Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ,

 Naughty or nice?  It is a question that is asked these days, perpetuated by the fanciful stories that are told of robust fellow in a white suit.  You better be good or there will be coal in your stocking!  These are the kinds of things that are spoken to children who seem to be filled with visions of sugar plums (whatever those might be!).

 And yet as we inch closer to our Christmas celebrations - only two short days remain before the refrains of Silent Night and a candlelit sanctuary - I can't help but think that once again our culture has gotten the holiday 'all wrong'. 

Being good for goodness sake under threat of not getting anything in our stocking simply misses the heart of what Christmas is all about.  Christ-Mass - the celebration of the birth of Christ is sidetracked when we think that our goodness has anything to do with it.  This is not the season of our virtue and niceness (though these things are certainly beneficial and should be encouraged every day of the year).  Nor is this the season of benevolent mysterious characters who stuff stockings with treats.  Rather this is the season to celebrate God's goodness.  

In order for Christmas to have any lasting meaning in our lives, in our family, and in our church - a shift in emphasis is needed.  A shift towards God's grace will help to redirect misplaced attention.  While we were still sinners - St. Paul writes - God died for us.  While we were naughty and ungodly - Jesus was born.  While we were undeserving and mean spirited - Jesus was born.  While we disregarded the needs of others and focused only on who was on our shopping list - Jesus was born.  

The whole point of Christmas is that Jesus is God's gift to us and for our lives.  God didn't check the list even once to see who was deserving of coal.  The birth of Jesus in the humble and insignificant town of Bethlehem abolished the need for such lists.  The whole world was on God's mind as Christ was gifted.  The whole  world was on God's mind as Jesus lived a life for others - inviting them into God's goodness, making sure that they had a place at the table. 

So where does this bring us as we scurry to find the perfect way to celebrate the 'big event' that is less than forty eight hours away?

Perhaps a moment of silent reflection would be helpful.  A prayer of thanks to the God that continues to love us no matter what.  Naughty and nice - good and bad - both realities of the life we live are met with a precious gift - God's grace.  Grace will come to us even if we don't get all the cookies baked, all the cards addressed, all the gifts wrapped in pretty bows.  Grace comes and says to us once again - you are my child and I love you.  Grace comes and invites us to direct our focus outward - away from our unquenched desires towards the needs of others. 

In the context of the gift of grace - God's precious Christmas gift to each of us - I invite you to a celebration that will focus on the true meaning of this holiday.  O Come All Ye Faithful - Come to worship the goodness of God.  St. James will be offering a variety of worships in the coming days.  On Christmas Eve we will be worshiping at 4:00, 5:30, 9:00, and 10:30 p.m.  On Christmas Day we will worship at 8:30 a.m.  All of these worships will include communion and the ones on Christmas Eve will feature candlelight.  We will gather around the Table together - in the presence of the Risen Christ to receive the grace of God.  All are welcome.

Our Christmas celebration will then continue on Sunday the 26th as we gather for a single worship at 9:30 a.m. with fellowship to follow.

I look forward to sharing Christmas greetings and joy with you at one of these special worships.  In case you will be out of town, a Merry Christmas to you and your family.  May we focus on those things which bring life and joy to all people.  May we focus on the grace and goodness of God in this season and beyond.

In Christ,

Pastor Walt

The Rev. Walt Lichtenberger, S.T.M. - Pastor

St. James Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN

Office: (952) 890-4534  ext. 112

Emergency Pastoral Care hotline: (651) 354-1883

Cell phone: (952) 836-8588

www.stjameslc.org

Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ,

The call came early on Wednesday morning.  It was unwelcome.  These calls rarely are welcomed.  My Dad's voice at that time of the day should have been a clue.  My Uncle Gus had died.  He was the oldest brother of my father and an amazing person.  In World War II, Uncle Gus was a ball turret gunner in a B-17 - one of the most hazardous calls of duty.  In 1944, he was in the flax-filled skies over Germany during the Christmas time bombing raids.  As a child I can remember hearing Uncle Gus' stories - of the time when he counted over 200 bullet holes in his plane after a run and of the time when the oranges froze in the cold, high altitudes of the unheated, unpressurized cabin.  There was more to Uncle Gus than his wartime service - he carried on a family legacy of being a business man (built his own insurance and real estate business), married my Aunt Patty and together raised a large family in the growing town of Secaucus.   Uncle Gus even ran for mayor a time or two - he wouldn't give up, kept on trying.  He will truly be missed.

It can be hard to say goodbye to loved ones.

Grief is never easy, especially around this time of the year.  The song on the radio says, "its the hap-happiest time of the year."  Later today as I head out to the mall to do a little last minute shopping, I know already that I will be greeted by 'ho, ho, ho's' and 'merry Christmases' -- all designed to put us in a good buying spirit and loosen our wallets.   But what if joy and good cheer are not the first things on our minds?  There is little genuine comfort to be found in the wonderfully decorated malls filled with strains of electronically generated holiday songs.  The best our commercialization of this sacred time has to offer is illusion - let's pretend that all is fine and peace reigns.

And yet all is not fine.  Loved ones and strangers suffer from illness and disease.  Children go hungry in this land and around the globe.  War rages - those bombing runs and dangerous tours of duty continue.  Unemployment and underemployment are serious issues.  Families find themselves broken and separated.  Hurt and grief are real.  Somehow the commercial illusion 'that all is well' seems to ring untrue. 

In the coming days we will have the opportunity to find real comfort and joy.  This Sunday as St. James gathers for the last of our Advent worships we will have our traditional service of Lessons and Carols.  A combined choir of almost fifty have been working hard, preparing inspiring music that proclaims where real hope and joy can be found.  Not in the mall or at the register but rather though the presence of Jesus.  As we gather together to praise God we do so in light of both our life successes and struggles, happiness and pain.  And we are never alone.  Even in the wilderness of our lives, with all the bumps and rough places, God promises to be present.  Never an illusion, God's presence gives us real hope.  For the one whose birth we prepare to celebrate has shared both the heights and depths of our human experience.  The babe in the manger is the Christ of the cross who welcomes all people to the Table.  On Sunday we will sing God's praise together and we will gather around the Table to feast on God's goodness.  Our faith will be strengthened through the proclamation of Word and Sacrament. 

So come, come and worship Emmanuel - God with us - on Sunday at 8:30 and 11:00.  Special pre-service music will begin at 8:15 and 10:45.  Our Sunday School (G.A.P.P.) children will be singing in the fellowship hall at 10:00 a.m. - music that was originally prepared for the program that was cancelled last week on account of the weather.  Come and find a lasting joy that is able to bear all our sorrows.

As always, I look forward to seeing you in worship…

In Christ,

Pastor Walt

The Rev. Walt Lichtenberger, S.T.M. - Pastor

St. James Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN

Office: (952) 890-4534  ext. 112

Emergency Pastoral Care hotline: (651) 354-1883

Cell phone: (952) 836-8588

www.stjameslc.org

Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ,

Last Sunday in my sermon I mentioned that I had some windshield wiper trouble.  Driving on 35WN in a hard rain, the driver side wiper decided it was going to misbehave.  Instead of getting into rhythm with its counterpart, it went astray and then stopped altogether…. It was a mess.  I simply couldn’t see out my windshield and traveling at a high rate of speed I had two options – 1) pull over and stop or 2) eventually crash.  

I used this frightening experience to talk about Advent’s call to ‘pull over’ and stop.  As Christians we are invited to ‘get into God’s rhythm’ of grace, love, and forgiveness.  This is important work for us as individuals and as a Church. 

A few of you have asked me since Sunday – what happened to my wipers?   Here’s the end of the story.

My dear and loving wife Katie took my car with the errant wipers to a local garage.  Fortunately, it was only a simple (and thankfully inexpensive) bolt that needed to be replaced.  My wipers are now working as good as ever.  Imagine that!  A tiny missing bolt was all that it took for everything to get out of control.  An absent, inexpensive bolt was responsible for my impaired vision and the eventual cause of disaster had I not pulled over and stopped.

Sometimes all it takes for a machine to malfunction is a missing part.  Sometimes the part is grand and obvious and other times the part is tiny and hidden.  Stating it in the positive – all parts are needed for proper functioning.  In my windshield wiper case, wiper blades, motor, and the tiny bolt that holds them together were all needed in order to keep the windshield clear of the hard, driving rain.  All parts are needed otherwise things go awry.

This is also true when we think and talk about Christian community.  Through the waters of baptism, God joins together a variety of people with a variety of talents and ability.  The Spirit gathers us together as a people of God this place and at this time to be God’s church at St. James.  We each have a place.  We are each needed.   Each of our gifts is necessary and needed in order for St. James to function properly.  Some of the gifts that are shared are obvious ones while others are quiet and ‘behind the scenes’.  Regardless of the size or nature of our gifts, all are needed for all have been gifted to us by God.  When we work together to offer our praise and service we are able as a church to communicate God’s grace, love, and forgiveness.  

As the time of giving gifts and sharing Christmas joy to family and friends draws ever closer, let us be reminded of our important place at St. James.  Let us always be reminded to share generously our time, talent, and treasure  SO THAT the mission we share might continue, be strengthened, and grow.

As always, I look forward to seeing you in worship…

In Christ,

Pastor Walt

The Rev. Walt Lichtenberger, S.T.M. - Pastor

St. James Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN

Office: (952) 890-4534  ext. 112

Emergency Pastoral Care hotline: (651) 354-1883

Cell phone: (952) 836-8588

www.stjameslc.org

Grace and Peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ,

Many years ago in high school I ran cross country.  Though I was the second best runner on our small team, I was only slightly better than average.  Regardless, I fully enjoyed racing over rocks and through the woods.  Our home course on Garrett Mountain had all the features you'd want in a challenging course - steep declines, rolling hills, and fast flats around a lake.  What is more, in the fall, with the leaves changing, it was absolutely beautiful.  All that said - the last quarter mile was a killer.  It was deceptively difficult in that after you came out of the woods, the incline was steady to the first line.  Knowing this, and even training for this, we usually had an advantage over the teams that would come to race on our home turf.   We knew that we needed to keep on moving, not to lose our momentum, as soon as we left the woods.  And in case we'd forget, our dear coach Stan was always there to remind us. 

Advent is a wonderful time to be reminded to keep running the good race of faith.  This race began a long time ago in the waters of our baptism.  Washed in the waters of Christ forever we were given the gift of God's running right alongside us.  Down steep hills, across fast flats, over rocks and through gold encrusted woods - our faith journeys cover a lot of terrain.  At times when we are in good stride and heading downhill it can seem like we've already won the race.  Other times we hit what runners call 'the wall' and it seems like we can't go any further.  Along the way we need encouragement to keep on running.  John the Baptist - a voice crying out in the wilderness - reminds us to prepare a way for the Lord in the difficult places of life, where the course is steep and our energy has been sapped. 

We prepare a way for God when we reach out in compassion and love to our neighbor (stranger and friend alike).  Through our words and kind deeds we are able make a space for God to enter in places full of hurt and need.  We prepare a way for God when we take the time in our busy lives to come to worship, or read scripture and pray for others.  As a Christian community, we prepare a way for God to enter when we share ourselves, our time, and our possessions.  At St. James we prepare a way for God each time that we carry out our mission to praise God and serve others.  Our mission areas of worship, education, youth, pastoral care, fellowship and parish community, and outreach (local/global) provide wonderful opportunities for us to run faithfully the race that was begun in our baptisms.     

And now a word about the race we are running together...  despite our strong performance for the first ten months of the year our financial position at St. James has slipped a little in the past month.  For ten months we had made major progress in closing the Mission Budget Gap with which we began the year.  Our stride was good and strong.  Unfortunately in November we stumbled a bit and the pace of our congregational giving slowed down a bit. 

It is time for us to be reminded of all that God is doing through our combined efforts at St. James.  Think about our inspiring worship and innovative education (that is not only for children).  Think about our new emphasis in youth ministry on providing meaningful service experiences.  Think about the pastoral care that is provided on your behalf to those who are in the hospital, nursing homes, and shut in.  Think about the new fellowship on Sunday morning and the increased electronic communication.  Think about the students in Tanzania who are going to school today or the hungry families in Burnsville that receive assistance through our local social ministry connections or the comfort meals that are being given each week out of our narthex freezer.  The Spirit is moving at St. James in many exciting ways.

It is also time for us to be reminded of our baptisms and God's call to each of us to prepare a way for Christ to come.    

Now the invitation...  if you are able, please consider making an additional gift in these weeks of Advent to support the mission that we share.  If you are current in your pledge, please consider additional gifts on behalf of those whose financial position has changed.  If you are behind in your pledge, please make an effort to catch up.  If you have yet to pledge or give to the 2010 Mission Budget, please join your sisters and brothers in Christ in lending your financial support.  

Together we can get back on stride and finish the race of this year strong and faithful.  Together we can make sure that we continue to prepare a way for the Lord.

I look forward to worshiping with you on Sunday.

In Christ,

Pastor Walt

The Rev. Walt Lichtenberger, S.T.M. - Pastor

St. James Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN

Office: (952) 890-4534  ext. 112

Emergency Pastoral Care hotline: (651) 354-1883

Cell phone: (952) 836-8588

www.stjameslc.org