Word of Mouth

Posted on April 12, 2013 by David Nuottila

DSC_0147 (2)[Jesus said] “…what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.” Matt. 15:18

Today’s question: Should the words posted on someone’s blog or contained in a 140 character tweet be considered word of mouth, or something else? And why is it that pictures with words in quotation marks posted on platforms such as Facebook become attached to the individual in the picture, rather than the person who posted the image? I think there can be little doubt that if someone takes the time to write their thoughts and share them, no matter the medium, such words must be equal to the spoken word and must have come from the heart. So why, if they come from the heart, do our words seem to get us in so much trouble?

Certainly we hurt each other with our words, either spoken or written. Often times, word of mouth is also the least reliable witness that we can listen to. Yet, word of mouth, rumor or gossip, all too often seem to be the words that carry the most weight. This is tragic for several reason, least of being that when we say something that offends, we can’t simply take the words back. They are out there and they remain. The very least we can do is admit our mistake, ask for forgiveness and then move on. In our world of social media and instant messaging within a nonverbal community, such negativity seems to spread like wild fire. Thankfully there is also a positive and pleasing quality to our words as well.

Just as the ugly connotations of insults and angry words remain, so do the endearing positive effects of our words when they are spoken in love for one another. These words not only come from the mouth, they also come from the heart. Words of forgiveness, words of healing, and words of love last longer than mere actions. Such words from the heart go directly to the hearts of others. When we take time to share a good word with someone, even in an adverse situation, the words endure in a healthy way. It is so important that we realize the power of our words.

Certainly it is difficult to be ever mindful of the things we say or write. It isn’t always our priority to carefully read out Facebook posts and tweets before they hit the air, especially when we react to an emotionally charged situation. Yet, Jesus calls us to be careful with our words. Christ calls the people of God to use good words, words of love, so that as we speak, our words do not defile or injure.

The old saying about sticks and stones we learn as children still carries weight for us as adults. But when we do hurt others with our words, and we know that from time to time we will, we must remember that we can’t really take them back. Therefore, we must remember to speak the words of love, healing, repentance and forgiveness; because the words that hurt most of all are the words we leave unspoken.

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Ears

Posted on April 11, 2013 by David Nuottila

???????????????????????????????And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:11-13

Sometimes I can’t believe just how much noise is actually in the air. I am usually the first person to arrive at the church and I have come to enjoy this time of peace. Yet, even in the quiet setting of our church and community, it doesn’t take long before the world wakes up and disrupts what is otherwise a morning of solitude. Soon, a greater number of cars begin their usual parade up and down the road; the lawn care crew starts up their mowers and trimmers. It isn’t long before the phone rings and I am off to another full day. I am sure many people have the same morning experience.

Have you ever thought about how much noise there is in the world? Have you ever considered the many voices calling out to you all at once, begging for your attention? It seems the more we progress into the future, the more noise we produce. Think about it for a moment. All the daily responsibilities that come with life in our postmodern society give rise to voices that call out, “Do this…do that. Come here…go there.” When you step back for a minute, you soon realize there is a lot of noise in the world. So much that we have simply become accustom to it and the cacophony just becomes a part of the landscape. In all of this, how is it that we are to hear the still small voice of God calling to us? How are we to listen to Jesus as he shepherds us through a broken, sinful and chaotic world? Perhaps we need to look at things from a different perspective.

Each and every day, our lives are filled with the wonder and awe of God’s creation. Every day, as we awaken to a new sunrise, God’s people also awaken to a day of blessedness, a day of giftedness and a day of opportunity. God blesses his people with creativity, imagination, skill and the ability to serve their neighbors. As you consider these things, understand that all we have, all we do and all we give for the sake of others are first provided through the love of heavenly Father. With this realization, soon the world becomes a little less noisy.

Considering God’s good gifts, all of a sudden, over the hum of mowers and trimmers I can hear the sound of birds singing their morning song. As I make my way into town, I can hear church bells as they toll every hour. As jet airplanes fly overhead and trains whistle by, they speak to the many gifts and talents that God has given to his people, and the need for us to pay attention so that we do not abuse our world and its delicate balance. We can hear all of these things when we choose to listen to what God is saying.

Even in our noisy world, God continues to speak to us through his good creation. With the dawn of each new day, God awakens the world as if to say “I love you, you are mine. See the good things that I have provided for you today.” All we need to remember is who and whose we are. Christians, saved through the blood of Christ Jesus are God’s beloved people, called out to be witnesses to his grace and servants for the sake of others.

Can you hear God calling you? Can you hear the still small voice of God as he speaks his Word of grace, peace and love? God’s promises are true and eternal; they are filled with the love of Christ Jesus. God speaks to his people today just as he has always spoken, with a still, small voice calling out in faith, hope and love. As Jesus often said as he concluded the parables, “Let anyone with ears listen.”

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Eyes

Posted on April 10, 2013 by David Nuottila

IMG_1509When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. Luke 24:30-31

Yesterday, I mentioned how some make intentional and obvious eye contact during communion. Looking someone in the eye can tell you a lot about that person; especially when we are engaged in something as intimate as the Lord’s Supper. I am continually amazed and humbled each week as people come forward, one by one and look me in the eye.

On Easter Sunday, I was struck by two people in particular. The first was a young boy who was about eight years old. He looked sheepishly up to meet me eye to eye, and had a look of uncertainty about him. Instinctively I knelt on one knee so that we could be on the same level, and as I placed the wafer in the hand of this young man, his eyes lit up and he flashed me a great smile. After receiving the wine I heard him tell his mother, “I told them thank you, but next time I want to say Amen.” Can’t argue with that.

The other person that made an impact was an elderly woman who could not come up the aisle. To put it simply, her legs don’t work as well as they used to. As we walked over to where she was sitting, the woman was looking toward the floor, almost as if she was saddened that we had to come to her. The beautiful moment came when she had finished the small cup of wine and she raised her head. Her eyes were wide open and staring right into mine. I almost didn’t want to walk away, but of course I had to go.

Sometimes I try to imagine the look in the eyes of the twelve as they sat down to share the Passover meal in the upper room. As Christ passed the broken loaf, surely the disciples looked him in the eye. There also must have been some very intense stares that were passed across the table as our Lord told them that one in their midst was a traitor. I can’t imagine the looks of disgust and puzzlement on the remaining eleven as Judas Iscariot shamefully left the room. At least that’s how I imagine it happening.

Then there is the look that I imagine the two disciples who walked the Emmaus Road must have had as they shared a meal with the risen Lord. As they made their way home, they were dejected, filled with grief; no doubt looking down much of the time. Then the risen Christ joined them on their journey, but they did not recognize him. Jesus opened their minds to the Holy Scriptures. Then, as they shared the meal, Jesus opened their eyes to God’s amazing grace. What words can we use to describe such a look? Joy? Wonder? Awe? None of these seems to capture the feelings they must have had as they encountered Jesus, who was crucified, yet he lives.

There are many looks on the faces of people as they come to receive Holy Communion. Some look down. Some are very serious. Some even come to the table smiling with great joy. Everyone who comes to the table has walked their own Emmaus Road. They have all made a journey through life’s doubts and sorrows to get to the table in order to meet Jesus. I pray that as pastor and people make eye contact during the distribution of bread and wine, Christ warms our hearts and opens our eye to God’s unfailing and eternal love.

These are the things I see, these are the things I feel. As God’s people come to the table, I can see so much through these windows of their souls. I see people who are hungry and searching, coming to the risen Christ that they may be fed. I see people who come in faith, hope, and love. I also try to keep in mind that for everyone whom I look in the eye, there is someone who is looking back at me. Perhaps one day I will ask someone what they see as well.

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Hands

Posted on April 9, 2013 by David Nuottila

Communion in the Hand[Jesus said] “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” John 6:51

Someone once asked me what I, as a pastor, find most intriguing about the distribution of communion. The question caught me a little by surprise, not because it was an odd question, but because I often think about the very same thing as I stand before my congregation holding the sacramental elements in my hands. It is very humbling to be the one called by God to preside at his table. At the same time, it is not far from my mind just how extraordinary this responsibility is and how blessed I am to occupy such office.

To answer my friend’s question, I think the thing that strikes me the most is looking at the hands of the people as I place the host in their outstretched palm. So much is said for making eye contact during communion, but how many pastors and communion assistants notice the hands? Eyes may be the window to the soul, but hands open doors…and windows. Hands do stuff. Hands work, play, and they even communicate.

As one particular gentleman comes to the table, he presents his hands to God so reverently; hands as wrinkled as prunes. When he stretches them out to receive the host, one can almost hear the crackling of stiff leather as it is being straightened. On Easter Sunday, another man had a bandage on his hand from a work related incident. And still one more person; a young lady, came to receive the sacrament with extended hands that are smooth as silk, almost childlike.

What do these hands all have in common? They are all reaching out to receive the bread of life. Young or old, rich or poor, every pair of hands gathered around God’s table are the hands of needy people. We need Christ. We need the salvation that is brought to us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. As we stretch out our empty hands, God places love, reconciliation, and eternal life in them. As we pull our hands back towards us, God fills us with his grace, mercy and love. That is what intrigues me the most these days during communion. God fills us with the good stuff; God’s hands feeding us with the true bread from heaven so that we may have life and light eternal.

 

Photo credit unknown

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Emmaus Road

Posted on April 1, 2013 by David Nuottila

???????????????????????????????“…We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place.” Luke 24:21

So Easter Sunday has come…and gone. Like so many others, our congregation had an absolutely wonderful Easter celebration. The choirs, musicians, flowers, banners and pews filled with God’s people made the day truly memorable. The women and young ladies all came in their new Easter dresses. The men were dressed in their Sunday best. Extended families gathered with friends and several people new to our community and we all worshiped and gave thanks to God for the gift of salvation through His Son Jesus. Yes, our Easter celebration, like yours I’m sure, was beautiful and spiritually invigorating. So now what?

Today is the day after. For so many, the Easter dresses have been put in the closet. Men have returned their Sunday best to the hanger. Even as the fifty day Easter festival is just beginning, horns are in their cases, hand bells packed away and the covers have been put back on the tympani’s. It’s Monday, and except for many clergy members (including yours truly) most have returned to work and resumed their daily struggle against the world. Naturally, the question begs to be asked; Has Easter made a difference? Does Jesus’ resurrection still impact you in your struggle against the world?

It happened just as Jesus said it would. God kept his promise to redeem his people, in fact, God is still keeping it. Every day, God acts to save those who have wandered from his grace. Through his life, death and resurrection, Jesus brings forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life to all who believe. Even as the troubles and worries of earthly life weigh on the hearts of people, God’s promise of salvation and life in his kingdom are true and eternal.

Today, God’s people find themselves once again walking along the Emmaus road. We are still imperfect people with minds filled with doubts and hearts burdened with fear. We still live in a fallen and broken world where bad things happen even to good people. Yet, in our conversations concerning Christ Jesus, our life together as God’s people, we are reminded through Holy Scripture that Jesus is indeed alive. As we walk the Emmaus road, living and learning the way of salvation, Christ walks with us. The good news of Jesus’ resurrection and victory over the grave gives hope to a world hungering and thirsting for God’s redemption.

Jesus makes himself known in so many ways; through the loving hands of someone providing food to the hungry, in the comfort of shelter provided to a homeless person, and through the presence of a loved one who consoles those who mourn. Jesus makes his presence known to the Church and to the world in his teaching, through his example of servitude, and most especially through the breaking of bread and pouring of wine at God’s table of grace.

Yes, the annual Easter events in our churches and families are concluded for another year. Yet, the hope and joy of Easter lives on in the hearts and minds of God’s people. Because Christ lives, every day is an Easter day for God’s people. Every day is filled with the promises of God’s mercy and grace. As we continue in our struggle against a fallen world, I pray the hearts of God’s people are burning with the hope and joy of Easter. May we all live in God’s grace and continue to proclaim the good news. Christ is risen, he is risen indeed!

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