One year later

Dear Kyle,

I miss you. There's lots I want to tell you. Even more I want to ask you. I still think it sucks that you're gone. But my gratitude for all we shared and how you shaped me still outweighs my grief.

Adam

Life Happens

So Phil asked if we are still alive. Indeed we are. Recently we've all just been too busy living life to pause and write about it.

I saw on our fantasy football message board that Brad is now the proud father of a baby girl. Congrats man!! Please post pics when you can.

Stephen is back to juggling school and work. I don't miss those days at all.

I'm hard at work in the new job. It hasn't left much time for the indulgent self reflection I like to do on this blog. I'll leave you with a few recommendations about the music and books that keep me going these days.

The Fray: How to Save a Life

The All American Rejects: Move Along

Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places: A Conversation in Spiritual Theology by Eugene Peterson

This is an Interesting Jewish Perspective

I really like this perspective, this seems closer to Biblical Judaism than this bullcrap nationalism coming from Washington, the Christian Right and the Republican Financial Backers. Check this out.

Pax
Stephen

Silence

I'm sitting in my office at the church. The children's minister just left, leaving the church absent of anyone but me. It's nice to sit back, put my bare feet on the desk, and type with the computer in my lap. There's no sound other than the hum of passing cars on the street outside my window. I'll leave shortly and go home to Jana, but a few moments of silent reflection are nice after a busy day. Tomorrow the routine of Wednesday Night and Sunday Night begins for me and the youth. I'm looking forward to it with a mix of excitement and fear. I think I can build a quality youth ministry here, but this is still my first full-time position. My predecessor was only here for a year, but he drew big crowds with crazy games and whatnot. I'm hoping to take things a little deeper, but that will take time and probably draw smaller crowds. I've already fought one battle with the "you don't understand how we do things around here" crowd, and things came out like I hoped they would, but I think that crowd may be biding its time and organizing for the next time I put myself out on a limb. I'm sure this is where God intends me to be right now, but I also know that doesn't guarantee a good outcome.

I'm reading over this and realizing it may sound like I'm sad or frustrated, but truthfully I'm not. I'm just trying to figure out this new place I'm in. I loved my time as a seminary student, but I knew that world wouldn't last forever. In many ways I think my trepidation comes from being in what feels like the beginning stages of the life I've always looked forward to but had yet to realize. It's scary, but a good scary, if that makes any sense.

Kissing Hank's Butt

I thought this is a really clever satire on shallow door to door religion. I hate it when these people come to my door! I hope you enjoy!
Pax
Stephen

Alright Augustine, Convert Me

You Converted Me, a contemporary translation of The Confessions of St. Augustine arrived in my mail box last night. I was lucky enough to recieve a free copy that I'm am supposed to read and then review on this blog and on Amazon's website.

I've never been a huge fan of Augustine, but you can't get around him if you're in our line of work. I have to admit though that I've never read him directly. So I'm going to read with an open mind and see if my opinion of him changes at all. I'll post updates as I finish each chapter, and then post a full review.

Wish me luck.

Happy 4th

This Blog has, indeed, been quiet recently. I suppose a lot of that is due to the fact that it is summer, and a lot of us are out of pocket a good bit. I thought I might write a few thoughts about the Fourth of July...

This was the first Fourth of July that the space shuttle has launched. It is amazing to me that even though we first put a man on the moon forty-something years ago, we still find space travel exciting and dangerous. I'm sure I was not the only one sitting on the edge of my seat as the shuttle left this world.

Shortly after the shuttle launch, across the radio came the news that North Korea had tested numerous missiles. I have serious doubts as to the credibility the U.S. has in spreading the hope of nonproliferation when we, ourselves, have done nothing to dispose of our weapons of mass destruction. But I have decided to be an optimist this Fourth. I have decided that I am going to celebrate the fact that I live in a country where I can disagree passionately with presidential administrations, and that is, in fact, a demonstration of my patriotism. Peace is indeed patriotic, and dissent is the highest form of patriotism.

Which brings me back to our astronauts. What do they see when they look at our home planet. Certainly they do not see the lines on our maps which divide North Korea from South. Certainly they do not see the words "Japan" or "United States." No, they must see their home planet where we all must live. The challenge is, can we see that from down here?

I'm so excited!!

The blog has been too quiet lately, so I decided to experiment with adding videos to it. If you don't love this clip and know the entire SBTB episode by heart, it is possible that you lived in a cave since the mid '80's.

Focused Craziness

There's much I could update our loyal few readers on these days. I haven't posted since before going to Passport with the youth of Emory Pres. That was a bittersweet week. I thought the camp was great, but it was tough saying goodbye to a group of kids I really enjoyed being with.

Thursday I started my new position as Director of Student Ministries at First United Methodist Church of Monroe, Georgia. I'm trying to learn names of youth, parents, and other church members while figuring out what I need to do first. My days are also beginning earlier because until our house is ready in August I'm commuting from Atlanta everyday. It's my first full time position so I feel overwhelmed and over prepared all at the same time. It's nice to have one thing to focus your attention on instead of juggling school and a part-time position. I'll really be happy in a few months when the kids here start school again and life settles into some kind of rhythm.

Keep Jana and me in your prayers as we make this transition.

A Good Question, A Great Book...

I promised myself that I would not read any other books this summer until I had completed The Brothers Karamazov. Well, so much for that promise. Last week I read a review in The Christian Century of Barbara Brown Taylor's new book, Leaving Church that intruiged me. I felt drawn to read this book. So this past weekend I got to do something that I love...I started the book on Friday afternoon and finished Sunday evening.

This book takes the reader through the highs and lows of Taylor's priesthood. Involved in the formal discernment process in the Episcopal Church myself, I have read many books about discernment. The only book on this topic that I have ever found helpful was Parker Palmer's little gem, Let Your Life Speak, which contains many nuggets of Quaker wisdom. That is, until I read Leaving Church. This is a book that anyone who is considering the ordained ministry should read. And if you are not, this book is still a wonderful memoir of vocation. I simply cannot say enough about this book. I do want to share one of my favorite parts:

"Many years ago now, when I was invited to speak at a church gathering, my host said, 'Tell us what is saving your life now.' It was such a good question that I have made a practice of asking others to answer it even as I continue to answer it myself. Salvation is so much more than many of its proponents would have us believe..." (pp.225-226) Taylor goes on to share what is saving her life right now.

She then goes on to say, "Although we might use different words to describe it, most of us know what is killing us." I have found these to be helpful questions...What is saving your life right now? What is killing you?