Shepherd Of The Desert Podcast

Our journey with Isaiah takes a big turn - we’ve learned his language, we’ve heard his law, and now we explore the great promises found in his prophecies. “Zion,” or “Jerusalem” plays a central role in the covenant God has with his people, and for good reason!

This week we see the struggle of a humanity caught up in corruption and brokenness in the words of Isaiah. The prophet needed to be honest with the people about what he saw - people lost in the worship of creation, having totally lost the reverence and relationship they had with The Creator! Surprisingly, the struggle continues even for us…

We're kicking off our "Cast of Characters" series for the first part of 2023 with the prophet Isaiah. One of the major ancient prophets with some of the heaviest messages and most beautiful revelations of God's grace, stepping into this Old Testament book can be intimidating. We'll take those steps together, though, and discover a messenger who is maybe a little more like us than we thought. 

Join Pastor John for a special message this Christmas Eve

This time of year always has us thinking about greetings - seasons greetings, if you will! “Happy Holidays,” or “Merry Christmas,” followed by a “Happy New Year!” In worship we will be hearing about a greeting to an early church congregation - what did those words mean? How did they impact the people they were written toward? How might they have a message for us, today? Come to worship as we dig into the greetings we use each day!

Advent 2022 brings with it significant weeks in the month before Christmas - Baptism Sunday last week, this Sunday the welcoming of New Members gathered into our family over the last year. What a joy to embrace the life of waiting that Jesus calls us to as we expect His soon return! Join us for church on Sunday as we hear the words of Jesus in what the life of expectation looks like: gathering with each other, listening to His words, receiving His gifts!

Well, it’s Advent and we're headed to Christmas! Before we get there, though, we've got Baptism Sunday happening this weekend! This second week of Advent is a time to remember how John the Baptist called on people to return to God, and we are going to celebrate and welcome those receiving God’s grace in the waters of Baptism on both campuses! Join us this weekend as we welcome seven people into the family of God.

As we leave Thanksgiving and the month of celebrating it behind, we turn our eyes to the joy of Christmas. Our greatest Thanksgiving happens in December, not November. Jesus Christ, the intentional sacrificial and joyful savior of the world arrives in "mean estate." Shepherd, let’s go there.

November is for Thanksgiving and this weekend the joy of saying “Thank you” stands front and center.  To get there, we go to Calvary and listen to all the weeping and wailing happening around Christ’s cross.  In the midst of it all, Jesus said with relief in his voice and hope in his heart, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”  Thank God, for heavenly hope and for eternal joy in Jesus.

Gratitude has a way of opening our hearts to generosity that transforms. Just as God generously works on our hearts and lives to make us more like him, so our generosity has the potential to make an impact! This week in church we explore what it means to give sacrificially - in such a way that our sacrifice is used by God for His purposes!

Often, the first Sunday of November celebrates saints of two different kinds.  First, All Saints' Day offers us the opportunity to reflect on Christians who have received their heavenly reward in the past year.  We say, "Thank you, God!" for your faithfulness to them in this life and their faithfulness which provided an example to many of us.  Second, this Sunday we say thank you to saints of a different kind.  Veteran's Day is Friday, November 11, and we anticipate that national recognition in worship this November 6 weekend.  Technically, a "saint" is simply one who has been "set apart."  As Americans we say, "Thank you, God" for those who have served in our armed forces and shone a beacon of liberty throughout the world during their service.  This is going to be a great weekend.

This weekend we welcome eight confirmation students into our church and into The Church! These young people will be sharing their testimonies and boldly proclaiming the truth of the Gospel, and we will be extending a hand of encouragement and support for their lives of faith. 

Confirmation is coming up – which means we should ask the question, “Are we ready for this?” Come to church this week as we explore what it means that confirmation is not a finish line, but a starting point for a faith being formed each day after. The joy of being part of a worshiping community, the work of God in our hearts. While we prepare to confirm some young new members on October 30th, we are reminded on the 23rd of the ongoing confirmation happening in each of us even now.

Every Christian knows we should pray. And every Christian probably also knows we should be praying more. But sometimes we don’t really have clarity on how we should pray or what we should pray for. This weekend we are going to zero in directly on what Jesus says about those two specific pieces of prayer - and our hearts will be blessed with a bright and beautiful picture of conversation with Him! 

The familiarity of church traditions can sometimes cause a loss of just how powerful these age-old practices really are. This week we take a close look at The Lord’s Supper, through the lens of a familiar miracle in Jesus’ ministry, to better grasp the face-to-face reality with a Savior who meets us as outsiders on our way. Do you ever wonder why communion is so important to us at Shepherd?

Have you ever felt like church is the place where you walk in, hear “you’re bad but God loves you” and you walk out until next time? This week we are digging into the gift and opportunity God gives us to draw close to him and trust him with our problems and pains. God desires intimacy with you, as a dear Father rather than a distant judge. As we tackle the conversation around “confession” this week, come ready to hear how even our troubles are part of how God wants our whole selves.

What is baptism?  Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God's command and combined with God's word.  (from The Small Catechism of Martin Luther)What does baptizing with water indicate?  It indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sin and evil desires, and that a new person should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.  (from The Small Catechism of Martin Luther)

This week we continue our walk through the foundational anchors of our faith - and focus on the Apostle’s Creed. This short summary of our Christian beliefs carries deep implications in life. It can be a source of great encouragement, a strong reminder in the face of doubts, and a rallying point in moments of weakness. 

What we believe can be an unbelievably divisive conversation.  Not impolite.  Not inconsiderate.  Not antagonistic.  But divisive.  The conviction of the pastoral staff of Shepherd and the Bible itself is this: As many people live in the world, as many convictions and worldviews exist as well.  Whenever you talk to another human being about eternal, spiritual, fundamental matters, you are having a divisive conversation.  With this awareness, in this opening message for our "This We Believe" Fall 2022 worship series, Pastor Scott Seidler steps cautiously into a conversation about right and wrong, good and bad, whether in thought, by words or in behavior.  But always with the confidence that in spite of many shortcomings we worship with joy a God who says, "With me you will always find grace and a warm welcome."

Labor Day Weekend always invites us to consider our callings in life for which we Labor.  This weekend Pastor Scott shares an optimistic and encouraging message to keep us in the game as we labor for those we love and the life we live.