A Word from Pastor Nathan

Dear Friends:

Tuesday’s early snowfall has made me miss the days of summer when I could roll down the windows of my car, open the sunroof, and turn on the music of U2 at louder than normal volume. Fair warning: If you happen to see a red sedan with an identifiable vanity license plate moving along IH-90 and the beat coming from the car is strong, the driver could be your pastor.

“I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (1987) from the album The Joshua Tree is my favorite from the band. The lyrics stir my soul and give me life. To say (or sing) “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for” may come across as being less than content, but nuance exists in the poetic lines. Jesus, in the sermon on the mount, said “[Y’all] seek first the reign of God.” I’m still looking for the reign of God on earth as it is in heaven; I haven’t found it yet, but there are hints of the kindom. The seeking continues, but there is more to the song and the gospel story that informs the search.

The song’s introduction begins softly—as if out in the distance—and continues its crescendo throughout the verses. In the music video set on the Las Vegas strip, Bono begins singing by himself. At the end, however, people from casinos and cars, sidewalks and streets join in the singing, walking together, seeking and hoping to find. In Jesus’ teaching in Matthew, he’s encouraging the community, not individuals, to seek and find.”

Faith is not a solitary endeavor. We are not looking and searching alone. U2’s song and scripture and mutually inform one another. In seeking the reign of God on earth, we’re part of a common journey, “one in which people join in, sing along, walk alongside us, even dance—badly—and clap along. When [we] are no longer alone in seeking—when [we] are accompanied by others—we see what the church can be, what it is in the lives of many who profess to believe that Jesus carried the cross,” writes Greg Garrett.

If you haven’t found what you are looking for, join the club…join the church! We are on this journey with each other. One day—and that will be a great day—we’ll find what we’re looking for.

Looking with you,