Advent 2009
Frescoes from the 10th century inside the Tokali Kilise (Buckle Church), Goreme, Turkey
Sitting in the red easy chair in the den on the Saturday before Thanksgiving after a busy fall of Charge Conferences and a November packed with travelling and meetings, my soul longs for a time of Sabbath rest. At a combined meeting of the Core Leadership Team and members of all of the District Leadership Teams, Chris Harrison shared in his devotion a phrase that sticks in my mind, “life is a series of propulsion and patience.” Many of us are better at propulsion than we are with patience. Thursday is Thanksgiving and Advent begins early this year on the last Sunday in November. My thought may be the same as yours. When will there be time for pause, for Sabbath?
Of course, we are looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus, our Lord. As Christians, during this time of year, we celebrate that our Lord came to earth and look expectantly to his coming again. If this season is to be meaningful, it will be because we “prepare the way of the Lord.”
God comes, not just as a baby in Bethlehem, but today, here, now in the present moment. We must however, open our eyes and behold the wonder of the incarnation. To do this it seems mandatory to me that we find time to pause and behold. In her novel, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Annie Dillard reminds us of the old classic rule for stalking wildlife: “Stop often ‘n set frequent.” Our glimpses of God require this same centering, this same singleness of purpose. During this Advent let me encourage you to resist much of the “busyness” the secular world would call you to, and “set” some to ponder the presence of God.
Peace and Grace,
Bill
“Summertime and the living is easy. . .”
Of course, these words are from Gershwin’s musical Porgy and Bess. I don’t know about you, but for me summertime is not always easy. It is often hot and dry – spiritually and physically. Yes, there are some trips and some down time, but my expectations always exceed realities. If you are a pastor then often summer is more difficult because the activity ramps up while the income to fund the ministry of the church plummets.
My prayer for you this summer, as the mercury in East Texas hovers around the century mark, is to find time to get away and find that much needed rest for your soul. It may be near a lake where cooling winds make the heat tolerable; it may be on the coast or deep in the mountains of the west. For some who cannot travel because of time or expense, that place of refuge may simply be in a recliner with a glass of iced tea or on the front porch in the shade underneath a ceiling fan. Wherever you find it I hope during these “down” times of summer you find a cool place to mediate on how good God is and how good life is.
Here is the rest of the lullaby from “Porgy and Bess:
Summertime, and the living is easy
Fish are jumping, and the cotton is high
Your daddy’s rich, and your ma is good looking
So hush little baby, don’t you cry.
One of these mornings, you’re gonna rise up singing
You’re gonna spread your wings and take the sky
But till that morning, there is nothing can harm you
With your daddy and mommy standing by.
The Good News, as I understand it, is that one of these mornings we are going to rise up singing and take flight to a place where God, our loving parent, will protect us, calm us, and give us that peace that goes beyond all human comprehension. God is good and we have much reason to rejoice and be glad, and I hope you find a cool, quiet place to renew your soul!
Peace and Grace,
Bill
A Bit of This and That
This morning I’m going where I’ve never been before – the blogosphere! My intent is to try to update this page weekly to let the good folks in the North District know what I am doing as well as what is going on in the North District and in the Texas Annual Conference.
On June 20th at Gladewater First United Methodist Church the North District will host the annual clergy picnic to welcome all of those who are new to our district. (See the district calendar and the drop down menu – especially if you need child care.) This year we will be welcoming Nathan Hodge to Hallsville FUMC, Greg Fagan to Hubbard Chapel UMC, Meg Edmondson to St. Luke’s Kilgore as the associate pastor and director of the Wesley Foundation, James Fleet to LaGrone’s Chapel UMC, Chris Charles to Summerfield UMC, Develous Bright to Ebenezer UMC, Rick Ivey to Tapp Memorial UMC, Randy Smith to New London and Overton, Allison Young to Reeves Chapel UMC, Dell Covington to Red Lick UMC, Debra Brown to Smyrna UMC, Wayne Welborn to Buchanan UMC, Patrick Papp to Eylau UMC, and Tommy Earl Burton to Williams UMC as the associate pastor. This spring there have been three changes in charge alignments – Nash, Chapelwood is now aligned with Redwater, Naples is now aligned with Omaha, and very shortly Waskom First will be aligned with Elysian Fields Bethel. We will look forward to greeting our new colleagues and their families as they begin serving in new places of ministry. Please forgive me if I’ve missed anyone.
The 2009 session of the Texas Annual Conference has come and gone. I saw many of you there and thank you all, lay and clergy, for coming to The Woodlands and staying for however long you could afford to stay. It is always good to get together for holy conferencing and catching up on old friends and making new friends. It is the United Methodist way of life. If you didn’t remember to fill in your evaluation you can find the form at this link, and then send it back to the Methodist Center in Houston: http://texas.brickriver.com/files/oFiles_Library_XZXLCZ/General_Evaluation_2009_NSYZXNTS.pdf
From time to time I am asked about resources for ministry and books that the cabinet is reading. If you haven’t already explored the Lewis Center for Church Leadership you might want to. The Lewis Center can be accessed at this link: http://www.churchleadership.com/update/issues/2009/0906Update.html
Recently, at a seminar with Dr. Gil Rendle, who will be our resource person next year, February 1st, 2010, at the clergy retreat (place to be determined), we read a fascinating book titled, The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Orginizations by Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom. I recommend it! Bishop Janice Riggle Huie has promised a summer reading list for the cabinet and when I get it I will share it with you.
One last thought and I’m done for now. Roxanne and I have been invited to go with several clergy and laity from the Texas Annual Conference on a interfaith trip to Turkey sponsored by The Institute of Interfaith Dialog, Houston, Texas. The trip is billed as the “Bridge between Civilizations: Trip to Turkey”; between June 8, 2009 and June 18, 2009. Besides enjoying the historical and cultural treasures of Turkey, which I am told is a living example of the harmony of different faiths and civilizations for centuries. The trip will also include visits to community centers, schools, hospitals, civic organizations, dialog centers and other non-governmental organizations in Turkey. An added bonus is that we will be able to meet with local people and hopefully develop meaningful conversations and interactions with folks of another country and culture.
If all works well I will try to write this blog from Turkey next week and include pictures!
Peace and Grace,
Bill