Know who you are and do it!

On Sunday, February 15^th, I asked several questions during my sermon, however I didn’t really answer them.  I intentionally didn’t answer them hoping to spark some deeper thought about who we are as St. Mark Lutheran Church.  

In a PBS special called Wisdom Keepers, Ray Suarez interviews scholars and religious leaders.  In his interview with Sister Joan Chittister he asked her about the future of the church. He noted the decline in church attendance and how people are not running to the churches like they did years ago. Her response made me think. She said, “Numbers will not save you, and numbers will not destroy you.  Know who you are and do it. And reach out to those who also want to know who you are and how you do it.”  Beloved, do we know who we are as the people of St. Mark, the people of God? Are we living out what God has called us to? 

Ray Suarez also interviewed Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas where he asked her, what is happiness and why am I here? She said, that it isn’t just happiness that people are looking for it is a meaningful life. When we live a meaningful life, it pulls us out of ourselves towards others. How do we help people find a meaningful life?  Archbishop Tutu said, “That we are children of God is a fact. That we act like it is not a fact.”  We are called to live into what it means to be children of God. How have we lived into that identity?

Beloved, I encourage you to sit with these questions. Think about how you would answer them as a member of St. Mark Lutheran Church or simply as a Christian, a follower of Jesus.  Lent is often a time for reflection and a time to sit with God in the valley.  It is also a time to take care of one another, to pray for one another, and a time for fasting.  I encourage you to fast from things that pull you away from God. Lean into what leads you to God.  Stand firm in your identity as a beloved child of God and live that identity. 

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Katrina Steingraeber