Lutheranism can often seem pretty mundane.
We don’t have the flashiness of the Eastern Orthodox or the publicity of the Catholics. We just trudge forward slowly, methodically, whether people realize we’re there or not, slogging through the craziness of this world.
The dirty little secret, though, is that mundane is actually quite good.
Take the Divine Service. It’s always the same: Forgiveness of sins. Scripture. Law. Gospel. The Lord’s Supper. Liturgy. Hymnody.
Coffee. Donuts.
(Wait. How’d those slip in there?!)
But those holy things, those that are so constant and unchanging that they are mundane to us, are in actuality quite extraordinary! Other worldly! Incomprehensible!
So rather than looking for the new exciting trend or the latest theological fad, maybe we should all just stick to the joy of the everyday routine. After all, we are not do-ers. We are receivers. Everything good that we do is the work of the Lord in us. We don’t do. We receive. We don’t use Him. He uses us.
I mean, we’re Lutherans after all. We’re kind of known for mundane-ocity. Let’s face it: We consider butter a spice. We think the term “Jello salad” is redundant. We serve coffee roughly the temperature of the center of the sun in the middle of the summer. We sing “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus” while sitting down.
After all, it’s Christ Who’s doing the doing. He’s using simple means, simple people, simple events to fulfill His good will, even if it’s nothing extraordinary. Because ordinary, as it turns out, is actually a very good thing.
letitstet.com 
I actually try not to sing “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus.”
Maybe it’d be more accurate to say that we don’t bow or kneel during that section of the Venite in Matins that says “Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!”
Just saying. 🙂
Great post, Adriane!
We sing “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus” while sitting down. That made me laugh out loud in the coffee shop. A little embarrassing, but worth it.
🙂
Great blog! Thank you.
You make me laugh. And also, you make me proud to be a Lutheran. 🙂
Wonderful post. My first read, however, fell within the bounds of irony.
I had just come out of my yoga class to find this post in the inbox of my phone.
(Yes, I practice yoga. I do it to strengthen my bones, to increase flexibility, and because I feel physically good when the class concludes. Since I don’t buy into the Buddhist/Hindu/Eastern philosophies, technically speaking I practice ‘asanas.’ rather than true yoga.)
So I had to smile as I stood there in the lobby of the yoga studio, in yoga pants, with my rolled-up mat, reading this post and recognizing — as a Lutheran — the wonder of Christ. The wonder of the real Truth in our seemingly ordinary faith. It felt like coming home after a long, exotic trip.
Marvelous! I wish your response had a Facebook “like” button!
Thank you for your kind words!