This week I've been co-leading my church's Vacation Bible School for 3 year olds through 6th graders, here in the suburbs of the Cities. It's been a fun and exhausting time, full of songs and skits and games and laughter. And now, as I'm just about through the week, I've had some time to sit, be silent, and rest.
In other news, as I was resting I was also checking up on a new project that one of my professors has been working on. His new book is called "The Children of Divorce: The Loss of Family as the Loss of Being". My professor looks at how divorce not only changes a young person's experience of family, their living situations, and their emotional state of being, but changes their essence, their entire being, who they are.
He looks at how young people seek to redefine themselves in the wake of their parents' divorce and the loss of their previous family experience and understanding. He then moves on to see how Christianity and the church can help give language and meaning to the new redefinition of who these young people become. Seeing divorce as causing an ontological shift (that is, changing the core of their human existence) leads him to question how new meaning is created within their existence.
From the perspective of a youth leader working with young people who have had major situational and ontological shifts and changes in their lives, it is helpful to me to see how these young people are able to use Christ and the church to redefine themselves and create real meaning in their lives. Of course, part of that also leads me to examine my own missional ecclesiology (nerd speak for the role and mission of the church). How can I, as a youth worker or as a lay leader or a congregation member, help young people experiencing divorce in their families create new meaning in their lives and cope with the loss of who they had previously been?
As of this moment, having not actually read my professor's newest book, but kind of understanding where he might go with it, I see the answer abiding in the grace of Christ. Luther's Theology of the Cross can help lead us to enter into the pain and fear of someone affected by divorce while they redefine and search for meaning in who they might be becoming. As people of God who are called by love into love of our neighbors, we both support and challenge as need be the new meaning and experiences of our brother and sisters in Christ.
Thinking theologically about real life issues like divorce is great, but acting practically within that theological framework is truly a struggle and a difficulty, for all parties involved. But isn't that exactly what we are called to do, as members of the body of Christ, to act theologically and continue the mission of God and Christ in the world?
I think so.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Phew!
Wow, what a rollercoaster.
I've finished half of my credit requirements for my MA degree. I'm taking kids to camp next week (well, tomorrow). The mission trip is shaping up, and VBS is right around the corner. But first, I get to spend a couple weeks at home for vacation.
A couple things I've learned so far in MN:
Deep fried Snickers bars are delicious.
Winter is cold, but there are ways to get through it.
Longer O's mean you're a north Minnesotan.
Iweigens (?) are people from Iowa.
I am still a deep theological thinker.
Ultimate frisbee transcends state boundaries.
Food in communities matters even more here than back home, if that's even possible.
The Twins have their own theme song, and have for years.
Target Field is nice, but I still prefer Safeco and its retractable roof.
It seems that all youth are either scouts or camp councellors...or both.
Preparing for trips is really not my strength in ministry.
"Interesting" is the Minnesota Nice way of saying, "That's not interesting."
Networking and who you know really matter.
Minnesota youth are not necessarily the most adventurous eaters.
That's just a snapshot, I suppose. There's a lot more classroom knowledge that I've gained too, but I just can't spell it all correctly.
Random, I know. But hey, I'm kind of on summer break.
I've finished half of my credit requirements for my MA degree. I'm taking kids to camp next week (well, tomorrow). The mission trip is shaping up, and VBS is right around the corner. But first, I get to spend a couple weeks at home for vacation.
A couple things I've learned so far in MN:
Deep fried Snickers bars are delicious.
Winter is cold, but there are ways to get through it.
Longer O's mean you're a north Minnesotan.
Iweigens (?) are people from Iowa.
I am still a deep theological thinker.
Ultimate frisbee transcends state boundaries.
Food in communities matters even more here than back home, if that's even possible.
The Twins have their own theme song, and have for years.
Target Field is nice, but I still prefer Safeco and its retractable roof.
It seems that all youth are either scouts or camp councellors...or both.
Preparing for trips is really not my strength in ministry.
"Interesting" is the Minnesota Nice way of saying, "That's not interesting."
Networking and who you know really matter.
Minnesota youth are not necessarily the most adventurous eaters.
That's just a snapshot, I suppose. There's a lot more classroom knowledge that I've gained too, but I just can't spell it all correctly.
Random, I know. But hey, I'm kind of on summer break.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Triune God and Death
This term I took a class on Ministry with Young Adults. My professor is a deep theological thinker and therefore loves to delve into complex and often troubling theological questions. In our discussion last week on how the Church needs to be a community, Dr. R lectured on how God is a community. God is a community within the Trinity, the unity of the Father God, the Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
Dr. R spoke on how the Trinity is held together not by obligation nor even by choice, but by LOVE. The basis of the unity of the Trinity is love. The ultimate expression of the love in which the Trinity is based is seen on the cross where the crucified Christ died. Therefore, the cross exists at the very heart of God's community with God's self.
God has overcome Death by bringing Death into the community of the Trinity through the cross of Christ.
However, the perfect community that was the Trinity was lost, destroyed on the cross. The Son, of the unity of the Trinity, DIED. In Christ's death the unity of the Trinity ended.
But now, we must remember that the LOVE of God cannot and will not be defeated. Not even Death of the Christ can stand against the love of God. The love of God defeats Death in the Resurrection. That is why Easter is so important that we celebrate the risen Christ every Sunday in particular, though the power and truth of Easter is with us every hour of every day. Sundays are meant to be little Easters, little celebrations of the Resurrection. Alleluia!
As much as it hurts to admit, from Death springs forth Life. Through the Love of God, the basis of the Trinity, the Trinity is brought back, Resurrected with Christ. But now the Trinity, which is always and forever based in Love, surrounds and in intertwined with Death.
Out of Death, through Love, the Trinity is regained.It is made perfect in Death through Love.
So now where do we see God as concretely as possible? We can see God in beautiful things of life, like the smile of an infant, the laughter of old friends, a warm embrace of a loved one, a sunrise on a cloudless morning, in the refreshing rain and the warming sun.
But we can also see God in Death. Throughout nature, we see new Life spring up out of Death. It is in Death we see God, because Death is at the heart of the Trinity because of the Crucifixion and is brought to perfection through Love in the Resurrection.
So what then is the role of the church? To build itself around Death, as the Trinity surrounds Death with Life in Love. God is found concretely in Death. So the church must find itself concretely in Death.
Death renders us, as fragile human beings, alone. Often we can feel completely alone at the Death of a loved one, regardless of the expectation or lack thereof of Death. By speaking about Death, pain, and suffering, we engage in what Dr. R calls the "horrible sacrament of shared life."
As we near the Crucifixion and the Resurrection (Alleluia!), we celebrate that the Trinity is grounded in Love, was broken on the cross, and was redeemed through Love in the Resurrection. In our world we see Death and brokenness more often that we like to admit. But, in the midst of the darkness of Death, God is there. God has experienced Death, has brought Death into God's self, and has made Death a part of God because of God's LOVE.
The Love of the Resurrection defeats the Death of the cross. Every time.
Alleluia!
Dr. R spoke on how the Trinity is held together not by obligation nor even by choice, but by LOVE. The basis of the unity of the Trinity is love. The ultimate expression of the love in which the Trinity is based is seen on the cross where the crucified Christ died. Therefore, the cross exists at the very heart of God's community with God's self.
God has overcome Death by bringing Death into the community of the Trinity through the cross of Christ.
However, the perfect community that was the Trinity was lost, destroyed on the cross. The Son, of the unity of the Trinity, DIED. In Christ's death the unity of the Trinity ended.
But now, we must remember that the LOVE of God cannot and will not be defeated. Not even Death of the Christ can stand against the love of God. The love of God defeats Death in the Resurrection. That is why Easter is so important that we celebrate the risen Christ every Sunday in particular, though the power and truth of Easter is with us every hour of every day. Sundays are meant to be little Easters, little celebrations of the Resurrection. Alleluia!
As much as it hurts to admit, from Death springs forth Life. Through the Love of God, the basis of the Trinity, the Trinity is brought back, Resurrected with Christ. But now the Trinity, which is always and forever based in Love, surrounds and in intertwined with Death.
Out of Death, through Love, the Trinity is regained.It is made perfect in Death through Love.
So now where do we see God as concretely as possible? We can see God in beautiful things of life, like the smile of an infant, the laughter of old friends, a warm embrace of a loved one, a sunrise on a cloudless morning, in the refreshing rain and the warming sun.
But we can also see God in Death. Throughout nature, we see new Life spring up out of Death. It is in Death we see God, because Death is at the heart of the Trinity because of the Crucifixion and is brought to perfection through Love in the Resurrection.
So what then is the role of the church? To build itself around Death, as the Trinity surrounds Death with Life in Love. God is found concretely in Death. So the church must find itself concretely in Death.
Death renders us, as fragile human beings, alone. Often we can feel completely alone at the Death of a loved one, regardless of the expectation or lack thereof of Death. By speaking about Death, pain, and suffering, we engage in what Dr. R calls the "horrible sacrament of shared life."
As we near the Crucifixion and the Resurrection (Alleluia!), we celebrate that the Trinity is grounded in Love, was broken on the cross, and was redeemed through Love in the Resurrection. In our world we see Death and brokenness more often that we like to admit. But, in the midst of the darkness of Death, God is there. God has experienced Death, has brought Death into God's self, and has made Death a part of God because of God's LOVE.
The Love of the Resurrection defeats the Death of the cross. Every time.
Alleluia!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
It's Been a While // Meet Eutychus
Remember me? I'm sure you do, but maybe not how I write. It's been a busy few months. To explain why I didn't write in the end of 2009, let's just say I was writing other things. And now it's March 2010 and it's been a whirlwind of a year so far.
This semester I'm taking a class on Ministry with Young Adults. I find it interesting because I am a young adult. My question going in to each class session is such: How do people imagine they need to minister to me and to my peers? For me, ministry with young adults is peer ministry, but for many of the professors and pastors and parents with whom I interact, young adult ministry is often understated if mentioned at all.
In Acts 20:7 Paul is speaking to a group in the upper room of a three-story house. It's getting late, almost midnight, the heat from the many lamps in the room make it stuffy and everyone is drowsy. The windows are open in the hope that fresh air can enter the room. Sitting in a window is a young man by the name of Eutychus. My study Bible says that Eutychus means fortunate. I would disagree. As Paul continues to preach, Eutychus falls asleep and slips out the window, falling three stories to his death.
This morning I attended a lecture by a Princeton Theological Seminary professor who spoke on issues surrounding the lack of young adults and teenagers in American churches. She cited information from the National Study of Youth and Religion, as well as personal stories from other students and youth workers. She raises concerns that the church treats their teens and young adults like Eutychus, letting them sit in the room with the preacher, but not really paying them any mind. Youth are pushed to the fringe, to sit in the windows, to not be engaged and kept awake or attentive. This story from Acts is often used as a warning against boring preaching, but we don't know that the others in the room fell asleep. Maybe it was just boring to the youth.
However, Paul and Eutychus' tale does not simply end with the youth's fall out the window, out of the church, and out of sight from his faith community. In verse 10, Paul goes to Eutychus (in the Greek, Paul throws himself on the youth, the way the father throws himself on his protigal son) and declares that there is still life in the fallen. So Paul goes back upstairs, has a cup of coffee and a donut, and goes back to preaching, business as usual.
Wait, what?! Paul resurrects this young man, only to go back and preach more? A miracle has taken place, the fallen has been raised, the lost found, and the youth made the focus of the community. Our lecturer this morning said that this is business per usual for Paul. As she put it, "The Church's business is resurrection!" It's fine and dandy to minister to the people in the pews, but that's essentially preaching to the choir. As Jesus said, the healthy don't need the doctor...
So where does that leave me? The fact that more and more I wonder about my calling to minister to children, youth, and their families in the church. It's the last part that I struggle with most at this moment, "in the church". The more I learn about congregational ministry (always, always aimed at pastoral candidates) the more I think parachurch ministry is where my passions lie.
According to the National Study of Youth and Religion, via the speaker this morning, only 8% of American youth are highly dedicated to the Christian church. I might not like math, but I know that 92% of American youth are not highly dedicated (nor involved), but that 75% of American youth consider themselves Christian. That's an enormous community of youth that have some affiliation with the Church but are not in church.
Where do I fit in to that, as a young adult, and as a youth worker? Where can I meet Eutychus today and how can I help prevent him from falling to his death?
Joy of Joy,
K.
This semester I'm taking a class on Ministry with Young Adults. I find it interesting because I am a young adult. My question going in to each class session is such: How do people imagine they need to minister to me and to my peers? For me, ministry with young adults is peer ministry, but for many of the professors and pastors and parents with whom I interact, young adult ministry is often understated if mentioned at all.
In Acts 20:7 Paul is speaking to a group in the upper room of a three-story house. It's getting late, almost midnight, the heat from the many lamps in the room make it stuffy and everyone is drowsy. The windows are open in the hope that fresh air can enter the room. Sitting in a window is a young man by the name of Eutychus. My study Bible says that Eutychus means fortunate. I would disagree. As Paul continues to preach, Eutychus falls asleep and slips out the window, falling three stories to his death.
This morning I attended a lecture by a Princeton Theological Seminary professor who spoke on issues surrounding the lack of young adults and teenagers in American churches. She cited information from the National Study of Youth and Religion, as well as personal stories from other students and youth workers. She raises concerns that the church treats their teens and young adults like Eutychus, letting them sit in the room with the preacher, but not really paying them any mind. Youth are pushed to the fringe, to sit in the windows, to not be engaged and kept awake or attentive. This story from Acts is often used as a warning against boring preaching, but we don't know that the others in the room fell asleep. Maybe it was just boring to the youth.
However, Paul and Eutychus' tale does not simply end with the youth's fall out the window, out of the church, and out of sight from his faith community. In verse 10, Paul goes to Eutychus (in the Greek, Paul throws himself on the youth, the way the father throws himself on his protigal son) and declares that there is still life in the fallen. So Paul goes back upstairs, has a cup of coffee and a donut, and goes back to preaching, business as usual.
Wait, what?! Paul resurrects this young man, only to go back and preach more? A miracle has taken place, the fallen has been raised, the lost found, and the youth made the focus of the community. Our lecturer this morning said that this is business per usual for Paul. As she put it, "The Church's business is resurrection!" It's fine and dandy to minister to the people in the pews, but that's essentially preaching to the choir. As Jesus said, the healthy don't need the doctor...
So where does that leave me? The fact that more and more I wonder about my calling to minister to children, youth, and their families in the church. It's the last part that I struggle with most at this moment, "in the church". The more I learn about congregational ministry (always, always aimed at pastoral candidates) the more I think parachurch ministry is where my passions lie.
According to the National Study of Youth and Religion, via the speaker this morning, only 8% of American youth are highly dedicated to the Christian church. I might not like math, but I know that 92% of American youth are not highly dedicated (nor involved), but that 75% of American youth consider themselves Christian. That's an enormous community of youth that have some affiliation with the Church but are not in church.
Where do I fit in to that, as a young adult, and as a youth worker? Where can I meet Eutychus today and how can I help prevent him from falling to his death?
Joy of Joy,
K.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Update, Weather Report, Joke
Woah! What a packed month this has been already. Besides having playoff baseball becoming a detriment to my academic life, I've begun to realize that the last week of this month will be the busiest and most stressful of grad school to date. Yikes.
But yeah, classes are going good and tough, I have tests this week and next, with papers due the end of the month. I think I know what I'm doing for Thanksgiving break, but we'll see what happens. I was able to have dinner with a couple friends from home; authentic Italian pizza joined with authentic Christian fellowship and community. Now that's a recipe I can star.
One of my theology textbooks I've been reading this weekend posed the question, "What if Jesus had died of a heart attack in the Garden of Gethsemane and the disciples then laid him in the tomb? Would there still have been the resurrection? And assuming that he would have been raised from the dead, would there have been atonement? Could we still say that he died for our sins?" (The Soul of Ministry, Anderson, paraphrased). These questions were posed by the author to his graduate level theology class. If I were in that class, I think I would have responded that absolutely, there would be a resurrection. Without God bringing God's self (in the form of Jesus) back to (human) life, what would Jesus have been? Simply a prophet or healer, a chosen one at best. But no, with Jesus being the Son of God, being one with the Father God, the resurrection was a necessity; it still is the necessity. As for the atonement of our sins, Jesus' death can still be seen as the result of human frailty, whether on the cross or gripping his chest. The Cross is the more powerful image, with Jesus' death being the direct result of human frailty of mind, will, and body. However, the heart attack scenario is simply due to the frailty of human body. It lacks the power, the responsibility (perhaps one could go so far to say, it lacks the guilt) of the crucifixion. But again we are reminded, as the author's students reminded him and the class, Jesus' death is important insofar as God Incarnate died a human death, but the salvific part of the story, the real essence of the crucifixion, is in the resurrection. The student mentioned above said this: "It was the resurrection that counted, anyway. Without a resurrection there would be no atonement, even if he died on the cross." The author responded, "Amazing! ... It is the resurrection of Jesus, not just his death on the cross, that completed the atonement. ... The reason for this is that it is not just sin that needs to be forgiven, but death that needs to be overcome." Interesting, to be sure. How it relates to ministry with youth, well, we'll see about that in class discussion tomorrow.
In other news, it snowed this weekend. Just a light dusting Saturday morning, but enough to make it really cold. However, it was not enough to force me to abandon my weekly frisbee game. So I bundled up and trudged down to the field for what I dubbed "Ultimate Freezebee". It was a good fun (and yes, very cold) time; all in all, well worth it.
And a joke I'm stealing from a friend of mine in Colorado (where she got it, I have no clue):
What do you get when you divide the circumference of a Jack o Lantern by its diameter???
PUMPKIN PI!!!
With that in mind, have a good week. Stay warm, stay safe, and stay with the knowledge that it is in the resurrection that God and Christ defeated death to assure Christ's followers their place with God for eternity.
Peace.
But yeah, classes are going good and tough, I have tests this week and next, with papers due the end of the month. I think I know what I'm doing for Thanksgiving break, but we'll see what happens. I was able to have dinner with a couple friends from home; authentic Italian pizza joined with authentic Christian fellowship and community. Now that's a recipe I can star.
One of my theology textbooks I've been reading this weekend posed the question, "What if Jesus had died of a heart attack in the Garden of Gethsemane and the disciples then laid him in the tomb? Would there still have been the resurrection? And assuming that he would have been raised from the dead, would there have been atonement? Could we still say that he died for our sins?" (The Soul of Ministry, Anderson, paraphrased). These questions were posed by the author to his graduate level theology class. If I were in that class, I think I would have responded that absolutely, there would be a resurrection. Without God bringing God's self (in the form of Jesus) back to (human) life, what would Jesus have been? Simply a prophet or healer, a chosen one at best. But no, with Jesus being the Son of God, being one with the Father God, the resurrection was a necessity; it still is the necessity. As for the atonement of our sins, Jesus' death can still be seen as the result of human frailty, whether on the cross or gripping his chest. The Cross is the more powerful image, with Jesus' death being the direct result of human frailty of mind, will, and body. However, the heart attack scenario is simply due to the frailty of human body. It lacks the power, the responsibility (perhaps one could go so far to say, it lacks the guilt) of the crucifixion. But again we are reminded, as the author's students reminded him and the class, Jesus' death is important insofar as God Incarnate died a human death, but the salvific part of the story, the real essence of the crucifixion, is in the resurrection. The student mentioned above said this: "It was the resurrection that counted, anyway. Without a resurrection there would be no atonement, even if he died on the cross." The author responded, "Amazing! ... It is the resurrection of Jesus, not just his death on the cross, that completed the atonement. ... The reason for this is that it is not just sin that needs to be forgiven, but death that needs to be overcome." Interesting, to be sure. How it relates to ministry with youth, well, we'll see about that in class discussion tomorrow.
In other news, it snowed this weekend. Just a light dusting Saturday morning, but enough to make it really cold. However, it was not enough to force me to abandon my weekly frisbee game. So I bundled up and trudged down to the field for what I dubbed "Ultimate Freezebee". It was a good fun (and yes, very cold) time; all in all, well worth it.
And a joke I'm stealing from a friend of mine in Colorado (where she got it, I have no clue):
What do you get when you divide the circumference of a Jack o Lantern by its diameter???
PUMPKIN PI!!!
With that in mind, have a good week. Stay warm, stay safe, and stay with the knowledge that it is in the resurrection that God and Christ defeated death to assure Christ's followers their place with God for eternity.
Peace.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
a bad day full of blessings...
Yesterday was not a good day for me academically. One of my professors forgot my name during precept time (essentially small study group), going through the roster until he had to start going through it again before he recognized my face on the pictures he had printed out. I got my first real grad school paper back and was not pleased with the grade I received. In another class we watched a few clips from a movie that were quite upsetting and made me wonder what I would/will do when confronted with youth that are lost, angry, hating, violent, unsure, lonely. How can I share the grace and love of God with kids like that? Though, a few of my classmates seem to be a little jealous of me because I have a church youth group to work with and they are not drawing much interest from other churches in the area, so that makes me feel a little guilty about talking about how great the kids I get to work with are (especially since some of my friends in that class interview at the same church...). All in all, a tough day in the classroom.
On the flip side, one of the upper classmen invited me to play ultimate frisbee with him (usually we just end up on the field around the same time, but it's nice to get an invitation nevertheless). Another upper classman in dorm found out I'm a Star Trek fan and we had a pretty lengthy conversation about the continuity of the films and tv serieses (is that the plural of series? Or is series the plural of series? One series, two series, red series, blue series?). Then he loaned my three seasons of one of the shows (Enterprise) and a "Best Of" fan collector's DVD. To cap the day, I was walking a friend to her car after she finished work last night, and one of the catering staff members handed me a bag of cookies that had be left over from an event earlier in the day. Because they had been on plates all day, they couldn't be sold, but they're still good to eat. So I brought them back to share in my dorm. After all, who can say no to free cookies at 9:00pm?
It's the next morning and I'm still wiped from yesterday. I'm reading the story of Isaac and Jacob, and Walter Brueggemann, one of the commentors we use, is saying that when God calls someone somewhere to do something, God doesn't make it easy or fun or without pain or conflict. Jacob recieved his father's blessing, his brother's birthright, and the girl of his dreams, but none of it was easy and none of it was without conflict or fear. I know I have my parents' blessing, I don't have a brother to steal from (though my sister does have some great cookbooks that would look nice on my shelf...), and if I've found the girl of my dreams, well, it's just not the time right now. So me and Abraham, me and Jacob, we've been called somewhere to do something(s) and we've been given promises and blessings from God, but it ain't gonna be easy. It hasn't been easy. Being a Christian will forever be hard and full of conflict and pain. Following Christ is not the easy choice.
Yup. Take care. Bye.
On the flip side, one of the upper classmen invited me to play ultimate frisbee with him (usually we just end up on the field around the same time, but it's nice to get an invitation nevertheless). Another upper classman in dorm found out I'm a Star Trek fan and we had a pretty lengthy conversation about the continuity of the films and tv serieses (is that the plural of series? Or is series the plural of series? One series, two series, red series, blue series?). Then he loaned my three seasons of one of the shows (Enterprise) and a "Best Of" fan collector's DVD. To cap the day, I was walking a friend to her car after she finished work last night, and one of the catering staff members handed me a bag of cookies that had be left over from an event earlier in the day. Because they had been on plates all day, they couldn't be sold, but they're still good to eat. So I brought them back to share in my dorm. After all, who can say no to free cookies at 9:00pm?
It's the next morning and I'm still wiped from yesterday. I'm reading the story of Isaac and Jacob, and Walter Brueggemann, one of the commentors we use, is saying that when God calls someone somewhere to do something, God doesn't make it easy or fun or without pain or conflict. Jacob recieved his father's blessing, his brother's birthright, and the girl of his dreams, but none of it was easy and none of it was without conflict or fear. I know I have my parents' blessing, I don't have a brother to steal from (though my sister does have some great cookbooks that would look nice on my shelf...), and if I've found the girl of my dreams, well, it's just not the time right now. So me and Abraham, me and Jacob, we've been called somewhere to do something(s) and we've been given promises and blessings from God, but it ain't gonna be easy. It hasn't been easy. Being a Christian will forever be hard and full of conflict and pain. Following Christ is not the easy choice.
Yup. Take care. Bye.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Kendall, meet Abraham. Abraham, Kendall.
I'm taking an Old Testament class on the Pentateuch, as I've mentioned before. So far, in the three weeks I've been in class, we've gotten a general outline of this part of Scripture, talked about the creation narratives, and briefly discussed Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and Noah. Now we're getting into the stories surrounding Abram and Sarai.
One of the common themes when talking about these two characters is trust issues with God. God promises to Abraham that he and Sarah will have a child, and that Abraham's decendents will be numerous and prosperous. However, as these two continue to wander and grow old together, their trust in God is challenged and threatened. God's promises, though, can and should always be trusted, as difficult as that may be. Sarah, Abraham, and Isaac all felt the strain of the seemingly forgotten promises of God, and the stretched trust that they placed in their God. But God holds to God's covenants and promises, especially when it comes down to the wire and it becomes a kind of all-or-nothing situation.
In the almost month I've been here, I've had a rollercoaster time of trust with God. Before coming out here, I felt a deep drawing of myself to the Midwest. Ad my send-off really solidified that feeling when I was getting scared, anxious, and uncertain. Now as I begin working at a new church with new groups of youth, I worry that I won't be able to do my position as youth leader justice. Youth leaders must teach, encourage, challenge, support, discipline, outrage, provide, and guide youth in their complex, fluid, terrifying walk(s) with God. Am I really cut out for all of this? I know I can play games, read scripture, tell stories, and relate to youth, but can I really minister to them?
Like Abraham, I've been given a promise that God will bless me and the ministry I do for God. Christ promises to be with me, to reach down and lift me up in my darkest, deepest pits of dispair and distrust. The Holy Spirit promises to guide me, provide wisdom and discernment, and give me peace, patience, and joy to work with kids. And, again like Abraham, I feel tested and challenged over and over again. I don't want to fail my God and my supporters, but I know I can't do God's ministry on my own. My ministry is not worth beans (or corn, in this part of the country).
My ministry must be God's minsitry. My lessons must be Christ's Gospel. My joy must come from the Spirit. I won't be able to do any of this by myself. But handing the reigns to God is the most difficult part of my faith. I have theological knowledge, Biblical history, and program planning, but I know there's more. It's that more that I have trouble with. I trust it when things are going well, but will I be able to trust it when it comes down to my time to sacrifice my Isaac?
I hope and pray that all will be well, in my successes and failures. I know it'll be fine, but I want it to be great.
God, help me get over myself, my experiences, and my pride and just let you do your thing. Here's to you and not to me. Amen.
I'm excited to work with the kids here in MN, and I'm terrified of them at the same time. It might be a healthy fear, but it's a fear just the same. And yes, it's exactly what I signed up for when I came here, to be terrified, broken down and built back up. It'll all buff out.
Peace, patience, and joy.
One of the common themes when talking about these two characters is trust issues with God. God promises to Abraham that he and Sarah will have a child, and that Abraham's decendents will be numerous and prosperous. However, as these two continue to wander and grow old together, their trust in God is challenged and threatened. God's promises, though, can and should always be trusted, as difficult as that may be. Sarah, Abraham, and Isaac all felt the strain of the seemingly forgotten promises of God, and the stretched trust that they placed in their God. But God holds to God's covenants and promises, especially when it comes down to the wire and it becomes a kind of all-or-nothing situation.
In the almost month I've been here, I've had a rollercoaster time of trust with God. Before coming out here, I felt a deep drawing of myself to the Midwest. Ad my send-off really solidified that feeling when I was getting scared, anxious, and uncertain. Now as I begin working at a new church with new groups of youth, I worry that I won't be able to do my position as youth leader justice. Youth leaders must teach, encourage, challenge, support, discipline, outrage, provide, and guide youth in their complex, fluid, terrifying walk(s) with God. Am I really cut out for all of this? I know I can play games, read scripture, tell stories, and relate to youth, but can I really minister to them?
Like Abraham, I've been given a promise that God will bless me and the ministry I do for God. Christ promises to be with me, to reach down and lift me up in my darkest, deepest pits of dispair and distrust. The Holy Spirit promises to guide me, provide wisdom and discernment, and give me peace, patience, and joy to work with kids. And, again like Abraham, I feel tested and challenged over and over again. I don't want to fail my God and my supporters, but I know I can't do God's ministry on my own. My ministry is not worth beans (or corn, in this part of the country).
My ministry must be God's minsitry. My lessons must be Christ's Gospel. My joy must come from the Spirit. I won't be able to do any of this by myself. But handing the reigns to God is the most difficult part of my faith. I have theological knowledge, Biblical history, and program planning, but I know there's more. It's that more that I have trouble with. I trust it when things are going well, but will I be able to trust it when it comes down to my time to sacrifice my Isaac?
I hope and pray that all will be well, in my successes and failures. I know it'll be fine, but I want it to be great.
God, help me get over myself, my experiences, and my pride and just let you do your thing. Here's to you and not to me. Amen.
I'm excited to work with the kids here in MN, and I'm terrified of them at the same time. It might be a healthy fear, but it's a fear just the same. And yes, it's exactly what I signed up for when I came here, to be terrified, broken down and built back up. It'll all buff out.
Peace, patience, and joy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)