The Tests in Our Lives

Consider it pure joy, my brother, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-5

Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in time of testing they fall away. Luke 8:13

For many years I worked beside a colleague who, after frustrating conversations or interactions, would observe ruefully, “That ______... he/she is a test.”  Then we would chuckle, knowing that each of us had been at some point (or many points) a similarly disconcerting test to our students and coworkers. In fact, even after retiring, I’ve continued to be a test to others. A high-spirited 7th grader, with whom I worked this spring as a volunteer tutor, didn’t always appreciate my encouragement to attend to conventions for pronouncing consonants. Sighing, he announced, “Mrs. Stelk, you are running my battery down.” After a momentary pause, we both shared a laugh before getting back to the text. 

Tests have been part of the human experience since recorded history began.  I’m sure that, like the Israelites, 40 years of wandering in the desert eating manna and quail every day would have run any of our batteries down a bit. Likewise, many current events feel as though they present a test of faith. I must admit, I don’t always (or even often) consider such tests pure joy. Guess I still have some maturing to do….

Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for providing strength to persevere when we face tests and trials. Help us to comprehend the joy that comes through cultivating true and deep roots of lasting faith in you. We ask for your forgiveness when we fall away in times of distress. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Barry and Alinda Stelk (reprinted from 2018)

Thy love has broken every barrier down

 "....and the one who comes to Me, I will by no means cast out..."-John 6:37

Just As I Am, Thy love unknown

has broken every barrier down... 

One of my favorite sermons Pastor Melodie preached was during my first few weeks my family and I came to Eastridge. She preached earnestly about falling in love with Jesus again and caring most about "the least of these" meaning the children in our church family and community. 

I was reminded of this last night when we joyously had a choir rehearsal that Brian put together. Each person who came in the room, new or old choir friends, children of choir members, people who had sung in choir many years or those who it was their first time, each person was greeted by Brian and by other choir friends. The smiles on their faces as we sang hymns filled my heart with such joy.  When we got to the verse of Just As I Am about love breaking down every barrier and then sang Jesus Loves Me, I couldn't but help feel tears in my eyes. After the choir rehearsal, my kids ran down the hall and were greeted so enthusiastically by choir members. I was reminded once again of the amazing way a church choir lives out the gospel of Jesus Christ! Breaking down those barriers in love, from a hug, or a smile, or helping someone learn their notes. A church choir is such an amazing thing! People from the congregation gathering to prepare for worship!

Brian always lets us know about something happening on Sunday. What the sermon is about, or if there is a baptism, or helps us think about the text of a hymn or anthem. What a blessing it is to prepare our hearts for what God has laid on the hearts of Pastor Melodie or Pastor Thomas to share. What a blessing it is to enter that sanctuary on Sunday to hear the Word, to celebrate the sacraments, and to see a group of our congregation at the front helping, not only to lead us in worship, but remind us that ALL are welcome. To remind us that God, who is LOVE, has broken every barrier down! 

Thanks be to God.

Brent Shaw (reprinted from 2021)

GBR (Go Big Red) - Fall is Approaching

"As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." Genesis 8:22 

The last days of summer are upon us. School has started, and the weather swings between hot and rainy. In the Bible, God often speaks about the changing of seasons, a reminder that change is inevitable, though it can be challenging for many of us. We each have a favorite season, cherished for different reasons.

I used to love summer because it meant my kids were out of school, giving us endless days at the pool, long trips to Broken Bow, and late nights together. But now, summer is my busiest time of year for work, and I don’t get to enjoy those moments with my little ones as they are young adults now. Just as the seasons change, our feelings toward them can change too, and that’s okay.

I have a friend who dreads winter because it triggers her depression, while another friend struggles with the holidays because she is alone. The seasons of life shift, and with them, our experiences and emotions, but God is present in every season, guiding us through each change.

Becky Rankin (reprinted from fall 2024)

Words from Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength, a very ready help in trouble. Psalm 46:1 

Words from the book of James

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. James 1:19 

Listen

(At the home of Martha and Mary) She had a sister called Mary who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. Luke 10:39

Did you hear me? Or are you listening to me?  Two questions every mother or father or teacher has asked thousands of times.

My mom would say Did you hear me? Followed by, if you did, tell me what I said! She forgot the afterthought one time and I found myself doing every chore I could think of. When I returned, she was laughing so hard, she could hardly stand.  She had asked me to close the henhouse door and I had brought in wood, cobs, shut the doors and checked the water containers.

But are we listening when God speaks?  One of my favorite hymns, This Is My Father’s World has a phrase, "in the rustling grass, I hear him pass, he speaks to me everywhere."

Did you hear the bird call? Did you see the hawks ride the air currents? Did you watch the storm gather and the rain that came to revive our earth?

Did you hear the still small whisper of “I love you” from yesterday's child?  Did you see the half smile of a child or see an old man cry? God speaks to us but are we listening?

Prayer: Please, God, speak to us that we may listen, obey, and be better neighbors and Christians in our lives.

Carolyn Olsen (reprinted from 2021)

Prayer Shawl Ministry

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.  How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Psalm 139: 13-17 

In 1998, Janet Bristow and Victoria Galo, graduates of the 1997 Women’s Leadership Institute at The Hartford Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut, began a ministry as a result of their experience in this program. Their desire to extend compassion to others, and their love of knitting and crocheting, led them to combine the two into a prayerful ministry called the Shawl Ministry. The intent of this powerful outreach and spiritual practice was to reach out to those in need of comfort and solace along with those celebrating joy in their lives. The shawl maker begins each new mantle with prayers and blessings for the known or unknown recipient and these intentions are continued as the shawl takes form, is completed, and then is given away. (Source: The Prayer Shawl Ministry Homepage; http://www.shawlministry.com/)

 

Many years ago, a prayer shawl ministry was born at Eastridge Church with the hopes of continuing this special spiritual practice with our church family and beyond. This mission of compassion and love continues today with EPC members knitting, crocheting and quilting prayer shawls. Throughout the years, many shawls have been prayerfully completed and given away with the hope each recipient will feel the love and comfort of God, along with the prayers and blessings of a member of our church family, when they see their shawl or wrap it around their shoulders.  

Just as a butterfly develops slowly within its cocoon and emerges with its distinct characteristics or a baby develops slowly within the womb of her/his mother and is born a unique human being, so a shawl slowly develops too. With each tug of the yarn from the skein and the continual movement of the needle and fingers or the careful selection, cutting, placement and sewing of fabric occurring over time, each shawl takes on its own individual design with the blending of colors and stitches chosen carefully and loving by the maker. As I work on each shawl, I am constantly reminded of how God has chosen to create each of us with unique gifts and talents that allow us to be a reflection of God’s love and a blessing to others.

 

Prayer: Dear Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer, we thank you for the gift of our hands and the ways in which they can be a blessing to others. We ask you to bless those who have felt your calling to knit, crochet and sew prayer shawls along with those who have received them. May these mantles be a perpetual reminder of the unfailing love and care you, and our church family, have for them. Amen.

Patty Niemann (reprinted from 2017)

Editor's note: Photo below of an Eastridge prayer shawl recipient in the hospital at Bryan West two years ago!