Embrace Life

1:11 Sometimes we deal with suffering, face tragedies, love with extreme or unexpected situations, and also walk this path of life with people who might disappoint us. What if there were another life? One that was different. One that was even better than the one you want. And that was also eternal. Something that lasts forever. What if this new life could completely change your perspective on how you are living today, here and now? What if this new life I'm talking about were God's plan for you? I want to talk about this and more in the message we have prepared for you this week here at the Lutheran Hour. Some time ago, while sharing with one of our workers of Cristo para todas las naciones, or Christ for all nations, which is what Lutheran Hour Ministries is called in Latin America, I learned the story of a woman who at one point felt ready to end her life.

2:31 She suffered from terrible depression and mistakenly thought that ending it all was her only option. She sent farewell messages to her loved ones, got into her car, and drove to a place where she thought she could do this. However, while she was striving, one of our messages came on the radio, which spoke about the importance of life and placing our anxieties in God's hands. It was a simple prayer of about 20 or 30 seconds, enough to change the course of this story. I was told that she stopped her car in the middle of the road, turned off the engine, and she began to cry like never before. After this, she was able to resume her therapy sessions with her psychologist and was able to find help.

3:34 And you might be wondering, how did we find out about this? Well, the psychologist herself called our office one day to thank us for our radio messages and tell us this story. She said, Perhaps you don't know it, but you save lives with the work you do. Praise God. Everything we do here is for the glory of God and so that more and more people, real people like you with real problems like yours, can hear about Jesus and know that only with Him does our life have a future and better options. It is Jesus, through his word, the only one who can save lives and change our perspective on how we live here and now.

4:30 Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to understand this in time. Suicide rates worldwide are alarming and on the rise, especially among young people. For many, it is the only solution to their problems, their tragedies, their pain. But I promise you, it is not. There is hope. Just like there is hope for those who suffer, those who face depression, anxiety, and addictions, and those who burn the heavy burden of knowing they are sinners. Here at Lutheran Hour Ministries, We have tons of resources in both English and Spanish to help you and others navigate through these challenges. This year's theme for our Hispanic Heritage Month is precisely Embrace Life, Abraza la Vida.

5:31 An invitation to recognize the life God gives us. The life He prepares for us. The life only He can offer. I'm not talking about a life without problems or without challenges or sorrows. But rather, a better life here on earth. And an eternal life that, according to the Bible, is perfect, abundant, and that God gives us only by grace. in the Bible Jesus says that he is the way the truth and the life and in John chapter 10 he actually declares that his purpose to come to this world is simple and powerful he said I can that you may have life and have it abundantly however things in this world may not be as easy as we would like, right?

6:34 There are pains that don't end by talking to someone, whether a pastor or a therapist. There are challenges that overwhelm us, crush us, and leave deep wounds and profound sadness within us. There are situations that seem to have no solution or that sometimes we cannot change, even if we wanted to. Furthermore, whether we like it or not, we have long love in a culture marked and shaped by death. If we go back to Genesis, to the very beginning, we know that sin opened the door to death. Death was never God's plan or His goal when He created man and all things. It was the consequence of our disobedience.

7:28 And what came after was even worse. Right after Adam and Eve, we find a brother killing another out of jealousy, envy, or whatever. And from then on, we have not stopped harming each other with words and actions. That's why we kill each other in wars. We kill each other to steal. We kill each other because we have different ideologies, religions, or even races. We kill when there's an unplanned pregnancy. We kill when there's a mortal disease. We even kill each other because it's perhaps the easiest thing to do. The other day I heard on a podcast that this culture of death in which we live is also the result of our inclination to eliminate problems, not to solve them.

8:26 But as a pastor, I find no other explanation for this culture than sin itself. We kill each other because we are sinners. And until we recognize this truth and understand that God is the author and owner of life, we won't be able to embrace life, much less comprehend the abundant life that He alone promises and gives us. We know that depression is real, and that sometimes it presents itself to us as a dark hole from which there is no escape. Because we live in this world, we also know that there are very strong pains, very deep sadness, very difficult situations. we too have been where many find themselves today.

9:21 Perhaps you yourself or someone you love are there right now. That is why Jesus spoke of taking up our burdens and our crosses, of experiencing the afflictions of this world. A world made up of death, intrusive thoughts that dwell within us and take hold of our minds and hearts, And why not the devil, who also plays a part in our lives? All these are like thieves trying to steal our lives. Let's go back to John 10, verses 10 and 11. Here Jesus says, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. However, I can that you may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd.

10:20 The good shepherd lays down his life for the cheap. Jesus presents life here on earth as a flock. But like any flock, we will always be exposed to problems. There will be wolves who will want to attack us and thieves who will also seek to steal, kill, and destroy among us. But Jesus adds something I want you to take with you after this message. We are not alone, and you don't have to live everything in solitude. He has come into the world to dwell with you and suffer with you. He has come to a world to even protect your life by giving His own. And he has done this so that you have abundant life, life that does not end, life that lasts forever, eternal life in a world of death.

11:23 Dear friends of the Lutheran Hour, in a culture of death, in a human nature that believes death is the only alternative, in a world that places very little value on life, Jesus presents himself to us with a different proposal. Eternal life. When we say here in our Hispanic Heritage Month that we have been called to embrace life, this really means going beyond doing good or what we believe is right. It means living our burdens on Jesus because he truly is the way, the truth, and the life this world needs. And he truly came into our realities just as painful as they are to give us abundant life.

12:23 Remember this. For God so loved the world that he sent Jesus so that those who believe in him will not perish but have eternal life. In fact, Jesus came to experience the death we deserve so that we might live forever. He conquered death so that in his resurrection we too may rise again and love eternally in his presence. That is his plan for you and for me. To embrace life and to receive the abundant life he offers us is to receive the forgiveness he gives us through his gospel and the sacraments. It is to be reconciled with God through Jesus, confessing our sins and embracing the forgiveness of absolution.

13:23 It is to celebrate that through Christ, we are no longer enemies of God, but His beloved children. This certainly changes the perspective with which we see life. and we understand life on earth as something temporary and the life Jesus wants for us as what it truly is, something eternal, something abundant. We never knew what happened to that woman after the day a message on the radio from Cristo para todas las naciones or Lutheran Hour Ministries touched her heart and prevented her from ending her life. But what we do know is that the Word of God alone was able to change her life in that moment, and she was able to embrace her life, the life she received from God.

14:22 Like her, there are perhaps many in the world who are facing the same problems, perhaps with more questions than answers or more bitterness than hope. This Hispanic Heritage Month, we are promoting a wonderful program throughout Latin America and in the United States, available in Spanish and Portuguese, offering Christian support, companionship, and spiritual guidance to people struggling with depression and other problems, where pain and death sometimes seem like the only path. The program is called Vivenciar.net. It's free. And there we have a precious army of volunteers dedicated to speaking with our users and offering life in Christ when death appears to be the only way. You can learn more about it at LHM.org slash Hispanic Ministry.

15:25 To our users of Vivenshare.net, and to you as well, we say today that Jesus is the way, the best one, that he offers abundant life and peace, and he does it freely, out of love for us, even though we don't deserve it. If you have ever felt abandoned by God and everyone else and think that there's no hope, that there are no other options, let me tell you once again that Jesus has done something amazing for you. He gave his life so that you and all who believe in him may have the precious gift of forgiveness and eternal life. believe me there is no greater love than that of one who lays down his life for his friends this is God's love for you on this day I hope and pray that you will find in this love your hope your peace life and a better path so you too can embrace eternal life Amen.

17:15 Puerto Rico, but had to become fluent in German and English so that he could attend seminary and study to become a Lutheran pastor. He used those language skills to work undercover for U.S. intelligence during World War II. God used his voice to proclaim the gospel over the radio throughout Latin America, Spain, and the U.S. Learn the fascinating story of Spanish Lutheran Hour speaker, Dr. Andrew Melendez, in a new video biography titled, Is It in Spanish? Go to lutheranhour.org and click on TLH History.

17:53 Joining us now, here's Lutheran Hour speaker, Dr. Michael Ziegler. Thanks, Mark. Today, I get to visit with a new friend, Pastor Omar Garza, and Pastor Garza serves as the president of a Lutheran church in Mexico, formerly the Lutheran Synod of Mexico. Welcome to the program, Pastor Garza. Oh, thank you very much for the invitation. It's a great honor to be here. Your grandmother had a connection with the Hispanic Lutheran Hour way back in 1950 or something, had stopped going to church, and then she heard the Spanish Lutheran Hour. So tell us that story. For some reason, one day here in the radio, she hear Lutheran Hour Ministry program with Dr. Andres Melendez sharing the Word of God. And it was amazing for her because she didn't clearly get to know what Jesus Christ had been doing for us. As soon as she heard the first time that program, she write down the phone number that was there and immediately tried to communicate to try in this case to start to attend to a Lutheran church.

19:01 She basically just call and say, hey, there is no churches. She was living in Matamoros, Mexico, which is basically on the border with Bronzeville, Texas. Well, the only option is if you go to the El Calvario church in Bronzeville, Texas. And she say, you know, I have a visa. I can go across without problem. She started to attend to El Calvary Church. She was well-received. She kept hearing about this great news of the salvation of Jesus Christ. And she started to teach kids. They formed a little mission work with several ladies because of the starting point of just hearing the word of Dr. Melinda through the Lutheran Hour Ministry. She was able to make the connection and ask for a missionary, start to make some work in Mexico. They started in a little house to make, in this case, a little service. And then through the time, it was enough people that they start up and build a church. I was baptized in that church in 1975.

19:58 That is the church that I'm currently serving as a pastor. But you're a second career pastor. You had another career before becoming a pastor. Tell us a little bit about that and how God led you to become a pastor. Electronic engineer by career. The church, unfortunately, didn't have pastors to keep going the ministry. And unfortunately, that lead the church to close almost 50 percent. When I was 25, 30 years old, I had completely lost the identity of making sure that I was saved by grace. I believe at that point in time that I have to be a very good guide to gain heaven, completely out of the reality of what God tells us on how we are saved because of faith in Jesus Christ. During that time, at some point, God make his kind of miracle back and allow us to understand and get back to the basics of saved by grace, not by acts. And that's when I get to understand back that message of the grace of God and how we are so loved.

21:00 It just simply kind of feel like the words of heaven just up in front of me. At my full time job, I started to share everyone as a lay person about Jesus Christ. I almost every day I get someone, hey, are you going to church or you don't go? Why you don't go? Where are you going to go if you die today? A lot of people tell me, hey, you should be a pastor. I say, no, no, no, no. We really want to serve as something like marriage counselors, my wife and I. All of the sudden, one time there was this lady that teaches about how to raise kids from the school of one of my sons. So I tell, hey, can you tell me how to become a very good counselor and what do I need to study? and she turned around and told me, oh, you want to be a pastor? And I'm just like, no, I told you I want to be a marriage counselor. Why are you saying that I want to be a pastor? So, well, you keep talking about God every time you got an opportunity in front of class.

21:56 And I thought that you were a pastor, you know. God put the time in that, honestly, through all the things that happen, understanding the grace that God have with me, I could not tell God, no, right? And I just, okay, God, if you put the path, show me the way, and now I'll be there. And from there, here we are. Tell us a little bit about how Lutheran Hour Ministries is helping with your church body spread the gospel. Do you have a story of that? Lutheran Hour Ministries, we can say, have been at the beginning, at the middle, and is currently helping us through there. When we were at this point that I mentioned before, that it was so bad with no pastors, All of a sudden, when we were in the middle of this hard situation, Pastor Nilo Figueroa from the Lutheran Hour Ministry show up with my pastor in Matamoros in the church just to say hello. And he was talking to the pastor. The pastor there at that point in time was saying, well, we're doing so bad.

22:51 We got no pastor. The church are closed. And we got no way to prepare our pastors to hear the grace of God. And all of a sudden, he kind of say, I'll see what I can do. And he turned around and just make a connection with the Luther Academy and trying to bring teaching for our current pastors. And then through that, we get connection with the LCMS mission work. And then they bring scholarships for new pastors that want to attend. So long story short, we get to a point that we were able to get new pastors on board that currently allow to reopen all of the churches that was closed. Now it's open. And once again, it's because Luther in our ministry was kind of there saying, hey, how are you doing? How can we help? Thank you for sharing that. And thanks for being a part of our ministry and expanding our Spanish language resources. It's been a pleasure to talk to you.

23:44 Thank you. O glory be to God, O heart and thanks for all his favor. No heart can touch or terrify a child of God forever. God shows his good and gracious will, and else his peace the world to fill, all strife at last has ended. With grace and blood and worship You bring in grace forever O Father, for your rule is true And just and changes never With boundless love, your mighty reign, fulfills whatever your holy day.

24:57 Lord, grant us every blessing. O Jesus Christ, the only Son, the God and the Father, your saving death has made us one with fire with each other. O Lamb of God, to you on highly magest, with sin is fair, and mercy on us. Amen. O Holy Spirit, I delight in Christ, and Christ of God's holy, and Christ of God's holy, who send us from the dead, and Christ of God's holy, For Jesus, our salvation, who by his death upon a tree has rescued us from mystery.

26:30 To this we hope forever. Now Pastor Novelli leads us in praying the Lord's Prayer. Let us pray.