Christmas services :-)

On the 24th of december, I led to services. One in Kvammen and one in Holmedal, a bit later.
The weather was cold, and the sky was clear :-D

I was a bit stressed before I left, because my father had forgot that he had both of the keys to the volvo in one of his jacket. So I was a bit late, but still in good time before the service began. I always try to be in Church an hour before the service begins, but on this day I came 30 minutes before the service started. I had since I was given the responsibility of the Christmas services tried to find a schoolband who could join us and play to us or a choir who could sing with us. But I was told that the local school band was dissolved some years ago, and the two choirs suffered the same fate a year ago :-( The surprise was therefor huge when I met 4 women and 1 man in the chapell, rehursting. They had earlier been members of one of the choirs. They would very much like to sing two songs after the announcements :-D

The service in the Chapell at Kvammen began 13:30, the little village has 400 inhabitants. 170 of them showed up :-D

In my sermon I felt our heavenly father had laid something very serious in my heart. Through many Christmesses, the sermon have very often been a very "childish" presentation of Jesus, a kind of a historical presentation of our Lords entry to earth. In some ways it can be defended, because there are many children attending. But at the same time, there are also many adults there... who might never return to church before next Christmas. One thing I definetly won't do, is to sew "pillows" under peoples arms.

So, in my sermon I talked a lot of the status quo in our Norwegian society, thinking of values and incidents. I talked of relations between friends, of deeds we perhaps weren't to proud of... things we knew are wrong, things that destroys us as mankind and that tears up our society from within... I said that Christmas can be the worst period of the year for many. I compared some elements of how Israel was in the Old Testament and how the world is today. I continued talking a few sentences of the nature of our very creation, a few sentences of the nature of Evil of how it shows itself through the world and I spoke a few sentences of the nature of God who love us. I told of how sin builds a huge barrier between us and him and I told of the reward for sins.

After this foundation I drew in propheties from the old Testament, I read the whole Ies.53... and in the end the coming of Jesus as Christ and redeemer. That is why we celebrate "Jul" in the church. The sollution of our problems; Jesus. And as Jesus said to Nikodemus; you need to be reborn. If you don't believe in Jesus, then you need to be reborn. It doesn't depend on what you do, but what you choose.

The people in the chapell sat there as though something special had happened. It felt as they "sucked" in everything I said, even the childrens.

The whole service lasted around 65 minutes.

Around 3.15 pm the organ player and I headed for Holmedal, in my fathers car. She was great company. We talked about a lot of things, like the development in the Norwegian Church. I told her that I would like to remain in the church, even though they probably kick me out in the future. It happened with the Conservatives in Sweden. The Liberals had a weird parole. They said: "We would like to have an including church, kick the conservatives out". Funny... it doesn't sound so including to me. I do fear something like that might occur in Norway too. My travelcompanion said, that she would also like to stay in the Church as long as there was priest who has his feet on the foundationrock. Then we discussed baptizm, and she approved of my view upon baptizm. As I said, I had company on our way to Holmedal.

We reached Holmedal 3.45 pm... only 15 minutes before service there ought to begin. There were even more people attending here; 223. That is quite good, especially when I know there only lives 400 people in Holmedal. We sang the same Christmas Chorals here as we did in Kvammen. I know that there are many who get in the Christmas mood, just by singing those songs. I am not sure of what their names are in English, but I will name them in Norwegian.

1. Det kimer nå til Julefest.
2. Glade Jol, heilage Jol.
3. Det lyser i stille grender.
4. Eg er så glad kvar jolekveld.
5. Deilig er Jorden.

The last one, used to be one of my favourites, before I was reborn and began a new life as the man I am today; a Christian. But as long as I have been a Christian, and also a priest I have experienced that this Choral often is used in funerals too. I know it origins from Germany, and my dear German Brother Markus, told me that they use this song through the whole year in Germany.

Today, I have a hard time deciding which one is my favourite... but three of my favourites are: "Det hev ei rose sprunge", "Mitt hjarte alltid vankar" and "Eg er så glad kvar jolekveld".

I dislike the word tradition, but there are a very few that I use myself. One of them is to have "Deilig er jorden" as the last Choral in the Christmas service. Why I dislike traditions in general? Because they have destroyed so much in the Church and in the society. The Conservatives, where I put myself, have a lot of traditions and customs. This is something they have had in many centuries, even though they can not be defended in the scriptures, in the bible!! But they just "hush" it down, and say this is something that has been practiced by the church since the beginning... but they have a huge gigantic problem... because even though it has been done like this for many ages; it doesn't make it right!!!

I lean on Christ, the man they call Jesus. I put my trust in him, I don't hide behind treaties or documents written by mankind!! Those peoples or groups who condemn people because they don't follow their interpretations, let themself be condemned. Jesus warns us from from pointing fingers and condemning... and continues by saying; they themself shall be condemned. I compell everyone, in my speeches and sermons, to: "The one thing that counts, are your relationship to Jesus, not to everyone else. It is him you will be facing in the end... not everyone else who might demand you to do what they think and want you to do. Trust Jesus".
As Martin Luther once said in Worms; Here I stand, I can do nothing else.

Back to Holmedal :-) I delivered the same sermon in the service in Holmedal, as I did in Kvammen. In Holmedal I didn't use the place where many priest do their preaching from. I dont know what it is called in English. Instead I often wandered back and forth among the first three or four benches. The word of God is Love, and in my opinion it should be served the same way. In my preparations I often think about the gospel of John, chapter 1 verse 14. The word of God came to mankind. Jesus came to serve, not to be served... Jesus sacrificed himself. I think if people embrace Jesus in Love, and allows him into their heart, then they can be reborn, by getting ridd of their heart of stone and be given a heart of blood and flesh that comes with Jesus. Jesus is the personification of love, not fear!!

During the sermon I could see that people had their eyes fixed upon me. In one situation a little girl, dressed in red skirt came out from the benches and walked few metres toward me. A bit away from me she stopped, and just turned into a huge smile. I wawed my hand to her, and she wawed back before returning to her mother... many sighed and turned into huge smiles also.

The service ended after 1 hour and 5 minutes.

I drove home in the darkness, on the radio they played chorals... Thank Jesus, it had been two great services :-D

A funeral

During this period I will not be employed from one date to another date, like I was during the summer. Instead I will be paid for each funeral and each service I lead. The pay is good. I am lucky :-) Getting paid to do what I would like to do most, share the gospel with the population
:-)

Since last time I wrote, I have been leading a funeral. It was an old woman that lived in the coastline area. She had been through a long life and she probably experienced a lot. I went to one of her sons a couple of days before the funeral. I did this to be close to the family and also to learn more of the deceased. This is something all priests do, or should do, when they get words about someone who left life on earth.

In the conversation we came into the subject: Jesus. The man told me that a "healer" he knew and used, had told him that Jesus (He himself didn't believe in Jesus as Christ) teached us to forgive. He had himself experienced through life that forgiveness was important. I then hold on to the subject, and said it was more about Jesus. One of the things, and the most important thing is that Jesus came to sacrifice himself, so we could be forgiven. His eyes grew big when I said this. He hadn't heard this before... He had experienced too many times that representatives from the church had told him how he should live his life... but the things I said about Jesus he hadn't heard them talk about. After our conversation, he said that he liked more the new priests. I thanked him for his kind words, but I also said that there are many good priests among the older ones too.

Unfortunately... there are many Christians who more than often points fingers instead of telling about Christ. People won't do the things Christ compells us to do, when they don't believe in him. I don't believe in Allah... So I don't try to live as a moslem either. The very name Jesus, is explosive. it tears down walls, and gives liberty to the prisoners, he gives sight to the blind, and helps the persecuted (ask me sometimr of these words and I shall explain them more thorougly).

Being with the son I also gained information I could use in the speech I was going to give about his mother. On the day of the funeral I came to the chapell in good time before the funeral was going to start at 11 am. The deceased had three children, all of them are settled persons, with their own children today. Many came to show her a last respect.

In my sermon I spoke of death, as something scary and unknown... but Christians get to know something about it. I also spoke of how to become a Christian... Jesus Christ.

After 45 minutes in the chapell we went to the burialplace. When we left the chapell it was quiet outside, but as we started the final part a terrible hailstorm came. I have never experienced anything like it in the past. Some of the hails had the sice of small "klinkekuler" (norwegian things. Small round glas-things we used to play with as children). It was so painful... to stand there and perform the last part. The funeral agent said a wall of hails bounced on my forehead. But the moment the coffin was placed in the bottom of the grave, everything stopped... and blue sky appeared. Almost divine :-)

My next work will be two services on Christmas eve, one on the 26th... and two more funerals later. :-D

The background for my work this period and the travel from the far east to the west :-)

12th of December 2008


Through the summer of 2008 I worked and served as a priest for 7 weeks. Two weeks later the leader of my parish, contacted me and asked me If I would like to work through the Christmas too. I personally took this as a sign of trust and also that they were pleased with my performance ... thanks to Jesus :-)

I travelled from Oslo in the sad east around noon, to the beautiful and magnificent west. On the plane I met a very polite and kind man from Vesterålen, in the north of Norway. He was travelling to Brekke, where his girlfriend lives. We talked a lot about the church and the dogmas of the church. There were things he added a questionmark behind, but I got the feeling that he was a man who believed in the allmighty God and his son Jesus. It made me very happy that God gave me the oppertunity to meet this young man, and the questions he raised are more or less the same questions many christians asks themself. We had a good conversation :-)

I get the distinguished feelings of how Christ leads me into discussions, where there are people who are seeking and asking questions. To meet them with the love and as a represant of Jesus, is something Christians should do more of. But there are times when I don't dear to, there are times when I want to do everything else... It is a process. From the day you were born again into the future. Just pray for the Lords wisdom and guidance. He will show us the way, a step now and then.

When I was home in Sogn og Fjordane (aka Eden) I had a couple of days before I began my service. I am through this period leading three services, two on the 24th and one on the 26th.
I will also be responsible for funerals in a huge area, that reaches over 200 kilometres in the west to the east.