Martin Luther said: "Music is an outstanding gift of God and next to theology." Music certainly serves an important function in our worship – at times reminding us of the sober nature of sin and death – at times lifting our hearts in joy at forgiveness and resurrection given us through Christ. It is amazing to see little children joining in a favorite hymn or singing part of the liturgy before they can read. At the other end of life, I have seen people in care centers who are virtually unable to communicate – their eyes light up, sometimes they hum along, sometimes they are even able to sing the words of those hymns or liturgy that they sang for so many years.

We have been using our new hymnal, Lutheran Service Book, for about one year now. A majority of the hymns are from our previous hymnals, but there are also new additions. We have sung a few of the new hymns, most recently "On Eagle’s Wings."

I am asking you to do some hymnal homework. In order to better know what hymns are known and not known, I am asking you to page through the hymns and fill out a survey. Each member in a family should fill out the survey, so every member of our church is involved. You will need to take home a hymnal (unless you have memorized the numbers and names). We have a number of extra hymnals in a box at the rear of church, or take one from one of the front pews (where no true Lutherans ever sit!).

The survey will be a chart with all the hymn numbers followed by blank boxes. As you look at the hymn, please write in the box one of the following numbers (and symbol, if appropriate):

1 = don’t know it. 2 = know it. 3 = love it (favorites). * = want to learn it.

The purpose for the survey is threefold:

1. Try to use favorite hymns on a somewhat more frequent basis than others.
2. Try to learn which hymns most of our members know, for ease of use.
3. Try to learn which hymns are unknown, so if we plan to use an unknown hymn, we don’t pile 5 of them in one service. Also, when using an unknown hymn, to plan to repeat it a few weeks for better learning and remembering.

Please note that you don’t have to limit your favorites to 1 or 3 or 5 or 10. Also, the * hymns, those you want to learn, can be any of those marked as #1 (don’t know it).

Text: Edward H. Plumptre 1821-91, alt. Tune: Arther H. Messiter, 1834-1916

Thank you for dedicating your time to this survey. May God bless its use in our worship planning and celebration as we focus on Christ our Savior.

Okay, so the world is His. There is no need to go picking our way through the Bible poling up verses that assert God’s claim on the whole of creation-and all the creatures, too! There are plenty of the. You’ve seen enough to make the point! The spirit and tone of Scripture is a witness to God’s total claim. The redemptive sacrifice of Christ, who died for the whole world and the whole life of each individual, underlines God’s statements that He was reclaiming His lost/strayed/stolen property-what He had always owned and never relinquished.

The Psalmist’s plea for help in Psalm 51:10 echoes that claim because it is based on the assumption that God has all the power, even down to cleaning the individual heart and renewing each inner spirit. The Biblical position is clear. You are not your own. You belong to Him.

Now He’s getting personal! God’s view of stewards, stewardship and stewarding is wide-ranging. God want the whole 10 yards. He’s deep into the day-in-day-out, every-corner-of-life understanding that Luther cites in his explanation of the First Article of the Apostles’ Creed: "God has made me and all my members, my reason and all my senses…Also clothing and shoes, meat and drink, house and home, wife and children, field, cattle, and all my goods." The truth is-it all belongs to God!

Adapted from the newspaper of the California-Nevada-Hawaii District-LCMS

Stewardship 

In June we celebrate the beginning of summer. The first day of summer is a time when we enjoy the longest day of the year in contrast to the first day of winter when we observe the shortest day of the year. That can be a reminder that there are also equal parts with Christian stewardship—Law and Gospel.

From God’s Word we know what good Christian stewardship should be. We also have principles that guide our stewardship life. But at the end of the day we realize, with sorrow, that we have failed over and over again in our stewardship. We have not managed all of life and life’s resources for God’s purposes. We have not lived out our stewardship with the reality that God is the Owner of all things and we are simply managers. We have used our possessions as if they belong completely to us—not acknowledging that God has simply entrusted them to us for wise management that brings glory to Him and blessings to others. And the list of stewardship failures could go on and on. That’s bad news! That’s what the Law says to us!

However, for us as Christians, there is also some very good news. Moved by sacrificial love, Jesus came into our world and took upon Himself our sins—yes, also the sins of poor stewardship—and gained God’s forgiveness for us by going to the cross to suffer the death penalty that we deserved. What good news that God does not treat us according to what we deserve; instead, in Christ, He loves and forgives us—daily and richly.

That loving forgiveness of God has moved Christians throughout the ages to manage all of life and life’s resources for God’s purposes—and to do it freely and joyfully. That loving forgiveness of God is also the proper motivation for our stewardship. It moves us to share and give freely and generously of our time, talents and treasure for the work of the Lord and to make life sweeter for others. What a place this world would be if we all practiced faithful stewardship. It would be heaven on earth!

The sad reality is that we have not only sinned in the past, but we have also sinned in the present and will continue to sin in the future. Yet there is hope and new life. We confess our sins to God with sorrow in our hearts and minds and flee to the cross of Jesus Christ to find full and free forgiveness for every sin. We have the added blessing of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit to help us live in new and different ways. That’s what the Gospel says to us!

When it comes to our stewardship, it is not possible for us to bring about heaven on earth. But, by God’s power, we can make our little corner of the earth a better place because we are here!