Au Revoir, Ciao, Adjo, Farvel, Zai Jian, Auf Wiedersehen, Sayonara, Aloha, Goodbye!
No matter how we say it, it is farewell for now as Pastor Erik, Chris, Kai, and Naomi begin their long anticipated Sabbatical journey the first week in March.
Rev. David Wold will preach at the 10:30am Worship Service, and Pastor Kindem will preside. Revs. Eldon Olson and Martha Myers will also be participating, and there will be a laying on of hands and blessing of the Kindem family at the end of the service. A celebration lunch will follow.
Questions can be directed to Leslie Hoots or Susan Munn.
The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened. – Matthew 13:33
Beloved of God,
I love baking bread from scratch. In my book few things in life match the satisfying aroma of freshly baked bread just out of the oven and the message of home, hearth and love it conveys. And I love this image Matthew gives us of a God who, like this Bakerwoman, is willing to get up to her elbows in dough, kneading and turning, pushing and folding and then, waiting with patience as the leavening does its thing, transforming a handful of ingredients into a life-sustaining loaf of bread. Friends, you and I are in that dough! And God’s strong hands, and the Spirit’s leaven, are at work in, with, and through us bringing lightness, structure and substance to a world that is longing to be fed with food that will truly sustain—the kind of bread only God can provide.
At our annual meeting (January 26) I suggested that, while it can seem like drudgery at times, the annual meeting can also be an occasion for taking in the satisfying aroma of the mission we’ve been about together; time for marking our journey, giving thanks for God’s sustaining gifts, and setting our sights toward God’s hope-filled future. Peace is a Spirit-blessed community through whom God is bringing gifts of bread in the form of welcome, joy, belonging, and good news into the world. What a privilege it is to be part of it!
2014 will be an important year for this congregation.Capital projects that have been on the drawing board—projects your collective generosity will enable us to fund—will begin taking on flesh. And in a scant few weeks we’ll embark on our first-ever sabbatical experiences as pastor and congregation. For us Kindems that experience will be marked by a geographic pilgrimage from Seattle to New England, the British Isles, France and Italy, and encounters with places and people of whom we could only dream, were it not for your support and the incredible generosity of Christian Theological Seminary and the Lilly Foundation.
You, for your part, will have your own set of opportunities for a sabbatical journey which, though less geographical in nature, is no less spiritual. Under the coordinated leadership of the Sabbatical Planning Team and Church Council the table is being set for some truly marvelous and extraordinary experiences! My fervent prayer is that each one of you will choose in your own ways to embrace and enter into as many of those experiences as you can; to find your place at that table, for I am convinced that great gifts and life-sustaining food await those who will do so.
March 2nd will be my final Sunday with you until August. Realizing that I need to be on the receiving end of the sermon that day and to sit with my family, I have asked Rev. David Wold to be the Word-bringer that morning, and he has graciously consented. Rev. Eldon Olson and Rev. Martha Myers will also have roles within the service. I will preside at the Table where—just as he promised— Christ will meet us with bread for the journeys we are about to make. Following worship, we’ll gather for a bon voyage celebration meal. I would love to see you here at Peace that morning.
Please hold our family in prayer—as I know you already do—as we move through this final month of preparation for this life changing journey. There are still a number of details that need attending before we step on the plane, and alongside these, there’s the ongoing inward preparation for this extended Sabbath. We, in turn, will be holding you in our hearts, and look forward to posting some of our thoughts and photos on a Sabbatical blog I’m in the process of setting up.
The God we meet in Jesus is both a Bakerwoman and a steady Companion, (a word which means, literally, “one who shares bread”) who meets us on whatever road we may be traveling, in whatever circumstances, assuring us that he is both able and willing to go the distance by our side. For this we cry, Thanks Be to God!
With you, on the Way,
Pastor Erik
“O God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us, through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvelous error! — that a spring was breaking out in my heart. I said: Along which secret aqueduct, oh water, are you coming to me, water of a new life that I have never drunk?
– Antonio Machado
Beloved of God,
As we mark the beginning of the New Year—and with it the manifestation of the Christ Child through the shining of a star—this poem by Antonio Machado calls to me. I received it from a friend recently, and it became a welcome companion on the plod through dark winter days. The surprises and delights of which it speaks are like the delectable dates another friend recently shared—a sweet embodiment of the promise that the sun will again shine bright and warm. The second group of stanzas, in particular, beckons, as 2013 becomes 2014:
Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvelous error! — that I had a beehive here inside my heart. And the golden bees were making white combs and sweet honey from my old failures.
“Sweet honey from old failures”…Ah! Now that’s a prescription for the start of a new year: the conversion of all my unfinished tasks, unattained goals, and unfulfilled promises from bitter fruit to sweet concoction! Oh, that such a dream would come true!
Dreams figure significantly in the stories Matthew tells around the birth of Jesus and the appearance of the star that guides the mysterious Magi. A dream convinces Joseph to stand with pregnant Mary rather than call off their engagement. A dream forestalls disaster when Joseph is warned to flee with the family from Herod’s murderous rage and find refuge in Egypt. And when the Magi locate the Star Child, it is a dream that tells them to steer clear of Herod and journey home by another way. In his book, Dreams: A Way to Listen to God, Morton Kelsey writes:
If it is absurd to believe that human beings can be reached and touched by the dynamism that lies at the heart of the universe, then dreams have little or no religious meaning. Then dreams may be at most a help in unraveling the tangled web of one’s personal life… If, however, humankind is open to another dimension of reality, then the dream may be one of the most common avenues through which God reaches out to us.
Both Kelsey and Machado testify to the same truth, each in his own voice: the Divine seeps into our lives in differing ways, by differing paths; at times most potently and profoundly through the language of dreams.
Last night as I was sleeping, I dreamt—marvelous error!— that a fiery sun was giving light inside my heart. It was fiery because I felt warmth as from a hearth, and sun because it gave light and brought tears to my eyes.
As this season of light unfolds, Jesus is revealed as the Light no darkness can overcome. He brings God’s light to the darkest places of our world and tells us that this is where God is to be found. He calls us to be light for each other.
January is a full month for our congregation. Decisions will be made regarding how we will pursue and fund our mission in 2014. Opportunities for leadership and involvement abound as we prepare for the upcoming sabbatical. At the root of all of these tasks and challenges is the conviction that we are not doing this on our own, but are accompanied by the One who called us through waters to new life, marking us with the cross of Christ and sealing us with the Holy Spirit. This Triune God became God-With-Us in Jesus, and is as close to us as our own beating hearts. Machado’s final stanzas bring us home:
Last night as I slept, I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that it was God I had here inside my heart.*
That’s a dream I’ll be striving to hold fast as the months ahead unfold.
We will mark the New Year in worship at Peace on January 5th, as we celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany. Please join with us as we usher in 2014, and hear the story of the Star which guides the Magi to the infant Christ
Christian Education will resume January 12 @ 9:15am.
We are your people of the night, we long to see your newborn light, Distant glimmer rising from afar! We await you, holy morning star! For in our winter we are dead, lead us in hope to see ahead the springtime and the gift that is to come. Come and save us, be God’s only Son!
– David Haas, People of the Night
To Those Who Wait,
Advent is once again upon us, ushered in with the reverberant echoes of Isaiah’s voice announcing God’s Dream for the world. This Dream is grounded in four texts from four chapters this season: Isaiah 2, Isaiah 11, Isaiah 35 and Isaiah 7.* How is it that these ancient prophecies—first spoken to a different people at a time and in a place so far removed from our own—still retain their majesty and power? (The full citations are listed under Worship Life on page 4 below.)
Swords beaten into plowshares Predator and prey living without fear Desert lands becoming bubbling springs A maiden’s womb which bears Immanuel
At their hearts, these four texts are about transformation, and I look forward to exploring them with you in the weeks to come. Our worship planning team has developed “windows” for entering into the spirit of these texts even before we cross through the doors of the nave. We invite you to enter them with us.
Each of us has favorite moments (and, let’s be honest, dreaded ones too) that we anticipate during the weeks leading up to Christmas. Getting the tree, making the special recipes, finding “just right” gifts for each person on the list. During this tradition-laden season it’s easy to simply put our heads down and turn on autopilot in an effort to sustain traditions that have become central to our observance of the season. The gospel texts of Advent challenge the “autopilot” mode by striking provocative, evocative, and sometimes discordant tones; sounds which are meant to wake us up and call us back to first things.
Advent hymns do similar work, but do it in a way that is less strident and therefore more inviting. The hymn by David Haas quoted above and below, is one example. “In our winter we are dead,” the words declare. If such a thing is true, might we then ask which traditions we choose bring us closer to the season’s beating heart and “lead us in hope to see ahead the springtime and the gift that is to come”?
While awaiting Immanuel, we discover the truth that he—“the living word, the saving voice” also “waits for us.” And knowing this, we know that our waiting can be joyful rather than fearful. “GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY” is how the angels first sang it to shepherds’ ears. And good news of great joy is, above all, what we long for still.
Pastor Erik
You wait for us, you are our choice, the living word; the saving voice.Break the silence, listen to our call! Be our answer, new life for us all!Give us new faith, give us the joy, as we await your Son, the Lord.In our presence, child born of your breath, Savior brother; life that shatters death!
1 There are 32 million fewer girls than boys in primary school.
Education First: An Initiative of the United Nations Secretary General, 2012.
A girl with an extra year of education can earn 20% more as an adult.
The World Bank, 2011.
2 65 million girls are out of school globally.
EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
An educated mother is more than twice as likely to send her children to school.
UNICEF, 2010.
3 There are still 31 million girls of primary school age out of school.
EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
10% fewer girls under the age of 17 would become pregnant in sub-Saharan Africa and South and West Asia if they had a primary education. EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
4 There are 34 million female adolescents out of school globally.
EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
If India enrolled 1% more girls in secondary school, its GDP would rise by $5.5 billion.
CIA World Factbook,Global Campaign for Education, and RESULTS Education Fund.
5 14 million girls under 18 will be married this year. That’s 38 thousand today – or 13 girls in the last 30 seconds. UNFPA, 2012
Girls with secondary education are 6 times less likely to be married as children.
If all girls had a secondary education, there would be two-thirds fewer child marriages.
EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
6 In a single year, an estimated 150 million girls were victims of sexual violence.
UNIFEM, 2011. 7 And 50 % of sexual assaults in the world victimize girls under the age of 15. UNFPA, 2005.
Education empowers women to overcome discrimination. Girls and young women who are educated have greater awareness of their rights, and greater confidence and freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health, and boost their work prospects. Education First: An Initiative of the United Nations Secretary General, 2012.
8 In developing countries, the #1 cause of death for girls 15-19 is childbirth.
World Health Organization, 2012
Child deaths would be cut in half if all women had a secondary education, saving 3 million lives. And all maternal deaths would be reduced by two-thirds if each mother completed primary education. EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
9 Two-thirds of the 792 million illiterate adults in the world are female.
EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012
A literate mother has a 50% higher chance that her child will survive past the age of 5.
UNESCO, 2011.
10 There are 9.9 million girls out of school in Nigeria, Pakistan, and Ethiopia.
World Bank Education Statistics, 2012.
By attaining a secondary education, a Pakistani woman can earn 70 percent what men earn, as opposed to only 51 percent with a primary education. EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012.
“Christ is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
– Colossians 1:17
Beloved of God,
“Hold it together, Erik,” the voice said. Turns out, it was my own.
“Hold it together” is a key phrase in my self-talk lexicon. An appropriate one, too, at those times when I have so many balls in the air I have to struggle to avoid dropping them all. The phrase is made of equal parts encouragement and judgment. The encouraging part says: “It’s not too late, Erik. Just chill. Pull back now and you can regain your balance; you can do it.” The judgment part says: “Here we go again…I can’t believe you’ve allowed yourself to be in this same situation again for the umpteenth time!”
Sometimes the voice carries the overtones of a parent or teacher, coach or boss I’ve known. But most of the time I recognize it as my own voice, warning me that the steering’s about to go out and I’m not buckled in; that I’m approaching a limit, coming to an edge, about to lose my balance. The problem is, by the time that voice pops up, it’s often too late. Like old Wily Coyote, in his famous battles with Roadrunner, my feet have left terra firma and are frantically peddling out in midair. Then gravity takes over…you get the picture. If I could only HOLD THINGS TOGETHER!
When Paul addresses the congregation at Colossi, he uses a huge canvas to paint with broad, sweeping strokes, his portrait of Christ. With the lyric of an early Christian hymn as his muse, he throws bold colors across the page:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation…For in him all things in heaven and on earth were created…All things have been created through him and for him…For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…He is before all things, and in him all things hold together…
In case you haven’t got it, says Paul, Christ Jesus is God’s instrument for reconciling ALL THINGS in heaven and on earth, and God gets it done—alarmingly, amazingly, ironically, dumbfoundedly—through the cross.
Coming at the tail end of the church’s year, November is a month in which we behold the sweeping promises of God coming to fruition in the lives of the saints, in St. Paul’s testimony to a community that’s worried sick about the future, and in the figure of the One who, from the cross, declares—“Today you will be with me in Paradise.” Paul’s testimony to the Colossians on Christ Reigns Sunday, the final Sunday of the Christian year, is a profound reminder that while we can’t ever seem to hold our lives together, the Crucified and Risen One does. And not only our lives but ALL THINGS.
As tempting as it is to become curved in on oneself and think “it’s all about me,” it’s not. Our failures—no matter how frequent or colossal—are no match for the grace God pours out upon us in Christ Jesus. God’s purpose and plan are much greater than we can imagine! We get little snippets, glimpses of what God has in store through the testimony of scripture, but scripture is not exhaustive by any means. As Paul says elsewhere,
“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.”[1]
The upshot? We are LOVED, dear ones, with a LOVE that far outstrips our ability to comprehend. A LOVE that encompasses and, finally, overwhelms the crises—large or small—that populate our days. Christ calls us through the waters of baptism to wade in that LOVE, and at the Table to eat and drink it so that we may become one with it, with him.
Bread for the World – Offering of Letters – Sunday, October 20
education hour on October 20 (9:15 a.m.) will begin with the writing of letters to U.S. Senators and Representatives about our hunger concerns — urging their support for “A Place at the Table” for our most vulnerable citizens. This will be Peace Lutheran’s fifth year of participation in this national Christian effort. Come for informational video and inspiration, and “breads of the world” refreshments too! too! (www.bread.org)
As our congregation marks the Season of Creation we have been alert to opportunities to make crucial environmental topics part of our conversation as people of faith. This is part and parcel of our vocation as Earth-stewards. On October 6, LeeAnne Beres, executive director of Seattle based Earth Ministry / Washington Interfaith Power and Light, and Outreach Coordinator Jessica Zimmerle will be our special guests during the 9:15am Adult Forum, teaching a class on the issue of COAL EXPORTING.
There are numerous proposals on the table to develop means for shipping coal mined in Montana through Washington ports to China. LeeAnne will give us some background on what is being proposed; will explore what the environmental, health, transportation, and economic impacts could be if the coal export terminal projects move forward; and what in particular people of faith can do to make their voices heard on the issue. She will also touch on the opportunity we have as people of faith to stand in solidarity with our native brothers and sisters in the Lummi Tribe, as one of the proposed coal export terminals is slated to be on land they hold sacred.
Like so many issues with environmental impact, the issue of whether or not to EXPORT COAL is a complex and multifaceted one. You are invited to enter the conversation on Sunday, beginning at 9:15 in the fellowship hall. I hope to see you here.
“Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck Jacob on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint.”
– Genesis 32:24-25
Beloved of God,
There’s been a lot of wrestling going on in our household these weeks as we grapple with the new rhythm that comes with having both kids in school full time for the first time. We’ve been working on a morning routine that gets everyone up, fed, and out the door to school in time—without eruptions or flares of impatience. And we’ve been helping our children negotiate the expectations that come with being a 4th grader and Kindergartener. When we’re at our best, everything flows smoothly, like a well-choreographed dance. And when we’re less than our best…well—I know you’ve been there!
There are moments in our lives when we can see change coming, can feel the tide shifting, the season changing, and we know that we will not be able to return to what once was. These moments can be exhilarating as well as frightening, full of hope as well as grief. Inevitably, they leave their mark on us.
In a story we’ll hear in worship this month, Jacob experiences one of those moments…a wrestling match on the bank of an ancient river. You remember Jacob—second born twin of Isaac and Rebekah who robbed his brother Esau of both his birthright and his father’s blessing and then skipped town. Twenty years and a lot of water have passed under the bridge since Jacob and Esau last set eyes on each other. And Jacob has done quite well for himself. In spite of his underhanded ways, God has blessed him and he has prospered. Now, as Jacob travels with his family and all he has acquired toward the home territory he once knew, word reaches him that brother Esau is heading his way with 400 men. Jacob is scared spitless! As darkness descends, Jacob sends family, servants and possessions across the ford of the river. He will spend the night alone.
Suddenly, out of the shadows, a Stranger leaps on him—who is it? Esau? A demon from the river? All night long they wrestle each other—each one struggling for enough of an advantage to claim victory.
The man said to Jacob, ‘Let me go, for the day is breaking.’ But Jacob said, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’ ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.’
As the first hint of light touches the eastern sky, Jacob—now wounded—wrests a blessing from his Adversary, who, it turns out, is none other than God himself. As Jacob, now free, limps toward the river ford at dawn, he carries a new name—and a new identity: ISRAEL – Striver, Contender, Wrestler with God.
…So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, ‘For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.’ The sun rose upon him as he passed Peniel, limping because of his hip.”
Everywhere we look these days high stakes wrestling matches are going down. As I write, the Federal government is shutting down while Congressional leaders circle each other in a senseless contest that keeps repeating itself over and again—with real consequences for our nation—especially the more vulnerable among us. The newly released United Nations report on climate change introduces the most convincing scientific data to date on the reality of global warming, while those would deny this reality still cling to their ideological positions with religious fervor. Meanwhile, closer to home, I-522 proponents and opponents are setting new $$$ records in that initiative battle on GMO labeling, leaving us voters with the challenge of deciphering it all. The list goes on and on… Perhaps the most challenging wrestling match is the internal one each of us undergoes in deciding which of the myriad issues facing our state and nation deserves our careful attention, our advocacy, our voice.
God loves a good wrestling match. Jesus was willing to go to the mat against the principalities and powers of this world bent on eviscerating our trust in the one true God whose mercy endures forever. But God raised him on the third day, and his resurrection forever changes the odds we face in our battles with whatever comes our way. With Christ in our corner, the odds have shifted permanently in our favor.As Brother Martin affirmed in his famous hymn:
But now a champion comes to fight, whom God himself elected. You ask who this may be? The Lord of hosts is he! Christ Jesus, mighty Lord, God’s only Son, adored. He holds the field victorious.[1]
Struggle is an important part of life—we struggle for clarity on purpose and direction, we wrestle with getting our relationships right and with challenges that face our families and our communities. As followers of Christ, we pay particular attention to the fate of the last, the least, and the lost. Our struggle on their behalf is part and parcel of the call we received in baptism. In a world in which there are no easy answers, we still have a something and someone to guide us. He is the one who went to mat for us all. The one who said: Love your neighbor as yourself.
We are committed to a life together that
builds trust, faith, and confidence in our
common mission and that values the
differences among us.
Our Vision
Grounded in God's grace, we are called to cultivate faith and trust in our life together,
to discern God's challenge into unfamiliar
places, and to venture beyond ourselves,
so all people will experience God's love.
Reconciling in Christ
We welcome people of all sexual orientations and gender identities into the life and mission of our congregation. For more info, Click Here.