SO. MUCH. JOY!

There’s this band I like. Their name is the Hold Steady. There’s a lot that I like about them. But one of the things that I like most is how they end a show. 

They start by playing “Killer Parties,” the last song from their first album with this great bass line. And at the end of the song, Craig, the lead singer goes into a sort of halting monologue that comes around to him saying something like:

“It’s come to the part of the show where I only have one more thing to say. And to tell you the truth, I’ve said this thing many times before. But I only say it because it’s true. It’s uhmn. Well. You see it’s just hard to explain. And I sometimes worry that you won’t understand it. But you seem like good people. It’s uh. Well. There is SO. MUCH. JOY! in what we do up here. I want to thank you all for being here tonight to share that joy with us. You’re [insert name of city] and we’re the Hold Steady and we love you.”

I know we usually end services saying “Go in peace, serve the Lord, Thanks be to God,” in church. But…

But let me tell you this, University Lutheran. There is SO. MUCH. JOY! in what we do here especially on a Sunday – but Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Fridays too. And I want to thank you all for being here – whether that has been the past 12 years or past 12 weeks or if it’s more like the past 12 days. Thank you for sharing that joy with us. We love you.