Unfinished
Worship | Lent (7:00 PM) “Jesus, a New Jonah”
Jonah is the ironic foil to every other human and non-human character in thebook–all of whom obey God without question or protest. In Matt 8:23-27, Jesus exemplifies peace 4 of 5 in the thick of disruption. Disruptions have a way of exposing things that are otherwise buried beneath the surface. The onset of a violent storm lays bare the disciples’ lack of trust. But it also simultaneously exposes Jesus for who he is: the Lord of creation who stops the…
Worship | Lent (7:00 PM) “Faithful & Unfinished”
In this world, all of us are unfinished. Every vocational responsibility we have– to our family, friends, neighbors, creation–represents an opportunity to grow in love, excellence, and faithfulness. We do not undertake that effort alone. God accompanies us, helping us each step of the way to see others as God does–to see Nineveh, not through the lens of spite and anger, but rather of compassion and mercy.
Worship | Lent (7:00 PM) “Obedience and Preservation”
Jonah 3 Ironically, the true examples of repentance and obedience in Jonah are theforeigners–first the penitent sailors and then the soft-hearted Assyrians. Both gain a new lease on life by fearing and obeying God. The prophet stands in contrast to them. Disobedience leads him to the realm of death. The Lenten season offers us an opportunity to consider the dire consequences of ignoring God’ commands to love God and neighbor
Worship | Lent (7:00 PM) “God in the Depths of Chaos”
Luther’s theology of the cross teaches us to look for God in the midst of suffering–not only the suffering of Christ on the cross but also the suffering of God’s children in this world. God meets us with a word of hope in the fire (Daniel 3), in brokenheartedness (Ps 34:18), and in death itself (Jonah 3). In these places we learn one of the most basic but crucial lessons of faith: to cry out for help to a God…
Worship | Lent (7:00 PM) “Intercepted and Redirected”
Jonah 1:17, Psalm 139:1-2, 7-10 Encounters with God often come in the form of disruptions to everyday life. They take us off course and throw us off balance. But in many cases, disruptions have the potential to bring us into a sacred encounter with God and our neighbor in ways that we might not expect–or in ways that might show us something new about ourselves. The story of Jonah invites us to wonder whether and how the God of Jonah…