" ... with sighs too deep for words ... " (Romans 8:26b)
"Hiking Into The Mist Above Jewel Basin"
Photo by Cathy Christopherson (July 2020)
"Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words" (Romans 8:26).
In the misty ambiguity and anxiety created by the pandemic that’s been "hanging in the air" for several months, these words of St. Paul speak to our hearts with a striking solidarity. For such is our time as well, a time marked with “sighs too deep for words…” A time when we fail to find words that can carry the heavy freight of various struggles. A time when we simply collapse, as we come to the end of ourselves. A time when something deep down in our soul beckons us to pray, but we don’t even know where to begin.
And what a shock it is to hear that even the esteemed St. Paul himself confesses times when he does not know how to pray! For we think that ease and fluency at prayer comes with great spiritual achievement and intense faith. But here, one of Christendom’s greatest representatives says he finds it impossible to pray as he ought.
However, let us not presume that silence is bad or that it means nothing is happening. For in the very silence that surrounded his death, Jesus became the best possible companion for those whose prayers do not seem to be answered … just hanging there on the cross, in thin air. Paradoxically, silence is as much a sign of God’s presence as of God’s absence. Divine silence is not a vacuum to be filled but a mystery to be entered—unarmed with words and undistracted by noise. It is then—oft’ in our silenced failures—with the interceding of the Holy Spirit—that we are in the best position … on our knees … for true worship!
And so, in the heavy mist of our times, clouded by “sighs to deep for words” … let me leave you with a profound insight by Max Picard … until we are joined together once more in worship, in the interceding Spirit of him who calms our fears: “Be still/silent and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
“Silence is the central place of faith where we give the Word back to God from whom we first received it. Surrendering the Word, we surrender the medium of our creation. We ‘unsay’ ourselves, voluntarily returning to the source of our being, where we must trust God to say us once again.” (Max Picard; The World of Silence, p.34)
“Spirit of God, descend upon our hearts …” (ELW #800)
Pastor John
An Ounce of Pretension is Worth a Pound of Manure
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
Alone in the House: A Difficult Call to Commitment
This One’s Especially for You
Please note: The June 21 outdoor service was canceled due to weather. Below is Pastor John’s blog written for this service, and a link is available at the end to read his planned sermon.
This coming Sunday morning you will hear me deliver a sermon based on the assigned Gospel text for this 3rd Sunday after Pentecost: Matthew 10:24-39. It’s entitled “The Life of Discipleship: Proclaiming the Gospel in a ‘World of They.’” Read a preview here. For this coming Sunday night’s outdoor service at 7 p.m., on the east lawn of our FLC campus, I’d like to delve a little deeper into this text, with another, second sermon that I’m entitling, “Alone In The House.” (No, not “Home Alone IV” )
It goes something like this … It will happen again this Sunday. Quite honestly, it’s this way every Sunday. And for as long as our congregation has existed. It’s a difficult issue that I’ve never heard preached upon and has been long overlooked. And it will continue to be true every time we gather for worship: not only at First Lutheran, but wherever and whenever Christians meet to worship …
I’m speaking here of those to whom Jesus refers to in our Gospel text, specifically in Matthew 10:36—those who are “alone in the house.” By this I mean, those who are the only professing Christians in the family in which they live. You are our sisters and brothers in Christ who come alone to church, and who will return alone to your house or apartment at the end of the worship service. You long for someone to share the joy-filled acknowledgement of ‘God’s steadfast love and abounding mercy’ you will hear in our Psalm for this Sunday (Psalm 69:8-17).
And yet, yours is a particular situation that is not new in the history of the church by any means. Though it may appear to you at times that most others in this congregation have it somehow better or different, or that so much of the activity in our congregation assumes that everyone in the household is united in faith. But whatever the circumstance, today’s Gospel Word speaks in a very precious way to you. It’s a difficult word. A word of commitment. But also, through you it’s a word that speaks to us all.
I hope to see many of you, especially for whom this little introduction perhaps hits the spot, in desiring to hear an affirming and encouraging Word from God. We’ll be out on the grassy lawns of Dakota Avenue (on the east side of First Lutheran)—led in song by Larry Olson and our First Lutheran praise band, as well as sharing in the sacrament of Holy Communion. Parking is in our east lots south of the Washington Pavilion, or you can remain in your car, tuning into our FM signal. In the meantime, the Lord bless you and keep you safe in these shuttered days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and yes, in a spirited reassurance that you are not alone in the house. Your extended family of faith is present and prays with you.
In Christ,
Pastor John
The Life of Discipleship: Proclaiming the Gospel in a 'World of They'
Listen in to the contemporary, somewhat satirical paraphrase of our gospel text for this coming Sunday (please read Matthew 10:24-39), from Eugene Peterson’s The Message.
“[And Jesus says to his twelve disciples and us this day]: ‘If they call me, the Master, ‘Dungface,’ what can the workers expect? So, don’t be intimidated. Eventually everything is going to be out in the open, and everyone will know how things really are. So don’t hesitate to go public now [and tell the truth of the gospel]. Don’t be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There’s something they can’t do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands.” (Matthew 10:24-28; The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language)
In Dallas Texas, 1963 … when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade … his wife, Jaqueline, threw herself as best she could over his bleeding body and said: “They’ve killed my husband!”// But who were “they”? // “They’ve killed my husband.”// Mrs. Kennedy lived in a world of vague, but very real hostile forces that would kill her husband. And she knew it. She didn’t just imagine it. // They were real. // But they had no name… She didn’t know who they were; where they lived; or where they came from. But they killed her husband.
Friends in Christ: there are a lot of people who live in a “World of They.” Sometimes it’s a hostile world, a threatening, adversarial world. “They.” You know what I’m taking about don’t you? // “They’ve now bought-up ’bout half of Sioux Falls. And they’re going to even change the name of the city to boot!” … “Really?!” … “Well, that’s what they say.” // “You heard THAT?!” … “That’s what they tell me.” … “And they say a Lutheran pastor from Oldham is running for Governor on the Norwegian ticket.” … “Are you sure?” … “Well, that’s what they tell me.” Sound familiar? Know what to do when “they” come after you?
And so in our Gospel text for this Sunday (Matthew 10:24-39), Jesus sends the disciples [and yes, us] out into a “World of They.” However, before they left—according to St. Matthew—Jesus called them by name (cf. Matt. 10:1-4). He gathered them around and preached to them what we might call an Ordination Sermon (Matt. 10:5f), and then he sends them out to be “wise as serpents yet gentle as doves” (Matt. 10:16). In that sermon Jesus says “they” about nine or ten times. “They’re going to call you up in court. They’re going to drag you into prison. They’re going to bring you up before governors and kings and persons of authority. They’re going to HATE you!” (Matt. 10:16-23). I mean, the disciples must have been terrified! Right? So, as Jesus puts his arms around them and begins to send them forth in ministry and mission … into a “World of They” … what does Jesus say?
Stay tuned … this Sunday morning at 8 o’clock on KELO-FM, at 11 o’clock on KSFY, or anytime on our YouTube channel. And in the meantime, I hope this little prelude for this week’s sermon finds you and your families in good health and spirit. At our new outdoor parking lot service, on Sunday nights at 7 p.m., I’ll offer a different sermon entitled “Alone In The House.” (Based on this same text from Matthew 10, but with a special emphasis on v.36.) God’s grace …
j.r. christopherson
Senior Pastor