Church newsletter pastoral column for St. Peter Lutheran Church, Greene, Iowa, for November, 2018.
Blessed to be a Blessing
I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
– Genesis 12:2
November is a month of gratitude. We begin the month by celebrating All Saints Day in worship on November 3rdand 4th. On All Saints Day, we name aloud everyone in our congregation who has died in the preceding year. It’s a somber occasion as we acknowledge our grief that our sisters and brothers in Christ are separated from us by death.
At the same time, All Saints Day is a joyous occasion to give thanks. We celebrate the promise that nothing—not even death—can separate us from the covenant God makes with us in baptism. We give thanks for their lives and celebrate the ways they blessed and encouraged us in our faith during their lives. Most of all, we celebrate God’s faithfulness and the hope we have in Christ.
Following All Saints Day, you’re going to hear a lot in the next couple weeks about a fall stewardship emphasis (including elsewhere in this month’s newsletter). That word “stewardship” can sometimes feel like a religious word for “fundraising,” but it’s about so much more than just money. To be a steward means to be a caretaker. Everything we have is trusted to us by God our Creator for us to use to bless others. God gives us our time, our talents, and our treasures so we can do God’s work with our hands, so we can serve our neighbors at home and around the world.
Our November stewardship focus culminates with Consecration Sunday on November 18. That word “Consecration” means “to declare something sacred”—it’s a way of acknowledging the reality that everything we have is a gift from God and committing to use God’s blessings to us to bless others. Watch your mail next week for more information about Consecration Sunday.
The next week, we celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time for all of us to pause and give thanks for all the blessings God has trusted to us. Thanksgiving is a fascinating holiday (“holy-day”)because it’s celebrated by both the Church and the culture around us. Many of us will engage in time-honored American traditions of eating too much turkey and pie and watching football games. Maybe your family has a tradition of going around the table and listing something you’re thankful for from the year. That’s a great way of practicing gratitude.
As Christians, when we celebrate Thanksgiving, we do more than just have warm fuzzy feelings of gratitude. We know the One to whom we are giving thanks. Our giving of thanks ought to be personal, because we know our blessings come from God, the one in whom we live and move and have our being. (Acts 17:28)Black Friday shopping is great (I’m a sucker for a great deal!), but we know that the gifts God has trusted to us are meant for the benefit of others. We are blessed to be a blessing in Jesus’ name.
May God bless you this month so that you may bless others. Let’s give thanks to God together!
Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Daniel Flucke