Baptism

In the coming weeks MPC will celebrate the sacrament of baptism 5 times. Early this year I told my Session that it was my stated goal to baptize more people than I bury this year. So far this year the congregation has not had a death, so these five baptisms will be a good head start.
I love baptism and I view it as pure gift of joy that the Lord has called me to be a minister and allowed me to officiate at the celebration of the sacrament. While I know I in myself am there to maintain decency and order (1 Cor 14:40) I do enjoy sharing that moment with the person being baptized.
In my short ministry I have had the opportunity to baptize 2 whole families at the same time (you cannot get much closer to Acts than that) and that opportunity is going to present itself again next week with a mother and her two children. The following week our congregation will witness the sign of God's faithfulness for a toddler and an infant. All of these baptisms are a sign of God's claim and seal of the person as Christ's own forever.
I love to remind people that Jesus' own baptism is a paradigm for our baptisms. As we emerge from the water, a visible sign of an invisible spiritual reality (thank you Augustine), God's Spirit is present with us and God claims us as his own child (see Matthew 3:16-27).
Is there a better way to bring God's people together than a baptism? As we welcome in new people to the Church, we are all reminded of God's unfailing love for us.

Why Gideon?

A few months ago at Little River Christian Camp (run by a nice couple) I sat planning out sermons through Resurrection Sunday. As providence would have it, the 1 Corinthians series ended on Transfiguration Sunday, meaning a new series would begin with Lent. I could not pass up the opportunity to do something special with those six weeks. But what could I choose?
I prayed and read, prayed and read, prayed and read and prayed. When I was done I felt fairly certain the book of Judges was the correct choice. I still have no idea why I felt that way and as I have been preparing sermons I still wonder how I feel so sure that it is the right decision (the Holy Spirit is like that sometimes I suppose). The trouble was the book of Judges was simply too large to treat adequately in six weeks. So I read and prayed, read and prayed, read and prayed. When I finished, it was clear that the Gideon cycle was the direction I was being led.
After bouncing my Lent plan off of one of my mentors, she asked a very important question, "Why Judges? Why Gideon?" As if she was not enough, my wife asked the same question. Now that I have launched into the series, I am sure more than a few in the congregation are wondering the same thing. The answer to the question is, honestly, I do not know except that it is the right thing for us here in Merrill right now.
Gideon, as a person in Scripture has always intrigued me (but so have several others like Moses, Ahab, Josiah, Peter and [of course] Jesus). Being intrigued with Gideon, however, is not enough basis for a sermon series. The question I have been struggling to answer is what does Gideon's story have to say to us in Merrill right now. Gideon is intriguing. He is perhaps the smoothest operator in all of Scripture (I mean, who else gets to test God not once, not twice, but three times and get away with it?). He reforms the worship of Israel and then leads Israel back into idolatry. He is absolutely the hero of Israel, but then oversteps the bounds of his call.
Gideon is not the reason for preaching through these chapters of Judges. Maybe I am just intrigued with the revelation of God in Judges. Many consider Judges a bloody and horrific book, but in it I see the God of righteousness and grace interacting with humanity, seeking to fulfill His providential purposes and provide for the fulfillment of His promises. Judges is the story of people who have every reason to give glory to God and worship God and God alone, but continue to turn away from God for reasons never fully explained. Maybe it was God's words through the prophet telling the Israelites, "But you have not given heed to my voice" (Judges 6:10b) that set me down this path.
In the end, I am not sure how to answer, "Why Gideon?" The only answer I can give is that the Holy Spirit led me to this text and in some way, in some form, Christ and Christ crucified is revealed in this as well.

Small Town Pastor Life

I have been a small town pastor for about a year and a half now. While I am no expert, I have learned three main things about being a small town pastor during my time here so far:
1. "People do not care how much you know until they know you care." A fellow pastor who has been in this business for over 50 years told me that as I was preparing to begin my ministry at MPC. I know it was not original to him, but it was the first time I heard it. Over the last months I have learned that it is very true. People need to know their minister cares. They need to know their minister has a deep and abiding relationship with God, a rich commitment to Jesus Christ and empowering love of the Holy Spirit. People also need to see that care carry over to them. While I am nowhere near perfect at doing this, I am learning how to be a better minister.
2. "If you want something done right, get help." This is a recent lesson I am learning. If I try to do everything myself (in the vain attempt to be sure it is done well) then I cannot wonder why no one is willing to help. People like to be involved (and even better they love to be invited). While I am nowhere near perfect at recognizing people's gifts and talents, I am learning to ask for help.
3. "No program in the world can substitute for the presence of the Living God." In our Wednesday and Sunday morning Bible Studies we are looking at Old Testament prophets. I am struck how God time and time again rejects empty worship gesture, asking instead for genuine affection and obedience. The lesson I am learning is that programs are far easier to administer than ministering in the presence of the Living God. The challenge is I am called to the latter, and never the former.

Those are just a few things God is helping me to learn. What is God teaching you?

I am not good at relaxing

Jesus said, "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30). Despite Jesus clear instructions and invitation, I find it hard to relax. At times I feel like relaxing is somehow a waste of time (which, by the way, I am pretty good at doing). I feel guilty that there is something I should be doing, someone I should be visiting, somewhere I should be.
Perhaps, despite my faith, I have trouble believing Jesus meant what he said. "Deny [yourself], pick up [your] cross and follow me," (Mt. 16:24) you betcha. "I will give you rest for your souls," um, well that just sounds too good to be true.
What is certain is that Jesus worked and rested throughout his ministry. He made time to be with the people, but also to find a quiet place for himself. Jesus went to weddings and feasts and never once seemed to think any of these things was a waste of time, was time he could have spent doing something else more productive.
I know I am a better pastor when I take my days off, but sometimes that is hard to believe. To try to convince myself of this I went on a retreat last October where they drilled it into my head that Sabbath-keeping was time well-spent. I even made a rule of life with sabbath-keeping (read resting) activities featured prominently. Despite all of that, I still feel, well, guilty about taking time off.
I think I need help and I am convinced only Jesus can provide that help. If only I could get over my unbelief.

A Few Easy Resolutions to Build Up Your Faith

Every year I make new year's resolutions and every year I fall short. I am sure that this year will be no different.
That being said, I have found two easy resolutions that all of us can keep because all it involves is listening for about a half hour a day.
First, I am walking through the Bible in one year with the Daily Audio Bible (www.dailyaudiobible.com). Brian, the host, chooses a new English version each week and then reads through a daily selection. Each day's podcast is about 20 minutes. At the end of the reading Brian gives a short reflection and a few prayer requests. I know very little about him and his ministry, but his podcast ministry has been a blessing to me since about July last year and I look forward to this full year.
Second, I am also joining with the good folks of Princeton Theological Seminary (go Fighting Clergy) to listen through Calvin's Institutes throughout the year. A daily reading is about 10 minutes and has already given me much to think about as I listen instead of read. Details can be found at www2.ptsem.edu/ConEd/Calvin/.
I have also decided to listen to these two daily podcasts while exercising (we'll see how that goes).
I hope and trust that God will use these disciplines to teach and guide me as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Cutting Teeth

My daughter is cutting teeth.
I know that many parents have survived teething, but I am currently doubting whether I will survive with my sanity intact. Okay, that is a bit melodramatic, but my once reliably happy, cheerful, giggly girl has all of the sudden become cranky, irritable and mournful. I can only imagine the amount of pain she must be feeling and her frustration with her inability to communicate with her parents what is wrong.
Sometimes, I guess I can sympathize with Marian's teething. There are times when I feel hurt or sad or angry and I do not know just quite how to tell my Father in heaven. I had such an occurrence this last week. I heard horrible news and I cried out in anguish not quite sure how to express myself to God. I am thankful that in that time as in all times, the Holy Spirit was present with me in my weakness to carry to God what I could not in words. "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." (Romans 8:26-27, NRSV).
Prayer is powerful. More powerful than we can even imagine. Throughout my time in ministry I have witnessed many answers to prayer that seem absolutely miraculous. I have also been party to a quite a few times when our prayers seem to have gone unanswered. In all of those times, however, it was very powerful to know that the Creator of the Universe was listening to me and somehow that in itself is deeply comforting.
In this life as I cut my teeth of faith, I am thankful that God understands me even if I cannot express how I feel.

Keeping the Home Fire Burning

This last week I was quite the traveler. I left last Monday and drove the family up to Little River Christian Camp for a few nights. While the family planned out hikes and activities, I, for my part, planned a few days of soaking in the Scriptures and praying for guidance. It was nice to be away from the usual environment and the usual busyness of being a solo pastor. It was joy to be surrounded by the glories of God's creation (even if that included continuous rain keeping the whole family in the cabin unexpectedly).
Further, my stay at the camp including me keeping a fire burning to keep me and my family warm. It has been a long time since I had to tend a fire, perhaps as long ago as my honeymoon and I took to the task with relish and, dare I say it, reverence. There is just something about tending a fire that fits with my personality. Once the fire is burning, it only takes occasional maintenance to maintain the burn. As I like a distraction every hour or two, it was the perfect activity for my retreat. The only time it posed challenging was at night because I would have to stoke up the fire and then pray I woke up a time or two throughout the night to keep the fire burning and, consequently, the cabin warm. So for three days last week I became the Keeper of the Flame.
My week ended with a trip to the meeting of the Presbytery of the Cascades. The meeting was largely uneventful, except for the dismissal of two congregations to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. As I listened and thought and prayed during the discussion leading up to the dismissal I wondered what I was doing in the Presbyterian Church (USA). I understand my call as a minister and the obligation and commitment I feel to proclaim God's Word in word and deed. I feel the fire burning in my bones that the prophet Jeremiah comments on in Jeremiah 20:9:
"If I say, 'I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,' then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot."
Later, Jeremiah received an oracle that describes the nature of that burning fire in the bones when God asks, "Is not my word like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks rock in pieces?" (Jeremiah 23:29). I know that God's Word in my life is a burning fire, a fire that needs to be tended so that it will keep me warm and snug all my life.
Perhaps that is why I feel a commitment to the Presbyterian Church (USA). My commitment to my denomination is similar to commitment to my family. I long to keep my brothers and sisters in the denomination warm even as I longed to keep my family warm in our little cabin this last week. Perhaps I am being paternalistic or even simplistic, but I view my ministry as an opportunity to warm others by the fire of God's Word.