Volume 2 Issue 41

Something is happening. I’m experiencing a change. As I attempt to assess what is going on, I’m beginning to wonder if I haven’t arrived at the final stage of acceptance in the grieving process. My ordination in The United Methodist Church was the culmination of a twenty year process of authenticating my vocation. The time required to undo all that work was much less. But now, after the passage of five years, I am on the verge of being able to accept that I am no longer a pastor.
I’m thinking that this may at least partially account for my recent inability to meet my Sunday sermon deadline. When I really was a pastor the weekly responsibility was as invigorating as it was challenging. There was admittedly the disappointment of those who were absent from worship, but there was always the inspiration of those I knew would be there. But now that I’m not really a pastor, the pretending is finally beginning to reveal itself to me for what it really is.
I still believe that this website can serve a valuable function as a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions. Its liberal definition of what constitutes theology allows it to incorporate a wide-range of thought. It will continue to provide an inexpensive form of therapy for yours truly (I anticipate needing still more work to achieve true and complete acceptance of my new reality), and I’ll discuss with Matt Piper whether or not there will be a practical way of indicating that there are new sermons as they become available.
I would be very remiss if I didn’t express my heartfelt gratitude to my mother, my father, and my wife for their unqualified support and encouragement. I could not have made as much progress as I have without their love, and it will be in the knowledge of their ongoing love that I will seek to move on to that perfection of the Wesleyan kind.
The weekly newsletter will be a continuing feature of GiC simply to remind folks that it’s still here (there have been 2,931 visits to this site since its inception), and to encourage a sharing by the community through the Bulletin Board. We live in a world in which God’s voice desperately needs to be heard, and if “Growing in Christ” can serve as one such instrument then its mission may be justified as worthy.
Until next week…….Shalom!

Volume 2 Issue 40

I started a sermon this week, but it is now apparent that I’m not going to finish it. I am still working on the self-motivation aspect of this cyber-ministry as I become increasingly aware of how very dependent I was (and obviously still am) upon the stimulation provided by a real-time audience. Ironically the message I am working on concerns distractions and their ability to take our focus away from where it really needs to be. As with everything, distractions fall into a spectrum from bad to good, and the good distraction this weekend has been that Rachel and Steve have chosen to be with us for their Spring Break from NAU. The not-so-good distraction has been the looming IRS deadline that requires our household finances receive top priority this weekend.
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There are new postings on the Bulletin Board this week, including Dad’s earliest “religious” memory (see the current sermon, “Food for Thought”). Others are encouraged to follow his lead and share theirs. If I didn’t know the wealth of knowledge and experience contained in this virtual congregation I probably wouldn’t be as upset by the fact that there’s so little of this kind of sharing going on, but I do and I am! Growing in Christ is dedicated to serving as a sanctuary from orthodoxy, political/religious correctness, evangelicalism and fundamentalism, and to being inclusive of diverse and divergent thought on any subject matter, but especially theology. I concede to a certain degree of disappointment at learning there is so little interest in this forum that invites the free and open exchange of ideas and opinions. Per Gump: that’s all I’m going to say about that!
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If there was ever an appropriate time for reflection, introspection, and earnest meditation, this first anniversary of our nation’s attack upon Iraq would certainly seem to qualify. As a coworker and I were discussing the many stressors that seem to be negatively affecting our workplace, it was interesting that, almost as an afterthought, the effect the war may be having on everyone was lifted up. The tragic bombings in Spain this week certainly refute the argument that the defeat of Iraq and the capture of Saddam Hussein was the solution to world terrorism. Indeed, it lends credence to the argument that such a preemptive action would, in the long run, create more problems than it could ever hope to solve. Fanaticism is no less of a threat to world peace just because it originates from American soil.
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I can only ask that you periodically check this website for new sermons, new postings, etc. In the meantime, take advantage of the archive located at the bottom of the Sermons page and spend some time with the Bulletin Board. May God’s voice find expression in all that we say and do in the coming week.
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Until next week…….Shalom!

Volume 2 Issue 39

“By no accident the church calendar, too, is approaching a fragrant season; early celebrants of Easter combined remembrance of the earth’s resurrection with that of Christ’s. I think again of Paul’s metaphor of smell: ‘For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one, we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.’ The aroma of death never fully dissipates. We die daily, said Paul, and our acts of self-denial will surely seem morbid, even masochistic to some. But beyond that fragrance is the springlike scent of new life, and the only path that leads there is the path of the Cross.” --Philip Yancey
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I open with birthday greetings to Mary’s mother, Jean, who today is eighty-four years young! Her sisters, Dory and Norma, will be celebrating their birthdays on March 14 and 15 respectively. Luddites all, there is no way to convey e-mail greetings to these three, but you can think happy thoughts for them anyway. Another March birthday (11th) is that of my dear friend, Rob, and you may send him your best wishes at: MOBYDOGS11@aol.com
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With so many fascinating and informative websites from which to choose, I am truly honored that you elected to spend some of your time with GiC. My prayer is that you will find something here, whether a sermon or something posted to the Bulletin Board, that adds richness and meaning to your life. You are always welcome to share with others those things that you have found to have particular value to your faith journey.
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Until next week…….Shalom!