Lately, I've been in love with the song "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing." I go through phases in the hymnal where I hear a song and for a time, it's like the Spirit sang that particular hymn just for me. For a while, that song was "Blessed Assurance" and there was something beautiful to me about the phrase "This is my story." Lately, the song that the Spirit has been singing most to me is "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing."
"Come, thou fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet, sung by flaming tongues above;
praise the mount! I'm fixed upon it, mount of God's unchanging love!"
I have to admit, my spiritual life has been feeling a bit of a dry spell. Actually, I suppose it's more like a drought. My prayers feel hollow, as though I'm saying the words but they're hitting the air and immediately shattering due to a lack of substance, like a clay pigeon on a shooting range. I keep praying, though, because I believe that even hollow words breaking into a thousand pieces of broken glass against the air's canopy are better than no words at all.
Maybe the problem is that I'm trying to use words.
It's hard for me not to use words. I am a writer by trade. Oh I know my paycheck and the Presbyterian board of pensions say I'm a pastor, but really I'm a writer. My congregation doesn't know this (well, the ones who read this blog will know this now), but I've actually written quite a few books. I've never published any of them, but they exist in the annals of my cyberspace harddrives and there they sit until something tickles my fancy to pull one of them out and pick at it. They're never quite done. One draft turns into a dozen more drafts, and this inability to let a book go and actually reach it out to a publisher or an agent just keeps me writing more and more drafts. Words are my safeguard, they are my sustinence. I write because I breathe and I can keep breathing because I write. Letting a book go means I can no longer pick at it and it's hard to relinquish that kind of control over my child.
And yet despite all of this love for words and language, it strikes me that perhaps words are what have been weighing me down the most. It's possible that God requires us to speak less and listen more (imagine that, right?). Or, because we lock our spirituality into one and only one medium, our spiritual life goes into a drought because it engages only one part of our being. When I was in seminary, I took a prayer and pastoral care class and we did an exercise one day where we prayed by sound. We stood in a circle facing away from each other and we closed our eyes. The professor instructed us to make the sounds that our spirit was feeling and offer that sound up to God. Some people started humming or singing, others just let out these moans like dying walruses (I seem to recall falling into the latter of the two). Praying through sound was a different experience from praying with words. The professor impressed upon us that God doesn't need our words; He only requests our entire being and our words are only one part of our being.
This week I spent some time in northern Indiana at a pastor's retreat and we took some time in our closing worship to pray with color. One of the leaders read the scripture passage and while she read, we drew pictures on the back of our bulletins. The colors, the scribbles, the depth of the lines expressed what was going on in our souls, or even what wasn't going on in our souls. When words fail us, perhaps it is a reminder from God that our words are just one part of our being and God wants ALL of us.
"Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love; Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above."
Where are you feeling those dry spells in your spiritual journey right now? If you are like me, perhaps you are needing to try offering up a different part of your being to God. Maybe your words are shallow and hollow and the sound of breaking glass is a reminder that our hearts say a great deal more than our words.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Monday, October 15, 2012
My "duh" Moment
Remember when we were kids and we learned how to say "Duh!"? Some of us became better than others at getting the eye roll down pat, too.
Well tonight, at age 27 1/2 at exactly 9:44 p.m. CST, I had a "Duh!" moment.
Yesterday I preached a sermon on Hebrews 4:12-16 and the big impetus of my sermon was that the word of God is a living and active partner in our quest towards faithful living. My argument was that we cannot use scripture as a weapon (as many do), the Bible is not a magic 8 ball (I read an excerpt from Augusten Burrough's "Running with Scissors; see "Bible Dipping") and we cannot get "Bible" on Sunday morning alone and call it good. I mentioned that the Bible is there to instruct us and encourage us (see Romans 15) and this was my illustration to illustrate my point:
There's a PBS show on called "Super Why" and it's about these kids who take their life questions to the books for answers. If they have a problem, they consult a children's story and the characters in the book help instruct and encourage the kids in the show to answer their own questions. The background on why I know this (which I didn't include in my sermon) is because I frequently have a "date night" with an honorary sister who has two kids, 4 and 2, who absolutely love "Super Why" and even have most of the songs memorized. With them, I've caught a few episodes.
Now, I have to be honest: I was not a fan when I first watched it. Why? Because they messed up the story of "The Little Red Hen." And by messed up, I mean they used the power of words to change the story so that Little Red Hen actually gets her friends to help her in the end. I was an English major and that makes me kind of a literary snob. I don't like it when people take liberalities with classic stories. So, in the Super Why version of the story, Little Red Hen gets her friends to help her. How? She tells them WHY she needs their help (so she can bake corn bread to feed all her hungry chicks). Suddenly, Little Red Riding Hood knows what she needs to do in order to get her friends to help her pick apples: she needs to tell them WHY.
My point of sharing this with the congregation in my sermon was to illustrate how we, too, can take our questions and our problems to scripture and see examples of people who may not look or live just like us, but they have the same questions and problems as we do: "How do we live as God's children in a broken world?" The Bible is there to encourage and instruct us, so we can use it as a guide. My father has an acronym that he uses: "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth" (B.I.B.L.E.). So true!
Well, now the moment you've been waiting for: my "duh" moment. Tonight I got a free E-book from a Lutheran seminary called "Renew 52" and it's a collection of advice from 50+ leaders 50 years old or younger on how to stimulate and renew a congregation. How do you get a congregation excited about ministry? How do you stimulate volunteers?
The first essay, on leadership, is called "Into the Vision" by Sara Hayden. And Sara's advice to stimulate volunteers and encourage renewal, is, low and behold tell them why.
I laughed a little. I actually startled my cat, who was curled up so nicely at the foot of my bed and proceeded to give me the stink eye because I disturbed him.
"My idea for churches seeking renewal is to start wiht the 'why', the big reason for which the church exists. Every ministry and detail of the church should flow from and come back to that." Sara Hayden is a wise lady.
How often do we ask for things to get done in the church without telling people why? Those of you with toddlers might be sick of the "why" question.
"Go pick up your toys."
"Why?"
"Because I said so."
"Why?"
::facepalm::
Of course, those with teenagers, friends, adult children, and parents might be tire of the "why" question, too. But consider the "why" question in church.
"Why should I volunteer to teach Sunday school?"
Not just beacuse someone asked you to or "guilted you" into doing it. Volunteer to teach Sunday school because your name came up as someone who could bring a lot of gifts and energy to a group of kids who are hungry to learn about their faith. We believe very strongly in our church vision that we encourage all of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and what better way to reach out to our brothers and sisters than reach out when they are young? You have a chance to be part of something awesome!
See the difference?
The "why" is important. It's a good reminder of what we're doing here as a church in the first place. We're not here just to bring in people and expand our building. We're here to encourage people, share the good news of Jesus Christ, and find new ways to worship God. Everything we do should glorify God. That's the "why."
Once we have the "why" we can move on to the "how."
Here's to having "duh" moments at every stage of life!
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki
ps: I feel like I should clarify: my "duh" moment was not so much that I've never thought about telling people "why" before. It was just really interesting how connected Super Why was to my sermon and then to this essay on telling the congregation "why." I didn't want it to sound like this was a totally new revelation to me. :)
Dedicated to L and Q G-J
Well tonight, at age 27 1/2 at exactly 9:44 p.m. CST, I had a "Duh!" moment.
Yesterday I preached a sermon on Hebrews 4:12-16 and the big impetus of my sermon was that the word of God is a living and active partner in our quest towards faithful living. My argument was that we cannot use scripture as a weapon (as many do), the Bible is not a magic 8 ball (I read an excerpt from Augusten Burrough's "Running with Scissors; see "Bible Dipping") and we cannot get "Bible" on Sunday morning alone and call it good. I mentioned that the Bible is there to instruct us and encourage us (see Romans 15) and this was my illustration to illustrate my point:
There's a PBS show on called "Super Why" and it's about these kids who take their life questions to the books for answers. If they have a problem, they consult a children's story and the characters in the book help instruct and encourage the kids in the show to answer their own questions. The background on why I know this (which I didn't include in my sermon) is because I frequently have a "date night" with an honorary sister who has two kids, 4 and 2, who absolutely love "Super Why" and even have most of the songs memorized. With them, I've caught a few episodes.
Now, I have to be honest: I was not a fan when I first watched it. Why? Because they messed up the story of "The Little Red Hen." And by messed up, I mean they used the power of words to change the story so that Little Red Hen actually gets her friends to help her in the end. I was an English major and that makes me kind of a literary snob. I don't like it when people take liberalities with classic stories. So, in the Super Why version of the story, Little Red Hen gets her friends to help her. How? She tells them WHY she needs their help (so she can bake corn bread to feed all her hungry chicks). Suddenly, Little Red Riding Hood knows what she needs to do in order to get her friends to help her pick apples: she needs to tell them WHY.
My point of sharing this with the congregation in my sermon was to illustrate how we, too, can take our questions and our problems to scripture and see examples of people who may not look or live just like us, but they have the same questions and problems as we do: "How do we live as God's children in a broken world?" The Bible is there to encourage and instruct us, so we can use it as a guide. My father has an acronym that he uses: "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth" (B.I.B.L.E.). So true!
Well, now the moment you've been waiting for: my "duh" moment. Tonight I got a free E-book from a Lutheran seminary called "Renew 52" and it's a collection of advice from 50+ leaders 50 years old or younger on how to stimulate and renew a congregation. How do you get a congregation excited about ministry? How do you stimulate volunteers?
The first essay, on leadership, is called "Into the Vision" by Sara Hayden. And Sara's advice to stimulate volunteers and encourage renewal, is, low and behold tell them why.
I laughed a little. I actually startled my cat, who was curled up so nicely at the foot of my bed and proceeded to give me the stink eye because I disturbed him.
"My idea for churches seeking renewal is to start wiht the 'why', the big reason for which the church exists. Every ministry and detail of the church should flow from and come back to that." Sara Hayden is a wise lady.
How often do we ask for things to get done in the church without telling people why? Those of you with toddlers might be sick of the "why" question.
"Go pick up your toys."
"Why?"
"Because I said so."
"Why?"
::facepalm::
Of course, those with teenagers, friends, adult children, and parents might be tire of the "why" question, too. But consider the "why" question in church.
"Why should I volunteer to teach Sunday school?"
Not just beacuse someone asked you to or "guilted you" into doing it. Volunteer to teach Sunday school because your name came up as someone who could bring a lot of gifts and energy to a group of kids who are hungry to learn about their faith. We believe very strongly in our church vision that we encourage all of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and what better way to reach out to our brothers and sisters than reach out when they are young? You have a chance to be part of something awesome!
See the difference?
The "why" is important. It's a good reminder of what we're doing here as a church in the first place. We're not here just to bring in people and expand our building. We're here to encourage people, share the good news of Jesus Christ, and find new ways to worship God. Everything we do should glorify God. That's the "why."
Once we have the "why" we can move on to the "how."
Here's to having "duh" moments at every stage of life!
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki
ps: I feel like I should clarify: my "duh" moment was not so much that I've never thought about telling people "why" before. It was just really interesting how connected Super Why was to my sermon and then to this essay on telling the congregation "why." I didn't want it to sound like this was a totally new revelation to me. :)
Dedicated to L and Q G-J
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