Over the weekend our youth group participated in World Renew's FASTForward program. Along with fasting for 30 hours, we went around town doing a food drive for our local food bank. After doing the food drive three years in a row, I've noticed a couple of things.
First, lots of people are willing to participate in the food drive. I would say most of the people who answer the door go back into their house and dig up some food to donate, even if they had no idea we were coming. That's the kind of thing that makes you feel pretty good about your neighbors.
Second, lots of people seem to use the food drive as a way to get rid of food that they're never going to eat. Some people will mention that they don't like some item of food that they're donating. Others hand over things that just give the impression they've been sitting on the shelf for a while. That's the kind of thing that makes you feel less good about your neighbors.
What are you going to do? We humans tend to be a mixed bag. Giving away something you don't really like seems better to me than not giving anything away, even if giving away something you really enjoy seems much nobler yet. In the end, we do also collect a lot of food that is broadly appealing. And who knows, maybe those "reject" items will find their way into the hands of someone who genuinely would enjoy eating them. I hope so at least.
Grace and peace,
BMH
Monday, March 25, 2019
Monday, March 18, 2019
#122 Affirmation
A couple weeks ago I spent two days meeting with a group of pastors. We met to talk about how we can better function in our regional groups of churches, and those discussions were good. However, for me, the best part was the informal pastor-to-pastor conversations we had outside of our meetings.
Sometimes as I go about my job I feel like a very strange person. There aren't any other full-time employees at our church. Most of the people I talk to aren't pastors, so their work experiences are often very different than mine. Not a lot of other people make visits at nursing homes and hospitals for their jobs. Not too many others have Bible study and prayer as key parts of their employment. I spend quite a lot of time thinking about how Kanawha Christian Reformed Church can be a better church. I wouldn't say the other members of the church are unconcerned with that, but they have more additional concerns than I do.
So sometimes it's great to talk to other pastors. Talking to others who do similar work and think about similar things makes me feel like I'm not totally out of my mind. At this gathering I was the youngest and least experienced pastor in the room. The other pastors were very encouraging. They were quick to let me know when they thought I was asking the right questions or forming the right habits. They offered helpful tips from their own experiences. I came away feeling very affirmed and refreshed. Even if the rest of the meeting hadn't gone well, that would've made the whole trip worth it.
Grace and peace,
BMH
Sometimes as I go about my job I feel like a very strange person. There aren't any other full-time employees at our church. Most of the people I talk to aren't pastors, so their work experiences are often very different than mine. Not a lot of other people make visits at nursing homes and hospitals for their jobs. Not too many others have Bible study and prayer as key parts of their employment. I spend quite a lot of time thinking about how Kanawha Christian Reformed Church can be a better church. I wouldn't say the other members of the church are unconcerned with that, but they have more additional concerns than I do.
So sometimes it's great to talk to other pastors. Talking to others who do similar work and think about similar things makes me feel like I'm not totally out of my mind. At this gathering I was the youngest and least experienced pastor in the room. The other pastors were very encouraging. They were quick to let me know when they thought I was asking the right questions or forming the right habits. They offered helpful tips from their own experiences. I came away feeling very affirmed and refreshed. Even if the rest of the meeting hadn't gone well, that would've made the whole trip worth it.
Grace and peace,
BMH
Monday, March 4, 2019
#121 The World According to Lanie
Lanie and I have had some interesting conversations lately.
Last week Monday I was watching Lanie while Tess was at work at the library.
Lanie: Mama?
Me: Mom's at work, Lanie. Remember? Does Mama work?
Lanie: No no.
Me: Do you think Daddy works?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Me: What do you think Mom's doing if she's not working? Do you think she's shopping?
Lanie: Oh yep!
Lanie and I often go down to the basement. When we do, she likes to pull all the cards out of my wallet. One day last week she decided to set all my cards on a ledge at the top of the basement stairs.
Lanie: [Looks at me. Points downstairs.]
Me: Do you want Daddy to go downstairs?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Me: But you're upstairs. I want to stay by you. I don't want to go downstairs by myself.
Lanie: [Returns to playing.]
Lanie: [Walks downstairs and waits for me to follow.]
Lanie: [Motions for me to sit on the couch downstairs.]
Lanie: [Begins walking back upstairs.]
Me: Are you leaving me?
Lanie: Yep!
Me: Can I come with you?
Lanie: No no.
Me: Are you trying to get rid of Daddy?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Well, she may want to ditch me and may not think Tess works, but at least Lanie's honest.
Grace and peace,
BMH
Last week Monday I was watching Lanie while Tess was at work at the library.
Lanie: Mama?
Me: Mom's at work, Lanie. Remember? Does Mama work?
Lanie: No no.
Me: Do you think Daddy works?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Me: What do you think Mom's doing if she's not working? Do you think she's shopping?
Lanie: Oh yep!
Lanie and I often go down to the basement. When we do, she likes to pull all the cards out of my wallet. One day last week she decided to set all my cards on a ledge at the top of the basement stairs.
Lanie: [Looks at me. Points downstairs.]
Me: Do you want Daddy to go downstairs?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Me: But you're upstairs. I want to stay by you. I don't want to go downstairs by myself.
Lanie: [Returns to playing.]
Lanie: [Walks downstairs and waits for me to follow.]
Lanie: [Motions for me to sit on the couch downstairs.]
Lanie: [Begins walking back upstairs.]
Me: Are you leaving me?
Lanie: Yep!
Me: Can I come with you?
Lanie: No no.
Me: Are you trying to get rid of Daddy?
Lanie: Yep yep!
Well, she may want to ditch me and may not think Tess works, but at least Lanie's honest.
Grace and peace,
BMH
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