Things I Sometimes Forget – And Need to Know

During Spring Break this year, I will be on a team that will be interviewing men and women undergoing examination for ordination in the United Methodist Church. I used to think that I would enjoy such an honor. I think I am growing to hate the job. Being a pastor is hard enough. But judging and discerning whether someone is qualified to do so? Some days, I feel like grabbing some of these folks, and like the NS-4 robot on “I, Robot” that grabbed Will Smith by the leg, I want to say to these folks, “Run!”

I read the following from Brent Olsen, a layman who serves on the Minnesota Conference Board of Ministry:

I recently spent a few days at a retreat for the Minnesota Annual Conference Board of Ordained Ministry where about 30 of us—mainly clergy but a few lay folks such as me—interviewed people wanting to be pastors.

It's an awful job. It really is. And I mean that in a couple of ways. The dictionary offers up a couple of definitions of "awful" including "causing fear or dread or terror," but also "inspired by a feeling of fearful wonderment or reverence." I wavered between the two all week.

On one hand, preparing to be an ordained minister in The United Methodist Church is not an easy task. It takes the better part of a decade and no one really enters into it on a whim. When you read their stories and then see their earnest, eager, nervous faces, the inclination is to say, "Sold. Let's get you signed up and fitted for your robe."

On the other hand, you think about every congregation, eager child, puzzled teenager or heartsick parishioner that this person will come in contact with for the next 20 or 30 years. You think about how they will work with their colleagues and the larger church, and you consider whether their particular talents are best suited for the fairly specific job of being a pastor. It's a brutal job to tell someone that, just because every fiber of their being yearns to be a pastor, it doesn't mean they should be one…

Because do you know what I want from my pastor? I want him/her to be a good person. That's it: genuine, caring, and concerned. Hard working and involved. I want a smile when they look at a child and warmth in their tone when they talk to the old guy who smells bad. Those skills are a little harder to nail down in an interview.

That's what makes the board of ordained ministry an awful job, in all senses of the word. Anyone we green-light has a job until they retire, and we're charged to evaluate people based on what we can measure and confirm, instead of on what matters. - from UMR

So what do you think? What do you want from your pastor? I’d love to know. Call me and let’s talk. I’ll even buy the coffee.

Pax,
Sky+

Holy Week Schedule

Monday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Choir Room (coffee to follow)
Tuesday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Choir Room (coffee to follow)
Wednesday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Choir Room (coffee to follow)
Holy Thursday: Service of Word, Table, and Servanthood, 6:30 PM, Sanctuary
Good Friday: Service of Tenabrae (Shadows), 6:30 PM, Sanctuary
Holy Saturday: 36-Hour Prayer Vigil, Midnight Fri/Sat thru 6 AM Easter Morning
Easter: First Service: Community Sunrise, 7 AM, Reidland Baptist Church (serves in lieu of the 8:15 service)
Second Service, 10:45 AM, Church Sanctuary

Where Are the Methodist Women?

Anyone Googling "Methodist Women" may come up on this page and have me hanged for posting such a heretical and inflammatory blog title. Please, give me a few paragraphs before you call my district superintendent.


There are a lot of successful bible study series these days, but the most successful ones have been authored and led by women. Consider the following:

• Beth Moore. Very articulate. Petite. Engaging speaker. Master's degree in biblical exegesis. Promotes biblical literacy, and, in her words, "Doesn't do the Southern Baptist political scene." She has authored and led numerous bible studies, and often holds simulcast teaching venues throughout the year. Very well known throughout the denominations.
  
• Liz Curtis Higgs. Grew up Moravian in a rural area. Down-to-earth. Not petite. College party girl and radio personality turned Christian writer/teacher. Best known for her book, Bad Girls of the Bible. Excellent speaker and eloquent writer.
  
• Elizabeth George. Former schoolteacher, bible study teacher, and curriculum developer. Non-denominational. Best known for A Woman After God's Own Heart and A Woman's High Calling.
  
• Kay Arthur. She and her husband began as missionaries, went on to co-found Precept Ministries. Her "Precepts for Life" radio and television program reaches nearly 100 million people. Big proponent of inductive biblical study. Has been criticized by fellow evangelicals for her speaking engagements in United Methodist Churches.
  
  
• Ann Graham Lotz. Daughter of the Rev. Billy Graham. Very sought-after speaker, well known for her revival series, "Just Give Me Jesus." Has weathered the criticism of being a female who teaches women AND men. Got in the middle of controversy in 2001 when SBC President James Merritt was asked on "60 Minutes" if Lotz could preach from the pulpit of the church he was serving on a Sunday morning, Merritt said, "I would personally not have her." He went on to say that where the household and pulpit were concerned, men are to lead. However, I think Anne is listening to God rather than the Rev. Merritt.
  

I personally have little problems with any of these folks. I've been to a Beth Moore study, and they are not "Baptist-y" - it's mainly just basic biblical knowledge. In fact, I know the church I serve has used the above resources for several studies.

Now a few years ago, I would have said, "Absolutely not. That stuff's not Methodist, Lifeway sells it, and we're not Baptists." But I soon realized the void wasn't being filled, that we were coasting way too long on DISCIPLE Bible Study, and then someone I know flat-out asked me: "Where are Methodist women leading and writing bible studies? Why do the Baptist have all the great women's bible studies?"

Well... where are the Methodist female evangelists today, in the tradition of Anna Howard Shaw, Belle Harris Bennett, Georgia Harkness, and Sarah Crosby? I have no problem with the United Methodist Women/Women's Division doing a study on Israel/Palestine peace relations. But if we are a denomination that is losing membership and increasingly biblically illiterate, should we not be in mission with our own in teaching basic biblical principles that would (incidentally) guide us in matters like Israel and Palestine?

I'd say we better give thanks for Beth Moore, Liz Curtis Higgs, etc., for filling a void that we Methodists obviously haven't. I can take care of the minor doctrinal issues that might arise once in a while. The trade-off for basic biblical grounding is well worth it.


Belle Harris Bennett, a laywoman from the old Methodist Episcopal Church, South, lead Bible studies and raised money for the Church, preached against racial prejudice, and aided in the training of missionaries. She died in 1922. T.M. Eugene wrote this about her:

Bennett's ministry tended to the Reign of God on earth in very practical ways. After learning of a woman whose attendance at school was endangered because she was pregnant, Bennett immediately wrote the institution's president suggesting that the school start a child care program. She well embodied a sentence from a letter she wrote in 1918: "It takes a heart life - a lived experience - to interpret the Word of God." - from For All the Saints: A Calendar of Commemorations for United Methodists, p. 154

"It takes a heart life - a lived experience - to interpret the Word of God." Now that's Methodist - I don't care who you are!

Don't let the Baptists have all the fun.

Pax,
Sky+

Peculiar Prophet? Heck, He's Nuts... But He's Right.

I was a Southeastern Jurisdictional Delegate in 2004, and I wanted to elect, for sure, three persons to the episcopacy: Hope Morgan Ward from North Carolina, Jonathan Holston from North Georgia, and Will Willimon from South Carolina. Hope was elected first, hands down - everyone knew she was right for the job. Jonathan was what the UMC needed, I thought: someone who was enabling present leadership and equipping them to be effective in the present and future. Although a district superintendent with a proven track record, some said he was too young, some said "We already elected a black man," others said, "We need to elect another woman," and, to make a VERY long story short, he wasn't elected.


But we did elect Will (excuse me, Bishop Willimon). Will can come across as arrogant. However, I have always had a very hard time countering many things he's written and said. I hope my present bishop won't be offended, but Bishop Willimon was my first pick as the bishop to bring home from Jurisdictional Conference. Of course, he was the first pick of many annual conferences. He went to North Alabama (his blog can be found here).

I'm at the point now where I could care less how someone comes across in church leadership. This is what I want to know: can this person lead, are they effective, and are they prophetic? The Gospel of Jesus Christ is at stake, our denomination is dying, and I'm no longer in a mood to pacify causes, caucuses, Good News, the Confessing Movement, MFSA, and any other of the special interests groups of the Church. We have so many interests that it seems we've forgotten the Main Interest.

So it was with a lot of interest, and a few amens, that I read what a layperson, Kim Edwards of San Diego, CA., had written recently in the United Methodist Reporter in a question & answer session with Bishop Will Willimon (the whole article can be read here).

Let’s change gears, to General Conference. Any concerns in particular you’ve got your eye on?

Not one single thing. I think two weeks is too long to be in a church meeting, and it’s too much money. I will have to be convinced that it is important.

It costs millions to meet. We spent $300,000 last year on coffee! I just don’t know any Methodists who think they’re giving for that purpose. This is just me. I don’t have a voice. I don’t get to vote. I get to sound off through you.

Any issues you want to see discussed at GC?

I’m not being cute when I say that General Conference is distracting. The real stuff for our church is your local church. It’s what happens on Sunday morning and Monday morning at your local church.

And I just think where we’re failing is in this grassroots level. We’re going to have an address from youth at GC this year. OK, but the backdrop is that we have been killing youth. We’ve got something like 20 percent of the youth we had 15 years ago. Are we doing something wrong?

I wonder where we’ll be in 10 years. Of course, I know where I’ll be in 10 years—in the home!

What’s your advice for bringing church back to the grassroots level?

The best work Jesus does is local. It’s congregational. We are failing dramatically. The decline is huge. And I think none of you lay people would put up with this in your own business or your own life to say, “I made 25 percent less than I did last year. I wonder if I’m doing something wrong?”

We have to do the very Methodist thing of worrying who is not here this morning.

"Two weeks is too long for a meeting... The real stuff for our church is your local church... The best work Jesus does is local. It's congregational. We are failing dramatically.... None of you lay people would put up with this in your own business or life..."

A bishop who "gets" it. Imagine that. But he's going "in the home" in 10 years. Will we pick up the ball?

I'll come visit you in the home, Bishop. I suspect we'll still need you.

Pax,
Sky+

You're Never Done - Nor Is God

As you read a few posts below, I've had a nagging problem with my car. After weeks of checking vacuum lines, spraying choke/carb cleaner around to check for leaks, and nearly running the batteries down on my multimeter testing wiring and equipment, I was ready to give up and go to a mechanic. I gave it one more shot, and finally tracked down my hesitation problem - a loose pulse sensor connection. Easy fix. After 16 months, my 17-year old car was restored! Finished! Done!!

So I left for Kansas yesterday to help bury my last great aunt, and drove the Bimmer. It ran like a charm. I listened to great music. When I got west of Van Buren, Missouri, into the Ozarks, I was driving it like the sports car it was meant to be; hugging corners, feeling the speed and thrill of doing so - as well as making great time. I didn't set any land speed records, nor drove recklessly. I was just able to do a little more with a car that was built to do so.

When I got to my destination yesterday evening of Pittsburg, KS, I picked an aunt up at the motel we're staying at and went to the home of my great aunt's only living child (in downtown Curranville - dare you to find THAT on a map!). She and her husband, Phyllis and Eddie, have always been very gracious people and got the gift of hospitality that my great aunt was so well known for very honestly.

When I was a kid, I always thought Eddie was one cool dude; he was a star football player in high school, he worked on cars, and restored a classic car for each of his children and gave them to them as a gift - a super guy. So it was with a little bit of irony that after he went outside to help a neighbor get her car turned around in the yard, he came back inside and said, "Sky... I just backed into your car."

Uh oh.


I went outside with him, got a flashlight, and surveyed the damage. It wasn't really that bad; the SUV was much higher than my car, and the receiving hitch had struck my car mid-grill and wrinkled the hood a bit. With a little wire, I put the grill back together. It'll get me home. But crap... I just finished fixing this car up. What rotten luck! I thought I was finished and done!!

Of course, Eddie was sick - in fact, I think he was a lot sicker than me about it - being a guy who's been fixing cars a lot longer than me. But as I told him, heck, any of us could have done it, and it didn't help that my black car blended perfectly with the pitch black of the Kansas prairie. All in all, it's not bad, and could have been a heck of a lot worse. Material things can always be fixed. But it dawned on me on the way back to the motel... I'm not finished with my car after all.

The good news is, God isn't done or finished with us yet, either. We are all in various states of imperfection, and we all succumb to various sins from time to time. I am glad God doesn't give up on us, nor thinks that He's ever "done" with us.

The prophet Jeremiah said that the word of God came to him, saying: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart."

God knows us very, very well. And even when we think we're finished and done, God is not yet finished. And when we fall or crash - God picks us up again, heals us, and indeed, fixes us.

Thanks be to God.

Pax,
Sky+

Take Thou Authority

"Take thou authority as a deacon in the Church...Take authority as an elder in the Church to preach the Word of God, and to administer the Holy Sacraments..."

With those words, I was ordained a deacon and elder, respectively, in June 1990 and June 1993. I was licensed as a local pastor in 1987. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then. (The pic is fellow blogger Andrew Thompson's ordination, not mine)

I've been privileged to serve in several leadership capacities since then, and been blessed to represent our denomination at both jurisdictional and general conferences. In the process, I think I have witnessed the demise of leadership into a state of crisis. Vision and direction are lacking. As I read a paper Richard Heitzenrater wrote, it confirmed my sinking feeling about leadership:

Within the church, in an age when shared governance, mutual ministry, lay rights, and making people feel good have taken center stage, the concept of strong leadership brings to some minds the image of oppressive, hierarchical structures with glass ceilings and procedures that implement repressive policies, The very word "authority" is tainted in some minds by the most pejorative meanings of its derivative "authoritarian." Leadership positions can be lonely positions-it is much easier to be just one of the guys or gals. Clergy are increasingly prone to abdicate leadership responsibilities in an ecclesiastical culture that emphasizes the role of the laity and highlights the concept of "general ministry."...

Wesley was usually able to relate to people where they were-if not on their level or from their perspective, at least aware of where they stood, Nonetheless, he was never hesitant to speak strongly, howbeit in love, against any position that he felt was wrong or inadequate. The current situation would present him with a real challenge, however. These days, no one wants to hurt anyone's feelings; everyone wants to be liked and accepted; many feel immediately victimized by any words of criticism. And the assumption is that the strong exercise of authority in positions of leadership is likely to jeopardize the comfort level in some lives, a situation that must be avoided at all costs. John and Charles Wesley would have had difficulty with such an approach to leadership. - Richard P. Heitzenrater, "Take Thou Authority": Ministerial Leadership in the Wesleyan Heritage, from Pulpit and Pew Research on Pastoral Leadership, Duke University. This paper was prepared for the United Methodist Council of Bishops' Task Force on Theological Education and Leadership Formation.

That certainly is harsh. It's also true, I believe.

We have to be very careful and realize who gives us our power for leadership. A bishop may ordain us, but the source of that authority is God. And in all of the questions ordinands are asked, they boil down to this: are we (1) spiritual, (2) talented, and (3) effective? And do we look at those who are being ordained, and are ordained, in these terms? Or do we select leadership based on people who won't hurt other's feelings and won't let authority "go to their heads?" I think as a rule, we Americans have dumbed down leadership... and the church has been no exception. We get exactly what we expect... and, I fear, deserve.

It is amazing to me how much energy we have put into some things, while nearly abandoning others. Do I think sexual and professional ethics for clergy are important? Absolutely. Clergy do not need to be predators nor abusers.

Do I think that Safe Sanctuary policies for children's ministries are important? Absolutely. Our children need to be safe and have the assurance of safety. A lot of time, work, and money has been expended to develop and implement these types of programs.

But somewhere, we missed the mark. Badly. If we were aiming at the bull's eye, we didn't even hit the outer ring when we shot.

Inadvertently, I think we became the sex police instead. We dumbed down expectations of leadership... and may have created the very problems that we are now trying to solve. All in the name of "shared governance" and "everyone having a place at the table." We act as if God told us to bring the Kingdom in by mob rule. Just a biblical observation: when Pilate asked the crowd about who to let go and who to crucify, they yelled, "Free Barabbas!" When he asked them about Jesus of Nazareth, they yelled, "Crucify!"

Now I'm not saying that we shouldn't have ethical and moral standards. And a lot of money, time, and effort went into developing these policies. But when we become the sex police yet say little or nothing when it comes to pastoral ineffectiveness and leadership voids, I'd say we are missing the mark... and worse, we are causing the very problems we are seeking solutions for by not insisting on leadership standards. When we dumb down expectations of leaders, we get the leaders we ask for and deserve.

We certainly don't rank sins. But to continually deal with the sexual misconduct of some of our clergy while IGNORING clear leadership voids and ineffectiveness among ALL clergy seems to be akin to spending our time writing speeding tickets while ignoring murders, rapes, and burglaries. Before you are too critical about that analogy, consider that churches are dying and closing and congregations continue to pay higher salaries and clergy benefits and are getting incompetent and ineffective leadership in return.

Everyone is NOT supposed to get a say. Leadership, especially strong leadership, requires that we speak the truth in love, even if it is critical, hurts people's feelings, or makes someone -as Heitzenrater says - "feel victimized by any words of criticism."

Am I being mean? Have I turned into "the man"? Am I marginalizing those who don't have power? And are some of my seminary professors going to be disappointed in me now?

Off and on for the last 24 years, I have officiated baseball and basketball, from youth league to the college level. I love being close to the game, love being around young people, and love the challenge. One of the things I absolutely hate doing in basketball is assessing a technical foul to a player or coach. I like being part of the game, but I prefer it to be in an accompanying role. The best parts of the game are when a kid threads a needle on a pass, or a player blocks a shot, someone nails a 3-pointer at a clutch moment, or a coach sits a team down to execute a beautiful play for a score. People don't come to a game to watch a player or coach get "T'd up." (OK... I'm sure someone does, in a I-watch-NASCAR-because-I-like-to-see-car-crashes sort of way)

Technical fouls immediately set folks off. It gets the crowd hostile. It creates an adversarial environment between the official and coach or official and player. Communications become strained. But at the same time, an official isn't on the floor to make people happy. He or she is paid to officiate and adjudicate the game. You use a balance of knowledge of the rules, discretion on the use of power, experience of management of the game, and common sense to make good decisions and proper actions. While coaches want a floor that is slanted toward them, the official's job is to keep the floor on an even keel - and that means doing what is right, regardless of criticism or who it will offend or whose feelings will be hurt.

I can only imagine what would happen if officials were advised to be liked and accepted by everyone, and not jeopardize the comfort levels of those around them. Would that be an effective approach to officiating?

I don't think it's an effective approach to leadership either. Even in the Church. Perhaps, even especially in the Church. Isn't the Kingdom and the salvation of our brothers and sisters at stake?

As Heitzenrater reminded us, both of the Wesley brothers firmly believed that preachers should have minds and abilities capable of understanding the faithful witness of Christ and have the ability to clearly communicate biblical truths to the people. Charles Wesley, it was noted, did not hesitate to expel preachers for incompetence. Here were his words about a Michael Fenwick, whom John said was "a tolerable preacher.":

I went to the room, that I might hear with my own ears one, of whom many strange things had been told me. But such a Preacher have I never heard, and hope I never shall again. It was beyond description. I cannot say he preached false doctrine, or true, or any doctrine at all, but pure, unmixed nonsense. Not one sentence did he utter that could do the least good to any one soul. Now and then a text of Scripture, or a verse quotation, was dragged in by head and shoulders. I could scarce refrain from stopping him. He set my blood a galloping, and threw me into such a sweat, that I expected the fever to follow. Some begged me to step into the desk, and speak a few words to tile poor dissatisfied hearers. I did so, taking no notice of Michael Fenwick.

I talked closely with him, utterly averse to working, and told him plainly he should either labour wish his hands, or preach no more. He hardly complied, though he confessed it was his ruin, his having been taken off his business. I answered I would repair the supposed injury, by setting him up again in his shop. - Charles Wesley, Journal, August 5th, 1751

You think someone's feelings got hurt?

I don't think there is any contradiction between strong leadership and a strong theology of grace. Above all, the Wesleys called all of us, clergy and lay alike, to be imitators of Christ. What that means is this: when we meet the woman at the well, we are honest in what we say, even challenging. At the same time, we are full of grace and have the love of God in our hearts that allows for transformation. That is the true and Godly use of power. It may initially offend, but it transforms offense into redemption and salvation.

Boards of Ministry... General and Jurisdictional delegates - remember this when you approve candidates for ministry, and when you elect bishops. Don't listen to caucuses and factions. Don't see which quotas have been fulfilled or not. Insist on these questions being asked and answered: Who is competent? Who will be effective? Who is knowledgeable? Who is willing to serve? Who has vision? Who will give us direction... even if we don't initially like what they may say?

Who will lead us in the power and presence of God?

Pax,
Sky+

Patience - A Virtue and a Necessity

This is my car - a 1991 BMW 325i. When I bought it, I had intentions of it just being a beater car, cheap but dependable transportation. The more I've messed with it, tho, I've found out that the two owners before me took pretty good care of it. So while I wouldn't give it classic status, it really doesn't look bad. It drives like a dream (goes way too fast and corners like a Porsche), and will be the closest that this preacher ever comes to driving a luxury sports car. It was a steal for what I paid for it, and still a steal even considering the money (a little over a $1000) I've put in it to restore it. Much cheaper than car payments in this day and age - all my vehicles are paid for!!!

One of the reasons I bought the car was to tinker with something. It's an old hobby I've always enjoyed (I have a '93 motorcycle too). But, just like any hobby or endeavor, nothing is ever perfect or peachy.

I've got a hesitation problem in the engine, but only when it's warm. So, I've spent about 20 minutes a day trying to eliminate problems one by one. So far, no luck.

I've put in new plugs and plug wires. Replaced the oxygen sensor. Cleaned and tested the idle control valve. Checked and rechecked vacuum lines. Checked the catalytic converter. Sprayed carb cleaner around areas to check for good seals. There are still plenty of other things left to check: air flow meter, thermo-time switch sensor, engine timing, knock retard sensor. I'm praying it's not a bad ECM (computer). Yes, the car's old, but it does have a computer - and they aren't cheap. If I don't have any luck in a few days, I'll give in and go to a real mechanic.

However, I know that, just like me, he'll have to be patient. These problems rarely fix themselves - they need time, examination, and discernment. Sometimes, there is no quick fix (even when you hook up the diagnostics to the computer!). Bet you know where I'm going with this now...

Lenten disciplines call for patience. Hearing what God might be saying to us requires patience. And working with others, in making disciples and doing Kingdom work, requires patience. We humans require some tinkering on occasion.

I found the following prayer for patience. It is a good one - and an honest one:

Gracious God, it’s so hard to wait. To wait for new things to happen in my life. To wait for you to answer my prayers. To wait for the open doors that may lead me into a new way of being. During the time of waiting, it seems that all I can think of is having what it is I am waiting for. At times I feel weary of asking and waiting, and I wonder if you really hear my prayers at all, if you are ignoring me, or if you are simply refusing to give me my heart’s desire. A part of me knows that you want my best, and that your time is not my time, but Lord, it is still so hard to wait. Deepen my trust, O Lord, during the times when my heart longs for what can only come in the fullness of time. Give me a calm assurance that your will for me is grander than anything I could ever imagine. Still my mind and heart in your love so that I am mindful of the grace you are draping around me every single day, every single moment. I ask this for the sake of your love. - ©1999-2007 explorefaith.org

In the name of the One who is patient with us, even Jesus Christ our Lord.

Pax,
Sky+

Cuz I Got Tired of Seeing It - And It Needed to be Done

This is a picture of a fan belt that has been lying around near the intersection of Calvert Dr. and Reidland Rd. (next to Huck's Convenience Store) since before Thanksgiving. Somehow, between tornadic winds, torrential rains, highway salt trucks, and snow plows, the darned thing just wouldn't go away. I told myself yesterday that if I saw it today, I would pick it up and throw it away. So I did.

I remember reading Kathleen Norris' little book, The Quotidian Mysteries once, about how healing and redeeming it can be to make something clean again. That goes hand and hand with servant ministry, I think. Most of us have associated the image of a towel and basin as the Christian symbol for servant ministry - and particularly in the Lenten Season, a reminder to us of Jesus washing the feel of the disciples.

So now I have one more image of servant ministry: an old fan belt out in the middle of the street that had been out there for four months. I wonder how long we've neglected some of God's children...

Pax,
Sky+

What REALLY Matters

As much as I am a political cynic, it has been difficult not to pay attention to the political happenings of late. Republicans and Democrats alike are divided on candidates. Political pundits find themselves at odds with polls and their readers and listeners. Many Republicans are arguing over the definition of “conservative” (which points to the problem of labels). Some Democrats can’t decide if voting against Sen. Obama means one is racist or voting against Sen. Clinton means one is sexist (again, a problem of labels). The upcoming political conventions do not promise to bring anything other than more divisiveness. Some people are even threatening not to vote. If the polls are correct, our country is very polarized in its opinions and political leanings.

Ya think? (Insert a grin and a “Well, duh!” here).

I think the growing dissatisfaction among Americans is because something is missing in their lives. I share the opinions of others when I say that I think people are missing something to believe in and something to count on. And I believe that something is God.

Most people believe in a Supreme Being. But less than 50% of Americans are churched. The top four reasons, according to research: (1) “What am I going to get out of it?” (2) “Church feels like a clique – I don’t belong and I feel like people really don’t want me there.” (3) “The Church is more interested in my money than me.” (4) “What about my baby and children? Is the Church’s childcare trustworthy?”

Guess what? These aren’t theological or doctrinal reasons – they are practical reasons.

In the weeks to come, we are going to be talking about restructuring our church in the way we program and do business. I want us to center on three things: (1) How can we best make disciples and change lives? (2) How can we transform the community we live in? (3) How can we renew the church?

At the church leadership training day last Sunday, I was reminded of a Latin phrase I haven’t heard since seminary: Ecclesia reformata semper reformanda. That was the phrase of the Protestant Reforma-tion: the Reformed Church must always be reforming. In other words, if we are to be a vital church, we must always be reforming. Change is inevitable in a changing world. What we must be willing to do is constantly remind ourselves: It is not about what we want to do; what does God want us to do?

That might be a good prayer to center on in our Lenten journey: What does God want us to do?

Pax,
Sky+

Keeping A Holy Lent

I hope this doesn’t sound strange… but I actually look forward to Lent. It’s a time when we focus our church life around prayer and preparation and discipleship. Not that we don’t do those things all year long, but this season helps us to hone our faith tools for our walk with Christ.

There will be plenty of opportunities in church life to assist in your keeping a holy Lent. Here is a Lenten schedule for Reidland UMC:

Ash Wednesday: Morning Prayer, 9:30, Choir Room

Ash Wednesday Service, 6:30, Church Sanctuary

Each Sunday morning of Lent: Eucharist, 9:15-9:30 AM, Church Sanctuary (except March 2nd)
Each Wednesday Morning: Mid-Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Choir Room (coffee follows)

Holy Week

Monday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Sanctuary
Tuesday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Sanctuary
Wednesday: Morning Prayer, 9:30 AM, Church Sanctuary
Holy Thursday: Service of Word, Table, and Servanthood, 6:30 PM, Sanctuary
Good Friday: Service of Tenabrae (Shadows), 6:30 PM, Sanctuary
Holy Saturday: 36-Hour Prayer Vigil, Midnight Fri/Sat thru 6 AM Easter Morning
Easter: First Service: Community Sunrise, 7 AM, Reidland Baptist Church (serves in lieu of the 8:15 service)
Second Service, 10:45 AM, Church Sanctuary

We will be inviting individuals to sign up for 30-minute slots during the 36-hour vigil on Holy Saturday, with a list of church ministries, programs, and sick/infirm/shut-in church members to pray for and about.

Join me in keeping a holy Lent – in the name of Christ.

Pax,
Sky+

Living Together – Being Disciples

Note: This is an excerpt from this week's church newsletter.

We live today in a world of growing isolation, frantic activity, and desperate violence, where paradoxically, we find ourselves longing for both solitude and companionship, intimacy and community. Some of us may look back to times when life seemed to make sense and relationships were more certain. Whether or not such times ever existed, we nevertheless long today for relationships that acknowledge who we are and who we want to be. We want someone to hear us, to hear our hearts beating, to hear our deepest longings—even longings of which we dare not speak. - Sondra Higgins Matthaes, Faith Matters

I am proud of you as a congregation.

This weekend, I mentioned to you by email that there was a couple who had visited our church a few times who had had a death in the family, and that it would be an extension of hospitality to let them know that we were grieving with them, as they had no church family.

Many of you went to the funeral home. Some stayed for the funeral. I want you to know as your pastor, I am very proud. More importantly, your Lord is pleased. The only warning I will give you is that disciples often beget disciples. Never underestimate the power of even small actions.

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." - Matthew 28:18-20

As I shared with you Sunday, the Greek word for disciple is mathetes, and a good definition would be this one: “an adherent, a learner, a pupil, a follower, someone who pays close attention to and attempts to implement what they have been taught from their teacher.”

So you see – a disciple isn’t just a convert or someone who puts their name on a membership roll. A disciple is a devoted follower of Jesus. If Jesus comforted those who mourn – then so should we.

Again… I am very proud of you.

Sky+

Pooling Their Gifts - No Sacrifice At All

Just when I think something can't be improved...



Hint: If you're not a fan of Eric Clapton, Mark Knofler, and Elton John - you won't like it. And shame on you. Put your headphones on or turn up your speakers.

If you'll look throughout the video, Clapton messes with John the whole time... and at about 2:45-3:00 of the video, you see that even Elton gets tickled by Knofler's riff, and then blown away by Clapton's guitar playing. Man o man o man... simply awesome. What gifts God gives us!

Sky+

In for the Long Haul

We all make New Year’s resolutions that we usually end up breaking. Diets, television habits, being more involved in something, spending more time with loved ones. They, like the things we say we will give up for Lent, are often temporary or short term.

But what about for the long haul? Our faith walk and discipleship require more than just temporary or short term sacrifices and actions. It’s life long. And we choose to keep the resolutions we make, just as we consciously choose how to live out our discipleship.

We have seen witness to that in years past. Our church has been actively involved in mission work to Alabama and Mississippi the past two years to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. Yes, that was two years ago. Had some folks not been committed for the long haul, the victims that are still homeless and in despair would now be receiving no help at all.

As human beings, we are very short-sighted and our memories are short-term. We often choose to ignore or rationalize the challenges and opportunities that confront us daily on our walk with Christ. These were the very things the Apostle Paul warned us about when he shared with us the costs of discipleship.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. – 2 Timothy 4:7-8

But being in for the long haul has its rewards, too. There is joy in finding that God can use us as a part of His plan. And there is peace in knowing that our sacrifices, just as Jesus’ sacrifice, are not in vain, and that we are redeemable people.

So make some good resolutions this year. But make some that will stick. And more importantly – make some that will, in the long haul, make a difference in God’s Kingdom.

Pax,
Sky+