From The Heart

 
Tomorrow is the celebration of St. Valentine's Day! I've read several origins of the holiday. I'm sure you have, also. I think what always impresses me most is the lengths to which the advertising world goes to get the utmost out of a sales "opportunity" in relation to the buying public in our country. There are always new gimicks appearing out in retail land. I'm somewhat of a traditionalist when it comes to this special day of celebration. Then there is the side of me that insists we are to be actively loving our brothers and sisters everyday of the year. Tonight I send out a "Special Delivery" to the Body of Christ. When the apostle Paul wrote that "faith, hope, and love abide," and that "the greatest of these is love," he was exactly right! Real love, true love, is the most powerful motivator on the planet. If we could harness it and put it to work for good only, we could effectively solve the world's greatest problems. I pray you have someone very special to express your love toward tomorrow. Give thanks for that love, and as you thank God for that say a prayer for those who have not love in their hearts. One of the Native American artworks that adorn my office walls says it like this, "If there is anything better than loving, it is to be loved!" I like that! God loves us so much at such a personal level that we should not need to be reminded to love Him back, but that's what I'm doing! For each of us to share a moment of silent prayer with our God and say, "I Love You, Lord." In Christ's Love, Preacher. 

From Cross To Cup

My heart has been drawn to serving the "Living Lord," Christ! Five days have passed as prayer has been shared with God(and anyone else who was willing to listen and share)concerning the new ministry about to begin right here in Brookings, South Dakota. Months passed, over a year's worth, as I walked the shores of the Jabok wrestling with my thoughts and the seemingly unending parade of self doubt and criticism from within. My doubts centered on the question of worthiness, for I truly believe that none of us is actually deserving of the call to serve God. The affirmations I was slow to recognize as the mountain began to move in my direction until finally, today, under the most unusual circumstances I was brought to full realization that right here on the Great American Desert there are vast fields, white unto harvest, that must be addressed. I am not representing in an official capacity any denomination, but solely(no pun intended)trusting that God knows what He is doing with the meager supply of gifts and graces I entrust for His purpose. You may have heard me mention before that my personal "breath prayer" is "Let Thy Will Be Done" and it may not be continually on my lips throughout the course of each day, but it is broadcast constantly from the Spirit that dwells within. I shared with a close friend a few weeks ago that all I have and all I am is merely a vehicle for what God would have me do. This is it! A renegade Reverend on the high plains poised to set forth on the greatest journey in life. I suppose the next step is to do some in depth planning. According to God's will this should be a fascinating read as the chapters unfold. Tonight's title indicates a journey, but it is not mine alone. It is the journey of everyone who comes seeking a path of peace with all creation. I remember with a smile the words of one of my favorite seminary professors, "You need God a lot more than God needs you!" He is the same one that took a long hard look at me years ago across the classroom and pronounced the words(for some reason I think he was speaking directly to me in regard to the length of my hair), "The world doesn't need another Jesus, one was enough!" I pray Richard is enjoying the moments he takes to look in and see how I'm getting along in this life. I also pray it gives him cause for outright laughter from time to time, I know it does me. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Communion!

Writing often about the peace which people seek in their lives has brought me to this consideration concerning Holy Communion. However we celebrate the Lord's Supper we are in the process of seeking God's enlightenment concerning our purpose in living. Today I have received an answer that will suffice for tomorrow. Our giving of ourselves to Christ enables us as a body to accomplish so much more than any one person could ever hope to do in a thousand lifetimes. We can stretch out our collective hands and arms of faith and wrap up another clear down in Texas(I'm up here on the Great American Desert which is really a cold place to be tonight)without concern that they might not be blessed by our prayers. Of course they will! God is so cool when it comes to this little knot of humanity we refer to as "christian." It is much like having family everywhere you travel, and they all love you as much as our Savior does. This is not meant to be a reason for joining up with a Body of Christ where you live, but if you don't you sure are missing out on a huge goodness that this life has to offer. In an age when many seem to be traveling a path of self-interest, self-indulgence, self-motivation, self-assurance, and independence, it brings much peace to my heart that there are also those who are "selfless!" I give thanks tonight for the opportunity to share always and all ways with brothers and sisters in Christ. This is a good thing to experience in this life and it will only get better in the next. God bless, Preacher.

The Church Of Tomorrow.....Today!

Here it is a fully functional multi-purpose building set up for peoples enjoyment and Sunday edification! Yes, there is a regular gymnasium to one side of the water park themed worship center. Yes it is 100% handicap accessible, and there are no uncomfortable seats. It's a perfect place to enjoy a Sunday outing with the family. After services one can sit and dine while children cavort in the flowing waters which do double duty as baptismal fonts and pools when needed. An entire family can now be baptized in just moments with a few quick words from the pastor and an exciting rush down the slide to full immersion where they can be greeted by friends and loved ones alike!
This is all in jest, maybe. It seems as though today we are growing closer and closer to churches that establish themselves not only as places for worship, but also other activities. So, why not an indoor theme park? Put it in a large mall and you have a place that everyone is sure to want to attend. In this day of bigger and better ways to get people through the doors of the church can we be far from the implementation of such come ons? Think of it as a club and that with your membership you receive a beautiful gift and a lifetime pass to the facility! This may be happening already, somewhere. Not out here on the Great American Desert, although I must admit it does look very inviting. Then there is that church with the big screen TV and the Superbowl is coming, maybe we could just visit next Sunday. Keep a smile on your face and a song in your heart! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Quick Christians

EMT friends are interesting. They always have pictures to share concerning what can happen when one's favorite mode of transportation is a two-wheeled suicide machine better known as a motorcycle. The one pictured here was obviously ridden by someone who placed very little value on life! Crashing this tiny VW at a speed estimated to be in excess of 155 mph took three lives in a heartbeat. I've been up over 170 on two wheels, sanctioned, of course, and it is a speed I no longer need to seek. The slightest bump in the road causes the front end to literally float and the sound of the air whistling past is, well, awesome! The whole experience is a rush like many things in life. When it comes to matters of faith I have chosen to place mine in Christ and even He agrees that speeds over 100 are not reccomended for people over 50! Crashing into obstacles is another factor in our faith that must be encountered. They say the average reaction time for a rider is 1.6 seconds. For the new comer to faith in the spiritual sense it can be more like a month. God does not prepare us completely for the journey, He provides the maps and guidelines, even posts signs and wonders to keep us on the right track, but that isn't always the "fast" track. Faith needs time to mature and age a bit as it aquires it's unique perspective provided through our individual experiences. Oops! I almost started down one of those "I can remember when" roads, which is another sign of age that seems to pop up with greater regularity. Fresh out of the chute it is wise to temper enthusiasm with caution. I know, everybody should be as excited about heaven and the eternal possibilities there are with our loving Savior, but we shouldn't go so fast that we scare folks away or turn them off permanently. Just a little something to think about when you're out there on the high way! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Filling In The Blanks

The administrative tasks of pastoral ministry are seemingly endless. When serving a large congregation there are always secretaries to take care of filling in the blanks so that all we need do is add the "official" signature and everyone is happy. This isn't true in the smaller congregations. There has always been a lot of satisfaction to be found in sifting the records of a church under my guidance. Some denominations require a certificate like this for their transfer of membership records. How many years pass before we no longer hold on to these records and guard them faithfully for those who will continue in our absence? I know, these days everything is done with the aid of a 'puter. That's a good thing in a way, and a bad one in another. Have we lost touch with the roots of our "Body of Christ" the same way we have lost "touch" with the old ways of doing things? I suppose we have, but I would like it to not be thus. What may be occurring across the board in our churches is a depersonalization of the connections which give us our rich history in so many valuable ways. After all, that is a large part of what the church is about, remembering, and making those remembrances pertinent to the lives we live in the 21st century. Even in our worship much of what we are about is the practice of remembering what we have been taught, and attempting to hold it so sacred that we allow no depersonalization of the message and the gift it holds for those with eyes to see and ears to hear. Much emphasis has always been placed on the "how" of worship, and it is a subject that there are more opinions on than we have denominations in our world. It has been that way from the very beginning of the 1st century. I really enjoy a heated debate with my brothers over the nuts and bolts of worship. And here comes the clinker, inside every denomination there are subcategories that make distinguishing one church from another very easy for the visitor. They may have the same name on the outside of the building, but inside it is nothing like the church of that same name fifty miles down the road. It doesn't even have to be that far, but out here on the Great American Desert things are spread out a bit more than some parts of the world. The important thing for the individual to find is a place, a worshiping Body of Christ, that they feel meets their needs where they are in their faith journey! Not all of us enjoy the same foods, and this is true of our spiritual natures, as well. Recently I spoke with one of my old colleagues who is now serving a "high" church environment. All I can say is that if God is using someone, truly using them, they will be filling out those records of Baptism somewhere along the line, and actively involved in the lives of the people. Personally, I'm sort of like a team player. I think we're all on the same team serving God no matter what the position we play, even if we're only there to "fill in the blanks" for someone else. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Letters From The Past

Amongst the many pieces of family memorabilia that I've been going through the past few years this leather postcard appeared. Mailed a little over one hundred years ago! I found it so fascinating that for the past year or so it has been sitting on the end of the grand piano awaiting an inspiration for it's use. This is it! The time has arrived! My wife seems to think the card may bring a good piece of change on Ebay, but I think it holds much more than that for all of us. It teaches me many things. 1st, it puts me in mind of all the E-mail funnies we send to folks all over the world. Times haven't changed so much that people's sense of humor isn't evidenced by the ways they communicate thoughts and feelings. 2nd, it was one of my ancestors who wrote it to another of that literate crowd. Interestingly enough my great grandmother's Bible that accompanies me would have been in daily use back when this card was mailed. Those New Testament letters are just as relevant today as they were then! 3rd, people cared enough to truly stay in touch even when they knew that the recipient was a long ways away(maybe a little less than a thousand miles, but 100 years ago that was a "fer piece"). There are many ways I could run with these thoughts right now, but the one that I really want to share is about staying in touch. You see, our faith keeps us in "touch" with our Savior everyday. We don't need a piece of mail to remind us how much He cares, after all, He gave His life for mine and provided me with His Word. That little "Holy Bible" is the one that packs the best on my Harley, so it now travels thousands of miles every season bringing God's Word to the lives of others. It's an 1895 King James Version printed in Philadelphia by the A. J. Holman Co. Here's the connection: God's Word such as I carry it is doing many of the same tasks that the postcard accomplished 100 years ago. 1st, it tells me many stories about life that I would never have known if it were not for God's provision. 2nd, as one of God's children it is a constant reminder that He cared so much for me that He made certain that His "love," His "humor," and His truths would reach me wherever I was at in this world. 3rd, He cared so much that no matter how far I have ever traveled, His Word for life is never far from my reach. That includes hundreds of motel rooms, thousands of miles, and even out here on the net He is with me. Each of us is a product our ancestors that stretch all the way back to the very beginnings of God's influence in creation. Isn't it wonderful that we can stay in touch with one another and know for certain that we can share all of our thoughts and feelings with our loving, caring Creator and all of those who have believed and gone before us. Incidentally, I've got some questions about some of the jokes in the Bible that I haven't caught on to, yet! In Christ's Love, Preacher.