tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91766851969740736092024-02-07T01:29:30.152-05:00Northeast United Church of ChristIt's a lot like that, yes.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-5368907296624720472011-09-11T01:08:00.007-04:002011-09-11T02:46:12.477-04:00What is Our Job, Exactly? (Or, What Are You Doing Here??)We... "THE CHURCH". Not just our congregation, or our denomination, but all those folks out there who claim Christianity as their faith. The entire family of Christ. What is it we are supposed to be doing in the world? Are we supposed to be converting people? Proselytizing all the sinners? Aren't we all sinners? Are we supposed to be judging others? Condemning others? Praying? Praising? Hiding behind our stained glass and stone walls? Delivering a message through actions that speak louder than words?? Serving? Saving? Perhaps like Elijah, we need to hear God speaking those words, "What Are You Doing Here?" We Protestants tend to particularly love Micah 6:8 "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Okay, that's easy, right? But then what???<br /><br />Tonight I happened to be at church trying to make things look presentable and welcoming while finishing up some Sunday School preparations when the phone rang. My friend had just recently headed home. Without giving it much thought, I answered. I just tend to assume that when the phone rings at 8:30 on a Saturday night, it's probably someone looking for somebody. In point of fact, I still think that is what this call was.... just... this time it wasn't one of our members looking for some other member. It was a stranger, looking for someone to listen. A young man with a troubled past, and a troubled present. Someone who was only 21, a veteran, and already struggling with enough demons for a lifetime. I don't need to share the details here, suffice it to say he was looking for a place to get answers. He was searching for someone to listen to him. He was pretty sure that he was damned for things he had done in service, and maybe elsewhere in his life. He just needed to talk. He talked for almost an hour. He certainly said some things I didn't agree with socially, theologically, politically. That doesn't really matter though. Throughout the call, he didn't ask for anything for himself, despite sharing a long list of personal tragedies that would make your toes curl. He asked for one thing: Prayers for his brother. Not money, not help for any of his troubles. He asked, very politely, with his soft drawl... "Would your church pray for my brother? He's going through some hard times."<br /><br />And of all the things he said, the one that probably haunts me the most is this; he said he'd called other churches who sent him away. That he worships at home because his appearance isn't 'for church' because of his clothes or his tattoos or his piercings. That he'd never felt 'invited' into church. So, wait. What? WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE???<br /><br /><br />Matt 25:35-40<br />35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, <span style="font-weight:bold;">I was a stranger and you invited me in,<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span> 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’<br /><br /> 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’<br /><br /> 40 “The King will reply, <span style="font-style:italic;">‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’<span style="font-weight:bold;"></span></span><br /><br />Normally there wouldn't have been anyone there to answer the phone at that time. I just happened to be there, worried about whether we were tidy enough to be 'welcoming' (Yes, that word again. It's important.) I was concerned about appearances. (What are you DOING here??)<br /><br />Our God who is big enough to create the universe, who can hear all of our hurts and worries and sins and joys and triumphs... a God who would take the time to carefully craft the brilliant iridescence of a small green beetle, can love us and heal us in ways we can't begin to hope for... THAT God must have caused me to connect with this young man, the Holy Spirit must have moved to bring us together, if only for an hour over the phone. I pray then, that the same God gave me the right words to say to him, that he would know that he was welcome with us, in the family of Christ, at His table, at our worship services, in God's house.<br /><br />Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. (Heb 13:2)<br /><br />God <span style="font-weight:bold;">NEVER, EVER</span> gives up on us! What do you say to this stranger then, but <span style="font-style:italic;">'Come, you are welcome.'</span>?<br /><br />What are YOU doing here?? Listen; I think God is still speaking...pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-34269311264020958672010-09-22T15:11:00.006-04:002010-09-22T15:50:36.509-04:00Fear and Loathing in Church CouncilLet's say that there was something that could happen... something you'd experienced before that was challenging, difficult or scary... something you knew had the potential to happen again, but which you prayed and hoped would not.<br /><br />And then it didn't.<br /><br />Like a devastating storm bearing down on your house that suddenly lifts and dissipates on a gentle breeze. It doesn't mean that another storm will never come your way, but this one, THIS storm passed, and nothing bad happened. What would you do? Would you shout for joy? Would you say "Amen" or "Thank you Jesus!" or "Praise God!"? or ANYthing that shows a grateful heart for the faithfulness of God??? And if you did all those things and someone told you not to get excited, what would be your response?<br /><br />WHY ARE WE NOT EXCITED??? When something isn't going well, we ask God WHY, and to help us, and when something goes right, we question it... something quantifiable must have transpired to CAUSE this. We look for numbers, for data, for reasons why the bad thing didn't occur, looking to make sure that it isn't still lurking in the closet waiting to surprise us with some kind of horrific terror. We look for ways to credit ourselves and debunk any action that might be considered divine. We ask God for help every day, and when we receive it, invest far more energy in downplaying the goodness of it and trying to find the error, than in thanking our merciful Creator for life-affirming moments of faithfulness in action. <br /><br />God is Good, All the Time; All the Time, God is Good.<br /><br />When we bring fear to the table, then we begin to loathe, instead of love, the work of Christ's church. Fear divides and faith unites. God has a love enormous enough for all of us, if we hear it, and live it.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-55310628960053191692010-03-08T23:29:00.002-05:002010-03-08T23:32:39.413-05:00Thank you, church family for being there for me. I really love being a part of this family. I am excited for all the new things to come. I'm inspired by your creativity. I am humbled by your dedication. I am uplifted by your laughter. Thank you, thank you, thank you!Merrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02521298896905749402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-61160643500727043362010-01-19T16:01:00.002-05:002010-01-19T16:06:52.464-05:00Wisdom, Old and New.My grandmother used to say to us “Have I told you lately that I love you? Because I do.” I've been thinking about how important that was. And still is. Grandma heartily, and sometimes very plainly disapproved of things that we did when we were small... and when we were grown. I suppose though, there's a lot more room to understand the context of that disapproval when it comes from someone who loves you, and always did, from before you were born til she stepped off this mortal coil. And who took the time to tell you so regularly, both with clearly understood actions and plain words. What a gift we can give to children! Has it ever been said that a child was hugged too much? Too often told that they were precious and loved? What is the worst that could come of that? My son a few months ago remarked of a baby he had never met, the child of a person he had never met, but upon who's picture we were looking “She is important to somebody.” I want that sensitivity to the gentle spirit that dwells within each of us to always, ALWAYS be a part of the way he looks at the world. I fail at it often myself, so I don't know if I will be the best teacher. Maybe I'll just have to learn this from him instead. Perhaps the best I will be able to do is love him, and hug him and tell him every day that he is precious to me. In plain words tell him when I approve and when I disapprove. Practice forgiveness he can see, and hope that it is enough to flourish the gentle spirit in him that recognizes already the value of another child of God.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-2662271962826727122010-01-13T01:25:00.003-05:002010-01-13T01:36:51.815-05:00Dreams, and Goals, and Resolutions, Oh My!Just a short post... Everyone is still so fresh and resolution-y right now... I just want to ask... How will this year be different?? If I start with myself, and move out in faith, how will my 2010 be different and better than the year before?<br /><br />Makes me think of one of my all time favorite quotations:<br />"The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart and head and hands, <br />and then work outward from there."<br />— Robert M. Pirsig <br /><br />In what ways do you hope to grow and change as a person of faith in the next year? How do you resolve to start that work in your own heart, head and hands? <br /><br />In what ways do you want to see our church community do the same?<br />How do you begin to move outward with your faith?<br /><br />What do you resolve to do differently, better or more of in your faith year?<br />How can we improve the world by improving on ourselves?<br /><br />These are to me, frighteningly elementary, and simultaneously grandiose questions.<br />I'm looking forward to your answers and thoughts, dreams and hopes.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-86476560554808016002010-01-12T00:25:00.002-05:002010-01-12T00:33:02.485-05:00You know what? I felt the love tonight. I'm ready to work past the pain and grow in faith. Conflict and despair can jump start harmony and dedication and not always lead to decay. Not no, but how. Not who's gonna do it but what can I do. Moving on, looking forward, listening and looking to God. I am overflowing with joy sharing a meal with the brothers and sisters of my church family and am in awe of their talents. You are all a blessing to me!Merrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02521298896905749402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-48621802083572104732009-12-29T22:10:00.000-05:002009-12-30T06:27:19.660-05:00Thought For The Day"When you come to the edge of all the light that you know, And you are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown, Faith is knowing one of two things will happen: There will be something solid to stand on or you will be taught how to fly." - Barbara J. Winterpirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-63913211481020228442009-12-28T23:50:00.006-05:002009-12-29T01:32:03.098-05:00The Darkest Time of the YearI have been thinking tonight, and it occurs to me after a very strange fashion, that this may be the darkest time of the year. Yes, in terms of the Earth's trip around the sun, we are now on our way back to long daylight hours and short dark nights. In the dusky hollow between Christmas and the new year though, many of us grow introspective, reflective, retrospective. We turn and look behind us at another 12 months gone by... slack-jawed, agape at the swift passage of time which has taken no notice of us as it dashes by, save perhaps to gray a hair, deepen a wrinkle, or add inches to young frames. It can make us melancholy, thinking of things left undone or unsaid. Wrongs not righted... goals not met... old times gone by. Meant-tos and should-haves. This is the time of year when we self-evaluate, make resolutions and simultaneously flog ourselves for falling short in the current year, while puffing ourselves up with great hopes for how spectacular we will be in the year ahead.<br /><br />How do we get to this place every time? Well, to start with... it IS darker and colder. Our souls (and our bodies) would really appreciate it if we could make like a bear and crawl into a cave and wait for spring. (Goodbye Christmas, wake me when it's Easter!) We've all come off this family-friends-food-fun high that kicks us in the teeth when we find that it is over... our spirits seem to be in some sort of detox from the drug of conviviality and community. We've run ragged to every party, gathering, family function, school show, parade, company Christmas, reunion, potluck and shindig we can possibly cram into a month. We've shopped til we drop, or madly baked, cooked, created and crafted our gifts. We have compromised our health, our sleep, our waistlines and our wallets in the name of one big party that is increasingly lost on the celebrants. We've spent lots on things that maybe don't matter as much as the one thing we all need more of but can't ever get... time. We're tired of everything and thirsty for something more all at once. We are too much time out of joint, too much of the time.<br /><br />The sense of the liturgical calendar is gone from our lives too, it seems. I know so many people that couldn't wait to get their Christmas decorations out before Thanksgiving... now, just a few days into the "Twelve Days of Christmas", they are all bemoaning what a chore it is that they must be taken down. Everyone is dreading the return to work, to school, to ordinary life. For them, the star in the East has already set. The shepherds have returned to the fields and flocks... the magi have gone home by another route. We get so caught up in preparing for the big party at the manger for weeks ahead of time, that we don't spend most of the 12 Days actually celebrating it. We don't wait for Epiphany to reveal the visions of the three kings. I have my guilty moments too... I used to leave the tree up somewhat unintentionally, but fairly consistently until February or March. Now I set a strict January 5th deadline. I know that the modern, progressive church does not necessarily set much store by a lot of seasonal/liturgical hoopla. Nor does the modern Christian very often either I suspect. That's okay... but I'm a bit of a medievalist on this score. I adore the changing seasons of the church calendar, and the natural calendar. I continue to the think about the words from Ecclesiastes, reminding us that there IS a season for everything, and a time for every purpose under heaven. I think about how that might benefit us, to reserve a little time for each part of our lives... the mundane, the extraordinary. The holy, the profane, the profound. The sacred and the secular. Some will disagree... but for myself, it gives meaning to things to think about them each in their own context, and as part of a cycle of continuation. It gives me hope in the dark days of winter... it gives me something else to look forward to, and a new season in which to dwell, reflect, and revel. I'm still celebrating Christmas, and you can't stop me! <br /><br />My big resolution for 2010? To live a very full and rich life, with time set aside for each thing after it's own needs... including time for God... so that this time next year I'm feeling blessed and fulfilled, instead of wondering what I've done with another year.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-83419716400073947512009-12-22T03:16:00.009-05:002009-12-22T05:43:10.676-05:00Get Out Of The Way...I'm pondering how much, and how often, we get in our own way. <br /><br />I think about all the times we're asked to do something, something that will be really good for us, or for those around us, and we get all tangled up in doubt and second-guessing ourselves and the circumstances. We make excuses that become self-fulfilling prophecies. I wonder if Noah would have had as much trouble moving on faith as many of us do, whether we would even be here to talk about it. <br /><br />God, I suspect, has more patience with us than we often rightly deserve. Like a parent who can calmly and capably repeat themselves 100 times until their child gets it right, until they understand. I hope that I, and others, are listening to what is being said to us, and <span style="font-style:italic;">through</span> us. I hope that I have the faith to keep trying as long as God will keep repeating those instructions, to do what is asked of me.<br /><br />In this time of year when we're busily making way for all the trimmings and trappings of a 21st Century Christmas... and hopefully also for that precious Christ-child, I pray that we all remember that we are on assignment. We're on a mission to make a highway through the desert... through the barren places of our own spirituality, and the desolate places in the world... make a road that will take us right to the source of love and light if we let it. Each of us, one voice, crying in the wilderness. I believe that voice is one, but not alone. It was never alone. This path has been walked countless times by numberless souls. Prophets, shepherds, servants, magi, brave young girls, wise old men, fools, saints, sinners, dreamers... and maybe even Jesus himself. And the voice of God, there the whole time, was and is patiently, gently guiding us.<br /><br />Listen. Try it again. Don't give up. This work can be done... you can make this path, though the hills, the valleys, the curved places. God does not give up on us. God does not grow weary. Stop. Redirect yourself. <span style="font-style:italic;">Get out of the way so that you can make <span style="font-weight:bold;">God's</span> way.</span> In the wilderness of our souls then, the road will be straight, and the desert will bloom.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-16198577930197609562009-12-19T13:22:00.002-05:002009-12-19T13:23:13.012-05:00Thoughts For The Day."Many demolitions are actually renovations." -Jalaluddin Rumi, poet and mystic (1207-1273)<br /><br />Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.<br />--Colossians 3:13pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-33034495210886584212009-12-16T23:07:00.002-05:002009-12-16T23:16:16.078-05:00GraceThe freely given, unmerited favor and love of God. God's grace is with me when I fail, when I challenge, when I am hurtful, when I am selfish, when I fear. By the grace of God - all of these oh so human trappings can be shed and I can become vessal to transport God's love to others. NEUCC - our family may be dysfunctional at times, but you are still my church family, and I still love you all and GOD IS STILL SPEAKING! In this advent season, I am praying for quiet and peace and openness so that I can hear what God is trying to tell me. God is shouting at Holly. I believe God is whispering to me - don't be afraid to love unconditionally, let it come from Me.Merrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02521298896905749402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-22027642421307028502009-12-15T16:32:00.003-05:002009-12-15T16:35:02.759-05:00Annual Advent PostIt seems like every year I have to do a post around Advent. Maybe this is just the time of year when I get inspired... <br /><br />In the United Church of Christ, we believe that "God is Still Speaking."<br /><br />God is still speaking to the church, still guiding us, still growing us, still challenging us. I have been, along with many of our congregants, EXTRA challenged in the last 48 hours or so. God is still speaking to us as individuals... every moment of every day of our lives, there is the chance that God will say something to any one of us... it might be a great thing, or a small thing. Sometimes God speaks with silence, and sometimes God shouts at us in a deafening roar.<br /><br />I finally, reluctantly joined Facebook this year. After some painful and cathartic moments in a church meeting, I came home to find the following things posted at random by fellow Facebookers:<br /><br />Zinger of the day part 1: “Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving.” Dale Carnegie<br /><br />Zinger of the day part 2: "Traditions are group efforts to keep the unexpected from happening."<br /><br />Zinger of the day part 3: A motivational video that talked about upping your output just a little bit more to achieve great things.<br /><br />God is shouting at me right now... Now I have to figure out what to do with that.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-57762899283298018372009-03-16T10:35:00.002-04:002009-03-16T10:49:40.916-04:00Attitude adjuster neededHi, we need help. We don't have the money for anything. We can't start any new programs because no one will come. We don't have any young people getting involved. We need all of the families with children to sit at the back of the church because they're annoying. We can't do outreach ministry because we really don't like people that much. Did I mention that money was a concern? We're putting a lot of effort into some fundraisers that we could be putting into new programs if only people would attend them, which they won't. If only we had some money and some more members.<br /><br />People are making copies of music and we're not sure that should be allowed. People are blocking the worship center with their praise and worship and music. The cross and altar are for putting flowers and rocks and moss and pretty material all over it. And worship. No one is joining the choir. Dang it, I need some fricking help up here in the choir section. I can't carry these people all by myself. We're getting discouraged, our choir is. It had been almost two weeks and you hadn't hired a choir director yet. Now it has been seven months.<br /><br />Our Council meetings are sad because we have no money. People don't like each other because we have no money. No dinero. People need to contribute more money to our church. We can't resolve any issues either, because I'm not going to work with you and deep down, you're a nice person and you won't confront real problems anyway. I'm going to ignore the things you have to say anyway. <br /><br />We need help. Buy a ticket to our fundraiser. Bring your friends to buy our food. This is the only time we ask you to bring people that you know.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-88913493296869672282008-12-01T01:15:00.005-05:002008-12-03T21:32:09.206-05:00Advent Is...Let me set this up for you... <br /><br />Yesterday (Sunday) was the first Sunday of Advent. Our liturgist had read the first scripture for the day, and about half of the second one. She closed her Bible and then said "oops, I didn't finish that one. Hold on while I get back to it." or something to that effect. Then she said that we could all enjoy that "pregnant pause" while pondering the first part of the scripture lesson.<br /><br />I love that phrase "pregnant pause"... it's been rolling around in my head all day. I thought about it while my pastor and I, with other friends, talked about the season of Advent and what that means. I am up out of bed at nearly half past twelve because that phrase was chewing at my brain. <br /><br />Pregnant Pause may be the tidiest summation of advent that we have. It's a little space of time in our lives where we anxiously await the coming of something... a something that is the Best Sort Of Surprise (I feel very A.A. Milne in typing that) because you know that it's coming, and you're excited about it anyway. There are lots of discussions right now, I'm sure, about Advent, and it's meaning. Whether this should be a time of spare, austere, Lenten-style preparation, or a frenetic Black Friday-style preparation. I feel like they're two very different sorts... but maybe neither one is really what Advent is about. When Christ came to us in the simplest, smallest form of hope that we could readily grasp and digest and understand, there was a gift that we didn't anticipate, maybe. A gift of knowing how to prepare for that type of hope. To me, Advent is a lot like waiting for a baby... any baby. It's a time to reflect on all the wonderful things you want the world to be for new little person. A time to take even just a few small steps towards realizing that dream... a little extra kindness. A tiny bit of charity. Some small change, an extra smile. As a mother, I think of the light of Advent the same way I remember the soft, warm light in the delivery room. It's dim, but it's enough to see by. It's not stark, or scary, or threatening. It isn't the blinding light of Easter morning at the tomb... it's the same gentle color as candleglow and rosy sunsets. It's winter firelight, and the welcoming light of home through the window. When a baby is coming, there's lots to do, but it's the kind of work most people seem to enjoy. Dreaming, planning, preparing, hoping. Giving, sharing, opening, making room for someone. You weed out things you don't need cluttering up your space anymore... things you don't use, things that wouldn't be safe or appropriate for a baby, things that are reminders of your life BEFORE you were preparing for a baby. You give it away, recycle it, throw it out. You start to take stock of what you have, and what you'll need, and what you don't want to carry around anymore. And it's a good thing.... because the funny thing about a baby... it's such a tiny package, but as most modern-day parents will tell you, it comes with so much STUFF! Pretty soon, if you let it (or sometimes, in spite of yourself) there's baby-stuff everywhere. And a very little person who isn't ready to take care of themselves not only comes with lots of STUFF... it comes with a whole new set of priorities and responsibilities that you couldn't have imagined in your wildest dreams. They say <span style="font-style:italic;">"a baby changes everything."</span> <span style="font-weight:bold;">They are not kidding</span>. Fully grown, 'responsible' adults will allow their entire lives to be reordered by a baby.<br /><br />Our Awesome God must have known something in offering the world that tiny baby so long ago... what in the world but a baby could embody hope so tidily, awaken our desire to nurture and protect so readily, and cause us to embrace a life-altering course so willingly? Nothing I can think of. A baby is the physical manifestation of every biological and spiritual urge to leave something of ourselves in the world. A baby, even a very important baby, needs to be held, nourished, nurtured and loved or it will not survive, or grow. A baby makes normally rational, orderly, organized people do very irrational, disorganized things. The God who created us and nurtured us; then came to us in the most humble and helpless form we could understand, had hope and faith in <span style="font-style:italic;">us</span>, that we would take that baby into our lives. Every year at Advent, we prepare again to accept that gift. We make a place. In a world of fast-paced and furious events, we can take advantage of that pregnant pause. I believe that if we let it, (or maybe in spite of ourselves) that tiny baby could enter the place we've made, and maybe overtake our priorities and fill our lives with amazing, beautiful baby stuff. Yes, a baby changes <span style="font-style:italic;">everything<span style="font-weight:bold;"></span></span>.pirateravenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12764637347726828573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-87688714305264545002008-09-05T17:15:00.000-04:002008-09-05T17:16:27.390-04:00Jesus is a friend of mine<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7-NOZU2iPA8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7-NOZU2iPA8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-23716467481820207792008-08-17T09:44:00.004-04:002008-08-17T10:28:01.003-04:00Uh oh, peeps are stirring trouble.Tracy over at The Best Parts is stirrin' up a heap 'o trouble with a couple of posts about the role of the Church. I pretty much agree with every word of it so I'm going to link to both posts here. <br /><br /><a href="http://thebestparts.blogspot.com/2008/08/new-model-for-church.html">A New Model for Church</a><br /><br /><a href="http://thebestparts.blogspot.com/2008/08/non-conforming-behavior-is-welcome.html">Non-Conforming Behavior is Welcome</a><br /><br />One of my favorite lines that she quotes from Robert Capone's <span style="font-style:italic;">The Astonished Heart</span> is:<br /><br />"The model we're looking for should not have a tendency to steer in the direction of self-preservation rather than people-preservation...it must be able to love persons even at the price of hating itself."<br /><br />Most of the time we steer in the direction of self-preservation. We choose not to start new programs because of financial concerns, we cut budgets, and we choose to stay inside and worship instead of leading out. <br /><br />And we're able to hang on for another year. Yippie. <br /><br />At the same time, families are forced to make a decision concerning their giving. Do they give to the church or do they give to another charitable organization? We know which decision they've made as church giving (and membership) has declined over the past thirty years. We also know that in 2006 there was a record set for charitable giving in this country. It's crystal clear that it's not the economy driving the decline in giving to our churches, <span style="font-style:italic;">it's our priorities.</span> If one has $100 to give to an organization, I'm not sure I could come up with a convincing argument to give that money to our church rather than The People's City Mission or The Food Bank. We know that if the $100 goes to the City Mission or The Food Bank, it will put food in a mouth or help someone have a warm place to sleep at night. If it goes to the church, it will pay some utilities. Or administrative costs. Or buy some crafts. Or maybe pay for some insurance. It's easy to see what's uninspiring about giving $100 to the church. The only thing in that list that might speak to people is the craft supplies, but there's a good chance that utility costs or insurance premiums will win the battle for that $100 anyway. <br /><br />Is that really why some people tithe? So they can pay utility costs? I don't know about you, but like my actions, I would hope that my giving would have an impact. Keeping the church open is not the impact that I'm hoping for. There's a whole bunch of stuff in the New Testament about compassion and love, and these are priorities that aren't met when our focus is administrative and operating costs. What little is left over might go to Christian Education, but it will be just enough for us to say we have a program and not enough for us to say that our program is a beacon that shines in the community. <br /><br />People will go where they're inspired. Ho hum won't do it. Coffee hour won't do it. Contemporary services, rummage sales, church clean-ups, cantatas, Sunday school, and new church signs won't do it either. If the work of the church speaks to people, they'll go and give as they're inspired. If it doesn't...well, you know what happens.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-75017762102456191862008-08-12T13:49:00.004-04:002008-08-12T14:10:51.099-04:00Financial message that will revolutionize things that have been ready to be revolutionized for a while nowHi. <br /><br />Me again.<br /><br />Maybe you've heard that the church's finances aren't doing so hot this summer.<br /><br />I've come up with a solution in the last four or five minutes that I think will solve everything. It's called "Metric Tithing" and will revolutionize church giving. It will also revolutionize your finances at home as well. <br /><br />When people convert from Celsius to Fahrenheit, a way of calculating a rough comparison of the two temperatures is to double the Celsius number and add thirty degrees. Thus 10 degrees Celsius is about the same as 50 degrees Fahrenheit. I'd like to relate that practice to tithing. <br /><br />Let's just say that 10% of your income is $300.00. Let's call that the Celsius or Canadian tithe. We don't use Celsius here in the U.S.; it's used by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famous_Canadians">Canadians</a>. We use Fahrenheit as the numbers are bigger. We don't drink Canadian beer so we shouldn't use Canadian tithing either. We need to double the tithe figure and add thirty. Now our original figure is a nice $630! That's American tithing!<br /><br />You might be thinking that it's kind of a lot of money, and might be around two thirds or half of your mortgage. If you're in an apartment, it could be your entire rent payment*. That's basically the beauty of the new tithe; it takes money away from you (and you'll just blow it on doctor bills, groceries, and overpriced living arrangements) and puts it in the hands of the church who will blow it on keeping the air conditioning blowing 7 days a week during the summer. Let's face it, the church needs coffee and coffee beans aren't getting any cheaper if you haven't noticed.<br /><br />We know times are tough for you in the congregation. It shows in your giving and we're not happy about it. Let's quit giving like Canadians and start giving like Americans, okay?<br /><br /><br />*If you live in the midwest. This does not include you people that choose to exist where housing is much more expensive like on the coast or in Minnesota.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-55478875420254453002008-07-04T20:50:00.002-04:002008-07-04T20:57:37.383-04:00Follow/WorshipPer Merriam Webster:
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<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Follow</span>
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<br />1: to go, proceed, or come after <followed the guide>2 a: <span style="font-weight:bold;">to engage in as a calling or way of life : pursue <wheat-growing is generally followed here> </span>b: to walk or proceed along <follow a path>3 a: <span style="font-weight:bold;">to be or act in accordance with</span> <follow directions> b: <span style="font-weight:bold;">to accept as authority</span> : obey <followed his conscience>4 a: to pursue in an effort to overtake b: to seek to attain <follow knowledge>5: to come into existence or take place as a result or consequence of <disaster followed the blunder>6 a: to come or take place after in time, sequence, or order b: to cause to be followed <followed dinner with a liqueur>7: <span style="font-weight:bold;">to copy after : imitate</span> 8 a: to watch steadily <followed the flight of the ball> b: to keep the mind on <follow a speech> c: to attend closely to : keep abreast of <followed his career with interest> d: to understand the sense or logic of (as a line of thought)
<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">
<br />Worship</span>
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<br />1 : to honor or reverence as a divine being or supernatural power 2 : to regard with great or extravagant respect, honor, or devotion (a celebrity worshipped by her fans) intransitive verb : to perform or take part in worship or an act of worship
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<br />Do we follow or do we worship? Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-74299364113086319312008-07-03T13:57:00.003-04:002008-07-03T14:21:11.787-04:00The Best PartsTracy over at The Best Parts has a <a href="http://thebestparts.blogspot.com/2008/07/following-jesus.html">cool post</a> today about being people who "follow" instead of being people who "worship."<br /><br />Which one are we? I think we are a worshipful congregation. Being a following congregation requires taking great risks. It requires bold action. In our current climate of defunding programs, it doesn't appear that following is our priority. Perhaps that will change.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-9585783740708796452008-06-29T12:53:00.002-04:002008-06-29T13:29:59.115-04:00Are we serving others?<a href="http://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-ministry.html">This website</a> has a pretty good definition of what ministry is, at least in my opinion. It defines it as serving people's spiritual needs but also their "physical, emotional, mental, vocational, and financial needs." <br /><br />Whoa. That's a lot of needs to serve. <br /><br />Now, our pastor serves the church's spiritual needs (and some think that should be the extent of his or her job), but how and when are we going to minister to the other needs? I think for most people the question may be, "where do we start?" We could stand outside handing out $20 bills and chances are good that most people will use the money to fulfill a legitimate need. We give to the food bank and other organizations and that takes care of the physical and maybe even the financial needs of some. <br /><br />Now we're supposed to serve people's emotional, mental, and vocational needs as well? <br /><br />Yuck.<br /><br />When we give to Foodnet or OCWM, the money goes to help those who are distant from us. We send the funds off in the mail and others do the dirty work. We stay in our sanctuary, sing the hymns, and listen to the message. It appears from the definition of ministry that we're to be out and about doing the dirty work as well. And when we look out the front door, we can see there's whole lot of dirty work to be done. <br /><br />We even know there are people in the congregation that are willing to do this dirty work. They're those who go out of their way to connect with the youth and take them on mission trips. Those that sacrifice their Wednesday nights to lead the youth night. They champion causes and volunteer their time at hospitals and soup kitchens. These are the people who can lead these other ministries, and we know this. However, our church structure sometimes doesn't allow it. <br /><br />We try to find the right position in the church for them, but our structure is geared towards meetings, reports, and budgets. I went to a staff and board retreat a couple of months ago where we determined our spiritual gifts. Around 70% of those that attended identified their strongest spiritual gift as Administration. Yikes. Administration is necessary, but the church leadership needs leaders <span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> managers. We need people who can show us where those needs in the community are located and how they can be met. <br /><br />They are the people who will brainstorm and use their creativity for exciting new ideas. We need more individuals who are creative, more individuals with wisdom, and more individuals who see the way we should go. I was reading <span style="font-style:italic;">The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People</span> and Stephen Covey says that managers will lead the team through the jungle very effectively, but it takes a leader to climb a tree and tell the others they're hacking through the wrong jungle. We need both of these aspects in order to grow. <br /><br />For our church or any church to thrive, we can't hunker down in some pretend "survival mode" while we ignore our community at large. We must act with great boldness and we must act with great love. <br /><br />It is the ministry we are called to do.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-79741877816468483642008-06-25T08:56:00.004-04:002008-06-25T09:06:08.700-04:00Happy birthday!Today is the 51st anniversary of the founding of the UCC. This sucks because I totally forgot to send flowers or get a card or buy the church a beer or anything. I'm going to be really busy later on today so I probably won't even have time to call the UCC.<br /><br />Unrelated: Isn't calling it the "UCC church" kind of obvious and redundant? As far as I know there are no people out there referring to the Church of Christ as the Church of Christ church. Since "church" is a part of the acronym, it's sort of like calling an ATM an ATM machine.<br /><br />Anyway, <a href="http://philosophyovercoffee.blogspot.com/2008/06/this-day-in-history.html">Coffeepastor</a> over at Philosophy Over Coffee offers an interesting re-enactment of that historic day 51 years ago. That's a good site to be bookmarkin' and reading in the future. He's a pretty dang good blogger.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-88028677667057123892008-06-24T13:40:00.002-04:002008-06-24T14:06:07.166-04:00Cherokee Prayer BlessingLast night, the contemporary band (it's time to name this band, any ideas?) watched a movie called <span style="font-style:italic;">Whale Rider</span> as it will serve as the theme for our next service (third Sunday in July). It's a wonderful film about the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maori">Māori</a> tribe in New Zealand and their struggle for leadership as they try to survive. The movie focuses on the chief and his granddaughter and the notions that each of them have about the future leadership of the tribe. I won't say anything more than that as I don't want to give any of the movie away.<br /><br />Our choir director, Mary Piercey, is working on her doctoral thesis and has spent several years learning and transcribing indigenous music. We'll be featuring music and prayer from several different peoples from around the world during this service. As this is the only Sunday that we've done this, it may seem like we're lumping everything together for "tribal Sunday," and we admit that we are. However, while it is important to honor each people individually, the inclusion of prayer and art from several different tribes helps to widen our church's exposure to different groups and provides a look at different aspects of the body of Christ that we would not normally see. I'm hopeful that this is only the beginning to including these wonderful songs and prayers in our worship service. The Body is wonderfully diverse. <br /><br />I'd like to share a prayer blessing that Mary forwarded to me this afternoon, courtesy of <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/md/elanmichaels/prayers.html">this website</a>. Enjoy!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Cherokee Prayer Blessing <br /> <br />May the Warm Winds of Heaven<br />Blow softly upon your house.<br />May the Great Spirit<br />Bless all who enter there.<br />May your Mocassins<br />Make happy tracks<br />in many snows,<br />and may the Rainbow<br />Always touch your shoulder.<br />Give Us Hearts to Understand <br /> <br />Give us hearts to understand; <br />Never to take from creation's beauty more than we give; <br />never to destroy wantonly for the furtherance of greed; <br />Never to deny to give our hands for the building of earth's beauty; <br />never to take from her what we cannot use. <br />Give us hearts to understand <br />That to destroy earth's music is to create confusion; <br />that to wreck her appearance is to blind us to beauty; <br />That to callously pollute her fragrance is to make a house of stench; <br />that as we care for her she will care for us. <br />We have forgotten who we are. <br />We have sought only our own security. <br />We have exploited simply for our own ends. <br />We have distorted our knowledge. <br />We have abused our power. <br />Great Spirit, whose dry lands thirst, <br />Help us to find the way to refresh your lands. <br />Great Spirit, whose waters are choked with debris and pollution, <br />help us to find the way to cleanse your waters. <br /> <br />Great Spirit, whose beautiful earth grows ugly with misuse, <br />help us to find the way to restore beauty to your handiwork. <br />Great Spirit, whose creatures are being destroyed, <br />help us to find a way to replenish them. <br />Great Spirit, whose gifts to us are being lost in selfishness and corruption, <br />help us to find the way to restore our humanity. <br />Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the wind, <br />whose breath gives life to the world, hear me; <br />I need your strength and wisdom. <br />May I walk in Beauty. <br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-7029065336324649402008-06-21T14:00:00.002-04:002008-06-21T15:53:26.842-04:00What's broken and which committee will fix it?I should start by saying that any words that I publish here are the result of my own views, and don't represent any other person or organization. Such is the case with each post regardless of the author. This blog is a soapbox or conversation starter for anyone affiliated with Northeast United Church of Christ or its members and is intended to be an open forum. <br /><br />To date, our church has spent $4,532.97 for natural gas (our main source of heat in the Midwest for you East coast oil-users). I'm sure some of this cost is for our oven in the kitchen and for hot water, but the lion's share of the money went to heating the church. Considering it's not even July yet, there will be another chunk of money spent on natural gas toward the end of the year. I'm betting that the weather will continue its pattern of totally sucking and November and December will be as cold as the months of January, February, March, and April were. An optimist I am not.<br /><br />Let's just say that at the end of the year we've spent around $7,000 to heat our church. Who will we say that we've warmed at the end of the year for our seven G's? At this point we'll be able to say it was our congregation on Sundays, our board meetings once per month, our staff during the week, some contractors working on our new entrance, children in our midweek (twice per month) and Vacation Bible School (four times per year), and the occasional meeting and fellowship. Only a few of those activities are truly outreach of any kind. According to our budget, we're only budgeting around $3,000-4,000 for the few outreach programs that we have including the salary for the mid-week director.<br /><br />$7,000 for heating a near-empty building 365 days per year, and less than $4,000 for our own ministry and outreach? Seriously? Either our communities, neighborhoods, and city are in the best shape in their individual histories or something is dead wrong with our priorities. <br /><br />Our total Christian Education budget includes the salaries of four individuals who interact with parents, children, and young adults in our church. These people share the gospel with our children and care for them while their parents are spiritually nourished. This budget is less than that of our building and maintenance budget which does not include any money for salaries or outreach at all. If we combine the amount budgeted for building and maintenance with that of administration, that amount is almost double that of our Christian Education ministry. Neglecting our ministry or considering putting it under the axe while grasping onto our physical building is wrong. If we inhabit our current building or no building our ministry and purpose remain. For the poor, for the unloved, for the marginalized, our physical building does not offer hope and healing. Our building does not call us to go and find these people and offer our love and compassion. It is our individual recognition of God's purpose that calls us to do these things, and our sense of community and pooling of our resources that makes them a reality. Oftentimes it is a reality that we never thought possible.<br /><br />I think it is time for us to be a congregation that puts our own ministry and outreach at the top of our priority list. For too long, we've been content to offer our building for small usage fees and part of our finances to OCWM and have that be the extent of our outreach to the community. Yet in doing this we do not commune with the community, we offer no hope to those without hope, and we offer no love to those who are without love. We leave all of this in the hands of a small few, the diaconate and CE, and say that it must be enough because we have "bills to pay." <br /><br />Yet if we read the gospel we know that we should do more. This will be our challenge in the coming years in the midst of our financial situation. <br /><br />We are not called by our faith to make do in order for our building to be warm. We are called to do more in the world.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-13864055868009838732008-06-19T23:10:00.003-04:002008-06-20T14:11:21.926-04:00Saving your church some money (my go at public service)Let's face it, no church members want to sit around during their monthly board meetings and discuss creative and positive ways to grow their ministry. It's hard. And if it works then a whole bunch of people they don't even know may come in and start sitting in the pews next to them. Before you know it they're in the fellowship hour and taking part in potlucks. These are people who are sometimes poor, young, democrats, or of a different race or sexual orientation. Or they may be all of the above. It's much better if these churches can keep their membership pretty constant so as not to have to deal with new people on their boards and committees who don't understand how things were done in the 1980s and why that worked so well. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs6jVFd72sCXxYr0Ny9-w-N0_blopXFH8jtQhWyfbODy0nkzcbHzSWueBCJSqc1orBYMXmSAxKMIgWcTdufboRFhILk52CndD5v5X2hTyy2prIDFIrlzo56Q4aoQcFyx-eNQX0vhyphenhyphenrywl1/s1600-h/boardmeeting.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs6jVFd72sCXxYr0Ny9-w-N0_blopXFH8jtQhWyfbODy0nkzcbHzSWueBCJSqc1orBYMXmSAxKMIgWcTdufboRFhILk52CndD5v5X2hTyy2prIDFIrlzo56Q4aoQcFyx-eNQX0vhyphenhyphenrywl1/s400/boardmeeting.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214027737405954658" /></a><br />Provided that a church does the smart thing and puts a lid on their membership, they may face a situation where some of the members move away, pass away, or leave because they're mad at the pain in the ass leaders who want to grow the ministry. Then they're stuck with all of those problems I talked about before and NO ONE wants that! So as the membership rolls begin to decline we may be talking about a decline in giving. These churches would be wise to introduce smart budget options like these:<br /><br />1) Start cutting the youth programs. Since most of the people making these decisions don't have young children, this will be an easy decision. After all, their children were perfectly happy playing with sticks and participating in fun youth activities like stripping wax when they were younger. A good place to start is with cutbacks of the youth ministry staff as this is usually the largest expense. Then when the youth ministry staff is unable to meet the needs of the church because they're working fewer hours, you can start cutting programs that are neglected. If you're lucky the church will soon reach an ideal balance of no youth programs and no youth. <br /><br />2) Begin using utilities at Great Depression-era levels. This is simple to achieve but involves at least one maintenance person or staff person who is willing to put in some low-impact time. The way this works is that one person listens for the heat and air conditioning to turn on and adjusts the thermostat accordingly so it no longer runs. This may take a few adjustments in the dead of winter or dog days of summer, but will definitely be noticed on the church's bottom line! As for the water, the maintenance person should locate the master shutoff for the church and the problem will be solved. If people complain about the temperature in the church suggest that they dress in layers and use their bulletin as either a fan to stay cool or kindling to stay warm.<br /><br />3) Constantly mention to paid staff that the posts they fill used to be filled by volunteers, and that those volunteers felt privileged to fill those positions. In particular this applies to people filling office, Christian education, and financial roles. Please disregard the fact that it now takes two incomes to make ends meet at home where it used to only take one and people take these jobs to meet household expenses. None of that matters. Hopefully these people finally respond to your passive-aggressive behavior by either quitting their position and/or the church. Problem solved! This would also be a good time to once again bring up the story about how when you tithed sometimes you didn't know where money was going to come from to pay medical bills or rent, but the money always came at the last minute.<br /><br />Think your church can pull this off? Of course it can! If you make your bottom line the focus of all your boards and committee meetings there's no telling what you can accomplish! I hope you feel free to be creative to expand on these or to come up with your own ideas that are unique to your church. Give me your feedback in the comments, y'all, and let me know how they worked! Best of luck!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9176685196974073609.post-21742316205592301112008-06-18T12:32:00.001-04:002008-06-18T13:21:52.272-04:00Are we ever guilty of this? Oh yeah.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gH63419iVVlF4GhEnGAATdlFNLqxNzo2RecYZDdOfd0aLCrFV-w6JqAo3NSysL63fkyNlBeCYQB-1mTw_QMcVHrPxr9FpnXTFePHhxJLGLKkcXcJw6x9iiKnsO0FdK8-TUiwAUgruVf8/s1600-h/newv.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gH63419iVVlF4GhEnGAATdlFNLqxNzo2RecYZDdOfd0aLCrFV-w6JqAo3NSysL63fkyNlBeCYQB-1mTw_QMcVHrPxr9FpnXTFePHhxJLGLKkcXcJw6x9iiKnsO0FdK8-TUiwAUgruVf8/s400/newv.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213260536083229842" /></a><br /><br />Taken from <a href="http://asbojesus.wordpress.com/">this</a> wonderful little page.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2