This Sunday marks another year that we gather for worship and hear the Word centered around a scripture and a THEME that will guide us for the year.
This last Summer I was at the ELCA’s Rostered Ministers Gathering here in Phoenix, when I was sitting in a workshop with a group of other leaders. A few rows ahead of me someone was sitting and listening to the presenter, and I couldn’t help but read the back of their shirt. It was a quote from the end of Luke’s gospel:
32 They said to each other, “Weren’t our hearts on fire when he spoke to us along the road and when he explained the scriptures for us?” Luke 24:32
I can’t explain it other than the Spirit was speaking to me in that moment because I could not take my eyes off this scripture. Just like you, I have heard this scripture many times before. I love the story of the road to Emmaus. Two men disappointed at what has happened to Jesus on the cross, they haven’t heard the good news that Jesus has risen yet, and then in this walk they encounter the risen Jesus! What’s not to love about this story?
However, that verse kept speaking to me in a way that it hadn’t before. As I was thinking about why this verse was influencing me so much and what I should do about it, it came to me rather quickly that this was something that I needed to talk about with our congregation. What better way to talk about a verse like this and the impact it had on me and has on all of us than to present it as the scripture focus for us for 2024.
I hope that you can join us for worship this Sunday as we take a look at the story of the Road to Emmaus. It is a powerful story in so many ways and my prayer is that even if this focus of this story isn’t new, that it does empower us to continue to boldly live out the Gospel and share the good news that has been given to us.
I also have a gift for each of you that has gone with each Annual Theme. I hope that it becomes a tangible reminder of what we talk about and what Jesus does for those two men and for us as we live out our faith each and every day we have been blessed to be here on this earth.
I look forward to journeying with each of you as we explore this scripture and our 2024 Annual Theme: Hearts on Fire.
Blessings,
Pastor Brian
