From the Pulpit: Not what I expected or wanted

It has been about six years since my family moved to Brandon, S.D. It feels like a lifetime ago. Our 7-year-old was just a toddler, our tornado of a 4-year-old didn’t even exist yet. But I have to confess, a life in Brandon, S.D., is not what I (or my wife) expected or wanted.

We had been prepared for an urban setting like Milwaukee, Chicago, St. Louis, or something like that … and then South Dakota. No, it was not what we expected or wanted.

But that is often true in life; we have our expectations or perfect plans and then God calls us to things we were not planning. It has been a good six years and can say as I look back at my time hereI have seen God at work in every season. There have been tremendous blessings and significant struggles but in all these things, Christ has been present. God has been sending others to me to bear witness the Holy Spirit’s activity in our midst and remain me that we are not in this any of this alone. 

We are the Church, the Body of Christ in the place. It has been an honor to serve Split Rock and Brandon Lutheran as pastor but it has also been an honor to be the Church with all of you in the Brandon community. It wasn’t what I expected and I thank God for that, even as my time here comes to an end.

It sure is a strange time to go through transition and to try to find a closure.

As someone who works in youth ministry, I’ve been thinking of the kids (including my own) who are missing the end of the school year, especially those seniors. All those seventh-graders that greeted me in those first confirmation classes are now seniors who are preparing to say goodbye to the time in high-school … but not in the way that they had expected or wanted.

Instead of the grad parties and one last hang with friends headed different places in the world, they are mostly stuck at home, apart from all those experiences they thought they’d be having. So, seniors who might read this, parents of seniors, people who care about a senior: my heart goes out to you, it’s a huge bummer.

I think of the weddings I will officiate this month that will not look or feel like the couple expected or wanted. And though they’ve had a good sense of humor about it, I know that it is a loss. This wasn’t how they ever imagined things would be.

I think I kind of understand some of those feelings because my family and I are not getting to have the experiences that we thought we’d have in the days and weeks to come. We are getting ready to move and this isn’t how I thought the last few months and weeks of ministry would go in this place. I thought I’d have coffee with everyone, have one last youth bonfire, one more Bible study, the last this or that, and now that’s really not been able to happen.

It isn’t what I expected or wanted. Of course, there are countless people dealing with much bigger things, I know that. I bet most of you have things that you’ve missed out on or changed on you or lost, and it’s hard. It’s important to acknowledge those things and remember that pain is never a contest because in more pain or in greater need than you, doesn’t mean that your pain or needs are unimportant.

I am almost positive that I’ve cited this verse before in one of my articles I’ve submitted to the paper but it remains one of my favorites and I think is an important reminder for all of us in these times of uncertainty, pain, and loss. 

Galatians 6:2, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Each person has a burden in these times. Some are bigger than others, but they affect each of us. For some they will keep the pain of it on their sleeve, talk about it often, post about it constantly on social media. For others they will bear it quietly and perhaps not fully acknowledge the struggle they are experiencing.

Our call as people of faith in this time when we cannot gather and practice our faith in the ways that we are used to is to remember that we don’t go it alone in this life. God calls us into to community and Jesus is made known to us in our suffering. We serve each other by supporting each other in whatever burdens we might have to carry, knowing that Christ has already carried our burdens to the cross.

In these times when we are living lives that we didn’t expect, in a situation that nobody wants, we are called to remember that it is in these places that God shows up. Look for Christ to be present, especially in those things that don’t expect or want. Pain and loss are never the end of our stories, God always has redemption and renewal prepared for us.

So, while this time wasn’t what I initially wanted, it was a blessing I never expected. Thank you for everything. God bless you all and continue to serve each other in Jesus’ name.