Today, I said good-bye to my first appointment. The quality of my first appointment was very high: three churches of differing personalities. I learned so much. Foibles and failures notwithstanding, I think they learned a thing or two from me. Here is a quantitative look at my first pastorate. 3: Number of churches. 4: Number of years served at one church. 5: Number of years … Continue reading A First Appointment, By the Numbers
It is the night before the last Sunday in June. For United Methodists that means ‘time to itinerate’. Many churches across the connection are gearing up to say good-bye to their current pastors, even as they are anticipating the arrival of their new pastor. Clergy are writing last sermons. I am one of those clergy, as is my lovely wife. At the end of what … Continue reading Right Now, A Lot of Pastors are Writing ‘Last Sermons’
Here are two thoughtful pieces on the art of midrash by Erin Lane at The Thoughful Christian blog. The Stuff of Imagination and Mindful Midrash. Continue reading Double Dose of Midrash
A question was posed to me in the midst of the 2011 Session of the West Virginia Annual Conference. “If you were in charge of Annual Conference, what would you do?” For the record, I suck at Administration and my wife keeps the bills. I am fully aware of this. So spare me your ‘we can’t afford…’. There are some things about Annual Conference in … Continue reading A Most Awesome Annual Conference
My opposition to a proposed measure extending the West Virginia Annual Conference‘s quadrennial focus on evangelism garnered a few atta-boys, which was really nice. The measure also passed by a score of everybody else-to-about 6. I have never garnered the courage to speak on the floor of the Annual Conference session. I had a good argument chiseled out in my brain. I walked into the … Continue reading Winning and Losing at Annual Conference
A Proposed Resolution at the 2011 session of the West Virginia Annual Conference (#wvac2011) seeks to renew our current quadrennial focus on Evangelism. The proposed resolution is entitled “Making Disciples Who Make Disciples” to be the 2012-2016 Quadrennial Focus. I will be voting no on this measure for several reasons. The Church exists to serve others. My main objection to the Resolution is its self-centeredness. … Continue reading Evangelism: Why I’m Voting ‘No’
Photo: 9 month old girl crying, labeled “[girl’s name] Social Emotional” This was in a stack of old materials sent home from A.’s daycare. It is a terrible looking picture. It is also really out of character for A., who is quite social and a very charming baby. From the photo’s time stamp, I, as parent, know that A. was suffering from RSV and related … Continue reading I Don’t Give a D*mn ‘Bout My Bad Reputation
REI voluntarily audits its practices every year to measure their proficiency in areas of “Community”, “Sustainable Operations”, and “Workplace”. They call this Stewardship. As a co-op, REI is accountable to more than just ‘shareholders’. Each major category has an overall goal (under “Workplace” REI states a goal of being “a nationally recognized top employer”). You can read the 2010 audit right here. I’m an REI … Continue reading How Non-Churches do Stewardship
Kindness. It is the best calling card of The Church. Of all the commandments that Jesus gives us, ‘going and doing likewise’ in terms of showing mercy, has to be near the top. It is a virtue in and of itself. Ideally, the Christian needs no other motivation to show mercy than Jesus commanded it. Thanks be to God there are other good reasons to … Continue reading Learning to Love My Loony-bin Neighbors
My five favorite items of the past week and why I like them: My Faith: A reluctant churchgoer ‘gets the Holy Ghost’. John Blake returns to the church of his upbringing, where people “shouted, wept and fainted,” and where his Aunt Sylvia found strength to raise him. Casualty Call: Reflections on Good Friday. Joe Carter, a Marine, writes about being a Casualty Assistance Calls Officer, notifying next-of-kin … Continue reading Friday 5: Favorite Posts of Week
