Yesterday, the Epistle was on Ephesians 5:22-33. This is a familiar passage to many who have gone through pre-marital counseling and perhaps even marriage counseling or marriage retreats.

22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she rrespects her husband.

I have a confession to make--I have been derelict in my duty as husband for 14 years. I have not been there to defend my wife when members of my family have insulted or attacked her character. As a husband, I am supposed to love my wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her. I am supposed to sacrifice myself for her no matter what. When I vowed before God and witnesses that I took her for my wife, I was promising to do just that as I said that I would forsake all others for her.

Only recently have I realized just how much I have truly broken this promise. I have sinned against my wife by not forsaking all others and giving myself up for her. I am now doing as I should have been doing all along. I have no excuse for my behavior. I have been a coward throughout much of my adult life. I like to debate things, but when I am confronted with my own faults, I have found it easier to let my wife or someone else take the blame for my actions.

Now don't let take this next part as my excuse because I have absolutely no excuse for my lack of Christian love towards my wife. I was born with a congenital hypothyroidism. The doctors who originally diagnosed me informed my parents that I would be a cretin because I lacked the iodine-containing hormones which regulate growth and brain function. To read more about this defect go to: http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition=congenitalhypothyroidism. I was born in 1961 and this research was a new thing in medicine. I was six weeks old when I became very sick and my parents took me to several doctors before discovering what my problem was.

It was discovered and treated, but the doctors were skeptical that I would be able to function as a normal human being and that I would find life a continuous challenge. They watched me for three years and determined that I would be normal though I would be a late bloomer in many things. I believe that because of this, my parents did as all parents do when they have "special needs" children, they sheltered me as much as possible. Sheltering a child from harm is a natural reaction for parents with special needs children. One of my nephews has downs syndrome and I know that my sister and her husband do all they can to give him as normal a life as the boy can have, but at the same time they protect him from as much harm as this world can deliver.

My parents sheltered me as well, though I am not mentally challenged. This sheltering has a negative effect in the later years of their growth because it often prohibits the child from being able to fend for himself in social situations. I look back at my childhood and see myself depending way too heavily on my parents to pick me up when I fell. Because of this I never truly took responsibility for the things I did which were harmful because I knew that I could look to my parents to bail me out (kind of like the government with the banks this past year). When my father died, I looked to my Grandfather for the financial bailouts. As I said, I don't consider this an excuse for my behavior over the past 14 years but it helps explain to some degree why I developed certain behaviors in life.

This has become a problem in my marriage because I transferred the behavior of looking to my wife to bail me out of the financial mess I put us into. The other problem I had was that I trusted (wrongly I might add) that I had a safety net beneath me and that after each time my Grandfather bailed us out, I went right back to my previous behavior of spending money foolishly and getting back into debt.

My wife has always been there for me, but I have not been there for her. She has defended me to my own family and to her family. I have not defended her to anyone including last year on vicarage when my vicarage supervisor got 2 inches away from my wife's face to tell her that leaving before the benediction is an affront to God. The truth of the matter was it was an affront to him. I do not believe for one moment that leaving before the benediction offends God. God loves us and sent his son to die for us. Just because someone doesn't hear the benediction doesn't mean that it doesn't cover them. But then my supervisor told her she was overmedicating her children (she left because the ADD meds had worn off and the kids were becoming unruly). He was literally acting like a child in his argument as he stood there spitting while he shouted and then responding to her responses like an arrogant child saying with attitude, "I'm sorry you feel that way."

I was right there watching this whole episode and never butted in to say a word. Had I to live that over again, I would have gladly sacrificed my vicarage for the honor of my wife, but that is neither here nor there as I don't have that opportunity again and it is pointless to focus on it.

I am now finally getting it and realizing my lack of responsibility in my relationship with her. I hope that we can build a proper relationship with her and that the next 14 years don't mirror the first but are instead a reflection of God's work in our relationship. I love Kelly and my daugters J and P. With the help of God, I am and will continue to love them as I should forsaking all others for their protection. Christ is the head of the church and I am the head of this house. I have been given the responsibility of husband and father. I am the steward of my household and answer only to them and God.

If you are a parent with a child who has congenital hypothyroidism, don't shelter them from responsibility they need to take in their lives so that they can face those challenges that come upon them with integrity.

I will continue to write here about these things that I am being challenged with of late including school when it begins in two weeks.

I ask my Lord and God to grant me forgiveness for the the cowardice and for not owning up to my responsibility until now. He is merciful to forgive and to help me live as a faithful man in Christ.

One lesson I am learning in my middle age that I never learned before is how to stand up for myself. In doing so, I am also learning to defend others. Even though I am at the seminary for becoming a Pastor, I am constantly learning how self-centered I have become in my life. There is no one to blame except myself for what I have become. I can't blame my parents (which would put me on Oprah) and I can't blame God because he has given me through the Holy Spirit everything I need to combat this sinful nature.

The first thing I am learning is that I am an adult who needs not to justify his actions with anyone else. It was recently pointed out to me by someone I deeply respect that I carry myself in a defensive nature. The way I sit at the table and the way that I respond when when someone asks me about something I said I would do or that needs to be done is defensive. I give an excuse for just about everthing I do. I started thinking, "Why do I do this?" Why do I feel that I have to justify myself for everything?

I used to and still do on occasion, tell someone in my family what I bought at a store, why I bought it and how much it cost. Why do I feel the need to do this? I don't owe anyone an explanation.

There are a lot of behaviors that I am working to change in my life. Behaviors that have been detrimental in my closest relationships. I know that they may take years to see them play out the way that I want them to, but I am doing them nonetheless. I am stopping this language my father-in-law calls "procrastinative" I have said, "I am going to do xyz" now I am working at saying, "I am doing xyz" or "I need to clean the garage." to "I am cleaning the garage."

I need to be more considerate of my partner by trying to be a better partner myself. So for now I ask that everyone please be patient with me because God isn't finished with me yet. I need your prayers that God will work with me to change those things which are necessary to making me be less self-centered and more Christ-centered.

I will keep you posted on God's success at helping me change my ways and life.

Scott Strohkirch

Well the ELCA has finally broken that barrier into allowing Gay relationships (if they are chaste). Today they vote on allowing Gay clergy to be called to a church. The ELCA has been playing with this for the past eight years since Bishop Hanson took office. They have been a united synod since 1988 which is 21 years, but the history of the three groups which formed this synod have always been on the liberal end of the spectrum. One of the groups the AELC was the product of the Seminex walkout in 1974. From 1969, when J.A.O Preus became the president of the LCMS and had the Seminary in St. Louis investigated on reports of professors teaching higher/historical critical methods rather than the historical grammatical methods taught by the LCMS from the beginning.

This investigation proved these things true and within 5 years, all but 5 professors walked out along with a good sized portion of the student body who supported them. They developed the Seminary in Exile a.k.a. Seminex and held classes at another College campus in St. Louis. They eventually became the AELC and later joined the ALC and LCA in forming the largest synod in American Lutheranism.

The ALC and LCA had allowed women to become Pastors in the 1960s so when the ELCA was founded in 1988, this was an automatic allowance. As the past couple of decades have passed, the GLBT has pressed for Gay rights in America citing equality especially towards getting health insurance for their significant others. The ELCA has with each passing convention, gotten closer and closer to opening up for the Gay community what it already had for women.

They all cite that Jesus would be accepting of them because he loves all those for whom he died. Historical Critical theology looks as scripture differently than Historical grammatical. They see things only in terms of history and what is valid now versus what was not valid back in Jesus time. 'surely Jesus would accept them if they are chaste.' Jesus is God. God does not change, nor has he ever. His word tells us as much.

Do I hate homosexuals? NO! They are my neighbor and I am told to love them as myself and God, but I do not have to love their sin. Homosexuality is a sin and it is punishable by the same punishment as other sins. It deserves death just as much as adultery, or murder, or stealing, or bearing false witness, or taking God's name in vain or putting other gods above the one true God. God wants for us to repent of our sins, not keep doing them.

The example I love is the one where the Pharisees took a woman caught in adultery to Jesus. We all know that he told those who have not sinned to cast the first stone and when they heard it they dropped their rocks and left. Jesus went to the woman and asked where those who were accusing her were. She noticed that all of them had left. Jesus then said to her, "Then neither do I condemn you, GO AND SIN NO MORE!"

I sometimes wonder if the ELCA stops their reading before Jesus says those last five words. This woman could have been a lesbian. His message would still have been the same.

God's message in scripture to his people has always been one of repentance. He sent his prophets in the Old Testament including John the Baptist to tell the people that the time of repentance is at hand because the Messiah would come soon.

The ELCA doesn't want to condemn sin, they want to foster it and therefore they have become a defective arm of the church. The Episcopalians, with whom the ELCA joined in 2001 in the Call to Common Mission, is already heading towards a split with their more conservative brothers and sisters in that denomination. They approved of a bishop, Eugene Robinson, who is actively gay in 2003.

This will forever certify that the LCMS will not be joining the ELCA in any joint effort to unify Lutherans in America.

I will continue to pray that the ELCA will realize their mistakes and reverse their actions.

Vacation time is a good time of rest, but there are still stresses you can't get away from in this life even by taking a vacation. My wife and I are in a real mess. We went on vicarage last year and leased the house we bought when first we came to Seminary. We rented it at mortgage cost to a woman who we trusted because she was a Christian single mother with 3 children. We had hoped she would purchase the house from us at the end of the year. The problem she had was she didn't have good credit and was having difficulty securing a mortgage loan. She told us that she still wanted to purchase, but she would have to wait until January to get the loan secured.

We came back to Fort Wayne and found an apartment and signed a lease. We were in the process of creating an extended lease and decided that since she hadn't purchased from us at the end of the year that we should bump up the rent to cover our renters insurance on our apartment. In doing this we found that she could not bear the burden of an extra $25. We also wanted to put the house up for sale as a technicality. We still wanted to help her obtain a mortgage loan and were willing to help her get it, but she decided 4 days before the lease was up that she was going to move out of the house that month. She was violating the agreement of the first lease which was now a month to month lease. The lease agreement stipulates that a 60 day notice is required and rent is to be paid. She wants us to apply her security deposit as her rent.

Being naive about the laws in this regard, we agreed verbally. Finding out later, we should not have done this as that amount is to be applied toward any damages that may have occured during her lease period. So we are stuck with paying our mortgage and the rent for both places until the house sells. To say we are now financially strapped is a major understatement. We are financially devastated at this point. I am considering asking for an advance on some money from my Grandfather, but that is only for consideration at this point.

When you have financial stresses it is difficult to leave them behind because creditors don't wait for payment. This is time to put the give it to God and let him take the burden for what is going on. It is hard for us to give things like this to God. What does he care about our finances and debt? He cares a great deal actually. We get into financial messes because of our sinful nature. We spend it on things we don't need, but want. Giving this and other burdens to the Lord is what he wants us to do.

If you have burdens such as these, give them to the lord in prayer.

May your day be peaceful in Him

Vacation from the Vocation is important. The time away from the office of ministry is crucial to the mental and physical health of the Pastor. He needs time with his family to keep a connection with them as well as a break from the constant burden the office puts on him. The stress of the work can be debilitating healthwise as well. A Pastor friend of mine contracted Multiple Sclerosis during the first couple of months of his second call. Some problems in the congregation began to escalate the MS and caused him to have to step back to 50% of his workload and take disability pay. MS is a disease in which stress can escalate the symptoms.

I pray that all Pastors take advantage of the time they are given each year to get away from it all and recharge their batteries. Jesus would often go off by himself to pray especially after teaching large crowds of people. His humanity experienced fatigue and he needed the time alone to meditate on His Father's word.

If rest is good for Jesus, it is also good for those whom he has called to do his work.

This is my final year of Seminary Studies. I have just finished my vicarage in Tullahoma, TN. The people in my vicarage were great to be with. They always gave me encouragement and made me feel as if this was the right vocation for me. Vicarage is a year of practical learning in the ministry and if you are a Pastor reading this you know the experience well. For me, Vicarage gave me experience with Sermons, leading worship, visiting the sick and shut-ins. I delivered some 30 sermons in my year, some were good and some were stinkers. I got to know many of the people fairly well by visiting with them in their homes.

We have now moved back to Fort Wayne, IN. It is summer and we are preparing for our vacations to Minnesota and Texas to see family and friends.

I will post again as things cross my mind.

God's blessings on your Summer
Scott Strohkirch

Losing sight of ones goal is a scary thing. I have recently realized that it had happened to me (last night). I made assumptions that were wrong and found myself ill-prepared to lead the few congregants which had gathered for the Ascension day service. To top it off I forgot to put on my cincture rope for my Alb. I was a mess and my appearance showed it. I rushed everything in the beginning and my prayer was a rambling off the top of my head.

All of this happened because I got caught up with the idea that this is a job and not a ministry. I have seemingly battled this all year long and it came to a culmination last night. I have in my head blamed everyone but myself for why things have gone wrong lately. I certainly wouldn't blame my vicarage supervisor for failing me at this point. He certainly would be justified in believing from my actions of late that I was not Pastor material. I have been praying in my head mostly that God would help me to recapture in the last month what I have lost over the past 11.

I love to serve the Lord, but Satan has done a good job of distracting me from my goal and that is to serve the Lord with joy and gladness. It is a "get to" not a "have to"

From here on to the last day of my vicarage, I will serve this congregation to the best of my ability with the help of God. They deserve the best and I need to give the best.

O Lord, you are the most important thing in my life. My wife and children with whom you have blessed me are my second priority. Please help me to be the servant you want and need me to be. Help me to see the lost souls who need to hear your word and receive your forgiveness of sin. Forgive me for my selfish ways O Lord and restore me to the joy of your salvation.
In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen