summer changes...

an update after 10 days is appropriate...the greatest joy as an update is that my wife absolutely loves her job at the UM church. They are an incredible congregation to say the least!

We received a free car (you should shudder right now), and used it for a few miles when major problems happened and we dumped $650 into it...thinking it would be worth it to get us through for a little while. The next day it croaked!!! Can you believe it? So Chad has been car shopping--the idea of it is real fun but the reality is that buying a used car is a crap shoot, and rather expensive at that. We are settling on a Honda Civic for the mileage and the relative good looks of the car. I pray it does not cause us any trouble!

I am leading an ecumenical worship service Sunday morning at the Ellsworth Cheese Curd Festival and running the 10K race for it on Saturday. We have booked a Blue Grass band to play for the service so it should be a blast.

I have also spent this week and will next week up at camp with kids. It is fun to reconnect with a bible camp. After seminary I have a bit of a different lens to look at things through. I am not impressed how little they use their bibles...or read scripture at all. I also wish they would not just pray for "god to let us have a good week, and god thanks for nature to play in, and thanks for good friends." THen I realize that I did the same thing and I calm down a bit...

Peace to your week.

CK

the Spirit speaks...

in various ways.

Let's see if I can interpret the Spirit's actions in the kindest way...:)

I had a very interesting experience in church on Sunday. I decided to use the Nicodemus story as a launching pad to talk about what it means to be 'born-again', or born from above (NIV and NRSV theological slants). I share some conversations I had with fellow students in college over whether or not I was 'saved', a parallel to born-again depending on the theological slant. I explained as best I could a fundagelical (kata Bishop Hanson) take on the idea of being born again and shared with the congregation that I thought their interpretation was too small and incomplete.

I then talked about what it means to be born (i.e. we didn't choose to have our infant birth, and we don't choose to be born-again), what it means to be born of water (baptism conversation and daily dying/rising) and what it means to be born of spirit (fruits of the spirit, having christ take up residence inside of us via the Holy Spirit).

I wanted to offer some teaching and I hope preaching around what it is that we actually believe as Christians who happen to be Lutheran, about being born-again, and what we might say in response. I thought this may work--"In virtue of my baptism, yes I am born again, not merely by my work but more importantly by God's good work and grace..." well you can finish it.

So here is my point...

After the service a woman came up to me and said this (I responded with silence)..."Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you for talking about what you did in the sermon (good up to this point), when I was 12 I accepted the Lord as my savior and he has been with me since. I grew up in a great Christian family who supported me and I am so thankful for that. I thought there was going to be an altar call. That would have been great."

Seriously. AND I communicated very well that I was offering an opposing understanding not to be antagonistic but to help us have a response to say to someone when we are asked if we are saved.

So, you are the jury...I don't know how she heard this, but it is insight for me on the varied ways we allow religion and theology to work in our lives. And the Spirit may speak to people what they need to hear! :) There is a challenge for you.

I do think sometime soon we may have to have another conversation...

Paz

catching up...slowing down

It seems that the blogging world ebbs and flows like the church year ;) I have not been so great about updating my blog, but I suppose it will be what it will be...

Things have really slowed down in this neck of the woods at church. Summer is really a hard time around here as attendance drops off the face of the earth. My predecessor told me that was the most difficult part about it all. It is difficult to discern whether this is one to go after or whether I should choose another 'battle' (sorry to use that word, I don't really like it). In life though, I feel like I can't keep up, so I guess it is a blessing that I have quite a bit of flexibility.

I have found it a particular challenge to not have a staff, nor an active parish office. I do find myself going out visiting because of that, but I also covet the day when I could have a staff meeting and devotions, prayer time, and someone to bounce ideas off. I have thought of offering a prayer group or the like, but most of our folks are working still. What i have accepted is that in each congregation setting there are different strengths, gifts, and a particular cycle to the ministry. As I begin my 11th month I am still trying to live in to that.

Ministry is starting to feel a bit more normal after the first 11 months. It's no joke when you think about all the experiences you have at the start of a new ministry. You have to learn to live into a new situation, setting, and pattern of ministry.

My wife started a new full time job at a UNited Methodist church yesterday. It is an incredible place with a great staff. She is the office manager and gets to observe and work with two female pastors at the church. I think it will be a very positive experience and influence her desire for theological education herself.

Well, that's an update. It is a bit melancholy I think, but it seems to be the wave I am riding on right now. God's peace to each of you in your work and ministry, whatever that is! Paz