Look for these Three Cs at Church

I find myself ever pondering why people go to church. One of last Sunday's texts talked about the confidence that comes from knowing forgiveness. Since last Sunday's service, I've added two more "C" words that one should expect to find at church.

Comfort. Most of us attend a church whose worship experience we find comforting. This is particularly true when we consider the music the church offers, but other elements such as hearing scripture read from a familiar translation, or the administration of the sacraments help us find comfort in a chaotic world.

Confidence. Being reminded each week that when we confess our sins, our sins are forgiven gives us the confidence to do some of the things that Jesus asks of us (even if we sense we may fail more often than not). The reminder of God's spirit that lives within us and moves among us also gives us confidence, as does a daily walk with God.

Challenge. But if we go just for the easy stuff, we miss a big part of what church should be for us. Church is a place where we should regularly experience a challenge to take what we know and experience and apply it to the world in which we live. God desires that the experience of Christianity not be limited to the church, but that the teachings of Christ be carried out in the world outside the church.

But, to accept (and live by) such Challenges, we need the Confidence that comes from sins forgiven and a walk with the king, supplemented by the regular Comfort we find in the familiar that worship among friends offers us.

So, when you go to church next, look for these three "Cs" and your experience might just be the richer for it.

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I Then Shall Live

Since I met them first in my recording studio outside of Chicago in the late 1960s, Bill and Gloria Gaither have ministered to me with their music and lyrics perhaps more than any other musical ministry. I saw one of their TV specials last night, and heard for the first time a set of lyrics that Gloria had written for Jean Sibelius' time-honored tune "Finlandia." I was quickly on the Internet looking for the lyrics.

I found not only the lyrics, but a video of the Gaither Vocal Band performing the song. May it enrich your soul as it did mine.

Gaither Vocal Band I Then Shall Live lyrics

I then shall live as one who’s been forgiven;
I’ll walk with joy to know my debts are paid.
I know my name is clear before my Father;
I am His child, and I am not afraid.
So greatly pardoned, I’ll forgive my brother,
The law of love I gladly will obey.

I then shall live as one who’s learned compassion;
I’ve been so loved that I’ll risk loving too.
I know how fear builds walls instead of bridges;
I’ll dare to see another’s point of view.
And when relationship demand commitment,
Then I’ll be there to care and follow through.

Your kingdom come around and through and in me;
Your power and glory, let them shine through me;
Your Hallowed name, O may I bear with honor,
And may You living Kingdom come in me.
The Bread of Life, O may I share with honor,
And may You feed a hungry world through me.
Amen. Amen. Amen.

Text © 1981 Gaither Music Company.

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At the stores, it's already Christmas

Only church people celebrate Advent. The commercial world celebrates either "Christmas" or "the Holidays." But I'm getting ready to celebrate Advent at our church, and I'm trying to wrap my mind around how to make it meaningful to my parishioners.

Recently, I saw a television ad where a major national retailer was reviving an idea that's been around since I was a kid: lay-away. With lay-away, you don't just go to the store and drool over the things you want (for yourself and for others); you actually put those things in the shopping cart. But you don't take them home with you. You put them on lay-away, where they'll stay as the price for their purchased is paid in installments. (Yes, that sounds like a reverse form of credit cards, where you can now pay for your gifts after they've been taken home and given to the person on your list.) With a credit card, there's no anticipation. With lay-away, there is.

I guess Advent is something like lay-away. I can make a list of all the good things that might happen in my life if God actually lived nearby -- in my neighborhood. But that hasn't happened yet (or has it?) Nonetheless, the things on my list are placed on lay-away, in anticipation of that day. I wait, excitedly.

And then, one day late in December, I receive the news that God has come, and is indeed living in my neighborhood. Now, everything in the cart is mine -- to share.

My credit cards haven't taught me to look forward to things. They haven't taught me what it's like to lay in bed at night dreaming about when all those things in that lay-away cart are mine, to enjoy and to share. My credit cards teach me only that, even though I can have it all now, there's a price to be paid off in the future.

I guess I'll just put this Advent thing on lay-away. Maybe that will leave me laying in bed at night dreaming of what might yet happen.

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The Sign Out Front

I recently sat through the meeting of a church's Long Range Planning Committee. As with most long range planning committees, the conversation was about "growth." Those on the committee (and many others) want more people to attend the church. So, they talked about putting a new sign out front.

I got to thinking (in the middle of the night, of course) about putting out signs announcing meetings. I was haunted by the following questions:

1. If a sign were to be placed out front announcing "Rock County Republican Party meets here Thursday Night at Seven," certain people would read the sign and opt to attend the meeting. What would these visitors expect? In addition to a formal presentation, they would probably expect conversations to center around the platform of the Republican Party and ways in which Republican ideals could be implemented in Rock County.

2. If a sign were to be placed out front announcing "Rock County Historical Society meets here Friday night at Seven," certain people would read the sign and opt to attend the meeting. What would these visitors expect? In addition to a formal presentation, they would probably expect conversations to center around the history of that part of Rock County, and how the memories of that history could be kept alive.

3. If a sign were to be placed out front announcing "Rock County Grange meets here Saturday night at Seven," certain people would read the sign and opt to attend the meeting. What would these visitors expect? In addition to a formal presentation, they would probably expect conversations to center around farming in Rock County, and ways in which the life and lot of Rock County farmers could be improved.

4. If a sign were to be placed out front announcing "Church Services held here Sundays at 10:45," certain people would read the sign and opt to attend the meeting. What would these visitors expect? In addition to a formal presentation, they would probably expect conversations to center around .... I'm afraid these visitors might hear the same conversations that they might expect to hear in options 1, 2, and 3 above. For those are often the conversations heard in many churches on Sunday mornings.

In option 1 above, what would visitors do if they attended the meeting of the Republicans and heard no discussion of Republican ideals? In option 2, what would visitors do if they showed up to a meeting of the Historical Society, and heard no discussion of the history of Rock County? Or, if they attended a meeting of the Grange and heard no discussions about farming? Most would never return.

Then, I ask myself, what might visitors do who show up for church on a Sunday morning and hear little conversation (outside of formal presentations) about God?

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What is the Kingdom of God?

When a minister goes on vacation, where to go to church while out of town is not always one of his or her first considerations. It’s a bit like what we used to call “a busman’s holiday.” I’ll admit that I often don’t seek a church in which to worship while I’m out of town. But my present parish identified two consecutive Sundays each summer as “Reach Out” Sundays – Sundays where we’re encouraged to worship with other Christians in different settings. (The alternate reason we do this is that these two Sundays coincide with the county fair, and so many of our parishioners are involved there that staging a worship service back home is awkward.)

Dotti and I had planned our two weeks of vacation in northwestern lower Michigan, a return trip to an area we had visited two years earlier, and left early on Monday morning of the first week. We arrived safely, and soon began our exploration. Fairly early that first week, Dotti spotted a sign along a roadside that read: “Historic Greensky Hill Native American United Methodist Church” with an arrow pointing north.
We decided to explore. The church was found down a dirt drive about a quarter mile through a wooded area. The sign at the entrance to the dirt drive listed the Sundy worship time as 9:00 a.m., and we decided we’d return.

The sanctuary was a small six-pew-deep hewn-log meeting house. I compulsively scanned the order of worship listed in the bulletin handed to us when we were seated. That is where I learned that the pastor was in the midst of a series called “What is the Kingdom of God?” The printed order of worship got interesting when I noticed that several components of this worship were not in English, but rather in Ojibwa. I also discovered that beside me in the pew was a loose-leaf Ojibwa hymnal, from which we would sing one of our hymns.

Time afforded me a chance to look around at the congregation before the service began. The congregation was diverse, both ethnically and economically. But mostly, I noticed that they weren’t benign: they actively engaged each other. I would soon learn that such engagement did not end when the pastor called worship to order with an Ojibwa greeting. All twelve pews (six on each side of the aisle) were filled, and before sharing their joys and concerns, they stood and greeted each other – not just a polite handshake with those you could reach from your pew, but a walk-about that lasted until everyone in the sanctuary was greeted. The recitation of joys and concerns was equally interactive, with persons asking details so that they could celebrate or pray more accurately. The voices exhibited genuine concern for those whose names were mentioned. (For those who could not hear the speaker, the item was repeated aloud by someone nearby.)




Then came the announcements: a rummage sale was upcoming, not for the benefit of the church, but for the benefit of some who were not making it economically. The anticipation was that people would tend their own tables and that the church merely provided a venue where people could help themselves economically. Other area fund raisers and benefits were announced for those in need, whether members of the church or not.

The remainder of the service was a mix of English and Ojibwa. During the Lord’s Prayer (which was offered in Ojibwa in unison), I was reminded of an older lady in an earlier parish of mine who always prayed the Lord’s Prayer in German (as loudly as any of us prayed in English). How God must enjoy that prayer offered in multiple languages simultaneously. The interactive sermon reminded us that “forgiving” is one of the characteristics of the Kingdom of God.

I came away from this worship experience feeling that the pastor’s question had been answered by what I had seen and heard. Here, the Kingdom of God was multicultural. It was interactive. It was caring. It was creative. It was about helping others. It was about reaching out into the community. It was not ashamed of its own needs, or of the needs of those around it.

By taking a Sunday morning of our vacation to expand our horizons, Dotti and I had been offered a glimpse of what the Kingdom of God really is.

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Fireworks for Pacifists

On my second blog, Grayliners, I've posted an essay and video under this title, and I invite you there to read and see. (The post is too large to post it to both blogs.)

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Church Suppers Cookbook

This Monday morning dawned rainy and dreary. We often assign Mondays as our "day off" and try to incorporate some form of recreation. This morning, we opted for a short road trip that would end in a delightful ambiance for our morning coffee. We opted for Stoughton, Wisconsin, and a place called Cheesers.

While Dotti went next door to buy some yarn, I sat at a table in the window and enjoyed a bottomless cup of coffee and my half of our white chocolate raspberry scone. As I sat there, I spied a rack of cookbooks.


I never opened the cookbook titled Church Suppers, but its title inspired the following 8-stanza Haiku:

church suppers cookbook
traditional recipes
to nourish your soul

ethnic heritagge
hot food for the family
and a dish to pass

eating together
church basement or out-of-doors
time spent with others

wrapped in a cozy
retain the heat until served
always enough food

food shared with kindred
lives shared for generations
wisdom love hope faith

finding together
courage to live useful lives
serve God and others

beautiful cookbook
recipes from cooks now gone
memories live on

fast food and drive-thus
rob joys from communities
joys of church suppers

We've shared many happy hours at church suppers. Those times are among our fond memories.

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The rest of the "Ten Reasons" story

If you're wondering what I did with that list in my article, here's the rest of the text.

Find any that sound familiar? During my career, I’ve heard all of these (and another ten or so as well). If this were a book, I’d write a chapter on each. But instead, here I will address only the last one. Does God care? Yes, and no (depending). Does God care that I attend one church over another? Not really. Does God care that I miss a Sunday or two here or there? Probably not. Does God care that I opt not to walk with him on a regular basis? Indeed he does.

Those of us who have received Christ’s baptism, who have confirmed our faith and commitment publicly, have a promise to keep. We have promised, as people who claim Christ’s name (as Christians) to walk with God. Health does not get in the way with this. Business shouldn’t either. Is being a Christian demanding? You bet! Anyone who has implied otherwise has deceived you. As far as other things bringing us more pleasure…. We ever need to re-examine our relationship with God to see whether it is God, or us, who prevent it from being pleasurable.

God cares. He wants (he expects) us to spend time with him, whether it’s summer or not. So this summer, plan to spend time regularly with God. And, if some of it is at Emerald Grove Church, we’ll look forward to being together. May God give us all a good summer…to walk with him.

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Ten Reasons I Don't Go to Church

Each month I write an article for our church's newsletter. I often struggle to find a relevant and timely topic about which to write (as I'm often writing 2-3 weeks before publication). But the weather is nice this morning, and the sun is shining, and I'm thinking about summer. So, I offered my parishioners ten reasons for not going to church. They are:

1. My health no longer permits me to attend church. (This one is valid.)

2. I am a caregiver, and my responsibilities keep me from attending. (This one is also valid.)

3. I’m just too busy.

4. At times I find church irrelevant to my world.

5. Being an active part of a church can get too demanding.

6. Sunday is the only day I have to myself.

7. Church takes up too big a chunk of my day (or, in the summer, it starts too early).

8. I need a break.

9. Other things give me more pleasure.

10. I’m not sure God cares.

I said that they were free to clip the list and post it on their refrigerator door (but I'm not sure I'll see any when I make house calls).

What are your plans for the summer?

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Welcome to a new BLOGger

Many mornings my wife Dotti and I sit at our facing desks in our den and write. What we write varies with the day, and with the assignments that face us. But we write. And, we reflect on the life in which we participate.

Dotti has begun her own blog, and I am pleased that her writings are now exposed to a wider audience. I invite you to visit "The Traveling Mouse" by using the link on the right-hand side of this page.

Dotti and her writings have blessed me for many years. I'm glad that she now shares that blessing with an ever-growing audience.

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What if Jesus is Coming Soon?

While driving across southern Missouri a few days ago Dotti and I stopped for lunch at a Waffle House restaurant. When I went to pay my check, I noticed a business card holder next to the register with business cards that simply read, "Jesus is Coming Soon." I picked one up, perhaps in part to affirm the person who placed it there. And then, as I awaited my change, I looked behind the counter.

If I managed a roadside restaurant, and was convinced that Jesus was coming soon, I think I'd hurriedly wash up all the dishes and scrub the floor. I'd check to see that the napkin dispensers were filled, and that every table and every booth was scrubbed.

As I drove down the highway that afternoon, the card sat on my dash. I wondered, what would I do if I were truly convinced that Jesus was coming soon? Would I quickly do all the dishes, scrub the floor, and wipe down all the furniture? I doubt it. Those are not my "things" -- they don't represent my gifts or my calling. So I decided that if I truly believed that Jesus were coming soon, I'd get busy using the gifts I've been given (such as writing, teaching, and ministry). Jesus might well expect to find me busy using these gifts he has given me, rather than living up to someone else's responsibility.

What God expects of each of us is different (and perhaps different at various times in our lives). What he does expect of each of us is that we be diligent in the employment of the gifts we are given.

The card remains on the dash of my car. It helps me focus.

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Where do the Ashes Come From?

We just returned from our annual Ash Wednesday service. Using the ashes to place the mark of the cross on the foreheads of those present always reminds me that I'm called upon on some occasions to answer the question, "Where do the ashes come from."

One of our parishioners tonight confessed that several years before I came to the church she had volunteered to take the remaining palms from Palm Sunday of the previous year and convert them into ashes. This was her first try at making usable ashes. She broke up the palms and placed them in a pan. Then she attempted to light the palms in the pan, but they refused.

Undaunted, she went outside and got the charcoal lighter fluid and gave the mixture a good squirt.

That year, the mark of the cross was blacker than ever.

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A Lenten Challenge

Today is Fat Tuesday. I don't make that observation because I've looked in the mirror, but because of the tradition to get all of the fat in the house used up (consumed) before the beginning of Lent at midnight. Others observe the day by celebrating Mardi Gras.

Regardless, most people feel that they ought to do something for Lent, but aren't quite sure what. (Fatalists feel there's no point doing anything for Lent, because they'll only fail at it.)

Here's what I recommended to my congregation:

The official word about Lent is that it is a time for self-examination and self-denial. That’s often been a hard sell for the American church, where our economy and much of our society is committed to self-indulgence. So my mind wanders toward self-indulgence, even though many of our political and economic leaders also tell me that right now self-denial might be more in order.

Two words – opposites – help me envision a productive use of Lent for 2009: “indulgence” and “denial.” Of the two, indulgence is the far easier one for me to focus on. So my thoughts then go to two other words: “God,” and “me.” (OK, so it’s easier again to think of myself than to think of God, but this is a church newsletter, so let’s pretend that thinking about God is somewhat easy.) In truth, when I deny myself, I indulge in God; when I indulge myself, I deny God.

So, for Lent this year, I’d like to focus not so much on denying myself, but on indulging God. How, then, do I indulge God? What does God most want from me? You’ve heard me say before that what God wants most from us is for us to walk with him. So I propose here that an appropriate endeavor for Lent is not to give up chocolate, but to give more time to walking with God. While initially that may seem as difficult as giving up chocolate, it is ultimately far more beneficial.

At least four or five times each year I resolve to read my Bible more often, perhaps even daily, but it doesn’t take long for that resolution to weaken. This year, for Lent, I’m going to try it again. Care to join me? There are so many plans for daily Bible reading (and each one is the best, of course), I’m going to propose a psalm a day. While just about any place you read in the Bible is instructive, the psalms are uniquely worshipful. The Daily Lectionary offers two psalms each day, one for morning and one for evening. I’ll be including these recommended readings each week in our church bulletin. We may even find a certain connectedness knowing that we are each reading the same psalm on a given day.

But don’t just read and run. Close your eyes and think about it. Then say something to God. It doesn’t have to be a formal prayer; conversation with God works great. He’ll like it, and you will too.

So this year for Lent, don’t focus on giving up something. Indulge! Focus on giving something…to God. Give him a few minutes more of your time each day. In so doing, the true spirit of Lent will be well served, and you and I will grow together.

If you lack a list of readings, create your own, or click here for help. This year, let's focus on giving something (rather than giving up something) and in so doing draw closer to God.

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Grasshopper Eyes and Eagle Wings

Last Sunday, our Old Testament lesson was from the 40th chapter of Isaiah. In preparing to share with the congregation, I came across an essay titled Grasshopper Eyes and Eagle Wings. I read it aloud to the congregation as my Further Word. They found it meaningful, and I hope you will as well

Isaiah 40:31 was probably one of the first scriptures I memorized in my youth. It was a great hope to feel that God could lift me up on Eagle’s wings and it still is. I love the idea of soaring above it all, being the swift and strong eagle, with a bird’s eye view of all the grasshoppers below. But honestly, I need to back up to Isaiah 40:22 and remember that so much of my life is lived with the grasshoppers. In describing the greatness of our Creator, Isaiah starts off comparing us to the small leaf-hoppers who are more prey than predator. Isaiah had such a gift for metaphor, so I wonder if he carefully chose contrasting grasshoppers with eagles, or if any small insect or rodent would do for his literary purposes. This week I want to take some time to applaud the grasshopper as well as the eagle.

If you'd like to read the full essay, click here.

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Thinking Spring - photo of church

I looked for an exterior shot of the church in winter, but found only interior shots in my collection. So, I opted to post an exterior shot taken in pleasant weather. If that tells you what's on my mind, so be it.

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First Post

Dotti and I attended a seminar for pastors this afternoon at the Pontiac Convention Center here in Janesville. One of the suggestions made is that every pastor should have a blog. It is, in part, to bear witness to the fact that we are thinking (more than just on Sunday mornings) and that we are open to dialog about our thoughts.

Since my daughter and my grandson already have a blog, I suspect it's time for me to begin.

If, in the process of reading this blog, you find material that is helpful, invite others to subscribe to this blog as well. If, at any time, you'd like to join in the conversation, please feel free.

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