Monday, November 11, 2013
What it means to be a United Methodist deacon
I've got a sermon posted over at the MTSO website...feel free to head on over and take a look.
Monday, September 16, 2013
God speaks in many ways
What was the most influential experience or relationship in your discernment of ordained ministry?
Over the years, I've heard voices calling me to ministry in expected and unexpected ways.
There are the predictable voices - the pastors I've served with as I worked through the ordination process, seminary professors who graded my work, took the time to speak with me, made spaces for me in the classroom, people in the congregation who were supportive of my call and who offered relevant constructive criticism, students in the classroom who affirmed the statements I threw out there for exploration, and those who didn't agree with me, forcing me to self-reflect and assess my views on theological stances and theories about the way to practice ministry.
I'm an ordained deacon. I am serving in ministry in an appointment outside of the local church with a focus on higher education, vocational discernment and fundraising. I've completed the mandatory (and even oftentimes pleasant!) continuing education module required in my annual conference for freshly ordained clergy.
And yet....voices still call me to ministry - they still influence who I am and how I serve. See, a call to ministry is a thing that shapes and grows over time. And even after ordination, that journey to ministry continues to form.
Today, the voices calling me to ministry include students who share about their academic and ministry interests in ways that open my eyes to possibilities for what the church can become in the coming years.
The voices include ministry colleagues in my clergy cluster who help me giggle until I dissolve in tears, and then later on inquire about how it is with my soul and ask guiding questions to open my eyes to where the Divine may be moving in my life.
The voices include the Divine's continual push to live out my call as a deacon ordained to Word, Service, Compassion and Justice in ways that transform lives and bring about a reality where it is on Earth as it is in heaven.
The path to ministry takes time - and there is no true end point. If you're afraid of exploring a call to ministry because you worry that if you take the leap you'll be "locked in," never fear. God never stops moving in our lives, and a journey to ministry is a lifetime of joy that has unexpected twists and turns along the way, and God speaks in many ways.
The purpose of this post is to encourage you to attend Exploration. The event is an opportunity for you to be in a community that will make you self-reflect on what it means to be called to ministry, and to better hear God's call upon your life. For additional details, feel free to take a look at this post from a couple of months ago.
I hope to see you in November. Tweet me with your thoughts and questions, and see you soon.
EXPLORATION is a three-day event for young adults age 18-26 to hear, discern, and respond to God’s call to ordained ministry and to explore their gifts for service as a deacon or elder in The United Methodist Church. If you have sensed God might be calling you to ordained ministry, wondered what ministry in The United Methodist Church is all about, would like help sifting through issues involved in an ordained vocation, or want to learn more about The United Methodist seminaries and theological schools, this gathering is for you. Sign up today and find us on Facebook.
Over the years, I've heard voices calling me to ministry in expected and unexpected ways.
There are the predictable voices - the pastors I've served with as I worked through the ordination process, seminary professors who graded my work, took the time to speak with me, made spaces for me in the classroom, people in the congregation who were supportive of my call and who offered relevant constructive criticism, students in the classroom who affirmed the statements I threw out there for exploration, and those who didn't agree with me, forcing me to self-reflect and assess my views on theological stances and theories about the way to practice ministry.
I'm an ordained deacon. I am serving in ministry in an appointment outside of the local church with a focus on higher education, vocational discernment and fundraising. I've completed the mandatory (and even oftentimes pleasant!) continuing education module required in my annual conference for freshly ordained clergy.
And yet....voices still call me to ministry - they still influence who I am and how I serve. See, a call to ministry is a thing that shapes and grows over time. And even after ordination, that journey to ministry continues to form.
Today, the voices calling me to ministry include students who share about their academic and ministry interests in ways that open my eyes to possibilities for what the church can become in the coming years.
The voices include ministry colleagues in my clergy cluster who help me giggle until I dissolve in tears, and then later on inquire about how it is with my soul and ask guiding questions to open my eyes to where the Divine may be moving in my life.
The voices include the Divine's continual push to live out my call as a deacon ordained to Word, Service, Compassion and Justice in ways that transform lives and bring about a reality where it is on Earth as it is in heaven.
The path to ministry takes time - and there is no true end point. If you're afraid of exploring a call to ministry because you worry that if you take the leap you'll be "locked in," never fear. God never stops moving in our lives, and a journey to ministry is a lifetime of joy that has unexpected twists and turns along the way, and God speaks in many ways.
The purpose of this post is to encourage you to attend Exploration. The event is an opportunity for you to be in a community that will make you self-reflect on what it means to be called to ministry, and to better hear God's call upon your life. For additional details, feel free to take a look at this post from a couple of months ago.
I hope to see you in November. Tweet me with your thoughts and questions, and see you soon.
EXPLORATION is a three-day event for young adults age 18-26 to hear, discern, and respond to God’s call to ordained ministry and to explore their gifts for service as a deacon or elder in The United Methodist Church. If you have sensed God might be calling you to ordained ministry, wondered what ministry in The United Methodist Church is all about, would like help sifting through issues involved in an ordained vocation, or want to learn more about The United Methodist seminaries and theological schools, this gathering is for you. Sign up today and find us on Facebook.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Deculturalization and the United Methodist Church
I've got a post up on Rethink Bishop today...feel free to check it out:
Deculturalization and the United Methodist Church
Deculturalization and the United Methodist Church
Thursday, April 4, 2013
the journey of ministry: Exploration 2013
In this age of instant communication, constant availability and community formed through Facetime, Google Hangout, GChat, iMessage, texting and Instagramming (is that even a word?), it can seem a bit old school to think about taking time, money and energy away from your normal routine to go somewhere out of state to talk about ministry for a weekend.
And yet, that's what Exploration is all about...because it works.
Sometimes, we need to be shaken out of our routine, pushed to deal with face to face conversation about vocation and call, prodded to meet others from across the connection who are wrestling with the same kinds of questions you're dealing with.
And yet, that's what Exploration is all about...because it works.
Sometimes, we need to be shaken out of our routine, pushed to deal with face to face conversation about vocation and call, prodded to meet others from across the connection who are wrestling with the same kinds of questions you're dealing with.
- "I can 'do ministry' alongside my regular job...but I can't stop thinking about ministry as a vocation..."
- "Everyone tries to talk me out of wanting to be a pastor, saying it's too hard...but I think I'm called to local church ministry as an elder. What do I do?"
- "All I want is to actually meet someone who is already doing justice work...then maybe I can make sense of this inner voice pushing me to servant ministry as a deacon..."
- "I think I'm supposed to go to seminary...but where in the world do I go to start making a decision?"
- "How do I know God is calling me?"
- "What does it mean to be a young adult and to be called to ministry? Does that even have a hashtag?"
Look, Exploration is a weekend away from your normal life. It's not quite a retreat...because it's a lot more intense. You'll have access to a variety of workshops, small groups led by seminarians, fulfilling worship, a seminary fair (meet with all thirteen United Methodist seminaries! In one room!), a meal with your annual conference, information-filled plenary sessions...and the grace-filled energy of hundreds of other young adults thinking about the very same questions you're wrestling with.
I felt my own call to ministry when I was in high school. Who called me on the journey of ministry? A lot of people.
- God. It was a strange warming of the heart, paired with an unmistakable (and yet terrifying) sense of direction. And then gradual nudges over and over through the years.
- My pastor, who generously gave me remarkable opportunities to lead within my local church.
- Congregation members who treated me with respect and who allowed me to serve them.
- Professors in undergrad and seminary who shaped my mind and pushed me to critically think about my faith and the practice of ministry.
- My husband. Funny story: on my commissioning paperwork, there's a place for spouses to write about their support (or lack thereof) of their spouse's intent to seek ordination. I gave him the paper and he gave it back to me the next day. What did he write? "I support my wife in all she does." Oh. Wow. Thanks. That said it all.
- Clergywomen who walk alongside me.
- The persons who funded scholarships through my schools and the United Methodist Church that allowed me to pursue higher education without also gaining a crushing debt load.
- Classroom colleagues who were on their own paths. The practice of discussing ministry, theology, ethics and biblical studies with others who are just as passionate about those topics is a special and holy thing. And a privilege.
I've been serving in professional ministry since 2000, and today I'm an ordained deacon in the West Ohio Annual Conference. Juan Huertas (@spiritstirrer) and I are co-chairs of the Exploration 2013 Design Team and we both hope to see you in Denver this November 15 through 17.
And if you're worried about the cost...there are registration scholarships available. No excuses, friends! Can't wait to see you.
Other resources:
This blog post is part of the Exploration 2013 synchblog calling ordained and commissioned clergy to talk about “who called you on your journey of ministry?” Join the synchblog (even after today!) here.
Exploration is a three-day event for young adults age 18-26 to hear, discern, and respond to God’s call to ordained ministry and to explore their gifts for service as a deacon or elder in The United Methodist Church. If you have sensed God might be calling you to ordained ministry, wondered what ministry in The United Methodist Church is all about, would like help sifting through issues involved in an ordained vocation, or want to learn more about The United Methodist seminaries and theological schools, this gathering is for you. Sign up today.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
sifting
What I'm doing...
I took the last two days off of work to take care of some errands and to balance out the weekend work that has crept into the entire month of February. Today, I went through my Google Reader account and sifted through probably over a thousand saved items. I don't know how far back the saved/starred items go, but I made it to December 2008 before stopping for the day.
This was legitimate work. I think of my Google Reader as a "bucket" in which to save items. However, I started using Google Reader years ago - when I had a series of BlackBerrys (yes, the plural uses -ys, not -ies), before Pinterest (that allows you to pin items for later use), before Evernote* (which even clips webpages and frees them from the giant bucket of Google Reader starred items)....needless to say, it was a romp through time. Elections, gender conversations, racial/ethnic articles, album releases now two and three years old...goodness. I'm a different person than I was a couple of years ago.
But it was interesting how I'm also very much the same! It was fascinating to see the common themes in articles that I kept saving for later use: articles about study, about the orders of ministry, about the process of writing, the need for creativity, the drive to produce, fear of failure, desire to change the world, the desire to shape a career with meaning, the drive for education, how to recruit/cultivate healthy leaders. So. It was a good day, to be sure. After the reflection, I feel rested and ready to get back to a structured routine in the office.
*Oh my goodness, Evernote is amazing. I'm usually someone who prefers to explain why something is amazing before telling you to try it, but in this case...just go try it. It's free. It syncs across all of your devices (as well as Dropbox!). You don't think you'll use it...and then suddenly you're all, 'Evernote, you complete me." SO GOOD.
Request....
If you are clergy (provisional or ordained), we'd like you to blog for Exploration 2013 on April 4, 2013.
The topic: "Who called you on your journey to ministry?" Learn more and sign up here.
Reading....
How to view the entire Kindle lending library on one Amazon page. Thanks, Lifehacker
Wil Wheaton talks about loving/embracing failure
"You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do." True fact. Working with students is an "in-between" place. I have the opportunity to share in dreams for the near and far future in terms of individual student calls/lives/work, but it's also a lot of, "well, I'm excited to see what may happen!" We celebrate...and wait. And look at the potential and get excited when they move forward and do neat things.
Listening to....
Thing Called Love (Singularity Mix) | Above & Beyond
Glassheart | Leona Lewis
Amok and Judge, Jury and Executioner | Atoms For Peace
I took the last two days off of work to take care of some errands and to balance out the weekend work that has crept into the entire month of February. Today, I went through my Google Reader account and sifted through probably over a thousand saved items. I don't know how far back the saved/starred items go, but I made it to December 2008 before stopping for the day.
This was legitimate work. I think of my Google Reader as a "bucket" in which to save items. However, I started using Google Reader years ago - when I had a series of BlackBerrys (yes, the plural uses -ys, not -ies), before Pinterest (that allows you to pin items for later use), before Evernote* (which even clips webpages and frees them from the giant bucket of Google Reader starred items)....needless to say, it was a romp through time. Elections, gender conversations, racial/ethnic articles, album releases now two and three years old...goodness. I'm a different person than I was a couple of years ago.
But it was interesting how I'm also very much the same! It was fascinating to see the common themes in articles that I kept saving for later use: articles about study, about the orders of ministry, about the process of writing, the need for creativity, the drive to produce, fear of failure, desire to change the world, the desire to shape a career with meaning, the drive for education, how to recruit/cultivate healthy leaders. So. It was a good day, to be sure. After the reflection, I feel rested and ready to get back to a structured routine in the office.
*Oh my goodness, Evernote is amazing. I'm usually someone who prefers to explain why something is amazing before telling you to try it, but in this case...just go try it. It's free. It syncs across all of your devices (as well as Dropbox!). You don't think you'll use it...and then suddenly you're all, 'Evernote, you complete me." SO GOOD.
Request....
If you are clergy (provisional or ordained), we'd like you to blog for Exploration 2013 on April 4, 2013.
The topic: "Who called you on your journey to ministry?" Learn more and sign up here.
Reading....
How to view the entire Kindle lending library on one Amazon page. Thanks, Lifehacker
Wil Wheaton talks about loving/embracing failure
"You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do." True fact. Working with students is an "in-between" place. I have the opportunity to share in dreams for the near and far future in terms of individual student calls/lives/work, but it's also a lot of, "well, I'm excited to see what may happen!" We celebrate...and wait. And look at the potential and get excited when they move forward and do neat things.
Listening to....
Thing Called Love (Singularity Mix) | Above & Beyond
Glassheart | Leona Lewis
Amok and Judge, Jury and Executioner | Atoms For Peace
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Writing. And reading.
What I'm Doing...
...rewriting chapters one through three of this dissertation. Scrapped the old stuff (using it as a resource) but simply starting fresh. On a roll. Trying to get a draft shipped out this week or next.
Writing is like pulling teeth. But. It is important work. (Right? Right?) Writing also means that I do all sorts of other tasks while writing - laundry, puttering around the house, etc. Ah, the things we do to distract ourselves from painful tasks.
Reading...
iTunes turns 12: An image gallery via arstechnica (this is looking more than reading - images more than text. But still pretty neat.) Amazing that all of my music fits onto my computer. Who knew?
Here's a good post about the implications of the female body as public space:
Making decisions. "As with any other skill, / it takes time and practice / to learn how to make good, solid decisions." Be a person who makes decisions.
Laughing about....
GrumpyCat.
Listening to...
Tessellate by alt-j
God Moving Over the Face of the Waters by Moby
Body Work by Morgan Page
...rewriting chapters one through three of this dissertation. Scrapped the old stuff (using it as a resource) but simply starting fresh. On a roll. Trying to get a draft shipped out this week or next.
Writing is like pulling teeth. But. It is important work. (Right? Right?) Writing also means that I do all sorts of other tasks while writing - laundry, puttering around the house, etc. Ah, the things we do to distract ourselves from painful tasks.
Reading...
iTunes turns 12: An image gallery via arstechnica (this is looking more than reading - images more than text. But still pretty neat.) Amazing that all of my music fits onto my computer. Who knew?
Here's a good post about the implications of the female body as public space:
"...(T)he slow violence of "body-checking" - the everyday pinching, tugging, and monitoring of body fat - that so many women and girls casually perform on themselves and others every day. For nonwhite women and girls, gender violence is often bound up with racial violence."The quote comes from a post about body shaming and cultural violence. Worth reading.
Making decisions. "As with any other skill, / it takes time and practice / to learn how to make good, solid decisions." Be a person who makes decisions.
Laughing about....
GrumpyCat.
Listening to...
Tessellate by alt-j
God Moving Over the Face of the Waters by Moby
Body Work by Morgan Page
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
False personas of piety
Thinking about...
...the tension between wanting a model for doing a certain job/living out a ministerial call while realizing that you may be called to do something new...so stepping out on faith and driving one's drive is key in living out a call. I hear this a lot from our students and ministry candidates across the connection. I trust that the tension helps us move forward in what we need to do in the world.
Reading...
Here is an interesting piece that reveals some truth about challenges clergy (pastors/persons leading in a local church, primarily) face. This article is true...but it also seems like it is a reflection of burnout. These truths are important for clergy and laity alike to know and understand...but I was amazingly thankful for Peacebang's response to his post.
She talks about how important it is to break down false personas of piety that clergy can put on, and how these personas are just simply not helpful or healthy. She discusses how all people (clergy and laity) can and should work together for the greater good - great stuff! I think that authenticity is key when people are following a call, and those who are not willing to be authentic in response to the gifts and graces the Divine has placed in them...well. It's not healthy for them or for the communities they serve.
She then redirects the conversation to have an honest discussion about burnout and healthy workplaces...which is very important. So. There's that. And here's another helpful article about helpful policies and resources for clergy burnout.
To watch...
There are a couple of shows I'd like to start watching:
Battlestar Gallactica (everyone says so!)
Downton Abbey
Big Bang Theory
Laughing about...
Riker ipsum - this is lorem ipsum dummy text from Commander Riker's dialogue on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Love it.
Listening to...
Hanging On (Draper Remix) - Ellie Goulding
Easy - Mat Zo and Porter Robinson
Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (does listening to Imagine Dragons make me cool?)
The Longest Road (Deadmau5 Remix) by Morgan Page
...the tension between wanting a model for doing a certain job/living out a ministerial call while realizing that you may be called to do something new...so stepping out on faith and driving one's drive is key in living out a call. I hear this a lot from our students and ministry candidates across the connection. I trust that the tension helps us move forward in what we need to do in the world.
Reading...
Here is an interesting piece that reveals some truth about challenges clergy (pastors/persons leading in a local church, primarily) face. This article is true...but it also seems like it is a reflection of burnout. These truths are important for clergy and laity alike to know and understand...but I was amazingly thankful for Peacebang's response to his post.
She talks about how important it is to break down false personas of piety that clergy can put on, and how these personas are just simply not helpful or healthy. She discusses how all people (clergy and laity) can and should work together for the greater good - great stuff! I think that authenticity is key when people are following a call, and those who are not willing to be authentic in response to the gifts and graces the Divine has placed in them...well. It's not healthy for them or for the communities they serve.
She then redirects the conversation to have an honest discussion about burnout and healthy workplaces...which is very important. So. There's that. And here's another helpful article about helpful policies and resources for clergy burnout.
To watch...
There are a couple of shows I'd like to start watching:
Battlestar Gallactica (everyone says so!)
Downton Abbey
Big Bang Theory
Laughing about...
Riker ipsum - this is lorem ipsum dummy text from Commander Riker's dialogue on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Love it.
Listening to...
Hanging On (Draper Remix) - Ellie Goulding
Easy - Mat Zo and Porter Robinson
Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (does listening to Imagine Dragons make me cool?)
The Longest Road (Deadmau5 Remix) by Morgan Page
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