Newsletter article

Generosity, a Gift of the Spirit

"Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,

gentleness, and self-control"

From Galatians 5:22-23

In this ongoing series on this list of the gifts of the Spirit, an image of a pyramid has been used. The idea is that Joy is more possible when there is first Love. Peace, patience and the others are natural "by-products" (not the right word, but it will do) of a strong foundation of Love and Joy. As I mentioned before, it's likely that the Apostle Paul does not have this shape in mind. He probably listed gifts as they came to mind, as they have been shown to him through the experience of the community of faith. But the pyramid shape might still be helpful to us as we think about the gifts of the Spirit.

Now, generosity. I'm writing this from home today because I have been battling a cold and I have a nine-year-old to watch after. A member of the congregation just came to my front door and presented me with a few envelopes. One had more monetary gifts for the family our church is helping this Christmas. With these gifts added in, there will be nearly $500 to use strategically to help a family in our community. These gifts along with the many other gifts purchased for the family are given simply because that family has a need and we have the desire to share. There's generosity if I have ever seen it. Over the years our congregation has been able to touch the lives of many people, asking nothing in return. We just wanted to be able to practice the generosity that we experience from God. The families we help are so thankful. It's a humbling experience to be the giver.

The other envelope contained a beautiful card and generous gift of money for my family and me. We have been so blessed by this community but especially St. Paul Lutheran Church. We have a very deep and sincere gratitude for the generosity and love that we have experienced in our faith community. Thank you!

According to one etymological dictionary, "generous" has an original literal meaning "of noble birth." Those who are generous are showing they are of noble birth. That's quite interesting, isn't it? It assumes a position of power, but power used in the best of ways. So when you are generous, you are giving from a position of strength. You're sharing your strength so that your neighbor can become stronger. The miracle of generosity is that generosity grows when it is given. I think that's because it is a gift of the Spirit, and when the Holy Spirit is involved, there is abundant supply. And as we are turning our hearts and minds toward Christmas and Epiphany, we remember that Jesus is the One who is of most "noble birth."

You know when you've received from someone's generosity. Remember, it is one of the ways God touches your life. If you have love, peace, patience and kindness, generosity will easily follow.

Pastor James Aalgaard

Word for Today

¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.  ¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child;  ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.  ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. (From Luke 2)

Can you turn your attention to a certain place inside your body? Last night I was on the treadmill. My knee was hurting, so my attention was most definitely right there. Typically our attention goes to the aches and pains that are occurring inside our body. For some, those pains go on and on throughout the day and night. Medication can take the edge off, muffle the pain for a while. It is possible that our attention to our insides will cause us to miss something going on outside.

At this point in the Nativity Story, young Mary was recovering from the very human act of labor and delivery. Deep inside her body there had been a radical and painful change. Not so long ago she was expecting. Not so long ago she was exhilarated. Now she's exhausted. 

And then, company comes a-calling! Shepherds arrive, smelling like the sheep they watch. And they have quite a yarn to spin! They have quite a story to tell. They tell about a wild vision of angels, announcements and angelic singing. In particular, they look at this baby boy and make proclamation about him.

Mary treasured and pondered. She tucked those words inside her heart. She stored them for later use. She put them away inside her heart for a rainy day. 

In the ancient world, the "heart", the seat of emotion, is about the center of your body. Your heart is pretty close to your belt line. That is where Mary pondered. As one who just delivered, it makes perfect sense, doesn't it?

If you go there now with your attention, and give yourself time to ponder... what comes to mind about your relationship with God?

A final and perhaps unrelated note: the picture below looks like a pencil sketch (although it's probably a wood-cut). Something maybe unique about this medium is that sketching is the act of drawing around something that exists; providing a place for it. Here, the artist has drawn around Christ, made space for him. The same is true today... we can't draw Christ so much as we can make space for him. 

Merry Christmas friends!

Pastor James Aalgaard
St. Paul Lutheran Church

Word for Today

God, the Inventor of Hydraulics

Is your life heavy? Is there anything unbearable with which you're dealing? Are there burdens that you would rather disappeared through the night? Sometimes we wish we can stay horizontal in bed in the morning, so that our burdens don't weigh us down so much. Then we get out of bed and EVERYTHING seems to drop.

From Luke, chapter one: ⁵¹You have shown strength with your arm...

In Jesus, God responded with the strength of his arm. The girl who first declared these words was named Mary. We don't know her age, but it's likely she was between 14 and 18. Not so powerful by the world's standards. Mary is responding to the angelic announcement that she will be delivering a very special baby boy. As he grows in her womb, her center of gravity will change. True hydraulics will be brought to bear in Mary, by the Spirit of God. These are the early signs of the leveraging that God is doing for the sake of the world. The whole world, according to the promise, will be turned upside down. That takes a very strong arm. Mary declares that God has lifted up the lowly. He has brought the tyrant down, and has lifted the oppressed up. The pivot point is Christ, who is being formed in Mary's womb. Lucky for her, Jesus is born and takes the weight of the world's sorrow and brokenness on himself at the ultimate leveraging place, a cross on a small hill. At the crucifixion of Jesus God's arm righted the world in a mighty way.

Hydraulics is the phenomenon of fluid being forced through various containers (pipes, tubes, cylinders) so that with very little effort on the part of the "pusher" and the aid of hydraulics, very heavy objects can be lifted or moved. The technology can be traced all the way back to ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt. But we know it goes even further back, into the mind of God.

I suggest you don't try to leverage your burdens on your own. Your spirit cannot bear the pressure. But you do know Someone who not only CAN bear them, he HAS, and he WANTS to. He's taking the heaviness away... now.

Where does God start this job in you? What is God lifting? Let me know!

For me, God is lifting my doubt of myself. It's pretty heavy.

Pastor James Aalgaard
St. Paul Lutheran Church

"Joy is a net of love that can catch souls" (Mother Teresa)

Word for Today

The Gospel in shorthand:

from First Thessalonians 5:

^"16Rejoice always,  ¹⁷pray without ceasing,  ¹⁸give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.  ¹⁹Do not quench the Spirit.  ²⁰Do not despise the words of prophets,  ²¹but test everything; hold fast to what is good;  ²²abstain from every form of evil."

I grew up knowing the bit of trivia that says the shortest verse in the Bible is "Jesus wept." (John 11:35). How wonderful that little verse is, because it reminds us again of the deep love Jesus has for this world, for Lazarus his friend, and for us.

These short verses from Paul give John a run for his money. (Yes I know, verses weren't added to the biblical text until around the year  1550 by a man with the last name "Estienne". I will still use the shortness of the verses to make my point...) Perhaps these statements needed the added emphasis of verse numbers. These are sound bytes that are so short they can fit in your wallet.

I like that these verses are short and sweet. They get to the point right away without adding theological explanation, narrative, poetry or anything else. It's a mighty-good list. I especially like "Do not quench the Spirit". It takes longer to imagine the Spirit being quenched than it does to speak the words!

Once, several years ago I was welcoming people to worship, and for some reason I had skipped the Confession and Absolution which happens at the beginning of the liturgy. But I wanted to say something, so I make a brief comment that we won't have that part of the service today, and by the way, "you're forgiven." I got a laugh from the assembly but I think there is power in short, sweet, punchy, powerful, graceful words that seem to sum it all up.

These commands are the Gospel in shorthand. Like the swoops and dots, curls and hooks of the above picture show, they are quick ways to share the good news and to remind ourselves of the same. It's a good way to both stay in the community of faith, and bring someone in.

The Ditty Bops, a band from (I think) California, have a great way of summing up the world's version of this... 

"Wake up, and smell the coffee. Rise and shine. The early bird gets the worm. Strike while the iron's hot, and whistle while you work."

They have the Law figured out! (It's our job to infiltrate with the Gospel)

Rejoice. Pray. Don't quench the Spirit.

I feel like a rebel.

What is your shorthand? And, what would you prefer if you were to adopt a new one?

Pastor James Aalgaard
St. Paul Lutheran Church