Below is a message I sent out to those subscribed to our Bethel eNews.  As of 6:30pm on Saturday, August 27, Bethel is planning to have services on Sunday at the scheduled times of 8:00am and 10:00am.  If there are any changes, that message will be posted here as well as the media outlets specified below.

Dear Bethel,

The weather forecasters are telling us that Hurricane Irene will begin impacting our area on Friday with deteriorating conditions throughout the day on Saturday with the worst conditions Saturday night to Sunday morning. As she passes to the east of us, she is expected to be a strong Category 2 hurricane with maximum winds of about 100 miles per hour. We are now under a TROPICAL STORM WARNING.

Please take this warning seriously and make preparations. See www.ready.gov for preparation information and listen to the news for weather updates.

Please contact Bethel members who are not as mobile to ensure their safety.

Following the storm, please check with Bethel friends and acquaintances.

Depending on the severity of the storm, communication could be difficult. If the church office is closed, please use the Pastoral Care line (571-921-4245) to get messages to me or the church.

Information related to the church, including any adjustments to the Sunday schedule, will be announced on WTOP (wtop.com) , ABC7, NewsChannel 8, wjla.com, tbd.com, as well as Facebook (www.facebook.com/BethelManassas) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/BethelManassas).

See below for other links.

In Christ,

Pastor Jeff

National Weather Service: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Manassas&state=VA 

National Weather Service: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/lwx/

National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

This attachment is a slideshow presentation made during a Sunday forum on August 21.  You are invited to a follow-up conversation this coming Sunday, August 28.

Click here for a PDF of the presentation: Psalms & Sandals Aug 2011

~ John 4:23-24

This may seem like an odd or a very basic question, but “Why do we worship?”  There is talk about “contemporary” worship, “traditional” worship, “alternative” worship, “emergent” worship, high church, low church, etc.  Maybe this should have occurred to me before, but all of these kinds of worship are styles that appeal to people.  But I wonder if the appeal is more a matter of entertainment or worship.  Please don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to use this either/or dichotomy to force us to have worship that is boring or even worship that borders on the torturous.  Rather, I want us to focus on what worship is and how we use these styles to help us worship.

Good ol’ Webster’s Dictionary tells us that the first known usage of the word “worship” was in the 12^th century.  The Old English word was woerthscipe – woerth meaning worth or worthy – and it relates to things or people who are worthy of respect, admiration or devotion.  Worship helps us make decisions about what is and what is not worthy of respect, admiration or devotion.  When we place other things in our lives in positions of respect, admiration or devotion that aren’t God, we essentially make those things into gods … false gods.

Yes, we should get something out of worship.  Yes, we should be spiritually fed and encouraged.  What a different perspective if we go to worship asking questions like …

• “What am I going to get?”
• “What will this do for me?”

versus …

• “How can I give thanks to God for my life and the blessings I have?”
• “How can I encourage others in my congregation?”
• “How can I honor God simply for being God?”

The difference is in the object of these questions – God or us?  If we are the object or the priority, then I wonder if it’s truly worship.

Worshipping God helps us to refocus and reorient our lives weekly.  That’s where we see transformation.  Sometimes worship transforms right then and there – that very day.  I also think transformation happens with all of the little decisions that we make every day.  It happens as we turn our attention toward God on a regular basis.  All of us come to worship with things on our minds – health concerns, grocery lists, schedules for our kids.  We don’t leave these outside, but instead bring them in and lay them before God – sometimes giving thanks – sometimes asking for help or direction.  This too is worship.  I firmly believe that God wants to be part of our lives – part of our whole lives – not just for an hour or two on Sunday.

Come, let us worship together!

²So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify yourselves, and change your clothes; ³then come, let us go up to Bethel, that I may make an altar there to the God who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.” [Genesis 35:2-3]

In Christ,

Pastor Jeff

Please note the summer worship for July and August will be at 8:00am and 10:00am (instead of 11:00am).

The July Bell Tower is posted at BethelManassas.org

~ 2 Corinthians 13:5

Socrates is known to have said “the unexamined life is not worth living.”

At this time of year, our Ministry Teams are beginning to reflect on what they have done over the past year.  Some of their accomplishments have involved careful planning while others are more serendipitous.  Then we also look forward to the next program year (September – June).  In other words, we reflect.  How well have we listened to and responded to God’s call for us?  We reflect on the ministries of the church, but our own lives too.

The fruit of all this reflection will be borne out in a calendar planning and coordination workshop involving ministry leaders on June 4.  At this workshop, we’ll consider how the calendar fits together – how it tells the story of Jesus Christ in the midst of our own personal stories.  We will also look for areas where our ministry teams can work together.  This reflection will also bring about an annual report that we hope to publish by the end of June

This month, rather than sharing my thoughts, I invite you to a time of prayer and reflection about Bethel’s ministry as well as your own.

• What was accomplished both in the congregation and in your life?
  • How have you grown in faith over the last year?
  • Of these accomplishments, what was planned and what was spontaneous?
• Where do you see life and energy in the ministry at Bethel?
  • Where do life and energy seem drained?
• Where are we proud of what we’re doing?
  • Where do you think we need some work?
• Are there opportunities you see that we may not be taking advantage of?
• Are there gifts or abilities that you have that you would like to use in the church, but aren’t quite sure how?

I would really like to hear what you come up with!  Feel free to share in the line after worship, phone, e-mail, and I’m always up for coffee

In Christ,

Pastor Jeff

Click >here< to go to the ELCA site for this publication.

I have 3 hard copies of this publication that I’ll have available at church.

~PJ

- Are the ideas of spiritual discipline, Lent, deprivation, and self-control out of style?
- Must Christianity avoid expectations or demands to be culturally relevant?

Why Lent Must Rise Again

~ John 14:5-6a

I remember listening to the music of Kenny Rogers when I was young.  As I was reflecting on the State of the Congregation meeting on Sunday, March 27, the words of his song “The Gambler” came to mind.  We shared our concerns about worship attendance, Sunday School attendance, finances, and, perhaps most importantly, how we will do ministry now and lay the foundation for the Bethel of one hundred years from now.  Here are some of the lyrics from “The Gambler.”

You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em
Know when to fold ‘em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you’re sittin’ at the table
There’ll be time enough for countin’
When the dealin’s done

Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin’
Is knowin’ what to throw away
And known’ what to keep
‘Cause every hand’s a winner
And every hand’s a loser

Think about these lyrics in light of the church and ministry.

Bethel is almost 122 years old.  I can’t think of any organization that has survived that long without changing and making adjustments along the way.  You may know of companies like America Online (AOL) – where are they now?  They used to be the primary way to access the Internet.  How about IBM?  They didn’t adjust to the home computer market.  Apple – they were not doing so well until they developed the iPod.  For them – it was a risk, but it ended up being a game-changer.  Now, Apple has a strong following and is not to be ignored.  But Apple and any other organization that has stood the test of time cannot sit back and enjoy the fruits of some good decisions and prosperity.  They must continue to look forward, be creative, and listen.

I know … the church is not a “business”; at least not like other businesses.  However, many mainline churches in the United States are declining (see The Lutheran April 2011).  The question before us is “How will we play our hand?”  What ministries will we cast aside?  Are there ministries that were once strong, but have now languished?  Which will we hold on to and bet on?  What are we willing to risk?

For the past several years, Bethel has had to dip into our reserves to cover our expenses.  Council and the Finance Team have cut away at the budget.  Yet, for many years, the congregation has reiterated the importance of developing a strong youth ministry.  Council has had to weigh expenses such as hiring a Director of Youth & Family Ministries or investing in a new sound system or paying for other necessary improvements to the building.

The State of the Congregation meeting affirmed what Council believed to be true – that we should move forward with the hiring of a Director of Youth & Family Ministries – that this would be a good card to hold onto.  Of course, we all know that we can’t just make this decision and sit back self-satisfied once we have a person onboard.  It will take time and all of our support and involvement for this ministry to be successful.  It will most likely not look like the youth ministry we grew up with.  God willing, this ministry will take on a flavor of its own.  It will become what youth in our community need that will both involve them and help them grow in faith.

The truth is – none of us can see the future.  But we are called to listen, to follow, to risk, and, at times, even to be sacrificial.  We are called to trust the One who leads us joyfully into the future.

In Christ,

Pastor Jeff

From the Bethel Bell Tower, April 2011

Haiti – One Year Later

LOCAL WORSHIP OPPORTUNITY – On Sunday, January 16 from 3-6:00 p.m., “Service to Serve Haiti – Washington, DC: A Time of Remembrance and Action for Haiti and the Martin Luther King, Jr., National Day of Service” will be held at Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill. The event is an ecumenical and interfaith gathering to commemorate the earthquake that devastated Haiti and to engage local citizens in partnership with Haitian organizations actively involved in Haitian relief and reconstruction, according to the Rev. Conrad Braaten.

ELCA DISASTER RESPONSE PRINTABLE UPDATE – The most powerful earthquake to strike Haiti in more than two hundred years devastated that country on January 12, 2010. More than 250,000 people were killed, 300,000 injured and more than a million people left homeless. When the quake hit, your gifts to ELCA Disaster Response enabled the ELCA’s companion church in Haiti and partners to act quickly and effectively. For an update of what has been done, one year later, download and print Haiti Earthquake Update. (Also see “ELCA Commits $500,000 for Cholera Prevention, Treatment in Haiti,” ELCA News Service, 11/16/10)

ONLINE VIDEO FROM CHURCH WORLD SERVICE – A short, online video presentation from Haiti has been prepared by Tim Frakes for Church World Service, posted to the Odyssey Network. View it at http://www.odysseynetworks.org/faith/haiti. The ELCA is a member of Odyssey Networks, the nation’s largest multi-faith coalition dedicated to promoting tolerance, peace and social justice through the production and distribution of media.

MESSAGE FROM ELCA PRESIDING BISHOP – ELCA Presiding Bishop Hanson wrote a message on the earthquake anniversary which reads in part: Our long-term goal in Haiti is to help renew hope and rebuild lives and livelihoods, seeking to end the cycle of poverty and injustice. Find the full letter by selecting “Messages and Statements” at www.elca.org/bishop.

LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF NEWS RELEASE – A year after the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti, Lutheran World Relief (LWR) continues its long-term efforts to assist earthquake-affected communities. “Thanks to LWR’s generous supporters, LWR has raised more than $7 million for Haiti’s long-term recovery,” says John Nunes, LWR’s president and CEO. “Because of this support, LWR has committed to working in Haiti for at least five years to help communities recover and move forward.” (Read the full LWR Press Release, 1/11/11; and learn more at http://lwr.org/Haiti/)

CHURCH WORLD SERVICE NEWS RELEASE – Media coverage of the first year since the devastating January 12, 2010, earthquake is focused on government inaction, the slow pace of recovery and the seeming inability of Haiti to recover. But the story has another side: Haitians helping Haitians, say Church World Service staff and CWS partners in anticipation of this week’s anniversary. (Church World Service News, 1/11/10; the ELCA is a member of CWS)

Civic Reflection and Tucson Tragedy

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES NEWS RELEASE – As Rep. Gabrielle Giffords lies in critical condition in an Arizona hospital and other innocent shooting victims make hopeful recoveries, religious leaders around the nation continue to express grief and anger over the January 8 Tucson shooting rampage. “It’s hard to assess the tragedy in any way that makes sense,” said the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the National Council of Churches. “Clearly the overheated political climate in this country is provocative and unhealthy. The constant use of guns and ammo metaphors in political rhetoric may lead an unbalanced person to think it’s okay to bring guns to public meetings.” (NCC News Service, 1/11/11; the ELCA is a member of the NCC)

BLOG POST FROM ELCA PRESIDING BISHOP – Originally presented in November 2010, a reflection piece by the ELCA presiding bishop titled “Putting the civil back in American civilization” has been reposted to http://livinglutheran.com (1/13/11). “I’m adding my voice to those who call for respectful political engagement for the common good and renewal of common decency in public speech,” writes the Rev. Mark S. Hanson.

Tuesday, 1/4/2011

Scripture Reference: Psalm 29

Voices have power! When Adolph Hitler spoke at Templehof Airfield in Berlin, one million people gathered to hear him. In 1965, more than 55,000 screaming fans squeezed into Shea Stadium to hear the Beatles sing. When a five-year-old child whispers a prayer before an audience of One, her voice is somehow heard. Voices have power.

But “the voice of the Lord” commands the attention of the whole earth. Trees wither, mountains quake, fire dances and the earth dissolves. Whether speaking to nations or angels, rulers or adversaries; whether speaking in thundering sounds, or with a still, quiet voice, the Lord commands attention.

So why don’t we listen to the voice of the Lord?  What is it about the voices of the world that capture our attention and move us to action, while the voice of God seems archaic and out of step with our lives? Could it be that the immediate is more impressive than the eternal?

God wishes to speak to us…to you!  Be still, be quiet; listen to what God would have you hear today.

Gracious God, forgive me for my selective hearing.  Speak to your servant and give me faith to follow your Word. Amen.

Steven Molin
Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Stillwater, Minn.
Master of Divinity, 1982