Perspective

Perspective is an interesting thing. I don't think about perspective much unless of course my perspective changes.

Each week in worship, I stand in the pulpit, sit near the choir and behind a piano. So to sit out in the sanctuary changes my perspective. I am able to see things differently than I do when I am in the pulpit. I don't get to do that very often, but when I do I am often struck by what I see. Hopefully, when that happens, I can gain some valuable in site to what I do each and every Sunday.

I have a partial season ticket plan with friends at PNC Park. We sit in the same seats when we go to our games. I like that. I know my usher, I know the vendors and the food stands that are in close proximity to our section, and I know that if I take one of the girls, there is a family bathroom very near our section. This is a God-send for a man who has three girls who are not old enough to go into the girls room alone, and too old to come with me. There are times when we go to games and we don't sit in those seats. I like those moments, because it gives me a different frame of reference to the game, you see things differently. I can watch different players and hopefully gain some in site into the way that players play.

To date, I have officiated 109 funerals. Yes I count! When I was in my first appointment, I only officiated about 12 funerals. Within the last year, I have only done about 8 or so. So the great majority of the funerals came from my four years at Baldwin. I didn't know every one of the people or the families. I would get quite a few calls from the local funeral homes asking if I would conduct a funeral for someone without a church - I never denied. Many of those funerals seemed fabricated, not because I didn't do my best, but because I often felt like I was just there to run through the motions for them. The 12 from Bethel were all very special people in my life, they were like family. If there is one thing to be said about a funeral - there is not one that is the same as the other.

My perspective changed on Sunday when we got a phone call from Tracy's mother that something was just not right. She was watching our children at our house and Tracy's father was supposed to call her at 8:00 a.m. He didn't. This was not all that unusual for him - he often forgot to do things like that. But after Sunday School and church when he did not contact her - she knew something was just not right. As we were driving home from Grove City, there was a part of me and a huge part of Tracy that knew something was wrong.

We arrived at their house to find out that indeed, Tracy's father had died. My perspective was drastically different as I was dealing with this from the inside. Certainly, my connection, and the emotion was not as raw as my wife's or my mother-in-law's, but I was not dealing with this as a pastor this time. My perspective has changed.

One of the things that Tracy and I have been saying in the past two days surrounds Annual Conference. "Sort of puts things into perspective. All the controversy over Conservative/Liberal and General Conference really doesn't mean that much, does it?" Once again, perspective changed.

This is all too fresh to really gain total clarity, but to say the least I know how important the church is, how important people are, and just how important the ministry of the church is. We have had people praying for us, reaching out to us, and really reassuring us that the Church of Jesus Christ is present, and that God's presence is with us.

Please remind me about perspective every once in a while. Don't ever let me get to the point that people become a number or a game, or just the run of the mill situation. When you come right down to it - the ministry that we have is about people. I think I knew that - no - I know that . . . but my vantage point as one of those people makes me realize it more today.