Mail Archive of the old Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish

Subject: July 13 devotion

Date: Sun, 13 Jul 2008 12:06:03 -0700 (PDT)

From: David Bonde <dkbonde@gmail.com>

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Subject: July 13 devotion
From: David Bonde <dkbonde@gmail.com>
To: SCVLP <scvlp@googlegroups.com>
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I stopped the congregation today after they had begun the Apostles=92
Creed and made them start again saying =93I trust in God the Father
Almighty, =85 I trust in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord =85 I trust
in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life
everlasting.=94

Having heard the proclamation of the parable of the sower (the lazy
farmer? who throws his seed recklessly, who hasn=92t plowed under the
weeds, who hasn=92t pulled the stones from his field and yet gets a
miraculous harvest), the proclamation of the word which cannot be
stopped, the reign of God which can not be prevented, the love that
will have it=92s way with the world, I made them stop and start the
creed again to be sure they understood what they were saying.  To be
sure the words of the creed were not about content but about
relationship, this one whose body was cast into the earth is the one
we trust.  This God who raises the dead is the one we trust.  This God
who fashioned us and all things, is the one we trust.  This God who
forgives sins, who raises the body, who gives life undying is the one
we trust.

It worked.  It hit home.  Some said after that we should say the creed
that way always.  But what struck me was the phrase =93I trust the
church.=94

How hard it is to trust the community.  And yet how wonderful.  How
hard it is to trust one another.  And yet how wonderful.  They are the
ones through whom Grace gets done to me.  No trust.  No community.  No
Grace.  God has chosen to use means.  How terrible and how wonderful.