Prayer Wall

I put together a prayer wall this morning outside of my office.
This is an idea I have had for a while and with the 50th anniversary celebration of our church this weekend, I finally just did it.

It is pretty simple - because I am pretty simple when it comes to anything that has to do with crafts.

I put on it some quotes about prayer:


Pray, and let God worry. --
Martin Luther
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Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?
-- Corrie Ten Boom

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Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
James 5:16


“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.” Martin Luther King Jr

I also put two lists -
- people in the military
- people with cancer

And then I put a description of what this is about - a place to see and remember to pray for others. It is also designed to be interactive. So I put post it notes and a pen there for people to write the name of someone who needs prayer. And we will see.

As I was working this morning I got a phone call from the Columbus Dispatch. A woman wanting us to subscribe to the newspaper. She obviously did not hear my greeting: "Karl Road Christian Church."

So when she understood, she immediately said - would you pray for me?
And I said - "Sure." Then I told her I was the pastor. Her name is Wendy and she asked for prayers for her and her children. She is under stress.

Her name is now on the prayer wall.

We all need prayer.
Amen

Thinking of Mother

I have thought a lot about my mother the last few days.

It is not because of MOther's Day - because that day was not for us a particularly special day. We were rarely together on Mother's Day because I never lived near my mother once I became an adult. Instead on that day I would hopefully remember to send flowers and to call her. Dutifully. No, Mother's Day was no big deal for us -

Instead I think of her this weekend because I have spent some time on the sides of soccer fields watching two grandchildren - Reagan and Jackson - play soccer. And that my mother would have loved to have seen.

I did not learn how to do my hair and nails from my Mom, I did not learn how to shop or really how to cook or to decorate a home. She did those things, but that was not at all a passion for her. Her passion was sports. She watched sports as an adult and she played sports as a young woman. My mother was an athlete - and if you met her in adulthood, you might not have recognized it right away. She was not a small woman and did not continue playing sports (except golf in her 50's) after she married. But in high school and in college she played everything - field hockey, basketball, lacrosse, and softball.

And so, this weekend, watching Reagan go after the ball and being part of a team and so confident in the game would have pleased her immensely. And seeing Jackson as the soccer superstar - completely focussed on a game and scoring goals and being the goalie that never got scored on would have been fabulous.

So...I share my mother's name - Margaret - and I share her love of sports and I know that if she were here, she would share my love of watching these kids have fun on the field of play!!

Happy Mother's Day to all of us who are blessed to be mothers and to have mothers!

One of the Crowd

In the past few days I have been part of two crowds that have been really meaningful to me.

On Saturday I gathered with 13,000 people in downtown Columbus for the Cap City Marathon. Some people were running a half marathon - (13.1 miles), some - like me - were running or walking a quarter marathon - (6.55 miles) - and others were doing a "Commit to be Fit" 5k. Some were very fit and fast; others (like me!) were not so fit but determined. It was all very inspiring - and a lot of it because there was such a crowd. There were even more people as we found crowds welcoming us when we walked or ran through the middle of the city and at the finish lines. Some of that crowd was cheering people with signs, or clappping or calling us by name. It really was wonderful and I was surprised that I walked as fast as I did without stopping. And being in the crowd was a big part of that for me. It was also fun to be part of the crowd that gathered afterward - receiving free fruit, water, chocolate, bagels and even champagne. Most of all there was that shared sense of satisfaction that we had done something good for ourselves that morning.

Last night I was with a different kind of crowd at the Fairgrounds. I was part of the Nehemiah Action meeting of the BREAD organization. Bread is a social justice group that includes over 50 churches, synagogues and even a mosque. We work together to help make a difference in the lives of people in our community. At this annual meeting, we are inviting community leaders to come and make a commitment to an action that we believe will change some systemic problems. Last night our major issue was job creation in Columbus Our research team learned thqat in comparison with 16 other similar cities, Columbus ranked dead last in small business development. They also found that 2/3rds of new jobs come from small businesses. So, 4 members of city council came and pledged to work together to plan and fund "incumbators" which would help to fund small business entrepreneurs and also to give them expertise. It was gratifying to see that something really does seem to be happening. We also heard reports from other issues from the past - about how our organization has worked with community leaders in combatting truancy, neighborhood blight and health care problems. By the time we left I also felt that same sense of satisfaction that by being there - we had done something good for others. And so, it is clear we are not always called to lead but just to do our part as part of the crowd. Being together, working together can really make a difference. Amen!

Invitation

This is a picture that I received for my birthday from Kim Veatch. It is called "An Invitation to Love" And it is just so perfect - expressing the heart of our faith. God is continually offering us an invitation to love. And then it is up to us whether or not we want to accept it.

I write this as I prepare to go to church this morning. I sit in my living room and look out the window at some familiar and beautiful sights. I see the maginifcent tree in my front yard that is now green and inviting to birds and squirrels. I see our red bird feeder and birds that come and go throughout the day. I see the chain that connects to our porch swing - another invitation to me to come and rest and to the children - our grandchildren and children in our neighborhood to come and be with us. Our front porch is a very special place for Chuck and I. When we are home we frequently sit and read and drink and eat and be in this place of invitation. Yesterday I say there and eventually 10 children joined me - Addie and Reagan and 8 from the neighborhood. These children - originally from Sierra Leone - have found that "Mr. Chuck" is the one who will give them snacks and popsicles and help put air in their basketballs and even lend them a mower to mow their yard. And I got to do yesterday what I love - I devised a game and had all 10 kids running around the front yard looking for a ceramic rooster. (you had to be there.)

So a porch, a swing, a birdfeeder, a tree. A painting. There are so many forms of invitation. My hope on this Sunday morning is that I will continue to grow in my capacity to invite and to love. And that I will say YES to the invitations that come my way.

Morning Prayer

I thank you, Lord for your spirit which continues to flow with me.

And I pray that I might experience your love, grace and wisdom today.

I pray that this might be a day of joy for me and those I encounter.

I pray your blessing be here
your peace within me
your love surrounding me

What I know is that too often I block your abundance
with anxiety, worry and a need to be in control

Release me
Flow through me
Use me.

Today

Inspiration

In the past few days I have experienced several inspiring events and I just want to mention a few.

Easter evening we had a very different worship service at 5 PM> We had four people do first person narratives of that passion of Jesus - Deric was simon of cyrene, Melissa - the cross maker, Rich - a centurian and Kerry was Mary Magdelene in the garden with Jesus. Each person did something that really surprised me and touched my spirit. It amazed me that there was such a freshness to the whole thing.

Today I went to "Stephanie's Champions", a luncheon which was started by Stephanie Spielman to honor the champions - the support people for those who have cancer. Her husband Chris was the first honoree. Now in its thirteenth yeat - and 2 years after Stephanie passed away- this luncheon continues as an important fundraiser for cancer research. This was my third time attending this event and the first time was with Lisa Baluk as her mother Trixie was a champion. Now Lisa has passed away and we continue to go in her memory. I sat and heard stories of selfless giving by loved ones for cancer victims and it touched me in so many ways. Life is so unfair as you learn about young people (like Lisa) who have cancer and there is no making sense of it. And yet seeing these stories of love and faithfulness were just inspiring for me.

Finally tonight I led our Wednesday night Bible study - for the first time in 7 weeks. We had taken a break to do our "Listening to the Spirit" study. It was so good to be back - especially to have Bill and Darlene Brown with us again. They returned from wintering in Arizona. During the time that they were gone, Darlene had a slight stroke. She seems to be herself and it was just a great blessing to be together. We read some wonderful texts from the Bible and talked so much about our own stories of experiencing God in our lives. Surely the spirit of the Lord was in that place tonight.

And so, I need to go to bed, but I want to remember and record these moments that come and go and remind me of the goodness of humanity and the blessing of a life of faith.

A Mother's Journey

This is an article I wrote for Audrey for the GLAD website. I thought I would share it here as well.

Mother’s Journey

Seven years ago my daughter, Audrey came out to me via email. She was about to be go before the commission on ministry in preparation for ordination and wondered if she needed to share her sexual orientation during this process. My response – again via email - was that she did not have to answer a question that was not asked.

And my private response for the next week was a lot of tears and sadness. My first concern was that she would be stigmatized and rejected by people who had previously loved and accepted her. In addition, she was about to become my colleague in ministry and I had dreams of seeing her succeed in the conventional way – of moving “up” to serving her own church. I had watched my daughter grow up with great gifts for ministry and was overwhelmed with fears for her future in living out her call.

At the same time, I knew that she was God’s child and that God would care for her as she continued on her journey. And so, it has been a tremendous blessing in my life to witness and share in the ways in which her identity as a lesbian woman has given her a unique role in ministry.

What I want to share how her life as a lesbian woman in ministry has changed my life and my ministry. I have always self identified as a “Pastor” more than a “Prophet” in ministry. For years I have been drawn to Bible study, prayer, healing ministries and spiritual direction. But in the last few years, I find myself more and more involved in social justice ministry. And one of the ways that God is surely calling and moving me is in our ministry to the GLBT community. There was a moment in time in which I came to the understanding that the rejection that I feared for Audrey from the church was not something that “They” were doing, but something that “We” are doing. At the last General Assembly I was particularly moved by the sermon that Mel White gave at the GLAD banquet. How long are we going to discern?

And what I realize is that often in the local church we do not discern at all. Instead we say that we “welcome everyone” and pretend that we are all alike. The church that I serve has become more open and accepting and welcoming to the LGBT community over the years. We have gays and lesbians who serve in leadership, on staff and we even have participated in the gay pride parade. However, we are prone to “don’t ask, don’t tell” because you might upset someone.

In the year 2012 we are exploring what it means to be a church of “Radical Hospitality.” With workshops, movies and study we are actually engaging in discernment. I have learned that many people have not been given the tools for real Biblical interpretation and instead have limited themselves to reading the Bible at “face value” or allowing others to interpret for them. And I have also learned how much we have needed a safe space to talk about the most intimate part of our lives – our sexuality. I have no doubt that God is at work in our lives leading us through this time of learning and struggle.

Frequently from the pulpit I will remind the congregation (and myself!) that we are being called to live “counter culture” as Jesus shows us a different way of self giving and humility. However, in this issue the teachings of the church is affect the culture. Too often homophobia is given credibility by people of faith. Conversations about gays and lesbians in the media and among ordinary people frequently reference particular interpretations of the Bible. For the church to remain silent, then, is to allow these understandings to remain unchallenged.

And so, my journey as Audrey’s mother continues to bear fruit that I would not have imagined. God is leading me out of fear into faith and out of passivity into engagement and out of empty gestures of welcoming into leading a congregation into a time of true discernment.

And God is not done with me (or us) yet.