“And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Even the Gentiles, do they not do the same?  Therefore you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:47).

The Lord God Almighty is complete in Himself.  He will give us His integrity also.  We are called out of ourselves to live as we have been created to live.  We begin with selfishness, by the example of Christ, He will lead us also to be selfless.  All whom you meet were created in God’s image and have the same potential to be sons and daughters of the Lord.  Treat all others you do not know as sisters and brothers you have not met.

Lord, You have called us through the grace of Christ Jesus our Savior.  Pride was the downfall of the devil.  We are born and the pride in us grows.  You slay that pride in our salvation so that we may become like Christ.  Help all Your faithful to treat strangers as long-lost friends.  Keep us mindful to treat others as we wish to be treated.  Encourage us to do the ‘more’ that Jesus is talking about.

Lord Jesus, You have given the words of eternal life.  You have called me through my baptism to be one with others as You are one with the Father.  Grant that I would be willing to have You go to work on my heart so that I embark on the journey of living the words You have given me.  Help me see that there are no strangers, only those whom I have not yet met.  Lead me so that I may be completed as You are complete.  Amen.

“For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even the tax collectors, do they not do the same?” (Matthew 5:46)

It is not so much that we must be different for our own sake, but that when we learn to love all of our neighbors, we begin to see the world as the Lord does.  Unbelieving sinners, evil men, and most humans love their families and friends.  We are called to be willing to give grace to those who do not deserve it.  Has not the Lord done the same for us?  The reward of giving grace is that you receive grace. As we sow we shall also reap.

Lord God, teach me how to practice this grace that You give.  You have come so that we may have life and have it abundantly.  You have given us grace upon grace.  We do not deserve it, but You give it anyway.  Help me, Lord, so that I may be gracious to others with the same grace I have received.  We look at each other from tainted eyes that pretend we are righteous, but You know that we all need comes only from You.

Lord and Savior Jesus, guide me in the way of grace.  I think too often in terms of how I feel about something.  I also think in terms of deserving things.  Strip that from me so that I display by Your leading what is right and true.  Guide me in the way You know I need to go and help me to put into practice these things that You are teaching me.  Lead me in the way of the love You give so that I may share that love with others.  Amen.

The Lutheran Church of Guam is a dynamic, multicultural congregation in the Western Pacific Ocean.  Begun as a Lutheran Servicemen’s Center in the early 1960s, the congregation still ministers to military personnel but now embraces a wide variety of Micronesian, Asian and international believers. One of our most significant ministries is our Tender Shepherd Preschool, which provides quality Christian education to 50 preschoolers.  Our worship life is strong with a cadre of trained lay pastors providing leadership during this pastoral vacancy and ready to assist our next pastor.  Our music ministry is also strong.  Our church is located right on the beach and the parsonage, which is on the second story above the sanctuary, enjoys the same beautiful ocean view.  We are looking for a pastor with a missionary’s heart, able to live and proclaim the Gospel to a diverse population.  Someone interested in an interim position, with the possibility of extending to a long-term situation, is welcome to apply, as well.

A link to our website can be found here.

Please contact Jodie Nelson, Call Committee Chair at 671-489-8715 or jodie.nelson671@gmail.com.

Note: Guam is currently 14 hours ahead of East Coast time. So, at 7 am on the East Coast, it would be 9 pm in Guam.

“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may prove yourselves to be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:44-45).

Jesus is not telling us that we must have fond affections for others That is the stuff of Hollywood.  We are to see in others that they too are loved by our Lord.  God gives common grace to all impartially.  Sure, bad things happen.  There is evil in the world.  Our Lord was crucified.  Every situation is a test in which we can learn how to love in a world filled with hate.  In every circumstance, we can learn to be thankful.

The world is constantly chasing from one thing to another.  The world is filled with strife because there is so much hatred.  It should not be so with you.  Yes, even in the church, there is hatred.  Learn how to love others as the Lord does.  That does not mean you have to tolerate evils, or do wrong things, but it does mean having a heart for others as the Lord has a heart for all whom He has created.

Lord Jesus, You loved the whole world enough to die for us all so that some might be saved.  Lead me so that I learn how to care for others as You have cared for me.  Grant that I would not love them conditionally, but impartially as You love us.  No matter where someone is, they too need to hear the Gospel.  Guide me, Lord, in the Gospel way today, sharing with all the Good News of Your grace.  Amen.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy’” (Matthew 5:43).

Does the world not operate this way?  Hate is often the order of the day.  Sure, we love our families, but we are fed all day long on the rivalries of this world.  Schools have rivals.  Politics have rivals.  We are asked to have loyalty for store chains, brands, and all kinds of other things.  That is the worldly practice.  Jesus introduced us to living differently and not living with hate as something that motivates us.

Lord, You know where and when my heart instantly hates.  You know those places where, despite what You have said, I am riddled with bigotry and prejudice.  Lift me up, Lord, so that I see, as I look into anyone’s eyes, a precious one for whom You died.  That does not mean we have to have fond affection for everyone.  We don’t and we won’t.  But it does mean recognizing the humanity and reality of all of us being created in our Lord’s image.

Lord Jesus, all humans have been created in Your image.  You are going to make of all who believe, those conformed to You, something new.  Where I encounter hatred, lead me to learn how to have charity.  Where I have poison in me from this world, remove it and help me to live into the life of love for which You have called me.  Guide me this day, my Savior, in all that I do so that I may walk humbly with You in all things.  Amen. 

“WHY ARE YOU FRIGHTENED?”

The Gospel reading from Luke 24 for April 14, the Third Sunday of Easter, tells of an incident that happened on Easter Sunday evening – after Jesus had spent some time with two of His followers on the road to Emmaus.  According to verses 33-35, after Jesus suddenly disappeared, the Emmaus disciples “got up and returned to Jerusalem and found the eleven and their companions gathered together.  They said, ‘The Lord has risen indeed!’  Then they told them what had happened on the road, and how Jesus had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.”

I believe that this is the same time as the appearance of Jesus to His disciples recorded in John 20: 19ff (the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday of Easter), when Thomas was not with them.  Luke 24: 36-38 tell us what happened next.  “Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’  They were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost.  He said to them, ‘Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?’” 

That is a good question for all of us – Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 

We all have many reasons to be frightened and many reasons for doubts to arise in our hearts.

1. Afraid of the future

First, many are afraid of the future.  We all have many reasons to be afraid of the future. 

I have talked with many people who are fearful for the future viability of their congregations.  They see their aging and diminishing membership.  They wonder whether they will be able to continue to afford a pastor, and even if they can afford one, whether they will be able to find one.  Many congregations have been without a pastor for a long time.

I have talked with people who face deep financial insecurities.  Inflation has taken a huge toll and they are fearful of what will happen if their financial resources run out.  They do not like the idea of being dependent upon others, and they wonder if there will be someone to depend upon if they do become dependent upon others.  Many are deeply concerned about health issues – their own health issues and the health issues of those whom they love.   

We all have plenty of reasons to be fearful for our country and our culture when the federal government honors the Transgender Day of Visibility instead of Easter and will not allow any religious symbols in its celebration of Easter.

For those who are afraid of the future Jesus gives unmistakable evidence of His resurrection.  In Luke 24: 39-43 He showed them His hands and His feet and then took a piece of broiled fish and ate it in their presence.  In the words of the one Gospel song, “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.”

2. Afraid of the past

Second, many are afraid of the past.  We all have many reasons to be afraid of the past. 

For those who are afraid of the past Jesus gives the promise of forgiveness of sins.  In Luke 24: 44-48 He opened their minds to understand the scriptures and then said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations.”  Repentance and forgiveness of sins.  Repent is what we need to do.  Forgiveness is what we need to receive. 

In contrast, a friend and colleague from the synod in which I was rostered before I retired shared with me a brilliant theological analysis of critical race theory and DEIA ideology.  As the apostle Paul stated in 2 Corinthians 3:6, “The law kills, but the Spirit gives life.”  The demands of the law will always be relentless.  You can never do enough.  In the same way, no matter how much I grovel and repent of my own racism and the racism of my ancestors and no matter how much I try to compensate for all past offenses, grievances, and injustices, it is never enough. 

Paul also wrote in Romans 7: 24, “O wretched man that I am!  Who can deliver me from this body of death?”   If you are white – or even worse, if you are a white male – or worst of all, if you are an older, heterosexual, cisgender, Christian white male – nothing can deliver you.  You are hopelessly racist.  No matter how hard you may try and no matter what you may do, you will always be racist.  You cannot not be racist.  The systems that privilege and empower you must be dismantled.  All power and privilege must be taken away from you.

I recently attended a memorial service where we sang the hymn, “When Peace like a River.”  I was struck by the words of the third verse –

“He lives – oh, the bliss of this glorious thought;

My sin, not in part, but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!”

With critical race theory and DEIA ideology, there is no possibility of grace, forgiveness, deliverance, and release.  There is only constant confession, repentance, guilt, failure, not measuring up, not doing enough, and groveling.  With critical race theory and DEIA ideology, you will never be able to say, “It is well with my soul.”

How sad and how serious it is that critical race theory and DEIA ideology sell people out to a taskmaster that will never be satisfied.  They imprison people in a system from which there is no escape.

How much better what Jesus said in Luke 24: 47 – “Repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations.”  It is only in and through Jesus that we can and will find hope, grace, peace, forgiveness, and reconciliation.  It is only through Jesus that we can say with the apostle Paul in Romans 7: 25, “Thanks be to God!”    

3. Powerless in the present

Third, many feel powerless in the present.  We all have many reasons to feel powerless in the present.  For those who feel powerless in the present Jesus promises power from on high.

In verse 49 He said to the disciples, “See, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”  Power from on high is what we all need.  And power from on high is exactly what the disciples received on the Day of Pentecost.

In contrast, as I read the resolution that led to the creation of the ELCA’s Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church as well as minutes of their meetings, it is painfully obvious that they are building a church that is based not upon the Scriptures but upon critical race theory and DEIA ideology.  The 2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly – as well as the Commission – are making the main mission of the church not to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission but to dismantle systemic racism.  They are making the main mission of the church not what we have been commanded and empowered to do, but instead they are taking on an impossibly huge task with merely human resources.

How could they feel anything other than overwhelmed and hopeless?  I often wonder, if people’s main mission in life is to dismantle systemic racism, why would they focus their efforts in the church?  No wonder there is and will continue to be a huge shortage of pastors.

Because everything is at stake and in the Name of the One who gives hope for the future, release from the past, and power in the present,  

Dennis D Nelson
Executive Director
dennisdnelsonaz@yahoo.com

“Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you” (Matthew 5:42).

We are not being instructed to give everything away, but we are to have an attitude of stewardship that holds on loosely to the things of this world.  You have been given gifts and abilities.  Do you use them to help others.  In helping others, it is not about you, but about what the Lord is going to do through you.  He will partner with You to literally make you like Christ.  Look outward and not inward.

Lord, I am self-centered.  I do look at myself first.  I do not believe You are asking me to be all things for all people, but You are asking me to do what is good and right always.  The first charity is what You have given me.  You want me to give some of what You have given me to others, reflecting Your grace and kindness.  Many do not, but what about You?  Will you trust the Lord for all things?

Holy Trinity, for You and from You are all things.  You have called me into Your ministry.  In the mystery of faith You have given me, create in me a new and clean heart that welcomes the opportunity to live the way You created us all to live.  You are the provider and only in You is there true hope and life.  Guide me by Your grace to live this day in the way that is pleasing to You.  Amen.

“And if anyone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak also.  Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two” (Matthew 5:40-41).

There are wars and rumors of wars because people know how to hate.  Division and hatred rule in this age.  Jesus knows this.  He came to set us free from this sinful way of thinking and acting.  Learn how to shed the reactionary way of thinking that you are in control that you may learn what Jesus is teaching.  Love is the action of doing what is right for the soul and well-being of the other.

Holy Spirit, stir my heart to understand these things and put them into practice.  I understand what I should not do quite well because these are the things I do.  The fruits You will grow in me are the kinds of things Jesus is talking about.  Help me to live them, grow in them, and dwell in Your presence as You teach me.  Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and the like are the fruits of my new creation in You.

Lord and Savior, I hear these things with my ears, but I know they are far from my heart.  I need You to save me here too.  When I become selfish and self-serving, lift me out of myself.  When I am weary and unwilling, nudge me to walk with others anyway.  Lord, You know all that is needed.  I am asking You to continue to lead me as I need to be led no matter whether I understand it or not.  You are the potter, and I am the clay.  Shape me, Lord.  Amen.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’  But I say to you, do not show opposition against an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other toward him also” (Matthew 5:38-39).

If I do not get what I want, I become mad.  That is the Genesis 3 old Adam in us.  The new person Jesus is making us to be recognizes that in this world there are times when hostility happens.  How will you react?  That is what we need to learn.  The world wants vengeance.  Love wants restitution.  The world wants to give back what has been received.  But love is patient, kind and longsuffering.

Lord, You know the attitude I have in my heart.  You also know the struggle that is mine.  You have promised to make me new and shape me into Your image.  Guide me, Lord Jesus, so that I humbly walk in the way You are instructing me to walk.  Soften my heart so when I see in others the same behavior that, without You, I would display, I may respond with love.  The pliability You describe is something I want.

Lord Jesus, as I mature in faith, I begin to see things differently.  You are not replacing one law with another but showing me what You will make of me.  Continue to lead me, Lord, so that I walk under Your guidance and live this new life that You have given me.  Lead me to see others with the same compassion that You have shown me.  Guide me, Lord, in Your goodness.  Amen.

“Nor shall you take an oath by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black.  But make sure your statement is, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil origin” (Matthew 5:36).

Often, we will act as if we have power.  No one knows what tomorrow will bring.  We have no power over these things.  We may say, “By [whatever], I am going to . . . ,” but Jesus is teaching us to be truthful.  I have no power to assure what is going to happen, so why swear by it?  Instead, be truthful, do your best and if the Lord wills, work toward what you seek and it will come to pass.

Lord, You know how often I do this.  I suspect I do it more than I can even begin to realize.  No wonder I have so much disappointment.  I tell myself that something is going to happen, and it doesn’t.  Then, I blame You.  Forgive me, Lord, and help me to learn how to be truthful in all things.  Teach me how to respond with an affirmation or rejection and then move forward.

Lord Jesus, You did not come into this world to impress anyone.  I should not seek to do that either.  Lead me to be a person of my word and to do so without oaths or swearing by anything.  Help me to learn how to be honest with myself.  Guide me this day, Lord, for I know that You have told me that all things are in the Father’s hands.  Guide me, with a truthful tongue, to follow You today.  Amen.