contributed by Steven Alloway

 Warm-up Question

 Have you ever had to prepare for an important event or occurrence in your life? What was it? How did you prepare? Was it a good event, or a bad one?

Doom Looms for Shishmaref, Alaska

From CNN.com

 A warming climate is having adverse effects on the Eskimo village of Shishmaref, Alaska. As the ice melts gradually earlier in the spring and forms later in the fall, the coast is beginning to erode—and the houses built along it are in danger of falling into the sea. One house has succumbed to the erosion already and thirteen more have been moved inland to protect them from meeting the same fate. Only one house remains—that of Shelton and Clara Koreok, only feet from the edge. Shelton refuses to move, no matter what the danger, because he fears that moving would mean losing everything he knows.

 “This is my hometown,” said Shelton. “I don’t want to go anywhere.”

Discussion Questions

1. Besides the looming danger for their houses, in what other ways do you think this coastal erosion will affect the people of Shishmaref?
2. What do you think the people should do about this crisis? Should they try to prevent further erosion? Carry on in spite of it and find ways of dealing with it? Pack up and leave Shishmaref altogether?
3. What do you think of Shelton Koreok’s decision not to move his house inland? What do you suppose he’ll do if his house falls into the sea?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, December 13,2009 (Third Sunday of Advent)

 (Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Zephaniah 3:14-20

Phillipians 4:4-7

Luke 3:7-8

Gospel Reflection

 We’re in the advent season now: the time of preparation for the coming of Jesus. But what does that preparation entail? Reading the Christmas story in our Bibles? Singing “Silent Night” with friends and family? Putting a manger scene under the tree?

 Well, according to John the Baptizer, there’s quite a bit more to it than that. John came to prepare the way of the Lord, to get the people of Israel ready for his coming. But he didn’t do it by giving them images of a baby in a manger, surrounded by cherubic angels and a blandly serene Virgin Mary. The preparation he spoke of was for an impending doom. He spoke of unquenchable fire. He called his hearers vipers. He told them to expect wrath and an ax poised to cut them down. Far from the traditional Christmas message. But a necessary message for understanding the coming of Christ.

 Jesus came to save us from our sins. So in order to prepare for his coming, we need to think about what sin is and what it means. Sin means condemnation. Sin means unquenchable fire and wrath. In order to be saved, we must recognize our  need for salvation. We must be convicted of our sins and realize that the consequences are death and destruction. We are standing on an eroding coast, and if we stay there, we will surely fall into the sea.

 But Jesus offers to lead us to safety. He can take us away from the impending doom, and give us a new life with him. But we cannot be saved until we first understand that staying where we are means death, and going with Christ means life. Otherwise, we’re like Shelton Koreok: refusing to leave for fear of losing everything—when really, we lose everything only if we stay where we are.

 That’s what repentance is: turning around. We turn from the sinful path we’re on, and instead follow Christ. Jesus came to set us free. His human birth was only the first step. He then lived a human life, and died a human death, just as we do, so that he could save us from the unquenchable fire. Jesus came with a fire of his own: the fire of the Holy Spirit. A fire of life, rather than a fire of death. When we repent of our sins, we are baptized with fire, and the Holy Spirit lives in us. And when the Spirit lives and burns within us, we are able to bear fruits worthy of repentance. But we can only do it if we turn around.

Discussion Questions

1. John provides some suggestions for bearing fruit worthy of repentance (share with those who have nothing, be fair with money). What are some other ways that we can bear fruit worthy of repentance in our own lives?
2. Even in the face of doom, why do you think some people are reluctant to repent and turn to Christ? What do you think they’re afraid of losing?
3. How can we help others this Christmas season to understand what it means to prepare for the coming of Christ?

Suggested Activity:

 Sing, “O Come O Come Emmanuel.” Go through the lyrics one at a time, and talk about what they mean in terms of Christ’s saving us from sin and death.

Closing Prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank you for your saving grace. Thank you for the freedom we have from sin, and our new life with you. As we remember your first coming, prepare our hearts for your Second Coming. Amen

Contributed by Scott A. Moore

Warm-up Question

When have you ever helped someone who was “stuck?”

Preparing a Way for Spirit

The National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) along with Jet Propulsion Laboratories (JPL) and some partners from other countries around the world have been working diligently to find a way out for a stuck Mars rover named Spirit. Spirit has been stuck for over six months now in an area where the ground is made up of very fine, soft sand. The six wheels (one of them has not been working properly for quite a while now) cannot seem to get the traction needed to move forward in any significant way. NASA is not giving up on Spirit, which along with its twin, Opportunity, has continued to function well for five years longer than the originally planned mission of three months. Teams here on earth are working with sample rovers in artificially created environments trying to recreate the actual conditions in order to find the perfect solution…to find a way out. Some of the attempts range from trying various wheel directions and speeds, to having Spirit try to dig itself out with its robotic arms. Just before the Thanksgiving Day weekend, Spirit was commanded to move its wheels forward. NASA indicated that the rover completed a spin which should have equaled a total of 13 feet. The rover actually only moved 0.2 inches forward, 0.1 inches to the left, and 0.1 inches further down into the sand.

To follow the story   http://marsrovers.nasa.gov/home/index.html

• Is it worth the time and effort for NASA to get Spirit unstuck?
• When should someone call it quits and move on?
• Have you ever wanted to help someone else get “unstuck?” If you tried to do something, how did that go?
• What kinds of situations frustrate you the most?
• When have you been “stuck” in a situation where someone else kept trying to help you?
• Where in your life, in your congregation’s life, could you use a little “push” to move forward?
• Who are the people in your life, who are usually able to help you move forward?
• How are they able to help you best?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, December 6, 2009 (Second Sunday of Advent)

(Text links are to oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

• Malachi 3:1-4
• Luke 1:68-79 (78)
• Philippians 1:3-11
• Luke 3:1-6

Gospel Reflection

In the sandy Judean desert, a voice communicates a message of action. The word of God comes to John, son of Zechariah and cousin of a man named Jesus of Nazareth. John is called to go and preach a “baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” The voice of the prophet Isaiah is quoted as the guiding principle of what John is doing. He is preparing the way of the Lord. He is making the Lord’s paths straight. Valleys filled, mountains and hills brought low. Crooked made straight and rough made smooth. He is eliminating every possible barrier between the Lord and the world. 

 A “baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” This seems to be the method to remove every barrier. Repentance seems to be the manner of preparing the way of the Lord. Repentance often sounds to us like simply saying sorry. There is certainly an emotional part to repentance but it is much, much more than that. Repentance in the New Testament is based on a word which means “to change one’s mind.” Repentance is seeing things in a new way, turning towards that new way, and living in that new way.  John’s baptism of repentance is a calling, and a gift of God. It is a call to be washed and set on a new path. It is a call to conversion. This call to repentance is a setting of our thoughts and actions in the Lord’s direction. Not only are we to be turned toward him, but we are to be turned to face the same direction our Lord faces.

Repentance means having our minds turned away from ourselves and our often selfish ways and to be shaped by God’s mind. It is seeing the world with God’s eyes. Perceiving and acting in love for the world and for our neighbor.

Being turned in repentance seems like an easy task. John called for a once and for all repentance. Our reality is often much different than that. We are often called by the voice of God to turn in the right direction, but find ourselves stuck and only able to move in tiny increments.  Or, we try so hard to turn ourselves that we overshoot our goal. God is very patient with us. Again and again God calls us to the way. A way of love, a way of sacrifice, a way of Christ.

Our repentance—never perfect, and never permanent—locates us in the central drama of Advent:  preparing the way of the Lord. In the world, and in our real lives. To that we can only say—“Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.”

• What does God’s “way” look like?
• When are you most comfortable living in that “way?”
• When have you had real difficulties seeing things with a godly mind?
• When have you been successful at getting temporarily unstuck?
• What helps you in your own “changing of your mind” or repentance?
• What makes it difficult for you?
• Who helps you to repent?

Activities

Preparing the Way of the Lord for Others
Here is a list of ideas your group might try in order to prepare the way of the Lord for others:

1. Write and deliver invitations for Christmas worship to people you know are not part of a faith community.
2. Think about the things in your congregational community which might create barriers between the world and the Lord.  Take some action to “smooth” them out!
3. How can you visually help members of your congregation to prepare as they come to worship (sidewalk chalk sayings/Bible verses that address people as they come to church, posters and signs that do the same thing, maybe even a play on various traffic signs: one way, yield, stop…around various locations in church like the baptismal font, altar, pulpit, etc.)?
4. Can your group serve as the greeters in worship, helping worshipers “get ready?”
5. Could you literally “roll out the red carpet” (a saying which communicates a generous and honor-filled welcome) in your worship space, or outside your church as a symbol of the way we walk toward God.  Or, roll it out from worship into the world?

Preparing the Way of the Lord for Ourselves
Perhaps your group could write some prayers for yourselves and for other individuals in the congregation to pray at home as a preparation for worship. These could be thematic, scriptural, or guided by the church year. See Lutheran Book of Worship (LBW) and Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) for examples.

Closing Prayer

God of mercy, God of strength. We have so often walked a different path than the one you want us to walk. We need your guidance. Turn our minds to be like yours. Guide our steps. Lead us by your grace. We pray in our Lord Jesus’ name. Amen

Contributed by Pastor Seth Moland-Kovash
All Saints Lutheran Church
Palatine, IL

Warm-up Question:  How easy do you find it to forgive a friend when something bad happens that is clearly their fault?

Finding fault and placing blame are things that all people do. Somehow it just seems to make us feel better when we can place the blame for someone on someone’s shoulders. Of course, it only serves to make us feel comfortable if we can place the blame on someone else’s shoulders. There are times when placing blame isn’t just a matter of words, but of serious consequences: sometimes thousands or millions of dollars, or other punishments.

One way that this happens is through medical malpractice lawsuits. A doctor or hospital can be sued for malpractice if a mistake is made in treating a patient or something is overlooked that should have been seen or treated.

One current proposal that is part of the debate on the healthcare system as a whole is to limit the amount of money that could be awarded to patients or families in malpractice cases. Called “tort reform,” one proposal would limit the amount of money that people could win to $500,000 for punitive damages and $250,000 for “pain and suffering.” The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this change would save the government $54 billion over the next 10 years.

Some say that the legal awards need to be limited to be reasonable and to cut the costs that doctors have to pay for malpractice insurance. Others say that there is no amount of money that should be considered too great for the family of someone who has died because of malpractice. 

Discussion Questions

1. What do you think? Should there be a limit on the amount of money that a doctor or hospital would have to pay in a malpractice case?
2. If someone you loved died because of a clear case of malpractice, how much money do you think would be a fair punishment?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, November 1, 2009 (All Saints Day).

(Text links are to oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

• Isaiah 25:6-9 or Wisdom 3:1-9
• Psalm 24 (5)
• Revelation 21:1-6a
• John 11:32-44

Gospel Reflection

Lazarus was dead. He was dead and buried and in the tomb. Jesus was late. The emergency message had been sent, but Jesus wasn’t there at the right time. Mary (Lazarus’ sister) said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” What do you think that she felt Jesus could have done? Whether she was right or not, she felt that Lazarus would not have died if Jesus had gotten there in time. Perhaps there was a hint of blame in her statement.

Where is God when it hurts? Why doesn’t God seem to be around to help me now like he helped all those people in the Bible? These are common questions that come to our minds when something bad happens. We want to know where God was and why God let that thing happen. In this story, we see that people even during the Bible times had the same experiences. Mary wanted to know why Jesus hadn’t gotten there in time. She wanted to know why this bad thing had to happen to her family. She was in pain.

And Jesus had healing for her pain. It wasn’t like anything she could have imagined. She imagined that, if Jesus had been able to get there before Lazarus died, then Jesus could have healed him. But once he was dead, Mary thought that was the end of the story.

Today, on All Saints Sunday, we remember again that death is not the end of the story for any of God’s saints. Your grandmothers and grandfathers, any of God’s children who have died, are alive again. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Nothing can separate us from God’s love; not even death (Romans 8:37-39).

Discussion Questions

1. Tell about a time you were in pain and wondered whether God was even there.
2. Have you seen signs that God is there in painful times? What do those signs look like? (Hint: Look at the other people in the room… they may be the signs for you)

Activity Suggestion

Create an “All Saints” remembrance with your youth group. Bring a memento or photo that makes you think of someone who has died. Tell your friends about that person. Say, “I am thankful to God for ________ because __________.”

Closing Prayer

Good and gracious God, we thank you for all the saints you have given us who have shown us your love and your mercy. Help us to continue to live as your faithful children until the day when we are reunited with all your saints. Amen.

(Or use the prayer for the “Rememberance of the faithful departed” found on page 82 of Evangelical Lutheran Worship.)

Warm-up Question: Have you ever been punished for something you didn’t do? Have you ever been let off the hook for something you DID do? How did it turn out?

Paul House has been on prison death row in Tennessee since 1986, after being convicted of the murder of Carolyn Muncey. He was scheduled to be executed next month, but now, after intervention by local attorneys as well as an organization called The Innocence Project, all charges against him have been dropped, and he is free to go.

Discussion Questions 

• Why do you think that, after 20 years, the House’s case was finally re-opened in 2006?
• Do you agree with the court’s decision to dismiss the charges against Paul House? Do you think he might still be guilty?
• How do you think House will adjust to his newfound freedom, after 22 years on death row? How different do you think his life is now from what it was in 1986?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, May 17, 2009. (Text links are to oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.) 

• Acts 10:44-48
• Psalm 98 (4)
• 1 John 5:1-6
• John 15:9-17

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.
 
Gospel Reflection

In John 15:10, Jesus says, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love…” Just a chapter earlier, in John 14:15, Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” In both verses, the message is the same: love and obedience are inextricably entwined. God gave us a set of commandments. We are charged to follow them, every one, at all times. But at the same time, we know that we are doomed to fail. Every person on earth fails to keep God’s commandments. We may succeed in keeping most of them most of the time, but God demands no less than perfection. We must be holy, for he is holy. And, we simply can’t be that perfect.

God gave us his commandments to show us his love. They act as a mirror, to show us our sinful nature. We are unable to keep God’s commandments through our own power. And when we try to, we are merely servants, slaves to sin, striving unsuccessfully to keep God’s commandments because he told us to, fearing his wrath if we don’t. But then in God’s commandments we also see Christ’s love: the greatest love there is, laying down his life in place of ours, freeing us from the bonds of sin, so that we would no longer be servants, suffering God’s wrath for disobedience, but friends, with Christ’s love flowing through us.

It is only through Christ’s love that we are able to love one another. And it is only in Christ’s gracious love that we are able to keep God’s commandments. If we have Christ’s love in us — loving him and loving one another, and keeping his commandments — then Christ’s joy will be in us too. A joy shared among friends and all people. Our joy will be full! 

• How can we share Christ’s love with others? How can we show them both that God loves them, and that we love them?
• How do the actions of someone who knows he has been freed from the bonds of sin, to be called a friend of Christ, differ from the actions of someone who struggles to keep God’s commandments without love, like a servant trying to avoid his master’s punishment? How should we live our own lives differently, when we abide in Christ’s love?
• How is our freedom from sin, to become members of the body of Christ, like Paul House’s freedom from death row after 22 years, to rejoin mainstream society? How is it different?

 Activity Suggestion

Whether guilty or innocent by law, we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Pretend you have been given the opportunity to share the gospel with Paul House. Write a conversation with him, connecting the good news of Christ to the events in his life, and using his ordeal to illustrate God’s love, forgiveness, and justice for us. Use verses from today’s Gospel, and any other scriptures you think might be applicable, to tell him about Christ’s sacrifice for us, and our freedom from lives of sin — all sin.
 
Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank you for loving me, and calling me your friend. Please help me always to abide in your love, that I may keep your commandments. And let your love flow through me, that I may spread that love to others, and love them as you also love me, that we may experience your love together and thus also your joy. Amen.

Contributed by Matthew R. Nelson
Walla Walla, WA

Warm-up Question: Read John 15:3. What does it mean (for you/for us) to be cleansed by the words of Christ?

Not everyone who is chosen in the annual NFL draft will secure a spot on the roster of the team that chose them. For some that were not picked, the prospects of eventually making an NFL team are minimal at best.

There are always some oddities in the 256 pick process called Draft Day. This year, the quarterback from Kent State was picked to be a potential receiver by the Patriots. The Cardinals used pick #131 to make Greg Toler the first student athlete ever chosen from St. Paul’s (VA), a Division II school. Also selected from Division II were Abilene Christian teammates Johnny Knox and Bernard Scott, who were taken at #140 by the Bears and #209 by the Bengals, respectively. The three players from Division II schools outnumbered draft picks from nine major collegiate institutions and equaled those from four others.

Other surprises included Demetrius Byrd, chosen by the San Diego Chargers with their last pick in the seventh round. He remains hospitalized with serious injuries resulting from a car accident; injuries that might even prevent him from playing again. The Broncos in the 2nd round picked North Carolina tight end Richard Quinn, even though he only had 12 catches in two years with the school. And one of the pre-draft favorites of some, Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter, was picked by the Colts in the sixth round, even though he lost his starting job temporarily in 2008.

As always, some players were picked higher in the draft than some expected, some were picked lower, and some players who were expecting to be drafted were not. The person making the pick in the draft decides the value of a player and his potential. In spite of very meticulous research and a clear set of needs that teams hope to fill with draft picks, some players will exceed expectations and many will never live up to them.

Discussion Questions

• The New Student Bible (NRSV) notes that the same Greek root for ‘cleansed’ refers also to pruning, (vs. 3). What types of things does God prune from you emotionally or behaviorally in order that you might abide in Christ?
• Read John 14:30-31. Why do you think Jesus moved from the privacy of speaking with his disciples to a more public forum? Walking or riding would surely attract more people, and the events that followed lead directly to the crucifixion.
• What questions would you have for Christ if you were in the disciple’s shoes on that day?
• Before (John 14:28) and after (John 16:5) the lesson today, Jesus speaks of departing or leaving the disciples to continue in ministry and mission. Do you think the disciples felt empowered or abandoned as Jesus spoke to them?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, May 10, 2009.

(Text links are to oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.)

• Acts 8:26-40 
• Psalm 22:25-31 (27)
• 1 John 4:7-21
• John 15:1-8

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day

Gospel Reflection

Jesus had already foretold of his betrayal and of Peter’s denial. Now he is speaking of departing, of leaving them to continue in his mission. Questions must have been racing through their minds. Understanding this, Christ simply and calmly says, “You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you.” (John 15:3)

That’s it! The essence of Jesus’ message to his disciples and to us is that amidst all of our concern, amidst all of our doubt, and even amidst any shortcomings that we might have, we have been chosen and should begin our mission and calling immediately, fully cleansed and prepared. 

Christ’s example in life, and his the sacrifice on the cross have grafted us into the living vine, and the vine grower’s field. Now, with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, the advocate, each of us will experience the blessing of being a blessing as our gifts and talents are used to glorify God in this world.

The NFL draft is an interesting process full of hope and anticipation for hundreds of collegiate athletes who hope to continue their football careers. A football career would mean a lifestyle far from the ordinary. Even with a college degree to fall back on, life without football means a future uncertain, and a plunge into a different kind of competitive job market. Football is their skill, and football is their desire.

Being chosen in the draft, however, is not the end accomplishment of hard work. It is the beginning of a new relationship with a team that will take all of your past experiences and skills, and mold them to better their own mission, to win a Super Bowl. Through continued work and practice, players are stripped of poor habits and cleansed in their discipline to perform on the field. Coaches and trainers teach, and then lead gently and not so gently from the sidelines during each game.

Jesus chose his original disciples as he began his adult public ministry. He chose ordinary people, from fishermen to tax collectors. These ordinary people witnessed and experienced some extraordinary things as they walked with Jesus. They bonded with their teacher, and he bonded with them. Their sense of privilege in being chosen by Jesus and their sense of belonging must have been tremendous, right up until our lesson today.

Discussion Questions 

• What are the gifts or skills you believe that God has given you in order that you might glorify his name?
• Have you experienced the joy or rejection of being chosen or not chosen to participate in an activity or sport? Answers might range from school and neighborhood games to more serious auditions for music, plays, and team sports. Share something positive about that experience. Was it positive at the time, or do you look back at it more positively now? Why? 
• Being trained and then left to do something is a part of all work experiences. Describe a situation or time when you thought you weren’t ready for the task at hand? How did you feel? What did you do? How did you work through the situation? Did you pray about it and ask God for help? What did you ask for?
• Sometimes being a Christian singles you out for criticism, making us just a little different than many of our friends. Jesus tells his disciples in John 15:27 that in spite of the world and of persecution of any kind, that we are to testify on his behalf because we have been with him from the beginning. How do you feel about that? Why?

Activity Suggestions

• Sing “His Banner Over Me is Love.” One version with chords is available at http://www.higherpraise.com/lyrics/fabulous/710.htm.Now take a note pad to worship. Without writing names, look at other members of the congregation and write down what you think their gifts and talents are. Post the list in the Narthex or in the church bulletin or newsletter. Title it “Gifts we have that glorify God.”  
• Sometimes we overlook or undervalue our own gifts, (question #1 above). Write each group member’s name on a piece of paper. By their name, write one gift or talent you think they have. Give them to your group leader, who can write the gifts and talents on the chalkboard or dry erase board, without names. This gives everyone the opportunity to say something positive about others, but doesn’t single anyone out. You can lead the activity verbally if you feel comfortable doing so.

Closing Prayer

Lord we praise your name and thank you for first choosing us. Send now the Holy Spirit, the advocate, that we might know your continued presence and work to glorify your name. Amen.