March 22, 2022

GREETINGS BELOVED FRUIT BEARERS OF GOD,

God’s love is planted in us and flows through us, and we bloom in the sunshine of God’s grace.  God’s grace transforms us to be more like Jesus.  Jesus matters to us.  What he taught us.  How he lived among us.  And what he did for us on the cross matters for us.  Jesus teaches us to be human and bear the image of God in the world.  I get to see the image of God in you, and you get to see the image of God in me.  As witnesses of what and why Jesus matters, we are translators, communicators of God’s good news in Jesus Christ. 

Luke’s gospel presents us with people who are wondering about the suffering and death that Pilate caused for worshippers and Jesus throws into the mix people who died when a tower fell.  Jesus uses these incidents to redirect their focus back to God in his call for repentance, look again.  And then he tells a parable about a fruitless fig tree.  What do you want to see happen to this fig tree?

Look again at the suffering we see today that captures our attention.  How does it make you feel or compel you to act?  We could easily insert Putin for Pilate when we think about world leaders causing suffering for people.  We wonder why and Jesus invites us to look again.  Look for how Jesus is at work in the midst of this suffering. How does that make you feel or compel you to act? 

God loves this world and is already here and at work in the suffering of the world.  I am compelled to pray and listen for what the Holy Spirit is calling us to do.  I am compelled to give money to Lutheran Services in Iowa as they work with our government to resettle refugees.  What are you compelled to do as you turn to God?

Read the parable of the fig tree and ask what you want to see happen to the fig tree.  Do you want to see the fig tree cut down or bear fruit?  Do you want to see the gardener be successful even if she failed to care for the tree for 3 years?  Is tending now, after 3 years going to be enough?  Should the vineyard owner, who planted the tree done more than simply look for figs?  Whose fault, if any, is it that the tree has not yielded fruit?

What do you want to see happen?  Wrestle with these questions. Turn to God and each other and see what happens. Jesus uses stories like parables to teach us, to get us ready for the tree that he will bear fruit on, a tree of suffering and death that will produce new life in us.

Bold Inquisitive Belief Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack

JANUARY 26, 2022

Greetings Holy People of God,

Greetings Beloved People of God,

“Imagine two astronauts go to the moon, and while they’re there, there’s an accident and their ship can’t take them back to Earth. They have only enough oxygen for two days. There is no hope of someone coming from Earth in time to rescue them. They have only two days to live. If you were to ask them at that moment, “What is your deepest wish?” they would answer, “To be back home walking on our beautiful planet Earth.” That would be enough for them; they wouldn’t want anything else. They wouldn’t think of being the head of a large corporation, a famous celebrity, or the president of the United States. They wouldn’t want anything but to be back here—walking on Earth, enjoying every step, listening to the sounds of nature, or holding the hand of their beloved while contemplating the moon at night. We should live every day like people who have just been rescued from dying on the moon. We are on Earth now, and we need to enjoy walking on this precious, beautiful planet. Zen Master Linji said, “The miracle is not to walk on water or fire. The miracle is to walk on the earth.” I cherish that teaching. I enjoy just walking, even in busy places like airports and railway stations. Walking like that, with each step caressing our Mother Earth, we can inspire other people to do the same. We can enjoy every minute of our lives.”

Thich Nhat Hanh, Fear: Essential Wisdom for Getting Through the Storm

Yes, we can enjoy every minute of our lives.  That is something to aim for.  We are on earth now and we will meet for another annual meeting in which we look back at our past year and look forward to the year ahead and give thanks for the place we are today.  We do not find ourselves in the desperate situation of the astronauts, so I am hoping that you are thinking about a president for the CTK preschool board. 

We do walk this beautiful earth at this time and this place, called to be proclaimers of the God’s good news in Christ Jesus.  That is why we exist.  It is our purpose for which the Spirit has called us together and will help us, meeting us each and everyday to walk with us.

Bold Inquisitive Belief Loving Expansively,

Pastor Connie Spitzack

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