David Bahn – Reflections

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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.”

Sabbath

John 15:5

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Sabbath might well be thought of as priming the pump for life as a disciple of Jesus.
Sabbath might well be thought of as priming the pump for life as a disciple of Jesus.

When I was a boy in Sunday school, we would talk about whether it was right to go fishing on Sunday. The clear implication was: no. Strictly speaking it was “legal” but not wise – with a strong emphasis on the “not wise” part. The implication is that we would be in church and Sunday school, and resting. But there are at least two more aspects to sabbath that are vital to understanding and embracing sabbath. Perhaps there are more; but these two seem important to me.

First and foremost sabbath has to do with abiding with Jesus, leaning into him deeply, embracing him by faith. It has to do with being intentional about our relationship with Jesus in repentance and faith. I am quite interested in learning what it means to abide in Jesus. On the one hand it is simple and clear: it has to with praying, reading and reflecting on his word, and trusting in him in life and salvation. On the other hand, I suspect that there is much more to abiding with Jesus: simple but not easy; elegant but not complex.

Second – and perhaps just as important – the purpose  and goal of sabbath/abiding is in anticipation of future fruitfulness. Just as the vine remains dormant for a time before putting forth its buds and then the clusters of grapes, so our abiding is in preparation for buds and then clusters of fruitfulness in our lives as God’s people. There is an intentional purposefulness in our abiding. We abide so that we may be fruitful.

The rather common approach to sabbath is to think of it as the rest at the end of a long run. To some extent this is so, but on the other hand, a fuller embrace of sabbath would be to abide with Jesus with the intentional anticipation of what lies ahead in the week to come. We would gather for worship, and a time of reflection, rest and re-creation so that in the coming week we would be better fit to live as disciples of Jesus.

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