Christ the King Lutheran Church - Gladwin, Mi.
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  • Home
    • Pictorial Directory
    • Contact Us
    • Links
  • Who are We
    • Mission and Vision
    • Staff and Office Hours
    • Church Council
    • History
    • Newsletter
    • Calendar
  • COVID 19 WORSHIP VIDEOS
    • Lenten Madness Monologues
    • Matins with Noodle
    • For the Kids
    • Bulletins
    • Sermon 9-16-19 The Sheep
    • Maria Skobtsova
    • Isidor
    • Elisha
  • Faith Formation
    • Sunday School
    • Christ the King Youth
    • Camping Ministry
    • Kids Club
    • Confirmation
    • Thursday Adult Bible Study
    • Vacation Bible School
  • Ministries
    • Stephen Ministry
    • God's Work Our Hands
    • Quilting
    • Food Distribution
    • Backpacks for kids
    • Prayer Shawl Ministry
    • Parish Nurse
    • Columbarium
  • Worship
    • Schedule of Worship
    • How we worship
    • Children
    • Choir
  • Special Events
    • Pumpkin Farm
    • Christmas Tea
  • Budget
  • Blog
  • Letter from Pastor
  • Masks
  • sermon
  • Audry
  • Rick McCoy
  • Ballot for Church council
  • Holden Prayer 12-23
  • Dec 20 Children's Program
  • Christmas Eve
  • Lenten Service
  • Ash Wednesday
  • Week One February 25, 2021

Clever Words for the Apocalypse

God with Us versus God with Me, or Why Jesus is not a Tree

8/30/2019

1 Comment

 
Among the milestones of this summer, I found myself leading my first ever women’s retreat. Actually, my first retreat whatsoever. There we were, all 13 of us, or so, sleeping in cabins, swimming in a pristine lake, singing around a campfire, and reflecting on where we find women, and ultimately where we find ourselves, within the parables of Jesus.
I have been an attendee of the weekend women’s retreat at Camp Chickagami in Presque Isle since 2017 and it has never disappointed. Each time I have been blessed to meet and learn from new women of faith, and deepen my relationship with those I already know. There are also copious amounts of wine, which tends to help these things.
It is a good thing to spend time with God in community. This idea is at the heart of spiritual retreats and Christian camp as well. We draw near to God together.
We miss something if we do not spend time with God in community. Do I have passionate heart to hearts with God while walking on the bike path in town? Yes. Do God and I work through the joys, sorrows, and hopes of the day as I SUP around Wiggins lake? Of course. But there is more to knowing God than a series of heartfelt one on ones. If discipleship was all about quiet walks in the woods, Jesus would have entered our world as a tree instead of a screaming baby human.
Retreats: in the woods, at a monastery, or within a church fellowship hall are chances for us to know God better through knowing ourselves and knowing others. We get to glimpse God at work in the lives and experiences of those who join us in community. Sometimes those glimpses are glorious: a kind word or inspiring story. Other times, they are anything but: a viewpoint that goes against or even undermines our own or a remark that leaves us angry and hurt. Such interactions make living in community difficult. They can ruin a retreat. They can send us running to find another church or a quiet path through the woods.
But Jesus is no tree. In these days, God speaks to us in human words. And, more often than not, it is the difficult words which end up changing our hearts.
Such is the Lord we follow. One who sees a group of people arguing and sulking and says “yes, that’s my church!” One who dwells in an imperfect community and claims it as beloved. One who is an expert at loving cranky and crabby people, and dares us to do the same. One who invites us to practice such love on one another and then says again “yes, that’s my church.”
A Christian retreat or a day in church may not be as peaceful as a walk in the woods, but I do promise you, it is a sure way to be surprised, unnerved, and ultimately loved by God.



1 Comment
Bob Frei
8/30/2019 05:04:11 pm

Thank you for writing this, and for letting people know that your ministry is far more than writing a sermon for Sunday morning. You have an important job as the eyes, ears, hands and feet of Jesus in this world. Bless you for taking your responsibilities - and your job - so seriously.

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    About the Blog

    In this season of plague, flood, fire, hungry cats, and Advent, we invite you to reflect on the words (such clever words!) of the Prophet John in the book of Revelation.
    Join the Liturgisaur on Tuesdays and Thursdays in Advent for devotions based on the first three chapters of Revelation
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      Perhaps you have encountered the #Liturgisaur on Instagram or Facebook.  He is a small, green, pants wearing, one armed dinosaur who makes the rounds in Gladwin County and beyond, highlighting the various ministries of Christ the King Lutheran Church.   
         The word dinosaur is Greek in origin, a combination of the words  δεινός (terrible or clever) and σαύρα (lizard).  You may have heard about how dinosaur means "terrible lizard," but you probably didn't realize that it can also mean "terribly clever lizard."   And the Litrugisaur is quite clever.  
         This Advent you invited to check into this blog for theological reflections (some clever) and insights from the Liturgisaur and his minder, Pastor Emily Olsen.  We will be focusing on the first few chapters of Revelation, or as they call it in Greek, The Apocalypse. 

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Christ the King Lutheran Church
600 S. M 18 
Gladwin, Mi. 48624
989-426-1659
Pastor Emily Olsen
pastor.ctkinggladwin@gmail.com


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