On Friday, just as I was about to prepare to write my sermon, my computer crashed! So I quickly went to a local establishment where a "Geek" is looking at it. He cleverly laughed and said that this was usually a hard drive issue, but they would run a diagnostic on it.
So long and short of it is that I will not be doing much on a computer from the office this week. Not a problem for most pastors, but when the office is thirty minutes from home, it is.
So, I'm thinkin' about goin' old school this week. I'm thinkin' typewriter, ditto machine, model T. I don't know - I might even try to borrow a horse to see what it's like to get to work.
I just hope the Nerd Herd can recover some of my data so I don't have to reinvent the wheel too.
See you all soon.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Dirty Job?
Do you have a repertoire of channels that you watch on television? Yes, maybe I should have first asked if you watch television. But I assume many of you do, so I asked the first question.
It’s rhetorical. It’s rhetorical, because it just opens the discussion and allows me to say that I do and I’m probably not alone. My channel surfing generally begins in the early channels and moves quickly to the sports channels. But it doesn’t take me long to get to the Food network, the History Channel, and ultimately to the Discovery Channel.
I don’t know why I go to the Discovery Channel so much, but I think it’s because I’m learning something new. I guess that’s why they call it Discovery. Some of my favorite shows on the channel are “How it’s Made,” “Myth Busters,” “Man v. Wild,” and even “Cash Cab.” The latter is less educational, but interesting if you’ve ever seen it.
But my favorite show recently has been, “Dirty Jobs!” Have you seen it?
The premise of “Dirty Jobs” is that the host, Mike Rowe, explores the less than glamorous world of jobs that people do each and every day in less than clean conditions. He calls them the unsung heroes of our lives. They do things that most people will not do.
The Dirty Jobs Website says this about the show.
Our brave host and apprentice Mike Rowe will introduce you to a hardworking group of men and women who overcome fear, danger and sometimes stench and overall ickiness to accomplish their daily tasks. Not one to just stand by, each week, Rowe will assume the duties of the jobs he's profiling, working alongside rattlesnake catchers, fish processors, bee removers, septic-tank technicians and other professionals: average folks tackling extraordinary tasks that simply must get done.
At the end of Dirty Jobs, the producers invite people to write to the show if they think that they perform a dirty job. Presumably, Mike Rowe will come and experience their job first hand. It makes me think about all of the dirty places that I’ve been where people work. I keep encouraging a friend to write about the foundry where they work – it certainly is a dirty job. And then there are all the jobs that I used to see performed on the farm just below our first church in Titusville.
I have actually thought about it from a personal perspective too. I wonder if what we do in the church would qualify as a dirty job. I have a picture on my bookshelf of a mission trip with Habitat for Humanity; I was pretty dirty in that picture. I have some pictures from Russia in our work at the United Methodist Seminary. I even think about painting someone’s home, sorting food, serving homeless at a soup kitchen, or even meeting someone on the streets who most people pass on a daily basis. Does this qualify as a dirty job?
But aside from the few pictures and examples that we can submit – I wonder again, does what we do as a church qualify as a dirty job? Do we do it daily, do we do it enough?
Recently, the church began a Visioning process. The Vision Team has set out on a journey to discover where God is calling us to be. The process and the vision is supposed to engage us and stretch us to points of being uncomfortable. A vision helps us define who we minister to, and a vision helps you decide when you choose to act and what to do. Sometimes, Vision calls us to get our hands dirty and go to the places that we do not want to go, but sometimes where God is leading us to go.
In Matthew 25, Jesus talks about the judgment of the nations and warns us about how we will be judged. I think it’s pretty explicit and calls us to do the things that might land us on Dirty Jobs. It may just call us to do things that we take for granted, and calls us to places that people do not normally go.
Do we do enough? Are we getting our hands and our feet dirty for the sake of the cross? Are you going to the places that no one will go? Where will you be when the Son of Man comes in Glory? For that matter, will I be on my Lay-Z-Boy watching Dirty Jobs, or will I be out there performing one?
“God, we know where we are supposed to be, and yet we are sometimes afraid. Call us to the places of need in our community and in the world, places where we might just get a little dirty for the sake of the cross. Protect us and give us strength, for in all ways we trust you and we do it for you. In Jesus Name. Amen.”
This week in worship we continue with our Congregational Study and talk about the importance of Presence in church. You have to come to hear it and you will understand how important it is to be here. God wants you here, the church needs you here. I look forward to greeting you here.
I have to go now to submit my proposal to Dirty Jobs.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
It’s rhetorical. It’s rhetorical, because it just opens the discussion and allows me to say that I do and I’m probably not alone. My channel surfing generally begins in the early channels and moves quickly to the sports channels. But it doesn’t take me long to get to the Food network, the History Channel, and ultimately to the Discovery Channel.
I don’t know why I go to the Discovery Channel so much, but I think it’s because I’m learning something new. I guess that’s why they call it Discovery. Some of my favorite shows on the channel are “How it’s Made,” “Myth Busters,” “Man v. Wild,” and even “Cash Cab.” The latter is less educational, but interesting if you’ve ever seen it.
But my favorite show recently has been, “Dirty Jobs!” Have you seen it?
The premise of “Dirty Jobs” is that the host, Mike Rowe, explores the less than glamorous world of jobs that people do each and every day in less than clean conditions. He calls them the unsung heroes of our lives. They do things that most people will not do.
The Dirty Jobs Website says this about the show.
Our brave host and apprentice Mike Rowe will introduce you to a hardworking group of men and women who overcome fear, danger and sometimes stench and overall ickiness to accomplish their daily tasks. Not one to just stand by, each week, Rowe will assume the duties of the jobs he's profiling, working alongside rattlesnake catchers, fish processors, bee removers, septic-tank technicians and other professionals: average folks tackling extraordinary tasks that simply must get done.
At the end of Dirty Jobs, the producers invite people to write to the show if they think that they perform a dirty job. Presumably, Mike Rowe will come and experience their job first hand. It makes me think about all of the dirty places that I’ve been where people work. I keep encouraging a friend to write about the foundry where they work – it certainly is a dirty job. And then there are all the jobs that I used to see performed on the farm just below our first church in Titusville.
I have actually thought about it from a personal perspective too. I wonder if what we do in the church would qualify as a dirty job. I have a picture on my bookshelf of a mission trip with Habitat for Humanity; I was pretty dirty in that picture. I have some pictures from Russia in our work at the United Methodist Seminary. I even think about painting someone’s home, sorting food, serving homeless at a soup kitchen, or even meeting someone on the streets who most people pass on a daily basis. Does this qualify as a dirty job?
But aside from the few pictures and examples that we can submit – I wonder again, does what we do as a church qualify as a dirty job? Do we do it daily, do we do it enough?
Recently, the church began a Visioning process. The Vision Team has set out on a journey to discover where God is calling us to be. The process and the vision is supposed to engage us and stretch us to points of being uncomfortable. A vision helps us define who we minister to, and a vision helps you decide when you choose to act and what to do. Sometimes, Vision calls us to get our hands dirty and go to the places that we do not want to go, but sometimes where God is leading us to go.
In Matthew 25, Jesus talks about the judgment of the nations and warns us about how we will be judged. I think it’s pretty explicit and calls us to do the things that might land us on Dirty Jobs. It may just call us to do things that we take for granted, and calls us to places that people do not normally go.
Do we do enough? Are we getting our hands and our feet dirty for the sake of the cross? Are you going to the places that no one will go? Where will you be when the Son of Man comes in Glory? For that matter, will I be on my Lay-Z-Boy watching Dirty Jobs, or will I be out there performing one?
“God, we know where we are supposed to be, and yet we are sometimes afraid. Call us to the places of need in our community and in the world, places where we might just get a little dirty for the sake of the cross. Protect us and give us strength, for in all ways we trust you and we do it for you. In Jesus Name. Amen.”
This week in worship we continue with our Congregational Study and talk about the importance of Presence in church. You have to come to hear it and you will understand how important it is to be here. God wants you here, the church needs you here. I look forward to greeting you here.
I have to go now to submit my proposal to Dirty Jobs.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
The Face of Christ
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many.”
1 Corinthians 12:12-14
Recently, College Hill Church completed a major undertaking: a church pictorial. For those who have ever been involved in the process, you will know that it is no small undertaking. It takes many people to complete the task of arranging all of the details necessary to get everyone in the church photographed, and then making arrangements for publishing.
This year as part of our 100th Anniversary Celebration, our directory was quite involved. The company that photographed the congregation and published our book provided us with many opportunities to make it a great directory. In addition to the directory, we were able to get welcome brochures published as well as a Portrait Mosaic.
Over the past few weeks, we have received the directories and began to hand them out. In a separate shipment, we then received the welcome brochures and the Mosaic. To be honest, it was the Mosaic in which I was most interested.
The Portrait Mosaic is literally what it sounds like. It is a mosaic using all of the pictures from the directory. In our case, we chose a Mosaic of Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd. It reminds me of a stained glass window that I have seen from time to time.
If you have ever looked at a mosaic, you know that when you stand close to the artwork, you may not see anything except the material that was used. Sometimes it may be small rocks, or clay pieces. Sometimes children will make mosaics out of beans of different colors. In order to see the true work, you need to stand away from the art. When you do this – you see!
When I first opened our Mosaic, what I saw were the faces of the congregation. Each portrait that is in the directory is part of the Mosaic. I had forgotten which image we had chosen, so initially, I was unable to see the real image. I had to step back, and when I did, I finally saw it. It was the face of Christ.
As I stood there, I had an overwhelming feeling come over me. It was quite amazing for me to see all of those faces from the church making up the face of Christ. I said to myself as I stood there, “We are the face of Christ.”
Sure, we may understand that from an immediate standpoint. We often say that we are the church, we represent Christ, and we do his work. We even go to great lengths to understand ourselves at the Body of Christ. We read from Paul’s words in First Corinthians that we are baptized into that Body, but have we ever seen it in a portrait?
This mosaic is really making an impact with me this week. It is really causing me to think about our ministry and what it is that we do as a church. I hope that the image is not just an image though, but something much deeper and more meaningful. “We are the face of Christ” tells me that we have a job to do – and there are needs that must be met. We may just be the only face of Christ that people see!
Have you ever thought about that? More importantly, what are we doing about that?
St. Theresa of Avila wrote “Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now.”
You are the face of Christ! That is a powerful statement, but even a more impressive image. Yet, I hope that it is more than just an image of what people see, but what they will experience from you this week. That will be my prayer.
“You have made us in your image, O God. And we simply pray that you would use us. We are your hands and your eyes. We are your feet, we are your body. Help us to reach out to those who are in need this day. We pray these things humbly, O Christ. Amen.”
This week in worship we will be continuing our series on Transformed Living. Our sermon will focus on prayer and drawing water. I look forward to seeing you all this week.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
1 Corinthians 12:12-14
Recently, College Hill Church completed a major undertaking: a church pictorial. For those who have ever been involved in the process, you will know that it is no small undertaking. It takes many people to complete the task of arranging all of the details necessary to get everyone in the church photographed, and then making arrangements for publishing.
This year as part of our 100th Anniversary Celebration, our directory was quite involved. The company that photographed the congregation and published our book provided us with many opportunities to make it a great directory. In addition to the directory, we were able to get welcome brochures published as well as a Portrait Mosaic.
Over the past few weeks, we have received the directories and began to hand them out. In a separate shipment, we then received the welcome brochures and the Mosaic. To be honest, it was the Mosaic in which I was most interested.
The Portrait Mosaic is literally what it sounds like. It is a mosaic using all of the pictures from the directory. In our case, we chose a Mosaic of Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd. It reminds me of a stained glass window that I have seen from time to time.
If you have ever looked at a mosaic, you know that when you stand close to the artwork, you may not see anything except the material that was used. Sometimes it may be small rocks, or clay pieces. Sometimes children will make mosaics out of beans of different colors. In order to see the true work, you need to stand away from the art. When you do this – you see!
When I first opened our Mosaic, what I saw were the faces of the congregation. Each portrait that is in the directory is part of the Mosaic. I had forgotten which image we had chosen, so initially, I was unable to see the real image. I had to step back, and when I did, I finally saw it. It was the face of Christ.
As I stood there, I had an overwhelming feeling come over me. It was quite amazing for me to see all of those faces from the church making up the face of Christ. I said to myself as I stood there, “We are the face of Christ.”
Sure, we may understand that from an immediate standpoint. We often say that we are the church, we represent Christ, and we do his work. We even go to great lengths to understand ourselves at the Body of Christ. We read from Paul’s words in First Corinthians that we are baptized into that Body, but have we ever seen it in a portrait?
This mosaic is really making an impact with me this week. It is really causing me to think about our ministry and what it is that we do as a church. I hope that the image is not just an image though, but something much deeper and more meaningful. “We are the face of Christ” tells me that we have a job to do – and there are needs that must be met. We may just be the only face of Christ that people see!
Have you ever thought about that? More importantly, what are we doing about that?
St. Theresa of Avila wrote “Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now.”
You are the face of Christ! That is a powerful statement, but even a more impressive image. Yet, I hope that it is more than just an image of what people see, but what they will experience from you this week. That will be my prayer.
“You have made us in your image, O God. And we simply pray that you would use us. We are your hands and your eyes. We are your feet, we are your body. Help us to reach out to those who are in need this day. We pray these things humbly, O Christ. Amen.”
This week in worship we will be continuing our series on Transformed Living. Our sermon will focus on prayer and drawing water. I look forward to seeing you all this week.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Dumpster Diving
So this has no theological implications whatsoever, but I thought I'd let you in on something stupid that I just did.
Had pizza for dinner tonight from one of our favorite pizzerias. Tracy had a meatball sub. All very good.
Following dinner, I thought I'd be a good husband for once and take the pizza box outside to the dumpster. Yes, we live in a church parsonage next to the church, so we use the dumpster.
Came back to the wife who is doing dishes who summarily asks, "Did you bring back the pizza cutter with you?" To which I responded, "no, where is it?"
Her response, "In the pizza box?"
Did I go get it? Your job is to now complete the story just like an old fashioned Mad Lib.
Had pizza for dinner tonight from one of our favorite pizzerias. Tracy had a meatball sub. All very good.
Following dinner, I thought I'd be a good husband for once and take the pizza box outside to the dumpster. Yes, we live in a church parsonage next to the church, so we use the dumpster.
Came back to the wife who is doing dishes who summarily asks, "Did you bring back the pizza cutter with you?" To which I responded, "no, where is it?"
Her response, "In the pizza box?"
Did I go get it? Your job is to now complete the story just like an old fashioned Mad Lib.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Turn It Up!
Many of you know that I have been attending the YMCA since May of 2006. It was around that time in my life that I realized that I needed to make some lifestyle changes or I was going to be on a quick path to self-destruction. Over a period of years, my weight had been increasing and I was feeling awful most of the time.
In order to lose weight and get into shape, not only did I need to change what and how I ate, but I needed to add some physical activity to my lifestyle. I accomplished that part of the routine by joining the Y.
Over the past eighteen months, I have done a lot at the YMCA. I work out on strength training machines, cardiovascular machines, and I even swim on occasion. I mix things up so that my body doesn’t become too used to one routine. I enjoy going to the Y – it gives me a chance to manage my response to stress, and I have improved my overall health.
As I participated in the various cardio activities at the Y, I began to hear a lot about a cardiovascular class called Spinning. I would watch the participants work extremely hard and often say that I would try that someday. At first, I was a little apprehensive. I didn’t know if I would like it and didn’t know if I could handle it physically.
But about six months ago, I finally took a Spin Class and I was instantly hooked. If you don’t know what it is – Spinning is a form of studio cycling. It is a cardio class taken on a stationary bicycle. Participants follow the lead of an instructor who takes the class through a series of movements that mimic outdoor cycling. Pace as well as resistance vary throughout the hour. It has been said that it is one of the most taxing and efficient cardiovascular activities. Different instructors have different styles, and different instructors offer different classes. There are classes for all levels from beginners to advanced, and there is even a class for seniors.
Long and short of it – I love it! I take the class about 2 to 3 times a week. By the end of an hour class – I am usually exhausted and soaked. And for those of you who have seen me sweat – you know that is not a stretch.
Recently, one of the instructors has been encouraging participants to “Turn it up!” She reminds people that if they are not challenging themselves, they are not going to make any gains. Different people have different goals, but you should be setting them and challenging yourself to make a difference in your own fitness life. Each person is different, and only you will know if you are challenging yourself. I can even hear it now, “If you’re not challenging yourself, you need to turn it up!”
Do I take that personally? I Sure do! I think about it every time it is said. I think about it from my own personal life and how much I have been able to do since I began taking the spin classes. Am I challenging myself? Am I doing everything I can to take the next step?
This coming week, we formally begin our Transformed Living Study at College Hill. In many ways, you can say that it is God’s call for us to “Turn It Up!” Think about it from your own personal perspective. Maybe you have been one of those people who has just been running through the routines of church and now it’s time to really take a step forward toward transformation.
As part of the study, you will have the opportunity with everyone in the congregation to read a book, participate in a small group setting, and hear messages during worship that are specifically geared toward your own personal transformation. Each person is different and only you will know if you are challenging yourself.
At the end of the study – you should notice a difference. Are you going to sweat? You might. Are you going to be challenged? I think so. But only you know whether you have put yourself into the study. To mimic the spinning philosophy – it’s your ride. But I do know one thing – you will be transformed if you allow the Holy Spirit to work within you to challenge and sustain you on a six week journey of faith.
This week during worship, I told people we are going to memorize Paul’s words during the next six weeks. I think they speak to us and speak to our need to be transformed. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good, acceptable, and perfect” Romans 12:2.
Challenge yourself to be transformed. If you’ve been coming to church for a while, it’s time for you to Turn it Up!
“Gracious and loving God, we thank you for the call to transformation. Some may not be in a position to change much, but we pray that your Spirit would touch and guide us all to a spiritual transformation. Speak to us words of encouragement. Feed us when we are hungry, and give us that spiritual water that we need when we thirst for you. We pray these things in Christ’s name. Amen.”
This week in worship, we begin our series with a sermon entitled, “Transformed Living – Priming the Pump.” If you have any questions about the small groups that are meeting, I encourage you to talk to me. We’d love to have you join us, there is room for everyone. In fact – why don’t you be a friend and encourage someone to join you? See you this week.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
In order to lose weight and get into shape, not only did I need to change what and how I ate, but I needed to add some physical activity to my lifestyle. I accomplished that part of the routine by joining the Y.
Over the past eighteen months, I have done a lot at the YMCA. I work out on strength training machines, cardiovascular machines, and I even swim on occasion. I mix things up so that my body doesn’t become too used to one routine. I enjoy going to the Y – it gives me a chance to manage my response to stress, and I have improved my overall health.
As I participated in the various cardio activities at the Y, I began to hear a lot about a cardiovascular class called Spinning. I would watch the participants work extremely hard and often say that I would try that someday. At first, I was a little apprehensive. I didn’t know if I would like it and didn’t know if I could handle it physically.
But about six months ago, I finally took a Spin Class and I was instantly hooked. If you don’t know what it is – Spinning is a form of studio cycling. It is a cardio class taken on a stationary bicycle. Participants follow the lead of an instructor who takes the class through a series of movements that mimic outdoor cycling. Pace as well as resistance vary throughout the hour. It has been said that it is one of the most taxing and efficient cardiovascular activities. Different instructors have different styles, and different instructors offer different classes. There are classes for all levels from beginners to advanced, and there is even a class for seniors.
Long and short of it – I love it! I take the class about 2 to 3 times a week. By the end of an hour class – I am usually exhausted and soaked. And for those of you who have seen me sweat – you know that is not a stretch.
Recently, one of the instructors has been encouraging participants to “Turn it up!” She reminds people that if they are not challenging themselves, they are not going to make any gains. Different people have different goals, but you should be setting them and challenging yourself to make a difference in your own fitness life. Each person is different, and only you will know if you are challenging yourself. I can even hear it now, “If you’re not challenging yourself, you need to turn it up!”
Do I take that personally? I Sure do! I think about it every time it is said. I think about it from my own personal life and how much I have been able to do since I began taking the spin classes. Am I challenging myself? Am I doing everything I can to take the next step?
This coming week, we formally begin our Transformed Living Study at College Hill. In many ways, you can say that it is God’s call for us to “Turn It Up!” Think about it from your own personal perspective. Maybe you have been one of those people who has just been running through the routines of church and now it’s time to really take a step forward toward transformation.
As part of the study, you will have the opportunity with everyone in the congregation to read a book, participate in a small group setting, and hear messages during worship that are specifically geared toward your own personal transformation. Each person is different and only you will know if you are challenging yourself.
At the end of the study – you should notice a difference. Are you going to sweat? You might. Are you going to be challenged? I think so. But only you know whether you have put yourself into the study. To mimic the spinning philosophy – it’s your ride. But I do know one thing – you will be transformed if you allow the Holy Spirit to work within you to challenge and sustain you on a six week journey of faith.
This week during worship, I told people we are going to memorize Paul’s words during the next six weeks. I think they speak to us and speak to our need to be transformed. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good, acceptable, and perfect” Romans 12:2.
Challenge yourself to be transformed. If you’ve been coming to church for a while, it’s time for you to Turn it Up!
“Gracious and loving God, we thank you for the call to transformation. Some may not be in a position to change much, but we pray that your Spirit would touch and guide us all to a spiritual transformation. Speak to us words of encouragement. Feed us when we are hungry, and give us that spiritual water that we need when we thirst for you. We pray these things in Christ’s name. Amen.”
This week in worship, we begin our series with a sermon entitled, “Transformed Living – Priming the Pump.” If you have any questions about the small groups that are meeting, I encourage you to talk to me. We’d love to have you join us, there is room for everyone. In fact – why don’t you be a friend and encourage someone to join you? See you this week.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Monday, October 1, 2007
From the world of the Bizarre
So what's your opinion? Is this Constitutionally protected speech? Or should we curtail obscenity by stopping such behavior? You decide.
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