David Bahn – Reflections

Light from the Word and through the lens

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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.”

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  • Remembering God’s Smaller Gifts

    The Good News of Jesus is that he died for our sins and rose from the grave for our salvation. There is much to this; much more than those few words might imply. But too often we forget the ongoing, present day work of Christ. We don’t even ask, “What have you done for me…

  • Owning our Slowness

    There comes a time when we must simply take ownership of our slowness to believe. While it is true that faith itself is a gift of the Holy Spirit, even those who have the gift of faith too often ignore the implications of it. We who have heard the Good News, seen God’s mighty hand,…

  • What’s wrong with a sign?

    Write it in the sky! Show me for sure that you exist. Prove that you can what you say you can do. Show me the money! What is wrong with these demands? Why does Jesus refuse to give the doubters of his day a sign? The photo isn’t much to look at. The crucifix isn’t…

  • A Mighty Fortress

    One thing impressed me on our tour of the Luther sites in Germany. We visited Augsburg and the site at which the Augsburg Confession was presented to the Emperor. We visited Worms where Luther said, “Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me.” We saw the Wartburg Castle where Luther translated the New…

  • A Whole-life Calling

    When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Repent” (Mt 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance. This is the first of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses which he posted on the Castle Church door in Wittenburg, Germany on October 31, 1517. This signaled the start of the Protestant Reformation…

  • Whoever Calls on the Name of the Lord

    I think it is a good thing that the churches were filled with people the week after 9/11. I think it is not so good that they were “back to normal” by two or three weeks. Romans 10:13 says, “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Indeed faith alone…

  • Stubborn or Faithful?

    Yesterday we visited the Reformation Memorial in Worms, Germany. This is where Luther said, “Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.” Behind Luther on this monument stand two important Protestant scholars, Johannes Reuchlin (a Hebrew scholar) and Philipp Melanchthon (a Greek scholar and Luther’s companion and helper during the reformation). Our…

  • Good Company

    They say you are known by the company you keep. But you can also be known by the company you join. The Canaanite woman is in good company: a group of mothers and their children, a woman seeking justice, and any other number of people who have been told, “Don’t bother Jesus with your problems.”…

  • Crumby Faith

    “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the master’s table.” Somehow this sentence convinces Jesus that this Canaanite woman has extraordinary faith. I say it’s “crumby” faith not “crummy” faith. There’s a big difference. Crummy faith is one thing: poor and pathetic, weak and ineffectual. Crumby faith is quite another. The Canaanite woman…

  • Why do you thank God?

    It’s a beautiful morning here in Myrtle Beach. We have a room with a balcony overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The Pastors and Spouses retreat has begun with some insightful teaching by our leaders. The day before us promises more blessings of these sorts. Biblical commentators have offered various explanations and insights about this encounter between…