Bethel Lutheran Church

Welcome to Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church!

A community growing deeper in faith and wider in love!

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Welcome Statement

As followers of Jesus, we are called to love God and one another, practice liberating hospitality and serve others with humility and generosity. We strive to welcome everyone: believers, questioners, and questioning believers. We commit ourselves to welcoming people of every race, culture, age, ethnicity, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, physical and mental ability, socioeconomic position, marital status, family structure, citizenship and veteran status. Likewise, we commit ourselves to embracing the work of racial equity, social and economic justice, and environmental care.

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Pastor Dave's Weekly Devotions

Pastor Dave's Devotions
Wednesday, October 22

This is the day that that Lord has made, WE WILL rejoice and be glad in it
(Psalm 118:24)
George Carlin has a comedic bit about people saying to one another, "have a nice day." In the bit, Carlin feels this is problematic because "it puts all the pressure on you to somehow have a good time."
Why, he asks, don't we instead invite others to "have a mediocre day" which is much easier to accomplish. Or even to "have a crappy day" when just getting up in the morning can accomplish this!
I love how the author of Psalm 118 writes WE WILL rejoice and be glad in it. I love this because it takes away the events of the day as determinative for our rejoicing. We are alive, we are awake, we are able to love and be loved yet again this day. That is enough to cause us to rejoice.
To be sure, days can change hour to hour, minute by minute, second by second. It doesn't say WE WILL rejoice and be glad THROUGHOUT the day and THROUGH the events of the day. Just that the day itself provides a joy in that we have yet again been given the gift of life.
May you find moments to rejoice each day. May you find moments to be glad you're alive each day. May you find blessing in the very experience of being alive!