Your Faith Journey - Finding God Through Words, Song and Praise

Faith Lutheran Church, Okemos, MI
  • 4.0 (4)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Daily

All of us are on a journey of faith in our lives. At Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan we bring people one a journey of faith each week and share that journey with the world.

  1. 2d ago

    Special Music – Down To The River

    Today, we had a special musical performance of Down To The River at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan. Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

    4 min

  2. 2d ago ·  Bonus

    You Might Also Like: No Magic Pill with Blake Mycoskie

    Introducing The Unconscious Mind, Identity, and Finding Your Way Back with Paul Conti from No Magic Pill with Blake Mycoskie. Follow the show: No Magic Pill with Blake Mycoskie In this episode of No Magic Pill, Paul Conti and Blake Mycoskie pull back the curtain on why so many people seek help and still don't get better. From misdiagnosis and over-medication to the unconscious patterns driving every decision we make, Paul & Blake discuss frameworks for understanding the mind that most of the mental health system never offers.  #NoMagicPill #BlakeMycoskie #PaulConti Enough Foundation's mission is to spread reminders in every form — bracelets, messages, actions, community — until feeling ENOUGH becomes the cultural default. To learn more, visit weareenough.co.  Produced, Directed, and Cinematography by Wubetu Shimelash / IG: Wubetu Shimelash Disclaimer: No purchase necessary. While supplies last. Visit http://www.weareenough.co/rules for full terms. More information on Blake’s other projects here:  Morning Water  Morning Water is a daily hydration formula that restores energy, balance, and performance with essential electrolytes, minerals, and nutrients in one simple routine.  To learn more, visit morningwater.co and use code NOMAGICPILL for 25% off your first order. SONIA  Sonia is a conversational AI companion designed for emotional support. Through voice and text, it offers guided wellbeing sessions, including meditations, journaling, personalized recommendations, and practical exercises. To learn more, visit www.soniahealth.com and download it on the App Store. MOOVLAB At MOOVLAB, we bring health and wellness to your workday.  MOOVLAB - the answer to sitting is moving.  To learn more, visit www.moovlab.com Follow Blake on Instagram and stay up to date with Lemonada on Facebook and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at lemonadapremium.com. Subscribe to Spotify Premium to watch ad-free video. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 2:06 - Understanding and Avoidability of Tragedies 4:00 - The Inception of What’s Going Right 4:26 - The Misconception of Therapy 7:40 - Pros and Cons of AI Therapy  11:30 - The Assertion & Pleasure Drives 14:48 - Why Some Individuals Don’t Feel Better After Therapy 21:12 - Changing the stigma of Mental Health 22:42 - The Iceberg of Mental Health Metaphor 25:16 - Changing Brain Chemistry with Mantra Based Meditation 29:28 - Strategies To Tap Into The Unconscious Mind  33:40 - How Physical Health Corresponds to Mental Health 34:19 - Spotting Defense Mechanisms  40:35 - Dealing With Trauma  43:03 - Explaining The Generative Drive 46:40 - Is More Always Better  48:20 - Subtle Ways of Poor Mental Health  50:03 - Is Psychedelic Therapy Beneficial 54:28 - Difference Between Coping and Healing  56:27 - Outro  Disclaimer: This episode is for informational and entertainment purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional regarding any medical questions or concerns you may have. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices DISCLAIMER: Please note, this is an independent podcast episode not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in conjunction with the host podcast feed or any of its media entities. The views and opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the creators and guests. For any concerns, please reach out to team@podroll.fm.

  3. 2d ago

    Sermon - 6-14-26

    Year A – Pentecost 3; Lectionary 11 – June 14, 2026 Pastor Megan Floyd             Matthew 9:35 - - 10:23   Grace and peace to you from God, our Creator, from the Holy Spirit, our Sustainer, and from Jesus Christ, who sends us out with compassion to welcome and serve. Amen. *** Last weekend was one of those weekends that reminds me why I love the church. On Saturday, many of us gathered with our neighbors to first worship, and then celebrate at the Pride Festival. We shared smiles, conversations, and reminders that God's love is for all people. Then, on Sunday, we worshiped together here in celebration of Pride Month, giving thanks for the beautiful diversity of God's creation and for the truth that every person bears the image of God. Then this past week, our congregation joined with three other churches for Vacation Bible School. Children filled the church with laughter… and a bit of chaos. Friendships were formed. Stories were shared. Meals were served. New faces became familiar faces. On the surface, Pride celebrations and Vacation Bible School might seem like very different events. But as I reflected on today's Gospel from Matthew, I realized they share something important. Both were acts of hospitality.Both were ways of saying, "There is a place for you here." …and both were opportunities to share the good news of God's love. And that is exactly what Jesus is talking about in today's Gospel. Matthew tells us that Jesus went throughout the cities and villages, teaching, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and sickness. Then comes one of the most moving descriptions in all of Scripture: "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." Everything that follows… flows from that compassion. Jesus does not look at the crowds and see problems to be solved. He does not see enemies to defeat. He does not see people to judge. He sees people who are hurting. …People who are exhausted. …He sees people who have been pushed aside and wounded by systems of power and oppression. And his heart breaks for them. Jesus was moved by his compassion… to act. And you see, that is where the mission of the church begins. Not with strategy or plans for growth. Nope. The mission of the church… begins with compassion. Except… this is often where we get things wrong. We hear Jesus sending the disciples out… and we immediately think of evangelism as persuasion or recruitment. We imagine that our job is to convince people to come to our church and be part of our community. And this isn't a bad thing… I think our community is absolutely wonderful and I definitely think people should come check us out! But that is not what Jesus sends the disciples to do. In the Roman world, people would have immediately recognized the language of "proclaiming good news." When Rome conquered a territory, messengers would arrive announcing the "good news" that Caesar was now in charge. And… they came backed by military force… carrying the power of empire. …They came with the expectation that everyone would submit. Jesus… sends his followers out in exactly the opposite way. They carry no weapons, and they bring no wealth. …They travel with almost nothing so they must depend on the hospitality of strangers. They cannot force anyone to listen or compel anyone to receive them. They simply arrive… bearing peace… and offer healing. They proclaim that the kingdom of heaven has come near… And then they leave the response up to others. If people receive them, they stay, but if people reject them, they move on. This is such a radically different vision of God's kingdom. …The kingdom of God advances not through coercion but through compassion. Not through domination and force… but through love and hospitality. And perhaps that is why Jesus' words about shaking the dust from their feet can sound so startling. When a town refuses to receive the message, Jesus tells the disciples not to stay and argue. Not to keep fighting. Not to force the issue. Just move on. The good news must be shared. There are too many hurting people to spend all our energy trying to convince those who have already closed their hearts. And then Jesus invokes Sodom and Gomorrah. Now, those names carry a lot of baggage… but I think, especially so, during Pride Month. Many people immediately assume that Sodom and Gomorrah represent God's judgment against LGBTQ+ people. …But Scripture itself tells a different story. The prophet Ezekiel says in chapter 16:49, "This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, excess of food, and prosperous ease but did not aid the poor and needy." The sin of Sodom was not love… It was violence… and exploitation. It was the refusal of hospitality. It was the failure to welcome and care for strangers. It was the absence of compassion. In other words, it was the very opposite of the kingdom Jesus proclaims. Wherever people are dehumanized or rejected… wherever power is used to exclude rather than welcome… in those places… it is appropriate to invoke Sodom and Gomorrah. But wherever compassion, hospitality, and love flourish… in those places… the kingdom of God is drawing near. This week, as many of us celebrated the start of Pride Month, I saw glimpses of that kingdom. I saw people who felt safe and seen. …I saw people free to celebrate who God created them to be. I saw joy… and love and community… I saw reminders that every human being bears the Imago Dei—the image of God. And that matters. Especially in a week when the Southern Baptist Convention voted to further restrict women's leadership in ministry. Such actions stand in stark contrast to the expansive movement of God's Spirit throughout Scripture. After all, look at the people Jesus called. …Fishermen… Tax collectors… Political zealots… men AND women. Jesus called the powerful and the powerless… the respectable and the overlooked. Jesus gathered an astonishingly diverse community of disciples. It matters… not because diversity just is a modern value… but because God's kingdom has always been larger than our categories… and the church is at its best when it reflects the wideness of God's embrace. Because the good news is that God's grace is for ALL people, and that Christ's love is wider than our fears and our divisions. The good news is that every person is created in God's image and invited into God's beloved community. The good news is that wherever there is genuine love, God is already at work. That is the Gospel… and that is why it matters. Because there are still crowds all around us who are harassed and helpless. People longing for belonging… carrying wounds and wondering if they matter… wondering if they are loved… People searching for peace. And Jesus still sees them. …Jesus still has compassion… and Jesus still sends disciples to greet them… disciples of all colors, genders, and sexualities… Jesus still calls them… and sends them to greet the people that Jesus loves. My hope and prayer is that we become the kind of church that reflects the heart of Christ so clearly that people encounter that compassion through us. And honestly, I already see that here… I saw it at Pride… I saw it at Vacation Bible School… I saw it in the friendships that were formed… the meals shared… the laughter all around… and the welcome extended. Every act of hospitality becomes a witness to the kingdom… Every gesture of welcome becomes an act of evangelism… Every reminder that someone is beloved becomes a proclamation of the Gospel. Because evangelism is not primarily about getting people into church. It is about helping people encounter the love of God. And so… Jesus' invitation today is both simple and challenging. …Go… Go with compassion and humility… Go without needing to control the outcome. Go willing to offer hospitality and… and also… Go willing to receive it. Go… and be ready to recognize the image of God in every person you meet. Go beyond the boundaries of your comfort… beyond the limits of your assumptions. Go… trusting that the Holy Spirit is already at work ahead of you. The harvest is still plentiful. There are still people longing for good news. There are still opportunities to embody Christ's love. There are still communities waiting to experience the transforming power of hospitality. And so let us say yes to this mission… yes to compassion. Let us say yes to welcome… and yes to the delight God takes in the diversity of creation. Let us say yes to sharing the good news that God's love is for all people. For the kingdom of heaven has come near. Thanks be to God. Amen.

    19 min

  4. Jun 7

    Special Music - Lord, I Need You

    Today, we had a special musical performance of Lord, I Need You with a solo by Bob Nelson at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan. Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

    3 min

  5. Jun 7

    Sermon - 6/7/26

    Matthew 9:9-13, 18-16; Pride Sunday; Pentecost 2 (Lectionary 10); June 7, 2026 Additional texts: Hosea 5:15-6:6; Psalm 50:7-15; Romans 4:13-25 Rich Weingartner Grace to you and peace from God our parent, Jesus our Savior, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Each year ReconcilingWorks, the organization that coordinates and provides resources for the RIC program, provides materials for both RIC Sunday and for a Pride Sunday service. The theme they picked this year for Pride Sunday is "Reframing our Resistance: Lament, Foundation, Joy, and Courage" On this theme they share: As faith communities in a society that is becoming less affirming and inclusive of anyone who is marginalized, for Pride in 2026 we step up as allies, collaborators, and co-conspirators in the proclamation of the Gospel of an inclusive love for all God's beloveds. Our resistance can make time and space for lamenting, for reclaiming our foundation, for sharing our joy, and building up our courage. We need all of those pieces in our lives and worship during this season of our church's life. So, first, let's look at what we are resisting. When thinking of the word "resist" another word came to mind "renounce." Exploring how they are connected, we find that "renounce" means to reject and stop using or doing something, while "resist" means to try to prevent by action or argument, or to struggle or fight back when pressured or attacked. In short, "renounce" is more about declaring what is acceptable and unacceptable, while "resist" is the action you carry out to defend and fight against what you have declared as unacceptable. If you are sitting there thinking "Hmmm - 'renounce' that word feels like I've heard it in church before as part of a service" you would be correct. In the typical liturgy for both baptism and affirmation of baptism, aka confirmation, three questions are asked before we share the Apostle's Creed. These questions are: ●    Do you renounce the devil and all the forces that defy God? ●    Do you renounce the powers of this world that rebel against God? ●    Do you renounce the ways of sin that draw you from God? So that is what we have renounced and thus what we are resisting. Anything that tries to separate us from God or separate any of God's creation from God. That is part of what Pride month is - resisting homophobia, transphobia, queerphobia, and anything else that would separate our LGBTQIA+ and other marginalized siblings from being their true selves that God gave them and to deny or separate them from God's love. This resistance isn't just for this month, but for our entire lives, that is what we are called to be and do as Christians, which we proclaim in our baptismal vows. This resistance is for anything that denies people full access to be themselves, live their life how they want, and to experience God's love. So now that we know what we are resisting, let's go on a journey together. A journey through the four aspects that we can bring into this resistance - lament, foundation, joy, and courage. When thinking about these four aspects, another common structure to us that has four parts came to mind - the structure of our worship service: Gathering, Word, Meal, and Sending. Along this journey we'll have time to reflect. I know silence can be uncomfortable, but also silence gives us time to reflect and think. After each stop on our journey, we'll pause for a moment to give you time to reflect. I'll give some questions to ponder during the silence. Feel free to just think about them, maybe jot some notes down if you like writing out your thoughts, or if you feel compelled to share out loud - that is fine too. Stop one on our journey - Lament, which can be a passionate expression of grief or sorrow. Lament comes in many different forms. We can lament by ourselves - and this lament can be for ourselves as well - for our sins we have done, ways we have failed to resist the things that separate us and the world from God. We can lament for others or the world either by ourselves or in community. Also, God can lament. This is what we find happening in the words of the prophet Hosea. In the reading today we find God lamenting that God's people have turned from God. The focus here is that God wants the people of Israel to have steadfast love toward God, and toward each other, instead of focusing on sacrifice and burnt offerings.  This theme is repeated again in Psalm 50 where God reminds us that God has everything they need, so burnt offerings and physical sacrifices aren't what is needed, but instead we should offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and to keep our close connection with God. Turning to our worship structure, we start with the Gathering where the Holy Spirit calls us together as the people of God. When we use confession and forgiveness as part of the Gathering portion of our service, this can be a form of lament, we are lamenting all the things we have done wrong where we gave in to the forces that defy God and the powers of the world that rebel against God. In the Kyrie we are praying to our Lord for the world, our community, and for us, which can have tones of lament if we are asking for God's presence to help us while we lament the things that are wrong in the world. Time to pause and reflect on our first stop on our journey of resistance - Lament. What do you lament? What do we ask marginalized people to sacrifice or change about themselves to fit in? How can we lament with them over the harms we have caused to bring them back into God's fully inclusive love? Stop number two - Foundation - an underlying basis or principle. For us as Christians, our foundation in one word is "God". Our reading from Romans is a good reminder that we are called to God through faith, not through following laws. In the story of Abraham we are reminded of his great faith and that through God all things are possible. God often calls the unexpected to accomplish God's work. As Lutherans another underlying principle is that we are saved by grace through faith, and this is a gift given freely to us from God. Another core foundation is to love your neighbor as yourself. All these are about building a true connection with God - through relationships, love, and mercy; not through sacrifices and following strict laws.  The next portion of our worship service that helps us build our foundation is the Word section where God speaks to us in scripture reading, preaching, and song. This is a core part of our service where we receive God's word through the various readings, learn more about it and how it can apply to our lives, and then help cement that message through song. This portion of the service also includes the creed and prayers of intercession. These also help us cement our foundation in our core beliefs that give us the basis and reminder for what we are resisting. Time to pause and reflect on our second stop on our journey of resistance - Foundation. What are your core beliefs as part of your foundation? Do we stray from our foundation and focus instead on cultural, institutional, or false religious laws and rules, that separate us and others from God's love? How can we help each other in keeping a firm foundation? Stop number three - Joy - a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. In the first part of our reading from Matthew today we find Jesus having dinner with Matthew, a tax collector, and other sinners. The commentary for the Lutheran Study Bible says this about the "sinners": "Social and moral outcasts, many of whom would have been enslaved in this part of the Roman Empire. By eating with such people, Jesus bestows honor upon them, in keeping with the blessings he bestowed on the unfortunate in the beatitudes" So they were sinners as viewed by others and not because of who they were. Jesus saw them as fellow humans and people that deserve to be treated as any other person and not as some social outcast simply because that is what society says. Imagine the joy they have when Jesus resists societal norms and joyfully eats with them. Jesus does not diminish this joy when questioned by the Pharisees. He lets the joy continue and says this meal and being with the societal outcasts is what God wants - followed by a reminder, tying back to our previous readings, that God desires this mercy and kindness, not sacrifice.  This brings us to the third part of our worship service - the Meal where God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ. This part of the service starts with the offering - where, with joy, we can offer back to God what we have to allow the work of God to be accomplished. We don't do this because we are called to sacrifice, instead we are joyful in what God has provided to us, so we want to return a portion so that we can spread that joy. We then share a meal together, holy communion, just as Jesus shared a meal with the societal outcasts of his day - we are all invited, regardless of how society views us, as children of God to have a meal where we receive Christ. What joy we receive in this meal. Time to pause and reflect on our third stop on our journey of resistance - Joy. What brings you joy? How can we bring joy to those society wants to take joy away from?   Our final stop - stop number four - Courage - mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. In the second part of today's Gospel reading, we find two examples of courage. First for the person to come in, interrupt the gathering, and basically demand that Jesus come and lay his hand on the daughter so that she will live. Then for the woman, which society would have deemed unclean and an outcast, to come up in public to dare to touch Jesus's cloak, which would have also made Jesus unclean. Then, in an act of resistance to society norms, Jesus doesn't ignore these people and tell them to go away, he responds out of compassion and love and lets them know they are healed and made ali

    25 min

  6. May 31

    Special Music - Softly and Tenderly

    Today, we had a special musical performance of Softly and Tenderly with a flute solo by Gwynne Kadrofske at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan. Published Under License From Essential Music Publishing, LLC

    3 min

  7. May 31

    Sermon - 5/31/26

    Year A – Holy Trinity – May 31, 2026 Pastor Megan Floyd Matthew 28:16-20 Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, from Jesus Christ our Redeemer, and from the Holy Spirit our Sustainer; one God in three persons, the blessed Trinity. Amen. *** I'm sure you're well aware… but this coming Independence Day… 4th of July… well… it's a big one… 250 years… that's big! But… I have to say… the preparations underway for these unprecedented celebrations in our nation's capital… and all the conversations and news coverage surrounding them… have given me pause. I find it all… unsettling… and not just because I'm not a fan of fighting for sport. To each their own. But I think that… it is because the new backdrop for our lives is this intense nationalism …and it's because of this intensity… that I think I could not tear my heart away from the words of the Great Commission from our gospel reading today. These are words that I've heard and read countless times… I've taken them to heart as inspiration and instruction in my life of following Christ… and yet… they sit differently with me now. Jesus tells his disciples… "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." And we hear this text on this day in particular because it is Holy Trinity Sunday, and it is here where Jesus names the three persons of the Trinity. So today, we are supposed to celebrate and wrestle with how our God shows up for us in these three expressions… but I'd rather save that kind of wrestling for another day. Now… if you're disappointed about that, I'd love to meet for a beverage and geek out over trinitarian theology. That is fun… but… for today… I want to address… I need to address… this Great Commission, because it's so very relevant for the age we are living in. "…make disciples of all nations…" is a command from Jesus that has been taken in dramatically harmful ways across the years, from the Crusades 1,000 years ago, to the current rise of Christian Nationalism. Jesus tells us to go make disciples… and that he is with us to the end of the age… and then, pumped up on this mission with Jesus in our corner… [big breath] …we forget what discipleship is all about… we forget… and go straight for coercion and violence.  …in the name of Jesus, of course. But no one can force love… and coercion has no place in a life shaped by mercy and grace. And yet, these are the basic tenets of the Way of Christ… these attributes of love, mercy, and grace… are what shape a life of discipleship. To be a disciple is to be in relationship with God… and with Jesus… and with the Holy Spirit, and to celebrate the enduring and borderless love that our God-in-three has for all people in every nation. And yes, Jesus calls upon us to go… and share this life of discipleship with everyone in every nation, multiplying ourselves and creating more followers of Christ… but our translation does us a disservice by choosing to say, "…make disciples OF all nations…" because a "nation" cannot be a disciple. A nation isn't a person… we cannot be a Christian nation… and even to proclaim that this is, or hope for this to be a "Christian nation," is wrong… it would dissolve… because it puts patriotic nationalism into the ring with devotion to God… and the patriotic nationalism would have to stand down… …because a disciple's primary allegiance will always be to God… and so a disciple should therefore obey God's primary commandment, which is above all commandments… and that primary command is to love God, and love others as we love ourselves. This kind of love has no borders… and no national identity. … and we cannot force another into a relationship shaped by love. …Love can only invite. Furthermore, proponents of Christian Nationalism, and those who desire to rebrand and reform the United States into a Christian nation, seem overwhelmingly drawn to models that would eliminate people they find unworthy… eliminate those who don't look like them and whose lives don't conform to their own. Except none of us are truly worthy of God's forgiveness… we are all of us in need of a savior… all in need of grace and mercy, and therefore… redeemed by Christ's love, we are sent forth to be gracious and merciful in the name of the one who loves us beyond measure. And despite all this, these Christian Nationalists believe that Christ is on their side in this endeavor to force conversion to discipleship, or at least compliance… because Christ promised to be with them to the end of the age… And while, yes, I do not dispute that Christ is with us always, as Christ promised to be… this does not mean that Jesus fully supports all our actions taken in his name… Jesus states that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him… but too many skew this into a conquering Christ… a version of the Messiah which doesn't appear in scripture, except as the previously hoped-for Messiah that would overthrow Rome. That is not the person of Jesus who was born to a humble family surrounded by livestock, who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. And yet… Jesus DOES have all authority in heaven and on earth… and what did he do with it? He did not force or coerce… but instead, he embraced non-violent love and vulnerability… even unto death on a cross… then he defeated that death, because he is God… and instead of retribution, he offered forgiveness and a continual invitation to come and see… come and experience a different way… a way of love… of mercy… grace and compassion. This is how the God of love chose to exercise his total authority in heaven and on earth. …not to annihilate those who don't follow the way… or force them into compliance…  but to offer grace and mercy… and to never shut the door on the invitation to come and experience God's love. Jesus invited us into his mission of sharing the love and light of God in all places and for all people… and this is an important mission… making disciples in all nations. We are co-collaborators with Christ on this mission of sharing the good news… of sharing this life-changing Way of Christ. But making disciples is not actually about converting others… or saving their souls… only God saves souls… Making disciples is about converting our own lives… every single day… it's about choosing every single day to live according to the love and grace that we have first received… it's about letting our lives be a testimony for others… witnessing to God's love and grace. And when that love and light shine out from our lives, which it most certainly does, it will reshape communities and the people in them around the Way of Christ. As disciples… as part of the body of Christ… our part of this mission is to shine and invite others to come and experience this light… to witness what God's love does for us and for the whole world. That is how we make disciples… by being one ourselves. We can only demonstrate how we ourselves are changed by this love and communion with the full body of Christ, and trust in the Holy Spirit… to do the Holy Spirit's thing of encountering us and moving us always toward love for others. So yes, we will go and make disciples in all nations… we will participate in this Great Commission… and we will do so, by starting first with ourselves… trusting that Christ is with us in this mission, always, to the end of the age. Amen.

    16 min

  8. May 24

    Sermon - 5/24/26

    Year A – Pentecost – May 24, 2026 Pastor Megan Floyd Acts 2:1-21 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13 John 20:19-23 Grace and peace to you from God, our Creator, and from Jesus Christ, our redeemer, who poured out their Spirit upon all flesh, blessing us to the end of days. Amen. *** Yes, Pentecost …is the birthday of the Church! Happy Birthday, Church! For our Jewish ancestors and siblings, Pentecost was part of the Festival of Weeks, or Shavuot… it was celebrated 50 days after Passover. This is why there were so many pilgrims in Jerusalem on that day… the day the Spirit blew through town. These pilgrims were there for this harvest festival, and it was during this time that they celebrated God's gift of the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai. It's not the whole Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament… It's just the first five books, also called the Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The Torah contains the historical narrative of what God had done for God's people… it holds the stories of creation… and the stories of the matriarchs and patriarchs, and of the Exodus from Egypt. The Torah also contains the law… the holy teaching… 613 commandments given by God at Mount Sinai… the divine instructions for how to live according to God's will for humanity. And so then… on this festival day celebrating God's gift of the law to God's people, God gave another gift of blessing… God poured out God's Spirit upon them, inaugurating a new era! On this day, the same Spirit that rested on Jesus at the Jordan River was poured out on them… and that same Spirit… has been poured out upon you. Yes, this is the Church's birthday! It is OUR birthday! And in thinking about this celebration today, it is worth considering what it means to be the Church… and what it means to be the Church together. In what ways are we still shaped by that first community of believers… and how have we grown in the Spirit since then? Because Pentecost was only the beginning… a great reversal of the ancient story of the Tower of Babel… when humanity, in their arrogance, wanted to reach God, and so they began building a tower so great that they might ascend to heaven from earth. And God scattered them by diversifying their language. …but on this day, God's Spirit graciously descended to the earth, to us… to swirl through and around God's people… bringing them together… not by reintegrating the language, but by preserving that diversity and instead giving each the ability to share the good news of Jesus in as many different languages and cultures as there are. The Holy Spirit blew through and moved those frightened disciples out of the locked, upper room… moved them outside and into the crowd… into their community. The Spirit gathers people… gathers us… across difference and across fear… it does not gather us into sameness, but rather… into beloved community… into the living body of Christ. The Spirit gathers us in… and… the Spirit also sends us out… out to continue Jesus' mission and ministry… out into the world… to be church together… to be the whole body of Christ. And this is where we are today… a diverse and beautiful tapestry of humanity. We don't all worship the same… or sing and pray the same… and we may disagree on theological points, but… if we are following Jesus's mission and ministry, and loving the way Christ taught us to love, then… we are still… one body. I was blessed this week with the perfect example of this diversity in the body of Christ… Mike Nussdofer introduced me to Shari Montgomery, the founder of The House of Promise in Lansing, which helps women escape trafficking and rebuild their lives. I had a lovely morning with her as she showed me around the campus… it was beautiful and peaceful… and I couldn't imagine a more loving way to care for these women who have been so brutally harmed. And yet, throughout the morning, I gathered from our conversation that she and I likely have some pronounced theological differences. And yet, as I took in the larger context of her work… the fruits of her labor… I saw that it was good… and full of love… and there was no doubt in my mind that the fire of this woman's passion to serve others came from the Holy Spirit. And so, I give thanks for her… for her passion and her ministry to care for the most broken and abused among us … and for being part of this body that is… the Church. And I give thanks for the Holy Spirit for giving us each different passions… different gifts and abilities, so that together, we can address the needs of all. And I give thanks that God continues to guide us… continues to show up for us, sometimes as a rushing wind, or a fire that burns and does not consume… or sometimes… as still, small voice… God's Holy Spirit is still with us. And because we still have God's Holy Spirit… we still have the Church… a community of believers who come together to discern what this voice of God is calling us to do… …and how this Spirit is calling us to move and act in the world… guiding us to those who need us and our particular gifts, the most. I give thanks that the Holy Spirit still strengthens weary hearts… still illuminates difficult decisions… and still gives courage when faith feels costly. I give thanks… thanks for God's Holy Spirit… and how it called me into pastoral ministry… and brought me to you! Pentecost is not merely the story of what happened long ago in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit is still blowing through this place… still gathering us in… still creating faith… and still ushering in new life out of death. The Holy Spirit is still breathing peace into troubled hearts... and I for that I give thanks. And so, on this day of Pentecost… we celebrate with our Jewish ancestors that God's law was given to Moses on Mount Sinai…  But God does not discard the first gift in order to give the second. God who gave the Torah at Sinai is the same God who pours out the Spirit at Pentecost. Just as Jesus did not abolish God's law, neither does the Holy Spirit… but instead… the Spirit writes God's love upon human hearts and empowers us to live it. So, we now also celebrate our Advocate in the Holy Spirit, who guides us always in the way of love and grace and gives us the power and strength to share the good news of God's forgiveness and salvation through Jesus… This is a celebration, indeed! Therefore, on this day, I pray… may the Spirit transform the way we love across difference… transform the way we forgive those who have hurt us… and guide us to seek reconciliation when we have caused the hurt. May the Spirit light a fire in us that sends us to serve and live according to the will of Christ. …and may we carry this fire of Pentecost into our homes… into our workplaces, our families, and into our communities… so that the world may encounter, through us, the living and enduring presence of God. This day, and always. Amen.

    17 min
See All (300)

Ratings & Reviews

4
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

All of us are on a journey of faith in our lives. At Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan we bring people one a journey of faith each week and share that journey with the world.

Information