Grace Notes, February 22, 2011

13For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well. (Psalm 139:13-14)

I have my mom's kitten for a couple of weeks. She's off with her sister on
an adventure to visit my cousin near Las Vegas and so I get the cat.
I don't mind really. In fact, I'm the one who gave it to her so it's
fitting that I tend her needs when my mom's away. And it's true, Shadow
is a constant source of entertainment.

She's into everything, for one thing. She does that funny arched back
jumping from side to side as sje runs when I enter the room unexpectedly.
She would do anything to get down into the basement … but so far I've
managed to keep the door closed on her curiosity. And the blinds are a
constant draw for her attention. She'll sit on my lap as long as I have a
soft fleece blanket there and as long as I pause long enough for her to
notice… but even then only when she wants to. And she stalks the green
light on the vaporizer I've had running at night as I'm fighting off a
cold.

You who have pets know that it is so. Every single one is different, not
only in how they look, but also in how they interact with the world. And
while one can point to the particular characteristics of their breed, one
might also look to the temperaments of parents or their early life
experiences to begin to understand what makes them who they are. And even
when you've done all that? Well, sometimes it's still hard to say…
Lately I've been doing some thinking again about the family where I grew
up. This has been prompted by some continuing education I'm doing in
family emotional process. And unlike with my mom's kitten, who was
adopted from TAILS, our local shelter, it's actually possible to dig
deeper and find some answers to what makes me who I am. And yet, in some
ways it's all still questions for me. I mean, what does it mean to be
born the first of four daughters? Does it make any difference at all that
my dad was also an oldest and my mother was a middle child? What must it
have meant that I was born so soon after the death of my maternal
grandmother? How has it shaped me that I shared a bedroom with a sister
all through my growing up? Or the fact that we also shared one bathroom
between us all? Did it make any difference that we lived so far from my
dad's family --- or that his dad died when my dad was very small? Does it
matter that we grew up 'on the wrong side of the tracks' and does it shape
us in any way to have heard laughter most nights at the dinner table?
Would I be different if one side of the family didn't claim deep Norwegian
roots and the other dates as far back as the American Revolution in
Massachusetts and yet another wound up here as a result of the Irish
Potato Famine? What kind of difference did it make that we always knew
the church to be a community for us --- that we were raised in the faith
that still carries us? What are those things that make us who we are?
All of us could make a list of questions like that as we look back and
still, I would guess that while some answers come easy others always
remain mystery. For we are all uniquely and wonderfully made. While we
are surely shaped by the forces around us and within us, still we are
known first and last by the heart and the mind of God. It is all gift,
finally. We know this as we look back at what made us who we are and it
also shapes us as we ponder those mysteries who live and work and play
alongside us. And yet, with all the mystery --- all those things we can't
fully understand, we are assured of one thing. Each one of us is the
creation of a marvelous God. When we come upon those unanswerable
question, one answer is always sure. You are God's own. God made you,
shapes you, enables and empowers you to be all that you were made to be.
You are here on purpose and your life has meaning which continues to
deepen as you seek to live it well.

Peace to you and many blessings as you ponder everything that has made you
who you are --- as you encounter the mysteries who join you on your life
journey --- and as you rely ever more deeply on God's love which has
shaped you most of all.
Pastor Janet

Coming up this week at Salem:
On Sunday, February 27th at the 10:30 a.m. service, 17 8 and 9 year old
will receive their First Communion. Be sure to be part of the
celebration!
Also on Sunday at 3 p.m. Salem's Grief Support Group will gather. Anyone
who struggles with grief is welcome to join the group.

Grace Notes, February 15, 2011

Salem Lutheran Church
GraceNotes …………..….. February 15, 2011

Snow Day 2011
Sycamore neighborhoods seemed to be a lot different when I was a child.
The neighbors seemed closer, more friendly, the kids played together in
the neighborhoods more. Maybe there was more of a togetherness feeling or
community spirit? If you were born in Sycamore, or maybe in any rural
town back in the 1950s or 1960s, do you remember the long-awaited school
snow days?

Remember back to the time when you were a kid in school. Remember how
excited you were when you woke up in the morning and saw that it had
snowed during the night? Remember rushing to the radio and listening to
the list of school closings and doing a "happy dance" when you heard your
school's name? Then you called your friends, bundled up, went outside,
and built snow forts and snowmen. After playing in the snow for hours,
you came in, took all those wet snow clothes off, and one of the
neighborhood mothers would fix hot chocolate … with tiny marshmallows.
This went on the entire day … in one house, outside again, and then to
another house. Finally, as it neared suppertime, you went home to eat and
go to bed – immediately dropping off into an exhausted sleep.

When I was a kid, I know I didn't think about all that was involved with
that snow day. I didn't know about the snow plow drivers that worked
throughout the night trying to keep roads open. I didn't realize how hard
it must have been for my Dad to get up extra early in order to get our
walks shoveled before he left for work, and we had a large corner lot and
no snow blower! I remember helping him, and the kids in the neighborhood
sometimes helped too -- if that's what you could call it. There was a lot
of goofing off. I'm not sure how much help we actually were.

A snow day, however, looked a little different to me this year. First, I
am no longer a child, and second, even knowing on Wednesday that I didn't
have to go into work (it was decided Tuesday night that the church office
would be closed on Wednesday), I woke up the morning after the snow storm
to an amazing two feet of snow on our street, sidewalks, and driveway.
Our driveway has only room for one vehicle so my son had to park his car
in the street. I looked out the front window and thought. "The snow plow
has been through. Boy is his car buried!"

When I took a closer look, I noticed that the front steps were shoveled
and there was a path to my car in the driveway, and the snow was shoveled
behind the Expedition several feet so I could have actually made it to
work if I used the four-wheel drive. I stayed inside nice and warm until
my son got up and went out to move his car. He started outside with
shovel in hand -- and to my mother-way of thinking, was not dressed warmly
enough! He was working to get his car out as the snow plow driver was
making another pass around the block. I looked at the amount of snow
needing to be shoveled from his car and our sidewalks and decided to help
shovel him out. I bundled up and went outside. Looking up and down the
street I noticed several others out shoveling their sidewalks and
driveways. Some had snow shovels, some had snow blowers. It kind of
reminded me of when I was young and everyone was out shoveling out after a
big snow. This time, everyone wasn't playing joyfully in the snow, but
working very hard to move a great deal of snow.

After some hard shoveling, my son cleared the front of his car enough to
drive it out … almost. By this time, I was outside helping and got behind
him to give him a push. He needed just a little help to get the traction
going and I provided just the little push he needed. However, standing in
two feet of snow and leaning over pushing a car provided me with just
enough challenge to make me lose my balance. So, as I fell to my knees
and saw my son driving his car down the street, the phrase "help, I've
fallen and I can't get up" flashed through my mind. Now, mind you, I have
had two total knee replacements and I haven't kneeled since 2005.
Thankfully the snow was soft, but I couldn't get myself in a position to
push off or up. Thank goodness our neighbor across the street was out
snow blowing his driveway and witnessed my "graceful" fall. He came over
to help and he had me standing by the time my son returned from turning
around at the end of the street -- there were no clear driveways any
nearer to turn his car around.

I stood with the neighbor and my son and watched the plow came around two
more times to make sure the street in front of our house was clear. The
driveway, however, looked like there was a small mountain in it. I think
that our neighbor, my rescuer, took pity on us, because he came with his
snow blower and did our driveway -- and just for good measure he finished
up the sidewalks too. Bless his heart! I think my son and I would have
had to shovel all day to move the amount of snow he moved in only fifteen
minutes.

Maybe snow days aren't so different in neighborhoods today afterall?
Maybe snow does bring good neighbors closer? And here is a small puzzle.
We still don't know who shoveled our front porch or the path to my car in
the driveway that day. Maybe it was a good neighbor?

God Bless,
Sue McMillan

Upcoming at Salem …
Friday – February 18
Scrappin' Bonanza in Fellowship Hall – 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Saturday – February 19
Scrappin' Bonanza in Fellowship Hall – 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Praise Team Rehearsal – 8:30 a.m.
Monthly Morning Ministry – 9:00 a.m.
Musical Rehearsal – 10:00 a.m.
WORSHIP – Praise Team – 5:00 p.m.

Sunday – February 20
WORSHIP – 8:00
Sunday School - 9:15 a.m.
1st Communion Class – F.H.
GRACE WORSHIP – 10:30
Sunday Night Thing – 7:00 p.m.
Homebound Communion this Weekend

Have a Great Presidents' Day on February 21st !

Grace Notes, February 9, 2011

Many of you may have heard by now that I am scheduled for shoulder surgery
at Mayo Clinic February 23rd. I was told here that mine was a complicated
rotator cuff case and they weren't sure what the outcome would be or it
might take several tries, so I took Pastor Janet's advice and got in at
Mayo's. As the surgery date draws near, I am working hard to get many
things done at home and planned ahead for Salem. By nature I am a very
organized person so I draw comfort in each thing I accomplish.

But it also occurs to me that I am just busy working away at things I can
control when I am facing something that is out of my control. It has been
21 years since I had any serious surgery. There is always an element of
surrender in surgery. You place your trust in skilled physicians and
medical assistants and let go of control. You worry will you wake up, you
worry how much will you hurt, you worry how long it will take to get back
in control!!!

Many years I have prayed with people prior to surgery and encouraged them
that God would be right there to lead and guide, give wisdom and skill to
the medical personnel, and strength for recovery. We have talked about
loss of control issues, having to depend on others for even simple things
you are used to doing for yourself, and the patience that will be needed
to heal. Now it is time to take my own advice once again.

But are we ever really in control? We like to think we are, don't we? The
truth is that there are so many outside factors that influence every part
of our lives, many of them completely beyond our control. If we get
defensive we try to hold so tightly to our relationships or our work that
we can end up choking them out of our lives. Sometimes people
over-control at home because they feel so out of control in the rest of
their lives, or they are so touchy at work because they feel threatened
somewhere else.

Another thing I have preached for years is balance. Knowing when to
listen and when to speak, when to spend and when to save, when to work and
when to rest. I think I'm getting a little better at balance as I age,
but I still find myself constantly adjusting my schedule, choices, or
priorities to regain good balance. In fact, earlier in my life when I had
surgeries it became a time to rebalance life, a gift. At first no one
expected much of you when you were recovering, so you could gradually add
things back as you were able and prioritize.

I also am reminding myself that in middle age I am finding out what
conditions I am going to be living with the rest of my earthly life.
Everyone hopes for good results from surgery, but as bodies age and
conditions develop, we sometimes have to settle for less than we had
hoped. Some abilities may be lost; this is not only realistic thinking
but also challenges us to adapt to limitations that come our way.
Many of you have experienced all these things over and over. I am
reminded of the Apostle Paul and his mysterious "thorn in the flesh" that
is never revealed. He hems and haws over the pros and cons of having this
thorn, but concludes that if it makes Christ known and glorified even
more, he is content to live with it. Let me share this passage with you
from II Corinthians 12, put in plain language by Eugene Peterson's "The
Message" Bible translation: Strength from Weakness . As the chapter
opens, Paul refers to having some kind of vision, something that he could
chose to be boastful about. Let's begin at verse 6: 6If I had a mind to
brag a little, I could probably do it without looking ridiculous, and I'd
still be speaking plain truth all the way. But I'll spare you. I don't
want anyone imagining me as anything other than the fool you'd encounter
if you saw me on the street or heard me talk.

7-10Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn't
get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant
touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down;
what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking
around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and
begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me, My
grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in
your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit
focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case
of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in
stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to
size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take
over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.

As I read this passage again today, I was struck with the words "I didn't
think of it as a gift". Also over the years I have encouraged people to
look for the gifts given in a time of weakness…for when we are at our
lowest, God is already at work and is very close, and we learn things we
couldn't have if it were not for the situation. And when good things
happen despite our handicaps, God's work is evident.

What are the unexpected, unsolicited gifts that have come to you as you
dealt with some thorn in your life? Perhaps a new insight, a new
relationship, a new perspective. ..perhaps a deeper faith and relationship
with God. …perhaps a reordering of priorities…perhaps a sense of gratitude
and appreciation….perhaps the ability to relax the reins of control.
These are all gifts.

Two weeks from today I'll have some sort of surgery on my shoulder. I
wonder what gifts this whole experience will bring, and I thank God for
the gifts of others whose skill will bring healing and hope to my body.
I'll be praying for God's good gifts in your life, too.

Carla Vanatta, Associate in Ministry
Salem Lutheran Church, Sycamore, IL

Salem reminders:

• Blood Drive at Salem this Sat. Feb. 12th, 8 a.m. to Noon, in honor of
those who lost their lives in the NIU shootings 3 years ago
• Special offering at weekend services Feb. 12/13 for Lutheran Campus
Ministry at NIU bringing hope and faith to students and faculty
• Salem Puppet Praise Team skit and songs in Sunday services

Grace Notes, February 1, 2011

Grace Notes February 1, 2011

The blizzard is raging outside my window. The American flag on the pole
across the street is standing straight out…nearly being torn from the
pole. A 10-foot branch of a tree down at the corner is broken, but still
clinging to the tree. As daylight is fading, I will not be able to see if
it falls until tomorrow morning. And won't it be interesting to see just
how deep the snow in the driveway is by morning? A single car passed
several minutes ago. Traffic has mostly stopped in our neighborhood. For a
little while, the normally busy pace of human activity will slow
down…perhaps nearly stop.

This storm was so widely predicted that I half expected it to not happen.
And I would be quite disappointed if it had not come. Certainly, I respect
the danger the blizzard poses. Hazardous travel conditions, power
failures, damage to trees and property. And it's not that I am so eager to
clear the snow off the driveway. I'll be at least a little resentful of
the snow by the time I finish moving it out of the way tomorrow.

But a snow day is a gift. I've always thought so, even as a kid. A break
from the busy schedule of activity that usually occupies us. A free day to
put school or work aside. A time to spend with loved ones. An opportunity
to do some project that you just haven't had time for otherwise. A time
for yourself. And maybe the best part of the gift…no feelings of guilt. It
isn't like playing hooky…no one can get to work or school. It is a
mandatory free time. Is it possibly even a holy time? A time for rest and
renewal? Sabbath?

Thank you, God, for a snow day. Do we have to wait for another "blizzard
of the century" for the next one?

Ron Vanatta

Coming at Salem: This Sunday, Feb 6: Scout recognition, Installation of
council members, Souper Bowl of Caring, and Reception of new members (at
the 10:30 service)

First Communion Class for third graders and their parents will meet the
next three Sundays, Feb 6, 13, & 20, at 9:15 in fellowship hall.

Blood Drive at Salem Saturday, Feb 12, from 8:00 to noon, and special
offering for Lutheran Campus Ministry received at worship services Feb 12
and 13. A gift of life in honor of those who lost their lives in the
campus shooting.