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: Devotions for November 11, 2008
Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2008 18:22:49 -0800
From: Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <pastordawn@saintjudes.org>
Received-SPF: neutral (google.com: 69.147.64.89 is neither permitted nor denied by best guess record for domain of pastordawn@saintjudes.org) client-ip=69.147.64.89;
In-Reply-To: <1427A3236C864A09B5909D624FC0770D@CGSPASTOR>
References: <1427A3236C864A09B5909D624FC0770D@CGSPASTOR>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="Apple-Mail-10--958733318"
Message-Id: <884AB430-1800-4D01-89B1-B6DA7B708903@saintjudes.org>
Cc: Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <pastordawn@saintjudes.org>,
 Bea and Matthew Chun <pastorchun@cgslc.org>,
 ceandjab@verizon.net,
 Dan Selbo <dan.selbo@st-tims-lutheran.org>,
 David Johanson <Dave@davejohanson.com>,
 Davidfdahl@aol.com,
 derek63@juno.com,
 EandVWalz@aol.com,
 Jim Clark-Moore <gijim007@sbcglobal.net>,
 Linda Boston <gracelc@sbcglobal.net>,
 John S Goldstein <jgoldstein@alamedanet.net>,
 Jim Bangsund <jim.bangsund@st-tims-lutheran.org>,
 Joseph Leon <jleon1968@sbcglobal.net>,
 Johannes48@aol.com,
 Joan Randall <jrandall@sunny4care.com>,
 Judy Bangsund <judy.bangsund@st-tims-lutheran.org>,
 Ken Bancroft <kenandsharon@netscape.com>,
 Laurie Andersen <lauriejandersen@yahoo.com>,
 LaVinnia Pierson <LaVPier@aol.com>,
 Bob McKee <pastor.mckee@gmail.com>,
 Anne Carlson <pastor-anne@comcast.net>,
 David Bonde <pastorbonde@losaltoslutheran.org>,
 Pr Matt Smuts <pastormatt@gracepa.org>,
 Pat Fitzgerald <pastorpat@comcast.net>,
 Randy Pabst <pastorrandy@bethelcupertino.org>,
 Rick Sherrill <pastorrick@bethelcupertino.org>,
 Cork Kallas <Prcork@aol.com>,
 "Pr. Greg Schaefer" <PrGreg@stanford.edu>,
 Debbie Slifer <REVDEB1@aol.com>,
 Peggy White <revpegsv@pacbell.net>,
 robg4t@sbcglobal.net
From: Pastor Dawn Teuthorn <pastordawn@saintjudes.org>
Subject: Devotions for November 11, 2008
Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2008 18:22:49 -0800
To: scvlp@googlegroups.com

--Apple-Mail-10--958733318
Content-Type: text/plain

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


>
>
> >


--Apple-Mail-10--958733318
Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webk=
it-line-break: after-white-space; ">
<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 e=
arlier than I expected. =A0My mind was whirling in a variety of directions:=
 =A0concern for youth, a need for greater clarity as leader, compassion for=
 members in grief, and other ruminations from numerous thought-provoking en=
counters. =A0Ever have a morning like that? =A0One in which you just feel o=
verwhelmed,....in over your head? =A0As I feel a few shifts coming on, I re=
flected 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"htt=
p://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DFqfunyCeU5g">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
=3DFqfunyCeU5g</a>) =A0=A0</div><div><br></div><div>As the video ended, fee=
lings of inadequacy and hopelessness emerged as I wondered, "How can we pos=
sibly keep up?!" =A0She then showed a picture of Jesus naming we can't!! =
=A0Now, more than ever we need to center, find &amp; share balance in our l=
ives. =A0 We long to heed the words: =A0"Be still and know that I am God."<=
/div><div><br></div><div>Life can get overwhelming. =A0We can begin to expe=
ct too much of ourselves &amp; each other. =A0We can get deflated and disco=
uraged. =A0We experience both, great joys and sorrows as pastors, intermixe=
d... just like the cross and resurrection. =A0The longer we do the work, th=
e more important it is for us to remember none of this is not about us. =A0=
It's all about God. =A0In God's great mercy, I lovingly was drawn to this t=
ext read from Scripture. =A0It was just what I needed to hear. =A0May you b=
e nourished too.</div><div><br></div><div><p style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 1=
6.0px 0.0px"><font style=3D"font: 16.0px Verdana"><font class=3D"Apple-styl=
e-span" size=3D"3"><span class=3D"Apple-style-span" style=3D"font-size: 12p=
x;"><font class=3D"Apple-style-span" face=3D"Helvetica"><i>"We call Abraham=
 "father" not because he got God's attention by living like a saint, but be=
cause God made something out of Abraham when he was a nobody. Isn't that wh=
at 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 t=
he 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 o=
f what he saw he couldn't do but on what God said he would do. And so he wa=
s made father of a multitude of peoples. God himself said to him, "You're g=
oing to have a big family, Abraham!"</i></font></span></font></font></p><p =
style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 16.0px 0.0px"><font style=3D"font: 16.0px Verd=
ana"><font class=3D"Apple-style-span" size=3D"3"><span class=3D"Apple-style=
-span" style=3D"font-size: 12px;"><font class=3D"Apple-style-span" face=3D"=
Helvetica"><i>=A0</i></font></span></font></font><font style=3D"font: 16.0p=
x Verdana"><font class=3D"Apple-style-span" size=3D"3"><span class=3D"Apple=
-style-span" style=3D"font-size: 12px;"><font class=3D"Apple-style-span" fa=
ce=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 tiptoe aro=
und God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into th=
e 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 befor=
e God by trusting God to set him right." But it's not just Abraham; it's al=
so us! The same thing gets said about us when we embrace and believe the On=
e who brought Jesus to life when the conditions were equally hopeless. The =
sacrificed Jesus<span class=3D"Apple-tab-span" style=3D"white-space:pre">=
=09</span> made us fit for God, set us right with God."<span class=3D"Apple=
-tab-span" style=3D"white-space:pre">=09=09=09=09=09=09=09=09=09=09=09=09</=
span>=A0=A0 =A0 =A0 =A0The Message Romans 4:17-25</i></font></span></font><=
/font></p></div><div><br></div><div>Yours in Christ,</div><div><br></div><d=
iv>Dawn</div><div><br></div><br><div><blockquote type=3D"cite"><span class=
=3D"Apple-style-span" style=3D"border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, =
0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-varia=
nt: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: norma=
l; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; wh=
ite-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-=
spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decoration=
s-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-widt=
h: 0; "><br><br><br><br></span></blockquote></div><br></body></html>
--Apple-Mail-10--958733318--
Information...

Last updated 2025-09-18 13:29:00 by Webmaster
Mail Archive of the old Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish

Message Archive Navigation

Information...
