Authentic Bible Study

In today’s bullet and sound-byte culture, it seems to be difficult to help persons understand that in-depth Bible study is important to their spiritual growth and that it is important to the life of the church. Repeatedly, I hear “don’t you have a short-term study, one that doesn’t require a lot of reading?” Yes, periodically we do Bible study “lite” and it introduces participants to some basic understandings. However, this encounter with the Word is not long enough to let the stories become our stories. To be nurtured in the faith stories requires discipline of reading and prayer. Developing learning relationships – students and teachers with God and with one another – is the essential frame for all educational ministries. This means that we need to be a part of an intentional spiritual community. I continue to believe that DISCIPLE BIBLE STUDY is a model that does this and functions as a building block not only for individuals, but also for the congregation. Now the challenge is to convince others to be a part of DISCIPLE during the coming year. At this point, the interest seems to be minimal. I know that a number of folks have already participated in this study, but there are lots who have not. My prayer is that I can say the right things that will lead others to have this rich experience. I look forward to leading yet another class through this study.

Good-bye, Nathan

The First UMC staff gathered yesterday to say good-bye to Nathan, our summer intern from Duke Divinity School. We laughed, cried and ate ice cream as we remembered his few short weeks with us. As usual, Terry Sanders was able to tell the story of Nathan in her own special way. With her permission I share the following:

To Nathan...

You’re just a darling to us, although you have no hair
And that you’re leaving us so soon is more than we can bear.
We’ve loved the time you’ve shared with us in worship and in song
But to only share you for 10 weeks, tell Duke, we think it’s wrong!
We’ve more to do in First Church land and you could help us greatly
You could wear your new white alb and preach like you’ve done lately
Or you could don your fluffly wings and resurrect old “Mo”
A worship “skeeter” is just the thing to set our Sunday flow.
Your youth, warmth and charming wit have endeared you it is true
Next week will just not be the same when “Mo done and flew”
Take good care of all your gifts and use them to God’s glory
And remember that the “Nathan Summer” will be part of our story.

Godspeed, Nathan. Come back soon!

Beach Time

Yesterday, Ron and I spent some time at Huntington Beach State Park. The blue sky, gentle waves and ocean breezes made a great way to enjoy at hot, summer day. As we packed our beach bag, I chose to be unplugged for a few hours and left behind the MP3 player and cell phone. In fact, we took very little with us to the beach compared to many who were around us. As we often note, the beach paraphernalia of many persons seems excessive and getting it organized and to the beach must tax the most rugged body and spirit. Then, these same beachgoers immediately sit down and plug-in. This would not constitute a relaxing experience for me.

However, I will admit reading is part of my beach time and yesterday I read the current issue of Newsweek. Ironically, “The Sad Fate of the Comma” by Robert J. Samuelson caught my attention. Not only did he write about the demise of comma on the printed page, but used it as a social commentary about our resistance to slowing down or pausing to think a bit before moving on.

Why can’t we simply find pleasure in being at the beach? How can we recover taking time to pause and let this be time set apart? Why don't I go to the beach more often?

Misers of Miracles

Frederick Buechner, Christian author, says, “We have within us, each one of us, so much more power than we ever spend, such misers of miracles are we, such pinch-penny guardians of grace.” After reading this a few days ago, I have let it percolate and several random thoughts have resulted.

It is amazing that even when we know and claim God’s love through Jesus Christ, we ignore our hurting brothers and sisters. These times of hurt and pain often seem so overwhelming that we can’t bear to let them be part of our lives. Yet, we are called to bring the redemptive work of the cross to all. We also have the assurance that we can be instruments of God’s grace. Miracles can happen. We have the power.

Too often we reserve this power for special situations and forget the co-worker who needs some help to complete a task, the store employee who needs a smile, the child who needs an encouraging word and the family member who needs a listening ear. Instead of being misers, we can empower each by sharing who we are faithful disciples. We just have to get beyond ourselves.

Amazing grace can prevail. As pilgrims we need to discover ways to freely reveal it with those we encounter along the way.

The Model Teacher

In this season of calling persons to teach God’s Word, I wonder what we consider to be effective teaching? Jesus told of God and humanity through personal stories. Obviously, he had a creative imagination and incorporated his experiences of the world around him. He must have been a good listener, too. He understood his audience. He told his parables as a way to allow them to enter into the story. He left the conclusions and decisions to the ones who listened. It seems clear that the disciples never quite got it, but they became the Church.

I think we too often try to make our faith simple and easy to understand. We need not try to explain away the mystery, paradox and incomprehensibility of the faith. Struggling with these questions helps us define what is meaningful in our lives. It helps us establish an on-going conversation with God. If we are faithful, we must be attentive to our teaching ministry. Whom shall we call?

VBS 2007

Needless to say, Vacation Bible School leaves little time or energy to post a blog. After some rest, I can think about what has been and say that we had a great experience. The willing and talented volunteers who planned and led this year’s VBS are wonderful folks and should be commended by all. It was pure joy to see familiar and new faces of all ages join together for food, fun, fellowship and faithful learning. In fact, we had over 200 children and youth, at least 75 adult volunteers, and approximately 50-60 adults in our adult classes. What a great week!

This year’s mission emphasis was Nothing But Nets. Through a great display and Mo, the Mosquito, the story of this effort to eradicate malaria in Africa was well told and nearly $1500 was collected to buy nets. Helping one another throughout a global community is an important faith lesson and this was a good demonstration of it. Nathan, our Duke intern, led this project.

As decorations are put away and spaces return to normal, we begin thinking about next year – June 22-26, 2008 - "Beach Party, Surfin' through the Scriptures". May we continue to offer our church family and community an authentic, exciting, disciple-building event.

Doug Marlette

Yesterday, I was saddened to learn of the death of Doug Marlette. Today, I am beginning to read and hear accounts of his life and accomplishments. Among other things, I didn't realize that he and Pat Conroy were good friends and that he had written a second novel. (I really enjoyed his first one, The Bridge.) The Washington Post has an interesting story and the Charlotte Observer has a wonderful collection of past politcal cartoons. I will leave the eloquent words of remembrance to the professionals, but I know that my heart felt a bit heavy this morning when I opened the newspaper. Even if the newspapers continue to run Kudzu for awhile, it just won't be the same. Of course, Marlette's important contribution to the world of political cartoons has been lost. I trust that those near and dear to him know that the circle of grief is quite large and will be upheld by it.

7-7-07

Today’s news is the date…7-7-07. This numerical coincidence is being noted by those who are looking for a lucky day to be married and I am sure that gamblers are lining up to make bets on about anything. Toby Ward is 77 today. We recall that there are seven continents, Seven Wonders of the World and Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits… Wikepedia has a great list of the use of 7.

In Christianity, seven is the number of perfection. God rested on the seventh day, Paul lists seven gifts of the Spirit and Jesus spoke seven words from the cross. The number seven is especially prominent in the apocalyptic Book of Revelation, in which there are seven seals, seven churches and many other things numbering seven. Especially important to remember is that Jesus told Peter to forgive seventy times seven.

Heeding the message of Live Earth may be one of the better ways to observe today. It certainly would be easy to identify seven ways to reduce our personal carbon imprint.

P.S. Imagine my surprise tonight when I heard Al Gore encourage all to make a 7-point pledge to environmental responsibility during the Live Earth concert.

The Power of Play

I have been reading The Power of Play by David Elkind and will be adding this to our church library. This well-known child psychologist maintains that it is play that prepares kids for learning. However, with the emphasis of educational products and extracurricular activities, our children have lost much of the unstructured time and self-initiated games that were known to preceding generations. In fact, Elkind says that “over the past two decades, children have lost twelve hours of free time a week, including eight hours of unstructured play and outdoor activities.” He adds good information to a conversation that pediatricians, educators and grandparents are already having about this topic. Parents and teachers of pre-school children should be encouraged to read this book as he offers insight into how children learn through spontaneous, imaginative play. My sense is that families are going to have to slow down and make some changes in their life style if their children are to have this experience.

I believe that this kind of imaginative play can be supportive of spiritual development, also. "Godly play" - Jerome Berryman’s approach to letting children experience the stories of faith - is a good example of this and one that we should use more.

Watching young children play can be fascinating and knowing that they are learning what they need to know by doing so is reassuring. Elkind says that “it is only when we integrate play, love, and work that we, as children and adults, can live happy, healthy and productive lives.”

Creative Dislocation

In Theolog, a blog by Christian Century, Richard Kauffman writes of “creative dislocation”, a term that now has been perking in my mind for the last few days. What a good understanding of something many of us have or could experience. It seems to give greater validity to this experience by naming it and to encourage participation in it. Kauffman writes:

Christians often practice a little-known spiritual discipline called “creative dislocation” without realizing it: we engage in creative dislocation by going on a spiritual retreat or on a mission trip into a foreign environment—the inner city or a third-world country—where the usual markers of our lives are taken from us, and we’re subject to someone else’s way of doing things. When we’re dislocated, we begin seeing in fresh ways. We look for the familiar in the unfamiliar, and we see what is familiar to us in new ways. If we’re paying attention, we see the presence of God in new ways. (more…)