My mind is full of a scattering of thoughts today!
Thankful for those who were elected to be voting delegates at this year’s ELCA Churchwide Assembly but also wishing I was there too! I never realized how much my life has become about technology. I’ve considered myself a pretty technically savy person but as of late, I’ve realized how much more I am becoming ingrained in this technology. Internet, Twitter, Facebook, a Kindle, Blogging and the list goes on and on. Last night I found myself tweeting while watching the live stream of the ELCA churchwide assembly. Today I got up early (way early for me) to watch the live stream. Then this afternoon as I worked on stuff in my office, I found myself once again follow along on the Tweeter feed and following along/participating in the Bible Study as well. (I really should have been working on/finishing my sermon for Sunday!)It amazes me how much technology is playing into our world. No wonder this generation is so ingrained by technology. I still am not sure how I feel about technology in general; is it good or is it bad? But what I have come to realize is that it can be helpful. I am excited that even though Im not at the CWA11 I can tweet and follow along with those that are there and those that are also following on the Twitter feed. Makes me feel like a little part of me is part of what is happening in Orlando as well.
“Sometimes you just have to be a pebble in the shoe of the church!” This statement is a statement a friend shared awhile back and it makes me smile because I think it encompasses my call to “diakonia.” Sometimes, ok most of the time, I feel like Im such a stickler, pain in the butt, etc but what I’ve come to realize is that if Im not going to stand up for myself, other rostered leaders and the lay leaders of this church, who will? I understand that when guiding documents were created etc they were created with certain things in mind but like our culture, I believe the culture of the church has changed as well. Therefore I believe it is time to change the language. So for all my dear friends and colleagues in Christ who understand where Im coming from, Im sticking to my guns, “Sometimes you just have to be the pebble in the shoe of the church!”
What does it mean to “Live Lutheran?” I love that the assembly has been showing videos answering this question. They all have been fantastic and make me smile! It also has gotten me thinking about what it means for me to “Live Lutheran?” For me, Living Lutheran is living out my call to diakonia; my call to wash the feet of all God’s people. Living Lutheran is telling all to come to the living water. Living Lutheran is helping all God’s people see what it means to share his love with the world and to see how beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good News. Living Lutheran is about grace, faith, hope, and the promise of the Resurrection. For in the words of WND Synod Bishop Mark Narum, We are an Easter People or in the words of Haitian Pastor Josephus Livenson Lauvanus, “We will not be defined by rubble, because we are a people of the Restoration.” In the words of the ELCA CWA11 theme, Living Lutheran is about being “Freed in Christ to Serve”; freed in Christ to serve the neighbor!!