Seven Day Gospel

Now at among the hills dot com

cegr76 — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 00:54:23 +0000

Now blogging at http://www.amongthehills.com

Jesus’ Family Tree

cegr76 — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 04:33:29 +0000

One of the best ideas I’ve ever come up with is the Children’s Message Sermon Series. I don’t want to say that I invented it, but I don’t know of anyone else who does it this way. Nor can I find any such resources on the web. The awesome part is that the Children’s Message Sermon Series allows me to do real theology and Bible teaching to children. It has really helped in getting organized and inspiring me to include children in worship. Most of the time, the children’s message is unrelated to ‘adult’ lesson, but I haven’t found that to be a problem.

For Advent, I have decided to do Jesus’ genealogy from Matthew 1 as a children’s series. At Jones UMC, parishioners put up paper figures of the 42 men and 5 women of Jesus’ family tree. At the other churches, I have used name placards. Each Sunday, I select someone from the family tree to teach. Week one, I used David and talked about Jesus as “Son of David” and a king. Week two, I taught about Ruth being a gentile and connected it to Jesus’ high regard for non-Israelites. I included a bit about how when we read the OT, we are reading about a foreign place and a different time. When Jesus read the Hebrew scriptures, he was reading family history.

This week I am teaching on Josiah, the child king and the great reformer. The awesome part is that I have to do some research on the ins and outs of Josiah. It’s one of those things where a good idea has spurred other good things. I will teach on Mary for Advent 4 and Jesus as brother on Christmas Eve. After Christmas, the children’s message will be a series on Jesus’ revelations: how Jesus reveals who he is, using the 7 “I AM” statements from John’s gospel. I’ve researching it and having a blast.

The key is planning. I once had a terrible time doing children’s messages. I would be ill-prepared, trying to throw things together at the last minute. It was an embarrassment. But now that I have an approach, there is a certain power and joy to doing children’s message.

The Itinerant Preacher’s Car

cegr76 — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 01:47:58 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

I love my car. 2006 Honda Civic, 5-speed. As I am out of the office more than I am in it, my car is an extension of my office and suffers the consequences. Here is what is currently in the passenger seat:

Jug of kitty litter (unopened)
Bag of cat food (unopened)
Vote pro-life tract left on my windshield Sunday
Six pack of Welch’s Grape Juice, with one unopened bottle
20 lb rock (childrens sermon illustration)
Gym bag with running gear (unused)
My ‘funeral Bible’ (black leather)
Half-eaten bag of pretzels
Cookie tin (empty)
Charge Conference reports (2009 & 2010)
Newsletter from Daycare
Habitat building costs list (to include in Christmas fund-raiser)
Lots of empty soda bottles

Then there’s the back seat.

High-Heeled Foot Prints in the Sand

cegr76 — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:48:55 +0000

I’ve begun feeling a dearth of women leaders in the West Virginia Annual Conference. This is all the more strange given my marriage to a female elder. It’s not that they’re not out there…it’s that they’re so out there (or I’m so in here) that our paths only cross with strict intentionality. My DS is a man. My Bishop is a man. My ordination mentor is a man. All the clergy save two in my Cooperative Parish are men, and those two are associates. Annual Conference preachers are almost always men. Only one of nine District Superintendents is a woman…and she’s clear at the other end of the state. Women leaders in the conference seem to be in specialized places. We have a wonderful clergywoman as our Director of Congregational Development. I have no qualms with my DS or my Bishop. I guess I miss the variety.

I was invited into the ministry by a woman. As a US-2 I was commissioned alongside 21 awesome women. Most of my seminary training was under the tutelage of women professors and an all-female dean’s office. I think it makes a difference. If having gender balance on the Supreme Court makes a significant and beneficial difference, how much more important is it for the church to insist on just such a balance. I fear that this lack of balance is causing us to miss something important.

When Safe Sanctuaries hit Home

cegr76 — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 21:25:53 +0000

Yesterday, I was confronted by an uncomfortable situation regarding my daughter. I emphasize the word situation, because I was not confronted by uncomfortable people or uncomfortable groups of people. My wife and I both had to be here at Pastor’s School, she to present and me to attend as per my ordination process. What, then, shall we do with our daughter (5mos. old)?

When M. was phoned last week and asked to present, she told the organizer that she needed childcare. He said that he would find one. Not only did he find one, he found an excellent childcare provider: a woman who runs our very excellent Children’s Conference. The only hitch was that I did not really know her, beyond her name. I became very, very nervous. I hadn’t given my daughter to anyone that either M. or I hadn’t screened ourselves. M. was very busy trying to set-up for her presentation while giving our daughter to the childcare worker. Of course, people were crowding around doing the look-at-baby thing. The childcare worker told us where she was going to go with A. and I thought ‘There, alone, with my daughter?’ When it was just M, me, daughter and childcare worker, I spoke up. I asked who was going to be with her, etc. She assured me that she was Safe Sanctuaries trained. I explained that I knew about that too and that I have no problem with her, but with simply not knowing her. In a short conversation, she volunteered to go find another clergy wife to be with her. Because she was Safe Sanctuaries trained, she understood my apprehension (I was almost nauseous with worry), and she knew what to do to allay my fears. It was good all around: I practiced speaking up (when no one else seemed worried), she responded graciously and helpfully, M.’s presentation was good and daughter was okay.

I had helped train US-2s in Safe Sanctuaries in 2002 and heard Dr. Melton present on it at Shalom Summit. But until I became a dad, I didn’t appreciate the fear that parents have for their children. And until this week, I didn’t appreciate just how casually it happens that children can find themselves in unSafe Sanctuaries, especially among church-folk. Arrogantly, I consider myself among the more aware people. That was certainly true among the Pastor’s School folk. I have been beside myself for two days, worrying about how many children are left vulnerable in our churches due to simple lack of diligence. I really hope I am blowing this out of proportion, but I worry that I am not.

Lectionary Haikus: Luke 16:19-31

cegr76 — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 00:43:43 +0000

Dives:

Laz’rus’s finger
My only eternal hope-
My poor, poor brothers.

Lazarus:

I lost my money
to drugs, women and thug life-
Yes, I too know hell.

Lectionary Haikus: Luke 16:1-13

cegr76 — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 10:10:25 +0000

Fired the manager
My debtors are now his friends-
Impressively screwed

I’m too proud to beg
But not too proud to cheat, steal-
The Precious Lord grins.

Page One: The Lenient Master

cegr76 — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 10:05:41 +0000

I still don’t get this one. The Bible says that Jesus says to make friends through “means of dishonest wealth”. I guess there is wisdom in knowing how to get out of a mess of your own making. I don’t want to make too much of this, but where is the grace? It’s just that this guy didn’t really leave all of his mess behind. Fred Craddock points out that the first line says “There was a rich man…” This parallels the parable in 16:19 as couplet of parables about rich men. As Craddock points out, we often mix up who the parable is about. Why do we dwell on the son who returns home and call it the Prodigal Son (which precedes this parable in Lk. 15). The story actually begins “A man had two sons…” It is about the Father and the grace he bestows upon both of his children. Perhaps the same attention can be applied to this week’s story: “There was a rich man…” This rich man got suspicious of a manager below him. He then got screwed financially by said manager. The natural reaction would be to exact revenge or punishment, to have the manager arrested, sued, imprisoned, enslaved until restitution is paid. That would be justice, right? The manager simply did what was necessary to save his own hide. He was wise in the sense that he saw he was going to lose his job and wise to win the favor of others so as to help himself. He took a bad situation and found a way to make some good out of it. Nevermind that the bad was of his own doing. So, what about the rich man? From what we;re told, he commended the manager for his shrewdness. It sounds like he just accepted that he got screwed financially. Certainly he had the means to exact some justice, but he chose a different course. Grace is a different course. I have benefitted greatly from others having chosen this course. Perhaps the rich man saw or remembered all the ways that others have been gracious to him. Maybe he counted all of his friends and took as to how much more important friendships are than money. Maybe he was rich due to the generosity of others. Maybe he was envious of the way the shrewd manager made friends. Jesus tells the story not for us to focus in on the shrewdness of the manager, but the graciousness of the master. Jesus is about to tell of a rich man who does NOT do so well and does NOT practice graciousness. So with all the talk about dishonest wealth, perhaps the focus ought to return to the rich man, what he does and what he does NOT do. He does fire the manager; he does demand an accounting; he does commend the manager. He does NOT demand repayment or exact revenge; he does NOT punish the man; he does NOT restore the man’s job. We get away with so much. Those who constantly demand justice of others have NO idea just how good they have it.

Page One is the first page I write for the sermon–one page, long-form, stream of consciousness. It does not go in the sermon, it is a simple practice whereby I just write reflecting on what I have encountered thus far in the sermon-preparation process.

The Better Church

Christopher — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 01:22:27 +0000

This is a tale of 2 churches. But it is not a rant…it is a rave.

9AM–I walk into church, babe in tow. It is not perfect by any means. The parking is small, the entryway dark and cluttered with ladders and rock salt. The plaster needs repaired and there are a few light bulbs that need replaced. I am known there, this is a significant matter. I cannot get past the entryway, as people crowd me and tickle Anna’s feet. Anna looks back in interest and pleasure. Being on Family Leave, I have not seen this crowd in several weeks.

Worship was unremarkable. A snafu voided our bulletins. The liturgist did well to lead us in a Psalter and get us singing. ”Crown Him With Many Crowns” was simple and good. During the passing of the peace, more tickling of Anna’s feet and very joyful greetings. There was a fantastic children’s message. The kids have begun journaling and even have been making props for next week’s lesson: life-sized puppets of themselves. The sermon was solid, intelligent and affirming. After worship, continued greeting and feet-tickling. As I have gone through the day, I have swam on the feeling of legitimate affirmation. It was even more awesome as the affirmation mostly about Anna, but not to the point where I felt invisible. I experienced blessing. To the point that I can’t wait to get back to Highland Park UMC.

11AM–I had planned on worshiping elsewhere, so I got to BigChurch late. I walked in, baby on tow to a much different place. I got a back row seat, against the wall. I saw some places, but no one showed me or offered to guide me. I was clearly a newcomer. The passing of the peace was loud, but mostly because of the volume of people. No one greeted me. There was a back-to-school-means-you-should-go-back-to-Sunday-School lesson for the children’s message. It was unimaginative, devoid of laughter or meaning. It was a typical children’s message.

About 2 minutes into the sermon (on the travails of sex, alcohol, gambling and media) Anna started to stir. I knew she needed a diaper and was in need of attention. I got her out of her car seat. She always fusses getting out of the car seat, but is otherwise the most serene and happy baby you could ask for. But this minute she fussed and…come on, you know…I got the evil eye. It was one of the ushers. I know what I want out of church. As a pastor I have standards, even for churches that are not mine. I put Anna in the car seat and proceeded to leave. Why allow someone to piss on my already-blessed day. She intercepted me, perhaps wanting to redeem herself (which I ought to honor). Would you like to go to the nursery? At 4 months old, I am currently unwilling to give Anna to a stranger. I’m just not ready emotionally. But I allowed her to show me, which she then directed me to the cry room. I changed Anna’s diaper and gave her a bottle. I could hear the preacher mumbling, but I couldn’t make anything out. After Anna got settled, I packed her up and left. I did not go to church to sit in a room by myself.

Someone recently said: If I can’t preach over a baby, I ought to give up preaching. I took that country wisdom a lot more seriously today. BigChurch will get a lot of cred in the conference, and not undeservedly. Highland Park may very well be closed within 10 years. But there is something fundamentally right about a church that rejoices in babies. I was so proud of Highland Park UMC.

I confess some over-the-top judgment on my behalf. In my heart, I accused Big Church of capitulating to the complaints of adults who don’t want babies in worship. I even hypothesized that the cry room is an affront to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Didn’t he say, Let the children come to me?

Again, this story is about Highland Park UMC. They have a lot of issues. But boy, do they know how to love.

Image via Big Picture

Clergy Health as a Spiritual Matter

cegr76 — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 01:02:27 +0000

This is an article I wrote for the WV Annual Conference newspaper:

Conversations about the poor health of clergy must go beyond bottom-line institutional statistics. It’s a spiritual matter that must be connected to the gospel itself.

The summer after I graduated high school I interned with my pastors, Patricia Jarvis and Julian Sulgit. Every day that summer began with exercise. I walked with Patricia and lifted weights with Julian. At the most basic level, they needed the exercise to ward off stress from long hours and the difficulties of their role. But at another level, Patricia and Julian needed the exercise to convey the gospel with integrity. I now know that their job as clergy required deliberate attention to the health of their bodies.

It was through bodily touch that Jesus healed the leper (Mark 1:40-45), blessed the children (Matthew 19:13-15) and restored Thomas (John 20:24-29). Our salvation was won when Jesus’ body was crucified, buried and resurrected. Though we may long for a heavenly body beyond the realms of pain and death, the scriptural witness is that our earthly bodies are gifts from God, worthy of our respect. So it is that the Christian faith is an incarnational faith.

Pastoral leadership is also incarnational. Clergy embody the presence of God. When a pastor visits someone in the hospital, he or she is a visual representation of an invisible God. We hold hands and touch shoulders to comfort the sick, the grieving and the lonely. A Spirit-filled sermon will often move people to tears. Scripture shows touch to be a means of healing (James 5:14). Our most holy actions, the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion are experienced through the body. The temperature of the water, the smell of the bread, the gentle pressure of the hand on the head, the taste of the wine, the songs of praise and holiness: beyond being commanded by Christ himself, the sacraments, these means of grace, are experienced with our bodies.

It stands to reason that the integrity of the gospel we proclaim is affected by the healthiness of our bodies. This is not to say that the gospel can only be proclaimed by the young, the virile, the strong, the able-bodied or the beautiful. Indeed, it was through Christ’s broken body that we were redeemed. But there is a difference between a body broken through age, injury or disease and a body broken through self-abuse and neglect. When we teach our parishioners to love their neighbors as themselves (Leviticus 19:18), when we proclaim to the children of our congregations that they are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), when we pass on Paul’s lesson that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), do our bodies betray our words?

The clergy of our Conference are children of God. We suffer high rates of heart disease, diabetes, obesity and hypertension. In 2009, we spent over $900,000 on prescription medication. Health care costs represent 30% of the 2011 Conference budget. But there is an even higher cost: the spiritual health of clergy and effective sharing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We sing praises and teach spiritual disciplines so that all may have abundant life in Jesus Christ. Yet, we forgo exercise, eat poorly, shun preventative health care, and fail to keep the Sabbath. These choices seem to reveal a deeper sadness and inability to cope with the rigors of clergy leadership. Our health struggles are spiritual struggles.

Is this God’s will for God’s children? Of course not! If we are going to address this matter effectively within the Conference, we must be honest. We must approach this as a spiritual matter. And our words must be accompanied by action. We must address our faltering health from the standpoint of the gospel that we love.

Friends and colleagues, it is time that we take responsibility for our bodies and live the Gospel life with integrity.