Rerun: Everything That We Know, All That We Love?

I wrote this in August of 2006... and quite frankly, forgot I wrote it. It's not half bad - and today, I needed this reminder about discipleship.

 Pax,

 Sky+

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  Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name: you are mine. When you pass through the water, I will be with you; in the rivers you shall not drown. When you walk through fire, you shall not be burned; the flames shall not consume you. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your savior. - Isaiah 43:1-3

That's me at a much younger age... and wearing something different from a clerical collar and suit.

I rarely watch movies or television shows about firefighters; I was a firefighter and EMS responder for over 12 years, and I either get bothered about technical inaccuracies or too caught up in the emotions. But I watched a good movie the other night; Ladder 49. A little bit about the movie:

Under the watchful eye of his mentor Captain Mike Kennedy (John Travolta), probationary firefighter Jack Morrison (Joaquin Phoenix) matures into a seasoned veteran at a Baltimore fire station. Jack has reached a crossroads, however, as the sacrifices he's made have put him in harm's way innumerable times and significantly impacted his relationship with his wife and kids. Responding to the worst blaze in his career, he becomes trapped inside a 20-story building. And as he reflects on his life, now Assistant Chief Kennedy frantically coordinates the effort to save him.

I went into several burning buildings in my life, and I always prayed the words above from Isaiah each time. Contrary to what most people believe, firefighters are usually scared of fire – because they intimately know what it can do and how powerful it can be. I’ve never failed to be thankful that I was never seriously hurt. In all of those years I only had one close call.

Twelve years in the fire service also taught me a lot about camaraderie, teamwork, and brother/sisterhood. You put your trust into so many persons: the person on the nozzle with you, the pump operator supplying water, the rapid intervention team who will come in after you if something goes wrong, the officer in charge of the incident… the list goes on. Even weeks of training at the fire academy couldn't wholly prepare me for the real thing. I remember going into my first burning house with Jerry, a seasoned firefighter. The room next to us suddenly flashed, and I wanted to run, run, run. He put a hand on my back and said, “We’re okay. I’m not gonna let you get hurt.” And then he proceeded to teach me how to cool down a room, how to fog your nozzle stream, and how to think like the fire in order to find it and extinguish it. I learned the difference between acceptable risks and stupid risks. He helped make me a good firefighter. And I passed on the craft to others as I got older.

Most firefighter shows and movies end with a tragic death, and having officiated at three firefighter funerals myself, it’s the part I don’t want to see of the movie. The wail of bagpipes, the lineup of firefighters and engines from neighboring departments, honor guards, dress uniforms – all very impressive, and all very depressing to me.

But Ladder 49 was a little different. A funeral takes place in a large Catholic church. In his eulogy, Chief Kennedy concludes by asking the congregation to stand and give thanks for the life of the fallen firefighter. The congregation stands, and they clapped with thunderous applause. Firefighters saluted. They walked in formation behind a fire engine that served as a hearse for the coffin. It was respectful, and it was a celebration.

It begs the question: why does the fire service, law enforcement, and the military have the best funerals?

My hunch is that it has something to do with the way we approach Christian discipleship… or more accurately, how we don’t approach it. Churches often get a rap for being cold, unapproachable, or even downright unfriendly. Worse, it’s been said that the Church is one of the few institutions that shoots its wounded. While I might take exception with anyone saying these things to my face, the fact that they’re said means that the perception is there.

One of the tag lines for Ladder 49’s movie trailer is this: “Everything they know, all that they love, is what they risk every day.”

Man, that’s good. I wish someone had thought of it for the United Methodist Church before we adopted “Open Hearts, Open Minds, and Open Doors.”

The observation has often been made that many bars have better community life than some churches. I would place public service personnel even higher than that. Why is it that the Church abdicates to other organizations the very ideals and roles that it is supposed to excel and take a lead in? And why is everyone else taking risks while the Church plays it safe?

Kurt Vonnegut once said, “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine.” I pray that one day, people will once again say that about the Church... and the Cross.

Inconvenient Truths

Sometimes, even the elephant in the room has his head in the sand.

It's a quote from a Star Trek movie (First Contact), admittedly with a gender bias, but it certainly applies: "Don't try to be a great man. Just be a man, and let history make its own judgment." I think if you're going to be an elder in the United Methodist Church, it is good advice - and if you are going to be a district superintendent (or "presiding elder," as one lay leader in Paducah calls me), you really need to be a man/woman and let God be the judge of what you do. That means saying and doing some tough things in the name of the Lord. What follows are some tough things that I think need saying in light of a church that is in desperate need of renewal. I think our laity are desperate for it.

1. Changing the stance on homosexuality in the United Methodist Church will not stop the loss of membership in the denomination. It's at best a red herring and at worst a lie to espouse otherwise. The Southern Baptist Church continues to lose membership; they are in their fifth year of decline, and they have a very decisive, very clear statement on their opposition to homosexuality. On the other side of the issue, the Episcopal Church also has a very decisive and clear statement on homosexuality, where they bless and celebrate same-sex unions as they do male-female marriages, even though doing so separated them from the Anglican Communion. Did it help them gain members? Their membership is now lower than it was in 1939.

The loss of membership in both denominations, as well as in the UMC, can reasonably point to one reason: failure to make disciples. We can blame society, we can blame the president and Congress, we can even blame MTV. But we can't blame our stances on homosexuality. The fact that I hold an orthodox view on this issue and agree with my denomination's stance doesn't let me off the hook for anything - that has nothing to do with a failure to make disciples in the name of Jesus Christ. And yes... that is what it says in Greek: μαθητεύω - to make a disciple  - it's a verb, aorist tense, imperative, plural, second person. And as Dallas Willard reminds us, we are more often guilty of the Great Omission: once we baptize folks, and/or they have been converted to follow Christ, we seem to forget the rest: "teaching them to do everything that [Jesus] commanded you." That's discipleship. We have failed at discipleship - we suck at it! -  and have for several generations.

2. The United Methodist Church has a 1970's polity set up for a 21st century church. That line is not original - I am stealing it from Bishop Scott Jones. And he might have stolen it from Lyle Schaller, who said in The Ice Cube is Melting that we should delete the Restrictive Rules so that our Constitution and Discipline could be more easily amended, thus allowing the living - rather than the dead - to write the Rule and rules to govern our Church. Before you holler too much that this is too much like a congregational system, consider Schaller's words that the heart of our covenant in the UMC isn't the covenant between individuals, but rather real estate (trust clause), the pastoral appointment system, and the paying of apportionments. If it were individuals keeping covenant, we wouldn't have folks (a) threatening to do same-sex marriages, (b) openly showing disdain for the authority of bishops, and/or (c) either threatening not to pay their apportionments or simply advocating not paying them.

3. As GC2012 clearly illustrated, we are a denomination united by our mistrust.  Look how our Book of Disciplines get thicker and thicker. Look how a committee (Higher Education and Ministry) significantly and with prayerful intent wrestled with and dealt with the issue of guaranteed appointments, realized that we are in a different season in the UMC, and came to a general consensus on the issue (I was in the room). Yet those wonderful folks were still met with distrust and flat out ugliness. On the GC floor, it was not the will of the body (whom I assume, perhaps incorrectly, is a praying body) to reconsider it. It passed. But now folks are gleefully looking for nooks, crannies, and outs to have it overturned, hoping that our United Methodist Supreme Court will rule in their favor. Folks say that ethnic minorities and women (and older clergy, and __________, ___________, and ___________) will suffer if the guaranteed appointment is overturned. That's just a plain lack of faith in God and in the people called Methodists, and a bit of an entitlement given that few in our pews have guaranteed jobs. I've heard that someone came up with a statistic that only 3% of our clergy are ineffective. Of course, I've also heard that in ancient times, before we had statistics, we simply had to rely on lies to support us when we didn't like the way an argument was going...

4. We want accountability... up to a point. The United States is becoming an increasingly anti-authoritarian, ruggedly-individualistic, entitlement-driven society. Generally, we don't like to be told what to do, we are selfish and self-absorbed, and we do not wish to be beholden to anyone. I certainly resemble some of these things myself. The problem with these things is that they are antithetical to a covenant community - which, at least on paper, is how the United Methodist Church is constructed. The problem is obvious: we cannot sustain a covenant community in such a reality, either financially or mechanically. Clergy increasingly itinerate only if it is convenient for their family, or only if they can keep the house that they own. Twenty-first century realities are that the clergy are no longer single men who can live out of a saddlebag with a prayerbook, Discipline, and Bible in it. The itinerancy is probably outdated and may even need to be ditched. However, along with that goes the guaranteed appointment (and who knows what will happen in the fall when the Judicial Council meets). We can't have our cake and eat it, too! With declining numbers and actuarial realities, we cannot possibly continue to support General Boards, clergy pensions and insurance, conference structures, missions, and the like. What that means is that demands cannot continue to be made on a system that is no longer sustainable. Of course, that means blame will have to be shifted, too. And related to this is...

5. We do not trust authority nor want authority... until we need someone to blame. It's certainly human nature, and certainly a part of the Church. In my own annual conference, the only 'argument' was over one budgetary item: Item 4. District Superintendents. A $23,800 line-item increase (i.e., raise) was requested by CF&A (not by the cabinet), in an overall budget that had been reduced by $223,174. A retiree moved that this line item resort back to the previous year's budget. A large membership church pastor also spoke against the raise and said that his staff were not taking any raises and that the cabinet needed to step up and show leadership in this area (again, we didn't ASK for a raise. I guess they wanted us to jump up and refuse it). A campus minister also spoke against the budget increase. As did a deacon. As did the retiree who initially made the motion and got up once more to make his point (I think we were already getting the idea!). It was interesting to me how the discussion centered on district superintendents instead of CF&A, and that the other $9,126,189 wasn't debated (there were budgeted reductions and increases in other areas that we not debated). Someone sent me a text message during debate and said that everyone was getting in their last say before guaranteed appointments go away - which got a chuckle and put it all into perspective for me. In the end, our action reduced the budget by 0.26%. After that, we worshiped and celebrated the pastoral appointments and the conference in general. We were reminded that our conference theme for the week was "Extravagant Generosity." That brought a smile too.

Now, I don't need (and certainly don't deserve) a raise; to quote a friend of mine, we don't deserve anything. One person came up to me and swore that he believed that the motion to decrease the budget wasn't personal. I overhead another person come up to the new D.S. and say, "We're not blaming you," (I'm still trying to reconcile those two statements). I certainly won't judge the motives of individuals and am content to let God deal with the spirit of others' as well as my own. But the fact of the matter is that the cabinet made some tough calls this year that were not well-received. Those tough calls are not going to go away; they're going to get harder. My prediction is that the superintendency (general or district) is going to be an even harder task as resources become more scarce. In this day and age, managing the UMC has become a nightmare, but that's what D.S.'s primarily do - manage. And a bishop's task - to manage AND lead - is a noble one. But today, it has become a near-impossible task. It is only possible by God's help.

6. Things are going to get harder before they get easier. So are sacrifices. Folks say, "What have you got to worry about - D.S.'s always get taken care of." The odds are high when a D.S. comes off the cabinet in the Memphis conference, s/he will go to an appointment that pays less, they will have to sell a house and possibly buy another and probably take a small financial hit (this is not a good market to sell a house in currently). In the last 10 years I only know of two superintendents who got "raises" after serving on the cabinet; there just aren't that many large membership churches in our conference. As I shared in an earlier blog, being a D.S. doesn't mean you have arrived; it is at best a 'side-step.' Plus, the bishop who appointed me on the cabinet reminded me in the last appointment letter I got, that I am not 'guaranteed' this level salary when I go off the cabinet. But I don't think I'll go hungry, either.

All of the above is my personal situation. On a much larger scale, diminishing congregations mean diminishing resources. Some say the death tsunami isn't real, but I'd say what I'm seeing in UMC's is real: if the people who are dying aren't replaced, we're in real trouble financially and resourcefully. Will we be able to sustain the number of clergy we have? I have no idea. Will I have a pension when I retire? I have no idea (it's a defined benefit only as long as conferences pay 100% into it - how long will THAT last?).

I think people will always be people hungry for the Word and faithful to God. Will some congregations  always be able to pay their pastor a full-time wage? Unless things change... highly doubtful.

7. A local issue: The Memphis and Tennessee Conferences will never merge voluntarily until they adjust (one way or another) medical benefits for retirees. It's not an easy issue. Do retirees in the Memphis Conference want to lose enhanced medical benefits? No. But if I were a member of the Tennessee Conference, would I want to inherit a potential benefit obligation of $24 million (an actuarial estimate)? Of course not. The solution isn't difficult, and Obamacare may solve it for us (and no, I'm not advocating Obamacare): strike the present medical benefits for retirees of the Memphis Conference. The Tennessee Conference, as well as 17 other conferences, do not offer such benefits. We'd be on an even playing field. No unfunded liabilities anywhere (you can look these up conference-by-conference by clicking here and going to page 19).

Is that fair, equitable, or just? That is a completely different question. But the real question should boil down to this: what is best for the Kingdom? What is best for the Church and the lay folks we serve? Clergy are to serve, not be served, per ordination vows. If merging our conferences is the best thing theologically and missionally, shouldn't we be doing it regardless of the costs? That should be the only issue that is important. Are we willing to take the microphone and address that issue?

Ed Stetzer, who is the President of Lifeway Research of the Southern Baptist Church, says that cultural decline is not a good excuse for denominational decline; indeed, the only way the church will grow and take discipleship seriously means change. He sadly added, "Denominations don't change until the pain of staying the same grows greater than the pain of changing." If he's right, we're in for a lot more pain.

The Good News is that God is God, and He still puts up with us. If the UMC doesn't survive, God will use another means to do Kingdom work. As we stand right now, I suspect we have come full circle to where John Wesley started - we have become what he sought to renew. But this could be a very exciting time for the people called Methodists: we could reclaim the spirit that birthed us into a world that desperately needs it. The question is: will we?

I still like my job. More to the point, I am still humbled that God would use me in this way. May God continue to humble all of us into doing whatever it takes to make disciples for Jesus Christ.

Pax,
Sky+

World War II and August, 1945

PFC William Howard McCracken
MIA, April 17, 1945
Monterumici Hill, Italy

My dad lost an older brother in World War II, Howard.  While I never met him, I nonetheless feel a void whenever I think about wars, Memorial and Veterans Days. My cousin, Linda Thomson, has done a lot of genealogical research of our family, including investigating all of the known records about how my uncle went missing near the end of the war in Italy.

I never talked to my father much about Howard, but I heard him give a United Methodist Men's devotional once about death and the need for closure - and how his family never had any closure about Howard. That was the extent of what I really knew about how he dealt with losing a brother and yet having no body to bury. Another uncle, Dewey, served in WW II as well, but remained stateside as an aircraft mechanic. My uncle Ed was the last to see Howard, taking him to a movie and then dropping him off at a train station for a late train ride to service.

As progressive as my father was about some things, he was never a pacifist. When I asked him about it once, he said, "You can't let innocent people get beaten up." And I think he's right. Which explains why he did not try to get out of being drafted when Korea came, and he served as a radio operator in the infantry. He was in Korea when the war (police action) ended... and came home. While I have never heard anyone say anything about it, I imagine his parents were thankful beyond measure.

Dad left us a lot of his writings over the years, and below is a poem he wrote about his memories about the bombs being dropped in Japan. Like most war veterans, Dad rarely talked about his experience of it. And while he was too young to have served in World War II, having lost a brother in it affected him and his family in ways I can't begin to imagine. However, this poem probably tells me more about what he thought about war than anything.

PFC Kenneth Don McCracken
Outside Communications Tent, Korea

AUGUST, 1945
By Dr. Don McCracken, as published in Songs from the North Fork

I forgot to do something yesterday.
I forgot to be thankful that I did not know that now we could destroy the world.
We have now demonstrated that [we] can destroy sizable chunks of it.
Cities lay in ruin yesterday; now the earth might lie in ruins.
The war is now over in Europe; soon it will be over in Asia.
But at what cost!
At the cost of power to destroy the earth.

I don’t want to die; I am only fifteen;
But I have seen people die; more than that, I have heard of millions dying.
Man’s inhumanity to man has been pushed to the limit;
Yet, many of us survive.

But, now the potential for destruction has magnified
When man wants to be inhumane, he can do it in mass fashion.
It might take a while for the bombs like that dropped on Hiroshima to destroy Everything;
But this is the first model, and models “improve,” don’t they?
And I fear “Improvement.”

Oh, once, a teacher talked about atomic power and the energy that held atoms together;
And what it would do if it could be unleashed,
But I thought that it was some abstract theory,
And folks say that what’s good in theory won’t work in practice.
But the folks are wrong; the theory works. I wish it didn’t.

I want to live, but it is more than that.
I want to be survived.
When other people died, others survived them; I want the same;
I will die happier if I know others still live.
For years, I have dreamed about the end of the war;
And now that it is over, my dream has changed to a nightmare.

I pray that, one day, we as a world may embrace the peace of Christ. War robs us of way too much.

Pax,
Sky+

Being a D.S. Doesn't Mean You've Arrived

I've written blogs here and here about being a "new" district superintendent. I don't think I can consider myself new after a year (and two months, twenty-six days, eight hours, and fifty minutes). I'm certainly not an old hand either, but I am convinced of this: being a D.S. doesn't mean you've "arrived." If anything, it tells me how ministry is a quest - and unlike a pilgrimage, one may never "arrive" in the journey of a quest, because it's destination is unknown. We have no idea where following Christ will take us.

While we Methodists don't use the term, being a D.S. is akin to being a suffragan or auxiliary bishop in the Catholic or Anglican traditions; you don't ordain or make rulings of canon/church law, but, because an episcopal area is so large it is impossible for one sole person to perform all the tasks of oversight, you perform the administrative and managerial work of the Church, and assist the bishop in the appointing and overseeing of pastors and churches.

At one time, D.S.'s were chosen based on seniority, who was "due", or where you were located on the infamous "salary sheet" that some clergy had obtained (but don't tell anyone where you got it!) that had been photocopied so many times as to be almost illegible. In a day where United Methodism is in so need of change, however, I think we are seeing a shift towards adaptive leadership, and bishops are giving new thought to who should be on a cabinet. While Bishop Will Willimon has often provoked ire among many, I think his new book Bishop is helping the UMC clarify the role of bishop and superintendent: Bishops need to be primarily leaders, D.S.'s need to be primarily managers. There is of course overlap; leadership and management are companions, and in these days in the Church, both need to be adaptive. How we used to do things has GOT to change, if we want different results. And that means the way D.S.'s are selected, necessarily, has changed. To quote Willimon:

Persons to be considered for the role of DS need not have been in their clergy careers the greatest preachers, the most learned teachers, or the most caring pastors. They must be leaders who have taken opportunities in their churches for risk-taking in order to produce change and managers who are willing to shoulder the responsibilities of supervision.

Later in the book, he raises the difficulty that few clergy have the experience of making tough decisions and making critical judgments about other people. However, in the UMC, if bishops and D.S.'s don't do this, no one else will. I suspect the best candidates for D.S. might be second-career folks who were previously in management where they evaluated others job-performance, hired and fired employees, and made decisions directly bearing on the life or death of a business. One of my colleagues on the cabinet is a former nurse who supervised other nurses and made life-or-death decisions every day. While I have been in ordained ministry longer than she has, I envy her supervisory and managerial experience. I suspect 20+ years as a college and high-school basketball and baseball official, learning good listening and game-management skills, has been as helpful as anything in dealing with pastors and congregations.

Several things keep me humble:

• The UMC, at least in the U.S., is dying.
• While I've been in ministry 25 years, most of the people I supervise and deal with are older than me (the median age of our denomination is between 55-59).
• I am the shepherd of 8900 laypeople and 60-some clergy. Not as large as some districts, or even as a few UMC churches, but large enough to make my insides quake.
• Assisting in making pastoral appointments is hard, given that the local church is (and should be) the priority, that pastors are less willing to fully itinerate, and that over the years we clergy (myself included) have not obtained the skill-sets we need for the 21st century Church.
• I used to be one who looked at D.S.'s with disdain, being anti-authority as most younger adults usually are. Now I'm the bureaucrat who probably can't preach his way out of a wet paper bag.
• The UMC, at least in the U.S., is dying.

The biggest humbler? Jesus Christ is Lord. And as the apostle Paul told us in 1 Timothy, the job of bishops/overseers is to take care and manage God's church. If it's dying, then I am failing.

So have I "arrived?" I can answer that one quickly and succinctly: hell no. At best, being a D.S. is a side-step, not a step up. And in a denomination that is dying, being a manager in it probably isn't the best thing to put on one's resume. 

My prayer is that I am being faithful, am always faithful, and that in making tough decisions and taking risks, I may also be the clay that God can mold and adapt for His will and purpose. 

Pax,

Sky+

180 Years for Broadway UMC Today

Broadway United Methodist celebrates heritage

BY REBECCA FELDHAUS rfeldhaus@paducahsun.com

Sunday is an important day for all Methodists, but Broadway United Methodist Church congregants have a special reason to rejoice.

The picturesque downtown church celebrates 180 years of faith and fellowship Sunday on the annual Methodist Heritage Sunday. Much of the heritage they’ll celebrate surrounds the history of collaboration at Broadway UMC, Sara Penry said. Penry, church historian and chairwoman of anniversary activities, has been with Broadway UMC since 1951. Along with a steadfast building and growing new membership, the church will honor members who have been with the church for 50 years or longer.

Penry recalls the ecumenical efforts over the years. Come Lent and Advent, Broadway UMC members are easily spotted with other downtown churchgoers of differing denominations, she said. Many of the churches originally located downtown have moved to more suburban areas. Twice congregants voted to stay in the original location, rather than following the relocation trend, Penry said.

As the oldest church in Paducah, founded in 1832, Broadway United Methodist Church is intrinsically linked to the history of the city itself, according to Penry. In 1929, lightning hit the church, and the pastor had to hold services in the McCracken County Courthouse. The pastor sat at the judge’s bench and the choir was in the jury box, she said.

Rev. Joe Beal has been senior pastor at Broadway UCM since June 2010. He came in as associate minister in April 2009, when Northside United Methodist Church merged with the downtown location. Beal has enjoyed his time at Broadway UMC largely in part to the community service opportunities. The church also has a strong musical heritage with a choir and hand bell group that continually gives strong performances.

As the church moves closer to its bicentennial, Beal’s hope is bolstered by the growing number of young couples bringing children to services. He hopes the church can continue to honor those with long-time commitments to Broadway United Methodist Church.

Call Rebecca Feldhaus, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8651.

Copyright 2012 The Paducah Sun. All rights reserved.
© paducahsun.com 2012

(Stained glass window dedicated in memory of Rodney Ritchie. Church staff say Ritchie sold his pet canary for $100 to make a contribution to the church building fund in 1895.)

Observations and a Few Random Thoughts

I covenanted with a few folks that while I was at General Conference I would only blog about where I saw God and where our prayers ought to be centered - and I think I kept my word. But having a few weeks to digest it all, here are some thoughts, in no particular order of importance or significance.

• As other bloggers have noted, we don't trust each other. When Plan UMC was presented, one delegate was so distrustful of its birthing that she asked for a "line up" so we could see their racial and gender makeup. I think that's when I knew we had quit looking at people's hearts and were looking at their outside appearance instead. The book was being judged by its cover.
• We don't trust bishops - and want to give them less empowerment than more. Yet when you look at what effective leadership has to be empowered to do, and what little power our bishops already have, they're doomed to fail. If we really don't want these folks to lead, we might do well to think about not having bishops and save a whole lot of money, get rid of jurisdictions, etc.
• Is this repairable, or do we need a "restart?" You can restart a local church... maybe we need to restart United Methodism! This was an option that Lyle Schaller posited in The Ice Cube Is Melting. At the next General Conference, on the first day: name the fact that we are more like an association of churches rather than a Connection, that some differences are irreconcilable, and pray and mourn over that. On the second day, vote on a proposal to dissolve the United Methodist Church that morning. If that passes, then create a new denominational structure. No restrictive rules. Keep the Articles of Religion. Avoid the firewalls that currently keep a 1970's structure in place (that wasn't working anyway) for a 21st century church. If that were to fail, my suggestion would be to adopt a "Plan I"... since it seems that we may be destined to do whatever "I" wants anyway.
• Some liberals/progressives are as bigoted as some conservatives.
• I officiated college and high school sports for some 28 years, but never witnessed as much venom as I saw on Twitter during GC2012, although #bishopoughstie was amusing. If young people and others who Twittered (Tweeted?) are accusing some of us older folks as intolerant, I wonder how they label themselves.
• We are dysfunctional beyond description. I don't know if we are receptive to intervention from the Holy Spirit or not.
• We are claiming to be a global church, but I think it has a serious American problem - we are narcissistic, self-absorbed, and arrogant. A friend of mine who isn't UM told me when he watched the streaming feed, it looked like C-SPAN.

On paper, I think we are the best Church in Christianity, and the method of Methodism is ingenious. But we have lost our method... and I think we lost it long before I was even born.

Most days I am hopeful, and I'm not tempted to despair just yet. But today, I am very sad.

Forgive us, Lord; we don't know what we're doing. But we're willing to listen. I hope.

Pax,

Sky+

Real Church

I am especially thankful to my annual conference for trusting me to be a reserve delegate to General Conference. I pray I have been faithful to that task. I know that I am as frustrated as anyone about the past two weeks.

Everyone has an opinion about what happened here in Tampa/General Conference. I have my own, too. Of course, opinions are like... opinions. Everyone has one. But I think this opinion is an especially good one:

The church exists in its most robust, most consequential form in local congregations. And it is through the witness and ministry of those congregations that new Christians are called to faith, baptized and formed as disciples of Jesus...

Evangelism and witness are Christian practices that faithful Christian men and women pursue in a local community. Worship happens in congregations. And redemptive love must always be given and received from one to another. That love comes first from Christ to the church, and it can then be shared person-to-person.

All this means that ministry is an inescapably intimate reality. As necessary as certain legislation might be from the “top down,” it can only serve in a secondary capacity to the calling upon Christians in their local situations—where life happens, and where salvation is received.

So the future of the church is still largely what it has always been. We—the pastors and laity of the United Methodist Church—must repent, recommit ourselves, and so reinvigorate the life of the church in our day. - Andrew Thompson, UM Reporter, May 5, 2012

To that, I can only say in my best Kentucky brogue: "Yup."

Almighty God,

Forgive us when we miss the "main thing."

Being and making disciples is what you call us to do, and

we are thankful that you trust us enough to that commission.

These past two weeks, we were more worried about our own "plans"

instead of yours.

Remind us that you are Our Father. And remind us it is "Thy will."

And forgive us, for we are a fallen, flawed, and self-absorbed people.

At the same time, remind us that you can redeem us even when

we are at our most screwed-up and most selfish states

of mind and soul, if we'll only confess, repent, and

do something about it.

Enable us to go home, preach the Gospel clearly, witness

our faith effectively, save the lost, all according to

YOUR plan and call to action.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

Pax,

Sky+

Shall We Gather?

Shall we gather? At the shoreline?

Can you hear the voice of God?

Calling follow me, follow me,

follow me to the heart of eternity

where the reign of God is unending...

We sing this every morning as plenary sessions begin - very poignant words set to moving but soothing and inviting music.

It's more than mood music - it's an invitation. I daresay that everyone in this building is a Christian, but are we willing to go deeper than where we are today? To hear the voice of God and to know it might change us, disturb us, move us, and nudge us away from our will toward His will?

To say "yes" to someone who says, "Follow me" is a bold step of trust and faith. We don't know where all following Jesus will take us. To "the heart of eternity" sounds ominous! But the journey starts somewhere.

Shall we gather? Not just at General Conference - but each day?

Almighty God,

As we awake each morning, remind us that we are "us."

You create us with unique gifts, not to keep to ourselves

but to share with each other and the world.

Remind us that the Body of Christ is a body,

and we need each other.

Grant that we may be willing to gather and follow you

wherever you may take us:

trouble, hardship, persecution, hunger, nakedness,

danger, or sword.

And remind us that you are with us - all the way.

We love you - help us to love each other,

so that we may follow you and fish for your children.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

Pax,

Sky+

Starting the Conversation

This morning we are going to discussing hot potatoes (you can look them up if you wish). There are strong feelings on both sides. Two of our largest church pastors are proposing an amendment to our church's stance on homosexuality. Their intent is to acknowledge hurt and division while keeping our church's stance. Some will think it is watering down what we have. Others think it doesn't go far enough. And of course, the press is showing up today in droves.

As I walked to the convention center this morning, there were a lot of "huddles" out in the hallway. Some were strategizing, and some were informing each other. I saw the Divine in that some were praying - which is, of course, where the conversation always needs to start. Always.

We talk a lot, O Lord.

We talk and twitter and blog about others,

we talk in derision of those we don't like,

we talk in fear about those we don't know.

Remind us that we can be faithful and true to you,

our beliefs, our doctrine, and our theology

without pointing out the speck in another's eye.

Remind us how the logs in our own eyes

blind us to seeing you, your truth, and your people

as the children of God that they are.

We disagree O God. Help us to disagree agreeably.

Forgive us, O Lord.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

Pax,

Sky+

Help Us Be Faithful, O Lord - Not Liked

I have always prayed that I'm faithful in my decisions, both as a pastor/district superintendent, and as a disciple of Jesus Christ. I also pray I never make decisions to be liked. But I'm sure from time to time I have failed in doing so - and for that I will always need to confess and repent.

Blogger Maria Dixon is writing some very good blogs about the work of General Conference and what's going on behind the scenes. Her latest blog, The Games We Play, is, in my opinion, spot-on. She communicates very well, she looks objectively at the issues, and says hard, tough, but fair and faithful things about our thoughts and methodology in making hard decisions that help our denomination be as faithful as it can be in making disciples for Jesus Christ. She ends her article this way:

Let’s hope that those intending to play the game obstruction understand the lives they hold in their hands both inside and outside of the Church. If you are against the plan, vote no because you are against the plan. But if you know the plan is a good plan, then the only statement you make by voting against it is that your ego, your way, and your ideology are more important than the Church. If you choose this route, just own it. Don’t hide behind righteous indignation or moral superiority—just call it what it is—your move in the game of destroy the Church. - Maria Dixon, "The Games We Play"

While she is talking about more specific issues (and you might not agree with her specific opinions on the matter), her words should apply to EVERYTHING we do in the name of the Church. We must be as transparent as possible. We must be faithful as possible. We must be prayerful as possible. The question can never be, "Do I like this?" The question has to be, "Is this faithful?"

Even if it's not our idea. Even if voting for such might provoke a lot of criticism. Our task is not to be liked, but to be faithful.

Almighty God,

Give us armor this day so we can act bravely and faithfully,

willing to face tough issues head-on.

Help us replace arrogant presumption with your will,

knowing that it might come from those we might not agree with.

Remind us that to align ourselves with your greatness

often requires us to adopt humility.

As we do the work of the Kingdom today,

may we listen with our ears and our hearts,

and be faithful to what you may be saying to us today -

even through those we don't find ourselves "aligned" with.

Remind us that they are your children too - thus our brother and sister.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Pax,

Sky+

Patience, Grasshopper

Patience is power.
Patience is not an absence of action;
rather it is "timing"
it waits on the right time to act,
for the right principles
and in the right way.
― Bishop Fulton J. Sheen
Patience does not always come easy - and at General Conference, it can be a dirty word to some. "Let's get this done already!" "Are we ever going to get done at this pace?" These and similar phrases come early and often.

I suspect patience and wisdom are sisters to each other, and both are related to how we listen to each other and to God. Today, may our patience and wisdom outweigh our need to manage and insist - knowing that God's way is far better than our own.

Almighty God,
Help us to pause this day,
To hear, reflect, and perfect how we act,
How we speak, and how we go forward to do your will.
Help us to remove the "my" and replace it with "our,"
And may we be patient with each other, and with you.
In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.

Pax,
Sky+

Sabbath at General Conference - Breathe Deep

Yesterday was a difficult day for General Conference folks. Feelings of frustration, defeat, anger, sorrow - the emotions that discourage us and demotivate us and demoralize us and de-whatever else us. Times like these remind us that prayer is ever more important and necessary - the prayer of listening and discernment. My friend Ken Carter said it well: we have to be vigilant about the realities of process, protest, and power - and frame every day with prayer.

I'm reminded of a song I heard Ed Kilbourne and Chris Hughes sing many years ago, written by Terry Taylor. We all need to sit, and breathe deep:

CHORUS: Breathe deep, breathe deep the breath of God
Breathe deep, breathe deep the breath of God

Politicians, morticians, Philistines, homophobes
Skinheads, Deadheads, tax evaders, street kids
Alcoholics, workaholics, wise guys, dim wits
Blue collars, white collars, warmongers, peaceniks (CHORUS)

Suicidals, rock idols, shut-ins, dropouts
Friendless, homeless, penniless, depressed
Presidents, residents, foreigners, and aliens
Dissidents, feminists, xenophobes, and chauvinists (CHORUS)

Evolutionists, creationists, perverts, slum lords
Dead beats, athletes, Protestants, and Catholics
Housewives, neophytes, pro-choice, pro-life
Misogynists, monogamists, philanthropists, blacks and whites (CHORUS)

Po-lice, obese, lawyers, governments
Sex offenders, tax collectors, war vets, rejects
Atheists, scientists, racists, sadists
Biographers, photographers, artists and pornographers (CHORUS)

Gays and lesbians, demagogues and thespians
The disabled, preachers, doctors and teachers
Meat eaters, wife beaters, judges and juries
Long hairs, no hairs, everybody everywhere! (CHORUS)

- ©1992 Brainstorm Artists, Terry Taylor

May that be our prayer today - and everyday: Breathe deep - breathe deep the breath of God.

Pax,

Sky+

Dog Tired and Weary

I have been sitting outside committee rooms for the past two days, and occasionally I walk into one to listen in on conversations and committee work. For the most part everyone is very gracious, even after long hours, but occasionally we get a little testy. I know that when I get tired, I am prone to being on edge and making hasty decisions. So today's prayer is a simple one:

O Gracious Father:

We your children are weary today.

Our bodies are tired, our eyes are cloudy,

our tempers are shorter, and smiles are difficult.

Give us strength to do the work ahead,

and give us grace to do it grace-fully.

We love you.

Remind us to be loving, as we are loved.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

Pax,

Sky+