This Week's Musings

Howdy all,
I hope this finds you well. Not much going on with me - just trying to keep up with summer Hebrew.

So I've been keeping up with the Presbyterian Church (USA)'s General Assembly, which is meeting in San Jose, CA this week. I am actually excited about the choice of moderator for the next two years, Bruce Reyes-Chow (check out his websites here and here) What I like about him is that you can't put him in a box. He is progressive on somethings (like homosexuality), but more traditional on other things (such as affirming that Jesus is the way to salvation). He is the pastor of an "Emerging" church in San Francisco, and thus a part of a movement I find really fascinating and hopeful for the future of the Presbyterian Church. I guess what excites me is that a generation that overall feels disconnected with the institutional church are electing leaders who themselves want to restore and renew the church to make it what it is supposed to be: the Body of Christ, instead of a monolithic institution.

To me, this echos a lot of the changes we are trying to make at Bessemer. It is time to strengthen the one aspect that small churches tend to do well: be a community. Instead of being about some institution with programs to draw people in, we are realizing that we must be the church in the world beyond just what we do on Sunday morning. And it is refreshing to see that these same themes that I have discovered in prayer and study are the same themes that others my age are noticing and sharing. I think that excites me, and it shows me that God's Spirit is indeed at work in the PCUSA.

But, back to the topic at hand...While I don't always agree with Reyes-Chow's conclusions on some issues (like homosexuality), I admire that he is willing to respect people like me who disagree, and he understands why people disagree. I enjoy talking to people like this, who want to live in the tension what is Christianity, and to seek God's will together. I never understood this aspect of mainline Presbyterianism until I broke free from what I could call the "Chains of Fundamentalist Evangelicalism" which so encapsulated my high school and early college years. What I love about the church is when people who disagree can still worship and work together to share Jesus Christ with the world. What I love is that you can be open and real with people like that because they do not judge you for your theology. Hmm, sometimes I think other Christians are more critical of an individual's theology than God Himself is, and that's pretty bad. And with me struggling to make sense of the Christian faith as I prepare to be a pastor, I find myself attracted to situations where I can explore God's Word with others in such a way that there is no judgment for thinking differently on some things.

So I must say I am pleased that someone young and enthusiastic will be at the forefront of our denomination. I feel really excited to be starting out as a pastor right now, because I think the future of the church lies in my generation's hands. I know that we will never reach a Utopia, but with all that God is doing right now, just think of the possibilities for the future! Ahh, exciting times.

As for this morning at church, the service went well. We had to have like 45 people in church for the second or third week in a row. I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but think that two years ago at this time, they only had 35 in church on an average week. God is so good! Anyway, I preached on Genesis 22 (I'm a week ahead in the lectionary texts, but only b/c not being able to preach on July 6 b/c of communion screwed me up), and the sacrifice of Isaac. It was a tough sermon to write, but it went well. In the end, the point was that God always provides at just the right time. After church, we did a "prayer walk" through the church, praying in each room and singing hymns as we travelled. That was really cool. Thanks to Rhodell for coming up with that idea.

Well, bed calls me. I have to be up early to entertain kids at Bessemer's Community VBS tomorrow. I look forward to it!

God bless, wherever you are this night!

In Christ,
Nate