As we make our way through this topsy-turvy virus crisis with all it ups and downs… deaths, tests, ventilators, layoffs, quarantines, wet markets, statistics… does your stomach ache? Did you know that motion sickness is caused by a confusion in your brain between your inner ears and eyes that ends up on your stomach? If you are traveling by car, […]
Much has been written in other places about the importance of the Church and its congregations meeting the needs of the community. Indeed, ministries like coat banks, food pantries, after school youth centers, preschools, recovery groups and so on help meet the needs of the community. But there is another way to look at what the community needs from the […]
I am that guy. There may be a wire loose. I can’t help but speak a clever comment back whenever people say something. (Clever to me!) Whether it is at a meeting, in a conversation or at a chance meeting with a neighbor on the street, I not only have something to say, I have a clever comeback to whatever […]
Think in outlines. To consistently communicate well, think in outlines. Proper application of this principle will have wide ranging application to your ministry. The skill you learned back in fourth grade will carry you through your ministry. Outlines force better organization and sharper points. Outline everything. I first came across this “outlining insight” in a little book entitled “It Takes […]
There is a lot of crisis management happening. Hospitals. Governmental agencies. Businesses. Congregations. Families. Over the last thirty days all of us have made countless decisions, countless adjustments, countless changes. Where will we go? Where we will not go? What will we do? What will we not do? Cover? Gather? Withdraw? Test? Something is becoming clear in my decision making. […]
The life of a parish pastor is busy. It is a lot of things, but it is NOT a 40 hour a week thing. When we are busy, two things suffer: diet and exercise. Watch your diet. Jesus said it is not what goes into our mouth that makes us unclean, but what comes out of our mouth that makes […]
Danger. Pandemic. Economic chaos. Unemployment. Medical supplies. Government over-reach or is it under-reach? I saw some sidewalk chalk art on a driveway this week. Whatever kids lived there, I had never seen kids there, must have gotten bored with on-line education, playing video games or snap-chatting. And with no organized soccer games to go to, a working-from-home mom or dad […]
As a pastor you should have a wide range of interests. Some new. Some old. A smattering of lots of things will provide a treasure house for ministry. One of the things that you should have a smattering of is Latin. There is nothing like a Latin phrase to help sell a point. Lay people appreciate a well spoken and […]
Talk about a week of great significance! I must have made about 100 different decisions to figure out how to move forward in congregational ministry given the impact of the virus crisis. (I refuse to use the scary name it has been given because that just drives fear.) One of the things that was clear right away was that we […]
Wear nice ones. This is especially important for Holy Communion services. When people come forward to receive the Sacrament, they are not quite sure where to look. Many think it is too proud to look up, even if they are looking up to the cross. They won’t close their eyes for fear of missing the Sacrament as the celebrant distributes […]