Reflectionary

But you didn’t want that

One of the things I learned early on in ministry is that sometimes, even often, pastors will be called upon to conduct funeral or memorial services for people we did not know very well. Occasionally that’s on us (we didn’t spend enough time visiting); other times it’s a culture that allows for people tangentially related to the church to call upon the institution in time of need; and in special…

According to your word (a prayer for pastors)

One: Here am I, the servant of the Lord. Many: Let it be with me according to your word. One: Here we are, O God, your servants, seeking to understand what you want for us, and what you want from us. You wend your way into our lives, sometimes a lightning bolt, or a whispered breeze, the ray of sunshine piercing through forest cover, the full moon illuminating waves as they break on the shore. We…

Eat, drink, be merry

There are some days when I am stressed out and in a hurry to finish things and my hurry and stress are usually obvious in my tone of voice and the speed with which I talk and my propensity to fly off the handle. I have decent self-management skills, most of the time, but I am currently piecing together several part-time gigs, which means some weeks I don’t have enough to do and other weeks I have…

A fraction as righteous

I’m not great at saying things directly. I tend to sugarcoat, to look for a way to make nice, to nudge the other party in a particular direction rather than issuing a command or even a request. When I feel hurt, I have a hard time saying so; instead I show it in ways that I will grant are less than mature and generally not effective. This happens because I want people to like me, and I want them…

Knock, and it will be opened – really?

Jesus always seems to be encouraging us to persist, because persistence will get God’s attention. No parent is going to give a child a scorpion instead of an egg, and if your neighbor is already in bed and won’t give you some extra bread out of hospitality, he might do it out of annoyance to get you to go home, already. Later we’ll get a widow practically stalking an unjust judge. Don’t give up,…

As lambs among wolves

Sometimes I think I’m just not mean enough, not wily enough, not cruel enough. It seems like the people who get things done have all those qualities, the people who achieve a certain kind of greatness, the people with influence and power. Today I wrote a letter, or four letters, actually, to my congressman, my senators, and to the President. They are cover letters to go with the statement…

Twelve baskets of leftovers

I’m still finding last week’s announcement about the “skinny” federal budget infuriating. An American of Irish descent wearing a Book of Kells necktie stood in front of the press and said it was compassionate to *not* feed people through programs funded by the government. I’m angry, angry at people in Washington and people on social media, but also angry at people I know face-to-face who smugly…

Reorient (a prayer for pastors)

O Holy One We thank you For trips that dislocate us For maps that reorient us For views we could not have imagined For voices we never quite heard before For all travel that leads to you For armchair journeying in a good book For podcasters with unfamiliar perspectives For conversation partners who push us For prayer that redirects us For all travel that leads to you For taking off with all we…

Return home and tell the story

After the first few verses that tell which ladies were traveling alongside Jesus, Luke 8 becomes a kind of greatest hits mash-up of things we can find in Mark and some in Matthew, and the chapter feels less, well, Luke-ish to me. But here we are (Luke 8:4-56), with the parable of the soils (or the sower), and its explanation, the light that should not go under the bowl, the arrival of Jesus’…

Reliable with the Ladies

Jesus had a way with women. I’m not suggesting he was some kind of tomcat or lothario, rather that the gospels show him facing off with men everywhere, while women sought him out, anointed him, traveled with him, and quietly financed his ministry. Soon afterward, Jesus traveled through the cities and villages, preaching and proclaiming the good news of God’s kingdom. The Twelve were with…

A little of that healing

There have been too many young parents in our circles of family and colleagues dying in recent weeks, all of the deaths coming with shocking swiftness. Even one would seem like a lot. We pray for them, for the spouses and parents and siblings left behind, people trying to figure out how to manage the unmanageable, to comprehend the incomprehensible. I think of those who are ill but still living.…

Even sinners do that

Last night, someone suggested it would be great for RevGalBlogPals to do its own continuing education programs. We’ve been doing annual programs since 2008 and since 2013, we’ve had more than one program a year. Most of them fill up very quickly, and we often have waiting lists. I get that the person making the comment was relatively new to our group, but I was also infuriated because it felt…

Imagine being *that* furious!

In church this morning, I had a higher-than-usual number of interruptions by Mr. Dimples, who is now 12, and in that nearly-adolescent twilight zone of giant babyhood familiar to any of you who have raised boys. (Girls, in contrast, are terrifying grown-ups at that age.) We had chosen the 11 o’clock service, due to Spring-ing Ahead, and it happened that he also had an invitation to a birthday…

Bleary-eyed (a prayer for pastors)

For bleary-eyed preachers Clock-lagged, exhausted, And those wondering if This church will see another Lent, And those eager for the view From the next pulpit, And those just getting started, Clear-eyed and expectant, In your mercy Lord, Hear our prayer. For the weary-souled pastors Grieving dear ones who have died, And those missing church folk Who have moved or moved on, And for those with a…

“Unimaginable things today”

All the people were beside themselves with wonder. Filled with awe, they glorified God, saying, “We’ve seen unimaginable things today.” (Luke 5:26, CEB) In the stretch of verses I read today (Luke 5:12-39), Jesus does the following unimaginable thing: he heals a leper by forgiving his sins, in front of a gathering of legal experts and Pharisees. It’s moderately amazing that he heals the man; he…

Sometimes Jesus is more than I can handle

The Home Office, under construction I’m in a phase of life where I have a lot of things to do, but no workplace except the home office we created out of an unused vestibule in the Manse. I work for RevGalBlogPals; I’m starting a research project related to RevGals, underwritten by a Louisville Institute Pastoral Study grant; I have finished my coach training and am in the process of setting up a…

Can you go home again?

A couple of years ago I received an invitation to preach in the church where I grew up, a Southern Baptist church in my hometown of Portsmouth, Virginia. I gave a lot of thought, of course, to what to preach and how to present myself. I had no idea how many familiar faces I would see; it had been a long time. And I was fairly sure that other than some limited contact with the pastor’s family on…