Getting some reading done

I said I was going to find some time to read this week. It mostly happened today. I finished Donald Miller's Searching for God Knows What. Some people are more familiar with Miller from his book Blue Like Jazz. That book is also on my stack, but I haven't read it yet.

I really liked this book, but it was challenging. I can't say I agree with everything Miller says, but I am really inspired by what he is trying to do and how is going about it. If I had to describe the author in one word, it would be "unpredictable." He comes from a conservative evangelical background. What makes him unpredictable is how he holds on to some conservative and evangelical ideas while rejecting others. That is what makes this book so interesting. With a lot of Christian authors, you can easily label them as liberal or conservative a know where they are going to go in the book. Miller doesn't let himself get so easily labeled. If you consider yourself religiously conservative, he is likely to offend you. If you consider yourself religiously liberal, he is likely to offend you. I like that. It makes you think.

That all fits with what it seems he is trying to do. Miller to trying to make and argument against formulaic religion and for relational Christianity. Like a good preacher, he makes relating to God much less complicated and much more challenging. He starts in a great place as well, back in the Garden of Eden.

If you do opt to read this one, read it with an open mind and a critical mind. You don't have to agree with everything he writes, even if he writes it well. I don't particularly agree with his thoughts on authorship of some parts of the Bible. But, in the end the book was certainly worth reading.

As always I love your thoughts. If you read the book many months from now, feel free to just e-mail me and let me know what you think.

peace,

will

Silly Putty

In an effort to thwart any attempt to guess what might appear on this blog...

Did you know that you can buy Silly Putty in bulk? If you don't remember, Silly Putty is the super versatile, if not completely useless, clay like substance that can be formed into any number of shapes and can also miraculously copy cartoons right out of the Sunday funnies. When I was a kid, it came in a little plastic egg. It still does but know you can buy it in bulk! The stuff in now available in 5 pound bulk packs. You can also buy a case of 100 of the little plastic eggs.

For many, this may beg the question, "so what?" or the more thoughtful, "who needs that much Silly Putty?" Both are valid questions and I currently have no answers. Some of us are just mesmerized by things that come in large quantities. You know the type whose jaw drops in Sam's Club at the idea of buying 500 roles of toilet paper or a five pound bucket of dishwasher detergent.

If a little plastic egg full was fun, 5 pounds must be off the charts. This type of fun is not for the stingy like myself though. Five pounds of original goes for $76.99 and if you want the fancy new kind that changes colors, get ready to cough up $152.99. Shipping is free though! If you just can't help yourself, here is the link:

Silly Putty Store at CrayolaStore.com

peace,

will

This I Believe

National Public Radio is doing a series called "This I Believe" which invites people, celebrities and others to reflect on their faith. I have really enjoyed listening to and reading these and I wanted to share two of them.

"How Is It Possible to Believe in God?" by William F. Buckley, Jr.
"Be Cool to the Pizza Dude" by Sarah Adams

If you go to either essay, you can link to the rest of the essays in the series and enter your own if you like.

peace,

will

Taking a breath...

Many pastors take vacation the week after Christmas. It is a good idea. The weeks before Christmas can be quite exhausting. It is not just preparing for Christmas services, although that can be quite a bit of work. The fall of the year in the church is one of the busiest times. Here at Grace it seems like a pretty straight run from the pumpkin patch right to Christmas day. Fall also brings some extra work for pastors in our commitment to the larger connectional church. We have to get ready for our annual Charge Conference and there are evaluations from the district that must be completed.

Whether a pastor chooses to go on vacation, or stick around the office like I am doing, the week after Christmas is a week to take a breath. For me, it is about looking over some of the things that just didn't get done over the last couple of months. There are things I can go back and do, and others that I will just have to let go of. It is also about getting some reading done. It is a very important part of my life and work to keep reading. As a pastor, if I don't input new things into my brain, I will eventually run out of meaningful things to say.

I know that a lot of people are worn out. Fall and the Christmas season can be overwhelming for lots of reasons. There is the stress of too much to do, too much to buy and too many places to be. For some, Christmas holds unique stresses related to family and friends who are either too far away or too close.

Here's hoping that we can all find some rest and peace.

blessings,

will

Christmas Day Sermon

It was a very short one...

Sermon #13 - Christmas Day - "Rejoice"

A wonder filled Christmas

I haven't had a chance yet to reflect on the Christmas Eve or Christmas Day worship. John and I were overwhelmed by the turnout. I don't have the exact numbers, but I believe we had around 580 on Christmas Eve alone. We were really pleasantly surprised by the group we had Christmas morning. We really thought it would be a small group, but the sanctuary was full for worship!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, some churches opted to close on Christmas day. I really think that was a mistake. Certainly there are people who will come on Christmas Eve and spend Christmas day with their families, and that is perfectly alright. But obviously there are some people who wanted to begin the day by praising God and celebrating Christmas in worship.

Here is the next question. What do we do next year. This year, we had the unique situation of Christmas Day on Sunday. Next year, Christmas Eve will be on Sunday. Will people want to come on Christmas Eve morning for Sunday worship and then come back at night for Christmas Eve service? Fortunately we have a few months to work that out.

As always, I love to hear your thoughts.

peace,

will

Settling in..

Violet is settling in nicely. She likes her new home. (She has kicked Bodhi out of his bed.)

New addition...

If you read the Caller Times you may have seen Violet in Friday's paper. She was displaced from a shelter when Katrina hit. She is now living at our house. We will officially adopt her next week. She is as sweet as can be and she and Bodhi are getting along fine!

I will have some more photos once she settles down a little. (Moving day excitement makes it hard to get a focused picture.)

peace,

will

On a lighter note...

Why is it that dogs hate hats so much?

More Working, Less Blogging

This week before Christmas has kept me away from the blog. It really has been a busy time. Christmas Eve services always take a lot more time to prepare than other worship services. If you notice, most worship services at Grace follow a particular pattern. A lot of preparing the service involves filling in parts of that pattern with things that are appropriate for the season, the scripture and the sermon. If you are here on Christmas Eve, you will see that we have changed the pattern quite a bit because of the unique nature of the Christmas Eve services. What is unique about it? First of all, the narrative telling of the Christmas story is central. (Don't be thrown by the word "story". I am not implying anything, it is just how to I refer to the words that describe Jesus' birth.) In the case of these services, you will see that everything liturgically and musically focuses on that. Second, a lot of people who come on Christmas Eve are coming for the first time or coming after some time away. Even more so than on other Sundays, we want to reflect in every thing that we do, that they are welcome and that we have made a special place for them.

I hope YOU join us!

peace,

will

The Sounds of Christmas

I was blessed last night to hear the Christmas Cantada performed by the Grace UMC choir with a wonderful prelude from the handbell choir. I mentioned during worship yesterday and before last night's performance that there are a number of ways that we hear the message of Christmas. We hear it in the reading of scripture. We hear it differently in the words of sermons and devotions about those scriptures. We also hear the message in our traditions. Often, when we look to the root of the traditions surrounding Christmas, we realize that they are ways to retell the story in actions instead of words, or make the message tangible through physical means. (That's what gift-giving is all about.) As I mentioned in a post a couple of weeks ago, our decorations, in that case the nativity, can be a retelling of the stories without words and a sharing of the message. Many of us most clearly hear the message of Christmas through music. Music has the amazing power of speaking directly to our hearts, helping us to understand something that we can't quite grasp with our heads.

I will never forget, as a young boy, standing outside in the freezing cold of a Western New York winter in front of the United Methodist Church down the street from my home. My oldest sister was singing "Silent Night" as part of what I think was a live nativity. I remember being moved by the sounds I heard, but not knowing why.

Music is one way that we can shed that impulse to think we must understand something for God to be moving in us. As United Methodists, we believe in prevenient grace, that idea that long before we go searching for God, God is reaching out to us, seeking to draw us close, just waiting for us to reach back. As I think about that moment and that music, I sense God's wonder in it and consider how that worked in my heart for decades before I reached back and accepted the love that God had always offered me.

It is a humbling thought as John and I prepare for Christmas services. We will plan and fuss over all the words and what order to put them in. We will consider every last detail, hoping to share the glorious message of Christmas and God will gently whisper through it all reaching out for people in ways we just can't imagine.

peace and Merry Christmas,

will

Getting Ready For Christmas

Are you falling into that last minute rush toward Christmas? I feel especially calm this year but there are still parties to prepare for, gifts to wrap, services to plan and a sermon to write. Online shopping has certainly taken a lot of pressure off of present buying. Although I often have a last minute thought, my shopping is pretty much done.

Pastor John will be preaching Christmas Eve and I will be preaching Christmas morning. It is taking me a while to think about how to plan Christmas morning. I know most of our regular worshippers will come on Christmas Eve and spend Christmas morning with their families. Others will be out of town. As I am thinking about the service, I am thinking about who might be there and what message God might have for them.

I remember when I first became a Christian, I was living by myself. I had family in the same city but we weren't planning on getting together until Christmas dinner. Begin a new and excited (and naive) Christian I thought I would get up Christmas morning and go to church (it wasn't on Sunday that year). I was somewhat taken aback that not only did my church not have service, I couldn't find any church that did. When your church family is your family, it seems sad not to spend Christmas with them.

This is not an attempt to guilt you into going to church on Christmas morning. Christmas Eve will certainly suffice. I am just saying, I am glad that we will be here for those who want to be here.

peace,

will

(by the way, on Christmas morning, we will have one service at 10:00)

Poll Finds Most Americans Believe God Exists

Gallup just released a new survey that shows that 94% of Americans believe that God exists.

You can read about it here:

Gallup: Poll Finds Americans' Belief in God Remains Strong

I haven't seen the text of Gallup's release, but the article uses "believe in God" synonymously with "think God exists." I don't think those are necessarily the same. It may sound nitpicky, but it is something to think about. Is it possible to think God exists and still not believe in God? I think so. I think I spent much of my life in that place. If pressed, I certainly would have said I believe God exists, however, I was not ready to believe in any picture of God that was presented to me.

One of my seminary professors defined an atheist as one who had yet to be presented with an image of God that they could accept. I believe atheists would disagree with that, but it makes a good point. 94% of Americans think that God exists, but yet 14% of Americans do not follow any organized religion. That means there are more Americans who don't follow an organized religion than there are United Methodists, Episcopalian and Lutherans combined.[1]

It seems that our goal then, in reaching out to the unchurched is not about getting people to believe that God exists, but to see an understanding of God that makes them want to believe in God, to put their trust in God.

Just a thought. In a related statistic. God still believes in 100% of us.

peace,

will

[1] Cathy Grossman, "Charting the unchurched in America," USA Today, 2002-MAR-7, at: http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/110249542.html?

This week's sermon

This week's sermon "C is For ?" is now posted at gracesermons.blogspot.com.

Feel free to post comments here. This sermon was really a joy to preach. I never know how well it will translate when read, but I know that not everyone can be in worship. I hope you are able to get something from it.

Just a reminder, weekly sermons (John's and mine) are available in the glassway here at Grace each week.

peace,

will

Church on Christmas

It doesn't happen very often, but this is one of those years that Christmas falls on a Sunday. We will have four services on Christmas Eve but only one on the Sunday of Christmas morning. I was reading in The New York Times this morning that some churches has given up on Christmas day all together.

When Christmas Falls on Sunday, Megachurches Take the Day Off

I would be interested to hear what you all think about this.

peace,

will

Home For Christmas Cards

Note: This will be in this Sunday's bulletin, but I wanted to post it here as well.

will

Home for Christmas Initiative: Together, We Can Extend a Warm Welcome

Help us invite people to “come home for Christmas” here at Grace on December 24.

Research shows that more people visit a church for the first time on Christmas Eve than at any other time of the year. That makes Christmas Eve one our best opportunities to help connect people with Christ and the grace he bestows.

During the worship services this Sunday, December 11th, you are invited to provide us with names and addresses of at least three households that do not regularly attend any church. We will mail these families personal invitations to the Christmas Eve services here at Grace. Please note: we will not use your name in any way in the invitations we send.

However, if you feel comfortable doing so, you may hand deliver or mail our beautiful Home for Christmas postcards located in the glassway. This second contact of a personally signed card often accomplishes what the less personal invitation from the church could not. Research shows that 85 percent of people who attend church visited the first time because someone they knew invited them

Whether or not you choose to send personal invitations, please come prepared to give us some names and addresses to go on the church’s invitation list. They can be neighbors, friends at work or school, relatives, people with whom you socialize, people you know in school or community organizations and clubs, customers and clients. (Do not include names of our own inactive members; we already have those.)

Please include the people you are submitting to our invitation list in your daily prayers. Ask God to use our invitation as an effective outreach to your friends. By working together we can get the word out to the largest possible number of people that “there is room at the inn” this Christmas Eve.

I think they made a movie about this...

According to Guardian Unlimited from Great Britain, there is a giant asteroid hurtling toward earth that could crash right into us in just 31 years.

You can read the article here:

It's called Apophis. It's 390m wide. And it could hit Earth in 31 years time

I am not all that alarmed, mostly because 31 years is a long time from now. What I find compelling about this is the fact that we know about it. If you know anything about astronomy (which I know exceedingly little) you know that it is quite miraculous that we can even see something just 390 meters wide this far away and it is almost unbelievable that we can make a guess about where it might be going.

If you don't know much more astronomy or space in general, let me put it in perspective. We are not exactly sure how many planets are in our solar system. If you don't believe me, see Solar System Surprise: A New View of What's Out There at Space.com.

Space is really, really big and really hard to figure out, so I am quite impressed that someone has figured out that an asteroid might run into us in 31 years. But, I am still not worried about it.

Speaking of space, I am worried about this: According to an op-ed piece by Nicolas D. Kristof in Monday's New York Times, about one-fifth of Americans still think the Sun goes around the Earth. (See The Hubris of the Humanities) (This is posted on Times Select subscription service, but there is a copy of it posted here - though I make no warranties about what else in on that site) By the way, let's be clear, the Earth and the other planets do revolve around the Sun, we are pretty sure about that.

Enough about space, back to working on this week's sermon. I promise it won't be so "spacey."

peace,

will

Some More Light Reading

A while back, I promised to post something about every book I read. I haven't forgotten, I just haven't been getting through books as fast as usual.

I just finished Bill Bryson's masterpiece A Short History of Nearly Everything. The title is more descriptive than you can imagine. Bryson takes a scientific stroll from the beginning of the universe to the present day with stops along the way to give the reader a basic understanding of physics, chemistry, paleontology, genetics and I am sure a few more sciences I have forgotten. Bryson is not a scientist, he is a writer and that is what makes the book so fantastic.

What I kept thinking throughout the book was, "I sure wish he had been my high school science teacher." Bill Bryson has a knack for making anything interesting. If you are a fan of any of his other books, you may know what I mean. (In his book A Walk in the Woods he made his failed attempt to hike the Appalachian trail fascinating.) He does more than share the facts, he tells stories, a lot of stories about the quite peculiar people he have discovered some of the most important things in our history.

A couple of words of warning about this book. First, Bryson is attempting to share an overview of the scientific understanding of the history of our planet. He is not thinking at all about theology. There is no mention of God's part in creation, not even a fleeting wondrous mention. He also states some pretty clear views on the creation of the universe and evolution. If you are easily offended by this sort of thing, this might not be the book for you. It would be easy to argue with some of his points on a theological basis, but I don't know that I would want him to argue with my sermons on a scientific basis.

Second, this book may have the consequence of making you feel amazingly small, but that sort of thing happens when you consider the total of all creation.

Happy reading.

peace,

will

A Little "Holiday Spirit"

Evidence that I am not a total scrooge. While it is true that I don't have 15,000 lights not a waving Santa on the roof, there are now lights at the parsonage. If you look closely you will also see an inflatable reindeer on the porch.

peace,

will

Oh, by the way...

For those of you who were getting the impression that I am a total scrooge, Alisha and I got our Christmas tree yesterday and most of the lights are up in the yard. I will post some pictures.

peace,

will

More Christmas Thoughts

I have been absent from the blog for a few days, a little under the weather. I came across this in the New York Times this morning.

This Season's War Cry: Commercialize Christmas, or Else
By ADAM COHEN

You may not agree with Cohen's tone or all his points but he may cause you to stop and think. There is a lot of outcry right now about retailers saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Personally, I am less worried about what Target is doing about Christmas and more worried about what the church, whose mission isn't retail, but rather changing lives in the name of Jesus, is doing.

Just something to think about.

peace,

will