The Practices of Faith

The FLC staff finally were all together in one place after a summer of vacation, retreats, and mission trips. We sat around the table and realized that it was great to be all together AND that it was a sign that the program year was just about to commence. Here in this congregation that means September 9 is what we call Rally Sunday. It is a day when we return to two worship services (8:30 and 11:00 am), begin our all ages Sunday School program, and at 12:30pm meet up at Blyth Park for our annual all church picnic. It is a celebratory time, a time to jump back into the regular rhythms of life.

When we talk about the regular rhythms of life, we need to remember that includes practicing our faith. Too often we forget that faith is a "practice." Many mistakenly think of faith as something that you possess or try to hold onto. But it is not like that. Faith is active. Faith is a practice. Faith is something we have to work on for ourselves. Faith is something we have to be in training for, much like an athlete or a musician. There are many drills we must do to hone our faith, to become more acquainted with it, like a musical instrument.

The beginning of the program year is a great way to jump back into these practices: Regular worship attendance, attending to our prayer life, and daily reading of scripture.. These are just a few of the drills we can participate in to strengthen our faith.

Another aspect of our communal faith life is a regular checking in with each other about how we feel God is calling us into the world. We are beginning a visioning process this fall to do just that. It is a faith practice to gather together to listen for the Holy Spirit in our midst. We hope that you will choose to participate when asked. We need to hear your voice.

When Susan and I were camping on the South Fork of the Sauk River, we were reminded of the power of the faith practice of waiting for the Holy Spirit in silence. We sat by that river that spoke its own language and just listened. It was a holy time for us. When we engage with God and practice our faith it is amazing how we feel ready to face the challenges of life. May God be made known to you in the breaking of the bread, in the prayers of the people, and more importantly in your practice of your faith.

The Movement of the Spirit

The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" John 3:8-9

How many of you, like me, have asked the same question as Nicodemus when God seems to be doing a new thing? When the Holy Spirit moved me to allow my name to be added to the list of candidates to be interviewed at First Lutheran Church, I was asking myself (and the Holy Spirit), “How can this be? I am in a good place, with good people. My children are still in school. This really does not seem to be a good time to be uprooting my family. It really would be inconvenient. How can this be?” But, the Holy Spirit has a funny way of blowing where she chooses and I was called to be your pastor. So eight years later here we are in Bothell still listening for the sound of the Holy Spirit, but with fear and trepidation because we do not know where she will take us.

One of these moments happened when we met as a congregation in a special congregational meeting on July 22 to see where the Holy Spirit might be leading us. We considered the Congregational Council motion: 

To authorize an expenditure of $9,000 in support of the Chinese Ministry through December 2018. 

We had a long discussion about the merits of this support. It really was a beautiful moment in the history of this congregation. Members felt free to say what they needed to say in a safe environment. No shouting. No angry comments. No gaslighting. People stood and spoke their words with honor and courage and people listened with respect. We prayed. We sat in silence listening for the Holy Spirit. We then took a paper ballot vote and the motion passed 50/23. We should be proud of ourselves.

The purpose of this support is to provide us the time and space to have a longer conversation about ALL the ministries that happen here at FLC, including the Chinese Ministry, through a visioning process chaired by Tom Payne and led by consultant Rev. Dr. Richard Rouse. In the fall we will be having a series of small group discussions where we will be asking the congregation what our strengths are, what they might think is our weaknesses, what might be opportunities to pursue for ministry, what might threaten our ability to be successful?

In all of this we need to practice listening for the Holy Spirit. And I ask you to be in prayer over these last months of the year. Specifically pray for God’s wisdom to be shown to us, that God’s path be open to us, that God’s vision become clear to us as a community of faith.

It is good to be reminded that we are not just a people of God, but that we are God’s chosen people. As Paul rights in 1 Corinthians 2:12:

Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.

Remember this in all you do.