Everyday Lutherans

Your phone rings and it is your child’s number. “Hi Timmy, what are you up to?” The voice on the other end is not your son, Timmy. “Hello, Mrs. Johnson, this is the Sheriff's Office. I am calling to let you know that your son was involved in an automobile accident. Can you find someone to bring you to the First Memorial Hospital?” You have to sit down. You can not believe what it is you just heard. “Yes, I will be there.” Nothing else matters right now, you want to get to the hospital there for your son. Ellen saw you on the phone and that you had to sit down. She comes over and asks if everything is alright. “I need to get to First Memorial Hospital.” Ellen understands and gets you there. You get to the ER and Timmy is there on a hospital bed, awake, but you can see the scrapes. Timmy says, “I am so sorry about the car. I will buy a new one.” None of that matters though. What matters is he is there and you are there, together. Ash Wednesday comes in the midst of our busy l...

Ash Wednesday comes in the midst of our busy lives.  It causes us to slow down and stop to reflect.  On Ash Wednesday, we gather together as million of Christians to be reminded that we have been called claimed and are loved by God’s own Son, Jesus Christ.  Being marked by ashes in the sign of the cross, we are reminded of who we belong to.  We are reminded that we are mortal, that one day, we will no longer walk this earth. However, we put our faith and trust in God who claims and promises that we will allows be in His loving arms.   To put ashes upon oneself, is an ancient tradition.  People would often do this as a sign of mourning with great grief.  It is also echoes within our hearts and minds those who have gone before you, who strived to give you what it is that was passed down to you.  Today, we remember what Jesus Christ has done for us. That we have been brought into Baptism, cleansed of all our sins, and forgiven so that we are in ...