Come and See

I thought about Pastor Chris' sermon yesterday and about his challenge to be a disciple who is passionate about faith, excited about church and invites others to "come and see."

So what prevents us from extending that invitation to others? If it is lack of personal conviction, you first have to be "converted" before you can hope to be authentic with others. We can see right through posers.

If it is lack of excitement about the church, well, then you haven't seen the Experience at work or the 120 volunteers at McClintock or the numerous small groups that study and pray or SpiritSong raising the roof in praise. You can't invite someone to a place that doesn't stir you.

But I think most people don't extend that invitation because of feeling awkward or unsure of what words to say. There is no need for that. I can tell you after sitting through the new member classes for these past twelve years, most come to Christ Lutheran through a personal invitation. They are thankful for the brave souls who extend that invitation. It doesn't come in the form of a confrontation or heady, biblical knowledge. It is most often very simple. "Hey, we have a great thing going on at Christ Lutheran. You should check it out. Come and see."

That's it. That's all it takes to make an eternal difference in another person's life. Come and See!

Do you have a story about inviting someone or someone who invited you? I would love to hear about it.

Peace,
Pastor Scott

Baptismal Question

We had a great celebration on Sunday, January 16, as we focused on baptism and splashed water on our faces with the words, "You have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ FOREVER!"

The Sunday also brought with it many questions.

One that has lingered with me longer than most was, "What if you know a baby whose parents don't have a great interest in Christianity or in baptism. Should you deny that child the gift of baptism because of the parents' lack of interest or should you secretly dunk the kid and get 'er done?"

I'll open that up on the blog for conversation. What do you think?

As you consider your response, think of extreme cases on all sides. First, you don't want to reduce baptism to a magical incantation that you secretly perform over the child when the parents aren't looking. Second, you don't want to reduce baptism to something that only works IF the parents agree in faith to it. Third, you don't want to reduce baptism to a meaningless, man-made rite that really doesn't matter whether the child is baptized or not.

Go ahead. Give your answer. I'll respond to each comment.

Peace,
Pastor Scott

Do You Know How Much God Loves You?

This may seem like a weird question but pause and think about it for a minute, do you know how much God loves you? I have struggled for a while with how some churches choose to engage people with God. Some use guilt, others fear and some use incentives; if you do "x" your blessings will be "y." As I have studied and grown in my faith these different approaches have never resonated with the God that I know and have grown to know and trust. Now Lutherans are often criticized for focusing too much on grace and I agree with most of those criticisms. Too often we use grace as a "get out of jail free card" and that is not what God is about either. The love that God has for us is beyond our comprehension. In the original language of the New Testament the word that is used to describe God's love is defined using words like unconditional, perfect, unending and pure. Now, if we truly understand God's love for us I believe that we would be radically transformed by that love. We would be so blown-away that someone or something could love us so much we would want to do our best to live a life that does its best to reflect such a love. Do you know how much God loves you? I want to help us all understand that question, I want to begin a journey with you to figure out how that love can transform us and I want to help us all open up to accept a love like that, because, I think the most difficult part of this relationship is allowing ourselves to be loved. Do you know how much God loves you? Let's figure that one out together.

See you Sunday.
Pastor Chris

What Do Hindus Believe?

Do you know?

Beginning on Wednesday, January 5, I am hosting a new Wednesdays Together Adult Class that will explore not only Hinduism but also Unitarians, Buddhists, Muslims, Jews and Quakers. It's part of a class called, "My Neighbor's Faith."

Each Wednesday we will have a different representative from each of these faith communities come and talk about their historical background, theological principles and worship practices. There will be plenty of time for questions. The class will kick off with a person from the local Charlotte Hindu community.

I encourage you to come. Not only is learning about the faiths of other communities important in itself but there is no better way to understand the uniqueness of Christianity than when you compare it with others.

See you on Wednesday,
Pastor Scott