The Church

Act of God?

/ The Pastor / 24 Comments

A friend of mine posted this link in a Facebook message to a group of us and it sure got the few of us talking.  I post the link here to see what you link of it.

The Tornado, The Lutherans and Homosexuality

It is John Piper’s interpretation of the tornado that struck during the ELCA CWA in Minneapolis last Wednesday.  Was God sending the ELCA a message?  Check the link out and see what Piper has to say and then let me know here.  I am curios what your thoughts are.

I will let you know what my thoughts are later.

-edh-

ELCA CWA09 — “The votes”

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

The ELCA Church wide assembly (CWA09) is going on in Minneapolis, MN right now (right where all those tornadoes touched down yesterday…thankfully no one was hurt).  The big action item from yesterday’s debate/discussion was the vote on whether to approve “Human Sexuality:  Gift and Trust“…a social statement of the ELCA.  According to assembly rules and the constitution this requires a 2/3 super majority for approval.  It passed by just 1 vote…amazing.  I would like to include a link to the amended version of this statement but as of right now it is not available.  Keep checking http://www.elca.org and the social statement will be there.

Coming up tomorrow will be the “main attraction”…Report and Recommendations on Ministry Policies. These recommendations refer to whether or not to allow gay/lesbian clergy serve on the roster of the ELCA who are in committed, monogamous, life-long same sex relationships.  Currently the rule is that if you are homosexual you must remain celibate.  These ministry recommendations also address allowing for same-sex blessings.  Also built into these recommendations is the issue of “bound conscience”.  Basically…individual congregations and synods wouldn’t be forced to bless same sex unions or call (or be prevented from calling) gay/lesbian clergy.  The vote on this is expected Friday morning.  Please keep these delegates in your prayers.

After tomorrow, the ELCA is going to be forever changed (no matter how the vote turns out).  If these recommendations do not pass, they will just come up again in two years when the ELCA meets again.  The conversation has come a long way and after tomorrow this will be in no way over.  After tomorrow people on both sides of the issue will have to decide how we are going to move forward as a Church.  People are going to have to decide how to serve together.  My hope and prayer is that we can finally move forward and do some serious ministry; focusing on advancing the mission of Christ.

Please continue pray…not just tomorrow morning…but into the future that the Church does not lose sight of its calling.  Whatever happens, may God be with us.

-edh-

ELCA cwa09 and Twitter

/ The Pastor / 15 Comments

The ELCA Church wide assembly is underway.  Day one is in the books and Day 2 is up and going.  Yesterday was debate about parliamentary procedures.  One of the big items was the passage of the rule to only require a simple majority for passage of ministry recommendations concerning homosexuality.  I did not listen to this debate via live streaming through the ELCA website but entered the discussion afterward on Twitter.  It is really fun to see the number of people Tweeting the assembly via Twitter.  But if you are doing that make sure you are getting accurate information.  Go to the the ELCA website for updates or follow “pglutherans” on Twitter.  She is posting Tweets of news stories and other information about assembly action; a reliable source of information (pglutherans is reliable, maybe not so much the mainline media).  You can also follow the ELCA on Twitter for up-to-date information as well.

Last night, as I was following various people on Twitter about CWA news, I got into a discussion with a fellow Tweeter about what was going on.  Obviously we hold different views about homosexuality.  One of my Tweets indicated that I hope and pray that the delegates are not just following societal trends.  By the time we were finished with our discussion/debate I was accused of being “uncharitable towards those who disagree with me”.  At that Tweet I stopped the discussion…not because I didn’t have a response, but rather I wanted to process that discussion we were having and respond later.

Well…later is here…

“Uncharitable”?  Without giving you the full text of the conversation I want to respond.  And in all fairness to my colleague (who I follow on Twitter and on her blog…and whom I respect) I am not going to take shots or anything like that but rather respond in a general sort of way.  Our discussion/debate last night is between the two of us and anyone else following us on Twitter.

“Uncharitable” — I have heard similar terms such as that when connected to the debate about homosexuality.  The other terms I have heard are: “Unwelcoming”, “Intolerant”, “Unloving” and even “Homophobic”.  I am not suggesting that my colleague was eluding to any of those terms, but rather I have heard all of them in the same debate.  Am I “uncharitable”…NO.  Am I passionate about what I believe…YES.  For the record:  I believe in the traditional view of marriage between ONE man and ONE woman. But…if a gay couple walks through the doors of the church I am serving will I welcome them…ABSOLUTELY…and I hope and (frankly) expect everyone else to as well.  Will that gay couple be welcomed as members of the congregation…YES.  I will preach the Gospel to them; pray for them and serve with them…just like everyone else.  I just can’t support their lifestyle.  If a gay pastor comes to serve a congregation in Jackson what will my response be…I will work with my colleague and that congregation in an ecumenical way as I always have.

I may sound “uncharitable” to those who disagree with me but maybe that is because our view of scripture is so different.  Maybe it is because we are at a point where debate about homosexuality is not going to change the view of people who are already entrenched in their view.  Maybe I sound “uncharitable” because saying that you disagree with the homosexual life style proponents generally hear that you have “closed your doors”.

I am not “uncharitable”…I am just passionate about my beliefs and I hope the delegates remain faithful to their convictions and beliefs as well.  I hope and pray they do not get swayed by societal trends or media/societal pressure.  I hope and pray that the delegates remain and continue in prayer…and remember to listen.  I hope and pray that people are respectful.  And…no matter the out come of the vote this week…I hope and pray that the ELCA can get back on track and proclaim the Gospel, continue in mission and be evangelically focused.

There’s much work to be done, but nothing will happen through our own strength and understanding.  May God be praised and glorified in all we do.  And remember…be charitable to all people…regardless of beliefs.

Praise be to God!

-edh-

Swinging on Monday, Aug. 17

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

O.K…it is time to get back into the swing of things once again.

Today is Monday, Aug. 17 and the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) is convening in Minneapolis for its Church wide assembly.  And this year promises to be one of heated (and hopefully) civil debate over the issue of homosexuality.  Tops on the agenda is the social statement on Human Sexuality.  Closely behind that is the ministry recommendations that would allow ordaining gay/lesbian pastors who are in life-long, committed relationships and for the blessing of same sex unions.  No matter where one stands; no matter what happens, there will be some polarization in the ELCA.  I hate to say it, but its going to happen.  My prayer is that the mission of Christ still continues marching forward and that we don’t let issues derail us.  Satan would love nothing more than for the Church to lose its focus.

Today is Monday, Aug. 17 and I am deep into getting ready for confirmation.  I mentioned in an earlier post that I am revamping my confirmation program here.  It is not a complete overhaul, but rather some important (and intriguing) additions to the schedule and requirements.  One of the key things I am doing is putting a greater emphasis on parental involvement.  I will talk more later on what I am doing with this.  I have a couple more piece I am finalizing yet, but I am really looking forward to this year.  It’s going to be a fun one.

Today is Monday, Aug. 17 and I am starting to feel a little anxiety.  In less than a month, Salem Lutheran Church will be celebrating its 125th anniversary and I don’t feel ready to go yet.  The big weekend is Sept. 12 and 13 and it keeps creeping closer and closer every day (duh…i guess).  It’s just that there is so much to do here at church and in the parsonage…and I just want everything to go smoothly.  But on the other hand I am looking forward to the celebration.  We have former pastors coming back and other special guests returning for the weekend.  You can go to our church website for a complete schedule of events at http://www.salemjackson.org

Today is Monday, Aug. 17 and I feel like I am back into the swing of things…again.  But with everything that is coming up I am hoping and praying that I do not “strike out”.

God bless your day!

-edh-

More reading — Missional Congregations

/ The Pastor / 9 Comments

I started reading a new book today (I often have a couple I am working on at the same time).  This book is called, “A Field Guide for the Missional Congregation” by Rick Rouse and Craig Van Gelder.  It is an Augsburg Fortress selection that was recommended to me.

I am just getting into this book but I wanted to share something with you that has already struck me and got me thinking.  Here’s a short excerpt:

The premise of this book is that becoming an effective witness to the gospel in today’s world — becoming a missional congregation — requires us to revision the way we ARE the church in order to more faithful DO church.  Consider the following shifts in an understanding of what the church is and does.

FROM:                               TO:
Maintenance                  Mission
Membership                   Discipleship
Pastor-centered           Lay-empowered
Chaplaincy (Self)         Hospitality (Others)
Focus on ourselves     Focus on the world
Settled                              Sent

That above list got me thinking about my own setting and context.  Are we a missional congregation or are we satisfied with the status quo?  Are we inward focused or outward focused?  Or consider this question:  If this congregation ceased to exist, would the community miss us?

More from this book later.

-edh-

Spark Story Bible

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

Story Bible

At the risk of sounding like an Augsburg Fortress commercial I wanted to highlight this story Bible that I came across.  This Bible is geared towards age 2 through grade 2 kids and contains 150 Bible stories. It has great color pictures, stories that are short and each have a question or an action statement; something to help the kids think more about the story.

After buying one copy to look at I bought another 10.  So far two people have come in to buy one and others said they are also interested.  I may need to buy more.  There is also a Spark Bible geared towards grade 3 through grade 6 students.  And all of this is part of the Spark Sunday school curriculum.

My plan is to read out of this story Bible on Sundays for the children’s message (trying to coordinate with the Gospel text)  and also to give one to parents who have their children baptized here.  I have been trying to encourage people to get into the Bible more so let’s start them young.

My point here is not to give Augsburg Fortress free advertising but rather to highlight a resource for getting kids into the Bible.  One of my fondest memories took place one Sunday morning.  One of my 3 year olds came into the narthex before worship and was carrying a couple books.  She ran up to me to show me and the first one she showed me was her new Bible.  She was pretty excited and proud of her Bible.  Now…what pastor is not going to get excited about that.

I hope more kids will develop a love for scripture early and keep scripture as a huge part of their lives as they grow up, but it all begins with the family.

-edh-

Here I come

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

I got elected to the SW MN synod council.

This past weekend the SW MN Synod (ELCA) held it’s annual synod assembly.  This year we were at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN.  I was nominated for synod council a couple months ago but didn’t give it a whole lot of thought then.  Now that I got elected to a 3 year term I am beginning to wonder what I got myself into.  Initially it means a few more meetings a year and maybe some more responsibilities at next year’s synod assembly.  There will probably be some additional committee meetings and other work.  Beyond that I am not entirely sure what will happen.

But I am looking forward to this opportunity and honor:
I am looking forward to learning more about the Church.
I am looking forward to playing a more integral part of advancing Christ’s mission with the broader Church.
I am looking forward to growing in greater appreciation of what our synod leadership does (and “no” I am not just saying that because my bishop may be reading this.  Actually he has a RSS feed of my blog…now that is scary).
I am looking forward to getting to know some more of my colleagues.
I am looking forward to getting to know and working with the synod’s new Director of Evangelical Mission.
I am looking forward to growing as a leader.
I am looking forward to something new.

I may be jumping into uncharted territory but whatever happens I don’t go it alone…God goes with me and God will equip me with everything I need to carry out my duties and responsibilities.  As I said during my installation today when asked by the bishop if I will carry out my duties faithfully… “I will and I ask God to HELP and GUIDE me“.  God WILL help and guide me…that I know.

So there you have it…I came…I got elected…and I am installed as a synod council member…

…so watch out SW MN…here I come 🙂

-edh-

God is awesome!

/ The Pastor

I really want to share with you some details about an encounter with a gentleman (Q) last night, but I can’t because of confidentiality.  But I do want to say that God is awesome and works in wonderful and powerful ways.  I also want to say that I am thankful for the priesthood of all believers because without faithful people living out their faith, this gentleman would not have received the care that he desperately needed…not just last night but for the last couple months.

I want to give a big shout of thanks out to these two parishioners but I won’t.  Rather I will give and big shout of thanks and praise out to God for working through these two people to share the Gospel with Q.  I want to say that it was pure chance and dumb luck that they found me last night so I could talk to Q (I was out for a run and hence away from my home and phone).  But I won’t say that…rather I will say that God is awesome and works in wonderful and powerful ways.

I don’t know what is in store for Q but I can rest assured that he will be cared for and love for the rest of his life.

Praise be to God!

-edh-

Monday morning check in — Sewing day

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

Coffee and coffee cake with the sewing group is a time I look forward to every month.  On the first Monday of each month, the sewing group gets together to make quilts.  These quilts end up in the cities and get distributed to people who need them (sometimes these quilts head over seas).  It’s a sacred time…one that never gets messed with (unless of course there is an emergency.  Even then…it has to be a life or death situation).  At 9am Lucille emerges from the Fellowship Hall and calls out from the bottom of the stairs “IT’S READY!”  At this my secretary and I make our way downstairs (Lucille’s coffee cake is not to be missed (unless, like I said, there is a life or death emergency).  Each month, Lucille says that she tried something new with the recipe (who knew there were so many ways to make coffee cake).  And each month her coffee cake is absolutely delicious.  Even though I want to have more, I know I need to behave myself.  If there is enough left, Lucille will sometimes send a couple pieces home for Connie and I (which rarely makes it back to Connie…sorry honey). 

While we have our hot cup of coffee and warm piece of coffee cake, we discuss the “important” matters of the day.  “How is so and so doing?”  “Did you hear about that <news from the radio> this morning?”  Sometimes they look to me for some “inside information” (which I rarely give unless the other party has given me express permission to divulge the information).  It’s a sacred and intimate time even though to the untrained ear it looks and sounds like a gossip time, but it is so much more than that.  Some months it is just casual conversation.  But other times I hear questions that I normally don’t get to hear from people.  These question are sometimes hard, but always honest questions about what is going on in the church.  I guess they figure they have the pastor’s ear for a moment…and I am always happy to listen.

That is the morning gathering time.  At noon they have a little potluck where the husbands show up to eat and, of course, I am there.  It is during this time I learn the most about people.  It is where I learn who is related to whom (I am always amazed at what I learn here).  It’s where I learn about the church’s history.  I hear stories of the good ole days.  And, of course, there is the typical BS that is often heard when guys get together.  This is a sacred and intimate time.

Now…as I sit here typing this, I find myself getting more and more anxious about lunch; when the guys will show up; great food will be served; and stronger connections are made over coffee and hot dish.  We won’t solve the world’s problems today.  We won’t get into deep political discussions.  But one thing is for sure…this sacred and intimate time won’t be wasted.

Got to love sewing day 🙂

-edh-

Coffee shop ponderings — My A/C dreams out the window

/ The Pastor / 7 Comments

I always feel humbled when I talk to someone who says they read my blog (I am usually READING comments from people not HEARING comments).  And that was especially true last night at our church council meeting.

At the beginning of the meeting I lead a brainstorming session with the crew (which included a number of newly elected members) do devise some goals for the year.  The catch was that they needed to think in terms of Christ’s mission in the world.  Too often we get caught up in our own agenda and not with Christ’s agenda.  I wanted this group to be more than a group of people meeting to talk about money and little projects around the church.  I wanted them to think of themselves as a ministry team…working to advance Christ’s mission in the world.  I want to move away from a business meeting model to a ministry meeting model (I am still trying to formulate this new model).

Anyway…after the brainstorming session the small groups choose their top 3 or 4 goals they came up with and shared them with the whole council.  The goals that the groups came up with were great.  Some of them include:  (1) Reach out to the inactive members and the new people moving to town; (2) get more people involved with worship (especially the children); (3) pray more; and (4) read the Bible more.  There were other good ones as well, but these jumped out to me…with the addition of one other…

…one of my parishioners/council members said as a goal “Install an air conditioner in pastor’s office” (currently I am without A/C).  Of course I thought that was a great idea.  Then the person who was writing these goals on the white board asked (with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye) “How does that advance Christ’s mission in the world?“.  To that question another responded, “It helps with pastor’s sermon writing process.”  [The next comment made me laugh] To that response, my parishioner writing on the board said (with still a smile on her face and a larger twinkle in her eye), “Sermon writing…I read his blog, he writes his sermons down at Coffee Choices.” Everyone laughed.  I guess I had that coming…bye bye, A/C 🙂 

Oh well…that is a small price to pay for the privilege of working with such a great and talented group of people with a mission focus and a heart for Jesus.  And I hope this doesn’t sound like I am sucking up to get my A/C because what I said is true.  What is important is Christ’s mission.  But if my comments help get me A/C, then so be it.  Who am I to say that A/C in the pastor’s office is not part of Christ’s mission 🙂

-edh-
P.S.  Did I tell you how AWESOME my church council is 🙂