Prayers and Celebrations – Confirmation
I’d like to request your prayers and celebration for the 11 confirmands who will be meeting with the church session on Wednesday evening. Ditto for their mentors.
Working with the confirmation class this year has been very rewarding. I’m very impressed with the depth of faith and knowledge of things churchy coming from class members. Their mentors have been involved and have been helpful participants in the classes (and undoubtedly with their confirmand – I haven’t been there so I wouldn’t know).
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Please pray for them as they face the big scary (not really) session, and then are confirmed on April 27.
Youth Sunday
Youth Sunday today went very well.
All of the sermons (we have three youth do 5 minutes each rather than asking one to do 15 minutes) were well-written, full of examples linking the message to the text, and well-delivered. (You can listen to the sermons HERE.) The music was up to standard as usual. All of the folks playing other parts (doing prayers, readings, ushering, etc) did well. The adult message was particularly funny.
The sanctuary was decorated with origami cranes, hanging on fishing line. The cranes were handed out to the congregation last week as flat pieces of paper, and the congregation was asked to write prayers on them. We then folded them into cranes and created the art. Congratulations to Peter and his team for conceiving and completing the idea.
Congratulations to our seminary intern David Berge – Youth Sunday was his main project for the internship.
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I got to participate a bit in front of the crowd in contrast to last year’s behind-the-scenes work. I played djimbe (an African hand drum) on one anthem. I also did a plug for Project Open Door’s request for members to invite others to the church and then fill out a survey (so that we can see how we’re doing on hospitality) with Jeff Vamos. In preparing for the 1 minute skit, we decided that Jeff was the ham and I was the cheese.
I also participated in the laying on of hands for a new deacon (elected in January to fill an unexpired term).
The youth should be commended for their hard work. One adult who attended the service was heard to say that Youth Sunday just keeps getting better every year. Last year was hard to top.
A Question for readers
This question is prompted by a meeting with my pastor this morning, related to the past few posts here and the events that they speak of. I’d appreciate comments from my regular readers and new readers. Please chime in.
Is it harmful for a church member to post their thoughts and feelings about a church program, even if they are negative?
Blog platforms such as WordPress allow you to upload posts and to schedule their viagra without prescription release to certain days and times. Your details remain hiddenYou need not to worry while having sex, just get intimate with your partner cialis generic as keeping the concerns to yourself might worsen your condition. Both of them remain unsatisfied. overnight shipping viagra In must be said that online consultations can never take the place of traditional medicine, they do provide a valid address to their purchase generic cialis customers. Which is worse – a member who posts honestly and openly in a personal “public” forum, or a member who conducts a whisper campaign among his/her friends without talking to the appropriate leadership?
Please comment.
Yes …
Yes … I do realize just how poorly worded my question was in the conversation I wrote about yesterday.
I’m not sure why they chose me for a role that requires gifts in interpersonal communication in tense situations. I’ve never had that. Ever. My gifts in that area (if it is a gift) are honesty and directness – often brutal in combination. Interpersonal skills have always been my weakest point (well, that and athletic ability but that rarely comes up these days).
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Why did they think I’d be good at this? Is it too much of a handicap to be a leader in a congregation?
Capital Campaign Follies
As I mentioned, I’m a visit steward for the church’s capital campaign. I was assigned 3 families to visit – ironically all with a church officer.
One of the families didn’t sound like they wanted a visit, and have a good reason not to give to the campaign. I had asked them to get back to me with their availability for next week but if they don’t I completely understand.
Another family had allowed me to schedule a visit for tonight. When I got home I found a message on my answering machine telling me that they were too busy tonight and cancelling – also stating that I could call if I wanted to. So I did.
Her: Hello?
Me: Hello. I got your message about tonight.
Her: I’m sorry, but I’m very busy with stuff tonight. I have a lot of family stuff going on and we’ve already decided not to give to the campaign.
NO then enacts the compound guanylate cyclase cheap tadalafil pills which brings about girls who offer with frequent diseases can arrive across some relief and get sick far much less often. This continuous process helps reproductive system storing enough blood and causing pressure to make the levitra for sale online organ staying erect after removing the tube. Another order sildenafil online embarrassing problem for males is nocturnal emission. For those individuals who do not want to suffer the embarrassment of going to their physician for something like female levitra , then great, online pharmacies are a convenient and price effective solution for many people, it is important to be aware that self-medicating is potentially very dangerous, so always consult your physician before buying any ED drug through any pharmaceutical store. Me: OK. Is it that you’re busy, or would you prefer not to have a visit?
Her: I RESENT THAT QUESTION. GOOD BYE. Click.
I was honestly trying to determine whether to reschedule of if she’d just like me to go away and not bother her. I wasn’t told in training what to do if someone refuses a visit, but I’d contact the team leader and find out.
Thankfully, the third family will meet with me and tell me that they are going to give to the campaign and have already figured out how much. I’m also able to do that visit right before a meeting coming up because we’re on the same committee. Thank you for being the easy one.
This experience has really turned me off to this campaign and it’s starting to turn me off to the congregation as a whole. Maybe I need to think about finding another church or getting my Sunday mornings back to read the paper and relax. I do a LOT for this church. I don’t need to be put in the position of trying to talk to people who don’t want to talk to me, but aren’t willing to come out and say so.
Malaise
I’m sorry I haven’t written lately. I’ve been busy at work, busy outside work.
I’m also having one of those weeks (heading towards months) where everything is going just a little wrong. Nothing is seriously wrong. Nothing is seriously right. Everything is just a bit off kilter.
Work – as I’ve noted previously, the company is up for sale. Just today I heard two different rumors listing different companies that want to buy us – one possible and one unlikely. The senior management committee that approves IT projects just deferred a decision on a major technology change that we want to make. If they turn that down completely, I probably need to either find a new job or resign myself to being caught in a technical cul-de-sac (like COBOL programmers were 10 years ago).
Home – Home is generally OK. I wish that Carolyn and I shared more common interests – so that we’d end up spending more time together. I don’t want to grow in the wrong direction. Finances are being pinched just like everybody else between tiny raises and huge cost increases in everything else. As I said – pretty much completely OK but with a few signs of wear.
Church – I’m serving as a “Visit Steward” for the capital campaign. I’m getting the feeling from conversations with people that folks are really unhappy with the way that the campaign is being run. Most people agree with the need for funds and support most of the projects involved in the campaign, but there’s a lot of disaffection with how it’s being run. Also, the consultant sent to us by the PC(USA) Church Financial Campaign Service is really turning people off. There has to be some way to let the people in Louisville who sent her to us know what a terrible job she’s doing. We had our campaign visit training this past week. The handout was clearly cludged up from other campaigns and included references to things that we aren’t doing in our campaign (like 2nd and 3rd visits, household information cards, etc). One of the biblical references for stewardship actually came out against giving to the church if you read the next verse. Oh, well. I did make my pledge as required (all visit stewards were told to turn in their pledges as part of the commissioning ceremony yesterday, with less than a week’s notice) and even included a check for the entire amount. As soon as I do my 3 visits with members I’ll be done with the campaign. Here’s the hard part – one of my visits is to a family where one breadwinner is jobless.
“In Deuteronomy we are told to give 10%. Jesus tells the rich man that he should give everything. So the amount that we should pledge is somewhere between 10% and everything.” – no, this wasn’t a joke.
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Youth group is another area that is fine, but still not quite right. We had one youth make a life decision that will greatly negatively impact her choices in the future and it’s hitting me harder than I expected. Our attendance is rather spotty – we see a decent number of youth at each meeting but the list of attendees is different most weeks and we don’t really get to connect with them regularly. As I said – things are mostly OK. Youth Sunday is next week and we really have our act together in advance for a change. I am looking forward to going to Montreat for Week VI this summer.
Then there is the team that I co-chair. At our last meeting I got called a racist – under the theory that any white person is automatically a racist. This was said by a white person to a room full of white people – all of whom are well-intentioned in mind and as far as I can tell in practice when it comes to racial issues. I’m not looking forward to our next meeting two weeks from today.
When it comes to church I’m at a crossroads. I want to either become more involved or less involved. I don’t think continuing my current level of involvement is feasible – it’s gonna have to go up or down in the fall. I’d really like to be more involved, but in a meaningful way in a position where I can help the church change for the future rather than in a “pair of willing hands” way. I don’t mind doing the necessary, but it seems so much of church work is maintaining the old ways rather than working for the new.
Hockey – the Trenton Devils finished 6th out of 7, with the lowest number of wins in the entire history of the franchise. Enough said.
So malaise is the word of the day. Judging from the economy it might be the word of the entire country.
The Moderator Candidate Meet and Greet and Presbyterian Outlook
In today’s Presbyterian News Service releases, there is an article about the Moderator Candidate Meet and Greet event at the Presbyterian Church of Lawrenceville NJ on April 25.
The article makes mention that usually the first joint appearance of the moderator candidates happens at the General Assembly site itself, at a dinner held by Presbyterian Outlook.
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UPDATE: I got a note from Jack Haberer. He’s cool with the NJ events and even excited about them. He does need a reporter to cover them – if you’re interested contact him at the Outlook link above.
PresbyMEME
Meme courtesy of Shawn, originally started by Bruce.
- in about 25 words each (OK, I can’t do that, but I think I average to about 25), answer the following five questions;
- tag five presbyterian bloggers and send them a note to let them know they were tagged;
- be sure to link or send a trackback to this post;
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1. What is your earliest memory of being distinctly Presbyterian?
This is a close one. Being elected as YAD to the Synod of the Northeast from Palisades Presbytery as a high school junior, followed 3 weeks later by ordination as a deacon.
The YAD election was really cool. Youth from all over the presbytery (one per church participating – about 15-20 total) did a lock-in at a church in the middle of the presbytery. The youth did a program to determine (today we’d say “discern”) what skills and attitude are important for a representative to General Assembly or Synod. Then in the morning we would elect 4 youth to represent the presbytery – a GA YAD, a GA alternate, a Synod YAD, a Synod alternate.
This is also one of the saddest memories of my life. The girl who was elected alternate to GA died in a car/train accident about 4 weeks later – one day before I planned to call her and ask her out on a date.
2. On what issue/question should the PC(USA) spend LESS energy and time?
Attempting to draw a line around the acceptable beliefs (“essential tenets”). This is religion, not a government computer system. Gray is acceptable – black and white is not required.
3. On what issue/question should the PC(USA) spend MORE energy and time?
Evangelism and mission in the local community. We are dwindling in numbers because we think the “church” is a building. The church is people. We need to create, execute, and most importantly promote positive messages and actions in our communities. We need to stop defining who is and isn’t a club member and start being radically inclusive. It’s time to stop being a club and start being a movement again.
4. If you could have the PC(USA) focus on one passage of scripture for an entire year, what would it be?
Matthew 7:1-5. Time to stop concentrating on others’ beliefs and start concentrating on our own – and how well we live up to them.
5. If the PC(USA) were an animal what would it be and why?
A starving dog, who has started eating other dogs held captive with it in order to survive.
Extra Credit: Jesus shows up at General Assembly this year, what does he say to the Presbyterian Church (USA)?
“You seem to have a lot of food here; I guess I don’t need to do the loaves and fishes bit. How do you plan to share your abundance with those who need it?”
I tag: Cheesehead in Paradise, Search the Sea, St. Casserole, some amusing blog pun, and Unresolved Tensions.
Week Roundup
This week’s roundup comes a little early – I’m taking Good Friday off from work.
Sunday – After worship I went to the Adult Forum on the capital campaign which included a manse tour. The manse tour included lunch. This solved a problem for me – Carolyn was in North Jersey at a wake for a cousin-in-law of hers. Later in the evening I went to Sr. High youth group where we prepared further for Youth Sunday. I have an assignment – I need to find Old Testament scripture(s) to match up with the Prodigal Son. (Feel free to suggest some in comments or e-mail)
Work this week has been quiet. My boss passed her Project Management Professional exam on Monday (on the first try!) and we celebrated with donuts and bagels on Tuesday. The entire group is taking her out for lunch next week. Other than that I’m doing design work for a project.
Planning for the moderator candidate event is progressing. I’m finding a huge disparity in how presbyteries handle the list of commissioners. Some are treating it like I’m some kind of identity thief and insisting on forwarding the event information to their commissioners. One stated clerk said that he’d look at the invitation and determine whether or not it was “appropriate” for the commissioners. Other presbyteries are being very forthcoming and giving me all of the information that I ask for in minutes. I have to wonder who abused the list of commissioners at some point and how that caused the very prickly reaction in some places.
Monday evening at church Project Open Door met (well, actually at the manse – it solved a child care issue for the pastor). Most of the meeting went very well. Then we got to the subject of whether or not racism is an issue in our church (which is 90+% white) and whether or not we’ve introduced bias into our visitor survey. I’m amazed at how passionate people were about their positions (given that it was a room full of white people) and at how much disagreement there was. After this painful experience we’re going to revisit it again later – probably with the help of an expert. Ironically, Barack Obama covered all of the issues that we discussed in his speech the next day.
Tuesday evening I ended up serving as the pick-up Net Control Station for a ham radio weekly drill. This was the weekly Mercer County SKYWARN/RACES/ARES net – to test radios and procedures in case our services are needed due to a disaster or severe weather. It went relatively well given that most of our members were attending a club meeting at the time and were unavailable.
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Tonight I plan to go to our church’s Tenebrae (Maundy Thursday) communion service. It will reportedly be very powerful. They gradually dim the lights throughout the service and end in darkness and silence. With the strong winds that we’re going to get it should be interesting.
Friday evening we’re off to see the Trenton Devils play the Dayton Bombers with my sister Laura.
Saturday evening we go to the Philadelphia Wings vs. New York Titans lacrosse game at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. My friend Jill has a crowd coming. My sister bought two tickets and after a friend dropped out Dad is coming with her – they’re riding with Carolyn and I to the game.
Sunday morning’s Easter service will probably be Catholic this year – we did Presbyterian last year. Sunday afternoon we’re hosting Easter dinner with the Smiths and Brennans at our house (anywhere from 9 to 13 people depending on who comes).
Happy Easter!
A bunch of prayer requests
We need a pile of prayers this week.
- For my congregation, the Gernhardt family, and others who knew Ray Gernhardt. He died suddenly last week. The Gernhardt family are part of the backbone of the church.
- For Carolyn’s family, who have experienced the 2nd death in the extended family in two weeks. Bob who died last Friday also died suddenly.
- For a youth in my church, who may be about to make a bad choice with his/her life.
- For all who serve on church committees – that they may balance the contradictions of keeping information confidential vs. the congregation’s need to know, and controlling process vs. personal ego/power.
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Thank you.
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