Sunday September 23rd, 2012. The texts were Mark 8 & 9 (verses 33-38), pick up your cross & welcome one such child. We were in the midst of a Season of Invitation at Peace Lutheran Church, a member of the ELCIC. The sermon ranged from what it meant to pick up your cross to inviting as Jesus did, inviting a child - one least valued throughout society then & even now in most of the world.
At the 2nd service (we have a 1st service that you could call contemporary and a 2nd service best described as traditional) I was concluding my sermon. It was in regard to the question of are we really inviting & welcoming across the societal "stratum." A man that my wife & I first met last year raised his hand. I called upon him. Now in most Lutheran churches, unless it is at a point in an interactive sermon where comments or questions are invited, people don't raise their hands. I called upon him and he shared that his journey had taken quite awhile to attend church. As a gay man, he had not felt welcomed until he had met my wife & myself & now the members of our congregation. After he finished he received a spontaneous round of applause. This from a congregation that includes progressives, conservatives and those in between, both theologically and politically, and from adults and the children of the church alike. I serve as pastor in a multi ethnic, multi-racial congregation that comprises 1st generation people from around the globe. It was one of those moments in church that was extraordinary. As a progressive Lutheran pastor, to witness God's unconditional love & grace through people of all these backgrounds, was a wondrous gift. After 25 years of ordained ministry, it is moments like these that show the world that out of 2 billion believers there are millions who welcome and yes, we do have what the world needs. You are welcome at our church anytime.
