I believe every single person I meet has a soul that has been saved by our creator. I believe we as a church and as a community of faith are called to hold this same ideal and embrace all children of God regardless of any diff erences that may divide us. I believe we are all made new in Christ.
One thing I wish the church knew about young adults is it’s not that we don’t want to be religious. In my experience we are actually a very spiritual group. We are just extremely skeptical when told to just accept things at their face value. We are aware of the terrible atrocities that have been committed in the name of religion. What we need is to see that the church isn’t simply a tool to make people look like upstanding citizens, but that it’s actually a mechanism for bringing about change and achieving the love that Jesus promised.
I struggle with separating God from pain and sin. I think it’s easy to look at the world we live in today and see violence and hatred. It’s sometimes hard to fi nd God in this. I must remember to fi nd God in myself and use my resources to change the things that I have the power to change.
Participating in the ELCA webcast on ecumenical witness was an amazing and life-changing experience. It’s easy to silence your voice when you think you’re the only one who is having thoughts like your own. To hear scholars who have exceptionally more authority to talk about these subjects agree with the things I was saying made me think that perhaps these
ideas can make a change. The ecumenical and interreligious work that is being done through this church is absolutely inspiring. It gives me hope that we can continue to have these conversations and, in doing so, we will come to understand, tolerate, accept and love each other just a little bit more.
People are surprised that I am the godparent to a Catholic child. There is a strong belief that Lutherans and Catholics are so opposed that the divide can never be crossed. However, we all have a lot more in common than we might think.
As a student, I stay centered by coming back to prayer when I’m feeling most overwhelmed. In prayer I’m better able to see all the events in my life that have led me to that particular moment, and I can see more clearly the ways in which God has walked with me along that journey. This is always a source of comfort for me.
I pray that my children grow up in a world where they see the people of God leading their lives the way Christ led his. I pray that they see the church as a tool to help those in need of food, shelter, love and acceptance.
I’m a Lutheran because I believe I’m living my life in response to an awesome and unfathomable gift that I did nothing to earn but that has saved me from everything. If I can share that gift with even one person, then it will have felt worthwhile.
For a longer version of this profi le and a video from Islam, go to
LivingLutheran.org.
Sentence prompts are provided to each person featured. If you’d like to nominate someone for “I’m a Lutheran,” email
megan.brandsrud@
elca.org.
VOICES OF FAITH •
LIVINGLUTHERAN.ORG 13
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