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Posts Tagged ‘God’s Word’

I Don’t Feel Loved

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Faith & Practice, Identity, Relationships, Vocation, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 15, 2010| 2 Comments »

Relationships grow when rooted in the love of Christ.  Christ’s love was shown in the doing of a hard thing.  Christ’s love was sacrificial.  We don’t have to sacrifice for our salvation.  Jesus Christ did that on the Cross for us.  It’s done… once and for all.  Believing that, we’re called to live as forgiven people who also forgive others.  In a working marriage, husband and wife are constantly forgiving each other.  A particular “need” or “want” may be sacrificed for the sake of the relationship.  Such sacrifice cannot be measured, but is a fragrant offering to God.

During my lifetime, women have been told they have the right to have their needs met.   A “good” husband is expected to meet those needs.  But, what if he doesn’t?

Time and experience wrapped in God’s Word speak.

“I thought I could change him.”

A friend wasted so many years trying to “fix” her husband.  She pushed, prodded and regularly reminded him of his failures.  In time, she realized that her techniques never worked.  Instead of trying to change him, she asked God for a changed attitude.  Little by little, she learned that it was her job to love her husband and God’s job to change him.  1 Peter 3:1-5 reminds a wife that she can win even an unbelieving husband with respect, pure conduct, and a quiet spirit.

“He doesn’t make me happy.”

A friend admitted that she was very dependent on her husband for her happiness.  She married him because he seemed strong, stable, and confident.  She expected him to take care of her like a good dad would take care of his daughter.  So focused on her own insecurities, she didn’t see that he, too, was sometimes fearful, unsure, and struggling.  One day, she adjusted her prayers.  “Please, dear God, help me be a better wife.”  She welcomed him at the door with a smile.  She asked him about his day.  She left cheerful and encouraging notes on his mirror, by his plate, and inside his boots.  It sounds rather magical, but in choosing her words with care and thinking of little ways to make her husband happy, this wife became more content.  She had a purpose.  She was serving God and He was surprising her with joy.  Joy is a fruit of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22).

“I feel more worthless with him than I think I would without him.”

A woman does not get her identity from her husband.  Treasured or abused, her value does not come from man.  Nor does our identity change with the circumstances of life.  Our identity — our value — is sure and certain because of what Jesus Christ did for us.  “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 John 3:1).

“He’s such a disappointment.”

For many years, the wife mourned her marriage.  She was sure that God had made a mistake.  We’re too different, she thought.  This will never work.  Quite unexpectedly, the woman realized she really wasn’t fighting her husband, she was fighting God.  Focusing on her disappointment, she was paralyzed to think or do good.  Over time, she began to zero in on her husband’s strengths and minimize his weaknesses.  Every time he acted in an annoying way, she chose to think about his positive attributes.  She stopped criticizing him to her friends and started speaking well of him.  People of light “encourage one another and build one another up” (1 Thessalonians 4:5, 11).

“He doesn’t seem to care about meeting my needs.”

No matter what the feminists told us, men and women aren’t the same.  Equal, yep.  But, not the same.  So, first of all, men can’t know all of our needs because they don’t think, feel, or communicate like we do.  And, second of all, shame on us for idolizing ourselves!  Are we called to be served, or to serve?  Honestly, who really knows our needs: us… or the One who made us?  A wife of many years put it this way: “I’ve learned that my husband is meeting my greatest needs.  His faithfulness is my security.  His labor provides financial covering and numerous freedoms.  Our shared faith makes us companions even when times are hard.   Does he love me?  Yes.  It is shown in his perseverance (1 Corinthians 13:7).”

“I don’t feel loved.”

Maybe we have the wrong definition of love.  If it’s an emotion, sometimes we’ll feel it and sometimes we won’t.  Love is better defined as the willingness to act for the benefit of another.  Love is being patient, kind, and unselfish (1 Corinthians 13:4-6).  I have found that love is when a husband and wife, in spite of differences, want to be a team.  “Two are better than one” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-11).  This is a world made hard by sin.  When the enemy of life stands at the door ready to devour us, feelings and emotions will provide little defense.  But, real love evidenced by selfless partnership will overpower evil.   “A threefold cord (husband, wife, and Christ) is not quickly broken” (v. 12).

“Everyday, he grows more distant.”

A woman has great power.  She can break or make a man.  She can crush a man’s spirit — with a look or a word — or she can help his spirit soar.  When she emasculates him, brashly or subtly, her dagger slices deep to his masculine core to attack his very personhood.  No wonder it is better for him “to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife” (Proverbs 21:9).  Indeed, “the wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down” (Proverbs 14:1).

Marriage is a hard dance.  Not surprising when we remember that we are sinful people living in a sin-filled world.  Not surprising when we acknowledge that men and women are equal, but different.  Not surprising when we consider our uniqueness as persons.  For this reason, we need the Word of God as our music.  Only then does the dance begin to change. 

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Chaos Rules… Or Does It?

Posted in Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Relationships, Vocation, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 29, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Sometimes it’s easy to think that chaos rules.

But, does it?

Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth,” asks God of Job.  “Tell me if you have such insight.  Who determined its dimensions . . . who stretched a measuring line over it?  On what were its footings sunk?  Who laid its cornerstone when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?  Who shut the sea behind gates . . . and said, ‘You may come this far but no farther.  Here your proud waves will stop” (Job 38:4-11).

God, the creator of the universe, has never and will never relinquish control.  It would be contrary to His very nature.  The God who connects the chains of the constellation Pleiades and unties the ropes of Orion (v. 31); the God who sends lightening flashes so that they may go and say to you “Here we are” (v. 35); and the God who put wisdom in the heart and gave understanding to the mind (v. 36) is the God who provides food for the crow when its young ones cry . . . (v. 41).

Does chaos reign?

Too many times, it would appear so.  But, there is plenty of evidence which tells me that God, not chaos, reigns supreme.  Did you know, for example, that the Quran (Koran) can’t be translated into any other language?  That means that most people being converted to Islam have little understanding of what they are taught to recite.  Contrast that with the fact that God’s Word, the Bible, is published in 95% of the languages of the world.

Did you know that in Europe, religious questions are back in the culture, in part, because of the rise of Islam and its repercussions?  And, have you noticed the growing number of bestsellers by atheists during the past several years?  Atheists and die-hard evolutionists are writing on the subject of God being bad or terrible.  Why would they do that if they truly believed they’d already won the argument and that God doesn’t exist?  Ten or 20 years ago it would have seemed odd for atheists like Richard Dawkins to bother writing about a mythical figure.

Does chaos rule?

The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his anointed One.  “Let us break their chains,” they say, “and throw off their fetters.”  The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them . . . (Psalm 2:1-4).

God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne (Psalm 4:8).

Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded.  For I am doing a work in  your days that you would not believe if told (Habakkuk 1:5).

It may appear that our culture has lost its moral footing.  Even though we still live at the same address, we may feel as if we’ve been taken captive to Babylon.  We may feel paralyzed and powerless to engage.  But, while God is doing His work, there is something we can do, too.  We can live.  We can live as men and women eager to glorify God.  We glorify God when we mentor with His Word for the sake of others.  God even provides a mentoring model that, when used, transforms the culture one man, woman, child, neighbor, and community at a time.  This model was first given to a young pastor named Titus so that he and his congregation could affect the lives of others seemingly captive to a pagan culture.  Ponder that model in Titus 2:1-8.  It most certainly caught my attention.  (Visit Titus 2 for Life )

Does chaos reign?

It may appear that our world is spinning out of control.  But, we don’t have to be paralyzed.  We can do something.  We can resist “silly myths.”  Just as we can train ourselves to eat healthy food and exercise, we can “train ourselves for godliness.”  We can “toil and strive” because we have a future of hope “set on the living God” (1 Timothy 4:7-10).

In chaos there is darkness.  But, this is the season of Advent.  During Advent, we light candles.  Candles remind us of the Light; the Light that cannot be overwhelmed:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  he was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it . . .  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:1-5; 14).

God, the Creator of the universe, has never and will never relinquish control.  It would be contrary to His very nature.  The God who connects the chains of the constellation Pleiades and unties the ropes of Orion sends darkness to cower in corners.  He is the Word come to earth in the glory of Jesus Christ.

That glorious Word brings order out of chaos.

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We Can’t Talk About That

Posted in Citizenship, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on November 19, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Every two weeks or so, I compile a two-page bulletin insert entitled “Christian Citizenship.”  The purpose is to help members of our congregation become aware of human care issues that beg a response from Christian citizens.  I’m very disappointed to hear that the insert is upsetting to some.  “We shouldn’t be putting this in our bulletin,” said one.  “We can’t talk about these things,” said another.

What things?  The topics highlighted in “Christian Citizenship” include abortion, stem cell research, euthanasia, creation/evolution, health care insofar as funding abortion or Planned Parenthood is concerned, marriage and family, same sex “marriage,” homosexuality, and persecution of Christians.  I take special care to focus only on those issues where God’s Word speaks.  And, to make sure I stay on track, I submit every edition to my pastor for his approval or suggested changes.

I’m disappointed that some Christians are upset, but I’m not surprised.  Years of experience in Lutherans For Life have taught me that too many Lutherans specifically and Christians in general consider abortion, for example, as a “political issue.”  Abortion is not a political issue.  It’s a moral issue.  And God speaks to it: “Thou shalt not kill.”   A younger generation, more pro-life than their parents, acknowledges that abortion ends the life of a baby.  They’ve seen the ultrasound images.  They know that a baby’s heart begins beating 18-24 days after conception and brain waves are present at 43 days.  Lutheran students learn in confirmation classes that God “knits [us] together in [our] mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13b).  Roe vs. Wade may have legalized abortion and the media may try to politicize it, but only God can create life; therefore, only God can take that life.  Abortion is a moral issue and because God speaks about protecting the human life He has made, we must, too.

Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored?  It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.  You are the light of the world.  A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house” (Matthew 5:13-15).  The Christian is called to be “salt and light” in this world where many wrong things — like abortion — are called right.

If discussions of morality, i.e. abortion or same-sex “marriage,” can’t be had in the church, does it follow that we can’t talk about issues of faith outside the church?

To be continued in another “post”… on the journey.

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Betrayed by Silence

Posted in Commentaries of others, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , , , , on November 1, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Today, I received the following from Don, a faithful friend and pro-life pastor:

Christ alone, Word alone, Grace alone, Faith alone.  Those might be seen as slogans, but they are far more.  They reveal the heart and character of God as He enters our history — our world — with His great salvation.  About a week ago, I was with family and friends in Oregon.  There were six of us, from different conservative and “evangelical” churches.  I asked the question: How many of you have heard a sermon on either abortion or homosexuality in the last year or two?  Answer: None.  By that kind of silence we have betrayed Jesus, the Word, and the people we should be serving with the Word of Truth and Love.  May God raise up people who will truly stand on His Word, His faithfulness, and even be willing to be ridiculed for Him if necessary.

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Don’t Mingle, “Dig In”

Posted in Commentaries of others, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 30, 2010| Leave a Comment »

This nation is slipping.  Morally.  Ethically.  Spiritually.  Silent Christians have a lot to do with it.  But, so do Christians who are mingling with the world.

Andree Seu, writing in WORLD (11-6-10), paraphrases comments made to her by Virginia Rep. Frank Wolf.  With both hands about shoulder-level, roughly 12-inches apart, Rep Wolf explained to Seu that we have “the church” here and “the other world” here.  He posited that this is always a constant distance of separation.  Seu writes,

“Where the thing gets scary, explained Wolf, is that as the world moves toward greater immorality, the church continues to keep the same distance from it.  That is to say, the church is sliding into debauchery along with the world, just at a slower rate.  What is important to note is that this slippage from God is not so easily detected because the gap between church and world remains the same, and so we seem, to ourselves, to be doing OK.”

In the first session of my Titus 2 Retreat, “We Are Vulnerable,” I ask the group to give examples of “silly myths” that lead to “social experiments.”  Believing “silly myths” (i.e. abortion is a woman’s right or two women who love each other should be able to marry) inevitably leads to social experimentation.  Such experimentation is actually tampering with God’s design.  This is never good for a people who want to imagine beyond themselves to new generations.  God’s design brings order and new life.  Experimenting with His design brings chaos and death.

We are vulnerable, I explain during a Titus 2 Retreat, when we profess Jesus Christ as our Lord but wrap Him around silly myths and social experiments.   There is a saying: “We become like the company we keep.”  We become like the world — even though we think we’re keeping a distance — when we begin to mingle (just a little here or a little there).  When we let worldly ideas of spirituality, worship, the roles of men and women, marriage, family, and children weave into Christianity, we’re in trouble.  Truth does not embrace or wrap around worldly ideas.  Truth and the world are opposites.  A lesson from history gives some clarity.

In the Old Testament book of Ezra, we learn that the king of Persia was going to allow the Jewish people to return to Jerusalem.  They had been exiles and captives for a long time.  It’s important to note that only a small number of Jewish exiles wanted to return to their homeland.  Most were unwilling to give up their Babylonian property or lifestyle to go back to their old ways.  So, because there was such a small group of workers, the rebuilding of Jerusalem became more difficult.  There were people in the area who offered their help.  Those people didn’t believe in God and held to a blend of mixed religious beliefs.  It goes without saying that they had motives of their own.  The Jewish people refused the offer of help with their building project.  Why?  1) The task was given exclusively to God’s people; 2) accepting help from non-believers would obligate God’s people to pagan ways; and 3) the potential for corruption in worship was too great if God’s people became aligned with non-believers.  (Ezra 4:3)

A Christian, wanting to be progressive, might think: If I embrace the best parts of a worldly idea, I will be able to move forward the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a modern way.  But, too often, moral-influence flows the opposite direction.  God knows that.  Therefore, He says: Don’t mingle; dig in.  Dig in to the One Who is not of this world (John 18:36).  Jesus says, “I am the Light.” The world is dark (John 1:4-5).  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).  The world is deceptive and leads to death (John 10:10).  “My peace I give you.” The world offers no such peace.  (John 14:27)  For this reason, St. Paul was inspired to write in Romans 12:2:

Do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Don’t mingle.  Dig in.

To mingle with the world is to walk on shifting sand.  For awhile, public opinion might lean one way; then, depending upon anything from the economy to a national crisis, public opinion can suddenly shift the opposite direction.  Andree Seu explains that there is “a little thing called the ‘Overton Window.’  It is the term for an insight by a Joseph P. Overton that at any given point in the stream of a population’s public life there is a ‘window’ that contains or frames a range of opinion that is currently acceptable.  Outside that window lie the ideas considered wacko.  The intriguing thing is that what is ‘acceptable’ and what is ‘wacko’ can (and does) shift.  The window itself moves — and clever and diabolical forces have an interest in moving it.”

What was “radical” yesterday is “acceptable” today.  The unthinkable, notes Andree Seu, can go from “popular” to “policy.”  Remember.  Ideas like abortion, homosexual “marriage,” and euthanasia used to lurk in the shadows of the American landscape.  Not anymore.

I’m an ezer woman who lives in a culture where “evil” is called “good.”  For this reason, I’m compelled to dig heels into the foundation of God’s Word but, at the same time, push forward with weapons of truth.  As ideas and behaviors spiral downward, the one who follows Jesus is called to be intentionally polite.  Kind.  Pure.  This will irritate some and be seen as naive by others.  But, for a neighbor caught momentarily in darkness, the light may shine more brightly.  The Word of Truth, kindly spoken, pulls from shifting sand to solid ground.

There is a model for those who no longer want to mingle but, instead, dig in.  Curious?  I invite you to explore Titus 2 for Life.

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Raquel Regrets

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Commentaries of others, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Life issues, Relationships, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on October 19, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Titus 2 for Life is a mentoring ministry that honors God’s model for positively affecting society.  The flow of mentoring is older to younger.  “Older” is more than age.  It is experience and spiritual maturity.  Typically, with age, we become wiser.  We’ve made mistakes and hopefully learned from them.  It is unfortunate when the “younger” see little need for sage advice.

History is real.  It happened.  Of course, the best one to tell it — and explain the lessons learned from it — is the person who lived it.  I’ve been reading several stories of “older” women who were supposedly “modern” and “unbounded” earlier in their lives who now have a different perspective.

Matt Kaufman notes one.  He writes:

“Sometimes family-values talk comes from unexpected sources.  Like Raquel Welch.  Writing for CNN on the 50th anniversary of the Pill, the 69-year-old actress regrets that it took ‘the caution and discernment out of choosing a sexual partner, which used to be the equivalent of choosing a life partner.’  As a result, she writes, ‘nobody seems able to . . . honor a commitment.’

“Welch regrets her own track record in this area, too.  ‘I’m ashamed’ — how many celebs use that word? — ‘to admit that I myself have been married four times.  And yet I still feel that it is the cornerstone of civilization, an essential institution that stablilizes society, provides a sanctuary for children and saves us from anarchy.’

“There’s more.  Welch deplores ‘promiscuity.’  She says ‘any sane person’ must make a moral ‘judgment’ about certain sexual practices.  She even sounds pro-life: When she got pregnant, she realized ‘this process was not about me,’ but about the ‘life’ inside her.

“In a new book, Welch says she’s reconnected with her Christian upbringing and regularly attends church and Bible study.”  (Matt Kaufman, Focus on the Family CITIZEN)

What do you have to say about that?


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Got Emotion?

Posted in Faith & Practice, Identity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »

There are those who say that traditional worship is unemotional.  They describe the Divine Service as unfriendly rather than welcoming; antiquated as opposed to contemporary.

Well, I gotta tell ya.  Emotions are highly over-rated.  In fact, they’re fickle.  Experience proves I can’t depend on them to serve me well.  I might “feel” like praising God one day and “feel” inspired by those “feelings,” but what happens when I don’t “feel” like praising Him?  What “feeling” fills the void?

Once I better understood that I’m the one being served in the Divine Service, not the other way around, this “antiquated” service became very welcoming and contemporary.  Tied to this earth as I am, there is no other time when I stand in the presence of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit… and all the company of heaven.   It’s true that some of the hymns and responsive melodies flow awkwardly from my mouth, but the words are instructive and comforting for my life and soul — right here, right now.

The Divine Order of Service rescues me from my own fickle emotion.  Indeed, the Creator of emotion uses His Divine Order of Service to surprise me with joy and contentment.  Yes, joy and contentment are both emotions, but not ones that I stir up.  The Divine Service is not me doing something for God that I can “feel” good about; rather, it is God doing something for me.  He is serving me with His Word and Sacrament.  There is no disappointment when I don’t “feel” like I think I should.  Nothing is up to me.  The service of equipping and strengthening this cracked, but chosen vessel is all up to Him.

In His Order of Divine Service, God uses my pastor to serve me.  One morning, this became beautifully apparent at the Lord’s Table.

For most of my communing life, our congregation’s practice was use of individual cups.  I reached for the cup, then drank.  Today, my pastor holds out to me the Cup of Christ.  Once Sunday, while kneeling at the Lord’s Supper, my pastor stood before me.  I didn’t look up at the man, but saw only the hand of Christ around the Chalice.  For a brief moment, I experienced — yes! — an emotion.  I “felt” the presence of my Savior.  And, why not?  Isn’t my pastor a called and ordained servant of the Word?  Isn’t He Christ’s representative on earth?  No wonder  my pastor falls to his knees in humble prayer before each Divine Service.  He, a sinner too, is hardly worthy to stand before a congregation of sinners and pronounce much of anything.  Yet, in The Robe of Righteousness and with trust in the Divine, my pastor is called to offer forgiveness of sins and new life in Christ.

In that moment, with eyes focused not on mere man but the Hand and Cup of Jesus, I “felt” a bit like a woman at the foot of the Cross.   Will I have this “feeling” every time I kneel at the Lord’s Table?  No.  Human emotions are fickle; here one moment, gone the next. I can’t depend on an emotion.

But, I can depend on Jesus.  Emotions or not, the Blood of Jesus is given and shed for me.  It welcomes me, a poor miserable sinner.  It is cleansing.  Renewing.   Life-changing.  No matter if I muster up the praise… the thanksgiving… the righteous “feeling.”  The Lord Jesus serves me.

The Savior’s hand is always outstretched.  It reaches down to me in whatever circumstance.  His Word and Sacrament fill this fragile vessel and lift this cracked pot back on the journey.

Emotion or not, I’m welcomed.  Covered.  Served.

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Hope and Healing

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Life issues, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on October 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Last year, in Arizona, I was asked by a friend from Canada to have lunch with the daughter of her friend.  My Canadian friend knew about my involvement in Lutherans For Life and Word of Hope.  She knew a little bit of why Titus 2 for Life grew out of my experiences with women grieving after an abortion.  She also knew that her friend’s daughter was interested in starting some sort of caring ministry for women in her area who were affected by their abortions.

So, under a canopy of blue sky, two older and two younger women gathered around an informal table.  We were there to imagine:  What could be done to welcome, encourage, and heal with the amazing love of Jesus?  It was easy to see the passion in Tessie, the woman who desired to begin a post abortion group.  She wore a genuine heart on her sleeve.  But, more than the passion and heart was her conviction and the courage to speak the Truth  For, you see, without the truth, the passion and heart would not bring hope.

I offered my assistance and prayers to Tessie.  We parted ways, but promised to stay in touch by e-mail.  We have.  Tessie is accountable with her “reports” to me and a few trusted others.

In the spring, Tessie started her first group for post abortive women.    By the end of September, she had led three groups.  All of this was done by word of mouth and little posters in area churches.

I asked Tessie about the diversity of the women.  She replied,

“There have been 18 women from the three groups that I’ve led.  They range in ages from 28 to 60+.  The women are mostly Caucasian, with one Hispanic and two African Americans.  Seven are single.  Three are divorced.  Eight are married.  All of the women claim to be Christians.  Three of the women married the father of their aborted child, but one [of those] divorced years later.  Five have had multiple abortions.  Two were late term.”

The eighteen women that Tessie has encircled remind me of the women God has placed in my life.

At last count, 24 of my friends, relatives, or acquaintances have shared their abortion experience with me.  Many of these are women who came up to me after I had finished speaking about Biblical manhood and womanhood.  One woman admitted that was the only reason she could attend the event.  She said, “If you had come to speak about abortion, I wouldn’t have showed up.  But, I was curious about living as a Biblical woman.”  She went on to explain, “When you shared the story of your friend who had an abortion, how did you know?  You were speaking to me.  That was my story.”

Of the 24 women in my “circle” who have suffered an abortion, 18 are Lutheran.  Two are the wives of Lutheran pastors.  At least three have had more than one abortion.

One of the women is someone I’ve known a long time.  We’ve traveled different paths and, because of that, our experiences have resulted in very different consequences.  One day, quite unexpected, she shared a receipt from Planned Parenthood that she keeps in her billfold.  She also shared a cut-out picture of a little girl that, she explained, may have looked like her daughter.  God has done a healing work on this woman.  She will live with the regret the rest of her life but, every morning, she looks in the mirror to see the Robe of Jesus’ Righteousness wrapped securely around her.

Another woman and I nearly lost our friendship after her abortion.  I think it was the first time I realized how divisive the double-edged Sword of God’s Word really is.  She knew she was living on the wrong side of the Sword, but had to defend herself.  In time, that Sword pierced through the denial to change the heart and mind of a beautiful and forgiven woman.  This friend has motivated me to make myself available to women everywhere — through speaking, writing, and the Titus 2 for Life ministry.

To all of these women, God has Words of promise:

Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning.

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.  For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.  I acknowledged my sin to You, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound . . . to comfort all who mourn . . . to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes.

(Psalm30:5b; 32:3-5; Isaiah 61:1-3)

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How Did We Forget This?

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Commentaries of others, Vocation, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 6, 2010| 1 Comment »

How did we forget the meaning of vocation?

Gene Edward Veith, Jr. has done well to remind me.  I’m grateful.  He doesn’t know it, but he’s helped me to weave the teaching of vocation into Titus 2 for Life (www.titus2-4life.org ).   Gene Veith and I met when I was serving as President of Lutherans For Life.  We have mutual friends.   These days, I see his writings in many publications.  Good thing.  Through his many vocations, he is engaging the culture with the Biblical worldview.

His book, God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life (Crossway Books) and his recent article, “Arenas of Service” (WORLD,8-28-10) have been very helpful to me.  Somewhere in my instruction between home, catechism, and Bible classes, I’ve heard God’s call to live out my faith in whatever I do.  Of what good is my faith if it’s private or left in the pew?   Non-Christians often seem very committed to living out their particular belief.   But, many Christians act as if they’ve either forgotten or never been told what vocation really is.

After the Reformation, Christians held to three key teachings: the authority of Scripture, justification by faith in Jesus Christ, and the doctrine of vocation.  “Modern” and “progressive” thinkers work hard to ignore the first two.  As for the doctrine of vocation, well, it “faded from the church’s memory,” says Veith.

Vocation, as Veith explains, is like justification: It is God’s work.  Vocation is how God works through us.  God uses us to care for and govern His creation.  He uses our gifts and talents to make a difference.  We are called by God into vocations.

Vocation is more than a “job.”  Every Christian has multiple vocations.  Martin Luther, notes Veith, sorted them into four “estates,” or spheres of life that God established: the church, the household, the state, and what he called “the common order of Christian love.”

God calls His people to vocations in the church.  Pastors are called into the ministry.  God works through them to teach His Word, preside at His sacraments, and give spiritual care.  Laypeople are called, too.  They serve in human care, as elders or trustees, singing in the choir, teaching children, and caring for one another.

God calls His people to vocations in the family.  Marriage is a vocation.  Fatherhood and motherhood are vocations.  In fact, as Veith points out, being a brother or sister, a grandfather or grandmother, or nephew or niece are all vocations.

God calls His people to vocations in the state.   As citizens, we have responsibilities to our government and to our culture.  Some of us are called to serve in positions of government.  The United States is unique.  U.S. citizens, writes Veith, “have the unusual calling of being both subjects and rulers at the same time, since our democratic republic places the governing authorities themselves under the authority of the people who elect them.”  The Christian is to involve himself  in civic roles and cultural engagement.

The fourth vocation is “the common order of Christian love.”  God calls us to serve Him and others through our ordinary, everyday life and relationships with our neighbors.  Some may believe we serve God only by doing “church work,” but this isn’t what Luther and the other reformers taught.  We are not to withdraw from the world, but be engaged in it.  God transforms the culture through Christian men and women who use His Word in all areas of life.

We go to Divine Service on Sunday to find the forgiveness of Christ, feed on God’s Word, receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion, and grow in our faith.  Then, we go back out into the world — our families, neighborhoods, jobs, classrooms, voting booth, volunteer activities — to serve God by serving others.

Galatians 5:6 and 1 Timothy 1:5 remind us that the purpose of every vocation is to love and serve our neighbors.

Faith bears fruit in love.

“God doesn’t need our good works,” Veith quotes Luther, “but our neighbor does.”  Our relationship with God is based completely on His work for us in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.  But just as God is hidden in vocation, Christ is hidden in our neighbors.

As you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to Me.

Matthew 25:40 reminds us that we love and serve God by loving and serving the people He puts into our lives — friends or strangers, easy to love or not, in good times or bad.

In some vocations we exercise authority.  But, think of how Jesus exercised His authority… He was a servant.

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.

This Word of God found in Mark 10:42-45 makes me ashamed because, too often, it’s all about me.  In my selfishness, I sin against my vocation.

Faithful to God’s pro-life Word, Veith writes, “Vocation clarifies moral issues.  Mothers are called to love and serve their children, not abort them or abuse them.  Doctors are called to heal their patients, not kill them.  Leaders are called to love and serve those under their authority, not exploit and tyrannize them.”

Here’s something else.  “Some actions are sinful when done outside of vocation but good works when done within vocation.  We have no calling from God that would authorize having sex with someone to whom we are not married.  But within the vocation of marriage, sex is not only authorized, it becomes the means by which God creates a one-flesh union, engenders new life, and builds a family.”

Veith explains that “vocation has to do with the priesthood of all believers.  A priest is someone who performs a sacrifice.  We no longer need sacrifices for our sins, since Christ, our great High Priest, offered Himself as our sacrifice once and for all (Hebrews 9:26).  But, in light of that sacrifice, God calls us  (Romans 12:1)

. . . to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

We are not called to lord it over others nor are we called to obsess on self-fulfillment.  Vocation focuses away from self to others.

Fathers are living sacrifices for their families when they faithfully protect and provide even in weariness and frustration.  Mothers are living sacrifices for their families when they put their own feelings aside to encourage husbands and nurture children.  Workers on the job are living sacrifices when they do their best to serve both employer and customers.

Veith explains that “Christ, who is in vocation and in the neighbor, takes up all of these sacrifices, small or great, into His sacrifice.  And He loves and serves His creation by means of our love and service in our vocations.”

A Biblical understanding of vocation means that nothing we do to God’s glory is ordinary or insignificant.  Luther said that changing a child’s diaper is holy work.  In that vein, so is preparing a meal, changing a tire, looking after an unmarried aunt, being a good listener, doing homework, donating blood, sitting by the bedside of a dying spouse, being informed about candidates before election day, praying, training in purity, paying fair salary, and performing honest labor.  The list goes on… and on.

Our vocations are many.  God works through our vocations to serve others.  Trusting this, says Veith, changes the quality of what we do.  He’s right.  It changes the words we choose, the music we sing, the business we transact, the clothing we wear… even the table we set.

Thank you, Gene Edward Veith, for helping me review my vocations.  May God help me see every word and deed as opportunities to serve not self, but others.

Now, for the rest of you, move on over and sit a spell with The Blog of Veith www.geneveith.com

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Titus 2 Retreats

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Vocation, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The doubts begin about a week or so before each retreat.  There is a hissing sound.  “Who do you think you are?”  Taking another look through the Study Guide brings mixed emotions: The Word is exciting, but will my manner of presentation be helpful or harmful?

On August 8-9, my living room was filled with nine women.  My prayer was, “Please, dear God, don’t let me get in the way of Your Spirit.”  There were Lutherans and non-Lutherans.  Older and younger.  Married and unmarried.  Friday evening began, as always, with a meal.  It’s a way to practice hospitality, not showing off, but showing respect.  The women settled in for a night of contrasting the world with God’s Word before recognizing what Titus, chapter two, has to say to each of us in our vocation of mentoring.  On Saturday, we continued with breakfast, two sessions (one being my favorite on “Identity”), lunch, and two more sessions.

This note arrived about a week later: “Thanks so much for welcoming us into your home for the Titus 2 Retreat . . . The material is excellent, well thought-out and organized.  But, you present it with humility blended with confidence and commitment to the message.  At our church, we are seeking transformation, not just information.  And the Titus 2 for Life message is life-changing.”

Another note read, “It’s so wonderful to listen to someone who is so articulate, doesn’t compromise one bit of God’s Word — and gets it.  I could have listened forever.”  Another read: “Prior to this, I hadn’t considered the Genesis connection to Biblical womanhood.”

On September 17-18, a Titus 2 Retreat was hosted in Norfolk, NE.  Eighteen women fit comfortably in Kathy’s peaceful and welcoming home.  She did not “show off,” but showed respect for each guest by way of her caring and servant-style manner.  Lutherans For Life members who assisted Kathy by helping with food explained their conviction and desire to help mentor away from trendy thinking to the foundational Word of God.  By 3:00 on Saturday afternoon, all the women were tired.  But, many lingered as if they didn’t want to hurry from a place of warmth and safety.

Titus 2 Retreats are not easy.  Topics covered are counter-cultural and using the “double-edged Sword of Truth” is divisive.   After a retreat, I am drained.  I know each woman has a story.  But, not knowing the stories, I pray for tender words of hope and encouragement.  I am challenged to stay on track, yet allow discussion; speak what honors God, yet be alert to a variety of emotions.

Dear Spirit, You know my opinions count for nothing.  They are not helpful.  They are shifting grains of sand.  Keep this little ministry rooted in Truth — God’s unchanging Word of Truth.  On October 8-9 in the home of Sherry and with women from the Cedar Falls area,

Let my speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that I may know how I ought to answer each person.

And, help me be a worker who

. . . has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the Word of Truth.

(Colossians 4:6; 2 Timothy 2:15)

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