Rev. Rebecca Schlatter
Rev. Rebecca Schlatter is ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and serves as Associate Pastor at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Reno, Nevada. She has also served as Campus Minister for Vocation Discernment at Santa Clara University; pastored in Silicon Valley, California; and interned as a missionary in Hong Kong. She is completing a book, "Hidden Treasure: Seeking Your Calling, Encountering God, Finding Yourself." When she’s not writing or discerning where she belongs, Rebecca enjoys hiking, crochet, movies, tea with friends, and her two orange tabby cats, Max and Minnie. Her email address is newhousesfromoldbricks@hotmail.com.
Rev. Rebecca Schlatter is ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and serves as Associate Pastor at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Reno, Nevada. She has also served as Campus Minister for Vocation Discernment at Santa Clara University; pastored in Silicon Valley, California; and interned as a missionary in Hong Kong. She is completing a book, "Hidden Treasure: Seeking Your Calling, Encountering God, Finding Yourself." When she’s not writing or discerning where she belongs, Rebecca enjoys hiking, crochet, movies, tea with friends, and her two orange tabby cats, Max and Minnie. Her email address is newhousesfromoldbricks@hotmail.com.
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Why me? Well, why NOT me?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
May 7 2008 12:50PM
For people who have undergone life-changing losses, they often talk of a point of acceptance, when they began to ask “Why NOT me?” That response works on self-doubt, too.
Shaken up in Reno
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Apr 30 2008 02:11AM
A “swarm” of small earthquakes has put many of us on edge, thanks to their unpredictability and our lack of control. As human beings who experience this in many areas of life, we should probably be more used to this fundamental spiritual issue.
No new-and-improved version of ourselves
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Apr 24 2008 11:58AM
How old were you when you realized you wouldn’t grow into a completely different person? Did you know you’d be loved and needed anyway?
Nature vs. human nature
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Apr 16 2008 10:49AM
Why do we sometimes find it easier to see God’s handiwork in a tree, rather than in other people?
'What do you WANT to do?'
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Apr 9 2008 01:40AM
If you want to help young adults flourish in life and career, become an advocate for their own inner voice. It just might be coming from God.
Evidence of healing
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Apr 2 2008 01:23AM
How do we claim the Easter promise of new life, when human life is so fragile and easily damaged? We find in our scars the evidence of God's healing and our resilience.
Earth-shaking, frightening resurrection
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Mar 26 2008 02:05AM
Of the four gospels that tell the story of the women and the empty tomb, only Matthew includes the earthquake and writes so much about fear on that first Easter.
Looking for love in Holy Week
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Mar 19 2008 02:04AM
We're taught that the greater the sacrifice, the greater the love. But perhaps 'laying down one's life' doesn't always mean dying - it could mean living for someone or something.
Exploring paradise
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Mar 12 2008 12:42AM
In 1513, Fra Giovanni was onto something: "No Heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it to-day. Take Heaven!" (last in a series)
Learning to talk about death
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Feb 27 2008 01:51AM
Nicodemus' extraordinary ministry after Jesus' death makes me wonder if he really did get it about being born into God's Spirit, which is so much bigger than death. (Third in a series)
Why did Jesus die?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Feb 20 2008 12:47AM
I know that doesn't sound like an uplifting topic for high-energy middle-schoolers on a weekend retreat, but I'm stuck with this intriguing challenge. (Second in a series.)
To dust we shall return
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Feb 13 2008 01:40AM
On Ash Wednesday, we were reminded that 'we are dust ... .' With four funerals in that same week, my church didn't need the extra reminder. (First in a series.)
What I love about ministry
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Feb 6 2008 01:23AM
On the sixth anniversary of my ordination, what I love is just what Luther said about any vocation: This is the place where God finds me. Even when it's bringing out my worst.
Should I stay or should I go?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jan 30 2008 12:26AM
It's a difficult choice to leave a community. But if saying 'no' is impossible, a 'yes' doesn't mean much. And knowing we could leave sometimes makes it possible to stay.
Jesus turns family culture upside down
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jan 23 2008 01:55AM
In calling people to love, joy and service to others, in our time Jesus would invite people to begin with their own families.
What's a biblical 'family ministry'?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jan 16 2008 01:34AM
Jesus prioritized relationship with God over relationship with family. To get those confused would be idolatry. So how do we do 'family ministry'?
Waiting for the 'aha!' moment
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jan 9 2008 12:25AM
Epiphany is when God comes out of 'hiding,' but few Christians I know spend their lives in an Epiphany mood. Most experience their share of darkness and doubt.
Living a big-enough Dream
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jan 2 2008 02:04AM
On my friends' organic farm, they understand that a dream worth dreaming occupies your energy and love and passion - not for months or years, but for a lifetime.
Who helps you sing your song?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Dec 26 2007 02:40AM
In Luke's gospel story, if Elizabeth had not been there, could Mary have sung her song? And who greets the potential in you, before it is even born, and enables you to sing?
From majesty to manger
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Dec 19 2007 01:21AM
When others in heaven heard the plan for how Jesus would be born, perhaps they asked (as I sometimes do), 'God, couldn't you do this some other way?!' (Part 2 of two.)
Minding the gap
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Dec 12 2007 02:10AM
Reminding us of the 'reason for the season,' the church's Advent story considers again WHY Jesus was born: to bridge the gap between humanity and God. (Part 1 of two.)
Ready or not, here comes Jesus
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Dec 5 2007 01:11AM
Through our 'Advent' practice before Christmas, we become people who can recognize Jesus whenever and wherever he shows up - including our daily lives.
A 'revelation' of the story's end
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Nov 28 2007 02:06AM
As a kid, knowing that the story ended well transformed it from a source of anxiety into an exciting adventure. Perhaps this is what 'apocalyptic' literature is supposed to do.
Church as 'hospital' for our brokenness
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Nov 21 2007 01:08AM
Too often, I'm told, we church folks give the impression that you have to have your life all put together first as a prerequisite for belonging. It's not true.
Let your calling find you
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Nov 14 2007 01:36AM
Work hard, get good grades and make things happen, this college student had been told. So, he wanted to know, what's all this about 'letting' it happen?
'Just be yourself' - whoever that may be
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Nov 7 2007 02:36AM
The search for our calling carries great risk - for example, failure to find anything worthwhile at all. Or, we might find someone else's calling instead.
See what's behind the mask
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Oct 31 2007 01:08AM
Once Halloween is over, what masks do you wear on the other 364 days of the year?
Hope for the spiritually undisciplined
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Oct 24 2007 02:40AM
The spiritual life rarely asks us to do big things, but always asks us to do little things over and over. Repetition matters much more than proficiency.
Are we there yet?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Oct 17 2007 12:39AM
On the spiritual journey, none of us are pioneers. Neither were the first people to pass through Genoa, Nevada.
Hunting uncertain treasure
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Oct 10 2007 12:52AM
Like John's disciples, we have no answer for Jesus when he asks, 'What are you looking for?' But maybe it's more important to know how to look than what to look for.
Seeing with God's eyes
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Oct 3 2007 02:01AM
When do you really know someone - when you see them at their worst, or at their best? Sometimes offering our best can make us more vulnerable than showing our worst faults.
Who helps you sing your song?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Sep 26 2007 12:48AM
In Luke's gospel story, if Elizabeth had not been there, could Mary have sung her song? And who greets the potential in you, before it is even born, and enables you to sing?
The Top 10 signs of church insiders and outsiders
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Sep 19 2007 01:45AM
For those of us who relate to both the insider's grumbling and the outsider's isolation, it's good news that God loves the Pharisee and the tax collector in each of us.
Steering by a star
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Sep 12 2007 01:53AM
Navigating choices for what to do next, college seniors and others in transition can get their bearings from a dream, an ideal, a mentor or a story - even without a 'destination.'
'Bending against the curve'
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Sep 5 2007 01:27AM
In faith lives and maybe even in spines, God shows up as a potter willing and able to reshape us 'clay vessels' according to his perfect love for us. (Part 3 of three.)
What Jesus and my chiropractor have in common
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Aug 29 2007 02:04AM
In 'faith formation,' as in changing the shape of my back, I need both the dramatic transformations and the gradual reformation. (Part 2 of three.)
Praise God for change
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Aug 22 2007 01:06AM
Deep down we often prefer a discomfort we know how to handle to a relief accompanied by discomforts yet unknown. (Part 1 of three.)
Motivating people to practice faith
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Aug 15 2007 02:02AM
A congregation must help people practice their faith intentionally, without resorting to typical, worn-out sticks and carrots. (Part 2 of two.)
Accidental Christians no longer
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Aug 8 2007 01:36AM
Over time, mundane sacrifices (a Little League game here, a Sunday brunch there) define a space kept for God - a space held open like a door that keeps threatening to slam shut. (Part 1 of two.)
Living a big-enough Dream
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Aug 1 2007 12:23AM
On my friends' organic farm, they understand that a dream worth dreaming occupies your energy and love and passion - not for months or years, but for a lifetime.
Serenity at work
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jul 25 2007 12:21AM
Ministry isn't too different from other places where people of faith try to serve God and others through their work, praying that God will grant them serenity along the way.
Reviewing restaurants, movies - and churches
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jul 18 2007 02:01AM
Would your congregation get a good review? How about the sermon? How many stars would you receive for your welcome?
Leaving the spiritual marketplace
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jul 11 2007 01:50AM
You experience the good stuff of faith and community even more when you give it away than when you receive it from others.
Citizenship and faith meet in jury duty
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jul 4 2007 02:02AM
I wish national leaders spoke about citizenship - the day-to-day quality of our communal life together in this country - as often as they speak about patriotism.
Is God in nature or in church?
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jun 27 2007 02:12AM
My Christian ancestors transformed midsummer celebrations - building the 'new house' of St. John's Day from the 'old bricks' of solstice and New Testament traditions.
Leaving Jesus room to work
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jun 20 2007 12:47AM
By the power we pretend we have, we deprive ourselves of the only thing that can truly calm our fears: the good news of God's power.
Father's Day without the schmaltz
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jun 13 2007 02:33AM
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but many should avoid their parents' footsteps, not follow them. So to 'honor father and mother,' become your own person.
Making sense of the Trinity
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
Jun 6 2007 02:16AM
With its unifying power and stabilizing balance, the doctrine of the Trinity - an 'old brick' indeed - is the frame of my 'new house' of faith.
Spiritual lessons from a dry climate
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
May 30 2007 01:39AM
I water by hand in early morning, trying to keep alive the plants that came with my new house. As a spiritual discipline, it teaches me stewardship, compassion and tradition.
Communal discerning vs. deciding
Column: New Houses from Old Bricks
May 23 2007 02:24AM
In contentious issues, where the world takes polls, develops strategies and makes decisions based on power, the church is called to pray, discern and consider 'the least of these.'
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