July '24

July 1

He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well;

go in peace, and be healed of your disease."

Matthew 5:34

There is a remarkable exchange in yesterday’s Gospel reading.

Quickly - let’s consider this episode.

Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, "Who touched my clothes?"

And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’"

He looked all around to see who had done it.

But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth.

He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."

"She told him the whole truth." We might well consider that for a while.

She told him the whole truth, and Jesus considered her truth. He then announced that her wholeness, her recovery, the miracle at hand came by her faith in Jesus.

I’ve read several people who wonder about that verse. Like you and me, they know people of faith who are not healed, and worry that this might fill some with doubts and more.

That may be so, yet it seems that most of us live with enough ambiguity and complexity in our lives that we are able to navigate this tightrope walk.

Jesus listens to your truth, and he gives you healing and hope as well.

Listen as Jesus commends you for your faith, “go in peace and be whole.”

Peace, Pastor Phil

July 2

Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous.

Psalm 33:1

I thought I would share a passage from the Psalms with you today. Here is the conclusion of Psalm 33

Our soul waits for the LORD;

he is our help and shield.

Our heart is glad in him,

because we trust in his holy name.

Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,

even as we hope in you.

Psalm 33:20-22

May your gladness have no end, Pastor Phil

July 3

With Independence Day tomorrow, I thought I would share this prayer for a national holiday from the ELW:

Prayer for a National Holiday

Lord of all the worlds,

guide this nation by your Spirit

to go forward in justice and freedom.

Give to all our people the blessings

of well-being and harmony,

but above all things give us faith in you,

that our nation may bring glory to your name

and blessings to all peoples,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship page 63

Blessings to you today! Pastor Phil

July 4

A blessed 4th of July to you!

Let us give thanks for the many blessings we enjoy in our nation, and let us pray for peace for all the world! Pastor Phil

A Prayer for our nation:

From the ELW resource The Prayer Book for the Armed Services

Holy Trinity, one God,

you show us the splendor of diversity

and the beauty of unity in your own divine life.

Make us,

who came from many nations with many languages,

a united people

that delights in our many different gifts.

Defend our liberties,

and give those whom we have entrusted with authority the spirit of wisdom,

that there might be justice and peace in our land.

We pray in the name of Jesus Christ,

our sovereign and our Savior.

Amen.

“This Is My Song” is a wonderful “national song.’ Click here for a performance by Schola Diffusa, which incudes singers from six continents.

The words to this hymn are rich, and the tune is beautiful.

THIS IS MY SONG - ELW 887

Lloyd Stone

tune - Jean Sibelius

This is my song O God of all the nations

A song of peace for lands afar and mine

This is my home the country where my heart is

Here are my hopes my dreams my holy shrine

But other hearts in other lands are beating

With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.

My country's skies are bluer than the ocean

And sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine

But other lands have sunlight too and clover

And skies are everywhere as blue as mine

O hear my song O God of all the nations

A song of peace for their land and for mine.

This is my prayer O God of all earth's kingdoms

Your kingdom come on earth your will be done

O God be lifted up till all shall serve you

And hearts united learn to live as one

So hear my prayer O God of all the nations

Myself I you let your will be done

July 5

For freedom Christ has set us free.

Stand firm, therefore,

and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Galatians 5:1

I shared this about a year ago. It is a reflection written by Steven Charlston, Choctaw elder and Episcopal priest and bishop. (He taught for a while at our seminary in St. Paul, beginning while I was there, although I was never privileged to have him as my teacher.)

As we have just marked another Independence Day, it might be wise to consider what it is that we are independent FOR.

“We are not made for resignation.

Passive acceptance is not the code written into our spirit.

If that were true, as a species, we would have vanished long ago.

Instead, for millennia,

we have shaken off the temptation to simply accept reality

and the demand that we bend the knee,

and we have stood up to struggle against the odds,

to change the situation, and to find an answer and a healing.

Those deep drives are the energy we call hope.

Those active forces are what determine our future.

We are not made for resignation, but for freedom.”

— Steven Charleston, Ladder To The Light: An Indigenous Elder’s meditations on Hope and Courage (Broadleaf Books, 2021), p. 17

I think this would visit in interesting ways with Martin Luther’s opening lines in his work “The Freedom of a Christian.”

“A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none.

A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”

May our freedom be a gift to us, and to all whom we love and serve.

Blessings to you today, Pastor Phil

July 6

Here is a prayer grounded in Mark 6:1-6, the first half of tomorrow's Gospel reading, it is by Ann Osdieck.

THE GOSPEL

Mark 6:1-6

And many who heard him were astonished.

Who is he?

Is he

merely

son of Mary?

Just a carpenter?

What if this amazed crowd found out that

in the beginning was the Word

and the Word was with God

and the Word was God

and the world came

to be through

him?

God’s world

does not

know

its

maker.

Christ, artist,

get us to know you,

so that we can love you well.

Healer of hearts, minds and souls,

take us into your

holy body and

blood.

Permission is hereby granted to reproduce for personal or parish use.

Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

July 7

A Reminder: Please keep Anna Holz, daughter of Pastor Wilbur and Deb Holz,

in your prayers. She is living in Knoxville, TN, and

will be having surgery to remove a tumor on her brain tomorrow.

I hope to see you in worship today, we gather at 9:00 this morning.

The service will be posted online.

Here is the Prayer of the Day

God of the covenant,

in our baptism you call us to proclaim

the coming of your kingdom.

Give us the courage you gave the apostles,

that we may faithfully witness to your love and peace

in every circumstance of life,

in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.

July 8

"I will listen to what the Lord God is saying."

Psalm 85:8

Psalm 85 served as the Call to Worship for us yesterday.

The words of the eighth verse are inviting.

“I will listen to what the Lord God is saying.”

Consider praying these words of the Psalmist each day this week. “I will listen to what the Lord God is saying.”

Then, listen.

Listen for God proclaiming God’s great love for you.

Listen for God calling you to serve.

Listen for the many different ways God will speak to you.

And then, give thanks for such great gifts!

Blessings to you today, Pastor Phil

July 9

[Jesus] ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff;

no bread, no bag, no money in their belts;

but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.

Matthew 6:8

I liked the God Pause devotion this past Friday on Sunday’s Gospel reading, and I thought I would share it here:

Immediately on the heels of his experience of unbelieving hometown rejection, Jesus sends out his followers with authority over unclean spirits—but no apparent authority over the hearts of their audience. His instructions include a statement on what to do if and when they too find themselves rejected. Vulnerability seems to be a built-in feature of discipleship, and it’s a precarious position to be in. Talk about packing light! They are allowed a walking stick and the sandals on their feet. That’s it! They will be completely dependent on the goodwill of strangers, with no guarantee of any good will at all. These disciples are sent much as Ezekiel was sent: God has a word for the world, and needs someone to speak it whether it is received or not. And perhaps surprisingly, God’s response to disbelief seems to be: tell them again!

Prayer: God of love, you send us to places where we might not want to go. Give us courage to live and speak your love, no matter what. Amen.

Judy Johnson '81 M.Div. Parish Pastor; Licensed Mental Health Counselor; Associate to the Bishop, Western Iowa Synod

May you hear - and know - and trust - God’s word of love, and may you share it generously!

Pastor Phil

July 10

I’ve shared devotions from Pastor Steve Garnaas-Holmes before. He has a nice way about him, and a bit of a sense of humor.

This seemed to me to be a good reflection for a hot summer’s day.

Blessings to you today, Pastor Phil

Dearly Beloved,

Grace and Peace to you.

I'm sitting on my porch reading the Bible.
A tiny bug, smaller than the letter i,
crawls across the page, its feet treading
on the name of God, the deeds of Christ,
its microscopic feelers touching
again and again the cries of the poor,
the prayers of the desperate and the faithful,
uncomprehending, unsuspecting
the vastness, the mystery, the grace,
crawling over the face of God.

You and I both, bug.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

Steve Garnaas-Holmes Unfolding Light www.unfoldinglight.net

July 11

"I will listen to what the Lord God is saying."

Psalm 85:8

With Rodeo Week underway, I have thought about how there are all sorts of parties and celebrations at this time. We pray that all stay safe, that along with our neighbors we might have life-giving enjoyment of these days.

This all made me think of Frederick Buechner’s definition of “grace” in his book Wishful Thinking.

GRACE:

After centuries of handling and mishandling,

most religious words have become so shopworn

nobody's much interested anymore.

Not so with grace, for some reason.

Mysteriously, even derivatives like gracious and graceful

still have some of the bloom left.

Grace is something you can never get but can only be given.

There's no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about

any more than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream

or earn good looks or bring about your own birth.

A good sleep is grace and so are good dreams.

Most tears are grace.

The smell of rain is grace.

Somebody loving you is grace.

Loving somebody is grace...

A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith

is the assertion that people are saved by grace.

There's nothing you have to do.

The grace of God means something like:

"Here is your life.

You might never have been,

but you are,

because the party wouldn't have been complete without you.

Here is the world.

Beautiful and terrible things will happen.

Don't be afraid.

I am with you.

Nothing can ever separate us.

It's for you I created the universe.

I love you."

There's only one catch.

Like any other gift,

the gift of grace can be yours only if you'll reach out and take it.

Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.

Frederick Buechner

May God’s grace give joy to your day, Pastor Phil

July 12

A blessed Rodeo Weekend to you!

Here is a quote from Brennan Manning, who lived from 1934-2013.

He is best known for his book The Ragamuffin Gospel:

I could more easily contain

Niagara Falls in a tea cup

than I can comprehend the wild,

uncontainable love of God.

Brennan Manning

Peace, Pastor Phil

July 13

A blessed Saturday to you!

Here is a prayer grounded in tomorrow’s Epistle reading from Ephesians:

In him you … were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,

which is the first installment of our inheritance.

Ephesians 1:13, 14

Forgiven.

Redeemed.

Grace upon grace

heaped

upon

us.

The first

“installment of our legacy.”

What is to follow?

Holy Spirit,

bottomless treasure,

open us to your good self

now and for all

eternity.

Anne Osdieck

What a great question and prayer; “What is to follow?”

May all that follows lead us to know and serve God’s love!

Peace, Pastor Phil

8 Pentecost

July 14

I hope to see you in worship today, we gather at 9:00 this morning.

The service will be posted online.

Here is the Prayer of the Day

O God,

from you come all holy desires,

all good counsels,

and all just works.

Give to us, your servants,

that peace which the world cannot give,

that our hearts may be set to obey your commandments;

and also that we,

being defended from the fear of our enemies,

may live in peace and quietness,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.

July 15

Righteousness and peace have kissed each other

Psalm 85:10

I often think that one of the ways in which the Psalms can be a blessing to us, is that they give us beautiful phrases like this from verse ten of Psalm 85: "righteousness and peace have kissed each other..."

I once heard an Old Testament professor, speaking of an image from one of the Psalms or one of the prophets, say that we may not know what exactly that looks like, but we know what it means. (Or something like that.)

Today, when violence is in the news, and contention is in the air, let us pray that righteousness and peace might kiss each other, and we might get caught up in God's work of healing the world.

Peace to you today, Pastor Phil

July 16

Jesus Christ is the same

yesterday and today and forever

Hebrews 13:8

In the past few days, I’m not exactly sure which day, the phone in our home, the “landline” was turned off. When we moved to Sheridan, we did not have cell phones. Now we won’t have a phone in our house. (If you need my cell # it is, as always, listed at the top of this page.)

The pace of change in our culture can be overwhelming, to say the least.

If you google 'God never changes,' among the many articles are pieces about God’s “attributes” and articles suggesting that God’s unchanging nature is of utmost importance.

Our tradition does not talk about God’s ‘attributes’ very much. Speculation about attributes is theoretical talk that, in the end, will not serve to give us any greater understanding of God’s great love, shown to us in the cross.

God may well be all-knowing, ever-present and all-powerful. Yet our greatest gift is that in Jesus Christ, God has entered our world to redeem us and make us God’s own.

The most important thing about God being unchanging, is that God’s love for you never fails.

Ways of communicating come and go, we have no landline, even though twenty years ago we didn’t call it a “landline.”

The ways we communicate, and even the things we say change quite a bit, yet the love of God is what is unchanging about God and Jesus Christ.

Peace, Pastor Phil

July 17

“I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.

In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me;

because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that

I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you."

John 14:18-20

This reflection, written by Henri Nouwen, is a thought provoking consideration of what it means for us that through the incarnation, God has entered the world in a way that exercises God's "power" in surprising ways.

I think this is well stated. I could say something similar, and it would only take about three to twenty-five times as many words. HA!

Peace, Pastor Phil

The Divine Choice of Weakness

God chose to enter into human history in complete weakness.

That divine choice forms the center of the Christian faith.

In Jesus of Nazareth, the powerless God appeared among

us to unmask the illusion of power,

to disarm the prince of darkness

who rules the world,

and to bring the divided human race to a new unity.

It is through total and unmitigated powerlessness

that God shows us divine mercy. . . .

It is very hard

—if not impossible—

for us to grasp this divine mercy.

We keep praying to the “almighty and powerful God.”

But all might and power is absent from the One

who reveals God to us saying:

“When you see me, you see the Father.”

If we truly want to love God,

we have to look at the man of Nazareth,

whose life was wrapped in weakness. And his weakness opens for us the way to the heart of God.

Excerpt from "You are the Beloved" by Henri J.M. Nouwen

July 18

As he went ashore, [Jesus] saw a great crowd;

and he had compassion for them,

because they were like sheep without a shepherd;

and he began to teach them many things.

Mark 6:34

I like Sunday's Prayer of the Day. I will post it on Sunday, of course, but invite you to consider this Prayer today.

Blessings to you on this Thursday, Pastor Phil

O God, powerful and compassionate, you shepherd your people,

faithfully feeding and protecting us.

Heal each of us, and make us a whole people,

that we may embody the justice and peace of your Son,

Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

July 19

'My soul yearns for you in the night,

my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.'

Isaiah 26:9

I sometimes listen to the daily meditation from Pray As You Go, a nice resource that presents a daily reading, some music, and brief comments. It is in the Ignatian tradition.

Yesterday, spurred by a reading from Isaiah 26, the narrator said:

We often desire many things, and our desires can sometimes seem to pull us in different directions. Prayer can be a time to bring one's desires, whatever they may be, into the open: to look at them in the light of God's presence. You can take a moment to do this now.

This made me think about how we might - at times - be reluctant to pray for what we ‘want.’

We might think that is selfish, and feel that we should be more bold to pray for the needs of others, than for ourselves. We might seek to have our prayers shaped by things more meaningful than simply asking for the things we want.

It came to mind for me that placing our wants in the open before God might help open us, and our desires, to be shaped by the Holy Spirit.

Interesting.

As you seek God today, may God’s love find you well! Pastor Phil

July 20

When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,

his heart was moved with pity for them,

for they were like sheep without a shepherd;

and he began to teach them many things.

Mark 6:34

A prayer for this weekend from the St. Louis University web site.

Blessings to you this Saturday! Pastor Phil

Lord, let us care like you. do.

Yesterday,
like sheep with no
shepherd, they fled to you.

You saw them.
You were moved with pity.
You began to teach them many things.

Today,
we are the crowd desperate
that you look on us
with pity and
teach us
many
things.

How to care for each other;
to care for all the planet;
to end war and
the need for
immigration;
to stop violence,
to care for all children,
and to feed all hungry people
everywhere, with your food and your
truth.

Make us your good shepherds.

9 Pentecost

July 21

I hope to see you in worship today, we gather at 9:00 this morning.

The service will be posted online. Here is the Prayer of the Day

O God, powerful and compassionate, you shepherd your people,

faithfully feeding and protecting us.

Heal each of us, and make us a whole people,

that we may embody the justice and peace of your Son,

Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

July 22

I want to share with you, one last time, the Prayer of the Day for yesterday.

O God,

powerful and compassionate,

you shepherd your people,

faithfully feeding and protecting us.

Heal each of us,

and make us a whole people,

that we may embody the justice and peace of your Son,

Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

May all of us, together, pray fervently; “Heal each of us, and make us a whole people…”

Blessings, Pastor Phil

July 23

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…”

Psalm 23

Yesterday we proclaimed Psalm 23.

Here is a prayer from Good Shepherd Sunday last year…

THE GOSPEL
John 10:1-10

He walks ahead of them and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.

The
shepherd
knows his sheep.
And the sheep know him.
He calls each of them by name.

O Christ,
we cry out for you to shepherd us right now.
We long to hear you call our names, to
listen to your gentle voice,
and follow you out of
this violent world
to a safe
place.

Please,
walk ahead of us and we will follow.
Let us offer to one another
your abounding life
and love.

As Jesus leads us “out of this violent world to a safe place” we note that this is the same one who called us to take up our cross and follow. So as Jesus leads us to safety, he also compels us to venture again into the perils of this world, and bear God’s creative and redeeming love to all.

Peace, Pastor Phil

July 24

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, proclaiming,

“Now have come the salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God

and the authority of his Messiah…

Revelation 12:10

For our Wednesday noon class, we are looking at the book of Revelation. The author of our study teaches that Revelation is a book of promise, not a book of threats. Seen in this way, it is surprising just how enjoyable it has been to work with the book of Revelation.

Revelation reminds us that while evil can seem quite powerful in our world, God’s love will prevail!

May you know Christ’s presence and power today, and if you would like to join us, come by at noon today!

Peace, Pastor Phil

July 25

One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to [Jesus],

“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish.

But what are they among so many people?”

John 6:8-9

On Sunday we will hear the story of the feeding of the 5,000 from the Gospel of John. I truly believe that one could preach on this text each Sunday for a year. There is so much here!

Jesus asks Philip about feeding the people, and Andrew points to a boy’s lunch, but each are certain that the task is beyond them.

Part of the lesson in this story might be that we cannot always trust our own assessment of things. God operates with a different sort of math, and in God’s accounting, all are fed.

May each one of us join in the miracle of God’s love for all! Pastor Phil

July 26

When they were satisfied, [Jesus] told his disciples,

“Gather up the fragments left over,

so that nothing may be lost.”

John 6:12

In the story of the Feeding of the 5,000 - John tells us that Jesus told his disciples to “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.”

I've read that some old translations say “Gather up the broken pieces…” which is an accurate translation of the Greek word.

When Jesus breaks the bread for the last supper - the broken pieces are given to the Disciples, and to you as well. The Church at times in its history has called Holy Communion this Greek word - essentially referring to the Lord’s Supper as “Broken Pieces.”

How interesting and how powerful, to tie the glorious miracle of Jesus feeding 5,000 from 5 loaves and 2 fish, to the humble gift of the broken bread of the Lord’s Supper.

And we - who are also broken - receive the gift of Jesus, giving himself for you, and for the world.

What a blessing!

Peace to you, Pastor Phil

July 26

“There is a boy here

who has five barley loaves and two fish.

But what are they among so many people?

John 6:9

A blessed Saturday to you!

Pastor Phil

Below is a prayer grounded in tomorrow's Gospel story, the feeding of the 5,000.

The large crowd was coming to him.

They were hungry for his words

and to get some food.

There was a boy with

five loaves and

two fish.

The mysterious and

plentiful power

of God

uses what we have.

They ate

more than their fill,

and so much was left over.

Please take the gifts of our lives,

bless them, grow them,

make them

holy.

Let us use them

to care for this needy world.

Permission is hereby granted to reproduce for personal or parish use.

10th Sunday after Pentecost

July 28

I hope to see you in worship today.

The service will be posted online. Here is the Prayer of the Day

Gracious God,

you have placed within the hearts of all your children

a longing for your word

and a hunger for your truth.

Grant that we may know your Son

to be the true bread of heaven

and share this bread with all the world,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.

July 29

Then Jesus took the loaves,

and when he had given thanks,

he distributed them to those who were seated;

so also the fish,

as much as they wanted.

John 6:11

The story of the Feeding of the 5,000 was our reading yesterday. Among the quotes I have set aside, this one by Rachel Held Evans resonates deeply:

The Gospel doesn’t need

a coalition devoted to keeping the wrong people out.

It needs a family of sinners,

saved by grace,

committed to tearing down the walls,

throwing open the doors

and shouting,

‘Welcome! There’s bread and wine.

Come eat with us and talk.’

This isn’t a kingdom for the worthy;

it’s a kingdom for the hungry.

― Rachel Held Evans

May your hungers be satisfied by the living bread, and fed by the Gospel, may you be blessed to be a blessing!

Pastor Phil

July 30

“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish.

But what are they among so many people?

John 6:9

A preacher I like posted this poem in her weekly reflection on Sunday’s scripture texts. It is by David Whyte, a poet who can be quite profound.

Blessings to you today. Pastor Phil

Loaves and Fishes — David Whyte

This is not
the age of information.

Forget the news,
and the radio,
and the blurred screen.

This is the time of loaves
and fishes.

People are hungry,
and one good word is bread
for a thousand.

July 31

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works;

that I know very well.

Psalm 139:14

I would like to share a liturgy from “Every Moment Holy” which is a web site, an app, and several books of prayers and liturgies. These “prayers and liturgies for the ordinary events of daily life” are written by Douglas McKelvey.

The web site suggests that: “These prayers are ways of reminding us that our lives are shot through with sacred purpose even when, especially when, we are too busy or too caught up in our busyness to notice.”

Sounds about right…

Enough introduction!

This is from "A Liturgy for Sunsets”:

"May the patterns of your eternal beauties

be fixed in our souls, O Lord.

That the lives we lead and the words we speak

might hereafter be infused with a grace

that would show forth your beauty."

“Every Moment Holy” by Douglas McKelvey

Grace to you friends! Pastor Phil