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January 2018

1/1/2018

Happy New Year! What normally follows such a celebratory greeting is the question “What’s your New Year’s resolution?” It is a light-hearted question asking us about a commitment no one really thinks we will fol-low through on. When we examine the history of how resolutions on the new year began, we can go as far back as the Babylonians who began their new year with promises to pay their debts and return borrowed things (a con-temporary application could be returning books borrowed from the pastor’s library). The Romans attached it to a pagan god of doorways and used to begin the new year as looking back at one’s mistakes and forward to the fu-ture. Christians came along and followed the Roman practice of using the New Year celebrations to think back to one’s mistakes in the previous years and commit to doing better in the coming year. Christians inaugurated spe-cial services that included the reading of Scripture, hymnal singing and prayer to bring in the new year.
Despite the tradition’s religious roots, New Year’s resolutions today are mostly a secular practice. Instead of making promises to the gods, most people make resolutions only to themselves, and focus purely on self-improvement (which may explain why such resolutions seem so hard to follow through on). According to recent research, while as many as 45 percent of Americans say they usually make New Year’s resolutions, only 8 percent are successful in achieving their goals. But that dismal record probably won’t stop people from making resolu-tions anytime soon—after all, we’ve had about 4,000 years of practice.
So, there is a brief history on how we began this practice. As I looked at other special commemorations for the month of January, I came across a conundrum that was a clash of two observances and how to honor a
January observance and also try to improve behavior for the coming year. I will try to clarify. January is National Hobby month and National Get Organized Month. So, if my favorite hobby is“mañanismo” (I’ll do it tomorrow) or in other words procrastination, how can I be true to my hobby and be observant of “get organized” month? And if my hobby is procrastination and my New Year’s resolution is to be better, but January is National Hobby month, does that mean I wait until February to start? I feel about as torn as Paul conveys in Romans when he says, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate” and “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out”. (Romans 7:15, 18b ESV) Can anyone who has struggled with resolutions identify with me? The practice of looking back at mistakes and things we could have done better is a noble endeavor. We can look at our personal lives and our life as a church body. In both cases, there are things that as we look forward we could improve. What overlaps the indi-vidual with the corporate is the need we have of each other to successfully move forward. I think a good text to consider as we ponder what this looks like is found in the book of Hebrews “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one an-other to love and good works. Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near”. (Hebrews 10:23-25, ESV) What is translat-ed as “stir up” in the ESV version is the Greek verb that is best understood as “spur” as in the sense of how one spurs a horse in order to get him to move forward or faster. Will you spur me on this year? Will we as a body spur one another on? Will you bear with me as I try to spur you on? Let us move forward into 2018 committed to improve.
Have a wonderful January,

Vic

December 2017

12/1/2017

I once heard a story of a birthday celebration where a house sent out a great many invitations to family and friends to celebrate the long-awaited birth of a baby. People were excited to celebrate and dedicated hours to shopping for the perfect gift for the family. A fair amount of time was also devoted to picking out an outfit that would reflect the specialness of the occasion. Some of the folks attending were not too keen with the fact that the cold weather forced them to wear a coat that hid the outfit they had allocated so much time to selecting. Thus, they were eager to shed their coats when arriving at the party. As guests arrived, the hall closets quickly filled and the guests began to toss their coats on the bed in the bedroom down the hall from the front door. The music was playing, food and drink was plentiful and the air was thick with merriment. The laughter; declarations of “I love your outfit”; and the clinking of glasses in ceaseless toasts almost drowned out the music.
Finally, the moment arrived for unveiling the content of the gifts. Someone blurted out: “Wait, shouldn’t the reason why we are celebrating be here when the gifts are opened?” Everyone agreed and began to ask about the baby and where it was. The parents said, we laid him down to sleep downstairs nearby. He is laying on the bed in the guest room near the front door. A quiet hush filled the room when the realization sank in that the bed in that room was heaping with winter coats. The parents rushed in to find the baby smothered under the weight of a many coats and struggling to breathe. They were none too happy and asked “How could you guys toss your coats on the bed with a baby sleeping on it?” One by one the guests admitted that they were so excited to join the party that they had not really paid attention to see if there was anyone on the bed.
The story illustrates how easy it can be to be so enthused with a celebration that we can end up smothering the reason why we celebrate. Over two thousand years ago, a group of frightened shepherds huddled together as they heard an angel declare: “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10 & 11 ESV) Such news should not get lost in our excitement to celebrate with gifts, food, friends, family and merri-ment.
This Christmas season, as we are thinking of that perfect gift; party outfit; and all the other concerns that surround celebratory gatherings, let us strive to not smother the reason why we are celebrating. We rejoice that to us a savior was born. Born to provide us an avenue of grace; forgiveness and a life of celestial purpose. We also rejoice and celebrate that those of us who professed Him Lord and Savior were gifted with a new family called the church. I thank God, the Father that in spite of all my flaws, sent His Son to be born and in that act, allowed me the opportunity to be part of His eternal plan. I also thank Him for providing me with all of you as my spiritual family. May your Christmas season be especially filled with joy this year and may your hearts stay true to what is of primary importance, that to us a Savior was born.
Have a blessed December and a Merry Christmas.
Vic

November 2017

11/1/2017

I have made it no secret that one of my favorite dishes at our church potlucks is deviled eggs. This treat has always tasted just a tad better when they were made by Janis Durant who must add something no one else does because although others in our church make delicious tasting deviled eggs, hers seemed to taste a little better (at least to me). My mind turned to deviled eggs for two reasons. One is that that November second is deviled egg day and the other reason is that Thanksgiving celebrations are around the corner and a Thanksgiving feast without deviled eggs, in my opinion, is like a three-legged table. As pretty as it may be, it is missing an important part.

Thinking of Thanksgiving celebrations naturally takes many of our minds to a meal with friends and family where laughter is heard, relationships strengthened, memories made, and where we sometimes catch up with fami-ly we do not see often enough. I was blessed by the fact that Pam’s parents embraced me as their own. Therefore, I came to cherish the memories of Thanksgiving with Pam’s family. Years ago when the kids were small and there was a whole generation of family living of which only one remains now, we could hear the banter of the older gen-eration sisters as they worked in the kitchen preparing the family feast. Later we could hear the banter of the younger generation sisters as they cleaned up. You may have noticed it was two different generations of women doing the cooking and cleaning while no men were involved which leads me to one of my favorite parts which was that as a guy, I just had to show up. Perhaps I would be called upon to give an ear tug or two to one of several children who had gotten overly rambunctious but for the most part it was eat, laugh, and perhaps catch a little tur-key induced nap. However, whatever the volume of all the activities, once food was served, pretty much the only thing heard was the sound silverware makes as it comes into contact with a plate. The biggest compliment one can give a cook is to focus on eating what they have prepared and we all worked hard at complimenting the family cooks. Sometimes, the treat was that a family member had discovered a new way of making a dish and they want-ed to share their discovery with the rest of the family. Sharing something good we have found with others is a nat-ural way of communicating two things; (1) what I found is great and (2) you are important enough to me to share it with.

In the fifteenth chapter in the Gospel of Luke, we read three parables that deal with the joy of finding something that was lost and sharing the good news of that discovery with others. A shepherd tells his friends “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost” (Luke 15:6). A woman tells her friends “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.” (Luke 15:9) and a father says in Luke 15:32 “It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found”. Good news is naturally shared with others. The Good News is a term given to the gospel of Jesus Christ that is that “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the Lost”. (Luke 19:10) An old church song that is known to many of us includes the words “I once was lost but now am found”. The premise that finding something good is to be shared with those we care about can be extended to include sharing the good news that we are no longer lost. We are no longer lost because we found Jesus Christ and all He offers. Such news naturally is to be shared with those we care about. We at SLCC are called to care about the people who are lost. We know their stories vary but they all have this in common, they are lost because they do not know Jesus Christ. What is natural is that we who are no longer lost because we have been found, share what we have discovered communicating two things: (1) What we have discovered the (Good News of Jesus Christ) is wonderful and (2)we care enough about you to share it with you. The Good News of Jesus Christ is not like Janis’ deviled eggs (something you reluctantly share when there is only a few left). It is something wondrous and eternal that keeps on giving. This month, as we celebrate things that we are thankful for, let us demonstrate our thankfulness for being in Christ by sharing Him with those who do not know Him. Have a wonderful November.
Vic

October

10/1/2017

Years ago, the director of the mission agency we were working for made a comment regard-ing my organizational skills after taking a glance at my desk. He said “I have seen a variety of filing systems but this is the first time I have actually seen a pilling system”. I am pretty sure he was being sarcastic. I thought of him this month because during the first week of October, we observe “Get Or-ganized Week”. This is followed in week two of October with the observation of “Pet Peeve Week”. I have always been amused by the order of these two weeks since one of my pet peeves is having someone tell me to get organized. Of course, these two observances normally get lost in the shadow of two other big days in October. Octoberfest and Halloween. Neither of these days enjoys a full consensus among Christians in regards to participation. Some believers will argue that there is no possible scenario in which a Christian can enjoy a beer. On the other side of the table are those who join friar Tuck in thanking God for barley from which beer is made, Octoberfest is a cause for such a celebration. I think it safe to say that many regional beer aficionados would argue that although Octoberfest is German in origin, we in the Pacif-ic Northwest are blessed with microbrewers that produce a variety of beers that rival any beer made anywhere in the world.
The other observance that does not find consensus is, as I mentioned earlier,is Halloween. This day is not without its zealous fans and/or passionate disparagers. These polarizing views ex-tend into our churches. Caught in the middle are children who simply wish to seize the day in which going door to door to request and be given candy is allowed. The arguments for and against the children of Christian parents participating in such endeavors are varied and the position of parents also vary from the “firmly entrenched” to the “what’s the big deal?” categories. I doubt that I could add anything to either sides’ arguments that would serve to convince the other. I would however, exhort parents not to insinuate that anyone with an opposite view was either less spiritual than they or placing them in the ultra-legalistic category.
Both days that can be fodder for discussion can also be a cause for distraction; as can many holidays, celebrations, and even theological debates. As a people who have proclaimed Jesus Christ as Lord, we must strive to keep Him in the center of all we do. It is He who died for us on the cross, no one else. We must also strive to treat each other as the Bible teaches us.
This month, we may choose to take the road friar Tuck took in thanking God for barley or we may choose to abstain; we may allow our children to go get some candy or we may choose to keep them home because we don’t think they should engage in such activity. Whatever the case may be, we need to extend the grace Christ has demonstrated to us, to those who disagree with us. Ro-mans 14:3 “The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him.” Romans 15:7 “Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.” (both texts from NASB). I know that Christ accepted me when He certainly did not agree with much of what I thought or did. Should I, or anyone else, act differently?
Have a great October, whatever you choose to do, or not do.

Vic

September

9/1/2017

Here we are in September already. Of course, when we think of September, our thoughts of-ten go to either the beginning of the school year or Labor Day. For some who still hold to conven-tion, it means the first Monday in September marks the last day one can wear white until the spring. Just in case someone is unaware of what is celebrated during this holiday, allow me to provide a definition I found on the internet: [Labor Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September. It honors the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity, laws and well-being of the country. It is the Monday of the long weekend known as Labor Day Weekend and it is considered the unofficial end of sum-mer in the United States. The holiday is also a federal holiday.]

There you have it; a day to honor the contributions workers have made to this great country. I think that we should also take time to celebrate the contributions workers for the kingdom of God have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of the bride of Christ, otherwise known as “the church”. Many of us who belong to His church strive to live in such a way and labor to contribute to Christ’s church in a manner that we will one day hear the words of the master to His faithful servant:
“Well done, good and faithful servant…..Enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew 25:21, ESV) Our labors are: a labor of love, a labor of praise, a labor of gratitude; to name but a few.

Sometimes however, when we are weary, feeling our age, or discouraged we allow erroneous thoughts to enter our mind. Those thoughts are something like this: “I can’t possible contribute to God’s kingdom in my state” and “My contribution will be so small that it is insignificant”. Let me ad-dress the later first. When we consider a bucket that is filled a drop at a time to the point it is over-flowing; which drop caused it to overflow? The first? The last? Or one in the middle? Each drop contributed equally. In the church, some of these drops can be lifting a brother up in prayer; sharing a smile with a brother in Christ who is sad; giving a hug when someone is down; or warmly greeting a newcomer to our church. There is no labor that is too small to be insignificant and there is no labor that is large enough to compare to what Christ has done for us. In those times when we are weary, sick or discouraged, we can still contribute by allowing others to min-ister to us. Some of us were brought up to “not impose”, but allowing a brother or sister in Christ to help us in those times when we are the ones in need. It also contributes to the health of the body of Christ because we are providing an avenue for the love of Christ to flow.

Let us all strive to live a life of labor for His Kingdom.

Have a blessed September,
Vic

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