I was chatting with one of the participants in our current Alpha course about the church and some of my frustrations after being here three years.
He said something that struck me as divinely appointed for me. He said, "Perhaps the things that you're frustrated with are the things God wants to use you to change--over time."
Change comes much slower in the North Country, but it does happen. I've had to learn to be patient. Some of the things I wanted to get going when I first got here are just now happening. That's good.
But I confess impatience at the other stuff. This man's comment puts things in a new light.
12 November 2007
29 October 2007
Red Sox Nation celebrates!!!
Again, it has been a joy to cheer the BoSox in Red Sox Nation. They win the series 4-0!
19 October 2007
Ministry belongs to everyone
I've been thinking about ministry as I prepare for our upcoming Quarterly business meeting. It's been said ('cause it's true) that God doesn't call the qualified; He qualifies the called. And while I've always assented to that truth, I had a thought the other day that opened this whole thing up for me.
If God qualifies the called, we can never really say, "I don't think I could do that." Or, "I'm really not into that sort of thing." Nor can we excuse ourselves for not having the necessary skill set. The reason is that if God does the qualifying, we shouldn't presume we know what the required skills are. And the reason God doesn't call those of us who appear qualified from our perspective is that when we succeed, we can't say, "Gee thanks, but I do that all the time." That's called doing it in our own strength.
If I say, "I'm just not wired to do that," we may well speak the truth, but that doesn't let us off the hook. Moses had a bad temper and was not an eloquent public speaker, yet God called him to appear several times before the leader of the Egyptian empire, and to lead the Israelites from Egypt to the promised land (and as Lincoln Brewster observes) without a PA system!
David's Biblical epitaph reads: "He was a man after God's own heart." Yet David was a mercenary, an adulterer and a murderer. Solomon couldn't keep his eyes on one wife. Noah was a drunkard and he was called to save the world! (Could this have implications for the TV show, Heroes?)
So if I approach someone whom I've prayerfully considered for ministry in some capacity and that person responds "I don't know if that's my thing," I wonder if I shouldn't strongly encourage the person to do it anyway. Just to make sure it indeed isn't his or her thing. After all, God may actually do something extraordinary through them.
Wouldn't it be nice if every time we prayed about a ministry position, and God gave us a name, that when we approached that person, he or she would say, "I was hoping God would use me somehow. Now I know where He wants me."
Like I said, its' just a thought.
If God qualifies the called, we can never really say, "I don't think I could do that." Or, "I'm really not into that sort of thing." Nor can we excuse ourselves for not having the necessary skill set. The reason is that if God does the qualifying, we shouldn't presume we know what the required skills are. And the reason God doesn't call those of us who appear qualified from our perspective is that when we succeed, we can't say, "Gee thanks, but I do that all the time." That's called doing it in our own strength.
If I say, "I'm just not wired to do that," we may well speak the truth, but that doesn't let us off the hook. Moses had a bad temper and was not an eloquent public speaker, yet God called him to appear several times before the leader of the Egyptian empire, and to lead the Israelites from Egypt to the promised land (and as Lincoln Brewster observes) without a PA system!
David's Biblical epitaph reads: "He was a man after God's own heart." Yet David was a mercenary, an adulterer and a murderer. Solomon couldn't keep his eyes on one wife. Noah was a drunkard and he was called to save the world! (Could this have implications for the TV show, Heroes?)
So if I approach someone whom I've prayerfully considered for ministry in some capacity and that person responds "I don't know if that's my thing," I wonder if I shouldn't strongly encourage the person to do it anyway. Just to make sure it indeed isn't his or her thing. After all, God may actually do something extraordinary through them.
Wouldn't it be nice if every time we prayed about a ministry position, and God gave us a name, that when we approached that person, he or she would say, "I was hoping God would use me somehow. Now I know where He wants me."
Like I said, its' just a thought.
07 October 2007
No church Sunday. This is weird!
If you notice the timestamp on this post, you'll note it;s Sunday morning, and you may wonder, "Why isn't he in church? He's a pastor!"
We closed the church today for Faith In Action Sunday. We've encouraged our people to go out today and serve their community or neighbors is some small tangible way. The premise being the church doesn't exist for us. It exists to serve others. That's what Jesus meant by we are "salt and light." And we said that what we do doesn't have to be big.
So we're going to try and visit my wife's boss's father who lives in town and likely doesn't get any visitors other than family. He may say No, but we're going to try. We're also going down to the new cafe in town and hobnob with some of the townsfolk. That's something I'll likely touch on in another post.
We closed the church today for Faith In Action Sunday. We've encouraged our people to go out today and serve their community or neighbors is some small tangible way. The premise being the church doesn't exist for us. It exists to serve others. That's what Jesus meant by we are "salt and light." And we said that what we do doesn't have to be big.
So we're going to try and visit my wife's boss's father who lives in town and likely doesn't get any visitors other than family. He may say No, but we're going to try. We're also going down to the new cafe in town and hobnob with some of the townsfolk. That's something I'll likely touch on in another post.
10 September 2007
I'm feeling the blues...
Two posts in one days. Whew!
| Your Brain is Blue |
 Of all the brain types, yours is the most mellow. You tend to be in a meditative state most of the time. You don't try to think away your troubles. Your thoughts are realistic, fresh, and honest. You truly see things as how they are. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking about your friends, your surroundings, and your life. |
On reading
You may have noticed my current reading list hasn't changed for a while. I did too.
Since mid-July, I haven't completed any of the books I listed there, with vacations and such. Probably an excuse. But we camp on vacations, and this year we spent those trips going to various tourist attractions. We did this because we could get for free. One of the perks of working for a tourist attraction (wife and two daughters), is we receive comp admissions for many of the other attractions. This is so the employees can intelligently talk about other attractions to tourists.
I just like the free part.
Since mid-July, I haven't completed any of the books I listed there, with vacations and such. Probably an excuse. But we camp on vacations, and this year we spent those trips going to various tourist attractions. We did this because we could get for free. One of the perks of working for a tourist attraction (wife and two daughters), is we receive comp admissions for many of the other attractions. This is so the employees can intelligently talk about other attractions to tourists.
I just like the free part.
04 September 2007
Post camping musing
We camped this Labor Day weekend, and Sunday after church we took the tramway to the top of Cannon Mountain. From there we could see four other peaks--all above 4000 feet: Mt. Lafayette, Mt. Lincoln, Mt. Liberty, and one I can't remember the name to off-hand. The view was incredibly clear: we could see the entire Franconia Notch from the observation tower atop the peak. A very awe-inspiring experience.
The other note on the weekend is sadder. When we checked into the campsite, we noted eight ducklings in the duck pond. By Monday morning they were all gone, victims of a blue heron that apparently has been stalking them since they were still in eggs. The owner of the campgrounds said he needed to figure out what would keep the egret away, without scaring off the ducks as well. But we missed the eight yellow fuzzballs paddling after their mother.
The other note on the weekend is sadder. When we checked into the campsite, we noted eight ducklings in the duck pond. By Monday morning they were all gone, victims of a blue heron that apparently has been stalking them since they were still in eggs. The owner of the campgrounds said he needed to figure out what would keep the egret away, without scaring off the ducks as well. But we missed the eight yellow fuzzballs paddling after their mother.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)