Pentecost Musings

Pentecost Musings

May 30, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…  

Tomorrow marks the great celebration of Pentecost. Though we have not yet received permission from our Bishop, we are going out on a limb and declaring this Sunday to be Pajama Sunday at TLC. This unprecedented display of casual attire will give you the opportunity to show off your most fashionable sleepwear and worship God at the same time. Set your alarm for worship or sleep in, get out of bed or stay put and stay cozy, but do show up for worship. The community will be waiting for you.

The service will feature familiar inspirational music, and during Holy Communion we will be the first to hear a brand-new song written this week by Karl Olsen.

Pentecost remembers the miraculous moving of the Holy Spirit some 2,000 years ago. The story is recorded in the second chapter of Acts. Devout Jews from the far corners of the Roman Empire had made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate the Spring harvest festival called the “Feast of Weeks.” The yearly festival took place 50 days after Passover.

A handful of followers of Jesus were in Jerusalem. It had been 10 days since Jesus had ascended into heaven. Jesus had promised his followers the gift of the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit would lead them as they ventured out to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world. They would need all the help that they could get. Remember, the Christian Church did not exist. There were no churches, no money, no plan, no pianos, no quilters, no choirs, and no coffee hours.

The Jews who came to Jerusalem had traveled from small towns and villages, they spoke a variety of languages, their skin color, dress, and diet were not uniform. In fact, among the pilgrims, nothing was uniform. It was a melting pot of cultures and races. Peter stood up to preach, when suddenly there were tongues of fire and a violent, rushing wind. The Holy Spirit of God moved with abandon through the crowd, and everyone understood what Peter was saying. And 3,000 were baptized that day.

The miracle of Pentecost was not confusion or conformity. The miracle was clarity, as everyone heard the good news in their own native tongue. The diversity of language, culture, food, and dress was always present in the church. God’s desire was never to make every flower a rose, every bird a robin, or every tree an oak. The diversity was a part of creation, not a mistake of evolution.

In this season of heightened racial tension, may we remember that all people were created in the image of God. All races and genders are precious. Bigotry, racism, prejudice of any kind, is contrary to the teachings of the one who cautioned us against judging and commanded that we love our neighbor. And who is this neighbor that I am supposed to love? They all are! The sooner that we get that straight, the better off our world will be.

Get out those pajamas, grab a cup of coffee, set up your home altar, and I will see you in the morning.

We are one day closer!

Much love,
Pastor Jim

Three Dogs, The Woods, and the Path of Peace – Part 2

Three Dogs, The Woods, and the Path of Peace – Part 2

May 29, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog

Today’s Word from Rev. David Bieniek…  

Last time I wrote, we were in the middle of a dog walk. The walk continues today…

The dogs lead the way down the trail. The old dog seems to pull the hardest, always wanting to be the lead. The bigger, youngest dog is alive to the world, sniffing, tasting, and reveling in the world she plows through. Meanwhile, the little one bounces all over the place, back and forth between me and the other two, trying to be ahead or between, but always with his family.

These dogs have taught me so much about being a community, being a family. Though they are each very different, and have their own ways of dealing with each other, together they are a force to be reckoned with. When they are focused, they all pull together and walk side by side. If I was on skates or in a sled, this walk would be over in no time.

We, too, need to learn this lesson. We are all different. We will never get to the point of always getting along perfectly. We will never agree completely. But, like these three canine companions, there is more that unites us than divides us. Together, we need to learn to pull together to get through this walk we call life. Together, we can get the job done, and make this world a better place. We need to realize our strengths and use those to our advantage, instead of fighting over the small details that so easily divide us.

All too soon, the dogs leap over the log, and we re-enter the world we call life; but not before we pass one more reality of life, death. There is a small cemetery just inside these woods, no more than six graves. It looks ancient, and I wonder about the people who are buried here; how were they connected to these woods? Then I realize that one of the graves is only four years old – the grave of a 70-year-old woman whose last request was to be buried in these woods. Perhaps her children or grandchildren are some of the people I know on this island home. Her resting place in these woods is becoming as special to me as it was to her. I realized we are connected in death, even if we were not in life.

We are home; the dogs drink their water and collapse on the floor. We have found a resting place at home, but where will my final resting place be? Will it be a place that speaks to me of peace, like these woods we just walked? Perhaps my final resting place is to be in the winds over the ocean, that I might float free and easy. There seems to be no greater peace this world can offer.

May your walks be many, and the Source of all Peace continue to inspire me… and you.

Rev. Dave Bieniek

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Three Dogs, The Woods, and the Path of Peace, Part 1

Three Dogs, The Woods, and the Path of Peace, Part 1

May 28, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog

Today’s Word from Rev. David Bieniek…  

This was a blog I wrote my first month on Whidbey Island, back in July 2010. Sadly, two of the dogs have since passed on, but their lessons for me continue…

I remember seeing a cartoon that showed a man talking to his dog. The thought bubble above the dog’s head read, “Blah, blah, blah, treat, blah, blah.” I am quite sure our dogs would never think that when we are talking to them. In addition to “treat,” our dogs know hungry, food, walk, and occasionally sit, stay, and shake. I used the “w-word” this morning, and they were ready! Within a few minutes, leashes were on, coffee was in a travel mug, and we were off.

We cross a busy street on the way to the woods near the house. They stay on the leash as we enter the woods, partially because that is one of the rules of the trail, but also because I don’t quite trust them if we round a corner and find a rabbit or deer. One distraction, and I would be abandoned.

As we enter the woods, I am immediately struck by the darkness. This is mid-morning by now, and still there is a darkness and stillness. The Czech philosopher, Kafka, said that in the forest, darkness does not fall, but rises up from the ground. I realize that daylight seems to follow the opposite path. The sun needs to be high in the sky before it illuminates the floor.

Sometimes it is that way in our spiritual lives. We may not notice the blessings at our fingertips until something above catches our attention, and we feel the warmth on our heads to remind us that the goodness is always there. Our roots begin to feel the warmth of love and blessing, as the light bathes us from above. If only we could recognize that we are always bathed in peace and blessings, perhaps we could then spread that to those close to us.

Deeper into the woods, there is a log that has fallen across the path. The dogs deftly jump the log as I step over and realize that it is a doorway into a different world. We are now surrounded by sights, smells, and sounds that are new and fresh and different. My senses are alive to the world around me. Even the coffee that I have struggled to keep in the travel mug, tastes sweeter and more soothing.

Our senses are not only the connection to the physical world, but our senses can also be our entry to deeper spiritual life. Many spiritual writers have noted the importance of being open to the Divine through smells, visions, and sounds in the world around us. And this morning heightens my awareness of the blessings all around me.

As we continue our walk, I notice the beauty in these cathedral-like woods. Like ancient spiritual places, they draw our eyes heavenward. The striking difference between the deep green of the trees and the azure blue sky invites a sense of peace. The contrasting colors remind me that it is possible to find beauty and peace in a world where war and hatred is all around.

If you can, take a walk today, either with a furry companion, with a socially distant friend, or even by yourself. Be open to finding the blessings at your footfall. Use your senses to discover God’s grandeur all around.

I will continue this walk with our dogs in my next installment. I hope you will tune in…

Rev. Dave Bieniek

To make a donation to Trinity, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give/

Going Forward

Going Forward

May 27, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog

Today’s Word from Pastor Tom Kidd… 

On Memorial Day, I went for a visit with Dad. Dad’s current address is Sunnyside Cemetery, Coupeville. It is a bit of a family joke, but we like to say Mom and Dad have a nice room with a view. Anyway, Dad’s headstone reads:

Vivian T Kidd
S Sgt US Army Air Forces
World War II
Feb 1915 – April 2009
Beloved Husband
Father & Grandfather

Mom lived another 7 years. Every Memorial Day, I go for a visit and a little conversation.

Vivian, kind of an interesting name for a dad, don’t you think? Dad was a tobacco sharecropper’s son. All the men in his life, a father and three brothers, were dead by age 32. He was pretty much on his own in his teens, with a 6th grade education. His story was not unique for his generation, lots of survivors of the Depression became members of a unique fraternity known as the greatest generation. He was a good man. Never really heard him complain (unless it had to do with mom saying, “You’re not going to wear that are you?”). He grew up in a segregated, sometimes racist, world, yet continued to grow and evolve so that by the last chapter of his life, he was one of the most inclusive-thinking men I knew. That memory makes me proud.

Toward the end of Dad’s life, if I was in need of one of his ice-breaking smiles, I would ask him, “What was the name of that song they sang at your baptism?” He might not open his eyes, but he’d smile and start singing, “Shall We Gather at the River.” All four verses. Long ago, he told me about that day down at the Ohio River. There were some terrible parts to his life, but he always kept going forward. I think about that a lot, about going forward.

There are many reasons that motivate a person to keep moving forward. Sometimes anger will do the trick, or desire for revenge, or monetary gain, or hate, or… you get the idea. My experience is that hope is a uniquely religious motivation that inspires us to keep moving forward. Viktor Frankl (“Man’s Search for Meaning”) wrote profoundly of the power of hope as a result of his experience surviving German concentration camps. Even among the most hideous realities of such inhumane places of death, those who could raise up hope had a chance for survival. There is power in hope.

Hope itself is a sign of salvation. Let that wash over you for a few minutes. Think of hope not as a gift, or an idea, or a goal to be achieved as a result of a level of faith. Think of the experience of hope as a sign that the Kingdom of God is present with you. Like oxygen. If you have hope, you can live with the assurance that God is close. And hope keeps us moving forward.

“… we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God… and hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out his love into our hearts…” Romans 5:1-5.

Hope is more than willpower; it is a sign of God’s very presence.

In this pandemic age of fear, confusion, anger, disease, isolation and death, the world needs us more than ever. We are holy agents of hope. Hope, which is core to our being as followers of Jesus, is the sign that the Kingdom of God is close, despite life’s circumstances. We are unique, we are ambassadors of “going forward,” even in the face of all that is going, or could go, wrong.

So, on Memorial Day, I visit Sunnyside Cemetery, lay a rose, and have a conversation with Staff Sargent Vivian T. Kidd. I need to be reminded what going forward can look like… “Dad, what was that song they sang at your baptism?”

Pastor Tom

To make a donation to Trinity, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give/

Protecting Jesus

Protecting Jesus

May 26, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…  

“Then little children were being brought to Jesus in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them.” Matthew 19:13

It was there in the beginning; I guess one might say that we come by it naturally. We feel the need to protect Jesus. The faithful, the institutional church, good God-fearing Christians, somehow came to the conclusion that the master of the universe needed protection. Did this Rabbi need bodyguards? In the end, it seems that he did; but the disciples were never asked to perform this service, and when real danger appeared, they disappeared into the darkness.

Children were not highly regarded in Jesus’ day. Half of them would not live to adulthood. They were poor investments that needed to be fed and cared for. Children, women, old men, and old slaves were viewed as physically weak burdens on society. They had little or no value. In Greece and Rome, it was the accepted practice to abandon unwanted children along the roadside to die.

The disciples wanted to protect their Rabbi from wasted time and wasted energy. An alternative translation says that they “scolded those who brought them.” Scolded the women, because the women were the only ones who cared for and loved the children.

Protecting Jesus is an interesting concept. We come by it naturally.

One of my guiding principles in leading a community of faith is that God does not need my protection. There is a great debate in the Christian Church about pandemic online worship. The debate revolves around the sharing of Holy Communion across the airwaves. If I thought that the body and blood of Jesus needed my protection, I may have entered the debate, but I don’t, so I haven’t. I think that Jesus can take care of himself.

Protecting Jesus is an interesting concept. We come by it naturally and we attempt it awkwardly. The church decided that it needed to protect Jesus from sinners. The church decided that it needed to protect Jesus from those who were divorced. The church decided that it needed to protect Jesus from the children of God who were gay or lesbian. For Christ’s sake, the church should mind its own business and preach the gospel, feed the hungry, and tend to the sick. Good Christians, under the guise of “protecting Jesus,” try to prevent access to Jesus. In fact, the good Christians are self-righteously trying to protect themselves from being counted among the sinners.

“Then little children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them; but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”

“Such as these?” That means the children, and the women, and the old men, and the slaves. The care and concern that Jesus showed for children is found nowhere else in the ancient world.

“Christianity is one beggar, telling another beggar where he found bread.” D.T. Niles. Protecting Jesus, protecting the church? Strange concept, may God forgive us.

Much love,
Pastor Jim

To make a donation to Trinity, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give/