalie Penzien. The Service of Public Questioning was held prior to Divine Service that Sunday and Natalie did a fabulous job making the good confession of the faith by answering all the Scriptural and Catechetical questions asked of her. She then vowed to continue steadfast in this confession and Church and to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it during the Rite of Confirmation.
A friend sent me a link to the following youtube video featuring two ELCA "pastors" rejoicing over their reinstatement to the "ministry." The two fellas are in a homosexual relationship with one another and, evidently, were both under some form of discipline which has now been lifted, since, well, the ELCA decided last summer to further ignore God's Word (which it had long ago abandoned) and allow for homosexuals in "a life-long, committed relationship" to serve as "pastors."
What struck me as I watched the video was the oft-mentioned word "justice." For these two delusional men, justice has been served with their reinstatement to the "ministry." Justice based on what? Surely not God's Word. They don't really want the kind of justice they deserve and will receive from God should they continue in their impenitence. So, whence this justice of which they speak? It is a worldly justice; a sinful justice - which is no justice at all!
But, this is what happens when you abandon God's Word. You get to do as you please. You get to make the rules. You get to define what is right and wrong. And, hey, when you are in charge and making all the rules, you get to define what justice is, too.
Of course, opposing homosexuality makes me a gay-bashing, homophobic, intolerant promoter of hatred and unfairness (injustice), right? Wrong. I don't hate these men. I have no desire to bash them. I don't wish violence upon them. If they want to abandon God's Word, that's their business. They just don't get to be Christians in the process. They can call themselves Christians. They can even dress up like pastors and pretend to be serving in Christ's stead and by His command. But, it's all a facade, and nothing more. You simply cannot be a Christian, let alone a Christian pastor, if you are an active homosexual. Call it hatred and intolerant, if you wish. Cry "Unjust!" all you want. I don't make the rules. Neither do you. God does. And He could not be any clearer in His Word on this subject. This is not one of those mysteries beyond our understanding. He tells us exactly what His position is on this many times in His Word, this example from Romans being just one occurrence:
"For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relationships for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done." (Rom. 1:26-28)
And so, as a Christian pastor, and specifically as a Lutheran pastor, I am greatly offended by what I see in this video. That offense does not come from seeing two homosexual men; it comes from seeing two homosexual men masquerading as Christians, which they cannot be. And that offense is heightened by the fact that they are further masquerading as Lutheran pastors, which they cannot be. I am offended not only by their obvious disdain for God's Word, but also by the thought of how many people they are guilty of leading astray from the truth of that Word. They may be the most lovable guys in the world. They may have a great love for people and may be doing great things for the poor and disenfranchised in their communities. But, all of that is trumped by the fact that they thumb their noses at the Lord and His Holy Word, and thus remain outside of His Kingdom.
Of course, what do I know? I'm one of those old-fashioned, crazy people who still believes the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God. We're becoming fewer and fewer by the day, it seems. So be it! Here I stand. Amen.
Here is a story that is making the rounds through all the usual media outlets (local and national news, morning and afternoon talk shows, etc.). "Little liars grow up to be great leaders" is the catchy headline/title of the story. It's about the "research" done by Dr. Kang Lee, director of the Institute of Child Studies at Toronto University. The reason the story is making news is because Dr. Lee and his team have claimed to make a breakthrough in understanding the nature of lying among children. Basically, they have come to the conclusion that the better children are at lying, the better chance they have of becoming more productive adults and even great leaders. The implication is obvious, of course - lying is good! Parents should not be worried that their children lie. Instead, they should be encouraged by that. And, if their children are really good at lying, able to come up with grand, imaginative cover stories to conceal their lies, well, then, parents should be all the more encouraged, since that is an indication of future greatness. I suppose I should be extremely encouraged and excited by this, since all four of my children proved to be fantastically imaginative liars from a very early age. They should all turn out to be great leaders, indeed!
One wonders how much time and money was wasted on this "research." The conclusions are nothing short of laughable. According to Dr. Lee, who, along with his team, tested 1200 children from ages 2 to 16, 20% of two-year-olds lie, 50% of three-year-olds lie, and 90% of four-year-olds lie. By the age of 12, they claim, almost all lie. Huh? All this tells me is that 80% of two-year-olds, 50% of three-year-olds, and 10% of four-year-olds were extremely good liars, able to deceive Dr. Lee and his team into believing that they don't lie. For here is the sober truth: ALL CHILDREN LIE! And I don't even need to receive large governmental grants to put together a research team to come to this determination. All children lie because all children are conceived in sin. By nature, they are liars. By nature, they will attempt to deceive others in order to achieve self-preservation.
And guess what - I don't even need the Bible to reveal this to me, although it does so quite clearly. Experience is teacher enough. I mean, show me the always honest two-, three-, or four-year-old. You can't, 'cause none exist. Every child will, when caught red-handed doing something they know they shouldn't be doing, try to lie themselves out of it. That's what these little sinners know, and do, by nature.
There was only one Child in the history of mankind who never lied. His name was/is Jesus. He is the only hope for liars of all ages, for He lived the perfect, sinless life on behalf of all and gave His life on the cross to atone for the sin of the world - yes, even the sin of the cute, cuddly, little two-year-old who swears he didn't put the remote control in his mouth, even though you watched him do it.
It's bad enough that this ridiculous "research" is considered scientific and released to the public as some great breakthrough; what's worse is that it is accepted and reported by so many as such. Yeah, sometimes you just gotta laugh!
So, Samantha asked me to schedule her driving test a few weeks back. She is itching to get her license. So, I called and scheduled it, just as she asked me to do. It was scheduled for this evening at 6:00. When I scheduled it, the lady on the phone told me to call back and give her Sam's driver's license number and the eight digits which appear at the top of that license sometime before we show up for the test. I called this morning to give the lady the numbers and she said, "Oops. Samantha can't take the road test this evening. Those eight digits at the top of her learner's permit reveal the date the permit was issued (11202009), and she must have her learner's for six months before she can take the test and get her operator's license. We'll have to re-schedule, Mr. Messer." I apologized to the lady and told her that I was unaware of that fact. We re-scheduled Sam's test for next Monday, which was the next available time. After school, I called Sam to inform her of this. She went into what could only be described as a moment of mental insanity, huffing and puffing about not going tonight. "Samantha," I said, as calmly as I could muster, "Were you aware of the fact that you had to have your learner's permit for six months before you could take the test." (huff-puff) "Well, yeah, but . . . (silence mixed with huffing and puffing)" "But, what?" I asked. "But, but, I've had my permit since November and that's six months ago." "Not quite," I said. "It will be six months two days from now, but it ain't six months yet." (huff-puff) "Whatever!"
So, now she'll have to wait a whole 'nother six days before taking the test. Of course, that's a lifetime in her mind. Whatever! It's not MY fault. And, methinks a "Thanks dad for rescheduling my test as soon as you could" might just be in order here. I'm sure I'll get something like that - after all the huffing and puffing subsides, that is. :)
What a joy to have lunch with our choir this past Sunday after Divine Service and Bible Study. Our choir does a fabulous job of enhancing our musical confession of the faith and praise to the Lord during Divine Services throughout the festival half of the Church Year. They are a committed group, showing up at 8:30 a.m. every Sunday to practice during that time frame, and their commitment shines through in the selections they sing. Special thanks to Mary for leading them so wonderfully, and to all of them for their commitment and for their willingness to share their talents. We will miss hearing them in the next few months to come as they take a much deserved break until the fall. Here's a pic I took of the group and their spouses:
A bunch of us gathered at the local bowling alley this past Saturday evening for Peace Bowling Night. We had lots of kids and several guests among us. A good time was had by all (until the next day, for some of us, who awoke with some aching bodies and sore fingers - getting old is great, isn't it?). Here are a few pics from the evening:
Not THOSE kinds of issues! :)
Terry can't watch as Zane prepares to throw his ball.
Chris, our congregational president, prepares to hurl his ball down the alley at about 600 mph (whenever he hit the head pin, none of the other pins stood a chance; the problem was that he didn't hit the head pin very often :); in the background, Sierra uses some massive body English to try to prevent her ball from finding the gutter.
Charlotte (the beautiful white-haired lady a couple lanes down), who had a knee replacement recently, bowled outstandingly, rolling a 195 one game!
Don't be fooled! When you see Preggers Meggers posing like this, something is definitely amiss! :)
There are two things to notice from this scorecard: 1) PM does NOT stand for Preggers Meggers, but Pastor Messer - yeah, I managed a 197, which ain't bad, considering I hadn't picked up a bowling ball for five years (that game should have been a deuce; got robbed in the 9th!); 2) Chris hit the head pin three times in this game. :)
Preggers Meggers rolled a gutter-gutter in the 8th frame of her final game - just thought I'd share (actually, other than this frame, she bowled very well - for a pregnant gal, that is! :)
The rest of the pics I have turned out too blurry to share (the one drawback of the iphone). If any of you who were there have pictures, please send them to me, so that I can add them to my files.
Pr. Weedon shares thoughts on why YOU should attend Voters' Assemblies here. Yea, verily, and amen! (Actually, I should mention that the VA's in our parish have been nothing but blessed gatherings the last couple of years - thanks be to God! - but salutary advice and something to always keep in mind, since we all know how uncomfortable they can be at times).
Our daughter, Samantha, was pictured in the local paper long jumping during a recent track meet. A lot of fun has been had with this one. Her history teacher printed out enough copies for the class, had Sam come and sit up front and autograph copies for her classmates as they filed up one by one - I thought that was pretty cool, not to mention borderline hilarious; Samantha - not so much. :) Lisa also printed this pic out and put it in a stand up frame right smack dab in the middle of our kitchen counter, much to Sam's delight - not! :) Anyway, here's the pic (very appropriate pose for Ascension Day, I'd say - gazing into heaven and all):
Alma's Sam Messer competes in the long jump during the track meet at Alma College on Wednesday.
What a blessing to gather in the Lord's House this evening to celebrate the Ascension of Our Lord. There were about 25 of us in attendance (not counting the multitudes of saints and angels with us, of course), which is the most we've had in Divine Service on Ascension Day in the five years I've been serving here. Hey, maybe it's catching on! I love the hymns we sing during this joyous Feast - Bede's "A Hymn of Glory Let Us Sing" (one of my favorites, for sure - we'll be singing this as the Processional Hymn again on Sunday, so that our brothers and sisters who couldn't join us this evening won't miss it, and because, well, as I said, it's one of my favorites and I'm the pastor, so there), and "Up through Endless Ranks of Angels" (less familiar, but a goodie, nonetheless). I love the Proper Preface for this Feast, too:
It is truly good, right, and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks to You, holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who after His resurrection appeared openly to all His disciples (great line, confessing the historic reality of our Lord's resurrection) and in their sight was taken up into heaven that He might make us partakers of His divine life (just ponder that one for a bit - awesome!). Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising You and saying . . .
The Collect of the Day:
Almighty God, as Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, ascended into the heavens, so may we also ascend in heart and mind and continually dwell there with Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
On the fortieth day after his resurrection, our Lord ascended to the right hand of the Father. But although Jesus is hidden from your eyes, He is not absent from you. For He now fills all things in heaven and on earth. He continues "to do and to teach" (Acts 1:1), preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins through those sent in His Name (Mark 16:14-20; Luke 24:44-53), giving You His true body and blood in the Supper. Jesus is your great Elijah who pours out on you a double portion of His Spirit in the Word and the Sacraments (2 Kings 2:5-15). He is Lord over all things for the sake of the Church. He whom heaven cannot contain has raised your human nature to share fully in the glory of God. You who believe and are baptized into Christ's body are already sitting in the heavenly places; for you are in Him who is at the Father's right hand. When He comes again in the clouds on the Last Day, you also will appear with Him in glory. (Lectionary Summary from LCMS CoW)
Wow! Not only did the Canadiens dispatch of the defending Stanley Cup champs, but they did so in convincing fashion, ousting the Penguins 5-2 last night. Who would've thunk it? This Halak fella is for real, that's for sure. He's turned in one of the greatest playoff goalie performances in recent memory thus far, and if he can continue his stellar play, the Habs could go all the way. Unbelievable, really. But, then, it was rather unbelievable that the Canadiens would even force a game seven with the Penguins, let alone win it. Sid the Kid and company get to work on their golf games now - when the shock wears off, that is. I almost feel sorry for them - almost. :)
The other semifinal series in the East is pretty exciting, too. The Flyers have come back from being down three games to none to force a seventh game. If they can complete the improbable comeback with a victory in game seven, they'd be the first team to do so since the 1975 Islanders came back to defeat the Penguins. Before those Islanders, you have to go back to 1942 when the Maple Leafs came back to defeat the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals. Those are the only two teams in NHL history to accomplish what the Flyers hope to do in a couple of nights. History in the making? We'll see.
One of our petitions during the Prayer of the Church today:
Look with favor, O God, upon all our mothers. Guide them as they serve You in caring for their children. Ease their anxieties as they perform daily parenting responsibilities. Bring them joy in the privilege of nurturing their children, and fill us, their children, with Your Spirit, that we may obey Your command to love and honor our mothers not only on this day, but always. Lord, in Your mercy: Hear our prayer.
I wish I could blame this one on the refs, but I can't. The Wings were just flat out out-played last night. The Sharks definitely wanted it more. It was pretty frustrating to witness, especially after the Thursday night thrashing the Wings put on the Sharks. How can a team play so well and so full of energy and then come out two nights later and be so flat? I don't get it. They didn't play with any desperation at all. It was one of the worst games I've seen the Wings play in years. If goalie Jimmy Howard hadn't stood on his head, this game would've been a repeat of Thursday night with the opposite result.
Oh well. There's always next year. I give the Wings credit for enduring an injury-filled season and turning things around just in time to make the playoffs and go on a run, short as that run turned out to be in the end. Looking on the bright side, the boys get to get out the golf clubs and hit the links a whole lot earlier than they have in the past few years - that's a bonus, for sure! :)
I could bring up the fact that the first two games of the series, which were so hideously refereed, put the Wings in a position from which it was nearly impossible to recover. Or, I could bring up the fact that the Wings have to travel several thousand more miles than any other NHL team in the playoffs. But, you know us Wings fans; we never whine or make excuses! :)
