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Pastor's Message

FROM PASTOR DAVID’S DESK

March 2025

We entreat you on behalf of Christ, to
be reconciled to God. For our sake he
made him to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God.
(2 Corinthians 5:20b-21)

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If I were to walk up to you and wish you a happy Ash Wednesday, how would you react? If I were to say to you that I hope you had a happy Lent, what would you think? As Lutherans, we know that Lent is the opposite of happy and festive. We step out the church door on Ash Wednesday with a sigh, trying to psych ourselves up for the journey towards Easter which at this point seems to be a long way off. Yet we as Christians feel that this is something we must do.

I admit I have often begun my Lenten journey with a sense of dread remembering all the times I have gotten it wrong, that I have messed up, that I have fallen short in fulfilling my obligations. Then I start to put together in my mind all the words I need to pray for God to forgive me. And while I think this not necessarily inappropriate, I know it turns a blind eye to the very important truth
about our relationship with God. We often think we must do the right thing to please God. We must say the right words to persuade God into thinking that we are smart, wonderful, and lovable. We think that if we act the right way, God will react graciously.

Yet, if we are really paying attention to the words we pray in our Prayer of the Day for Ash Wednesday, we will be reminded of something wonderful. “Almighty and ever-living God, you hate nothing you have made, and you forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and honest hearts. ”It is God who has acted in creation, and we are invited to respond. Not the other way around.

God’s mission has been in motion long before our existence and our very creation is a call to join in that mission. But we do have a choice as to whether or not we accept our vocational call to follow Jesus. Just like each of the disciples who encountered Jesus’ invitation to “follow me,” we too must decide whether or not to set aside our own self-interests that consume our time and distract us from our calling to join Jesus in the journey to Easter.

And that is what Ash Wednesday is all about: an invitation. One part of the Ash Wednesday service is the Invitation to Lent which includes my saying to the congregation: “I invite you, therefore, to the discipline of Lent – self-examination and repentance, prayer and fasting, sacrificial giving and works of love – strengthened by the gifts of word and sacrament.” Lent is about taking some time to step back from the picture to take a look at the beauty of the canvas. What is missing? What can we do with God’s help to bring the picture more fully into focus?

Our Lenten pilgrimage is one that is taken with Jesus, just like the disciples journeyed with him during his life and ministry here on earth. Jesus is God Emmanuel, which means God with us. We are not alone. God will help create in us new and honest hearts if we will just hand over what is unnecessary and burdening us and open our hands to receive the support we need for the journey.
To join God in this mission is to walk with God toward Easter.

Blessings on your Lenten journey,

Pastor David
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February 2025

Is wisdom with the aged, and understanding in length of days?
(Job 12:12)

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Last month I celebrated my 77 th birthday. I have never been one to give age much thought, but turning 77, for some reason, has been a harsh reality. I am old! So, what does this mean? I can’t ignore my age any longer.

In her book, The Gift of Years: Growing Old Gracefully, Joan Chittister writes about old age: “In some ways, we are all just getting to be more of who and what we have always been. Which means, of
course, that we can decide right now what we intend to be like when we are eighty: approachable and loveable, or tyrannous and fractious.” Personally, I think I will concentrate on approachable and loveable.

Instead of honouring the wisdom and experience of the generations before us, as did the Greeks, Romans, and Native Americans, our industrial/technological society denies our maturity and wisdom. Experience seems to count for nothing.

Fortunately, we do not have to accept this. We can continue to be more of what we have always been: productive, creative, engaged, necessary. Our efforts may not look the same or be as bold as they once were, but nevertheless, we have the ability to carry on being who we have always been.

There is a freedom that comes in old age: the ability to be the best of the self we have developed over the many years of our life. It is the freedom to gather everything we have learned and put it to use. It is the freedom to give ourselves away to those who really need us in ways we have never
had the chance to do before. We are exempt from having to live a standard- brand life. Freedom in old age is the right to be who we really are.

When we realize that freedom really is the right to be who we really are, rather than someone else in order to fit into whatever situation we find ourselves, perhaps for the first time in our lives, the liberation of the soul begins, and with it the liberation of our minds. We have the right to explore new ideas and to think new thoughts. We can begin to think about God for ourselves, for example. Our answers will be closer to our hearts.

At age 77 or 65 or 91, or whenever we discover this new found freedom, we have the time to think it all through again. Everything. God, life, relationships, behaviours, our goals for the future. Joan Chittister points out that we are free to measure all of them against our experience, to reshape them out of our new knowledge, and to try things wherever our new spiritual energy leads us, to add new ideas to the old ideas that have controlled our lives for so long.

I have come to understand that old age does not have to be an ending but can be a new beginning that is exciting and life-giving. We who have arrived have a choice to make. Either we can surrender, or we can look to a new way of living that offers us the freedom we have desired for so long that we have forgotten such freedom exists. Society can no longer dictate to us who we are or what our life must be. We are free to be who and what we now want to be.

I have heard too many times that being old is not for the faint-hearted. True, we have things in our body that hurt that we never knew existed. We may also have more health challenges than before. These challenges now take up more of our thinking time than they did when we were younger, and other things filled every moment of our lives. Maybe a new way of thinking about being faint-hearted is
being brave enough to think of new ways of being creative, productive, engaged, and necessary. Old age does not have to be about what we cannot do, but should be about what we can do. The choice is ours to make, either approachable and pleasant, or unfair and grumpy.

We have the gift of wisdom and understanding because of our many years of life. Whether we use these gifts, and how we use them, is up to each one of us. To live life without living it with excitement and happiness is one of the saddest burdens a person can choose to carry. I encourage you to prayerfully consider your choices as you grow older. Meanwhile, we continue to grow in wisdom and
understanding each day. Some of us are fortunate and blessed to have a good head start!

Praying God’s Shalom for all of you, younger and older,

Pastor David

Easter Message from Bishop Younan

The Easter Message from Bishop Younan
As we continue our Easter journey through the fifty days to Pentecost, I am sharing this timely Easter message from Bishop Younan, the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. Having spent a total of six weeks in Palestine and Israel I am acutely aware of the oppression the Christian people suffer in these countries. These are the descendants of the original Christians. Many have left, with many coming to Canada. In light of the reality under which these people live, I hope you can find the same meaning and hope in Bishop Younan’s Easter message as I have.
Shalom, Pastor David
Resurrection Joy in a Fearful World

Easter Message 2017 – From Bishop Dr. Munib Younan
“…the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.” ~ Matthew 28:5-8

Alleluia, Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia! Al-Masih qam! Hakkan qam!
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, on Palm Sunday morning, after being in church and feeling encouraged by the message of “Hosanna!” sung by the children and the congregation, I heard the sad news of the massacre of our sisters and brothers in two churches in Egypt. One cannot receive such horrific news except with tears. The feelings of great joy on our feast day, and great sadness over such a horror, are inseparable—much as the great joy and great fear of Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were inseparable as they ran from the empty tomb.
And so I must confess that as I prepared this Easter message from Jerusalem, the city of the crucifixion and resurrection, to the whole world, I had some doubts in my heart. I thought: What message can I bring this year that is different from past years? Has the Easter message lost its meaning, disregarded by Christians as well as others? Is it just a message of idealism, far from the lived experience of people today? What does the resurrection of Jesus have to say to us in the midst of the terrors, chaos, and uncertainty of today’s world?
But then I remember that the life of faith is not always one of assurances or certainties. Jesus’ own disciples struggled to understand his teachings and his journey to the cross. Peter denied Jesus three times. The guards at the tomb were so afraid that they became “like dead men.” Mary Magdalene and the other Mary ran from the tomb with “fear and great joy.” And on the walk to Emmaus, the disciples did not recognize the risen Christ until the breaking of the bread.
Therefore, there is no shame to admit that here in the Middle East it is a very challenging time to proclaim and live the Good News of the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus. The struggles we are facing are very real and are becoming even more complicated. We have good reason to feel confused! And still, the message of Easter comes to us very clearly: Christ is risen! The powers of sin and death have been defeated! And as the angel of the Lord has promised, the risen Christ now goes before us to lead the way in this broken—and often frightening—world.
I think of the story of St. Augustine, who was full of doubt but prayed earnestly for the gift of faith in God. While he was praying, he heard the voice of a child saying, “Pick it up and read! Pick it up and read!” He thought this could be the Lord telling him to read the Holy Scriptures, so he searched and found a Bible. Then he opened it and read the first verse he saw, from the Letter of Paul to the Romans: “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh or the gratification of your desires.” (Romans 13:14) The young Augustine read no further, for there was no need. He later wrote: “No sooner had I reached the end of the verse than the light of certainty flooded my heart and all dark shades of doubt fled away.” (Confessions)

Thanks be to God, the risen Christ always comes to us when we are full of doubt, and shows us the way of love and light! For this reason, even in the midst of our confusion and sadness over the killing of innocent Christians at prayer, we can say with certainty: There is no religion which accepts the killing of innocent worshipers, who were doing nothing but seeking closeness with God. These acts are untenable and unaccepted in any religion. We are grateful that the vast majority of Muslim friends also stand with us as equal citizens against such horrors.
Today we are also facing a horrible and confusing situation in Syria, in Iraq, and across the Middle East. We see the images of chemicals stealing the breath from children, and of cities lying in rubble, and we wonder, “What can we do?” At the same time, we see missiles flying and we are afraid of what comes next – for Syria, and for the whole Middle East.
And again, although we may feel confused, because we have seen the risen Christ we know one thing for certain: Syria has no need of more weapons, more violence, or more massacres, or more extremism from anybody. This is creating international tension, straining relations between friends and partners, and we are afraid of what comes next. I urge world leaders to hear the words of Jesus to Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane, after Peter had cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant: “Return your sword to its sheath! For those who live by the sword will die by the sword.” Violence breeds violence, whether it is committed by terrorists or by governments. I call on the leaders of the world: Return your swords to their sheaths! Bring instead peace based on justice to Syria, to Iraq, to Palestine and to the whole Middle East. Bring a future for us and for our children.
As Christians in the Holy Land today, the turmoil in these many neighbor countries is very frightening. At the same time, here at home we are in our fiftieth year of occupation. Many Palestinian Christians are asking, “How long, O Lord? When will this end? Where do we belong?”
For this reason, I feel it is important to acknowledge that even as we sing our joyful “Hallelujahs” and celebrate Our Lord’s victory over death, some fear and confusion and doubts still remain. And yet, we must remember that we are not alone. These are the very same feelings the disciples felt after the resurrection of Jesus.
When our Lord was raised on that resurrection morning, the earth shook, an angel arrived in a flash of lightning, and the stone rolled away from Jesus’ tomb. It seemed the very foundations of heaven and earth had shifted. What we proclaim today as Good News, at that time was only confusing, frightening news! The guards, the women, and the disciples were all afraid of what they saw and heard. They were all afraid of what would come next. They wondered what the resurrection meant for their lives.
And yet, this same earth-shaking event is the one that gives us hope today. The powers and principalities of sin and death could not overcome the love of God. Yes, they could crucify Jesus. Yes, they could bury Jesus. But they could not bury God’s love for the world!

In the midst of their confusion, the angel told the ones gathered at the tomb, “He is not here, He is risen!” In the midst of bombings, Christ is risen! In the midst of persecution, Christ is risen! In the midst of violence and occupation, Christ is risen! In the midst of poverty and sickness, Christ is risen! In the midst of war, Christ is risen! And in the midst of our families, our communities, and our churches today, Christ is risen!

This is our hope, and we must cling to it. The message of Easter is not idealism. Christ’s victory over sin, death, and despair, is the only hope that has kept Christians steadfast in this land for two thousand years. It is the only hope that carried the saints of every age through trials, struggles, and persecutions. And it is the only hope that today will carry us through these confusing times in the Middle East and throughout the world. The Good News of the resurrection gives Christians clarity and purpose, no matter where they are, and no matter what the future brings. Jesus, the Morning Star, goes before us to lead the way—and the Way of Jesus is always the way of peace, justice, mercy, healing, reconciliation, respect for diversity, and living together as one people of God.
Therefore, Palestinian Christians will continue to be steadfast in our land. We will continue to carry the message of resurrection in the face of all who promote a culture of death. In the midst of power struggles, political maneuvering, and the growth of extremism in our world, we will only proclaim the culture of life and life abundantly, will full dignity for every human being. As we celebrate Our Lord’s victory over death, in this 500th year of the Reformation, let us trust that Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection have already liberated us by grace. We are not afraid! Despite all troubles and tribulations, let us go out from our churches and into the world with the joy of the resurrection, knowing that the risen Christ goes always before us. Let us encourage one another with the two-thousand year-old Easter greeting of Jerusalem:

Hallelujah! Christ is risen! Al-Masih qam! Hakan qam!

April 2017 Message from Pastor Dave

Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but he has risen. (Luke 24: 5)

Is Easter incomplete if you did not receive a chocolate Cadbury egg? Thanks to modern media advertising many people, young and old, think Easter is a failure if they do not receive the expected goodies. After all, what is Easter without enough assorted candies to cause a diabetic coma? Sadly, for many Easter ends with the Easter basket.

Those who know me know I love my sweets, and no one enjoyed their Easter basket growing up more than I did, but Easter in my family did not stop with the colourful eggs and jellybeans nestled among the assorted candies. Easter was a time for family and for church. Holy week was a week that always felt different in my home. There were the usual joyful preparations for family arriving and Easter dinner, but there was also an underlying seriousness that grew as we approached the Three Days. We attended Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services as a family. The reality of Easter was better understood in the context of the worship experience of the previous two days. After all, you can’t have Easter without Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. I am very grateful that my parents made sure my sister and I knew and experienced the entire story, not just the fun part.

As we approach Holy Week and the Three Days, I hope everyone will participate in the entire journey, and not just settle for the easy parts. Easter is not just about running to the empty tomb. Easter is also about the journey after the empty tomb, about allowing this journey to take us to the deepest regions of our hearts and minds. In the resurrection of Jesus Christ God gave us such a miracle of love and forgiveness that it is worthy of our full attention and consideration. The resurrection is not an ending, but a beginning.

A chocolate Cadbury egg is so very insignificant compared to the gift of the resurrected Christ that it probably should not even be mentioned. Yet, it receives more attention during the Easter season than does the risen Christ. So, I guess the question is, “What is in your Easter basket? Is there room for the entire Easter story, or have the Cadbury eggs crowded out the true gift of Easter, the entire story of the Resurrected Christ?

Shalom, Pastor David