One of my favorite lines in Luke’s version of the Christmas story is Luke 2:19… “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” I don’t know about you, but I like to ponder. Ponder isn’t a word that we use too often in modern language (unless you’re a Vikings fan), but ponder means to reflect with thoroughness and care. My trouble with pondering is that it almost always involves tears. When I ponder the past twelve months, my eyes moisten… For anyone that knows me even a little, that does not come as a surprise. I am a crier. Don’t label me as a baby or a wimp; I merely succumb to outward signs of emotion when something pulls at my heart strings. I cry at funerals; I cry at weddings; I cry at recitals; I cry at sporting events; I cry during movies; I even cry during commercials. I just can’t help it. I used to try and hide my tears, but I have embraced the fact that is how God made me and if the Bible tells me that I was made in the image of my Creator, then God must be emotional as well.

One of the most recent events that lodged a lump in my throat and caused my eyes to drip and my nose to snivel happened last week Sunday morning. After scheduling communion for four Sundays in a row, one might argue that the sacrament would lose its specialness, but the communion service on December 21 will be one that I will not forget for a very long time. Mike had asked me to send out an email to the congregation concerning children taking communion and had also given me an announcement to print in the bulletin, so I was not in the dark about what was going to happen, but my emotions were not prepared for what I was going to witness.

Maybe it was the conviction of the Holy Spirit during the message that primed the pump that morning, but as I returned to my pew and watched the people come forward for communion, the tears flowed. I have never seen a more beautiful picture of the salvation of the world being poured out for all. Sharing a common loaf of bread, a common cup, and a common need for a Savior, I witnessed people from every corner of life come forward. I inhaled the scene of kids who were unsure of how to navigate this new opportunity, mothers and fathers offering assistance to their youngsters, elderly Elders stooping low with their cup of juice so a child could dip his bread, farmers, pharisees, teachers, truck drivers, grandpas, grandmas, addicts, abusers, expectant mothers, suited men, and costumed shepherds… I scarce could take it in. And as I looked up, I saw the images on the screen of Jesus being nailed to the cross for each one. Blood dripping to the ground… grape juice dripping on the carpet… tears dripping off my chin…

During the first week of communion this Advent season, we were seated in front of a young family and I recall hearing the child think out loud, “I wonder why kids don’t get to eat”, and I found myself contemplating the same thing. Can you imagine preparing a meal for your family, and only allowing half of them to eat before the leftovers were put away? Jesus did more than prepare a meal for us, he offered himself to us.

As you ponder 2014, I pray that you will recall moments when the Teacher was talking to you, special times when you danced with the Spirit, and mostly what Jesus paid for us all to be called his Children. “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” (Matthew 19:14)

Erin Jacobsma

Have you ever wondered what pastors learn at seminary? Okay, let’s be honest…probably not. If I had a quarter for every time someone cracked a joke by calling it “cemetery” instead of “seminary”… Yes, there are times it is quite monotonous, but I remember distinctly one day when one professor simply posed the question, “Why did Jesus come into our world anyway?”

We aspiring pastors initially thought that was an easy question, and we came up with all the typical Sunday School answers: “to die on the cross”, “to save us from sin”, etc… But the professor remained unsatisfied. It turns out there were many other amazing reasons Jesus came into our world, not least among them to simply show us how to live. This is what we have been focusing on this Advent season at church, how Jesus’ incarnation teaches and empowers us to truly live a life full of faith-filled adventure through intimate relationship with the Father.

Hugh Halter, author of “Flesh”, shares this insight: “Jesus said that the whole reason He came was so we might have life – abundant life. He didn’t come and take on flesh so that you would someday (only) pray a salvation prayer, go to church, and settle for a semi-religious life. He has bigger hopes and dreams for you than that. He came so that His divine life could actually take root in you and so that you could relate to Him like humans used to before sin messed everything up.”

I think it is sort of like having Christmas every day. Can you imagine that?!? For some reason during the Christmas/Advent season, from the outflow of our joy we tend to:

Spend quantity and quality time with family and overlook our differences

Contribute charitably towards those in need

Spend time reminiscing about years gone by and sharing about God’s faithfulness

Generously give gifts to family, friends, coworkers, etc…

Experience a powerful feeling that leads us to pray, sing, and worship

To put it bluntly, at Christmas time we tend to act a lot more like Jesus! Let’s do that all year!

Three years ago my family and I had to abruptly leave the mission field in Haiti and return to the United States, arriving on Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, we had to leave almost all of our presents behind, including a homemade castle my son and I had built from the leftover scraps of lumber left behind by various mission teams. The kids were very sad, and to help make up for it we ended up leaving up our Christmas tree that year until after Easter!

So why did Jesus come into our world anyway? He came so that we might experience life in, with, and through Him at all times, not just during religious holidays. So as you experience the joy of Christmas/Advent this year, think about how you can carry that forward into the New Year and beyond…

Cory Grimm

Earlier this week Evan and I were busy preparing a hotdish for supper later that night. It was still early in the day, so we thought we would make some fresh bread. He was eager to help measure and mix and soon his chubby little fingers were full of flour. We were in the middle of putting the last of the ingredients in the bowl when my phone rang. After a few minutes, I wrapped up the conversation with my mom, and Evan and I got back to work. We had some fun kneading the soft dough, and then put it in the bowl to rise. We went about our day, baked the bread and put supper in the oven.

Our family sat down to supper that night and everyone’s nose immediately wrinkled when I placed my dish in the middle of the table. No, not at the fresh bread, rather the hotdish I had made; too many vegetables, apparently. As they wrinkled their noses at the healthy meal in front of them, they all picked up a slice of bread. After a few bites, to my surprise, even more wrinkles. Kaylie spoke up and said, “This bread tastes funny!” Josh got after her for being rude and politely asked her to keep quiet and just eat it. After all, I had been busy all day creating a nice warm meal to enjoy and it seemed as though no one appreciated it. Josh and I must have taken a bite of our bread at the same time, because we both said, “Oh!” in unison. After reviewing the recipe and replaying all the dumping and stirring I realized I forgot to add the salt! It is amazing how bad bread tastes when you forget to add such a small amount of salt.

Over the last couple days, I’ve been looking at this bread wondering what I was going to do with it all. (My recipe makes 4 big loaves!) As I was looking at the bread today, I thought about the scripture of Jesus teaching about salt and light.

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses it saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” Matthew 5:13

Salt. Seems pretty simple. My unsalted bread was flat, flavorless and of little value. As Christians, we are of little value if we do not make an effort to affect the world around us. Not only does Jesus instruct us to help “flavor” His creation, He also tells us to help preserve the good in the world.

Being “salty” isn’t always easy. Some people around us look at us like we are crazy, we are mocked for what we do, and people oppose our beliefs and morals. Sadly, often times the voices of the world are much louder than ours. While I don’t believe we are to yell back, I do believe we are to lovingly share our message. Around every corner, someone is watching; someone is taking note of our attitude and the way we live our lives. They are growing tired of their flavorless and meaningless life and desire something better. They take notice because they see a sense of peace and love. They see something different in us and desire it for themselves.

There will be times when we forget to add the salt, but with God’s help and the Spirit’s guidance, we are all equipped to season and preserve the world around us.

Keeping it salty  Becky Ossefoort

PS – As for the bread, I took half of it and made bread pudding. The other half went in the freezer for stuffing the Christmas turkey. I am way too Dutch to throw it out!

[2Pe 3:1, 13, 16 NIV] ¹ Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking…¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. ¹⁶ He (Paul) writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters.

I love the word that Peter uses to stimulate what type of thinking we should have, “wholesome.” This is a powerful word. When asked what “wholesome” means, most people respond “good.” It does mean “good,” but it also means “whole” or complete. This seems obvious, however it is often curtailed.

Notice how in verse 13 Peter says the complete promise he is thinking about is the new heaven and new earth, where righteousness dwells.

For years, I didn’t understand this promise. Unfortunately, it was because I was never taught it until I was a young adult. Many Christians living today don’t know about or misunderstand this promise as well. They believe when saved their eternal existence is only as a spirit being in a spiritual heaven in the sky. Earth or the natural realm is not a part of their eternal picture. I believe this is why so many are trying to cram as much as they can into their bucket list. Based on God’s promise, we have eternity to enjoy heaven and earth, therefore we can be patient and place his redemption interests first. In fact, Jesus also promised a material and spiritual reward upon his return for all who do. (Matt 16:27, 19:28-30, Eph 6:8, Rev 22:12)

[Eph 1:9-10 NIV] He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment–to bring unity to all things               in heaven and on earth under Christ.

[Rev 21:1-3 NIV] Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God… And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

[Mat 5:5 NIV] Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

[Luk 24:38-39 NIV] He (Jesus) said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6). In his resurrected state he still had flesh and bones within his glorified body. He is the first fruit vision of our future. (1 Cr 15:23)

Within these passages the apostles reveal to us God’s ultimate will, which is to bring heaven and earth together again. One day we will experience Earth with God fully present again! Heaven and Earth will be completely renewed from the fall. It will be like Eden when God the Father walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden (Gen 3:8). The Universe will be made “whole” once again.

I love Jesus’s first coming to the Earth! With this being said, I desire to be like the disciples and long for the second coming of Christ even more. What a family celebration that will be! As a reminder of this glorious promise, I started a new advent tradition. Along with reading of Christ’s first coming, which revealed the fullness of his humanity, I study his second coming which reveals the fullness of his deity. I encourage you to consider this as well. I promise you will be very blessed in doing so. Wishing you all the best this holiday season!

Grace and Peace, Andy Anderson

Sharon and I had the opportunity to take a cruise on the Mediterranean. We traveled with Sharon’s brother and wife who also celebrated their 50th anniversary. We had a great time meeting people who were from areas other than Minnesota, seeing various sights, and enjoying each other.

We scheduled tours at the various ports where the ship docked. I was looking forward to a couple of stops—that of Athens, Greece and Ephesus, Turkey as the accounts of Paul and the missionary journeys were always something that was fascinating to me.

At Ephesus, Paul encouraged the people who were “ever loyal to the Lord”. Then he shared something we all need to hear. All of us have special gifts or abilities—“some have the gift of preaching well, some have special ability in winning people to Christ, helping them to trust him as their Savior; still others have a gift for caring for God’s people as a shepherd does his sheep, leading and teaching them in the ways of God.” I am grateful that God didn’t give us the same gifts but using our gifts together we have everything we need to be a blessing.

The disappointment for me was that I was ill the day that Ephesus was toured. Sharon was able to take photos of the area and reported it was the best part of the trip. I was grateful that I was sick for only part of the day and was able to experience Athens where Paul traveled on his second missionary trip.

In Athens, we saw where the Romans built many temples to many gods. Paul stood on Mars Hill and could see these many temples/gods and was given the opportunity to share Christ with those who were meeting to discuss philosophy, religion, and laws. Paul didn’t miss the opportunity to tell about Jesus and his love for all of us.

Paul began his sharing by referring to an altar to the unknown god. He then introduced the audience to a living God who wasn’t made with wood or stone, but a God who knew and loved each one of them. Some of the people laughed but others wanted to hear more.

Today, that seems to be the case also—some laugh at our belief but all need to hear the story of God’s provision for our sin. Just as in Paul’s time we serve many gods. They are not made of stone but are gods like popularity, success, beauty, sports, education, time, wealth, and many other ways we may put something ahead of our commitment to Jesus.

What are your priorities? What do we put ahead of our desire to follow Jesus? Do we spend more time doing “life” than seeking life through study of the Word, through prayer, through worship and allowing the spirit to work in us?

Jesus, help me to love you more than loving my comfort, my desires, and help me be more like Paul and have his desire to share Christ’s love. Amen.

George H. Bonnema

Several weeks ago I was reading some thoughts from Henry Blackaby’s Experiencing God Day by Day and I was struck by his opening sentence. He writes, “The Christian life is not difficult.” At first I thought, not difficult, then Henry you must not know anything about the Christian life because sometimes I find it very difficult. But the more I listened to his reasoning and the more I thought about it, I realized he was right. He writes, “The same Christ who lived a perfect, obedient, and sinless life stands prepared to live it again through you.”

Often times we make the Christian life too difficult as we wrestle with knowing the will of God. Sometimes we agonize over what we should do in a particular situation. God’s will is not difficult; he has revealed his will to us in the Scriptures. You and I make living the Christian life difficult when we are unwilling to do what he tells us.

Do you wish to live according to God’s will? Here are three simple commands from Paul we can begin with. “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” I Thessalonians 5:16-18.

Before you and I can be joyful always, we must know where our source of joy is found. The source of my joy comes from knowing I am at peace with God through a relationship with Christ for the rest of eternity. I have continuous joy knowing “I am not my own, but belong body and soul to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ” (Q&A 1 Heidelberg Catechism). Regardless of what happens from day to day, regardless if I feel happy and satisfied or if I’m experiencing the pain of living in a fallen world, I can be joyful knowing that all things will work together for my salvation.

We must pray continually. First of all, prayer has a tremendous calming effect on us. Satan knows that too, that’s why he keeps distracting us from prayer. Prayer is an act of surrender. When we pray we are admitting our need for divine help. We are acknowledging God is in control. The sad part is, too often we use prayer as an emergency call to God. We first try doing things our way, and then after we have dug ourselves a big hole, we ask God to bail us out. I don’t know about you, but I have become weary of making prayer a last resort so I have been trying to practice continual prayer as my first response.

Finally, give thanks in all circumstances. God has richly blessed me in that some tasks of ministry come easy. However, the other day I was feeling frustrated with the Vista Cohort project I’m working on; pulling all the pieces together has been a challenge. Then it was like the Holy Spirit said to me, “Mike, I’ll bet there is someone out there who wishes they could be doing what you are.” He was right (of course the Spirit is always right) and so I spent a moment thanking God, and counting it pure joy, for giving me the opportunity to do the task, even if it was a struggle.

Living the Christian life isn’t that difficult. God has clearly revealed his will to you and me. Now it’s a just matter of giving Jesus permission to live out his life through us.

Thanking God for all of you in all circumstances,

Mike Altena

What does it mean to be ordained?

“After you put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons, anoint and ordain them. Consecrate them so they may serve me…” Ex. 28:41

If you had a chance to attend the congregational meeting this past week you heard Merlin Wynia lay out a basic vision of what it could look like to have a 2nd ordained pastor on staff. This issue was brought up because I plan to complete my requirements for ordination sometime next year, and at that point the church would have the option of “calling” me to ordained ministry. But what does that really mean?

All denominations have certain requirements aspiring pastors must fulfill in order to be ordained and declared “fit” for the office of “Minister of Word and Sacrament,” after which time they are eligible to serve communion, marry people, and lead consistory. In most cases that includes attending seminary, being supervised in ministry for several years, and finally being examined on biblical knowledge and other church-related competencies. The RCA is no different. We tend to be on the demanding end of the spectrum compared to other denominations, though requirements have relaxed somewhat in recent decades. There was a time when the only acceptable option was for American pastor candidates to attend seminary in Europe, and during those 150 or so years about ¼ of all such individuals died in shipwrecks while trying to cross the ocean or from sicknesses picked up along the way! Yikes!

Today ordination has changed quite a bit. The role of pastor differs greatly from church to church, more and more pastors are called into ministry later in life, and the emphasis has generally switched from seeing pastors as a separate class of Christian (clergy) to seeing all followers of Jesus as “ordained” to ministry, with pastors spending more time guiding or coaching others in ministry than doing all the ministry themselves. This is why Mike prefers to be called “Mike” instead of “pastor” or “reverend.” He wants to emphasize that he really is no different or more qualified for ministry than anyone else, and we all have a role to play. There are extreme examples of this, such as the Quakers, where there is no such thing as pastors, or at least you might say everyone is a pastor.

So in one sense it is hard for me to aspire to the status of ordination. I am of the same mindset as Mike and do not look forward to having some title added to my name, which means nothing to me personally, and might even compromise my ability to move conspicuously among the unchurched. But on the other hand I can humbly say that God has “called” me to set aside my life to study His Word, experiment with new ministries, and be prepared to follow wherever Jesus leads, all for the purpose of serving God’s people. In my mind that sense of calling is really the foundation of ordination, and it has been confirmed by people in numerous churches, my professors at seminary, and even some people in Luverne.

I hope that helps explain the meaning of “ordination” a little bit, and over the coming months we will all pray together whether or not my personal calling is a good fit for ARC in the long term or not. I trust God will answer that questions in His perfect timing!

Cory Grimm

About ten years ago, our family was in the market for a bigger home when we heard of an old house that was coming up for sale on an auction. We attended an open house and previewed the property. The house was a possibility with an ample amount of bedrooms for a family of five and room for a home-based business. But, the lack of outlets, light fixtures, and closets, brought about some degree of concern. My dear husband assured me, however, he could fix those things. While I saw “old” and “dated”, he saw “potential” and “possibility”. I guess you could say he had a vision. He could look at the property and see walls removed, rooms added, closets created, and areas repurposed. I found it difficult to see past the shag carpet and wallpaper, and saw hard work, sore muscles, and lots of dollar signs. But, he sold me on the vision.

Having a vision was essential! Without it we would have had problems estimating the cost of improvements, determining the price we were willing to pay for the house, and convincing the bank on the amount we needed for a home improvement loan. A vision kept us focused on the desired outcome in the midst of setbacks. When the work seemed endless, tempers flared, and frustrations mounted, I reminded him of the vision. There were times during the course of the project that the vision changed and adaptations were made, but it was easier to weigh the pros and cons of many decisions against the light of an end goal.

As Christians, we should also have a vision. We can come up with fancy words and drawn out phrases that make us sound intelligent and noteworthy, but when it comes down to it, the only vision or goal that counts in the Christian life is that His kingdom come and His will be done. With our home renovation, we could give detailed drawings, itemized lists, and cost estimates, or simply state that we were remodeling our home. So it is with our Christian vision… we can “act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God” (Micah 6:8), “give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord” (1 Cor 15:58), “look after orphans or widows in their distress and keep ourself from being polluted by the world” (James 1:27), “go and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19), and “give attention to prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). But all the details and DOs and DO NOTs can be summed up in this: Live and Love Like Jesus. Jesus came to earth to sacrifice himself for the sins of the world, but he also came to show us God’s vision of His Kingdom.

So what does this mean for ARC? Not so long ago we had a vision to build a new sanctuary. I have been re-reading an old devotional that was given to the congregation when we began the facility expansion. I have been convicted by these words: “Pray that as this dream is realized we will grow more fully into devoted followers of Jesus Christ” and “Pray that we can be one so that the world can be won”. The new worship center came to be a reality, but it seems like once the project was completed we were without a goal that kept us all working together. We lost sight of a vision and began drifting along rather than reaching beyond our walls to touch the world with God’s love.

I would like to propose a new expansion project. Not one that is measured in square feet and dollars and cents; a Spiritual Expansion project where the only blueprint is the Master Builder himself. What would ARC look like in the next five years if everyone committed the same amount of time, energy and finances to being a reflection of Jesus? I can only say that “Through God’s work in us, God is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or possibly imagine.” (Ephesians 3:20) Sound familiar?

Erin Jacobsma

Spiritual Expansion

I guess fall is officially underway, as I watch our beautiful landscape turn brown and fall asleep for the winter. These changes make for much anticipation for what the winter will bring. I know many of you do not care for the swirling white stuff like I do. While I look forward to the change in season, I too will eventually grow tired of it and anticipate the new signs of lush green growth.

With the current changes in our weather, I had been avoiding a job I knew needed to be done. Getting my garden cleaned out. (Insert a long sigh here.) After weeks of daily trips to harvest the bountiful goodness and storing it up for the year ahead, I had not made the trip across the yard in a while. Perhaps I was sad to face the facts that one of my favorite spots was done for the season, but today was the day. With a warm sweatshirt and gloves pulled up high, I got to work. It struck me as I was pulling out the plants how something that was once so good and fruitful was now just a crispy, dead plant that needs to be taken out, to allow for new growth next year. The plants were no longer producing the once beautiful fruit.

The plants in my garden were not a waste. My garden allowed a spot for me to enjoy this summer, spending hours tending to its needs. Several weeks ago I was harvesting a lot of wonderful fruit; harvested fruit that I have since stored in clear jars on my basement shelf to use and enjoy for months to come.

As I was cleaning, I was surprised to see a head of cauliflower. “What is this among all the drying, dead vines and stalks?” I asked myself. Could it be my first head of cauliflower for the year? I had given up on my cauliflower weeks ago. But, there among all the dying stuff was life. There was fruit (or a vegetable in this case J) that had sprung up among all the stuff that was not producing anymore.

After pulling everything up and bringing it to our burn hole, my mind started thinking. “Could this be similar to how we feel about things at church?” I have many traditions that I grew up with in Chandler that are similar to here at ARC. I enjoy and hold them close to my heart. It reminds me of my journey to knowing Christ, my loved ones and their love for our Creator. It can be difficult to see changes, sometimes even a bit hurtful. It is hard to see programs and traditions that you have participated in, found joy in, maybe even help begin, come to an end. We settle in and get comfortable, hold those feelings close to our heart and it just feels good.

Over the years, some of our programs and ways we do different things at church have changed or quit being effective, in the ways originally intended. Some have just naturally flowed in a little different direction without much notice. A few things, that were maybe very important to some people, have come to an end because of low participation or other circumstances. No matter the situation, much like the end of my gardening season, change can be difficult. I will admit it can sometimes be very difficult! However, sometimes we need to “clean up” a bit to allow for new growth, both for us and others.

Programs and traditions could be compared to my garden. It has grown and been a good place to enjoy, but now the growth has slowed or even quit. The garden produced a lot of wonderful fruit and now the fruit has been harvested to help sustain us for the new season. The fruit that has come from many of our programs has been plentiful and wonderful. This fruit has been harvested and is now stored up in the lives of many, in order to carry us through the new season of good things to come. While it won’t always be easy, we can be assured we have the much needed knowledge and love for one another to journey together as the body and allow for new growth within one’s heart, outside our physical church walls and into the hearts of the lost.

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

Appreciating God’s perfect timing in all things, Becky

You all have received a short announcement in your church mailbox that this will be my final year as Youth Coordinator at ARC. (Please refer to the announcement for potential transition timelines.) I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve here at ARC! I especially want to thank everyone who reached out through acts of great kindness and humility towards my family and me. You are greatly appreciated! I pray this is the beginning of an eternal friendship.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. [2Co 13:14 NIV]

The apostle Paul ends his letter to the church in Corinth by passing on the three most powerful principles in the Bible: 1) Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. 2) Love of God. 3) Fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

It gives me great solace to know that God used a man like Paul who was once a persecutor of the church and a bunch of imperfect rag tag disciples to turn the world upside down through teaching these three simple, yet powerful principles.

It is my prayer that when my time here at ARC has ended, my ministry is remembered as being a passionate attempt to promote these same life-saving principles and not my human imperfections. You are in my prayers and I am excited to see where Jesus will lead ARC as you walk and dance in His Spirit.

God bless you all!

Andy Anderson