Claimed, gathered and sent

The best, most rewarding and sometimes the hardest part of being a pastor is the sacred spaces that people allow you into. Since Palm Sunday, I have spent more time walking, praying and just accompanying my parishioners at the hospital, the funeral home and in circumstances of life. It's a sacred and sometimes sad privilege to be let into people's lives like that. Saturday the church council and I  went to Camp Penuel in Eldred, PA for a church council retreat. We are blessed to have such committed leaders. It was a really good retreat and I thank God for his work among us as we studied, prayed and tackled the subject of change and what that might look like at Bethel.  We also set some BHAGs--big, hairy, audacious goals. Then yesterday was Good Shepherd Sunday and it felt strange to be away from church. I was traveling to S. C. for the Evangelical Lutheran Coalition for Mission in Appalachia Assembly as  one of my synod's delegates to the assembly. It was a very...

For the first time in anyone's memory, we held a community Ash Wednesday service. This was a cooperative effort of the Methodist, Presbyterian and Lutheran churchs. The response was overwhelming. This will now be an annual event. We three pastors each preached a short homily following each of the scripture texts that were read. I preached on the Isaiah text . Here is the message I shared: At first glance, it’s easy to see why this portion of Isaiah is read on Ash Wed.      It’s about fasting, which is a discipline some folks practice during Lent      This reading is about right and wrong fasting and worship           But the heart of the message goes far deeper “God was disturbed by Israel’s lack of social justice. Their fasting had become [a public show. It was] a means to boast of their righteousness rather than live out a faith where one cares for one’s neighbor” (Dr. Keith Wagner...

Our congregation is beginning God Sightings, which is more than a Bible study, more than a devotional. It's a means to look for ways in which God is at work in our everyday lives. The program consists of scripture reading from a one year Bible and a companion guide for journalling.  We will officially begin this study in Lent and it will continue beyond that time. Our hope is that God's people at Bethel Lutheran Church, Portville, NY, where I serve as pastor, will embrace this opportunity to engage scripture, our faith and God in a way that we have never done before. It is my conviction that if each of us does this, God will turn our lives and our church upside down. Speaking of God sightings, this Sunday's gospel on the transfiguration is a case of God sightings and hearings. Some questions came out as we talked about the text at Bible study Tuesday night. We attempted to discern what God was doing in that text, what God is saying to us personally and what God is say...

It has been an amazing day of ministry. Today we celebrate the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord. This morning we had a great service, then I spent time with the confirmation class training them to be acolytes, communion assistants and lectors. But I think the highlight of my day came this afternoon when a group of us went to a nearby nursing home for a service of holy communion. Most of the residents were very engaged in the singing, prayer and communion. One of them didn't want to let go of my hand when we were singing. What really topped it all off for me though was when I communed another woman. When I said, "The body and blood of Christ given and shed for you" (I intincted the commununion host for the residents), she said "...and you!" We both said "Amen!" It was just an amazing connection that we had. The homily I shared with them was a shortened version of the sermon I preached at Bethel . The gospel text was Luke 3:15-17, 21-22. Here is my...

Tomorrow is the fourth and last Sunday of Advent. People are chomping at the bit to sing Christmas carols in church, but they will have to wait until Christmas eve. The gospel text is from Luke and this is what I'll be sharing with the people of God at Bethel Lutheran Church in Portville, NY.             Last Sunday afternoon a group from Bethel went caroling. We sang at several senior citizen housing sites in Olean and Portville, as well as the home of one of our members. Everyplace we went, people responded with smiles and thanks. However, there was one place that was new for this group of carolers—a group home for developmentally disabled adults. I was struck by seeing and hearing the responses of these so called disabled people. One man had a sleigh bell and rang it as we sang. Others entered into the spirit of the season as they heard familiar Christmas songs by singing along with us. I saw the power of music to move pe...