Thoughts on the Indiana Annual Conference

Day 1 - Thursday
Thursday, June 25 marked the beginning of the first ever meeting of the Indiana Annual Conference. In previous years, North Indiana and South Indiana existed as different conferences, but on October 4th of last year, they officially became one conference. This was a pretty exciting time, and a time that is challenging all of us to rethink how we do ministry.

The conference opened with three teaching sessions led by Adam Hamilton, the pastor of Church of the Resurrection near Kansas City, Kansas. I'll go into more detail about the teaching sessions on a later post, but suffice to say, it was some good stuff. I do consider myself to be conservative theologically; however, I understand the importance of being a moderate when it comes to theological discussions. I'm not one to condemn those with whom I don't agree. I think responsible, respectful and logical dialogue is crucial. There will always be differences between people. That is how we grow. I respect Hamilton for leading the way in opening up the conversations between "both sides of the aisle," and taking the best from both points of view.

Afterwards, we had our initial plenary session. Nothing terribly exciting to talk about there. This did set the tone, however, for what would end up being the majority of the discussions during conference - namely, the budget initial report. The most contentious discussions during the course of Annual Conference revolved around insurance, specifically for retired clergy and spouses, and connectional ministries, primarily campus ministries. Following a mildly entertaining laity report, we had a limited amount of time to get dinner and head over to Union Chapel UMC for the clergy session.

Clergy session was all right. There were a number of people presented for commissioning and ordination, as well as the retirees for this annual conference. Someone wondered aloud in my direction, "Why are we ordaining people in their 60's?" And as I looked at the crowd of people, there were very few that were under the age of 40. One of the things that we need to do a better job with, as clergy, is helping people answer their call to ministry at a young age. So many times, I've heard of second-career people entering into ministry much later in life because they ignored their call to ministry at a younger age.

Clergy session wasn't terribly exciting for me, apart from knowing a few of the people being commissioned or ordained, because as a provisional member, I am not allowed to vote (although, by this point, it's pretty much a rubber stamp on what has already been decided). It also dawned on me as I was sitting in the session that had I gotten through certification on time and had I finished seminary in 3 years instead of 4, I would be a part of this year's ordination class. Interesting how it all works out sometimes, isn't it? Thus ended Day 1.

Day 2 - Friday
Friday began with a Bible study led by David Bell. The focus was on stewardship, and it was pretty good. I may put up the highlights in a later post. We then had our second plenary (business) session, focusing primarily on the Transition Team report (which went 35 minutes over its alloted time) and discussion revolving around Connectional Ministries.

Here's the big deal with Connectional Ministries. Apparently, about a month ago, those representing connectional ministries throughout the state were told that the majority of the money that they received from the conference would be drastically reduced. At the Pre-conference briefing, we were told that this is in part due to budgetary concerns, but also because the local church gives at a rate 10 times more than the conference. The short notice, alongside the massive cuts, has caused quite a bit of consternation around the conference - understandably so.

However, here are my thoughts on the issue. Local churches need to take on the responsibility of maintaining these ministries. If it isn't something that the local churches support, why should the conference? Hear me out on this. I care about campus ministry. I think it is incredibly important as a follow-up to what local churches are doing in their ministry to youth. However, we cannot simply throw some money at campus ministries and wash our hands of young Christians.

The local churches need to support it. With the new conference, there is a lot of talk about grassroots and doing ministry from the "bottom" of the system up. It has to start with the local churches. If we are trying to do ministry from the bottom up, then why are we trying to mandate funding from the top down? It doesn't make any sense. And here's the kicker - Indiana is on a tithing model for conference giving, not apportionments. We give 10% of what is given on Sunday morning to the conference. If every church in the conference paid 100% of their 10% tithe, we would have $3 million more in the budget for 2010. All of the arguments and discussions that have occurred in the past month and a half would be a moot point because the money is there.

Okay, back to the review. I attended the Asbury Seminary lunch out at Union Chapel. It was great. In the past years, the Asbury lunch has always been a deli sandwich box lunch. This time, a local Italian restaurant catered, and it was delicious. Dr. Arnold was the speaker, and he updated us on the many things that are going on at Asbury, and it seems like things are going great there right now.

I spent the afternoon session watching the webcast because we got back from the Asbury lunch a little late, and I needed to rest a little. Most of the time was spent discussing insurance for retired clergy and spouses. There was a brief break in that discussion to talk about the 32 proposed Constitutional Amendments. I thought that this was going to be a long, drawn-out discussion as well, but I think the whole thing lasted maybe half an hour. The results were not released, so I don't have much to report on those. All in all, it seemed like a pretty tame discussion compared to the previous discussions on the day.

I have to say that I was pretty disappointed with dinner. I went to the Confessing Movement dinner. The food itself was wonderful; however, I had to eat and rush out of there pretty quick. I was supposed to help serve communion at the memorial service, and for some inexplicable reason, they started the dinner about half an hour late. By the time I made it through the buffet line (as my table was the last to go), I had all of 7 minutes to eat and get back to the auditorium. It was pretty frustrating to pay $16.50 for a dinner that I didn't even have time to enjoy.

Following the memorial service, there was a young clergy gathering at Scotty's Brewhouse. It was a good time. Katie and I got to meet a few people and just hang out with some other young clergy in our conference. I think, all in all, about 30 people came by for this gathering.

Day 3 & 4 - Saturday and Sunday
Saturday morning started off with another Bible study by David Bell. We had our final vote on the budget, which brought up more discussion on connectional ministries and insurance. The nominating committee reported on those who are geared up to serve in the new conference, and then we were dismissed for an afternoon of ministry and outreach.

Sunday was the closing of annual conference with the Celebration of Ministry service, during which a whole new class was commissioned, another one was ordained, and another one was seen off to retirement.

I know this has been a rather long post. But that is the basic summary of the first ever meeting of the Indiana Annual Conference, with a bit of commentary along the way. All in all, it was a good conference.

Summer Movie Tour: Transformers - Revenge of the Fallen

I managed to make it out to see one of the summer's most anticipated films - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The movie picks up a couple years following the end of the first Transformers movie. The Autobots have increased in number and have joined together with an elite and covert team know as NEST. The Decepticons have been scattered all over the world searching for a piece of the Allspark that remained following the first movie. Without giving too much away, they find it and use it to revive Megatron, who then continues to bring about his own special brand of havoc in searching for something known as the Leadership Matrix.

My assessment: While I enjoyed the movie, it wasn't as good as the original. There is a lot of action all throughout, and you certainly never get bored. The relationship between Sam and Mikayla is still going on, and there are some parts that focus specifically on their relationship, which provide about the only break from the action throughout the movie. Sam's parents are, once again, hilarious; providing great comedic relief alongside John Turturro's Agent Simmons. There were a couple of twin Autobots who were also supposed to provide some comedic relief, but aren't terribly funny.

My recommendation: I'll buy it, and I'll watch it again, but as I said above, it's not as good as the original. Obviously this is not one that is going to revolve around the acting, which is good because the acting isn't all that great. The action makes it worth seeing, but I wouldn't pay full price at the theater to see it again. Wait for a matinee or for it to arrive at the local dollar theater.

Stepping Up

The following was preached at Veedersburg and Hillsboro UMC on Sunday, June 21, 2009. The text for this week's passage is 1 Samuel 17:32-40, 48-50.

Last week we looked at the story of the anointing of David. What I hope you walked out of here with last week is knowing that what society thinks about bigger being better doesn't apply to what God is doing in our community and all around the world. We don't have to be a huge church to obey the will of God and make a huge difference in our community. We need to be exactly who we are, and we need to make the decision that the message with which we have been entrusted is important enough to share with those around us. Ultimately, that is a decision that each one of us has to make in our own hearts, and it's a decision that will affect our future as a congregation. And that brings us to today's passage.

I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again, but familiar passages can present a problem for us. To be fair, it's not the passages themselves, but what happens when we come across them. We have a tendency to put our brains on autopilot when it comes to a passage that we've heard time and time again. We've heard them so often that we think we've heard everything there is about them. The problem with familiarity is that it breeds apathy. I don't think it's intentional, but we tend to just shut off when it comes to something that we've heard time and time again. All that to say that the story of David and Goliath is one of the more familiar passages in all of Scripture. Even those who don't profess to be Christians and have never stepped foot in a church have heard something being called a "David and Goliath story" and they have a vague idea of what that means.

We come to the story right in the middle of the action. The Israelite army is on the western end of their territory in the hill country. The Vally of Elah, as this place was called, was an important point of entry into Judah. Whoever controlled this valley controlled the hill country. The Philistine army was camped on one side of the valley, while the Israelites were camped on the other. Every day a Philistine warrior by the name of Goliath would come out and taunt the Israelite army. It wasn't uncommon for some battles in this time to be settled between one person from each side. The problem is that all of the Israelites were afraid.

We are told that Goliath's height was "six cubits and a span," which is roughly 9 feet, 9 inches. Do you remember when Moses originally sent the spies to the Promised Land and they came back petrified because the people that were already there were huge? Joshua and Caleb were the only two that said they could take the land, and the rest were all so scared that they disobeyed God and ended up wandering in the desert for another 40 years. The Israelite army apparently forgot that story, because they were scared by the size of Goliath. The point in that story is that the people needed to trust in God to lead them, and they didn't. Yet, here we are again, a few centuries later, facing similar circumstances. Now, it was actually Saul's responsibility, as king of Israel, to answer the challenge of Goliath, but he was also very scared. So, everyday, Goliath would come down from the Philistine lines and taunt the Israelites, but they were all too scared to do anything about it. But then comes David.

David actually wasn't a part of the army. David is on the scene because he is delivering food to his brothers, and he is supposed to bring back some indication that his brothers are still doing well. While he's there, Goliath comes down for his daily taunt. David can't believe what he is hearing when Goliath taunts the Israelite army. For David, Goliath isn't just taunting the Israelites, but God as well. David can't believe that nobody has done anything about it. And he steps up and says, "I'll take care of him." And the first reaction that he gets is, "You've got to be kidding me." Word gets back to Saul, and Saul asks that David come before him. And David stands his ground. He tells Saul that he'll take care of Goliath.

And what is the first thing that Saul says? "You are not able to go against this Philistine because you are too young." Isn't that always the first comment made by the critics? "You can't do that because" fill in the blank. There will always be critics, people who look for all the reasons why we can't do something. The world doesn't need more critics, it needs more people that will look for solutions to the problems, and not reasons why the problem can't be solved. Once we get a feel for what God is wanting to do in our midst, we should be looking for ways to accomplish our task, not excuses as to why it should be somebody else's problem.

Think about this for a minute - is your first reaction to a problem looking for reasons why somebody else should take care of it, or is it to look for solutions? When somebody comes up with an idea for ministry in the community around us, are you more likely to join in and look for ways to make it happen, or are you more likely to sit on the sidelines and talk about why we can't do it? That's an important decision that has to be made. Are you going to be an optimist or a pessimist when it comes to ministry opportunities? And don't tell me that you're a realist, because, realistically, that means you're a pessimist in denial. Now, does this mean that we should do every single thing that comes up? No. It doesn't. We have to be discerning about what we do. Some things may ultimately get turned down, but not until there has been a good deal of prayer and discussion on where it fits with who we are as a congregation.

David was not dissuaded by the reasons Saul gave him. He had his eyes fixed squarely on what was important. And what was important was the fact that God would be the one who did the fighting. God had been preparing him for this moment. He wasn't scared of Goliath because he spent his youth fighting and killing lions and bears. Yeah, Goliath was an awfully big obstacle, but he wasn't worse than anything that David had seen before. And David was still there, which tells me that he had a pretty good track record in those other battles.

God prepares those He sends. God has been preparing you for something. And because God is the one that has been doing the work in you, I'd say that you are in pretty good shape. It is important for us to keep our eyes fixed on what is truly important, and to rely on the preparation that God has put us through. Most importantly, we have to remember that God is working through us. We can accomplish any task that God has set before us because He is the one who has prepared us and is working through us. David wasn’t prepared to fight Goliath because he thought he could beat the giant. He was prepared to fight Goliath because he knew that God would do the fighting through him.

When Saul finally gives in and lets David fight Goliath, he does something that many of us often do. He tried to make David fight Goliath in the way that he is familiar with fighting. Saul puts his armor on David, and gives David his sword. Now, remember last week when I mentioned that Saul was a head taller than all of the rest of the Israelites? Something tells me that Saul didn't get any shorter. Can you imagine David wearing Saul's armor, when Saul was so much taller than David in the first place? David was used to fighting in whatever he was wearing, not in a heavy suit of armor. David was also used to fighting with his sling and bare hands, not with a sword. He told Saul that he couldn't go into battle with this equipment because he had never used it before. Given time and training, David would eventually fight with a sword and armor, but in this moment, he couldn't. He had to fight in a way with which he was familiar. He had to be true to who he was.

You can probably see where I'm going with this one. When it comes to doing ministry in our context, we have to be true to who we are. We can't make ourselves be something that we are not. We have to approach ministry using the gifts and graces that God has given us. We can't put on the armor and carry the sword that other churches are using because we aren't familiar with them. What works in one context may not work in another. Once we start trying to be somebody else, we will find ourselves with a severe identity crisis on our hands, or, worse yet, we will fall flat on our faces. And nothing can lead to inactivity faster than failure.

Now, the flip side to all of this is that we can, and must, learn new and adapt our current ministry approaches. I had the honor of being a teaching assistant for a United Methodist polity class while I was in seminary that was co-taught by the seminary president and the president of the United Methodist Judicial Council. One of the things that President Greenway said in that class that really stuck with me is, "The church that got us to where we are is not the church that will take us where we need to go." He was talking about the United Methodist Church as a denomination, but I think it is very true for all churches.

The things that we did fifteen years ago will not help us reach out to our community today. The world is changing. We have to be able to adapt in order to minister to a changing world. I say this full well knowing that some people see "change" as a curse word. I'm not saying that we change things for the sake of making a change, but we do it to reach out to a broken world and bring glory to God. I want to ease your heart palpatations right now by saying that this is not an indication that we are suddenly going to switch our style of worship. I'm young, not stupid. Having said that, though, we may do some different things during worship from time to time. David didn't always go into battle with a sling and some stones. He learned, he adapted and he was victorious as long as he listened to God.

We all know the rest of the story. David confronts Goliath, and kills him. The Philistines scatter and David's fame spreads all over the land. David's story is written. It is well-known. Our story, not so much. We have before us a blank sheet of paper. We are a modern-day David, sitting at an important crossroad. The question is - will we continue to move forward, towards what God has set before us, or will we sit back and let life happen? I have to tell you, I'm not willing to just sit back. I like to sit back and relax on my own time, but when it comes to what God is doing, I'm not willing to miss out.

I came across a quote this week that I want to leave you with. "When your memories exceed your dreams, the end is near." What are your dreams? Where has God been speaking to your heart? What is it that God has been preparing you for? Where has God been leading you? Do the dreams that you have for this congregation exceed your memories?

Summer Movie Tour: The Proposal

There are currently about 5 or 6 movies out that I want to see this summer. Unfortunately, it's been a busy couple of weeks, and let's not forget, the closest movie theater is 20-some miles away. Regardless, Katie picked the movie for this stop on the summer movie tour, and we went to see The Proposal starring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock.

As you've probably picked up from the trailers/commercials, The Proposal is about a woman who plans to marry her assistant in order to stay in the country (instead of being deported to Canada). Both the expected and unexpected happen along the way, and (nearly) everybody will walk away relatively satisfied with the ending.

My assessment: I enjoyed this movie. I know that I'm walking in dangerous territory by admitting to liking a perceived "chick flick;" however, what's not to love about Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. They make a great on-screen team and have believable chemistry as a couple.

My recommendation: If you are looking for a light-hearted movie to see with you girlfriend/wife, this one is well worth the time. It is quite funny and touching in parts. Relatively predictable, but if that doesn't bother you, then enjoy!

Gym Class Syndrome

The following was preached at Veedersburg and Hillsboro UMC on Sunday, June 14, 2009. The text for this week's message is 1 Samuel 16:1-7, 10-13.

As a way to jump into today's passage, I want to get in the Way-Back Machine and look at a time in my life that I promised myself never to discuss again - middle school. Perhaps some of y'all here this morning can connect with me on this one. One of my fondest memories of middle school was gym class. I had a slight social handicap when I was in middle school - I wore glasses. And because I wore glasses, I was automatically incapable of playing sports, at least that was the perception amongst some of my middle school peers. I remember when we were getting ready for the unit on baseball, and we went through the always dreaded gym class ritual of picking teams. I seem to remember, as I was among the last of the players picked, someone making a comment that at least my team would have a cheerleader. Let's pause the story there, and look at the background for today's passage.

The book of 1 Samuel basically records Israel's first steps into monarchy, their new political system in which a king ruled the nation. Until the birth of the monarchy, Israel was ruled by what the Old Testament calls "judges." No, these were not guys with white wigs and black robes sitting behind a bench. The judges of ancient Israel were rulers who were raised up by God from time to time. They would lead Israel through a particular crisis and for a limited period of time. After a while though, the Israelites grew tired of having judges from time to time and wanted something more permanent. They clamoured for a king. In 1 Samuel 8, we are told that the elders of Israel go to Samuel and express their displeasure over the rule of his sons (who really were poor leaders, more concerned with personal gain than justice). And they tell Samuel that they wanted to have a king - just like all the other nations.

In spite of Samuel's warning of what would happen if Israel did have a king, the people still insisted on having one. Finally, Samuel prays to the Lord and He says, "Okay, let's give them what they want." Have you ever heard the saying, "Be careful what you ask for, because you just might get it." Israel hadn't. They got what they asked for, and it would lead them down a long and winding road. At the end of this road was something that they never would have expected, but they should have - Samuel warned them.

The first king ended up being a very handsome, wealthy man, who stood taller than all the rest of the Israelites. Saul actually started out as a pretty good king. He led Israel into battle and nearly every time came back victorious. He listened to the advice of Samuel and obeyed the Lord. However, Saul started doing things his own way instead of waiting on the Lord. One lesson we learn time and time again in the Old Testament is that when leaders stop following after the Lord, things go wrong real quick. And this was no different. Saul started going his own way, and, consequently, was rejected by the Lord as leader of the nation. And that brings us to today's passage - the anointing of David.

I get the feeling that Samuel really liked Saul to begin with. He seemed like a good enough leader. He was able to bring all the tribes together and unite them for a common purpose, but Saul eventually bought in to his own press. This certainly grieved Samuel. But as we often find out, God has already been at work setting His plans into motion, even when we don't know about it. He tells Samuel to get up and head to Bethlehem to anoint His new king. Now, Samuel is a little worried about doing it, but sometimes, when it comes to fulfilling God's plans, we have to be willing to do something that may seem to be a little scary, and a little out of our comfort zone. God equips those he sends, and he had prepared Samuel for this next step.

Samuel goes to the town of Bethlehem to find Jesse, the man whose son is going to be the next king of Israel. He goes to perform a sacrifice to the Lord, and once Jesse and his sons are consecrated, the ceremony begins. But right away, it appears that something different is going on here. Jesse's eldest son, Eliab, is the first to go before Samuel, and Samuel thinks, "Ah, this is the guy." But God says, "Nope. Don't look at what you see. I see something different than what you see. I'm looking for someone whose heart is in the right place." Samuel is faithful to what God says and looks to the next in line. One by one, seven of Jesse's sons pass before Samuel, but none of them fit the description that the Lord gives Samuel. None of them are to be the next king of Israel.

After they all pass before Samuel, he asks Jesse if there's another son that isn't present. And Jesse says, "Yeah, there's the youngest, but he's out taking care of the sheep right now." In other words, the family nerd is out with the herd. As the youngest son, David would have been at the bottom of the pecking order. Notice that even though Samuel has Jesse bring all his sons to the sacrifice, David is still left in the fields with the sheep. He is not important enough to be at this event. He wasn't picked last - he just wasn't picked at all. But when David comes before Samuel, the Lord says, "This is the guy. This is the one that I've chosen." His own family didn't think enough of David to include him in the ceremony to begin with, but he is the one that was chosen by the Lord to lead Israel. I know what you're thinking at this point, "Great story, but what does this have to do with us?"

I think this is a story about hope. It's the classic underdog story that we all want to see take place. It's the unexpected gold medal for the 1980 U.S. hockey team. It's George Mason from the 2006 NCAA Men's Basketball Tourney, the 11 seed that made the Final Four. It's a certain 83-win team winning the World Series that same year. It's a story that resonates with each one of us on some level. Who doesn't root for the underdog? That's what David is here. He's the runt of the litter. He's the youngest of eight. He has no business being anointed the leader of a nation. But he's the one that God has chosen.

When we look around our community, do we feel like the runt of the litter? We are a fairly small church, but does that mean we can't make a difference? Simply because there are a small number of people in this congregation, it doesn't mean that the Spirit can't work in a powerful way. When you look around this congregation, do you see a congregation that has done all it can, and is just ready to sit back and let life happen? Or do you see a congregation that is excited about what God can do? I see so many people who can make a difference, but it doesn't matter what I see. How do you see yourselves?

We live in a world that thinks bigger is better, but is it really? Sure, we don't have as many people here as Sterling or Hillsboro Nazarene or insert name of another big church here. We can't do the things that they can do right now, but we don't have to. God has a purpose for us as a congregation, but until we really believe that by God's grace and through the Holy Spirit that we can make a difference, we aren't going to go anywhere. But the good news that we see in today's Scripture is that size, position and birth order don't matter. In fact, did you know that 60% of the churches in America meet every week with less than 100 people? 60% of the churches in America are just like us - small congregations that meet faithfully every week. Here's another fun fact for you this morning - only 6.5% of churches in America have attendance each week of more than 500. Do you see where I am going with this?

God has always moved in big ways through the most unexpected means. He picked one guy, Abraham, to make the nation that would bring about salvation for the entire world. He picked a guy with a speech impediment to go before the Pharoah and set free the Israelites from 400 years of slavery. He picked the runt of Jesse's litter to become the king of Israel and establish the Israelite kingdom. He picked a ragtag group of twelve disciples to learn from Jesus and spread the gospel throughout the Roman Empire.

Even though we are a small congregation, we can make a major difference because it is not us, but God working through us, and with God all things are possible. But that's the key - with God. We cannot do this on our own. We cannot do this through the latest and greatest ministry techniques. We cannot do this by copying what the church down the road is doing. We can only do this by listening for God and following the lead that He has given us. David, by all the standards set by the society around him, was nothing. But in reality, in God’s reality, he was exactly what was needed in order for God's will to be done.

God tells Samuel that He looks at the heart. He doesn’t see the things that everyone else sees. God sees some amazing things in each one of us. God doesn’t look at us and see a small congregation; God sees a congregation that can make a huge difference in this community. We don’t often see what God is doing behind the scenes, but that doesn’t mean God hasn’t been working.

God has been working here. I’ve heard from some of you the difference that spending 15 minutes a day reading Scripture has made in your life. God has been challenging us each and every week to take the next step in our faith. I know that there are some people here that have listened for ways that they can help those around them, and have taken advantage of the opportunities that are available. We have so many things that we can do to share the gospel. It doesn’t have to be a big, organized event. Sometimes, it’s just a simple as sitting down and talking with somebody for a little while.

How has God been preparing you? How has God been working in your life? What’s going on right now that you never would have anticipated five years ago? If you take the time to allow God to form you, He will. If you take the time to listen to what God would have you do to reach out to those around you, you’ll start to see ways of doing ministry that maybe nobody has thought of before. What are your hopes and dreams for us as a congregation? We can do amazing things if we only rely on God. Don’t let anybody ever tell you that we are too small to do anything. Don’t ever think that we are too small to do anything. In a world where bigger is better, God still works through those who are faithful and whose hearts are in the right place, regardless of size. God is preparing us for something big, but we have to make the decision to be excited about what God is going to do, and we have to listen for what our role in it is going to be.

When I got picked in that softball game, everyone else saw a smart kid with glasses. What they didn’t know is that I had been playing baseball for six years. A double, triple and three RBI’s later, people realized that there was more to me than what they saw. I could play ball. In fact, I could play a lot better than most of the rest of them. I think we will find out something similar about ourselves as a congregation. We aren’t too small. We aren’t too old. We aren’t too busy. We have no excuses because God is the one that will be working through us. We have to decide to be a part of what God is doing, and that decision, whatever we decide, will lead us into the future. Six months, a year, three years from now – what are people going to be saying about us? Take a look into your heart this week, and you’ll find the answer.


Tuesday Tunes

This week's Tuesday Tunes was inspired by last Saturday's post on the Giant Gummy Bear on a stick!!!!, and ensuing YouTube watching.

And, just for kicks, I thought I'd get a little international today as well....






English


Spanish

French

Swedish

German

Hungarian

And finally...it's time to sing along!!!!

The Candy of Heaven

My hands-down, absolute favorite type of candy is the gummy worm. I love them. They are delicious in ways that cannot be described by mere English words. Koine Greek, the second language of heaven, comes close to describing the indescribable nature of this tasty treat, but even it falls short. The best place that I have ever found a gummy worm is the Ole Smokey Candy Kitchen in Gatlinburg, TN. They are absolutely amazing.

In general, I find gummy worms to be the ideal manifestation of such a candy-licious treat. It's not that I don't like gummy bears, gummy dinosaurs, gummy fish, or even gummy artificial limbs. It's just that the gummy worm is shaped in a perfect way so as to include multiple flavors, and it fits very well in that space between your teeth and your lips. Sure, it looks like I'm taking a dip (which is totally disgusting) every time I eat gummy worms, but that is only an aesthetic drawback for those around me, and consequently has no bearing on my overall enjoyment of said gummy worm.

I can generally tell which brand, or at least what the packaging off the particular gummy product, looks like. One day, while I was working at Sears, a friend of mine offered me a gummy bear, and I was able to correctly identify it as a Haribo gummy bear - you know, the one that comes in the gold package...

Anyway, all of this is to set up an amazing video that I was fortunate enough to come across this morning, as I was engaging in one of my current time-wasting activities.

Behold, the next inevitable step in gummy technology...

the GIANT GUMMY BEAR on a stick!!!!!!

Cardinal Series Review 6/1-6/8

The Cards had a rough homestand this time around. The pitching had been fantastic, allowing only 17 runs in 9 games, but things started to get shaky when the Reds came to town and the wheels fell off once the Rockies came in.

Cincinnati, 6/1-6/4
The first red flag on the Cardinal offense started going up during the month of May. The Cards only scored 6+ runs five times the entire month (compare that to 10 in April). As of June 8th, they had not scored 6+ in any game. They traded wins with the Reds to open the homestand, with wins of 5-2 and 3-1 in Games 2 and 4, and losses of 3-5 and 3-9 in Games 1 and 3.
Cardinals record: 2-2 (8-5-2 series)

Colorado, 6/5-6/8
And then the wheels fell off. The bullpen completely fell apart. Wainwright left Game 1 with the Cardinals down 1-3, but by the end of the 7th, it was 11-1. The Rockies scored 9 runs in the 7th inning, and it was all over from there. Game 1 was followed by three more absolutely flat performances by the Cardinals, all losses: 1-10, 2-7, and 2-5. The Rockies aren't a bad team, but there is no reason why Jorge De La Rosa, Aaron Cook, Ubaldo Jimenez and Jason Marquis should look like Maddux, Smoltz, Glavine and Avery. I have a feeling that this is going to be a series that we look back to later in the season.
Cardinals record: 0-4 (8-6-2 series)

The Cardinals are hitting the road for the next six games, visiting both Florida and Cleveland. We'll catch back up on the other side.

Life Lessons from Farkle

I have recently been hooked on a game on Facebook. Actually, I've been hooked on a couple (I think I may have a mildly addictive personality...), but the most recent one is called Farkle. Farkle is a dice-game a lot like Yatzee in that it uses dice. That's really the only similarity between the two games. Here's a quick rundown of the rules according to the Facebook version:

1) You start with six dice.
2) In order to keep rolling, you have to score something on each roll.
3) Once you use a die as a part of a score, it gets taken out of the next roll.
4) You have to have 300 points before you can end your turn.
5) If you do not score on a roll, then the round is over and you get no points.
6) If you roll a one or a five, you get 100 or 50 points, respectively. These two numbers are your best friend because as long as you have at least one of them in a roll, you can potentially keep playing.
7) You can also score by getting three-of-a-kind in any number, three pairs, or a straight (1 through 6).
8) There are ten rounds in each game.

Now, so far, the online, Facebook version will show me the top scores from my friends, but it will not allow me to play against them live. It's basically a one-player game right now. My top score is listed, and my goal is to beat my top score (and the top scores of my friends). Okay, so that's the background information. Hopefully it wasn't too tedious. If you've made it this far, then you are actually interested in what I have to say, or you skipped the rules above. Either way, please continue...

So, with Pandora jamming to the Lifehouse station, I give you...

Life Lessons from Farkle

Life Lesson #1 - Sometimes in life, it's just you trying to beat your best. Competition is healthy, for the most part. It challenges us and pushes us to go one step beyond what we thought we could do. More often than not, our only limitation is the obstacles that we have placed in front of us.

Life Lesson #2 - Things happen that we have no control over. Isn't that the truth? There are not many more explicit signs of this than when we play a game with dice. I cannot control what gets rolled when those dice come out of my virual hands. If I don't have 300 points, I have to keep rolling. A lot of the time, I end up getting Farkled before I've even hit the minimum points. I've even gotten it on the first throw before! There's no way to control it. You just pick up the dice and start over. On the flip side, if you get a straight, you get 1,500 points. The only way to do this is right out of the gate on the first toss of the round. There's no strategy, no way to make it happen. It just does. Good things happen, bad things happen. That's life.

Life Lesson #3 - While we don't have control over some things, there are other things that come down to a decision that we make. If I'm sitting at 450 points in Farkle, I can take the points and end the round, or I can decide to continue to roll. Now, hypothetically, I would have already rolled 4 one's and 1 five to put me at 450 points. I still have one die left to roll. I know that I need to roll either a one or a five in order to continue my turn with any hope of scoring points. I have a decision to make. I know the odds, but the odds mean diddly-squat at that moment. I have to decide whether or not I'm going to take the points and run, or if I'm going to risk them for more.

Life Lesson #4 - Knowing all the facts doesn't make the decision any easier. It certainly doesn't hurt to know that I have a 1 in 3 chance of getting the needed value, but it doesn't make that value appear when I do decide to throw the die.

Life Lesson #5 - Our past sometimes helps our decision making. If I've already thrown one Farkle, I am hesitant to take a chance on getting another one. Getting three in a row causes the player to lose 500 points. Do I really want to put myself in a position where I might get that third Farkle in a row and lose those points?

Life Lesson #6 - Keeping an eye on the future also helps our decision making. If I'm on the final round of my game, and I still haven't topped my high score, I'm rolling those dice until I either a) beat my high score, or b) get a Farkle. I think even if I were playing against a live opponent, I would have to make this decision. Because if you aren't going to take a risk from time to time, you aren't going to win. Oops, I think that's #7....

Life Lesson #7 - If you aren't going to take a risk from time to time, you aren't going to win. Sometimes you have to take a risk in life. Sure, it may be easier to play it safe, but if the result is just going to be pedestrian, then why bother? Average is all right from time to time, but there are times in life when we have to be willing to take a risk and become better than average.

Life Lesson #8 - It's not over until that final Farkle. There is always hope. Even if you are 2,000 points behind in that last round, you can hit a hot streak and rack up some serious points. I've had a few rounds go over 2,000 or even 3,000. That's when taking a risk pays off. What would've happened if I didn't take that final risk? I would have lost anyway.

Life Lesson #9 - And finally, when things are going bad or something happens that completely works against your ultimate goal, there is no need to cuss. You can just shout out, "FARKLE," pick up your dice and get on with life.

Tuesday Tunes

This is starting to become a rather infrequent posting. For whatever reason, as I was indulging in my latest Facebook addictions (Bejeweled Blitz and Farkle) and listening to Pandora, I felt the urge to go ahead and put up a Tuesday Tunes post this evening.

I've been on a bit of a Lifehouse kick lately. I like the mellow rock sound that they have, but I also think the lyrics are fantastic (at least most of the time).

When I listen to this song, I hear somebody struggling with something that life has thrown at him. Apparently, one of the band members wrote this song for a girl that he had been friends with for a long time and who had just gotten out of a serious relationship. I think one of the great things about music is that it can speak to us in different ways depending on where we are in life. It's a great song. The clip below is from their Unplugged set on VH1 in October 2007.



I cant be losing sleep over this, no I cant
And now I can not stop pacing
Give me a few hours, Ill have all this sorted out
If my mind would just stop racing

Cause I cannot stand still
I cant be this unsturdy
This cannot be happening

This is over my head but underneath my feet
Cuz by tomorrow morning Ill have this thing beat
And everything will be back to the way that it was
I wish that it was just that easy

Cuz Im waiting for tonight
Then waiting for tomorrow
And Im somewhere in between
What is real, and just a dream
What is real, and just a dream
What is real, and just a dream

Would you catch me if I fall out of what I fell in
Dont be surprised if I collapse down at your feet again
I dont want to run away from this
I know that I just dont need this

Cause I cannot stand still
I cant be this unsturdy
This cannot be happening

Cuz Im waiting for tonight
Then waiting for tomorrow
And Im somewhere in between
What is real, and just a dream
What is real, and just a dream
What is real, and just a dream

101 Inning Baseball Game

Okay, the game wasn't tied for that long. It was actually a charity event that was scheduled to take 36 hours - 8am on Saturday until 8pm on Sunday. In Wrentham, Mass., kids between the ages of 5 and 15 played. It ended up being 101 innings and the final score was 348-339 in favor of the Home team. 817 kids took part in the game. How cool is that?

In similar really-long-baseball-game news, the Padres and Diamondbacks went 18 innings on Sunday. The Padress were no-hit for the final 9, and the D-backs won 9-6.

Best and Worst Reality Television

What? No baseball? No movies? No sermon? As I "thumb" through my blog archive on the left here, I realize that it's been a while since I've written about something different than those three things. What can I say - it's summertime. Baseball and movies are on my mind. However, in the midst of it all, I haven't really written about anything else.

As I was recently multi-tasking... yes, that's right, multi-tasking... I came across an article in Entertainment Weekly discussing the best and worst reality shows of all time. It gives us a list of the top 20 and the worst 10. Here's are some of the highlights:

1. Survivor - Ah, the source of it all. Granted, MTV's The Real World was on the air long before Survivor ever interrupted our lives (1992), but Survivor was the phenom that ushered in a new era of television, for better or (more likely) worse.

2. The Amazing Race - I've heard a few people say that this was actually good. I never have been able to pay attention to it. Apparently it has won six Emmys. I'm not sure what the Emmys are for, but they've been won.

3. The talent shows - There are seven, seven, shows on this list that are all about finding the best person at *fill-in-the-blank*. Project Runway, American Idol, Top Chef, Bands on the Run, The Apprentice, Project Greenlight, and America's Next Top Model. If you want to know who is the best designer, singer, chef, band, business person, movie director, or.... well, person that puts up with the most self-centered woman in pop culture, then these are your shows. Strange that they make up a significant percentage of this list. Apparently, people like watching others battle it out to be the best around.

4. The Hills - Wait, reality? I thought this was scripted? Oh, I'm not supposed to know that? I'm supposed to assume that this is what real life is like for some people? No thanks, if I was interested, I would have stayed in high school.

5. Jon & Kate Plus Eight - Okay, seriously here. People are blaming the problems that they are having in their marriage on the cameras. The problem is not the cameras (they certainly don't help, but they aren't the main problem). The problem is that as soon as their kids were born and they were on television, their marriage was no longer about the two of them. The focus was so much on the kids that they didn't have any time together. People grow apart when they stop focusing on each other and allow life to take them in different directions. Hire a freaking babysitter (or six) and spend some time together!

6. Flavor of Love - Wow. I mean, wow. The train-wreck that is Flavor Flav actually got his own reality show, and worse than that - the spin-offs. EW points to this show as the origin of other such trash as I Love New York and Rock of Love. At least we know who to blame, now, why is it included as one of the best?

And for the worst... wait, didn't we just review that list....

1. The Swan - Yeah, plastic surgery! Let's teach people that instead of being happy with who you are, you can change your appearance through a few simple, painful procedures. That's so much easier than building healthy self-esteem.

2. Britney and Kevin: Chaotic - Is there really any question as to what happened to Britney Spears? This show could have been subtitled - Chronicling the Melt-Down of a Pop Princess.

3. Results shows - Funny how the originals are on the top list, but the results are on the bottom. I guess we really don't care who is the top *fill-in-the-blank*.

4. Skating with Celebrities - This is just emblematic of a greater disease. All of these reality shows focusing on celebrities are just ridiculous. The point of reality television in the first place was that anybody had a shot at becoming a star. Not the case any more. Now, reality television is like B-list and lower exposure for celebrities whose careers are circling the drain. Need another example? How about The Surreal Life?

5. Kill Reality - Best idea yet. How did this one end up on the worst list?

I don't know if I fully understand America's fascination with reality television. In all honesty, I've watched a few of these. The one that I've probably watched the most is Top Chef. What can I say? I like food. The sad thing is waiting to see what they'll come up with next.

So, what do you think? Is it only a matter of time before we get America's Best Circus Performer? Or Top Zookeeper? Or will reality television disappear before it comes to that?

Isaiah's Vision, Our Challenge

The following was preached at Veedersburg and Hillsboro UMC on Sunday, June 7, 2009. The text for this week's message is Isaiah 6:1-8.

Today is the first of three weeks in which we are going to spend a little bit of time in the Old Testament. We are going to look at Isaiah's vision in the Temple, the anointing of David by Samuel and the well-known story of David and Goliath over the next few weeks and explore some of the topics that will help us see how God has moved in the past and maybe even get an idea of how He might be moving even today. The key, as always, will be whether or not we are ready to listen to the Word and apply it in our lives. Will we be able to wave our hands and say, "Here I am! Send me."?

The passage begins with something that is rather unusual for any of the prophets - an approximate date. He tells us that his vision occurred in the year that King Uzziah died. And what that does, more than anything else, is give us some kind of idea as to what was going on in the world around the time that Isaiah was doing his ministry. Around the time that King Uzziah died, the Assyrians were beginning to become the regional power.

The death of King Uzziah marked the end of an era. While Uzziah was king, Israel experienced a bit of a rebirth. He became king at the age of 16 and reigned for 52 years. We can read in 2 Chronicles a little more about Uzziah and what he did. But the summary is that he built up Israel and made it into a prosperous nation once again. However, Uzziah's pride got the best of him, and it cost him. He ended up with leprosy and spent the last several years as king with someone else actually in charge. The point here is that Isaiah's ministry happened in a very difficult time. Yet, it is in this incredibly difficult time that Isaiah has this vision and eagerly answers the call of the Lord.

Isaiah's vision begins with seeing the Lord sitting on the throne. It's a spectacular vision. The glory of the Lord fills the place. His robe fills the Temple. The seraphim, angels whose names come from the Hebrew word for "flames", are all about - six winged creatures, who cover even themselves in the presence of the Lord. If the angels cover themselves in the presence of God, how should we feel? Can you imagine what Isaiah was seeing here?

He was probably just sitting around, maybe he was praying, maybe he was reading Scripture. The text doesn't actually say what he was doing, and I have a feeling that is because, in that moment when the vision came to him, whatever it was that he was doing didn't matter anymore. That is what it is like when we enter into the presence of the Lord. I'm not suggesting that a vision like Isaiah's is common to the Christian experience, but there certainly are times in our lives when we know that God is present, and we know that we are in the presence of the Lord. And when we are in the presence of God, nothing else matters.

We all have worries and concerns in life. Things are difficult all around. There are people worried about whether or not they'll be able to pay their bills or buy groceries at the end of the week. There are people that have been desperately looking for a job for months, only to fall short time and time again. There are people who have concerns much larger than that. But when we are in the presence of God, none of that matters. I'm not saying that suddenly our concerns go away, but when we know who is in charge and begin to place all of our trust in Him, then the peace of God, which Paul tells us passes all understanding, that peace helps us get through the difficult times. Here's the thing, you don't have to be sitting in the church building for this to happen. Isaiah was probably in the Temple at the time, but where he was is less important than what he was doing. He was putting himself in a position to be in the presence of God. When we do that, we are more likely to encounter God in a profound, life-changing sort of way.

In this vision, the seraphim are singing a hymn. They are singing, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory!" The holiness of God is so incredible that the angels mention it three times at the beginning of their song. The holiness of God is what separates the Creator from the creation. All of creation has been tainted by sin because of the Fall, which we read about in Genesis 3. Because of this sin, we cannot enter into the presence of God. Did you notice Isaiah's reaction? "Woe is me! I am lost!" Isaiah knew that God's holiness was far beyond any good that he could have had on his own. Isaiah knew that he could not stand in the presence of God. Isaiah was probably a pretty good guy, but in the presence of God, he immediately recognized his sin.

That's another thing that being in the presence of God does for us - it helps us realize the true standard of holiness. I heard a story once about two guys having a conversation. They were talking about the nature of God and the importance of relying on Jesus for salvation. The first guy said that he figured he probably led a good enough life to get into heaven. As he said this, they came upon a pillar outside of a building. The second guy said, "Oh yeah, how would you rank yourself in human history? Let's say the bottom of the pillar is reserved for the really bad criminals in this life, and somewhere around the top are some of the really good people - you know, like Mother Teresa and other people who have given their whole life to doing good things." The first guy looked at the pillar and said, "Well, I don't want to be too prideful, so I'd say I'm somewhere about three-quarters of the way up or so. I've lived a pretty good life." The second guy looked at him and said, "That's not bad, but the standard is the sky."

If we spend too much time comparing ourselves to those around us, we lose sight of what the standard really is. It's not about being better than "those" people. It's about living up to the standard that has been set by God. When we are in the presence of God, we realize that we have severely overestimated our own goodness. We might be the biggest ant in the hill, but we're still ants. If we fail to realize that simple fact, then we are in for a big surprise when we do finally stand before the Lord.

What I find perhaps most interesting in this passage, though, is what happens next. Isaiah recognizes his sinful state. He realizes that his life has been lived in sin and has been surrounded by those in sin. He knows that being in the presence of the Almighty God just might be his undoing, but God doesn't leave him there. God comes to Isaiah right where he is, but doesn't leave him in his sin. No, one of the seraphim comes to Isaiah and touches his lips with a burning coal from the altar.

Now, first of all, I imagine that hurt. Think about this for a minute. Seraphim comes from the Hebrew word for fire. I can't say with a high degree of certainty, but perhaps that is because the seraphim appear as a type of fiery figure. And this particular one had to grab the coal with tongs. Can you imagine how hot this coal must have been?

I've never kissed a burning hot coal, but I can't imagine that it would feel good. And perhaps that is pointing to the fact that getting rid of the sin in our lives isn't easy. In fact, getting rid of the sin in our lives ended up costing Jesus his life. One thing that we see consistently throughout the Old Testament Law is that sin is costly. The temporary sacrifices of the Temple were sacrifices that cost the life of an innocent animal. I don't think the sacrificial system was put in place as a form of animal cruelty, but as a way to show us the serious nature of sin. Getting rid of sin is painful and costly. We are fortunate enough to live in a time in which grace and mercy have come through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, we should never forget about the high cost of sin.

After touching Isaiah's lips with the burning coal, the angel says, "Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." Isaiah's sin was atoned for, not by anything that he did, but by what was done for him, another important lesson that we need to remember here. Our sin has been atoned for through the costly life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is not something that we did, but something that was done for us. Our task is to be like Isaiah - recognize our position before the Lord and then accept the atonement that has been provided for us. And notice that it's not just the sin, but the guilt as well. I've said before and I'll probably say again, we carry around our guilt when there is no need to do so. We have been forgiven. Embrace the new life that you've been given and stop carrying around the guilt that weighs you down. When you give control of your life to Jesus, your sin has been atoned for.

It's at this point in the vision that Isaiah hears the voice of the Lord for the first time. He has been forgiven. The guilt and sin in his life have been removed, and he hears the voice of the Lord. The question is, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And here's a shocker for you - that's the same question that God is asking us today. In the midst of this crazy world, God is still asking the same question - whom shall I send?

I was talking with some friends who were visiting a couple weeks ago, and one of them said that she had been reading a book, which is now on my ever expanding reading list, and the author said that sometimes he wants to ask God why there is so much bad stuff going on in the world. But he's afraid to ask that question because what if God turns it back around on him? The point is not that we can single-handedly take care of all the bad things going on in the world, but we can do something in our little corner of the world. We can be like Isaiah - confessing our sin before the the Lord, being cleansed by the Lord and then throwing up our hands, shouting “Here I am! Send me!”

What are the things going on right now in your corner of the world that could be better if we only lived out our faith and shared it with those around us? What are the things that we can do as the representatives of Christ in our community to really be the representatives of Christ? Let me make something very clear, we are not saved by what we do. We are saved by the grace and love of Jesus Christ. But we show our faith by how we live. That's a scary thought, isn't it? But God is asking, "Whom shall I send?" Who is willing to recognize their place before the Lord? We are sinful people and we live among sinful people, but God hasn’t left us there. Like Isaiah, God has provided us with cleansing. The question now is - who is willing to step out of their comfort zone and take part in what God is doing around here? Who is willing to not just go to church, but to be the church?

That’s the challenge that we really have to face this week. Has church become too comfortable? Has it become part of your weekly routine, or is it something more important than that? Is your life different because you come here, or is coming here just a part of your life? I have to tell you, if you don’t walk out of here every once in a while a little troubled by the message, then I’ve messed up somewhere along the way. There are some weeks that I walk in here troubled by the message because God is constantly challenging me through the Word, and if I haven’t passed that discomfort on to you, then I apologize.

What is it that’s holding you back? When God asks, "Whom shall I send?" will we simply look around and wait for everyone else to raise their hands, or will we follow the example of Isaiah? Will we eagerly raise our hands and say, "Here I am! Send me!" Or will we fall back into the comfortable patterns that we've established? Are we going to be willing to step out and do what it is that God would have us do, or are we going to miss out on some opportunities because we would rather stay in our comfort zone? It's a decision that each one of us has to make, and ultimately, it is a decision that will affect not only your future, but the future of this congregation in terms of what God has in store for us.

Summer Movie Tour: Up

Up was a somewhat unexpected stop on my summer movie tour. For his birthday, Katie and I told our nephew that we'd take him to see whatever movie he wanted to see, and this was the one that he picked. Now, I have a feeling I would have seen it eventually, simply because I don't tend to miss the movies that Pixar puts out (Ratatouille is the lone exception). They are usually quality movies, and Up was no exception.

Up is about an old man who has had enough and decides to go on a journey by the most unusual means. It starts off by letting the viewer know why the main character, Carl, is the way he is. It begins by a young boy meeting a young girl and briefly follows them as they get married and enjoy their lives together. However, his wife passes away and he is left alone - a quiet, widower whose neighborhood is being lost to the high-rise developments all around his house. He hatches a plan to tie thousands of balloons to his house and float off on an adventure to South America.

My assessment: Up is a great story with an even better message. The animation is unbelievable and very realistic. Pixar certainly has another hit on its hands.

My recommendation: I'm a little torn on this one. I am certainly glad that I saw it in the theater, but you could just as easily enjoy this one at home. How 'bout a compromise? See this one when the tickets aren't at a ridiculously high price and you have some free time. Either way, definitely go see Up; it's well worth your time.

Summer Movie Tour: Terminator Salvation

Now this is what you want in a summer movie - non-stop action, unexpected turns, and a whole lot of explosions!  Let me begin by saying that if you're looking for an Academy award winning movie, then don't go see this, but for those who have at least the slightest interest in big-time summer movies - this is a great way to kick it into high gear.

For those unfamiliar with the Terminator series, I'm not going to go into too much depth explaining the what's and why's of the movie, but here's a brief summary.  It is set in the year 2018.  Judgement Day has happened.  Skynet had become self-aware and set itself on a path of human eradication.  We come in right in the middle of a war.

If the trailers and previews hadn't given it away, you would be hard-pressed to realize that Marcus Wright was, in fact, mostly machine.  About the only thing that gave it away was the fact that over about a two-three day journey, his companions eat, but he never does.  It's really subtle, and I can't say that I would have picked up on it if I didn't already know.  However, Marcus is still more man than machine, a fact that Skynet failed to take into consideration when it made him.  Regardless, that's not the only surprise awaiting viewers.  I so very much want to spill the beans, but it would seriously take away from part of the movie for those who are actually going to see it.  So I'll say this - it's worth taking the time to see this one.

My assessment: In case you cannot tell, I really enjoyed this one.  Even the previews were fantastic (Transformers, Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, Surrogates, Sherlock Holmes, and a couple others).  Everything that you want in a big-action summer movie.

My recommendation: See it in the theaters.  Everything is so big in this movie that you'll miss a little bit in translation to the small screen.  And if you are headed out to see it, let me know - I wouldn't mind seeing it again!

Cardinal Series Reviews, 5/22-5/31

I've got three series to catch up on since the last update.

Kansas City, 5/22-5/24
The Cardinals continued an incredible streak of pitching with this series.  They came in having allowed only 2 runs in 3 games to the Cubs, which, following a 3 game sweep in Milwaukee, they really needed.  They continued their torrid pitching with consecutive 5-0 shut-outs in the first game of the series.  In the third game of the series, they still had solid pitching, but couldn't score, as the Royals outlasted the Redbirds 2-3.  Overall, it's another series win, and we'll take that any day of the week.
Cardinals record: 2-1 (7-4-1 series)

@Milwaukee, 5/25-5/27
After getting swept by the Brewers last time they met in St. Louis, the Cardinals dropped three games out of first place.  However, after going 5-1 against the Cubs and Royals, the Cards started this series tied again with the Brewers.  Game 1 was another difficult loss - 0-1 in extras.  Carpenter pitched a phenomenal game, taking a perfecto into the 7th inning, but, unfortunately was saddled with a no-decision.  However, the offense finally decided to wake up again, outscoring the Brewers 8-1 in the second game and winning a close one, 3-2, to take the series.
Cardinals record: 2-1 (8-4-1 series)

@San Francisco
The way the pitching staff has been going, you had to feel good about this series, knowing that the Giants are in worse shape offensively than the Cardinals have been.  However, that was not the case.  All three were pretty good games, and the Cardinals were never really out of them, but they walked away having dropped the first and final game of the series, 2-4 and 3-5.  They did manage to sandwich a win on Saturday with a big day from El Hombre with 2 dingers, resulting in a 6-2 victory.
Cardinals record: 1-2 (8-5-1 series)

Stay tuned for the next couple of series.  The Cards have an eight game homestand, with the Reds and Rockies each coming in for four games.

A Holy Fire

The following was preached at Veedersburg and Hillsboro UMC on Sunday, May 31, 2009.  The text for this week's message is Acts 2:1-8, 11-13.

Last week was Ascension Sunday.  It is the week of the Christian year in which we look back to Jesus’ ascension into heaven.  The story, found in Acts 1, is a good reminder of our past history, but it also gives us some good glimpses of how to proceed forward.  We have to wait on the Lord to give us direction, but when He does, we also have to be ready to move forward in obedience to this call.  Today, our focus shifts a little bit to what it was that Jesus was talking about.  Today, we see why the disciples are told to wait in Jerusalem.  This is the day in the Christian year when we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

Typically, when we hear the term “Pentecost,” we think about the event in Christian history that we read about in this morning‘s Scripture.  And that’s good because the coming of the Holy Spirit is the focus of this day on the Christian calendar; however, Pentecost had been celebrated long before the Spirit came in such a mighty way on this particular day so long ago.  Pentecost is one of the major festivals that was celebrated during the Jewish year.  There were three festivals in the Jewish calendar that had significant agricultural and historical significance, and Pentecost is the second one of these over the course of the year.

The agricultural significance of Pentecost is that it was typically the time when the first fruits were harvested and brought to the Temple, so sometimes it is known as the Festival of the First Fruits.  In some sense, giving the first fruits of the harvest is an act of faith.  How often in our lives do we work hard for something only to give it away, trusting that there will be more where that came from?  I’m willing to guess that it’s not very often.  I’ve never heard of anybody giving his first paycheck back to his employer.  And really, when we look at it like that, it is difficult to understand the concept of first fruits.

You don’t need me to tell you that we are living in a time in which the economic climate is difficult.  There are a lot of people all around us that have lost their jobs, or are concerned about losing their job.  I know of a large United Methodist church right here in Indiana that had to let go a significant number of staff because times are so tough right now.  Nobody is completely immune.  Likewise, I’m sure that many here this morning who don’t need me to tell them that some years the harvest just isn’t quite as good as it is in other years.  So to take the first fruits, the certainty of what you have earned for all your hard work, to take that to the Temple as an offering to God requires a big step of faith, but that is what God wants from each one of us.  He wants the first fruits of all we have.  He wants the best of all we have.  He wants us to take that big step of faith; to trust in Him for all provision in our lives.

The story that I immediately think of when it comes to the concept of first fruits is of Abraham and Isaac.  Abraham and his wife Sarah had been waiting a long time for their first child.  In fact, Abraham was 100 years old, and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born.  Isaac was their  first and only child, a gift from God.   But one day, Abraham hears the Lord to tell him that he needed to take his son up and sacrifice him to the Lord.  Of all the things that God had asked Abraham to do as a step of faith, this would have been the most difficult one, hands down.  But Abraham took the boy and they went to the place that God had told him.  Isaac, clearly unaware of what was going on, asked Abraham where the sacrificial animal was going to come from.  Abraham replied that God would provide.

When they arrived, Abraham built the altar and put Isaac on it.  Just as he was about to sacrifice his only son, the gift that he had received from God, his first fruits, God stopped him and provided a ram for the sacrifice.  There are several different points to the story, and we could spend all morning exploring the angles, but this morning, I think the lesson that we can learn from it is that God wants that which is most precious to us.  God will provide if we only step out in faith and trust in Him.  That is what the concept of first fruits is all about.

The historical significance of Pentecost for the Jewish people is also important for us to be aware of here.  For the Jewish people, Pentecost was about the giving of the Law, or Torah.  One of the sources that I read this week pointed out that it is important to make note that this festival remembers the giving of the Torah  for the first time, but we have to remember that we receive it daily.  And I think there is something significant that we can learn from this as well.

It’s important for us to remember that at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples.  Much like how the Torah was given to the Israelites in the Sinai wilderness, the Holy Spirit was given to the original disciples.  And while this particular instance was a one time event, we still need to receive the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.  The Holy Spirit cannot come again for the first time, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t receive the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.  Am I making sense here?  The first time the Holy Spirit came is what we remember in Pentecost, but we also need to remember that the Spirit is still hanging around.  And while the Spirit is always moving, He didn’t go anywhere.

The Holy Spirit is who guides us and leads us as we attempt to discern and follow God’s will for us.  But in order to do that, we have to put ourselves in a position to receive the Spirit daily, and that’s what the disciples were doing as we enter into this part of our Christian history.

Just ten days before this happened, the disciples watched Jesus ascend into heaven.  They remembered what he told them about staying in Jerusalem, and that is what they did.  They continued to meet together.  Now, Luke doesn’t actually tell us this, but I imagine that they spent a lot of time in prayer with one another.  They were just waiting to see what God had in store for them.  And the language of verse 2 tells me that they didn’t exactly see it coming.  It says, “Suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind.”  “Suddenly.“  It’s like the disciples were surprised by what happened, they had no idea.  It just happened suddenly.

Now, this doesn’t mean that they were unprepared.  They had spent all kinds of time together preparing for what it was that God was going to do in their midst.  While they may not have known exactly how, when or what was going to happen, they still spent time together, praying and fellowshipping with one another.  That’s an important lesson that we need to pick up on as well.

We need to be putting ourselves in a position to receive what it is that God is planning on doing in our lives and in our community.  We don’t know exactly what it is and we don’t have any clue exactly when it is going to happen, but we need to be preparing ourselves.  We need to spend time dreaming about what we can do in our community.  We need to spend time reading the Word and praying for God’s guidance.  God is preparing to do something in our community.  Are we going to be ready to move when the time comes?  The disciples were uncertain as to what was going to happen, but they were certainly ready for it when it did.

When God is ready to move through us, it will happen suddenly, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll be unprepared.  We have been preparing for what God is going to be doing for some time.  The challenges that have come up each week, the goal of spending 15 minutes each day, recognizing that we have to live out our faith - all of these are ways that we’ve been preparing ourselves for what God is doing.  My hope and prayer is that everyone has been challenged to not just show up on Sunday and live the rest of your life as if Sunday doesn’t matter.  The last thing church needs to be is a social club.  Sure, there are social opportunities; reasons to get together just for fellowship, but if that is all church is to you, then I want to challenge you to take the next step.

Step out of that comfort zone.  Find some way to get more involved in what we’ve got going on around here.  Is there nothing going on that interests you?  Well, then let’s start something.  I’m not so rigid that I’m going to shoot down every possible ministry opportunity that comes around.  And quite frankly, I don’t have to be involved in every single thing that’s going on around here either.  

If you want to start a sewing club as a way to reach out to other people - that’s wonderful.  Don’t expect me to show up and start sewing anything any time soon, but please, go ahead and do it.  We need to be doing anything that we can to reach out to our communities.  We need opportunities to fellowship with people who may not be Christian, so that they can see our faith in action.  I’m not suggesting that we hire an evangelist for a monthly meeting of the sewing club.  That’s not practical, not because we don‘t have the money to do it.  If it was an incredible need, we could find the money.  But it‘s not practical because you are the evangelist.  You are the ones who have to be reaching out to your friends and family.  We can’t just hire somebody to come in here and do the outreach for us.  We have to be willing to do that ourselves.  And we do it because Christ has made a difference in our lives.

I think one final point that we can pull out of the text this morning comes from the end of the passage.  There will always be critics.  There will always be people who don’t have anything positive to say.  In verse 13 we read that some of the people that were witnessing the work of the Spirit in the disciples and others who were gathered there just wrote it off.  They said that the believers will filled with the new wine.  In other words, they had been drinking a little too much.  They were influenced by something, but it wasn’t the Spirit.

No matter what we do, there will always be people who don’t get on board.  There will be people who detract from the good work that is going on.  I have a friend who is the pastor of an off-site ministry, and he is constantly having to defend this off-site ministry which is continuing to grow and thrive.  In spite of the good things that the Spirit is doing through this ministry, there are people that believe it has no place.  It’s sad.  But there will always be people who try to tear down what the Spirit is doing.

Don’t be one of those people.  Don’t be a cynic.  Realize that God is working all around us, and he’s working in ways that we may not understand.  That’s okay, we don’t always have to understand completely what God is doing.  Our job is to either join in with what he’s doing, or get out of the way.  So, today, on Pentecost Sunday, I want you to leave here knowing that God works in different ways.  The Holy Spirit is not constrained to the little boxes that we limit ourselves to.  Allow the Spirit to work.  It may be different; it may not look like anything that you’ve ever seen before.  Join in.  Be a part of what the Spirit is doing.