December 2020

GREETINGS HOLY PEOPLE OF GOD,

Happy Church New Year!  We begin a new liturgical year.  This year Advent began with the Gospel of Mark in the 13th chapter.  We begin by looking back.  This Sunday, we look at the first chapter of Mark, which has us looking back even further to the Old Testament prophets, Isaiah and Elijah.  As you haul out your Christmas decorations and prepare for Jesus’ birthday, we haul out some of our favorite old time characters from the bible, especially that locust eating, camel coat wearing John the baptizer who so faithful points us to God and why we need God to come to us.  We do all of this to prepare ourselves, reminding us of our deep desire and love for God.

If you are struggling to tap into that deep desire for God, check out The Bible Project’s video on the Song of Songs, aka Song of Solomon.  Although it’s hard to imagine that Solomon would have written a book about lovers chasing after each other because the characters in the Song of Songs are so devoted to each other and Solomon had so many relationships, devoted to none. It is a book of poetry and intense desires.

As you make meaning out of the events of the world, check out the Bible Project’s video series on Wisdom where they take the books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Job and hang them on the wall like portraits with Proverbs representing lady wisdom, Ecclesiastes representing the critic and Job representing the old man.  Wisdom and meaning for life are complicated and complex.  Looking at these books together gives a perspective on finding meaning and developing your philosophy of evil and what a good life looks like in the midst of random events.  After viewing the videos you may also try reading the actual books. 

I love how the numbers run just in terms of chapters of these books.  Proverbs, those little bites size pieces of wisdom, give us 31 chapters, one chapter for each day of the month.  Ecclesiastes, the critic is 12 chapters, one chapter for each month of the year because it’s a hard book to read.  And the old man, Job is 42 chapters, so sip it like a fine scotch when you have the time to be reflective and can sit in a recliner and mull it over.

Or if you are curious about how the bible was put together or its literary styles, this is the place to go to get a quick summary and overview and who knows where the Holy Spirit will take you.  They have 19 videos on how to read the bible.  Did you know that in rough estimations that 43% of the Bible is narrative (historical and parables), 33% is poetry and 24% is prose discourse including laws, sermons, letters and even one essay.

The Bible Project is one of my favorite resources.  I love their videos and use them in Confirmation class.  I listen to their podcasts because I love to hear others talk about the Bible.  During Advent you may want to check out their word studies, The Advent Series focusing on hope, peace, joy and love.

Look back to some of your old favorites in the Bible with a new resource to open it up and trust that the Holy Spirit is with you guiding you in this process.  God loves you and wants you to work with Him in this kingdom work we have been called into. 

Bold Inquisitive Belief Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack

March 2020

20/20 Vision

For a long time I had 20/20 vision but as I grew older, I needed help to see. I have cheaters (reading glasses) in almost every room of my house. I carry them in my purse and have at least two pair here at church. I can’t read without them and if I don’t have them on me, in a pinch, I will use my phone to take a picture of whatever it is that I need to see to enlarge it. I confess, I’ve had a hard time adjusting to the need for help and having to rely on tools. And as I look at those ahead of me on the chronological clock, I will be needing more tools to manage and move through the world.

As a child, it was easy for me to see God and trust Jesus but as I grew older, I stumbled more and more. I became distracted by the events in my own life and my ability to manage and control my environment. I needed more and more help to see. I couldn’t do it on my own. I needed help. The study and familiarity with God’s word helps me to see and recognize God’s activity in my life and in this community. The community of believers helps me see God’s activity in new and surprising ways. And even the tried and true, the repetition and flow of the church year and liturgy and familiar hymns help me to recognize the movement of the Holy Spirit.

Lent is that time when we take a deep dive into God’s plan revealed to us in Jesus and how Jesus makes it possible for us to come into the presence of God through all the brokenness of our humanity and to align ourselves with God’s desires for us and God’s created world. Lent gives us the corrective lenses to see beyond suffering and death to resurrected life.

By the end of the 4th century, for many churches, Lent was the time of preparation for adult baptism. We see again how our lives are intertwined with the baptismal waters to new life with Christ. The Gospel readings for Lent in Cycle A of the lectionary are the traditional texts that catechumenates studied in preparation for baptism. Our daily renewal in baptism gives us eyes to see, like having reading glasses in every room, within easy reach, so too our gospel lessons help us to see.

Immediately after Jesus is baptized, the Spirit drives him into the wilderness, for fasting and testing to see what kind of a Son of God he would be (Matthew 4).

We listen to Jesus in John 3, telling Nicodemus, “Unless you are born of water and the Spirit, you cannot enter the kingdom of God.” And concludes with the familiar John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son...” We see the proclamation of salvation in Christ, with the sacramental sign of baptism.

Lent 3A, in John 4, Jesus will tell the woman at the well, “The water I give will become a spring welling up to eternal life.” The woman responds, “Sir, give me this water always.”

The following week, Lent 4A, in John 9, Jesus heals a man born blind by telling him to go and wash in the Pool of Siloam. Again we have a baptismal theme. It is in the waters of baptism that we see the world clearly, for Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.”

Finally, on Lent 5A, our Lent texts climax with the raising of Lazarus. The waters of baptism lead us through death and the grave into the resurrection of the dead.

We have a beautiful journey ahead of us as we see again, with 20/20 corrected vision, God’s love poured out in Jesus’ journey to the cross, through the grave to new life and we get to be on this journey.

Believing It Boldly Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack

February 2020

Greetings to the Holy People of God, 

Each year you are invited to pull a word out of a basket – an epiphany word to use as a word to guide you for the season of Epiphany or for the whole year and see where God might lead you as you follow the word and see where it pops up. Last year the word was DISIPLINE for the congregation and we had lots of fun exploring the word and trying out some new disciplines. 

This year, during the 8:30 worship Aaron Bengtson drew the word FORGIVENESS for us as our congregational epiphany word. What a fine word for us to explore this year. I think it is the best tool we have for living together in community and yet the hardest to handle with skill and efficiency as it requires defining sin (missing the mark) and addressing the one who has sinned against you person to person. Those are hard conversations to have. They are conversations that we avoid. They are conversations that take courage and prayer. Take time to study in depth Matthew 18 and then practice on a simple sin. Tell someone how they have sinned against you. Tell that person how they have missed the mark. It’s hard. Can we live with disagreement and division? Can we agree to disagree? 

At our annual meeting on January 26, we included in our constitution this by-law B4.03.04 This congregation will support couples’ celebration of marriage regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. 

This by-law came up out of the council because of a conversation that I had a couple of years ago with a new member who asked what CTK’s policy was regarding whether or not I would perform a wedding for a same gendered couple. My response was that I would bring it before the council because to my knowledge the congregation has not made a decision as to their policy and practice. The council took a proactive position and put forth the bylaw. 

During the annual meeting, a motion was made to strike the by-law hoping to avoid division by offering a more general statement in the constitution to covered our practice and policy. 

C4.03 To fulfill these purposes, this congregation shall: e. Witness to the reconciling Word of God in Christ, reaching out to all people. 

After discussion, the motion failed. There is disagreement among us. We are not of one mind which is good to know. I’ve always guessed that this would be the case but never really knew for sure. I know that we have strong feelings and values regarding sexual orientation and marriage. I don’t know what the Holy Spirit will do with us as we disagree with one another but I do trust Jesus’ promise that he will be with us and we will keep turning to Jesus.

I am grateful for the clarity of knowing your desire as a church body as well as your lack of consensus. The ELCA believes in the priesthood of all believers and your ability as a community to govern yourselves. Our governing structure allows for decisions to be made at the point where those who are most directly impacted will live with the decision.

Since 2009, the ELCA has said we will agree to disagree and left the decision to each congregation as to whether not they would call a pastor who is homosexual and whether or not they would allow people who are homosexual to be married in the church. This is your decision to make and live with and I will honor and respect your decision.

I have had one parent ask if their adult child who is a homosexual wonder that if their child desire to wed, could the wedding take place at Christ the King. This will help to clarify that parent who wonders as well as all others who may be reluctant to ask.

I am glad for the conversation and dialogue that took place at the meeting. You treated one another with respect and listened to one another. It is a sign of a healthy congregation. My hope is that you can agree to disagree and forgive one another. And I pray that the Holy Spirit will come alongside us and help us to share our differences while listening to one another while trusting that God is present.

Christ is our cornerstone, the foundation that brings us together. We do not need to be of one mind on all matters and in fact a little discord helps with sorting out what we value and where we place our hope. 

Believing It Boldly Loving Expansively, 

Pastor Connie Spitzack

January 2020

Happy New Year Gracious People of God,

For the society and our culture, January marks the beginning of the New Year. But we are ahead, leading the way because we have already started our new church year with Advent on December 1st and move into our third season of the church year with Advent, Christmas and now the season of Epiphany. As we follow Jesus, these seasons shape and form us and help us to explore the many dimensions our relationship with God.

The season of Advent helps to prepare us for the coming of God into our world and into our lives. The season of Christmas marks 12 days of the celebration of God’s incarnation – God has come to us in Jesus. The season of Epiphany allows us to take a look at ourselves in light of God’s revelation in Jesus.

This month, on Sundays we explore the magi’s visit to Jesus (Matthew 2), Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3) John’s declaration that Jesus is the Lamb of God (John 1) and Jesus’ call to repent and calling fishermen to learn how to fish for people (Matthew 4). These scriptures shape and form us to be God’s people who point others to Jesus. We are children of God who are called to be witnesses and disciples to our community.

I think about how John the Baptist was called to prepare the way for Jesus as a prophet and then called to be a disciple who had to figure out what it means to follow Jesus. Remember John did that from a prison cell. How do we live into this dual role of pointing to Jesus and following Jesus? How do we keep our eyes focused and learning as disciples and sharing what we know as witnesses to what God is up to in this world? It is good that we have a head start on the new year!

Trust that the Holy Spirit is with us and continues to help us to see God’s coming to us now. Just as Jesus expands on the skills that the fisherman have, the Holy Spirit helps us to use the gifts we have, the work we are engaged in to learn more about God and to share what we know with the people we live with claiming our dual call of being disciples and witnesses of what God is revealing to our world. This is challenging work, work that we are ready for because the Holy Spirit is with us and we have each other. Share your encounters with one another, tell what you think God might be doing. When we tell each other, we enter into discerning the Holy Spirit’s work among us. It is dangerous to do this discerning alone. We follow Jesus’ lead, covered with the Holy Spirit, Jesus called others to join him in the ministry. Develop your relationships with one another. Challenge yourself to get to know someone from CTK better. Join a study group that is already meeting or create a new one. You are a child of God and God has work for you to do both as a witness and a disciple.

Believing It Boldly Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack

December 2019

Greetings to the Holy People of God,

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!
Psalm 27: 14

What is worth the waiting for? How would you answer that question? Family gatherings, a child, the homecoming of a loved one, a new season, a movie? Did “Advent” cross your mind? Advent is worth the wait. The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning to visit, come or arrive. This four week season has a double focus as we look to the past with the first Advent in the arrival of baby Jesus and to the future with Jesus’ coming return, the 2nd Advent. We live in the in between time where we celebrate that Christ has come and will come again while we trust that he is present in the world with us now.

Advent is worth the wait. We wait with anticipation the coming of Jesus. It is this great mystery that we wait for what we already have and what is to come and it is well worth it. Let the images of this season sink in as we live in this in between time.

Isaiah 2 gives us the hope that weapons will be transformed into farming tools that nurture growth (Advent 1). Isaiah 11 gives us the peaceable kingdom where predator and prey eat and rest together (Advent 2). Isaiah 35 draws a beautiful picture of the desert coming to life (Advent 3). Advent concludes with Isaiah’s prophesy of a child who will come and be called Immanuel – God is with us!

In this season of waiting, I invite you to be awake to where the Holy Spirit is transforming tools of destruction into tools of life. Look for where opposites attract and exist together. Be attentive to life springing forth from what appears to be dead. Be ready to receive the life that God prepares for you.

I’ve had a glimpse of opposites attracting as I listened to Daoud Nassar speak about his farm being a “Tent of Nations”. Nassar is a Christian Palestinian whose farm is in the midst of five Israeli settlements. He and his family are struggling to keep their farm. In the aftermath of olive trees on his farm being bulldozed by Israeli forces, Jews from Europe bought olive trees and came and planted them. I am drawn to this place and these people that try to exist together when it would be so much easier to take the money offered for the farm and leave but rather stays and provides a powerful witness to the world. I think God is up to something here and it is worth the wait.

I hope that in this time of waiting you will gaze upon what the Holy Spirit is shaping and creating in front of us now, in this in between time, a beautiful, holy time, a time set apart.

Believing It Boldly Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack