Sin is Messy

Have you ever felt helplessly trapped by the weight of your own sins? Have you ever been on your knees in despair because of the realization that you cannot overcome the magnitude of your rebellion on your own? Was there ever a time when you knew that your actions were against God and you didn't have faith at all?

Sin is a tricky thing...it makes us think we are better than we are or not as bad as we really are. But the truth is that sin is an offense against God and we must deal with that with God. If we continue in our lives like we only make guilt-free mistakes instead of guilt-full sins, then we will never acknowledge our need for someone (us or someone else) to pay the penalty for those sins. And if we don't acknowledge the fact that we cannot pay the price our sins require, then we will never reach out to Jesus - the one who has paid the price for our sins.

I think Christians often go thru life thinking that the faith of their families is enough, but they never make the realization that owning our sins and dealing with them thru the blood of Jesus is the only way to make the faith of our family personal. As George Whitefield said, "We must be convinced of the weight of our original sin, our actual sins, our sin of self-righteousness, and the sin of unbelief before we can speak peace to our souls."

I hope this made sense because I am sort of combining my reflections on several sermons I have heard recently - as well as things going on in my own life. If you have not yet been fully convinced of the weight of your sins and your inability to free yourself from them, I would love to talk with you more.

Grace&Peace

The US is another year older today. I wonder if the forefathers are proud of what we have done with the country they fought so hard to free from the tyranny of England? I wonder if the ideals set forth in our country's foundational documents have gone by the wayside or if we are continuing to work toward them? I wonder if we as human beings have really made all that much progress in the quest for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

Not sure about America, but I still hold out hope for humanity because we were created by a God that loves us enough to reach out into the mess of our lives and bring us back into relationship with him. Our life pursuits are changed from wealth, status, and possessions to full connection with creation, restored relationship with our Creator, and loving like our Savior.

On this 231st anniversary of the formation of the United States, let us reflect on our true freedom in Christ and how we can bring that freedom to all who need it - spiritually, emotionally, physically, or economically.

Grace&Peace

VBS Reflections

Last year I ranted and ranted about the curriculum that our VBS Team picked for our church, but this year I must say that the obvious "baptist-slant" in the curriculum is missing. I credit that to selecting a curriculum produced by a publisher that is not directly affiliated with one particular denomination and to the fact that our VBS Leaders go out of their way to tailor the materials to fit our church.

On that note, I continue to wonder what the VBS Team would need to do in order to produce its own curriculum for our church (and others) to use? If they invest as much time in re-writing the materials as they would in writing their own, we could have a unique curriculum, rather than the same one that almost every other church in the area is using. Just a thought.

Grace&Peace

They say it's my birthday...

Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah....
Gonna have a good time...
Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah....
They say it's my birthday...
Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah....
Well it's my birthday too yeah!
Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah....

Ok, enough of that. I am 29 today.

Grace&Peace

Wireless ROCKS!

I just want to say that wireless internet access on my new laptop is REALLY COOL! I can now go to Starbucks and work on email and documents that were previously only available on my desktop in my office. I like the fact that I can work on sermons, blog, or AIM from almost anywhere. Fun stuff!

Grace&Peace

Annual Conference - Day 3

My friend Doug Fox just gave his address to the body of the Annual Conference because he is being ordained this evening. He told us, "As an engineer he guided people to the stars, but as a pastor he guides people to the creator of the stars." He told us, "As an engineer he learned to blast rockets into the heavens, but as a pastor he blasts people into heaven."

I thank God for Doug's ministry and I am glad to call him a friend.

Grace&Peace

Annunal Conference - Day 1

Sunday, June 3, 2007: Clergy Session and Opening Worship
On Sunday afternoon I attended the Clergy Session for this year's Annual Conference where several friends of mine were elected to probationary membership in our conference and one other was elected to full membership and ordination in our conference.

I went to dinner with a few colleauges and had a great conversation about the future of ministry in the UMC - with a special emphasis on attracting younger clergy to Methodism. The guys who I ate dinner with shared several different strategies on how to move forward in this area, but we are still struggling on how to move such a large body of people in new directions when we only meet as a whole body once every four years.

At opening worship there were 95 PT interns commissioned for this summer's program. They then helped to serve communion to the almost 2500 people in attendance. It was very cool to see all those college students who are giving their summer to serve the underserved here in Dallas. I pray that Trietsch can lift up a few interns next summer to serve with PT in 2008.

Grace&Peace

Last Day of May

On this final day of the month I thought I would let you all know that I have not fallen off the face of the planet, nor have I been hiding in a hole all month. This month has been particularly busy for me and June is not looking very slow either.

Coming up...
Next week, June 3-6, is the North Texas Annual Conference in Plano, so I will be out of the office until Thursday of next week. Call my cell phone if you need to get in touch with me. Hopefully I will have my laptop up and running for the option of blogging/emails during the parts of Conference that drag...or when something exciting is happening on the floor.

Also, I found out a few weeks ago that because I am not a full member of the AC, I don't get to vote on clergy delegates for General Conference. Bummer! Oh well, I will still try and see who is running and get to know them a bit better.

My birthday is coming up in a few weeks and my parents will be here to celebrate Father's Day and my 29th at once.

In other news, I will be preaching here at Trietsch during the 9:30 contemporary service during the whole month of June. Jim and I are collaborating on a series of messages dealing with the issues of conflict, criticism, and complaining using Paul's letter to the Ephesians as our biblical basis.

Preaching last weekend went GREAT and I can't wait to do it again during June and July (when Jim is on vacation).

OK, now I can successfully say that I posted this month.

Grace&Peace

Kids at Night

Deb and I just put Caitlyn down for the night and eventho we didn't talk about it prior to her going down, we both commented on how much we like watching her falling asleep.

It is quite interesting that her sleep resonates out from her core. As she falls asleep the first thing that stops moving is her legs, then her feet, and then her toes. On the upper half the first thing to stop moving is her arms, then her hands, and then her fingers. When all of those are quiet, she closes her eyes, sucks her fingers, and then her breathing gets deeper and deeper as she drifts off to dreamland.

Kids are awesome! Even when the go "jekyll and hyde" on you as you try to get them in and out of the bath and in to their PJs. I highly recommend having a few kids in your life, but be sure to wait until the time is right.

Grace&Peace

Tony posted this a while ago, but I just read it this afternoon. I must say that it felt like he was writing that just for me.

Grace&Peace

Undignified Worship

2 Samuel 6.22a says:

I will become even more undignified than this, I will be humiliated in my own eyes. (TNIV)

David was dancing for joy as he brought the Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem. David was so passionate about God's presence returning to his hometown, that he was willing to humiliate himself - and he didn't care! He was willing to praise God without a thought to self-consciousness. He love to praise, sing, and dance so much that he not only didn't care what he looked like, he didn't care who saw him or what they thought of his dancing. David was willing to be 'even more undignified' in order to praise God with all his heart.

How often to we as Christians reign in our enthusiasm for Jesus? How often are we afraid to speak, sing, or scream for Jesus? Why do we cower to the 'standard of decent behavior' in order to fit in or not stand out? When we have such a great message to proclaim, why do we keep our mouths shut and our praise 'dignified'?

I want to be like David. I want to be so unashamed of what God has done for me that I am willing to embarrass myself for the sake of the gospel!

Jesus, you lived a life that changed so many people. Help me to express the depth of change in my life with worship that honors you and humiliates me. Amen.

Thank you God, for bringing this passage before me in light of the conversation that Kris, Alan, and I had yesterday!

Grace&Peace

Sunday Reflections

Update: After some very exciting proposals from Jim, this rant is no longer necessary. Isn't it cool how God makes things fall into place? More on that later.

Grace&Peace

The Notebook

I may have to reclaim my title of "token woman" (don't ask) after writing this, but I just have to say that Deb and I watched "The Notebook" for the first time last night and it was a good movie. I was drawn into the story and I wanted the main characters to work out in the end. I know, I know...it's a chick flick, but it was a good story and I am always up for a good story.

Ok, I think I will post about the NFL draft or something like that tomorrow...

Grace&Peace

Perry's Passion

I just read this post from Perry Noble and I felt that I must share it with you. His passion for those who don't know Jesus is so obvious.

God, I pray that you continue to stoke the passion your Spirit has lit inside Perry. I pray that you continue to work thru him as he reaches out to the people of Anderson, SC. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Grace&Peace

Lunches That Make You Go Wow

Today I had lunch with a member of our church and I was reminded of the amazing way that God brings people into our lives in order to make his plans work.

I went to the restaurant thinking that I was meeting a woman, but it turned out that Kerry is a dual-gender name (I should have known that, but it didn't click for some reason). So I had lunch with Kerry and found out that he used to be a pastor in the Baptist church, but through a series of events, left the pastorate, left the Baptist church, and joined our UM church (interesting story).

So we were talking about him becoming part of our Missions Committee and what he could bring to the table. About halfway through his story, it became clear to me that he had at least three undeniable things to offer our Team:

1) Love for the Church
2) Passion for those outside the Church
3) Leadership thinking (another 30,000-ft thinker!)

Our conversation went great and he is going to pray about joining our efforts. I walked away from the meeting reflecting on one thing: he had called his wife before meeting with me and told her that he was going to have lunch with me just to get to know me better, but he wasn't all that interested in being on the Team, but he told me that by the end of our lunch he was very excited about the possibility of serving on the Team to set direction and leadership for the Missions here at Trietsch. Praise God!

Grace&Peace

Recon Work Today

I was invited to go down and visit with the worship staffs of Highland Park UMC today and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting with them and touring the facility. Paul Rasmussen (a buddy of mine) leads their Cornerstone service and I can only say that he has done a phenomenal job of growing that community into a vibrant body of Christ followers.

I pray that I can have the opportunity to preach in a contemporary setting where, as the pastor for that worshipping community, I get free reign to make it whatever the community wants it to be.

Thanks HP for raising the bar on excellence in worship!

Grace&Peace

Quick Commentary on some UM Polity

As part of the structure of the United Methodist system, every four years Methodists from across the globe elect delegates (both lay and clergy) to attend General Conference. The next GC will be in Ft. Worth, TX in May 2008. During the year prior to GC, candidates who wish to be elected to GC "campaign" for their election, speak to various groups on different issues, and do some general "shakin' hands and kissin' babies" in an attempt to garner support.

In that light, I read two articles this morning about proposals for changing the way delegates are elected to GC. One of them (scroll to page 4) was written by a pastor that I used to work for and the other was written by I guy I have never met. I ask you to read both of them before continuing on with my comments as my thoughts will probably only make sense in light of what the authors said.

Gary (my former boss) acknowledges the politicizing of the elections, but is "convinced that the political process is the best way for those of us who are sinful creatures to order our collective life." He offers six suggestions for 'new ways' of approaching the elections held each quadrennium. His suggestions (posed as questions) made me stop and think about what I will be participating in (as a voting member of the Annual Conference) this June. I especially appreciate ways #1, 2, and 6 because they lead each voter to ask critical questions that supercede personal agendas, seek to dialogue with those who hold opposing view points (for growth and deeper understanding, not conflict), and personal responsibility for each vote we cast. He closes with this thought:

If, when all is said and done, we actually are willing to do things in a new way, I think we will be delighted at the outstanding leaders of different ages, theological perspectives, genders and places of ministry who emerge. Even more importantly, we will be amazed at the difference it makes in the United Methodist Church as we live out our mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

Eric (never met him) believes that the whole electoral system is in desperate need of repair. He says, "The present system of electing delegates to our General Conferences has degenerated to the point that little distinguishes it from the political processes in secular society." He further believes that some candidates are saying whatever they need to say to curry favor with whatever audience with which they are speaking. His proposal for reform includes asking each voter to consider two questions: 1)"What is my stake in this election?" and 2)"What would God call our denomination to do, and what leadership skills will it take to achieve it?" He further proposes that any candidate for GC have a proven track record of leadership ability in their local church. He closes his article by saying, "By achieving unity in doing, maybe we can find a renewed unity and purpose in being the Body of Christ."

Here are some of my thoughts...
I tend to agree that the political nature of our electoral system can lead to manipulation and lower-functioning as a whole denomination. From what I have heard about the electoral process, it is more about who has the most friends (or who is most charismatic or appealing) that gets elected, rather than the person who is going to speak for the whole church on important issues in our denomination.

I am going to do whatever it takes to inform myself about each candidate for GC because I feel that that is the only way that I can vote responsibly and in a God-honoring way. I know that it will be hard, but I am willing to have difficult conversations with people who differ from me theological, socially, racially, and ethnically in order to understand them better. I really feel that I must honor my calling to ministry by conducting myself in that manner.

I hope that others will follow suit, but if not, at least I will have done my best. I look forward to blogging about the whole process in June...perhaps even while it is going on (if the laptop is up and running).

What are your thoughts?

Grace&Peace

Much Needed Updates - Holy Week

Sorry for the long absence from the blogosphere...the week after Easter was a little crazier than I had anticipated...and this week is shaping up to be much of the same.

Ok...Holy Week:
Maundy Thursday was very cool once again this year. We did the whole experiential worship with 4 different stations. We had communion in tables of 12 (one of which I led). We had journaling stations (one with pen and paper and one with blogging (complete with new Trietsch blog - be sure to read the comments/prayer requests in the comment section of the Maundy Thursday post). We had candles for prayer requests and answered prayers. And we had a foot-washing station. Overall, this was a very cool way to remember Christ's last meal with his disciples.

Good Friday service brought us back to the reality of Christ's death. The Schubert Mass was both poignant and uplifting. And eventho it was all in Latin, the words went deep into my soul. As the altar was stripped of paraments and decorations, the finality of death really hit home. The complete darkness at the conclusion of the passion narrative brought chills and hammering a nail into the cross made me shudder because I realized once again what my sins did to my Lord. Powerful stuff!

Easter morning was fantastic! I was liturgist during the contemporary services and the attitudes were great and the air was electric! That's the best way that I can describe it. God was working in that place like we have never seen before. All the preparation we did...all the worrying we did over the weather...all the fretting about how many chairs were set up...all that went away when the sun came out and we knew that the Son had risen indeed. It was awesome! Praise God!

Grace&Peace

New Layout

Over the past few months I have increasingly felt weird about having a blog called "the gospel according to me" so I spent some time today changing the look and feel of my blog. What do you think?

I wanted to promote more discussion on this site, so I hope that the redesign will help promote that.

Grace&Peace

"Going Toward the Moon"

I just talked with the chair of Missions here at Trietsch and she made an interesting point about the progress we are making in reconfiguring the Missions Committee: "We are going toward the moon like the space shuttle does upon take off...a little correction to the right...a little correction to the left..., but we are making progress in our journey toward the moon."

I had not heard about the in-air corrections that the shuttle must make as it leaves earth's atmosphere, but I thought the image was quite appropriate for our journey to reinvent what Missions is about....a little correction here, a little correction there, but a general path toward the moon. We have our goal in focus and the bumps and blocks along the way will not keep us from getting to the moon. We cast the vision and we will see it thru to completion. We will make mid-air corrections and live with the difficulties of doing ministry enmeshed in the human condition.

We're going toward the moon...with God's help we are going toward the moon!

Grace&Peace