Hope
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11
A generation ago life was filled with hope – the Second World War was over, returning military men created jobs, families and communities. Where there was no church, believers built one, where there was no school, churches established one, where there was opportunity – believers seized it.
A generation ago a loaf of bread cost $0.14, a gallon of gas $0.27, a dozen eggs $0.70, a gallon of milk $0.82 and a first class stamp $0.03. Lest one get too caught up in nostalgia, the minimum wage was $0.75 an hour and the average income was $3,815 per year with the Dow average at an all-time high of 235. There was almost no credit card debt, since the Visa and Mastercard cards didn’t exsist.
A generation ago The Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America offered members of The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod joint fellowship and a common hymnal. Lutherans in America grew as members, offerings and service organizations prospered. The Lutheran Laymen’s League, Lutheran Women’s Missionary League and the Walther League provided social and spiritual growth. Many a married couple were introduced at a Walther League meeting and many of these couples became active in the LLL and the LWML.
A generation ago the words of Jeremiah “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” were lived out in the life of the congregation and its members. The whole nation seemed bent on creating a fiscally responsible, morally upright and spiritual society. The prospering and hope abounded.
Today it seems as if we live in a hopeless world. Our soldiers are overseas, fighting and dying in a war that seems to have no end; jobless rates are at an all-time high as employees lose their jobs to non-competitive business practices; families are torn asunder by divorce and pain; children are addicted to drugs, violence, and technology.
Today’s generation believes in everything, hence in nothing. Believers are attacked and made sport of, churches are derided and believers are abused for taking the opportunity to share faith.
Today we have to pay $2.00 for a loaf of bread, $3.97 for a gallon of gas, $2.50 for a dozen eggs, $2.77 for a gallon of milk and $0.42 for a first class stamp. Lest one get too excited about the increases in prices, the minimum wage for Michigan is $7.15 an hour and the average income is over $42,000 per year with the Dow average at 12,922.66 as of May 15, 2008. Least one rejoices at higher income figures, the median amount owed per family on credit cards is $1,900.
Today there is no Synodical conference, no unifying hymnal, no common liturgy. There is a declining number of LCMS congregations. It seems that the only thing Lutherans today can agree on is to disagree. The LLL and LWML are declining with Walther League dimly recalled as something grandparents attended by riding on the back of the milk wagon.
Today the words of Jeremiah “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” seem to be mocked as the majority of our congregations decline in members and increase in average age. The whole nation seems bent on destroying a fiscally responsible, morally upright and spiritual society. The prospering and hope is obscured by the struggles of people to curb greed, resist temptation and remain Christian in a Christ-less society.
Congregations that used to worship 300 now worship 50 and ask, “Where is the hope?” Treasurers that used to look for ways to spend money now look for money to spend and ask, “Where is the prospering?” Congregations that provided free elementary school now have to charge thousands of dollars for one child and ask, “Where is our future?”
Yet, hope does abound. God has not abandoned His people – “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." (Matthew 18:20) In fact, He loves us so much that He gave His only Son for us.
The Holy Spirit still works faith. The Word is still proclaimed every Sunday from thousands of pulpits across the nation and around the world. Marriages and families can and do live God-first lives, husbands and fathers practice daily devotions, Bible reading, tithing, and every week worship. Wives and mothers rock their children to hymns and spiritual songs, pray before meals, read Scripture and worship weekly. Thousands of Lutherans donate millions of hours and dollars yearly to local congregations, district and synod to support local congregations, mission outposts and schools – all of which can and do secure an earthly future of hope.
We must live for the promise of the future, not bemoan the present. We must rejoice in the plans to prosper, not dwell on the shortfalls of the present. We must focus on God’s plans – grab the hope, live the hope and share the hope. For the hope of this world is just a foretaste of the hope of heaven – can it be any better?
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11
A generation ago life was filled with hope – the Second World War was over, returning military men created jobs, families and communities. Where there was no church, believers built one, where there was no school, churches established one, where there was opportunity – believers seized it.
A generation ago a loaf of bread cost $0.14, a gallon of gas $0.27, a dozen eggs $0.70, a gallon of milk $0.82 and a first class stamp $0.03. Lest one get too caught up in nostalgia, the minimum wage was $0.75 an hour and the average income was $3,815 per year with the Dow average at an all-time high of 235. There was almost no credit card debt, since the Visa and Mastercard cards didn’t exsist.
A generation ago The Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America offered members of The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod joint fellowship and a common hymnal. Lutherans in America grew as members, offerings and service organizations prospered. The Lutheran Laymen’s League, Lutheran Women’s Missionary League and the Walther League provided social and spiritual growth. Many a married couple were introduced at a Walther League meeting and many of these couples became active in the LLL and the LWML.
A generation ago the words of Jeremiah “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” were lived out in the life of the congregation and its members. The whole nation seemed bent on creating a fiscally responsible, morally upright and spiritual society. The prospering and hope abounded.
Today it seems as if we live in a hopeless world. Our soldiers are overseas, fighting and dying in a war that seems to have no end; jobless rates are at an all-time high as employees lose their jobs to non-competitive business practices; families are torn asunder by divorce and pain; children are addicted to drugs, violence, and technology.
Today’s generation believes in everything, hence in nothing. Believers are attacked and made sport of, churches are derided and believers are abused for taking the opportunity to share faith.
Today we have to pay $2.00 for a loaf of bread, $3.97 for a gallon of gas, $2.50 for a dozen eggs, $2.77 for a gallon of milk and $0.42 for a first class stamp. Lest one get too excited about the increases in prices, the minimum wage for Michigan is $7.15 an hour and the average income is over $42,000 per year with the Dow average at 12,922.66 as of May 15, 2008. Least one rejoices at higher income figures, the median amount owed per family on credit cards is $1,900.
Today there is no Synodical conference, no unifying hymnal, no common liturgy. There is a declining number of LCMS congregations. It seems that the only thing Lutherans today can agree on is to disagree. The LLL and LWML are declining with Walther League dimly recalled as something grandparents attended by riding on the back of the milk wagon.
Today the words of Jeremiah “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” seem to be mocked as the majority of our congregations decline in members and increase in average age. The whole nation seems bent on destroying a fiscally responsible, morally upright and spiritual society. The prospering and hope is obscured by the struggles of people to curb greed, resist temptation and remain Christian in a Christ-less society.
Congregations that used to worship 300 now worship 50 and ask, “Where is the hope?” Treasurers that used to look for ways to spend money now look for money to spend and ask, “Where is the prospering?” Congregations that provided free elementary school now have to charge thousands of dollars for one child and ask, “Where is our future?”
Yet, hope does abound. God has not abandoned His people – “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." (Matthew 18:20) In fact, He loves us so much that He gave His only Son for us.
The Holy Spirit still works faith. The Word is still proclaimed every Sunday from thousands of pulpits across the nation and around the world. Marriages and families can and do live God-first lives, husbands and fathers practice daily devotions, Bible reading, tithing, and every week worship. Wives and mothers rock their children to hymns and spiritual songs, pray before meals, read Scripture and worship weekly. Thousands of Lutherans donate millions of hours and dollars yearly to local congregations, district and synod to support local congregations, mission outposts and schools – all of which can and do secure an earthly future of hope.
We must live for the promise of the future, not bemoan the present. We must rejoice in the plans to prosper, not dwell on the shortfalls of the present. We must focus on God’s plans – grab the hope, live the hope and share the hope. For the hope of this world is just a foretaste of the hope of heaven – can it be any better?