The Heart of a Pastor

From within

I am experiencing a strange phenomenon.

Thursday mornings is a time I set aside to write sermons.  I spend a hour or so in my office; working with my secretary to make sure the worship bulletin in completed then I head out to continue sermon prep (I say "continue" because sermon prep take place all week long).  I continue my sermon prep in the sanctuary where I can get away from all distractions so I can focus on the Word God needs me to preach to the people.  I stand up front (and after praying) and I look out into the pews and imagine people sitting out there.  To my left (the pulpit side) towards the back sits Ken and Janet.  My wife sometimes sits on that side as well (but she does not have her "own pew").  On my right side (organ side) towards the front sits Lyle with Pete, Mazie and Vicki just in front of him.  In the far back on the organ side is the section for families with young children (that can be a zoo sometimes, but I never notice until a parent apologizes to me for their noisy child).  In the last pew on the pulpit side (along the outside wall) sits Sylvia and Virgil...

...and I could continue on and on...giving you a fairly accurate seating chart of a typical Sunday morning, but I won't bore you with that.  My point is that I look out and see people sitting out there and I imagine their lives and ask God, "What do they NEED to hear from you?"  This helps me in some strange way.  But I guess this is only right because as a preacher, we come FROM WITHIN the congregation, not from OUTSIDE the congregation.  We should imagine our people's lives because that is how we are faithful in the craft of preaching.  Otherwise we are nothing more than a disconnected lecturer trying to communicate some truth that does not matter to their lives right now.  So I try to be faithful.

Now...as I write this...I am taking a sermon writing break.  Where?  Well...I am downtown at my favorite coffee place.  I am set up in the corner with my lap top, a cup of coffee and an empty tray that once contained a delicious chicken cordon blu sandwich.  I have been here for about 1 1/2 hours, but I am not alone.  This small coffee shop is filled with people talking about this or that; talking about their lives or the latest gossip.  This is definitely not a place to find peace and quite, but yet I HAVE found peace and quiet.

What a strange phenomenon...

...but maybe this is not so strange after all.  Because as a preacher I come from WITHIN the congregation.  And isn't this the congregation...here in this coffee shop..or wherever?  The "congregation" is not contained in a building...rather...it's "out there".  So if this is the congregation, then this is definitely an okay place to be.  In my office I feel disconnected.  Here...I feel connected.

The murmur of voices are still floating in the air, but they don't bother me; rather...they inspire me.  So with that...I return to my craft...from within God's people.

-edh-

My little oasis

This is the story of my little oasis...

On the SE side of Salem Lutheran Church is my little oasis -- a grassy courtyard area surrounded by bricks, concrete and asphalt.  On the east side of this oasis is the main church building and on the north side is the education wing (a ramp heads down from the west to the east on the north side that takes you to the education wing door).  On the west side of this oasis is a sidewalk that separates the grass from the concrete parking lot (the sidewalk is elevated a couple feet with a railing).  On the south side is a another ramp that heads up into the narthex that protects this little green sanctuary from North Highway.  In the middle of this little oasis is a beautiful red tree - Myron's tree (apparently Myron was responsible for planting it way back when).  And underneath Myron's tree is a bench -- Harold's bench (given in memory of Harold).  This area is a peaceful, beautiful, and restful area - an oasis - where I often go to "escape".  About the only thing missing is a little pond with some brightly colored fish swimming around (but that might be a hard sell to the council).

Even though this little oasis does not protect me from the hustle and bustle of North Highway (or anything else going on around) I still feel a sense of peace when I hang out there.  Sometimes I sit on Harold's bench underneath Myron's tree.  Sometimes I walk around the grassy infield.  I have even been known to sit or lie down in the grass and look up at the blue sky.  And...if you ever walk by without me noticing, you might notice me talking to someone you cannot see.  For in this peaceful little oasis I have had conversations with God. I have even had conversations with myself concerning sermon/worship issues or anything else running around in my head/heart.

But things are going to change very soon...

...in the matter of days destruction/construction is going to begin on the ramp (on the south side) heading to the sanctuary.  The ramp is 30+ years old and needs to be replaced (conversation about that began before I arrived).  Now I find my self getting a little nervous.  I am going to lose my little oasis for a little while (I know it will return eventually).  But I am still a little nervous.

You see...this is my first "building project".  Even though we are not building a new building or adding on to our existing structure, this is still big for us...for me.  And I hope things turn out O.K. because if they don't, I know people will turn to me for answers.  And if/when people turn to me for answers, I won't have my little oasis to "escape" to (at least not the little oasis I am used to).  I will have to find a new, temporary place...unless I want to share "MY" space with the construction workers invading my little oasis.

So for today I am going to sit back on Harold's bench underneath Myron's tree and enjoy some peace and quiet.  I am going to soak in as much of this little oasis as I can...hopefully enough to carry me through the summer.  And...if the time calls for it...I will just close my eyes and transport myself back to my little oasis and have a peaceful conversation with God. 

And who knows...in the end...maybe I will get my little pond with the colorful fish to complete my little oasis...

...a person can dream...can't they :)

-edh-

My "job description"

I know there is a job description out there some place for me, but I haven't seen the "real one" for Salem Lutheran Church... 

...sure...my letter of call to Salem has a list of expectations but there are many more unmentioned expectations that are just assumed I already know.  It's the proverbial "small print" that some talk about.  As a pastor the obvious expectations are:  preaching, worship, pastoral care, teaching, youth ministry (depending on your particular setting), maybe some administration, meetings, etc.  Nobody would be surprised by any of those expectations. 

But there are other expectations (the small print ones) that are also expected:  "Official" prayer leader at any function you are happen to be at (whether at the church or not), dish washer, custodian, jungle gym for preschoolers, computer tech, ecumenical minister at the coffee shop (one of my favorites in this category), and...of course...anything else deemed necessary.  That "deemed necessary" phrase is a dangerous one but...for some strange reason...I don't seem to mind.

As Lutheran we talk a lot about vocation (no...not just what you do for a living).  Vocation is the place in life where you serve: father, mother, brother, sister, friend, husband, wife, pastor, teacher, banker, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, etc, etc...  We serve in any number of the previously mentioned and many more; one might say "the small print".  And...there are other vocations that we sometimes we forget about. 

Why am I mentioning this?  Today I was asked/volunteered to deliver a box of baby jars to Bible camp for craft projects.  I am going there in a couple weeks so that was not a problem.  In an email (where I was told that I was volunteered), the program director jokingly referred to me as a "mail carrier".  I guess that is another vocation to add to my list....but I don't mind.

You see...serving God and proclaiming the Gospel is not limited to particular people, particular jobs or particular vocations.  No matter how you slice it...we serve God (and our neighbor) no matter the vocations we reside in; whether we are a teacher, garbage collector, coffee server, "mail carrier", etc.

Anything "deemed necessary"?  That seems very appropriate.  But don't get me wrong...I am not going to turn into a pastor that does everything for everyone around here, but I will continue to recognize (and help others recognize as well) that our "job descriptions" are not set in stone.  As Christians, we need to do anything that is "deemed necessary" for the Kingdom of God so people many come to know (or be reminded of) the awesome love of God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

-edh-

Monday morning check in

Annual meeting:  Yesterday (Jan. 27) Salem held it's annual meeting.  Normally our meetings are pretty quick(20 minutes tops)...with very little on the agenda, but this year was different.  Agenda items included: (1) Consider to approve purchase of new ELWs; (2) Budget (of course); (3) Consider to approve bid for new ramp that leads to the sanctuary; (4) Discussion of moving to twice a month communion; among some other items on the agenda.  I looked back in my worship attendance records and normally we average 75 on annual meeting Sunday...yesterday we had 92.  Considering the agenda items I am not surprised.

But everything went great...there was great discussion, excellent questions, and concerns were voiced.  In the end, the congregation approved the purchase of the new ELW (Evangelical Lutheran Worship - the new hymnals recently released) and there was basically no concerns about moving to twice a month communion.  The bid for the ramp had some discussion but, once again, in the end the bid was approved.  I was very impressed with our congregational president and the discussion that took place.  I hope and pray people felt that their voice was heard.

Now the tough work begins...implementing the new hymnals and our major building project this spring or summer.

Evangelism class:  Today is going to be a day of preparation for an evangelism class I am teaching.  The class is at the First Call Theological Retreat at Shalom Hill Farm near Windom, MN.  This will be the first time I have lead a class like this for a bunch of pastors (first call) and it is a little unnerving, but exciting at the same time.  My class starts at 4pm so please say a little prayer for me as I teach. 

"Winter break":  We are currently receiving a "winter break".  The temperatures are expected to rise into the 40s before taking a nose dive Tuesday night.  By Wednesday morning it is expected to be -14 degrees with a wind chill around -40.  Almost an 80 degree differential...you got to love Minnesota.

I guess the lesson to be learned here is to take advantage of every moment, because you never know when you will get another one (or at least a warm one).  Was that too deep for a Monday? :)

Have a super start to your week and God bless!

-edh-

Monday morning check in

Busy week
Whew...a busy week is done.  Even though I feel a little tired, I feel pretty good.  Thanksgiving eve went very well with a very good turn out.  The Celebration of New Life service for Gordon went very well also, on Saturday.  We had about 300 people in attendance worshiping and celebrating the New Life we have in Jesus Christ.  We had a great soloist who sang "How Great Thou Art" and the tear jerker, "Thank You" by Ray Boltz.  As prelude music, the family hired a local harpist to play for a half hour before worship - absolutely beautiful.  Sunday worship also went off just fine.  With the three sermons I got to write last week, I was worried something would get missed, but once again, God provided and the Gospel was preached.

Prayer shawls
One of the ministries of Belmont Lutheran Church is wrapping people in prayer shawls.  When people are in the hospital or shortly after they get home, they are presented a prayer shawl from the congregation.  The shawls are made by some ladies in the congregation.  In the two years I have served with Belmont I did not know about this ministry until last week.  Doris, the secretary for Belmont, asked about doing a blessing of the prayer shawls in worship.  They hadn't done this for a while and asked if I could do that.  I said sure, but I have never done anything like that before, but I will figure something out.  Does anyone out there have any experience with blessing like that or know of a blessing service I can use?  I am not looking for anything too elaborate - just something that can be done during the regular Sunday service this Sunday.  Thanks much.

Sunday morning prayer
I am sorry I did not get a prayer posted.  I know there are people that show up, here, for that Sunday morning prayer, but with the chaos that was last week, I just did not get one written.  For me that prayer serves as devotion for me to prepare for worship.  I know that all that I do on Sunday morning I can not do on my own.  My prayer during sermon and worship prep is basically that I am not that talented and if it were left up to me I would surely bring it all to ruin (to paraphrase Luther's sacristy prayer).  I plan to get back to my routine this weekend.

Scripture
"This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about:  His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.  Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.  But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.'" (Matthew 1:18-21)

God bless and MERRY CHRISTMAS (I love this time of the year)!

-edh-

The joy of September

Well...the joy of September is here.  As always, the second Wednesday of the month from September through May is always the busiest for me.  Thankfully I did a ton of prep work yesterday so I am ready to go.  At 12noon we have our ministerial meeting.  I am beginning my second term as president and third term as treasurer and second term as secretary.  Basically I am the "king" of the Jackson County ministerial.  Scary I know, but no one else will do it...so I am it.  The other part of the reason I continue serving the ministerial in this capacity is because the other pastors have told me that the community now knows who the contact person is and it is easier to keep the same person instead of changing every year.  As long as they want me to serve in this way I will continue and if someone else steps forward I will gladly turn over the reigns.  Until then I wonder if I should have people call me, "Your Majesty" :)

Anyway...allow me to continue if you are done laughing at me...at 2pm Release Time begins.  On Wednesdays the schools "release" the 3rd through 5th graders (who have registered) to go to their respective churches for an hour of Bible class.  This year I have 3 third graders and 2 fourth graders (these two kids are not from Salem).  It should be a lot of fun.

Starting in 2 weeks (but not today) I will have confirmation at 3:30pm until 4:30.  So I will have a 1/2 hour break between Release Time and confirmation.  Today at 6:30 I have an Endowment committee meeting and then at 7pm the Deacons meet with the church council meeting at 7:30pm.  I should be ready plop down on my couch at around 9:30pm (if all goes well).

WELCOME TO SEPTEMBER, ERIC!!!

A request
On Sept. 30 Salem is planning on giving our 3rd graders Bibles.  This has been a tradition for us for some time now (as it is for many congregations I know).  We haven't done this for three years because we haven't had any 3rd graders for a while.  Also on that day I am planning on introducing the congregation to the new pew Bible we have purchased.  This will be a big change for people; moving from a printed insert to a Bible.  Ooooh...this may cause some controversy...I will keep you updated on this.

Anyway...my request is this:  Do you have a Bible Sunday for your 3rd graders?  And if so, what do you do?  How to you present the Bibles?  What Bibles do you give?  Do you have an inscription inside the Bible? etc.  I am looking for ideas here to help make this a memorable day for our kids.  Also...one thing I am thinking about is after we present the Bibles to the 3rd graders I will ask the 3rd graders in turn to present the pew Bibles to the congregation.  I thought this would be a neat experience for everyone.  What do you think?  Any ideas for me?

Thank you for "listening" and stopping by.  May the joy of the Lord kick you in the butt today to be a light to someone who sees only darkness.  Take care and God bless.
-edh-

One of those weeks...

It's been one of those weeks...

...A number of pastoral care issues have come up for me this week and therefore my blogging presence has been minimal.  Besides the individual I mentioned in my "Sunday morning prayer" post from this past Sunday I have a parishioner(who lives in Waseca, MN -- 1 1/2 hours away) who just had a stroke.  I left this morning and just got back this afternoon.  Tomorrow is going to be packed with nursing home visits plus I have a couple home communions to celebrate this week.  I guess when it rains it pours (literally and figuratively).

But through all these pastoral care visits I have seen and heard many stories of God's faithfulness.  One parishioner told me about a dream she had when Jesus came and spoke to her.  It gave her so much comfort and gave me goosebumps.  F (the individual from my "Sunday morning prayer" post) is still going strong and taking everything in stride and is as feisty as ever (our Lion's meeting last night was interesting -- in a good way).

I have more visits tomorrow and am looking forward to more reminders of God's faithfulness.  Whether we are active and running around, sick and in bed, or immobilized because of a stroke, God uses each of us to proclaim and show His love.  Each of us has a purpose...even to our dying day.  And...to our dying day...GOD IS FAITHFUL!!!

God bless and take care!
-edh-

Changes are coming -- part 2

Well...the congregational meeting I wrote about last time went pretty well.  We had the election of new church council members and there was nothing too out of the ordinary (the transition between the former and new financial secretary is going to be interesting though). 

Another big item at the meeting was a discussion about the new ELW (Evangelical Lutheran Worship).  I bought 6 copies of the hymnal for people to check out and review.  So far a 1/2 a dozen people have looked at them (we have a ways to go).  We have not made any decisions but I am guessing we will be moving in that direction.  Then after the meeting a parishioner came up to me and said that along with new hymnals we need to have Bibles in the pews (we currently use the ELCA "Celebration" insert with the lessons printed).  I agreed whole heartily and said I was looking for some good ones that had a type that was the same size or bigger than our inserts.

The last big item was how to spend the money from the large gift we received from a parishioner.  The committee came up with a priority list and number 1 was was no surprise (the entrance ramp going into the sanctuary needs a big face lift).  Number 2 on the list was to re-model the church offices.  I currently have a closet for an office with no air conditioning (did I mention I have no air conditioning and the dew point today is suppose to approach 70).  Anyway...I was excited about that.  People seemed to agree with the list.

The one thing that did come up (that caught me off guard - in a good way) was about celebrating Holy Communion more than once a month.  A woman mentioned that she works every other weekend and usually misses out on communion.  She asked if we could do it more often so she could participate.  Of course I am all for that and according to Luther, celebrating Holy Communion EVERYDAY would not be enough.  Unfortunately it will be a tough road for me to move people to a more than once a month Communion habit.  My internship congregation went through this long process just before I arrived there and so far it is going well.  I guess I will have to take things slow and do a lot of education.  Any advice about this?

As Diane commented the other day, it is an exciting time to be the pastor at Salem Lutheran Church.  There are some big challenges ahead for us, but I know that God will guide us.  I pray that I have the wisdom and strength to persevere when things get tough.  With that...I embrace the changes that are coming.
-edh-

Changes are coming

June 1 marked my three year anniversary of my ministry here at Salem Lutheran Church.  This is still my first call and one I see myself in for quite some time yet (unless, of course, they run me out sooner).  Coming out of seminary they warned us about getting too feisty and making too many changes too soon.  One month after I arrived here I moved the baptismal font from the back of the sanctuary to the front (bold move, I know).  This got the attention of a couple people and one in particular -- so much so that she stuck her foot so far into her month that she needed a team of <something> to pull it out.

At my installation service in August of 2004 this person, N, was talking to my dad (she did not know he was my dad).  They got to talking about the "new pastor".  At this N started complaining about how I moved the baptismal font and complained about a couple other "trivial" things.  During this little rant S came over and said to N, "Hey, have you met pastor's dad?".  N froze up and quickly ended the conversation -- probably to find some help to remove her foot from her mouth.  Today N and I have a great working relationship.  She is a valuable member of this ministry.  I don't know what I would do without her.

Tomorrow (June 24) is our congregational meeting and more things are changing.  We are electing new council members.  One such council member has been the financial secretary (keeping track of offerings and deposits) for a couple decades and as of July 1 she is done.  We are also talking about the new ELWs (new hymnals for the ELCA).  We aren't making any decisions yet but hopefully moving in that direction (I wonder how people are going to respond).  We will also be discussing how we are going to spend a large monetary gift we received from a parishioner (they want the money spent on the property while they are still alive).  Lots of things changing and hopefully for the better.

I know God is going to do something amazing here at Salem and these changes are signs of those (new) amazing things.  My prayer is that people are open to God's calling and see that we need to move in a new direction if we are to be more relevant in our community.  Tradition is great but context is also important.

I am looking forward to tomorrow.  I am looking forward to how the Holy Spirit is going to lead Salem Lutheran Church through these new changes.  I am looking forward to how God is going to use us to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.  I am looking forward to how God is going to use me here at Salem as I continue to lead these people into the future.  God is awesome and God is faithful.  And I hold onto that with all my strength.

As always...praise God always and forever, Amen!
-edh-