“Now is the Time—KAIROS Report”!

Dear Friends in Christ:

We continue to move forward in a very special process at this time in the history of our congregation’s life, mission, and ministry. The Greek word “Kairos” is used in the New Testament to speak of God’s appointed time to act. It announces joyful and hopeful times of Good News.

On Thursday, March 12th, thirty-three members of our Congregation Council, Stewardship and Finance Board, and others met with Lutheran Pastor Jeff Kjellberg, one of the two principal owners of Kairos and Associates of Minneapolis, Minnesota, a nationally recognized Christian Consulting Firm which we have chosen to help us prepare a long-term strategy that builds on our past and present strengths as a congregation, and looks to God’s plan for a hopeful, effective, and blessed future for us, our children, and our children’s children. As the prophet of old spoke: “For surely I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

The next step in this process of assessment is to hold “listening sessions” for individual interviews, or 60-minute group discussions with a cross-section of church members. Pastor Jeff Kjellberg, and Pastor Jana Swenson will facilitiate these meetings.

On Friday, an email was sent to all members who are posted on this list. It asked that if you would like to be included in these “listening times”, that you phone or email the church office at 892-4040 or abidinglove@austin.rr.com; or, contact our Council Coordinator, Steve Kikta at 443-8947 or sekikta@aol.com . These meetings will take place during the mornings, afternoons, and evenings— Tuesday, March 24; Wednesday, March 25; and Thursday, March 26.

The leaders of our congregation believe that it is crucial to get a better understanding of how our members relate to this congregation, and what their experiences of giving have meant
to them.

There may still be time to hopefully include you. Please respond as soon as possible. And, of course, everyone can be in prayer during these three days for our consultants, Jeff and Jana, and all those who participate.

At our meeting last Thursday with Pastor Jeff, I quoted something he has posted on the Kairos website: “I am passionate about the church and its call to faithfully share the transforming love of Jesus Christ to all people. It is my desire to use my gifts in helping the church become as effective and far reaching in this mission as possible.” May all of God’s people at Abiding Love say “Amen” to that!

I conclude with a favorite Bible verse that Jeff shared with us: “Now to God who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine be glory in the church of Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

—Pastor David Fetter

Giving UP Something for Lent, or Giving TO Something for Lent?

Dear Friends in Christ:

It has become a common tradition for many Christians to practice the discipline during the 40-day Season of Lent to give up something. This is a form of “fasting” remembering that Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness where he fasted. Matthew’s Gospel says, “he was famished” (4:2). Luke’s Gospel states, “He ate nothing at all during those days” (4:2).

This can be a deeply spiritual experience for us. This year I have been led to another Lenten discipline. It was inspired by a reading in the Upper Room daily devotional guide that I use. The following thoughts were written by Pam Pointer of Wiltshire, England. It is titled, “Count your blessings and give accordingly."

Each day during Lent I put aside coins in a jar as a reminder of God’s blessings. A Christian charity made suggestions for each day: “Give a coin for every pair of shoes that you own.” I counted eight pairs, and then I thought about the many children who have to go barefoot. Another day I gave some money for each meal I’d eaten that day, as a reminder that many go hungry and die of starvation. Jesus had nowhere to lay his head (see Matt. 8:20), so another day I counted the number of beds in my home and gave an amount for each one. I have so much to be thankful for: clean water, food, clothes, shelter, work, electricity, gas, peace, freedom.

Jesus identified with those who had little. After all, as a toddler he was a refugee. As an adult he had no home of his own; he was rejected in his hometown and eventually died on the city’s rubbish dump. He ministered to all sorts of people, but he had a particular concern for people who were poor.

How much am I willing to give? At the end of Lent I’ll add up all the money I’ve collected and send it to the charity. But it will be a tiny sum compared to all that God has given me.

Bible Reading:
“All shall give as they are able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God that he has given you.” —Deuteronomy 16:17

Prayer:
Generous God, may we never take for granted all that you give us — most of all the gift of your son, Christ Jesus. Help us to respond with joyful gratitude. Amen.

—Pastor David Fetter
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“KAIROS” — Now Is the Time!

Dear Friends in Christ:

On Sunday, February 15th, at 12:15 p.m., we held a special meeting of he Congregation to employ KAIROS Christian Resource Development Consultants of Minneapolis, Minnesota to help us in:
Strategic Future Planning for our mission and ministry;
Stewardship Education and Development;
Leadership Development; and,
A Capital Fund Appeal to reduce debt, improve our building’s infrastructures, and stabilize our present financial situation.

I am thankful for the positive participation of the 91 persons present, and for the very open and honest discussion. We voted to approve entering into a contract with KAIROS, a Lutheran-based company that we used in 1997 for our “Forward in Faith” Appeal that resulted in the building of our Worship/Administrative and Education Center.

I am very confident that we have made a good decision that will help this Abiding Love Church address our present challenges, and prepare us for our future by cultivating a VISION to inspire us toward one common purpose, FAITH that embraces the truth that the good work God has begun will be completed, and COURAGE to focus on God’s dream for our ministry that has touched us, and will touch the hearts of others yet to join in the “Abiding Love Story”!

This weekend, leaders of our Congregation will be meeting with Rev. Jana Swenson, Kairos Consultant, on Saturday, Feb. 21st, 8:30 a.m.—3:30 p.m. for a “Visioning for the Future Together” Retreat. On Sunday, Feb. 22nd, Jana will be with us all day visiting our worship services, educational activities, youth programs, etc. To help introduce Jana to you, please read the following:

Jana Swenson
Consulting Associate

Rev. Jana Swenson comes to Kairos after 14 years of effective and innovative ministry in a variety of congregational settings, providing leadership in rural, urban, and suburban churches with worship attendance ranging from 300 to 3000. She is a perceptive and visionary leader with a pioneering spirit and a heart for people. She is passionate about the transforming power of the gospel in individuals and organizations. From her vast experience she understands that each congregation has its own unique footprint.

Skilled at helping congregations articulate a clear and compelling vision for the future, Jana is an expert in forming a plan to get there and a strategy to develop the physical and financial resources needed to make it happen. Her approach to resource development is prayerful, strategic, and inventive, with an understanding that there is both challenge and exhilaration that comes in leading a congregation through this process.

Jana's commitment is to invite people into community, bring them deeper into their relationship with God, and with one-another, cast vision for the life-changing difference they can make, and then stand back and watch as God brings them to deeper levels of faith, commitment, and generosity. She is inspired by the joy and fulfillment that accompany a life-style of generosity.

Jana has also served as a consultant and speaker to churches of various sizes, settings and denominations. She has written training materials for small group leaders and ministry directors, and has assisted numerous churches in establishing, expanding, and rejuvenating their ministries. Jana grew up in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. She graduated from Gustavus Adolophus College and has her Masters of Divinity from Luther Seminary in St. Paul. She is married to Reverend Jonathan Swenson, a Worship Pastor at St. Mark's Lutheran Church. They reside in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with their two beautiful and active teenage daughters.

I encourage you to visit the Kairos web page at:
www.kairosandassociates.com for more information.

“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

—Pastor David Fetter

Note: A 12-hour “Prayer Vigil” was held at our church on Tuesday, Feb. 17th, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. for this important step in our congregation’s journey. Thank you to all who participated.

"This Good Earth" (Think Green!)

Dear Friends in Christ:

On January 26-28, Pastor Lynnae and I attended our annual Tri-Synodical Theological Leadership Conference in Arlington. Pastors and other church leaders from Texas, and Louisiana met to consider the theme, “This Good Earth”.

As I led you in our worship services this past Sunday, three things took on even more meaning for me after attending this conference:

* The first was in the Prayer of Confession: “We confess that we have sinned against you and one another. We have wounded the whole creation by the things we have done and the things we have failed to do.”

* The second was in the Apostles’ Creed: “I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.”

* The third was in the Prayers of the Church: “Almighty God, by your word creation came into being. Speak to us by your spirit when creation is groaning for rescue and relief, that we may commit ourselves to thoughtful care of all you have made.”

At this conference, we heard from four persons who are very significantly involved in raising the awareness globally that we are facing a crisis of climate change on this planet! Being followers of Jesus Christ, they take very seriously the meaning of John 3:16-- “For God so loved THE WORLD (meaning ‘the whole creation’, or ‘the cosmos’ in the original Greek) that he gave his only Son… “ We are created “in God’s image”, and “God is love”. So, as the people of God we have the responsibility to “love this world” by responding to the crises we face. Yes, we must confess that waste and over-use of resources is creating economic, social and environmental problems that cannot wait to be addressed! As God’s children, the church of Jesus Christ has the unique opportunity in our worship, our service, and in our personal lives to witness to our faith in the God who sustains us and all living things. God has commanded us to “have dominion” over the creation which means to be “caretaker”, or “good stewards” of this good earth in the original Hebrew.

Robert Corin Morris raises some very thought-provoking questions in an article titled, “An Altar of Earth—the Bible as Earth-Book”: “What kind of world will our children and grandchildren inherit? Will it be the bleak world envisioned by some, where we will live not only in the ruins of nature, but in the ruins of the civilization that ruined it? What will be the shape of this world to come? What kind of people will it take to shape it in this direction? And why should this matter to those who call Jesus Lord?”

The teaching and preaching of Jesus proclaims that heaven and earth are joined in eternal life. The incarnation of Jesus, “God’s Word made flesh who dwells with us” teaches us to pray for this good earth: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”!

—Pastor David Fetter

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"Miracle on the Hudson"

Dear Friends in Christ:

Thursday, January 15th found many of us glued to our televisions as we watched the compelling images of US Airways Flight 1549 resting in the Hudson River with its passengers standing on its wings. The flight out of New York’s La Guardia Airport was heading for Charlotte, North Carolina, when apparently some birds were sucked into the engines and caused their failure. The pilot made the incredible decision to land on the Hudson River. All 155 passengers and flight crew survived, and the potential for additional loss of life, created by an emergency in a crowded city, was avoided.

The plane floated; the passengers were able to get out and were quickly rescued. The good news was and is that lives were saved. Emergency personnel responded quickly and effectively. All those passengers made it safely home one way or another.

Some have called this “A MIRACLE!” Was it?

A miracle is defined as “a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency or a highly improbable or extraordinary event, development or accomplishment that brings very welcome consequences.”

Regardless, this is good news. It is something that inspires us to say, “Thanks be to God!”

I am writing this article on the eve of the Inauguration of President Barack Obama. He is being sworn into his office at a time in our history when we are facing a depressive economy, high jobless index, and unrest in the Middle East. Do we need more “miracles”? Mr. Obama has said, “I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability… I’m asking you to believe in yours.”

I am praying that we as Americans join hands and hearts to seek a better way. This is the time for all of us to stand up and be counted. As we do, I believe good things will happen!

Am I mixing politics and religion? I believe that we are God’s stewards in all things. As followers of Jesus Christ who is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” we should always choose to be involved, active, counted, and committed to ”the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness for all.”

Let us celebrate “the miracle” of each day even as we live through our own daily struggles!

Peace, hope, and love to you in this New Year,

—Pastor David Fetter

Note: Infomation taken from Texas Interagency Interfaith Disaster Response newsletter.

A New Year’s Resolution

Dear Friends in Christ,

On New Year’s Day I was reading in my Upper Room Daily Devotional Guide. The meditation was titled “Finding Time” and was written by Jennifer Bruner, an elementary school special education teacher in Michigan:

“One day while sitting in my dentist’s waiting room, I looked around for something to read to pass the time. As I started to grab a magazine, I noticed a Bible sitting next to the stack. I picked it up and opened to the Book of James. I immediately felt the stress and tensions of my day lift as I read:

‘My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.’

It is a daily challenge to find time to read the Bible and pray. Yet I spend much leisure time reading books or magazines that promise to help me find happiness and improve my life. From this waiting-room experience, I realized that maybe it does not have to be so hard to find time to read the Bible. If I spend less time on other reading material, I find plenty of time in the day for God’s word. The Bible is filled with all the information I need for improving my life and finding not temporary but eternal happiness. Living by its guidance will improve my earthly life and prepare me for eternal life in heaven. My goal is to read the Bible and seek God with all of my heart and with as much passion as I pursue other things in my life.”

In 2007 the churchwide assembly of our Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) voted to embrace an initiative called Book of Faith. The bold vision of this five-year initiative is: “That the whole church become more fluent in the first language of faith, the language of Scripture, in order that we might live into our calling as people renewed, enlivened, empowered, and sent by the Word.”

I propose that you and I make this vision a “New Year’s Resolution for 2009”. Pastor Lynnae has been leading a Sunday School Class (9:45-10:45 a.m.) in the Activity Center based on the book, Opening the Book of Faith. There are other opportunities at Abiding Love for you to join with others in conversation as you open the Scriptures together.

The Bible is the written and living Word of God that speaks to us. It creates and nurtures faith through the work of the Holy Spirit and points us to Jesus, the center of our faith. The Bible invites us into a relationship with God, making demands on our lives and promising us new life in Christ. As the Bible tells the stories of people living their faith over the centuries, this forms us as God’s people of faith. As we live out our calling as the people of God, we are renewed, enlivened, and empowered by the Word through the power of the Holy Spirit!

No other book can do what the Bible does for our lives. It is a powerful book. As Jesus said: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Mark 13:31)

May you have a “Bible-Blessed Happy New Year”!

—Pastor David Fetter

Advent Thoughts & Prayers To Help Prepare For Christmas…

Dear Friends in Christ:

I have been doing some devotional reading to help me be more open to God’s coming. Yes, this is the Season of Advent, and Advent means “Coming”.

This past Sunday we lit the first of four candles on our Advent Wreath— the candle of “HOPE”. The next three Sundays we will light the candles of “PEACE”, “JOY”, and “LOVE”. Pray with me for the coming (the “advent”) of God’s hope, peace, joy, and love into our hearts and minds.

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas, we must remember that Jesus Christ often comes into our lives when we least expect him. Let us use this Season of Advent to keep our hearts and minds; our homes and families, open to his coming.

Please keep the following prayers close by, and use them often to help this occur for you, and your loved ones:
“Holy Child of Bethlehem, we humbly confess that as we prepare for your Advent our thoughts have been mainly on sending out holiday greetings and preparing our shopping lists. By the power of your Holy Spirit forgive our short-sightedness, and fix our attention on the earth-shaking and life-changing event we celebrate with your coming into the world. Amen.”

“Ever-present God, may this time of Advent be an occasion for us to open our hearts to you. While we wait for Christmas as an opportunity to celebrate your coming into the world in human form, make us aware that you are always ready to show yourself to us. Amen.”

“O God, we know that you will never take your steadfast love from us, and we give you thanks that your Son has come into the world to share our joys and sorrows. Through his life, death, and resurrection, we know that he will reign eternally in the hearts of his followers, and of his kingdom there will be no end. Amen.”

“Lord, like Mary, the mother of Jesus, we are often perplexed by your plans for us. We pray that like Mary, we may come to the realization that we can put our trust in you. Like Mary, may we be prepared to hear your call and respond. ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord, let it be with me according to your word.’ Amen.”

“O God, forgive us when we doubt your power. We confess that often we are tempted to handle life’s problems our own way. Forgive our weakness, and may the power of your Holy Spirit enable us to respond to your call as we put our faith and trust in you. Amen. “

“Come into my heart Lord Jesus. Come in today. Come in to stay. Come into my heart Lord Jesus.”

— Pastor David Fetter
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