Jun 19, 2020
Our extended family and friends in Finland and Sweden are preparing for midsummer festivities next week. Hopefully, everyone is well and able to celebrate some. When we were there (2016) we joined with the Hissa’s for worship on Saint Juhannus Day (St. John the Baptist) in the old stone church in Isokyra, Finland, a tradition held for many years. I treasured those hours and days spent together learning more of my father’s family, heritage and place of birth. I grieved learning of the massacres of Finns in their community by the Russians. I was impressed by the resilience of the Finns in the Winter War of 1939.
We tend to carry a lot of shame over the tragic things that happened in our past. It need not be. God give us grace and courage to stand and say “I am not ashamed.” St. Paul wrote this in his letter to the Romans. He went through many beatings, stoning, imprisonments and finally went to Rome where he was executed for his faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Still his words have driven many believers:
Martin Luther, a Roman Catholic monk and professor of theology in the 16th century, tried very hard to please God by keeping all the commandments and traditions of the church. He could never do it. He discovered how the Bible says that man is not saved from the wrath of God by doing good works but by believing and receiving the goodness of the Lord Jesus who died for our sins on the cross.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA, By Sneecs, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6581942
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