Author: nfuller

Sorrow to Joy

Posted on by nfuller

The gospel reading for the fifth Sunday of Easter was John 16:16-22.  We have transitioned from hearing accounts of Jesus’ resurrection to now hearing Jesus talk to his disciples about what it will be like for them to see him depart from them and then return.   Here is the reading:

A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” 17 So some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” 18 So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” 19 Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? 20 Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. 21 When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Jesus spoke to the disciples as his private audience. “A little while and you will see me no longer and again in a little while and you will see me.”  They struggled to understand what he meant.  Jesus makes this clarifying statement in verse 20: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy.”

Jesus had one thing in mind when he was talking this way, He is telling the disciples that they will witness his crucifixion while the world watches rejoicing.  But this great sorrow will then be replaced by the joy of his rising. This joy is for them- the world does not know or understand this joy.    

The world does not understand how Jesus willingly laid down his life so that he could take it up again.  The world cannot possibly understand that if Jesus had not risen, then we would still be in our sins.     

You may recall the theme for our sermon on Easter Sunday was “Jesus is risen, just as he told us, just as he promised.   This chapter of the gospel of John contains some of the promises Jesus made to his disciples about what His crucifixion and resurrection would mean for them from their vantage point. 

“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away , the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.”

It was to the disciples advantage and ours that Jesus willingly went to the grave.  Once in the grave Jesus returned as he promised.   If Jesus had only died and not risen, then Satan would have won just like he had won with every death since the fall in Genesis chapter 3.  If Jesus had only died and not risen the apostles would not have had the Holy Spirit sent to them to guide them into all truth, preparing them to proclaim salvation in Christ.   They would not have had the Holy Spirit to take what belongs to Jesus and declare it to the nations so that what belongs to Jesus would also come to us. 

For the church the joy of the resurrection meant that the Holy Spirit would declare Christ’s righteousness to us.  The Holy Spirit has continued to do this in the church from one generation to another.  Through the message of the Apostles people rejoice in the good news of Christ crucified and risen for us all around the world.  In a very short time  the sorrow of this world has been changed to joy.  

The words Jesus spoke to the disciples in John chapter 16 were recorded for our benefit.  Jesus was speaking to the disciples about the specific events of his crucifixion.  As a result it would be an inaccurate interpretation of the scripture if we were to read this account of Jesus speaking about his departure and return and conclude that Jesus will leave us for a while, where we will feel sorrow and then he will return to us where we feel joy. 

The fact is that Jesus has returned from the grave once and for all.  He is not going away from us again. He has sent the Helper, the Holy Spirit once and for all. We do not need any special religious experiences in order to receive the Holy Spirit for the first time. Instead he has already given his church all that belongs to Him. Through Holy Baptism this gift has been given to us.

Yet Jesus knew these words he spoke to the disciples would be spoken to us as well.  And these words have great meaning to us because we do still face sorrow in this life.  The sin of the world and our own sin brings us sorrow that is quite heavy.

Jesus promises to us that our sorrow will turn into joy.  And when this happens, it is like the joy of childbirth, the pain and anguish is remembered no more.  Jesus was gone from the disciples a little less than three days- essentially two and a half days.  This was such a relatively short time in comparison to the joy that followed.

So also in our life, the sorrows of this life are but a moment as compared to the joy of eternity. We hear in our reading from Revelation:

   Behold the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be His people, and God himself will be with them as their God.  He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things shall pass away.”  

The former things pass away.  The separation of man from God since the Fall has passed away.  The banishment from the garden of Eden, but a distant memory.

At that time when the former things pass away the sorrows of this life will indeed be a distant memory.  Yet now we can feel the sorrow of this fallen world all too vividly. We   witness the ways in which the world is against the church just as it was against Jesus.  We wonder how we can make it as a church when our younger generations are exposed to so many false teachings and indoctrinations against the truth of God’s Word.

Some Christian historians look at the state of our culture today and conclude that Western Civilization as we know it has already collapsed.  There may be pockets of our society where Christian values still prevail in the culture at large, but they only are expected to become smaller with each passing year.

Regardless of what outcomes occur in political elections, we cannot escape the trend that the values and beliefs of the church will continue to be attacked and hated by the world.  Yet the same promise of Jesus holds true, “the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy.”  

The world cannot win. It thought it won when Jesus was on the cross. But Jesus Resurrection changed the script. And so also today, no matter how fallen our culture seems, no matter how disgraceful we see our society act the Resurrection of Jesus insures our sorrow will turn into joy.

One sorrow that I have experienced in my life went on for about 8 years.  In the Fall of 2010 my first call into ministry ended after 3 years as an Associate Pastor of Family Life and Youth.  Around the time I turned 30 I learned the congregation I was called to did not intend to continue my position as an Associate pastor for both financial reasons and ministry priority reasons. I found myself confronted with the dilemma of being a pastor without a call, a pastor without a home.

Although I may have found periods of time to serve as a vacancy pastor, year after year I struggled with understanding why my career as a pastor continued to be marked by the asterisk of what is called in our church body “Candidate Status”.   I struggled to see my wife, and eventually my children see me as a pastor without a call in which to focus my ministry priority around.

I came to believe that this particular sorrow could not change, that although I served with distinction in vacancy settings, although I developed training as a licensed counselor and learned to integrate Christian faith into counseling – it had simply been too long since my full time position was as pastor for a congregation to consider extending a call to me that would be appropriate for my abilities and my family’s needs. 

It was as if the promise of the resurrection for some reason would not apply to my career as pastor.  And now things are different.

 A now it seems these 8 years were but a short moment of time as there is an abundance of need and calling here in this place to serve the Lord’s church as a worker pastor, and it has become clear to me that the events of my career and personal life have put me in position to be more dedicated to serve as an instrument of Christ’s Church than I would if I never went through any of the sorrows of waiting.   Jesus’ Resurrection turns the sorrow of this world into joy. 

Although Jesus was talking to the disciples about the three days he would be in the tomb, in light of the joy of Easter, we can hear these words in faith to be a reminder of how short a time it will be before Jesus returns.  “In in a little while and you will see me.”  

In just a little while our own eyes shall see our Lord- we shall experience in all its fullness our sorrow turning to Joy.  In just a little while we shall be taken up in the sky with all believers, brought to the marriage feast of the lamb in his kingdom. In just a little while no more sorrow ever again- only joy. Only the Victorious Lamb eternally:   As the hymn Thine the Amen Thine the Praise puts it in verse 5, the closing verse:

Thine the glory in the night No more dying only light
Thine the river Thine the tree  Then the Lamb eternally
Then the holy holy holy Celebration jubilee
Thine the splendor Thine the brightness only Thee only Thee.

Don’t forget to play!

Posted on by nfuller

I read an article of Concordia Journal back in 2015 that was quite impressionable to me and energizing to read: “Faithful Witness in Work and Rest.” By Dr. William W. Schumacher

 Here is a link to the article:

Prior to reading this article I gave a fair amount of thought as a pastor and counselor about the balance between work and rest.  It is evident how too much work can lead to both emotional and physical depletion; and too much unstructured rest often leaves people feeling anxiety about lack of fulfillment and purpose in life.

I had not considered how aspects of work and rest can be combined through what he categorizes as play.   Schumacher views play as a corrective trend in our culture to reconnect work and pleasure. He sees play as the work we do for the sheer pleasure of it.   

I want to reflect in this post about what is the value of play, what often keeps us from play as a source of restorative use of time.

It is evident how the balance between work and rest can become out of synch easily.  The profit driven priorities of this world create many a workplace that demands more than we can reasonably give.  When a job is your sole source of financial revenue it is difficult to weigh your own self interest and health in balance with what your job demands. 

In other cases your employer may not ask from you more than you can give, but you may ask of yourself more than you can afford to give. You may find yourself taking on more overtime hours and responsibilities at work than you would like to give because you are fearful that you will be left behind if you are less career driven than your coworkers.  This may also connect with pride, pursuit of legacy, and a sense that your self worth and value in the world is determined by your career. Rest can resemble a luxury that feels beyond what you feel you deserve.

Often when rest is neglected enough, the times when we do rest we are so far gone, so depleted of energy that we seek passive forms of entertainment. Binge watch on Netflix for a while and then call it a day.  Exercise and playful activity seems just beyond what we are motivated for.  This feeling of low motivation is part of depression. Opportunities and possibilities are closed off by the mind before any other factor in the world closes it off to us.

What a different story our relationship between work and rest can be when we find time to pursue play.  Play may sound like something that is not fitting for an adult or a parent.  You may fear that you will be thought of as a child if you talk about a playful pursuit in your life. You may fear association of play as only for children.  Yet I invite you to move forward anyways in reconnecting with the spirit of play you likely had in greater degree as a child.

A father might play by engineering an elaborate race track filling up half the living room and down the hallway for hot wheel cars. All he needs to do is collect carboard paper towel rolls, toilet paper cardboard rolls, wrapping paper rolls and let his imagination and work ethic translate into a master design for the Saturday afternoon.   

One person might pursue play by redecorating the home or rearranging furniture.   Another person might build something in the garage or in the shop.  Personally I have never ceased to be amazed at how restorative it feels to throw a frisbee or hit a ball with a bat as far as my strength and coordination allows.

Play can be exercised by taking on cooking projects that experiment with taste preferences.  Or taking on an art project in order to create a card for someone you care about.

I believe the heart of play is a spiritual issue.  We can’t help but look at life circumstances differently when we hear Jesus talk about how much lighter our life can be in Him:

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

When I try to make things or invent new ways for introducing play in my life I often think of how Adam and Eve were given stewardship over the earth, blessed with skills and abilities to be it’s care takers. Through his passion in the cross Jesus has reconnected me with God’s image. Jesus has reconnected me with the creativity and joyful wonder that humans were created with from the start.

I am not gifted at art. Yet through the desire to model something to my family about play and pursuit of wonder as an aspect of play I made this acrylic painting over the course of a few days of a preexisting drawing of peanuts characters.

In the years since I read Schumacher’s article I have at times asked counseling patients who are worn down or discouraged by daily life routines what room in their life they have for play.  Consistently I hear about pursuit of passive entertainment and leisure, but rarely about true recreation activities and pursuit of play.  I believe our American culture pushes us toward pursuit of entertainment so persistently that we can lose sight of all of the opportunities for play that await us.  Spring is here, Easter is here: happy play.

Hear The Voice of The Good Shepherd

Posted on by nfuller

What does it mean to trust in and rely on the protection of a shepherd?  What would it be like to be a sheep out in the countryside somewhere?  As a woolly fuzzy, simple sheep, what would it be like to have someone watch out for dangers and even anticipate ahead of time what protections and safeguards need establishing?  What would it be like to look up to a shepherd and be guided by a large hook in the right direction from time to time?

As a wooly, simple minded sheep, what would it be like to hear and learn and recognize what the voice of the shepherd sounds like- To know intimately the voice of the shepherd, and to mistrust and hold skepticism of the voice of a stranger?!

If only we could know what a sheep really thinks and how a sheep sees the world.  If only…  Or do we know more about what it means to be led by the protection of a shepherd than we realize?

We ourselves have been called to be watched over through Jesus our Chief shepherd.  Our Chief Shepherd lays out for us a rich pasture in which we can live in His Kingdom, guided to safety and led by the purest of sounds- his living voice revealed to us in God’s Word.

There are a few ways we differ from actual sheep. Unlike sheep, for better or for worse we have choices, many choices.  We can choose to follow in our Shepherd’s guidance and we can choose to delight in all of the protections He has established for us.  We can choose to share the Shepherd’s teaching with those we care about and find encouragement in the faith and trust other sheep also have for Our Shepherd.

Unfortunately we can also make ourselves to be Shepherds of our own making and listen to no one else – not even Jesus. When we make this choice we may even expect that others listen to our voice instead of listening to the voice of the Good Shepherd. 

If we should be enticed by a voice with seductive promises, we can follow the voice of many others besides Jesus. Unlike real sheep, we can make quick switches of allegiance. One day we are ready to listen to the voice of our Chief Shepherd, and another day our ears may not be as ready to listen.

Ultimately we really have one type of choice, one important question to answer- are we ready and willing to trust in the voice of our Shepherd? Can we trust in the safety of the Shepherd’s protection?  Which pastures will we choose to remain in to spend our days grazing in?

The great thing about trusting in the protection of the Savior is the more we listen to his voice, the more natural it is to follow. It is like developing well worn tracks in which to drive through.  The more you listen to the voice of Jesus, the more attuned your ears are to hear His voice- the more it fits right into your life.   

The more we hear God’s Word, the more we recognize that our Shepherd’s voice is not just theories and ideals to live by, not just rules and regulations that we try to follow to the best of our abilities, but the purpose and joy of our life itself.

 If you know the voice of the Shepherd, if you recognize it, you are safe.  The more familiar we are with our Shepherd’s voice, the stranger in our ears is the sound of the thief.   Knowing the sound of the shepherd’s voice is the great privilege of the church.

As I think about how we recognize the sound of our Lord’s voice, I am reminded of one of the great inventions of our modern times devoted to helping us recognize the sound of a voice… the baby monitor.  How great to have every giggle and sigh and moment of laughter transmitted into your bedroom in the evening after bedtime.  Every single cry and scream and protest that babies naturally make from time to time amplified by a 9 volt transmitter into your bedroom.

For if your baby girl is going to wake you up at night, you might as well hear the full impact of her cry as if you were inches away from her young vibrant vocal cords- so as to appreciate how much she wants to see you.   But of course we don’t really need baby monitors at all.

The truth is, parents can have an amazing ability to wake up in response to the slightest voice or cry of a child.  Out of love parents are tuned in to the sound of their children’s voice- even if through a few walls.  Would that our ears were just as finely tuned to hear the voice of God’s Word every chance we get.  

The thief may try to make his voice sound even sweeter than the Shepherd.  The thief loves it whenever we start to wonder if another voice will come along that will sound sweeter.  Because that’s when he has a foothold with us.  It’s a shame that the allure of Satan’s offer to us should ever seem appealing, considering that what we have in Christ is already so beautiful.

Jesus taught the disciples: “If anyone who comes in through me, he will be saved and go in and find pasture.”

Pasture provided by God is the greenest of all pasture.  Pasture is room to grow and thrive as God intended for us!  Green pasture leads to fulfillment, contentment, joy!

Jesus described how he is the only door to this pasture. To enter the sheepfold of His kingdom is the most important thing we can ever do in life.  Our faith is more than something that we learn the basics in Sunday school and confirmation class.  There is more than learning how it is that we are saved through faith and thinking ‘I will leave it at that.’  

Once we enter the door through our Savior we have green pastures to mature and thrive in.

When I was approaching college graduation, I was at a point in my life when I  considered my faith and my relationship with God to be quite healthy. I remember reading God’s Word at my parents house and having the thought, “What more is there to learn about my faith?”.  I felt a certain disappointment, “Now what?”

I had no idea about how faith means so much more than a mindset and knowledge. I had no idea how much I had yet to learn about living out my faith through career and family and many types of relationships.

Now I can’t imagine a time where I ever would ask “now what”, to believe that there is no growth left to occur, now potential to live up to.

Our faith can continue to develop through every season and stage in life.  The more we are conformed to Christ, the greater our joy.   

Jesus provides us in His Church green pastures in which to learn from one another, and even challenge one another.  Proverbs 27:17 declares: “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” Part of the green pasture our Chief Shepherd has provided to us are faithful brothers and sisters in Christ all around us to refine our faith.  

We can grow so much more walking with brothers and sisters in Christ then we can on our own.  Sometimes we think of church as something we do with family. But even as we have family that we belong to we also have in a congregation a larger family in which to find nurture and belonging.  May the Lord of the Church shepherd us to the green pastures he has prepared from us since the beginning.  

Refreshed By Travel

Posted on by nfuller
Image from Lancaster, PA

Worn by tedium. Refreshed by travel

Worn. We’ve all felt it at some point in our lives. Worn down by the weight of our obligations, and the mental strain they bring. 

Whether it’s a test you’ve got to pass, the stress of looming deadlines at work, or the tedium of taking care of the kids day after day, we can sometimes feel overwhelmed by all of the expectations. All the things we have to accomplish.

I tend to overcommit. And I can get so busy running from one obligation to the next that I wear myself thin. Church is the place where I find rest and nourishment. It’s where I see my friends who are on a similar journey – a journey of raising kids with faith in a world increasingly antagonistic to it.

Like many parents, my life in recent years has to some degree taken on the cadence of the school year. Each summer we’re looking for activities to keep our children occupied. And each Fall Break and Spring Break, we’re looking for a getaway that can educate, inspire and refresh us as a family.

So each school year my wife Michelle and I spend a great deal of time researching new travel destinations and evaluating them in terms of:

Historical significance

Cultural interest

Family friendly activities

This can involve online research and talking to relatives and school families about where they’ve been and what they did there. We keep an ongoing list of places we’d like to visit in time; as our 8- and 9-year-olds grow older, we’d like them to visit the different regions of our country and eventually take them overseas, as well.

Once we’ve selected a destination, we secure our accommodations. Then we create a spreadsheet of the attractions we want to visit, including the website, address, hours and costs. 

Freedom, faith and fun in Pennsylvania

A recent example of a trip that combined aspects of faith, history and family activities was a fall break trip we took to Pennsylvania.

If possible, we try to tie our trips into what our daughters are studying in school. Our second grader chose Independence Hall for a school project on U.S. historical landmarks; imagine her delight when she got to visit Independence Hall in Boston a few weeks after completing her project!

We spent months researching our Fall Break trip to Pennsylvania, and ended up breaking it into three segments: Philadelphia, Lancaster and Hershey. Philly would be the historical focus of our trip; Lancaster was a faith-building segment; and Hershey was all about fun.

An important educational aspect is to include all the senses: sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.

In Philly, we walked, saw, and listened to a historical narrative of our county’s birthplace. We visited Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the U.S. Mint, the Betsy Ross House (she was commissioned by General Washington to sew the first U.S. flag), the Franklin Institute (Children’s Health Museum), and rode a double decker bus, ate Philly cheesesteaks at Reading Terminal Market, ran the Rocky steps at the Art Museum, and felt the fresh air on top of the spire of City Hall with the statue of Pennsylvania’s founder, William Penn. 

In Lancaster, we rode the steam engine train of the Strasburg Railroad while seeing and watching the Amish farm and harvest their crops. Then we tasted the fruits of God’s bounty in the delicious Amish restaurants. Lancaster is home to the Sight and Sound Theatre, Biblical Broadway, if you will. We saw the live production of “Jesus,” a spectacular show and our single reason for visiting Lancaster. Our accommodations there were at the Red Caboose Motel. You guessed it, we stayed in an old train caboose. Not the most glamorous accommodations, but unique and memorable, especially considering the spectacular sunset along the railroad tracks and the rolling hills of Pennsylvania. A day trip took us to Lititz, a small town 45 minutes away where we visited the Sturgess Pretzel Factory, the first pretzel makers in America. We all rolled pretzels and learned the history behind the reason they are shaped the way they are: to represent folded hands in prayer.

Our last stop was Hershey, home of America’s favorite chocolate. We enjoyed a tasting where we learning to be a chocolate paleteer, designed and formulated our own individual chocolate bar, took an historical trolley tour and learned all about the life of the company’s namesake, Milton S. Hershey. The following day we spent at Hersheypark®, the Hershey-themed amusement park that at the time was all decked out for Halloween – staying from when it opened until nearly closing time.

When we asked my 8-year-old what she liked best about the trip, she said “everything.” So for us this vacation was the perfect getaway from the demands of work and a hectic semester of school. In a matter of months, we’d go on our next family adventure – another break from the stress that seemed to come just in time.

Written by D.S.

The Resurrection Powers The Church

Posted on by nfuller

Greetings online readers!  A little over two weeks ago the church celebrated our Lord’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday. In those last 16 days I know there have been times where I have been mindful of the joy of the resurrection, and other times where I have simply been lost in my every day routines with little reflection on how the resurrection brings joy and gladness to our lives and to our earth. 

Fortunately the readings for the season of Easter keep the resurrection right in the forefront of our focus in worship.  Listen to the words of the gradual appointed for the season of Easter: “Christ has risen from the dead, God the Father has crowned Him with glory and honor, He has given him dominion over the works of his hands, he has put all things under his feet.”

This gradual reminds us how its not just that Jesus rose, once dead , now alive- but that Jesus is now crowned by the Father with the fullest of glory and honor- that Jesus now reigns over all of creation.

It is in this context that we are meant to listen to the gospel lesson of John chapter 21, what it calls the third appearance of the risen Jesus to the disciples. Jesus is appearing as He who the father has put all things under his feet.  Jesus is appearing to the disciples with a promise and hope of all things being granted to the disciples as well.

Just prior to this reading we hear about Jesus appearing to the disciples with this summary statement of the whole gospel reading: 

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book, but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

And yet now the gospel is circling back to describe one more thing.  The disciples are gathering together near the sea of Tiberius to go fishing.  It seems they are resuming a normal everyday activity of theirs, now that a certain number of days has passed since they last saw Jesus. Peter has the idea to go fishing and the disciples present agree to go with him. It’s almost like life has returned back to normal. 

They do not catch any fish that night. Sounds unusual to not catch any fish.  It almost makes you wonder if there fishing drought was caused by God’s guidance.  While they are out on the boat Jesus is on the shore and speaks to them about their fishing success. My study Bible suggests that people back then often directed fishing from the shore if they could see a school of fish that those in the boat could not see. 

They are far enough away from the shore that they can hear Jesus, but in the beginning hours of daybreak, they don’t quite see him well enough to recognize who is talking to them.  They listen to him and obey his command:   “cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.”    

As I was reading this portion of scripture last week in preparation for Sunday I couldn’t help but feel curious about how necessary this reading is. Like I mentioned earlier, John’s gospel already talks about the previous appearances of Jesus as if they are the end of the story. 

And we certainly have heard about Jesus directing the disciples to a miraculous catch of fish before.  And we also have already had plenty of instances of the disciples not recognizing Jesus until he is revealed to them, at the tomb Mary mistakes the risen Jesus for the gardener until he speaks her name.  On the road to Emmaus Jesus is walking and talking to the disciples about how all of what he did fulfilled the scriptures, and they do not recognize him until the breaking of the bread.

It makes you wonder how many times would Jesus need to appear before he is recognized right away?  And after all of what Jesus did, after rising from the dead, what use is there in one more miracle? Almost seems a little anti climactic.  And why specify 153 fish, how important is that detail in relation to the fact that Jesus rose 3 days from the grave.

Yet as I looked more closely at the reading, and heard from resources within the church I began to see how this is a reading about our response to Jesus. 

Once Jesus provided them with a catch of fish that was so large that they could not pull in the net John puts two and two together that this direction about where to fish and the miraculous catch can only mean one thing: “It is the Lord!”   This was a post resurrection experience that provided the disciples with an opportunity for a response of action.  Peter’s response was to jump in the water and swim to shore faster than the burdened fishing boat could get back in. 

When they all were on the shore the disciples dared not ask if this was Jesus, but instead, as they ate breakfast with him they accepted in faith the gift of his presence with them.  

The reading specifies that the nets as burdened as they were with the large catch of fish did not tear.  It seems this was an important sign in of itself. The nets didn’t tear because they were up to the task to handle more than you would expect. Just like the disciples were now shaped and fashioned by Jesus to be fishers of men. 

We can remember the previous instance where Jesus led the disciples to catch fish, where he told them “from now on you will be fishers of men.”   The lesson is the same here.  A new level of meaning and purpose awaits the disciples now. In the verses following our reading Jesus implores Peter with the command “Feed my sheep.”  This was a resurrection appearance about action.

Biblical commentaries point out that in the ancient world there was a belief that there were 153 different varieties of fish in the sea.  Accordingly, 153 fish caught by the disciples as directed by Jesus could be understood to point to the fact that the disciples were destined to make disciples of all nations, leaving no fish in the sea unaccounted for.

The same power and authority in which Jesus directed the disciples to catch those fish would also be exercised by Jesus through the church as generation after generation has proclaimed His salvation to all nations.

Today things are no different. Just as Jesus prepared the charcoal fire and invited the disciples to contribute to the meal, and then dined with them – so also today Jesus prepares for us a meal of fellowship in which his body and blood unites us to Him through the Lord’s Supper. 

Our everyday routines are transformed into the joyful transformation of seeing life as filled with many opportunities for proclaiming the good news of the resurrection. As Christians who live by faith in the resurrection we can’t help but be excited to speak about how Jesus changes our lives.

As individuals, we are all here to live out this resurrection story. No matter how ordinary your daily life is, through faith in the resurrection of Jesus you can live in the richness of God’s kingdom each and every day.  The joy of Christ in your life can be contagious to others, evident not just through your words but through your very presence in whatever context your day brings you to.

As the church we should not overlook how fruitful with purpose Jesus makes us.  Like the disciples pulling the large net of fish, we can expect a greater harvest from the church than the world expects.   

The proclamation of the gospel has the power to change lives and change our world.  A people living in the hope of the resurrection of Jesus has this power.   May we rejoice at the presence of Jesus just as those disciples did, eating with him on the shore. May we watch for Jesus to come to us at break of day.

Care For Our Feline Friends

Posted on by nfuller

As I sit here writing this newest Wellness For Life article, the sun is brilliantly shining, our family dogs are enjoying all the new smells of spring in the backyard, and our cats are relishing their naps in the warm sun.  Yes, our menagerie seems to be in fine spirits.  Even our houseplants seem to have recognized the change in seasons and have sent up new shoots and blooms. 

I am betting you too have noticed the abundance of green sprouting from your lawns, flowerbeds and trees.  Life is indeed bursting into bloom all around us.  We have just celebrated Easter, and soon this will be followed by Mother’s Day – two holidays which are often bursting with bouquets of beautiful flowers.  But why are we talking about flowers, you ask?  You thought this article was about cats, right?  Don’t worry, it is…

I am sure anyone who owns a cat (which allows you to live with them) knows – cats like to nibble plants.  Maybe you’ve found bite marks on your houseplant leaves, the occasional pinched off or shredded leaf, or maybe an all-out demolition of whatever you thought looked pretty.  The point is – not all plants are safe for cats. 

For this article, I would like to highlight a campaign put forth by the Pet Poison Helpline in partnership with the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association called “No Lilies For Kitties” – which is put forth to increase awareness of lily poisoning to cat owners as we head into lily season.

“Why are the Easter holiday and Mother’s Day two of the most dangerous holidays for cats? The answer is simple—lily poisoning. Exposure to common lilies such as Easter lilies, tiger lilies and stargazer lilies sicken and kill thousands of cats annually. What’s even more dangerous is that less than 30% of cat owners realize these common and seemingly “benign” lilies are fatal to our feline friends.” – www.petpoisonhelpline.com

Please feel free to visit their site to learn more.  To summarize their recommendations, it is important to know that lilies such as the Asiatic lily, Daylily, Easter lily, Japanese show lily, Rubrum lily, Stargazer lily, Tiger lily and Wood lily can cause kidney failure or even cause death when cats are exposed to any part of the plant, including the water the plant was in.  Many of these plants are very common not only in bouquets, but also as springtime blooms in our backyard flower gardens.  If your cats have access to the outdoors, it’s something to keep in mind when making sure your pet stays safe, happy and healthy.

What about my dog, you ask?  Dogs don’t respond to these lilies the same way as cats do.  If your dog should ingest these lilies, they might experience minor gastrointestinal (stomach) upset, but no kidney damage. 

If you think that your cat may have ingested one of these plants, be sure to call your veterinarian as soon as possible, or if after hours, your local emergency clinic.  Additionally, the number for Pet Poison Helpline (800-213-6680) can help you assess the severity of the situation.

For more information on safe flowers, other lilies to be aware of or just general interest, please visit www.petpoisonhelpline.com. 

Happy Spring to you and your pets!

Thanks for reading, be blessed, be well. – Dr. Karen Fuller, DVM, MS

Just as He promised

Posted on by nfuller

“For behold, I create new heavens  and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness.

How markedly different these words from the Old Testament reading from Isaiah chapter 65 sound from words we listened to here on Friday.  Instead of my God, my God why have you forsaken me, we hear about a new heaven and a new earth, where the former things are not remembered.  Instead of darkness covering the whole land we hear about gladness and rejoicing forever. 

We might even say these words seem out of place. What about the betrayal and the mock trial and the scourging and the humiliation, and the complete forsakenness, darkness and death? 

Today in our culture these words seem out of place.  How can the former things not be remembered? For public figures, politicians, celebrities, and the like ‘What is written on your social media platform is written, You can’t take it back, someone will hold you accountable, fact check you or label you as public enemy for your prejudiced or misinformed views. 

In today’s world the promise of gladness and rejoicing is met with much skepticism because of the former things that have happened- wars, atrocities, emotional abuse, sexual abuse.  Wood Allen was able to generate laughs by commenting that ‘the lion will lie down with the lamb, but the lamb is not going to get a lot of sleep.’ 

There is skepticism that if things have not worked out so well in our world before, how could they work out so perfectly in the future?  How could a world that asked for Jesus to be crucified on the hill of Calvary have a predicted future where they shall not hurt or destroy in all of my holy mountain?     

There was this same spirit of skepticism about how the disciples might have motivation to fabricate a story about Jesus rising from the dead. In Matthew chapter 28 we hear: 62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

No matter how skeptical, no matter how unbelieving the world can be, it cannot contain Jesus.  No matter how secure they made the tomb, no matter how many guards stood watch- the stone was rolled away because death could not hold Jesus.  Jesus did not need the guards to believe he would rise again, he did not need the disciples or anyone who followed him to believe. 

Because it is not our belief or our faith that makes Jesus alive, it is Jesus himself who death could not hold.  The Son of God begotten of his Father before all worlds, creator of all things- rose again according to the scriptures.  He rose with the Father and the Holy Spirit working alongside him.  He rose just as he promised!

He rose and lives forevermore just as was the plan all along. Where human skepticism says, it has never been like this, it’s too good to be true, God’s Word says it has always been like this, God’s love has always been this supremely good and beautiful- ever since the creation of the world.  

Our celebration of Easter is about more than just one isolated event in the life of Jesus.  If we focus only on the resurrection alone, we miss seeing the big picture of how everything about Jesus was for this purpose of winning our salvation on the cross and rising again to eternal life.

Ever since the first promise of the gospel in Genesis 3:15 God spoke to his people about the healing and the restoration of all that was lost through the Fall into sin.  The story of Job is thought to take place in the time period of the patriarchs of Genesis. The Holy Spirit spoke through Job about the New creation Jesus would bring:

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see for myself,  and my eyes shall behold, and not another.  -Job 19:25-28   

In the book of Exodus the new creation was seen through the deliverance from bondage to Pharaoh in Egypt.  And through the institution of the Passover where the people of Israel were saved by the blood of the Passover Lamb.  This new Creation was celebrated by Moses and all of the people of Israel: “I will sing to the LORD for he has triumphed gloriously ; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God and I will praise Him, my father’s god, and I will exult him.”

Everything Jesus spoke and taught to his disciples spoke of this New Creation to come.    We hear in our gospel reading this morning from Luke that Jesus rose from the grave just as he promised.   “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words,9 It was indeed just as he told them.  Listen to just a fraction of the promises Jesus made to the world about his resurrection and the new creation He came to bring:

So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.  -John 8:28

 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.  -Matthew 16:21

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death 19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”  -Matthew 20:18-19

Jesus spoke all along about his upcoming death on the cross and his resurrection. He came through on his word.  And so too today Jesus comes through in his word to us, as He gathers us as his church to receive his gifts of life and salvation.

It is just as Jesus told us, that we should be gathered as one body in Him receiving his boundless gifts, living our lives in a steadfast hope and promise and joy as the first fruits of His resurrection.  And so we can look at the scriptures promises from long ago and see that they are promises made to us.

When we face sadness and trials in life we can hear a Psalm like Psalm 30 in light of the new creation Jesus brings to our lives: 

   You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;   you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praises and not be silent.

When we feel weary about the limits of our lives and the changes and chances of this world we can find in Psalm 16 a new perspective on life:

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy;   at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. -Psalm 16:11

And listen to these promises made about us because Jesus has risen… these are promises of his Word, that we will see Him on the last day- yes it is so, just as he told us!

“When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory” Colossians 3:4

 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, -John 11:25

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. -John 14:3

And it is not just on the last day, but already today that we walk in the New Creation: “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” -Romans 6:4

 Here we are Easter 2019, it is just as he told us, each congregation exists as a community of believers called together by him.  Each congregation a people of God’s own choosing set apart for great works in Him. In this season of Easter and in the months that follow, I pray for faith for all of us to see how God is calling you to be the  light of Christ for those in your neighborhood and those in your life- proclaiming the light of Christ into the darkness of doubt and skepticism.

I pray that when you doubt what difference you can make that you trust in His Word nonetheless and see the results- Just as He told us.

We all know what it is like to wonder if the failures of the past are only signs of what is to come.  When we are praying for loved ones fighting cancer, we can’t help but see how difficult life in this fallen world can be for us.  We wonder when we will be the ones others are praying for our health.  At these times we remember His promises to us, and we rest secure knowing that all things come to fulfillment in Him- Just as He told us.

Self-Care: Rest

Posted on by nfuller

Happy Easter Monday! During the season of Easter I would like to highlight the topic of self-care.  By self-care, I mean more than just pampering yourself with a spa treatment, retail therapy, or a night out with friends at Buffalo Wild Wings – I mean the overall sum focus on caring for your health, body and spirit. 

Self-care involves humility wherein we admit the limits of our bodies, recognizing that we depend on our Heavenly Father for all of our needs, including needs for physical rest, nutrition, and emotional rest.  Without taking self-care seriously, we profess that we have it all taken care of.  We may indulge the fantasy that we can ignore whatever limits we feel in our bodies for a later time when we will catch up with rest.  How common this is in the fast paced world in which we live!

As a mental health counselor, one of the most frequent problems I encounter is that of a lack of rest.  Often, reasons for struggling with adequate rest are multi-faceted.  On the one hand you may struggle with too much work and too much stress in your life.  Daily life tasks feel like they pile up and overwhelm to the point where you may feel tired, worn out and spent. 

On the other hand an equally troublesome cause of unrest is the strain you may put on your mind:  repeated automatic self-states of worry, self-doubt, self-punishment, and resentment.  All contribute to living too much in your head and feeling out of touch with your body’s natural calming rhythms.  As a result of this mental torment, you may feel quite tired even on a day off from work responsibilities. 

Come night time, mental unrest accumulated during the day can turn into racing thoughts at night, leading to difficulty falling asleep as a person tries to solve and think through the next day’s problems while lying in bed in a frustrating state of wakefulness.

Many a time people have asked me how it can be possible to feel so much anxiety first thing in the morning, before even encountering anything to be stressed or worried about.  When I am asked such a question I usually want to know more about what things someone was worrying about the previous evening and likely as a result also dreaming about.

What a contrast to this litany of worries do we find in the counsel of God’s Word.

“In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD make me dwell in safety.”  -Psalm 4:8

 Our ability to have true rest is very much tied with routine.  It is a routine of faith to lie down each night and die to the concerns of the day, entrusting all things even our very life to the safety Jesus gives to us.

We find rest in many of the daily routines of life.  God designed our bodies this way. It has long been a recommendation of the medical field that it is best to go to bed around the same time each day and get up around the same time each day.  Following such routines requires the humility of seeing our limits and responding with decisions to care for ourselves by setting boundaries of how much we will work on something in a day, how late we will stay up, and how much time we will allow for relaxation, good eating, recreation and play in order to manage the stresses of daily life.  Building up the ability to rest is a gradual process.  The various forms of media entertainment at our fingertips requires the ability to say no to one more Netflix episode, or one more quarter of a football game in order to say yes to whatever calling of service awaits you the next day.

“Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28

I wish you all peace and mindful rest.  ~Pastor Nick

Wellness For Life

Posted on by nfuller

What is Wellness For Life?

It is my hope that this section of the website is devoted to help as many people as will read to be encouraged in your own journey for wellness in your life.  This page strives to offer a stage for input from our many brothers and sisters in Christ from their respective expertise in wellness:  Tips to best care for our furry friends, healthy cooking tips and recipes, pearls of parenting wisdom, exercise and diet tips, important things to know about your health from a physician or a mental health counselor, even tips for financial wellness.  Whether professionals or lay people, our congregation at Christ Lutheran Indy seeks to bless our community with a renewed appreciation for health and the fullness and joy of life in Christ.

Jesus the true vine nourishes and feeds us in body and soul, providing a foretaste of the eternal life that awaits us with Him.

Unless the Lord returns first, we know in this fallen world that our bodies will break down and in one way or another will die.  Yet though our bodies waste away, we are as Christians being nourished by Jesus. In the meantime we are given this amazing calling to be His ambassadors on earth, to tell others the good news of salvation through Christ.  And it is no surprise that our health has a great impact on our ability to live our lives to the fullest in His name.      

As a pastor and licensed mental health counselor I have the opportunity to witness what wide spectrum we can have in this fallen world between health and sickness.  I am exceedingly grateful for the opportunity my career path has given me for insight into the many factors that contribute to health.  I have seen my life and my family life blessed through the foundation of our faith in Christ. 

Part of the foundation of faith in Christ in my life has been recognizing my own limits as a created creature. I need rest and enough sleep each day. I need healthy real food to eat, not just processed food.  I crave exercise, sunshine, healthy challenges in life, accomplishments and rewards.  I need recreation and play, and beauty in my life – loving and supportive relationships are a must.  

I pray your life in Christ is healthy.  I hope you will continue to follow this site for tips and thoughts about wellness for life.  -Pastor Fuller



Jesus is doing a new thing in your life!

Posted on by nfuller

“See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Dear website blog reader these are words from the Old Testament Reading from Isaiah chapter 43 we heard in worship for the 5th Sunday of Lent.  In recent months (perhaps because of it being winter) I have often felt like there are not many truly new things around these days. From technology to movies, to music, to literature everything seems to be a revamping or modification of what is already around.   What is actually new?

If you haven’t heard these words from Ecclesiastes chapter one in a while, they certainly provide a sobering perspective of our limits as creatures.

1:8-9 All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. 9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. 10 Is there a thing of which it is said, “See this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us….

I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind!”

I have come to appreciate this sense of self limitation as an individual especially in the last few years in my profession as a counselor.  There are some people I feel I have helped a good deal, and others I question how much I help. I see the same problems and the same struggles from one person to another. For some it is wounds from childhood, for others wounds from peers or school.   The solutions may provide relief or growth in wellness, but it is only a limited relief. There is no new way to live life where there is no longer stress, no way to live life where it is only happiness and vacation time.  Again, there is nothing new under the sun.

We try and imagine there is something new to be found. We eagerly look around the corner toward the next three day weekend or highlight event in life. But as much as we might look forward to and enjoy a three day weekend, a vacation, a day at the beach or an enjoyable social occasion- they all come and go without anything truly new occurring. 

They pass only to be replaced with the same routines of labor and toil. From the point of view of sinful man, there is no denying it, there is nothing new under the sun.

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”

Through faith we perceive that there is a wonderful exception to the rule.  By the power of God’s Word you can forget everything you know about how things used to be or how things ought to work. Jesus brings us something new in a way that nobody else in today’s world or all of history could do.

Listen to the words from the parable of the wicked tenants in our gospel reading for further evidence of how new of a thing it is in this world that God sent his only son into this world to die for us.  “Then the owner of the vineyard said , What shall I do, I will send my beloved son, perhaps they will respect him. But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’

How unbelievable that the master would send his own son into the vineyard, considering how they had treated all those who came thus far.  There was nothing new about their reaction, ‘let us kill him so that the inheritance may be ours!’  What was new was God’s unprecedented design of love for us.  “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” 

Never in all of history has it ever been the case that God himself would come down to earth and suffer on the cross for our salvation.  Never in all of human wisdom and reason has it ever been thought that salvation would all be a gift of the Lord. 

There is no mistaking that this is a gift. The tenants of the vineyard deserved only death for their actions. But instead through the love of Christ, through the love that existed from before the foundation of the world- what we meant for evil God turned to good, turned into the cornerstone of the church.

It was not new in terms of God’s planning for us. Already from the beginning, since Adam and Eve’s fall- God knew all along of this plan of salvation, and God told Adam and Eve of this promise of a Savior. But for us, it was a new thing to experience, our salvation through Jesus, the God man.  

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?  I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the dessert. The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise.”

The gift of our salvation is entirely new and unexpected, like nothing we could expect or even hope for, like a well defined path in the wilderness, like rivers springing forth in the desert.  This new thing, this salvation through Jesus is so clear that even wild beasts can see it. 

And we as the church have been joined to this new thing. Through Holy Baptism you have been made a new creation. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come.”

Jesus brings to us this new creation.  We don’t just look back at what the Lord has done for us, but also see God as our present provider of all help.   John 4:14 “But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever. The water I give in him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Jesus gives us life giving water throughout our lives. He brings to us in His Word and Sacrament all that we need.

Apart from faith, we do not see anything so special in Jesus that we would say, ‘here is truly a new and worthwhile thing.’  Some other religions see Jesus as merely one of many great prophets throughout history.  The historical scholar who is blinded by unbelief might convince himself that Jesus was one of many ‘miracle workers’ throughout history. 

In our own identity as Christians we may not question whether there is anything new about Jesus’ incarnation or his crucifixion and resurrection. We take this for granted that Jesus is the pivot point in all of history and the one in whom we want to put all of our trust. 

It is harder for us to see how Jesus makes all things new in our life.  We often struggle to see how because Jesus has saved us, everything, absolutely everything in our lives is new. 

As time goes by in our lives we tend to recognize what are the limits set before us.  We become all too familiar with how things tend to go for us in family relationships and friendships. We know which people push our buttons or which people we feel we disappoint.  Life becomes marked by predictable routines whereby we may feel a certain degree more isolated, alone and unfulfilled than we would have hoped for in life.  

Yet through our life in Christ, how things tend to go is the old, and the new is what Jesus leads us toward in our lives.  Through faith that Jesus makes all things new, we can approach stagnant routines with newfound purpose, courage, and hopefulness.

When we feel paths have been closed to us in life through hurts and disappointments we find in Jesus’ unconditional love and forgiveness the strength to ourselves forgive those who have let us down. Though the complete freedom of forgiveness in Christ we find a new thing in our life.

And as you are reading this sermon in faith there is by the power of God’s Word a new thing in your life.   Jesus makes you a new creation: perfectly forgiven, not stuck looking toward the past, but instead living by His provision day by day. You can look in hope for the next way in which Jesus will do a new thing in your life.   Like streams flowing forth in the desert, you can see that life in Christ is a marvelous thing. Amen. Pastor Fuller