Newsletter April '08

Newsletter: April ‘08

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.” Ephesians 2:13, 19-20

OK, in November of 2006 Amy and I traveled to Ireland, and while Ireland is indeed a foreign land, it is nothing like Ethiopia. Ethiopia is more foreign to you and me than any other place I can imagine. Yikes! If my assumptions about the timing of things are accurate then as you are reading this, Amy and I are in Ethiopia retrieving our adopted son. Therefore, at this moment in time, I suspect that most of my fears about traveling to a place that is sooo foreign have subsided. I suspect that those fears have at least begun to subside because somebody, in some way will have welcomed us by now. Thanks be to God!

Have you ever traveled to a really foreign place? Do you remember how intimidated you were? Most of all do you remember the relief you felt when just one person native to that foreign place welcomed you in some way?

You know, we don’t have to go to a foreign land to feel like foreigners. There are times when we feel like outsiders right here in our own country. Some of us may still remember the fear and worry associated with that very first day of school, or the summer when you went away to camp without your friends or family, or that first day on the new job. Or, how about those first days at your new church? For me, some of the most lasting friendships were formed in those moments. Looking back I realize that into them God sent someone who was bold enough to reach out and welcome me in each of these places. My guess is that your experiences in these foreign places have been similar to mine.

In the bible passage quoted above St. Paul speaks about the feelings associated with being a foreigner. Only, he isn’t referring to being new to a “place”. He is referring to being made new by Christ through his forgiving grace. Because we are sinners, we are all foreigners to God’s Kingdom. But, because of Christ’s death for us, we are made new in his mercy and love. Because of Christ, God welcomes us into his Kingdom. Therefore we live! But, we do not live to ourselves. We now live for Christ. Therefore, we live in the resurrection of Easter even now. We are no longer foreigners to God’s Kingdom, we have been welcomed by God, and invited to join the living Jesus on his mission in the world now. We are not only welcomed into the presence of God, but we are welcomed into the daily mission of our Lord. Even now, today, our own resurrection renews us to begin eternity with God in God’s Kingdom this day. Our resurrection need not wait until we die. We are called to live into this Easter promise now. What better way to do that than to welcome the foreigner among us, just as we have already been welcomed by God through the mercy and love of Christ.

This brings me to something very wonderful that is happening at Living God. At this moment, there are more than 30 “foreigners” (including children) who are coming to Living God and participating in membership classes. Those who finish the 5 classes will be installed as active new members on Pentecost Sunday, May 11th. Three of these adults are coming to know Jesus for the first time and will be baptized on Easter Sunday; the others are in various different stations along their lifelong journey with Christ. Some are steeped in their relationship with Christ, while others see this moment as a miraculous renewal of faith. All of them are hopeful and excited about joining Living God in its mission to “build a church for all people.” Therefore, if we are listening to the call of our Lord, the other 300+ of us might hear our call to reach out and welcome them. So, don’t be afraid of introducing yourself to those who are new among us. You never know, your next best friend might just be among them.

Amy and I look forward to telling you all about this foreign land of Ethiopia when we return. Possibly, we can make even Ethiopia seem a little less foreign. We also look forward to introducing our newest member (Elijah) into the church. His baptism is scheduled for April 27th.

In the resurrection of Christ,