Last week, I was at the church council meeting for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Community Lutheran Church is a congregation of the ELCA. In 2023, I was nominated to serve on the church council of the ELCA. The national (ELCA) church council operates a lot like our own church council here at…
Hi everyone, I am in my hotel room in Chicago, Illinois just hours away from my second church council meeting at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Just like last time (and possibly every time) the agenda is packed with lots of items. All of it important as we try to live out our…
Last Sunday we heard the story of Jesus coming to Jerusalem. Jesus didn’t live in Jerusalem, but he spent the final week of his life in the capital city of Israel. It was customary to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover during the time of Jesus. Passover is the primary covenant between…
Long before Jesus, the nation of Israel was more of a loose confederation of tribes. There was no national government, only the 12 tribes that descended from Jacob’s sons and grandsons. The Israelites endured slavery in Egypt until God rescued them and gave them the ten commandments and the law. But they still struggled, like…
