Mail Archive of the old Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish

I adjure you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brethren. (Thessalonians 5:27)
Subject: Re: Devotions for November 11, 2008
Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:56:15 -0800
From: Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <pastordawn@saintjudes.org>
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From: Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <pastordawn@saintjudes.org>
Subject: Re: Devotions for November 11, 2008
Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:56:15 -0800
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You are welcome


On Nov 12, 2008, at 10:18 AM, Bob McKee wrote:

> Dawn,
> Thanks for the timely and encouraging word!
> Peace,
> Bob
>
> On Tue, Nov 11, 2008 at 6:22 PM, Pastor Dawn Teuthorn  
> <pastordawn@saintjudes.org> wrote:
> Greetings all!
>
> The sun has set and night has come; and yet I still want to write  
> to you.  I pray this day you have had a sense of God's presence.
>
> I awoke this morning earlier than I expected.  My mind was whirling  
> in a variety of directions:  concern for youth, a need for greater  
> clarity as leader, compassion for members in grief, and other  
> ruminations from numerous thought-provoking encounters.  Ever have  
> a morning like that?  One in which you just feel overwhelmed,....in  
> over your head?  As I feel a few shifts coming on, I reflected upon  
> Bishop Mary Gray-Reeves of the El Camino Real Diocese sharing a  
> youtube piece called "Did you know?  Shift Happens."  (http:// 
> www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqfunyCeU5g)
>
> As the video ended, feelings of inadequacy and hopelessness emerged  
> as I wondered, "How can we possibly keep up?!"  She then showed a  
> picture of Jesus naming we can't!!  Now, more than ever we need to  
> center, find & share balance in our lives.   We long to heed the  
> words:  "Be still and know that I am God."
>
> Life can get overwhelming.  We can begin to expect too much of  
> ourselves & each other.  We can get deflated and discouraged.  We  
> experience both, great joys and sorrows as pastors, intermixed...  
> just like the cross and resurrection.  The longer we do the work,  
> the more important it is for us to remember none of this is not  
> about us.  It's all about God.  In God's great mercy, I lovingly  
> was drawn to this text read from Scripture.  It was just what I  
> needed to hear.  May you be nourished too.
>
> "We call Abraham "father" not because he got God's attention by  
> living like a saint, but because God made something out of Abraham  
> when he was a nobody. Isn't that what we've always read in  
> Scripture, God saying to Abraham, "I set you up as father of many  
> peoples"? Abraham was first named "father" and then became a father  
> because he dared to trust God to do what only God could do: raise  
> the dead to life, with a word make something out of nothing. When  
> everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live  
> not on the basis of what he saw he couldn't do but on what God said  
> he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peoples.  
> God himself said to him, "You're going to have a big family, Abraham!"
>
>  Abraham didn't focus on his own impotence and say, "It's hopeless.  
> This hundred-year-old body could never father a child." Nor did he  
> survey Sarah's decades of infertility and give up. He didn't tiptoe  
> around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He  
> plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure  
> that God would make good on what he had said. That's why it is  
> said, "Abraham was declared fit before God by trusting God to set  
> him right." But it's not just Abraham; it's also us! The same thing  
> gets said about us when we embrace and believe the One who brought  
> Jesus to life when the conditions were equally hopeless. The  
> sacrificed Jesus made us fit for God, set us right with  
> God."         The Message Romans 4:17-25
>
>
> Yours in Christ,
>
> Dawn
>
>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
> >


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<html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webk=
it-line-break: after-white-space; ">
You are welcome<div><br></div><div><br><div><div>On Nov 12, 2008, at 10:18 =
AM, Bob McKee wrote:</div><br class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquo=
te type=3D"cite"><div>Dawn,</div> <div>Thanks for the timely and encouragin=
g word!</div> <div>Peace,</div> <div>Bob<br><br></div> <div class=3D"gmail_=
quote">On Tue, Nov 11, 2008 at 6:22 PM, Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <span dir=3D"l=
tr">&lt;<a href=3D"mailto:pastordawn@saintjudes.org">pastordawn@saintjudes.=
org</a>></span> wrote:<br> <blockquote class=3D"gmail_quote" style=3D"PADDI=
NG-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid"> <div=
 style=3D"WORD-WRAP: break-word"> <div>Greetings all!</div> <div><br></div>=
 <div>The sun has set and night has come; and yet I still want to write to =
you. =A0I pray this day you have had a sense of God's presence.</div> <div>=
<br></div> <div>I awoke this morning earlier than I expected. =A0My mind wa=
s whirling in a variety of directions: =A0concern for youth, a need for gre=
ater clarity as leader, compassion for members in grief, and other ruminati=
ons from numerous thought-provoking encounters. =A0Ever have a morning like=
 that? =A0One in which you just feel overwhelmed,....in over your head? =A0=
As I feel a few shifts coming on, I reflected upon Bishop Mary Gray-Reeves =
of the El Camino Real Diocese sharing a youtube piece called "Did you know?=
 =A0Shift Happens." =A0(<a href=3D"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DFqfunyC=
eU5g" target=3D"_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DFqfunyCeU5g</a>) =
=A0=A0</div> <div><br></div> <div>As the video ended, feelings of inadequac=
y and hopelessness emerged as I wondered, "How can we possibly keep up?!" =
=A0She then showed a picture of Jesus naming we can't!! =A0Now, more than e=
ver we need to center, find &amp; share balance in our lives. =A0 We long t=
o heed the words: =A0"Be still and know that I am God."</div> <div><br></di=
v> <div>Life can get overwhelming. =A0We can begin to expect too much of ou=
rselves &amp; each other. =A0We can get deflated and discouraged. =A0We exp=
erience both, great joys and sorrows as pastors, intermixed... just like th=
e cross and resurrection. =A0The longer we do the work, the more important =
it is for us to remember none of this is not about us. =A0It's all about Go=
d. =A0In God's great mercy, I lovingly was drawn to this text read from Scr=
ipture. =A0It was just what I needed to hear. =A0May you be nourished too.<=
/div> <div><br></div> <div><p style=3D"MARGIN: 0px 0px 16px"><font style=3D=
"FONT: 16px Verdana"><font size=3D"3"><span style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12px"><font=
 face=3D"Helvetica"><i>"We call Abraham "father" not because he got God's a=
ttention by living like a saint, but because God made something out of Abra=
ham when he was a nobody. Isn't that what we've always read in Scripture, G=
od saying to Abraham, "I set you up as father of many peoples"? Abraham was=
 first named "father" and then became a father because he dared to trust Go=
d to do what only God could do: raise the dead to life, with a word make so=
mething out of nothing. When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyw=
ay, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn't do but on =
what God said he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peop=
les. God himself said to him, "You're going to have a big family, Abraham!"=
</i></font></span></font></font></p><p style=3D"MARGIN: 0px 0px 16px"><font=
 style=3D"FONT: 16px Verdana"><font size=3D"3"><span style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12=
px"><font face=3D"Helvetica"><i>=A0</i></font></span></font></font><font st=
yle=3D"FONT: 16px Verdana"><font size=3D"3"><span style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12px"=
><font face=3D"Helvetica"><i>Abraham didn't focus on his own impotence and =
say, "It's hopeless. This hundred-year-old body could never father a child.=
" Nor did he survey Sarah's decades of infertility and give up. He didn't t=
iptoe around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunge=
d into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would m=
ake good on what he had said. That's why it is said, "Abraham was declared =
fit before God by trusting God to set him right." But it's not just Abraham=
; it's also us! The same thing gets said about us when we embrace and belie=
ve the One who brought Jesus to life when the conditions were equally hopel=
ess. The sacrificed Jesus<span style=3D"WHITE-SPACE: pre"> </span>made us f=
it for God, set us right with God."<span style=3D"WHITE-SPACE: pre"> </span=
>=A0=A0 =A0 =A0 =A0The Message Romans 4:17-25</i></font></span></font></fon=
t></p> </div> <div><br></div> <div>Yours in Christ,</div> <div><br></div> <=
div>Dawn</div> <div><br></div><br> <div> <blockquote type=3D"cite"><span st=
yle=3D"WORD-SPACING: 0px; FONT: 12px Helvetica; TEXT-TRANSFORM: none; COLOR=
: rgb(0,0,0); TEXT-INDENT: 0px; WHITE-SPACE: normal; LETTER-SPACING: normal=
; BORDER-COLLAPSE: separate"><br><br><br> <br></span></blockquote></div><br=
><br><br> <br> <br></div></blockquote></div></blockquote></div><br></div></=
body></html>
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