I recently returned from a mission trip.  It was five of our youth and four adults traveling to West Virginia to help do some home repair projects.  Our youth have participated annually for a while, but this was my first opportunity to go.  One of the best parts of the trip was the opportunity to talk with the youth – to work side by side with them and hear their stories.  And I got to tell mine.

Nobody expected the pastor to be very skilled at construction and home repairs, but they soon realized I could do a few things!  And there is a good reason for this.

When I was young, we had little money (and truthfully, little has changed!).  We could not afford to have experts come in and repair things, we did not have money for plumbers or electricians.  But we did have Uncle Bill.  Uncle Bill was married to my father’s sister, and he was the ultimate handyman.  Uncle Bill worked on aircraft during WWII, and held maintenance positions afterwards.  Uncle Bill would come over to fix the drain, replace a part on the dryer, or get the car to start.  And I would watch.

I learned how do to many things around the house that has helped us over the years (and saved us some money as well).  During the mission trip I truly began to appreciate Uncle Bill’s guidance.

But my dad also made an “appearance” during the trip.  I had the chance to tell some “dad” stories and jokes, and even his corny magic trick with a quarter.

This is part of the cloud of witnesses – those who came before us, who influenced us, who brought us up.  Uncle Bill’s influence gave me the skills necessary to help those in need.  Dad’s influence helped me to entertain our group.  Both are very much a part of who I am.

Who are in your cloud?  Who influenced you, taught you, mentored you?  Take a moment to give God thanks and praise for them.

Peace,

Bill

For a successful cruise aboard a ship, one of the most important people is the Cruise Director.  This person is responsible for all of the entertainment, activities, guest parties, lectures and shows.  The Cruise Director’s main responsibility is to assure each passenger has a great time on the cruise.  This means the Cruise Director needs to schedule different activities to meet different wants and desires.  For some it is a cocktail party, for others it might be “Coffee on the Lido Deck” (thanks, Love Boat).

Overall, the Cruise Director tries to make everybody happy so they will tell their friends and more people will take cruises.

Believe it or not, a pastor is not a Cruise Director.  A pastor is not in a church to make everyone happy.  A pastor is not to develop each and every fun event, lecture series and party so that those on the cruise those in the church are “satisfied”.

What then should a pastor be you may ask?  A pastor is a Spiritual Director.

A Spiritual Director helps us see God in all aspects of our lives.  A Spiritual Director assists people in the quest to grow closer with God.  A Spiritual Director helps people assess their lives while guiding them through Christian formation.

And this is so much more important than satisfying people’s desires.  A Spiritual Director guides people to satisfy the “God-shaped hole” residing in each of us precisely because a Spiritual Director points us towards God.

Why are pastors running around so busy yet the church is in decline?  Because the expectation is that we satisfy customers rather than perform soul-work.  It is an unfortunate result of a capitalistic, market based, competitive church environment; “Come to my church where we offer the best coffee.”  “No, come to my church where we do sermon series on how to exercise and eat better.”  “No, my church offers great programming.”  And the list goes on.  Yet the church is in decline because we are missing the point.  It is about God, not us. But to truly structure the church around God, we need to seek God.  To seek God, sometimes we need to be pointed in the right direction.  For that, we need Spiritual Directors.

My desire is to do more Spiritual Direction than Cruise Direction.  And for some people, that is really what they want – to discover God’s will, to become more Christ-like, to satisfy their hungry heart.  And that is a worthy call.

If you seek God in your lives, if you are searching for more than a Cruise Director, feel free to contact me.

I’m excited.  Today is Pentecost Sunday, the one day a year mainline denomination pastors get to preach on the Holy Spirit.

Okay, maybe I am exaggerating a little, but often in our world, the Holy Spirit is the “red-headed stepchild” of the Trinity.  We invoke the Spirit and we mention the Spirit, but we don’t always embrace the Spirit.  We even diminish the power of Pentecost by relegating it to a children’s sermon of the church’s birthday.

So where is the power in that?

The Pentecost experience was not a one and done thing.  Read through the book of Acts and see how the early church depended upon the Holy Spirit.  And nowhere does Jesus ever say “I am going away but I will send an advocate, the Spirit of Truth, who will teach you all things, give you power from on high, then disappear forever, but you can mention Him on one Sunday a year.” 

Truthfully, the church needs a new Pentecost experience.  We need to embrace the Holy Spirit.  We need to ask the Triune God to guide us daily and listen as the Spirit speaks.  When we pray it should be in the Spirit (which does not necessarily mean in tongues, rather fully expecting God’s Spirit to pray with us and do things).  And we need to know that the Holy Spirit is with us.

Even if it isn’t Pentecost Sunday.

It has been nuts lately.  Actually, I’ve been pastoring in “Crisis Mode” since the beginning of the year –  we’ve had a lot of emergencies, pastoral care issues, funerals and the like.  And some of them have been real doozies (but I cannot tell you because they are private, personal things for people).

And now it is Holy Week.  On Palm Sunday my wife and I led the worship service as we journeyed with Jesus into Jerusalem and through Holy Week.  The service was powerful.

We ate lunch during Coffee Hour, had the Easter Egg Hunt and then went to my wife’s ministry setting to do the service there.  After that service we visited my mother (with end stage dementia), headed home and stopped by a congregants house to pray with them because of an illness.

And now I’m finishing up Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday services.  And there are still people to visit.  It does not let up.  But there is a reminder in all of this.  Jesus, while on the cross said “it is finished.”  Were all the sick healed?  No.  Were all the souls saved?  No.  Were all the faithful renewed?  No.  But Jesus’ earthly ministry was finished in one way – and continued on in another – through His followers.

I am but one man.  And while I strive to do all I need to do, I must realize that my call is not to be Jesus, rather His follower.  I cannot get to every visit.  I cannot get to every piece of paper on the desk.  Not every detail will be handled.  Rather I will, with God’s help, do the best I can this week to proclaim the Good News to all I encounter.

May your Holy Week be a time of blessing,

Bill

Wait for it…

We are waiting for the snow.  The forecasters are so sure about it that schools closed last night, appointments have been changed, schedules disrupted.  But so far, no snow.  We wait.

On one hand, it is kind of annoying – having to wait.  Wouldn’t we all rather wake up to see the 5 inches of snow already instead of trying to outwit things.  “Do I go in to work, only to have difficulty getting home?” “Do I cancel that Doctor’s appointment?”  “Do I…?”

And we wait.

It’s not like I don’t have enough to do, in fact I brought home plenty of work.  There is Lenten worship planning, a book study to begin with the Session, upcoming Sunday school lessons, the Safety Team, and lots more that needs to be done.  My wife and daughter also have plenty of work to do.  We are well prepared for the storm.

But we wait.

It seems like people wait a lot in life.  We wait for something to happen to move us forward.  We wait for test results.  We wait for appointments.  We wait in the waiting room for those appointments.  We wait for the next cashier to check us out.  We wait.

And waiting can sometimes be uncomfortable.  But we must face the wait with patience and grace.

The rhythm of the church year is similarly filled with waiting.  The church year begins with Advent, a season of waiting for the celebration of the birth of the Messiah, and a recognition of our wait for His return.    We wait for the great Christmas celebration, and then we wait until Epiphany to take down decorations.

And we are about to enter into another period of waiting, Lent.  Lent is a time of penitence, a reminder of Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness.  During Lent many give up something (and wait for Easter to take it back up again).  Others spend extra time in prayer and bible study.  Lent can be a time of waiting – until we reach Holy Week with the Triumphant Entry, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the real wait – the sometimes painful wait from Friday until Easter Sunday and the celebration of the Resurrection.

Holy Week can be a reminder of our own lives – times of celebration, times of sadness, times of death, and then that time when we stand before God face to face.  For that we wait.  With hope and expectation.

Today, as you wait for the snow to begin, as you do whatever you need to do, take a moment in prayer and meditation.  Consider everything God has blessed you with, including those things worth waiting for.

Peace,

Bill

November 11^th 2018 was a packed worship service.  There were so many things going on.

The service started with a touching tribute to our veterans.  The Deacons worked with the children to give cards and pins to our vets in a very nice, very moving inter-generational way.

But that was not enough.

A family stood up to proclaim their desire to have their baby baptized.  The children promised to help guide this child as she grew up in the church.  The adults again reclaimed their baptismal promises, to reject evil, to embrace Jesus, to support the church, and to be spiritual mentors to this child.  We then prayed over water, an ordinary substance transformed to something holy, and baptized her in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  As the choir sung a touching song, the baby went for a walk with the pastor around the room.  As every eye was upon her, she was looking to the ceiling, perhaps at the angels in attendance, or the “Great cloud of witnesses”.  Baptism always makes me emotional because I can really feel God’s presence as God marks the child.

But that was not enough.

The worship leader read the Old Testament scripture and sat down.  I approached the pulpit and stood in silence as a Trustee rang the bell eleven times.  You see, it was the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month – the one hundred year anniversary of the end of the first world war.

But that was not enough.

I preached an impassioned sermon on the Widow’s Mite and the Widow of Zarephath, calling out the fact that God sees our plight, God sees our situations, and God responds through people.  People like us.

But that was not enough.

We again have experienced a tragic shooting in our nation.  As pastor, I wrestled with my response, writing a second sermon, going back and forth between which sermon to preach, and finally deciding to make a special time of prayer.  I called the congregation to pray, and then to be the answer to prayer, because the church is the most effective and powerful force on the planet – when we work together with God.

But that was not enough.

You see, we still had the prayers of the people – that time when we lift up the needs of the congregation, community and world.  We prayed for people having surgery this week.  We prayed for a woman that nobody knows, but she needed prayer.  We prayed for loved ones who are sick, loved ones who are recovering and loved ones who are dying.  We prayed for victims of the California wild fires, and we prayed for the leaders of our nation.

By the benediction, I was completely drained.  Emotionally, spiritually, physically and mentally drained.  And I’ll do it again next Sunday because worship is that important.

It is not every Sunday that we baptize someone.  But each Sunday we are called to remember our baptism and charged with living it.  It is not every Sunday that we honor our veterans, but each Sunday we are reminded to give thanks for their blessing.  It is not every Sunday that we ring the bell, but each Sunday we are called to gather to promote peace, justice and the forgiveness of sin.

And every Sunday we hear the gospel proclaimed.  Every Sunday we lift up people in prayer.  Every Sunday we experience the forgiveness of sin and the call to live as followers of Jesus.

If you really stop for a moment and think about it, every Sunday is packed with lots of life-giving things.  If you haven’t been to worship in awhile, this is a great time to return as we approach the Advent season.  We will explore the themes of Hope, Peace, Love and Joy and how we, the baptized, can embody those themes in our daily lives.

I hope to see you Sunday,

Bill

Men – who was most responsible for teaching you the faith?  For most men it began with a mother or grandmother, and then fell to that special woman who we marry.  For me, I had an aunt who taught me to serve the Lord by serving the church in many ways.  My grandmother taught me to love God.  Both my grandmother and my mother taught me to read scripture and pray.  Yes my dad had a hand, but it was the women.  Just like Timothy in the Bible (2 Timothy 1:5), “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.”

Men, November 1st is All Saints Day a day set apart to remember those faithful in the Church Triumphant.  Let’s think about the women of our lives who taught us about God and God’s love.  Let’s give God a prayer of thanksgiving for those who have gone before us.  And then let’s remember the women still in our lives, honor them and pray for them as well.  After all, they are saints too.

It was a simple gesture.  My wife and I attended a special service of healing at a synagogue.  Nothing to it – we just showed up.  And people thanked us for coming.

It was not that typical, un-meaningful “thanks” that some people say.  It was heartfelt and there was a lot of emotion and gratitude behind the simple word.  I was dumbfounded.  All I did was show up.

Yet that was the point.  You see, the Jews are a people who have been oppressed for thousands of years, even by Christians.  And I am a Christian.  I am a Christian minister.  And I wore my collar.  The symbol of Christian ministry.

I did wear my collar on purpose.  I wanted all to know that Christians stand with Jews, especially after the events of Saturday.

But I never expected the simple “thanks” said by so many members of the synagogue.  A heartfelt “thank you for coming, thank you for supporting us, thank you for standing with us.”

And all I did was show up.

Imagine if I did more.

Imagine if you did more.

Imagine if we all worked together to show solidarity instead of division.

Imagine if we stood with each other instead of against each other.

Imagine if we all loved instead of hated.

Perhaps then we would live the words of Jesus, you know, those words he repeated from the Hebrew Scriptures:  The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

All I did was show up.

And last night, that was all I had to do.  Show up.  Support.  Love.

I have a pretty set routine for Fridays.  I get up, make breakfast and say goodbye to my wife as she heads to work.  I take my daughter to school, then usually do the food shopping.  At some point I end up  finishing work that did not get done (even though Friday is my day off).  But today is different.  Today I spend more time focused on one thing.  Today is Good Friday, a day we remember Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross.

Some churches do not hold Good Friday services.  Some do, but many Christians do not attend.  And that is a shame.  Yes I know, its another day or night at the church after a special Palm Sunday service and possibly Maundy Thursday service (are we really that busy that we cannot spend one more hour in worship?). I know there are so many other things going on.  But is it right to go from the celebration of Palm Sunday to the celebration of Easter without going through Golgatha?  Let us stop for a moment and think about one thing…Jesus.

Good Friday is the most solemn day on the church calendar.  It is a day that we stop to consider His death for us.  It is not a day to celebrate, rather a day to remember.  It is a day to focus on His passion, His pain and His love.  It is important.

Today, even if you do not attend a service, please read one of the gospel accounts of the passion.  Please stop for a little time and consider what Jesus went through for you.  Please take a moment and give thanks for what God has done, is doing and will do for you.  And may your Good Friday be one of significant blessings.

To read the Gospel of John’s account of the passion, click here

My wife cut up some bread into cubes to take to her workplace.  There she will conduct two Maundy/Holy Thursday services.

I will go to the church building and prepare my service as well.  We’ve reset the sanctuary to look different, creating a special atmosphere, because tonight is a special service.

Well, tonight, Friday night and Sunday morning are all very special services that tell the most important story.

If you are not aware of the essential Christian story, it is told in three days – Maundy Thursday, the day in which Jesus gives us the mandate to love one another as He loves us, and the Lord’s Supper.  Good Friday, the day Jesus lays down His life for us and Easter Sunday, the day of Resurrection.  Three days that tell the story.

And you know what?  You don’t have to fully understand to take part.  You don’t have to understand exactly what happens to the bread and the wine when we take it.  You don’t have to understand why Jesus willingly sacrificed His life for us.  You don’t have to even fully understand the resurrection.  After all, there are many questions surrounding all these things – but that is what the journey of faith is about – exploring the questions of the intersection of God and ourselves.

So often Christianity gets a bad rap about what we stand against.  Maybe you shy away from church because you were shamed, or made to feel bad about yourself.  Maybe you just don’t like “organized religion”, or you are one of the many people I’ve encountered who just never quite understood what was going on.  Come tonight.  Be present with us as we explore the sacred mysteries of Communion.  Come Friday night and hear the story of Jesus going to the cross.  Then celebrate with us on Sunday morning as we shout out the oldest statement of faith in Christianity, “He is Risen!”

And if you don’t get it, that is fine.  At least come and start the journey.  After all, the journey is what it’s all about.