Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States - Lutheran Seminary's God Pause "Moved by the Promise" for Thursday, 30 October 2014 - Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13

Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States - Lutheran Seminary's God Pause "Moved by the Promise" for Thursday, 30 October 2014 - Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:9-12 You remember us in those days, friends, working our fingers to the bone, up half the night, moonlighting so you wouldn’t have the burden of supporting us while we proclaimed God’s Message to you. You saw with your own eyes how discreet and courteous we were among you, with keen sensitivity to you as fellow believers. And God knows we weren’t freeloaders! You experienced it all firsthand. With each of you we were like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step-by-step how to live well before God, who called us into his own kingdom, into this delightful life.
13 And now we look back on all this and thank God, an artesian well of thanks! When you got the Message of God we preached, you didn’t pass it off as just one more human opinion, but you took it to heart as God’s true word to you, which it is, God himself at work in you believers!(The Message)
As you know, we dealt with each of you like a father with his children, urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God.
The first week that I arrived as a freshman at Augsburg College I found a note in my mailbox: "Please come to the office of President Christensen." "This is not a good start," I thought. "Maybe he was told that I had refused to wear a beanie and bow to a sophomore."
"Thank you for coming in, Hubert. I have had my eye on you for two years and wanted to meet you. I have looked at your scores and I want you to know that I will have my eye on you these next four years. Please feel free to call me if you have any questions."
I couldn't imagine who his spies were, but I did experience that he was one of my encouragers, both in college and in seminary. Later he would even drive out to Minot, N.D., to see how my solo internship was going at Zion Lutheran.
Dr. Christensen was one of many people who have had and continue to have my back as a child of God. Most of the time the relationship is a mystery. I don't know why I have these cheerleaders and people who encourage and pray for me. Paul might have surprised a number of people who read his letter assigned for today, when he spoke of how he loved them and pulled for them like a parent. But during this All Saints week we are reminded that we confess that we believe in "the communion of saints." We should, therefore, be ready for surprises from this communion of people who are pulling for us like parents of dear siblings.
Lord of the communion of saints, thank you for so many people who surround us like family. Amen.
Hub Nelson
Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, 
Edina, Minn. (Retired) 
Master of Divinity , 1962
1 Thessalonians 2:9 You remember our labor and toil, brothers and sisters; we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.
10 You are witnesses, and God also, how pure, upright, and blameless our conduct was toward you believers.
11 As you know, we dealt with each one of you like a father with his children,
12 urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.
13 We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God's word, which is also at work in you believers.(The New Revised Standard Version)
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