One of my great delights in this call as president is getting to say thank you. Last weekend, the Luther Seminary board of directors and board of trustees gathered to discuss multiple strategic priorities. I am filled with a deep sense of gratitude for their collective stewardship of our mission and their commitment to our vision of being a catalyst in God’s transforming work for the world.
I was also humbled and delighted to listen as one of our seniors—and soon-to-be pastor—Dan Hanson lead the boards’ Saturday morning devotion. His gifts for leadership represent so well the impact our graduates will make as we send them into new adventures in ministry. As we look to Commencement on May 21, please keep Dan and his peers in your prayers. As you’ll see by Dan’s devotion, he’s already making an impact in ministry.
Psalm 107:1-16
Among my favorite classes this semester has been my Psalms class with Rolf Jacobson. Over the past semester, I’ve fallen in love with the ancient Israelites’ prayer book. In class, we’ve explored the depth of human voices in the psalter, from lament to praise, from prayers of help to songs of trust. Rather recently we explored psalms of thanksgiving. Today’s psalm fits in such a category. I was surprised to learn that psalms of thanksgiving functioned not only to show gratitude to God, but also to witness to God’s action. In giving thanks to the Lord, the psalmist tells the story of God’s redeeming work. In our reading for today, our psalmist gives thanks to God for delivering a people lost in the wilderness, for feeding their hungry stomachs and souls. The psalmist also thanks God for releasing a people in bondage. The writer gives witness to a God who breaks the bonds of slavery and shatters the iron bars of the prison.
The psalms of thanksgiving have especially caught my attention, as one of my jobs on campus is, quite literally, to say thank you. During my three years on campus, I have worked in the seminary relations office, where I call donors to thank them for their financial gifts to Luther Seminary. One might wonder why someone who used to get anxious ordering a pizza over the phone would apply for a job which consists entirely of talking to strangers on the phone. I don’t know either … maybe God does have a sense humor. Three years later I can say I’ve made my fair share of thank-you calls. Perhaps I’ve had the pleasure of talking to you?
Among my favorite parts of this job is asking donors how they’ve become connected to Luther Seminary and why it is they choose to give freely of their money. Hear their witness about how Luther Seminary has impacted their lives and why they give:
“Well, I’m Lutheran!”
“I had a parent who went to the seminary.”
“I start each day with the God Pause email and really appreciate it as a daily devotion.”
“I’ve taken a class at the Lay School.”
“I heard about your communion bread recipe, found it online, and now use it to bake bread for my church in Washington, D.C. And I did a webinar recently and am looking for more online learning opportunities.”
“I’m a Catholic, Presbyterian, Episcopal or Methodist pastor/priest, and I use Working Preacher every week to prepare for my sermon.”
“My pastor went to Luther Seminary, and we just love them!”
Some donors have formed close connections to students:
“I’ve heard how much debt seminary students have, and I want to do something about it.”
“We’ve had interns at my church for years, and they add so much life to the congregation!”
“I think it’s really important to raise new leaders in the church.”
Personally, the most meaningful conversations I have are with alums. I ask them where they started out in their first calls, and about subsequent calls, hearing the stories of how God has used them to serve communities as missionaries, counselors, bishops, youth ministers, professors and pastors—the list goes on. Some of these alums are just beginning their vocational journey. Others are long retired, having served the church for decades. One preacher in his late 80s wondered aloud to me whether it was finally time to slow down and stop preaching. He and I both knew that wasn’t going to happen.
I’ve called alums serving in North Pole, Alaska to Naples, Fla. Luther Seminary graduates span the country and the world. Sometimes donors’ stories are short. Other times they are long. But after three years of hearing witnesses, thousands of witnesses from donors, it is both overwhelming and unfathomable to hear how God has been at work through Luther Seminary, impacting countless lives.
God’s work through Luther Seminary continues today. I pray my own life, and those of my classmates, will add to this narrative and be witnesses to God’s redeeming work in the world. As a senior with one week of classes to go, I am eagerly excited to serve God’s church. On graduation day, a congregation in Northeast Iowa will be voting to call me as their pastor, and a new journey on my road of faith and vocation will hopefully begin. As I look back at my time at Luther, I am overwhelmed by the commitment that donors, staff, faculty, the administration and board members have for this place. Thank you for your hard work, which has made my education and formation possible! Because of my experience, I am prepared to serve to God’s church. For God’s work through you all, and countless others I will never meet, I say, “Thanks be to God!” Amen.