David Bahn – Reflections

Light from the Word and through the lens

recent posts

about

In 1968 Jerry Snell opened a door in the hallway outside our first hour chemistry class. He invited me into what I discovered was a darkroom. Soon I was on the school newspaper and annual staff as a photographer. Later I learned that Jerry was a Lutheran who was planning to become a pastor. A few years later I was not only a Lutheran, but I was heading off to seminary to become a Lutheran pastor, too. Jerry followed a year later and served as a pastor in Missouri until his untimely heart attack and death. I thank God for Jerry and enjoy photography still today – not to mention rejoicing in having served as a Lutheran pastor in congregations in Utah, Colorado, Arkansas and Texas. I’ve retired now and serve part time as a Congregational Support Specialist for the Texas District of the LCMS. I also provide coaching and leadership training through various PLI cohorts and with individual congregations and organizations. David Bahn is a follower of Jesus Christ, husband to Diane, father and grandfather. He is an avid amateur photographer. His photo website is “Flowers by God Photos by David” He also publishes a devotional blog DavidBahn-Reflections.com. He and Diane live in Cypress Texas and enjoy visiting their grandchildren who live in the United States and Germany. He graduated from Concordia Theological Seminary in 1979, and earned a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in 1991. Diane, his wife, is now retired from PLI (PLIleadership.org). They have offered presentations on Marriage and Ministry Partnership, Leadership, Changing Your Congregation’s Culture, and Missional Living. They look are working with PLI International training pastors and wives of the ELVD Diocese of the Lutheran Church of Tanzania. David’s personal mission statement is “Leading people to realize Jesus’ calling and plans for their lives.”

Home!

Ephesians 2:19-22

19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Panoramic View of Jerusalem
This panoramic view of Jerusalem shows the Old City, with the imposing Dome of the Rock mosque on the Temple Mount. The Western (wailing) Wall of the Temple Mount is opposite side of the Temple Mount – this being taken from the east with the morning sun bathing the city. There are many tombs and several cemeteries on the western side of the Kidron Valley which runs through the foreground of this photo. The Garden of Gethsemane, and mount of Olives is also on this side of the Kidron Valley. (Click on photo for full size image.)

We just returned from a trip to Israel. It was wonderful, inspring, enlightening – an enriching experience! High on the list of blessings during our trip was our guide. A messianic Jew, Yehuda gave impassioned expression to the desire for Jerusalem to be prosperous, for Israel to be a strong state, and for the Jewish people to flourish, coming to Yeshua (Jesus) in repentance and faith. It seems as though we gentile Christians don’t really know how to treat our Jewish believers – much the same way the Jewish believers didn’t know how to treat the new gentile converts in the early days of the Christian church (cf. Acts 15)!

Having arrived home, however, I have gained a new and deeper perspective for the blessings of having a home; a place to come to. And I can certainly understand the Jewish desire for a safe and secure homeland. They take that quite seriously, by the way, as was evidenced by the security process at the airport in Tel Aviv as we left. It’s clear to me that they profile people, and they were also quite thorough in questioning me as the group leader (there were 15 of us) as to our activities, origins, and interactions before and during our trip.

Having said all that, it is good to remember that we have a home with God. It is an eternal, heavenly home. It is our true home. And it was made possible by Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and grace. We are being built into a holy temple in the Lord as a dwelling place for the Spirit. We may fret about the fact that the Dome of the Rock – the third most holy sites of Islam – sits on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem; its golden-domed splendor stealing the thunder and glory from the many Christian churches and Jewish synagogues also in that city. We may not understand the total Jewish rejection of a Palestinian state. We may not know how to relate with the Jewish believers in Jesus. But we can rejoice in our mutual – Jew and Gentile – place in the Kingdom of God. And we can remember that we are citizens of heaven, and we will not be home until we are at rest in Him.

Discover more from David Bahn – Reflections

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Posted in

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.