Happy Anniversary! Did you forget our special day? That’s ok, I’m not mad at you, I kind of blocked it out, too. Honestly, after the first twelve months, I wished we could stop talking about it and just accept that COVID was part of our existence. If I never hear the phrase “new normal” again, it will be too soon.

This week marks three years since we shut everything down and distanced ourselves so we could protect ourselves and each other from a seriously inconvenient and often deadly virus. But we’ve had plenty of time to bemoan all the things we didn’t like about our time in quarantine. We know what worked and what didn’t. COVID is still with us, but we’ve built up some immunity and most of us can fight it off when we need to.

I want to take this special anniversary day to celebrate some of the positive things that have changed in the time since COVID, both here at church and for me personally.

Here at Lord of Life, the week of lockdown kickstarted a new phase of digital ministry for us. As soon as we knew we couldn’t worship in person, we figured out how to stream worship, first using the cameras on our phones, then pulling together videos from volunteers, and finally setting up a permanent video system in the church. Since then, a third of our attendance is online and a third of our new members find us and worship with us virtually before they come and meet us in person. 

Getting us out of the building for a few months also gave us a chance to finish the sanctuary renovation without disruption to in-person worship. I’m sure we would have figured things out if COVID hadn’t been a factor, but the extra breathing room allowed us to take our time and fine-tune some details that might have been rushed if we were trying to get back in the room faster.

We learned that we excel at outreach. No matter how little we saw each other in person, our outreach ministries never skipped a beat. From collecting masks and supplies for first responders and essential workers, and a special collection for Native American reservations, to continuing our regular collections for Feed the Need, Giving Tree, Reach Out Lakota, Thanksgiving meal boxes for SELF, and several other ministries.

I learned some things about myself, too. If you would have asked me three years ago, getting to work from home was the best thing ever. My introverted self is perfectly happy to plug away at a computer without any outside stimulus for hours at a time. But eventually I, too, missed getting to see everyone and I have a new appreciation for getting to spend time together when we can chat outside of worship.

And finally - after three years - I think I’m ready to move away from the piano bench to pass the peace again. I’ve been content with showing a peace sign from my swiveling chair, but I’m ready for handshakes and hugs. I never thought I’d say that! If you’re not there yet, that’s ok. Some people weren’t comfortable with it before. I’ll try to pick up on your social cues if you’d rather share a head nod or a fist bump.

Looking forward to passing the peace,

John Johns

I want to go to the beach. This time of year always gives me the itch for spring break travel, but we’re staying put this year. Our three kids have three different breaks, then you add in the season of Lent, church construction, and everything else to the mix – nope. But that doesn’t mean that I’m not thinking about splashing in the saltwater and napping on the sand.

Perhaps my favorite part of going to the beach is building a sand castle. One of the highlights of crafting this temporary creation is always some kind of a tunnel under the structure – down where the sand is cold and damp. I remember many years of digging from opposite sides with a sibling, friend, or more recently one of my kids, burrowing our way towards one another with anticipation of making a connection for a secret subterranean passageway or a moat extension under the fortress entrance bridge.

That’s been happening at our church, recently. Footers and foundations were poured in the new expansion area and now the Trade 31 crew needs to feed plumbing and electrical materials underground from connection points to their destination. The only way to do that is to dig under the concrete structures. It was fun to see construction workers standing torso deep in a trench with shovels digging tunnels toward one another like children at the seashore.

I’ve seen it elsewhere in our church community, too. In Bible studies, chatting between worship services, conversations in the parking lot, and alongside one another as we serve in various capacities, you intentionally engage people with differing views about political and social issues, worship preferences, and theologies in an attempt to grow in your knowledge and understanding. 

Isn’t that what we’re called to do? To meet in the middle or at least move toward one another in love, making an effort to connect and understand each other? In a delightful way, these moments also move us closer to Christ.

For our Lenten journey at Lord of Life this year, we’re hearing stories and encountering followers of Jesus who were asking honest questions in search of a deeper faith. In the stories of Nicodemus (John 3:1-17), the Samaritan woman (John 4:5-42), the blind man and the disciples (John 9:1-41), and Lazarus’ family (John 11:1-45), we see people asking questions as they yearn for deeper understanding. In their stories, we witness people feverishly digging as they seek to meet Jesus.

Thankfully, even when these characters are confused or don’t understand, Jesus continues to teach them with care. When they lash out in anger and confusion, Jesus reminds them of God’s loving embrace. Jesus never stops pursuing them in love. 

So it is with us. Sometimes our tunneling isn’t in search of connection, but is digging in for the long fight, building bigger walls, and fortressing ourselves as self-preservation. We try to excavate our own lives as a way of self-discovery, but end up isolated and unapproachable.

If you’ve ever built a sandcastle anywhere near the water, you know that your dusty citadel doesn’t last long. The tide comes rolling in and washes away your granular creation. 

So it is with our fortressed hearts and minds. The renewing waters of baptism and wind of the Spirit pursue us relentlessly, dismantling all that separates us from God and each other. Jesus never ceases in creating a path to find us and invite us to begin anew. 

Digging with hope,

Pastor Lowell

If you know me well, you might be surprised to see me writing a blog about tennis. I call most activities involving bats or racquets and any amount of sweating “sportsball” and usually tune out or poke some sort of fun on the rare occasion people think to talk about sportsball around me.

I’ve never watched a tennis match. I’m so woefully unaware that I have to guess any time the New York Times Crossword Puzzle asks questions related to tennis (or any other sport.) But when I was growing up, John McEnroe’s name was famous enough to break through my ignorance of all things sporty. So when I was listening to NPR last month and Terry Gross was interviewing him on Fresh Air, I knew enough to follow along with the conversation.

What struck me about the interview was how little there was about the actual game of tennis and how the focus remained on McEnroe’s personal experience being managed and coached. He was managed and coached by his father, and traveled from match to match only with him and maybe one or two other people at most. He still prefers to operate with a small circle like this. He compared this to modern athletes, who often travel with entire entourages including coaches, managers, personal assistants, media managers, psychologists, physical therapists, nutritionists, and other professionals who make it possible to survive the increased pressure of working in the modern era. The world has changed so much that performance on the court isn’t enough for someone to succeed. Almost every aspect of an athlete’s life has to be carefully shaped, or at least give that appearance, for them to be successful.

As I listened, it occurred to me that this truth didn’t apply just to athletes. The prevalence of social media and our constant availability by phone, text, and email increase the pressure on all of us to be “on” all the time. And as expectations of us change, our personal needs change, too. This includes our need to find ways to care for ourselves mentally, physically, and spiritually. For most of us, we have to do it without an entire staff of people surrounding us.

As a church, we, as staff, spend a great deal of time considering people’s spiritual needs. We look at what is happening in the lives of people in our congregation, and then in the greater community and ask ourselves what we can do to help. It isn’t always easy. Sometimes it means changing the way we worship or something in our building. We love our traditions and it is difficult to let go of things that have worked for us for many years or that we feel comfortable or that we remember with fondness.

As individual Christians, maybe we can consider this: what can we do to decrease the burden on each other? What can we do to lower the expectation of constant availability? What can we do to assist each other on our collective spiritual journeys? We might not all have a team of professionals, but we have all been called to surround each other with Jesus’ love.

Yours in Christ, 

John Johns

Music Director

I have always blamed Hallmark for the mixed emotions of Valentine’s Day. Their messaging told me that I needed to create or receive that perfect outing, gift, or card. I had to have that dream love affair to feel valued. Valentine’s Day can be exciting when it’s new love or it can also be painful or bring a sense of loss and loneliness, especially for those that are newly single.

Turns out that Valentine’s has much darker roots than gooshy Hallmark love. Its origins are muddled but the ancient Romans had a part in it. I won’t go into the ugly details of several stories but one included Emperor Claudius II executing two men, both named Valentine, on February 14th in different years in the third century. Their martyrdom was honored by the Catholic church with the celebration of St. Valentine’s Day. https://www.npr.org/2011/02/14/133693152/the-dark-origins-of-valentines-day

No wonder my emotions are mixed. A huge example of marketing and propaganda in history. What if Valentine’s Day and every day, we share God’s overwhelming, comforting, “agape” love? Agape love is a sacrificial love that unites and heals. It is a love of choice, not attraction or obligation. Or as John Johns, our Music Director, put it “bring love out of the merk”. It is a real chance to live out loving as God first loved us (1 John 4:19).

Before you think I am a Valentine’s Day scrooge, I am not. One of my favorite memories is when my friend and I sent our husbands on an elaborate Valentine’s scavenger hunt to find us. In contrast, this year, I found peace that it was a cost-free selfie of me and our dog with a “We love you!” sign that I sent to my family because they were scattered in various places. Love doesn’t have to be big and extravagant.

Who can we send a message that simply says, “you are loved” not on one day but always? How can we rest in the peace of not having the “perfect” way to show our love? Can we find comfort in God’s unconditional love for us if that is what we need now or pass that love on to all who need healing and care? The Holy Spirit will guide us as we make our way in all forms of love.

Learning, growing, and loving with you always,

Angie Seiller
Director of Faith Formation

Winter is coming. I know, I know, the physical season of winter is technically here, although it seems we’ve had as many days above 50 degrees since December 21 (the technical start of winter) as we’ve had below 30 degrees. But I’m talking about a more metaphorical winter; the one we’ll begin on Ash Wednesday as we enter the season of Lent and explore the path Jesus’ ministry took that led to his death and resurrection.

What do you think of when you picture Lent? Over the centuries, several traditions developed among Christian denominations might make us get a particular image in our mind. Maybe fasting, or giving up a particular vice. Not eating meat on Fridays, an ashen cross on our foreheads, purple and black decorations around the church. The idea is that each of these actions might help us - what? Share in some aspect of the pain that Jesus felt during his last days? Remind us of our sin and why Jesus came to help us? I think the traditions we associate with Lent started with good intentions, but without some extra community guidance, the opportunity to wrestle with the deeper meaning of Lent is lost.

During this Season of Lent, beginning with Ash Wednesday, February 22, we will begin a series in which we dive into some of the difficult questions Christians have faced since Biblical times. From our resource material:

Like the characters in our Lenten scriptures, we are also seeking many things: clarity, connection, wonder, justice, balance. We are seeking our calling, the sacred, and how to live as a disciple. Throughout the turbulence of the past few years, many of us are asking big questions about our lives and our faith. If you are returning to church, you are probably returning with more questions and a critical lens. We hope this series will help us unpack some of those big questions in ways that are honest and faithful. Throughout this season, we hope you will continually ask yourself: what am I seeking? What is God seeking?

We will explore these questions in different ways each Sunday and Wednesday (see below for a schedule.) By coming together as a community to work through these questions together, we not only dig into a deeper meaning to Lent, but we also remind ourselves that Jesus never meant for us to walk the path of Lent or any other journey alone. We live and celebrate together so we can wrestle with the big and difficult questions and then share the Easter message with the world.

Yours in Christ,

John Johns

Winter, cabins, 2” mattresses, bunk beds, walking outside to get to restrooms and showers, two nights of their weekend, camp food, and investing in our Jr. High youth…” sure, sign me up!” The chaperones who went on the Confirmation retreat at Camp HopeWood Pines (Lutheran Memorial Camp outside of Columbus) would probably self-describe as no longer being “spring chickens,” yet, they were willing to go outside of their comfort zone to hang out with 13- and 14-year-olds for the weekend. Quite the example of our weekend theme of “Love to Serve” and looking for the gifts we have been given by God’s love and how we use those gifts to love God and our neighbor.

I think all of us would say that we were blessed by the weekend even considering the conditions. Finding comradery with each other, other youth groups, camp staff, and most importantly interacting with our hope for the future, these teens. They also put themselves out there by meeting new people, trying different things, public speaking and acting, singing, and the list goes on. They put their faith in action. Trusting that they were in a safe space with people that only wanted the best for them.

Throughout our lives, we tend to compare ourselves to others. We measure as we think someone is more social, a better musician, or athlete, or reader, or more organized. I wish the comparison game could end because we all have our unique gifts and we can be stronger together. Sometimes it takes a while to find them and can certainly be a process. That’s the beauty of our community, as we learn together and support each other. Sometimes, our neighbor can see the gifts that we haven’t come to realize.

As I write this on the snow day for many schools, it reminds me of growing up and our snow days. From the upstairs window of our house, we could see the top floor of the elementary school. On days there was snow, we would all rush to that window when we got up to see if the lights were on. If there were no lights, it was at the very least a delay and cause for celebration. What sign are you looking for to say, “Yes”? Yes, to explore your gifts and talents to serve our neighbors, community, and beyond. Yes, to discover your special way to serve or to take a brave step.

At the retreat, we discussed the story of Jesus Feeding the 5000 (actually, thousands more because they only counted the men). John 6:9 says, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they among so many people?” How can something so small have that kind of ripple effect? God has shown us countless examples of how one seemingly insignificant gift can affect many. There are some that do have big talents and gifts to share but the small ones can matter just as much.

As we discover our talents and ways to serve, we trust that God will continue to equip and guide us and give us joy in the serving. Let’s continue to say, “yes” together.

God’s peace always,

Angie Seiller