Wednesday Night Live

Ministering to children

/ The Pastor

Gracious God, I have just been struck with the awareness of the awesome responsibility that is looming; children coming to this church building to see you.  Twenty one 3 – 5th graders coming soon;  8 confirmation students later this afternoon and 40 some Wednesday Night Live students tonight.  God…bless everyone of those students that they may see you.  Bless the teachers that will be teaching those students.

Gracious God, I am thankful that you have placed me here in this place.  I am thankful that you have found me worthy to minister to these children.  I am thankful that you walk along side of me during these times.  May you be glorified in my words and actions.  Grant me patience and wisdom as I interact with these great kids.

So…here we go.  Let’s have some fun.

Amen!

The pastor -|—

God is Good

/ The Pastor
image

God is Good!

This was my supper at Wednesday Night Live (Sunday school on Wednesday) a couple weeks.  I am willing to bet you can guess what was on the menu 🙂

After I took this picture I showed it to a parent/church council member and she laughed (she is the one who came up with the caption for the picture).  She then said that she was in charge of devotions at the council meeting (which was slated to begin soon) and she didn’t have anything.  Now she did and shared this as part of her devotions (with her talking and me passing my phone around the table).

God IS good for countless reasons but if God were pancakes I imagine God would be the best pancakes ever.  Sweet enough that you wouldn’t need syrup (which I did use on the above mentioned pancakes).

God is good…all the time!
All the time…God is good!

Amen to that 🙂

edh -|—

Back at it

/ The Pastor

“Wow…where did the summer go?”

I have heard that question a number of times this week already.  The start of school has a way of awakening people to the reality of the quick passage of time. It almost feels like school just got out and now the kids are back.

For me, school beginning means that activities at church will be gearing up shortly:
~ On Sept 12 I will be welcoming back my 3 – 5th graders to release time.  Me with 20+ kids…sounds scary but I survived that number last year so I feel ready for them this year.   Bring them on 🙂
~ On Sept 19 we will be welcoming back our Wednesday Night Live (“Sunday school”) kids.  I am not directly involved here but I really enjoy connecting with these kids and their families.
~ On Sept 26 I will be welcoming back my confirmation class along with a couple new students.  Walking with these kids in their faith journey is an incredible privilege.
~ On Oct 3 we will be beginning a Wednesday evening worship opportunity.  I am not quite sure how this will look yet, but I am looking forward to this time.
~ And…the other seasonal activities that take place.

It is always nice to have a “summer break” but I do look forward to the craziness of all the activities that will be starting shortly.  I am looking forward to longer and fuller days. I am looking forward to ministering to the kids.  I am looking forward to teaching again.  Basically…I am looking forward to all that this season will bring.  If I didn’t look forward to this then I would either need to re-examine my call here or my call as a pastor.

Many people in Minnesota enjoy the change of seasons; knowing that a different season will be coming shortly with all its own uniqueness and beauty.  Maybe this ebb and flow of the year is what keeps things fresh and exciting for people.  No matter what profession you are in you need things to be “mixed up” once in a while.  Change can be good and refreshing.

So with that…when May 2013 rolls around I will be ready for a break from THIS season, but when September 2013 arrives…I will be ready and looking forward to that new, different and unique season.  And so on and so on…

You get the point.

But before I jump to far ahead of myself I am going to enjoy the ride that this season will bring; trusting God will give me strength and wisdom.  I can hardly wait to see what God is up to and how God will use the various people involved in this ministry.  In the end, God will be glorified.

So bring on fall 2012…I am ready 🙂

edh -|—

A change of pace

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

I have been taking a little break from blogging the last couple days.  This past week has been a whirl wind since “the vote” at the ELCA CWA.  Many of my posts and comments here have dealt with issues from the CWA (Churchwide assembly).  This will continue to be an important topic to think and pray about and discuss…but I need a little break to process.  There are some comments on this blog that I need to attend to and I plan to respond to those early this week…so I thank you for your patience.  I am also working on a plan to meet with parishioners in small groups to listen to their concerns and questions while I share more information about the ELCA.  I have yet to finalize details yet, but when I do I will be sharing this plan with you here.

These next couple weeks may continue to be a whirl wind for me though:
–Salem’s 125th anniversary celebration is just 2 weeks away…with much to do yet.

–Confirmation, release time and Wednesday Night Live is beginning in mid-September.

–My wife and I are in the midst of home remodeling…which we are trying to finish before the 125th anniversary (we are having an open house at the parsonage).

So there’s much to do…and with that probably much to blog about.  But if you see a little dip in postings from the past week you will know why.  As I say every year…September is one of the busiest months of the year for me (next to December and Holy Week/Easter month).

In any case (and as always) I thank you for your comments and for stopping by.  Your presence here is extremely important to me and to others who visit.  Your thoughts and questions cause me (and others) to think.  So thank you and God bless!

-edh-