The Pastoral Grind

Nicodemus and Jesus (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Let me begin with an apology to those of you who may be wondering why I've been silent recently.  The last few weeks of the semester have been filled with final assignments, readings, and I haven't had a chance to get back to the Grind. The semester's done and a couple weeks to catch my breath are ahead, let's get back at it! reBirth... For those of us who have spent our whole lives in the Church, the idea of being born again doesn't really phase us.  It brings thoughts of new life, conversion, and the amazing grace of God.  I can't say that I truly remember a particular day in my life which I would point to and say that's when I "got saved" as  some Christians can, but I do believe I have been "rebirthed."  Yesterday morning I heard a sermon from John 3:1-15 where Jesus is speaking to Nicodemus.  In this conversation Jesus tells the sneaky Pharisee, "No one may see the k

COUSINS (Photo credit: Zellaby ) Homebodies ... When most of us think about the Christmas season, "home" comes to mind.  The radio plays Bing Crosby's I'll Be Home for Christmas  or one of its dozens of covers, family television channels play sappy movies where the main characters make it home just in time to celebrate with their families, and millions of people hit the road or take to the air to see loved ones.  Ideally, home is a place where we gather with friends and family, have the opportunity to mend or rekindle stretched relationships, and give thanks for the blessings God has given us.  While I love this home, many of us also have a "home" in the local congregation that we are a part of. As a seminary student, I have interned with a local congregation in Holland over the past 15 months.  That's a shock to my life, because it's the longest time I've spent in any single place since high school (I was a bit of nomad moving bet

worship (Photo credit: vicki wolkins ) Commercial-Free Thanks... If you listen to music-oriented radio stations, you've probably heard the claim that such and such a station has the most "commercial-free music", or maybe a certain hour of the day is "commercial-free" hour.  Music without advertisement and lengthy conversations from ridiculous hosts, this is the airtime that I think most listeners would say they look forward to.  The same goes for sports' fans; we don't want to miss the action so some sports have media timeouts, or as is the case with soccer and auto racing, there are either no commercials during the action or a live view is shown on part of the screen during commercial breaks.  In both music and sports, the audience wants the most value for their time, and feel they have the right to see everything they would if they were in attendance.   With this kind of continuous feed when it comes to my interests, why when it comes to singing ba

Swoosh (Photo credit: monojussi ) Just do it (right)... Nike's slogan hurt me last week.  Caught in the midst of the pre-Thanksgiving break storm of papers, presentations, and readings, the days since my last blog post were piling up.  It was Thursday afternoon, and I finally had a chance to write.  I had brainstormed the idea of "fellowship" earlier in the week, and so I set out on the path to a well-written and thought out post.  I thought it looked good, but when I  later asked my fiance about it, her response was, You didn't say much .  Not used to such critique from her, I brushed it off for a little while, but when I went back and read what I had put out I realized just how right she was.  While I could go back and add to what I said, I need to allow the failure to be real.  I missed the mark, and it won't be the last time. I wrote last week because I desire for this to be engaged weekly.  While I'm in school I don't have a pulpit to preach fro

Coffee Break (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) What's the deal with "fellowship"...  Over the last 20 years I have either heard or read the word "fellowship" on a weekly basis.  "Join us for a time of fellowship  after the service."  "Grab a cup of coffee or lemonade in the fellowship hall."  I currently serve on a fellowship committee.  As I sat in church listening to announcements a few Sundays back, I wondered what visitors understand  fellowship  to mean.  For Christians, this word is understood to reference any number of things where relationships are built.  The Lord of the Rings series may come to mind for many as well.  Does it still fit though? Those of you who know me well might be surprised because you know I like staying as strict as possible to original languages and the intent of the author.  For those of you who don't know me as well, here's a taste: 1)As I was considering attending seminary, the prospect of lea

Candy? Chips? We're Not Sure (Photo credit: nep ) Are you full... While I was attending college in northwest Iowa, I worked part-time at a Shell gas station.  Day after day, week after week, I saw the same people come in to get the same food at the same time.  For some it was a candy bar, others loved a particular brand of chips, and of course there were the older guys who would sit and talk in the corner, drinking their coffee and eating their donuts.  I can only imagine that many of these people were stopping in on their way home from work to pick up the same food that they would tell their kids 5 minutes later not to eat because it would spoil their dinner.  We can laugh about the dirty little secret that convenient store food is because we recognize it gives a boost at the end of the day, but we know these snacks don't completely satisfy us the way a full meal does. In John 4, we find the account of Jesus and the Samaritan woman.  After their interaction, she go

"99 bottles of wine on the wall..." by Let Ideas Complete To serve alcohol or not to serve alcohol, that is the question...  Sunday morning's sermon at the church I attend and intern with focused on John 2:1-11 where Jesus turns water to wine at the wedding in Cana.  Having recently graduated college and currently planning a wedding, it's not hard to imagine where my mind went.   Do I have a wet or dry reception?  If we choose to go wet, how much and what types of alcoholic beverages should there be?   The pastor interrupted my thought by highlighting how wedding festivals in Jesus' time typically lasted days and sometimes a full week.  There my mind went again, That's a lot of alcohol and Jesus added to it !  Some of my friends' voices chime in, Case closed!  Buy the kegs, Dan! Some of you can probably relate to the internal battle I'm having (before even thinking about cost or insurance for serving alcohol), but let me be clear that's not w

"Why'd I even get up?" .... If you're at all like me, you've said those words on a Sunday morning after a church service which you didn't particularly get much out of.  Maybe it came at the tail end of week(end) where you felt you really needed a strong message or a deep call to confession; but alas it never came (or if it did, the pastor is to blame for having made you doze off during it).  Call it "Confessions of a Young Pastor", but that's how I feel too sometimes.  I know I'm supposed to stand behind my fellow preachers who get behind the pulpit, I know that it's at a busy and tough job, I know the discouragement and adversity one can face, I know that people say the same thing about me sometimes, but I have to wonder on occasion, "Really Pastor (insert name here) ?  That's all you got?" When it comes to preaching or presenting the gospel, Ecclesiastes has some advice for pastors.  "Words from a wise man's mou

Challenge Accepted ... In the class that prompted this blog, we had the opportunity this past week to draw a topic from the "Box of Doom" (insert evil laughter).  Containing suggestions from our classmates and professor, we were challenged to write from a different platform than our usual.  I reached into the box and pulled out a note instructing me to take an obscure quote from my favorite movie and include it in a post.  "Too easy, maybe even typical," I thought. When everyone had chosen, a few remained and I offered to trade.  Seemed harmless enough until I read what my hand had pulled out: Submit a seminary paper or part of a paper as poetry or in poetic prose .   Those who know me know I like rap and spoken word, which I consider to be forms of poetry, but traditional poetry with rhymes, form based on syllable number, and flowery language is not my style.   Why'd I choose today to be cocky and untouchable? That brings us to today, when I looked through so

Note: While the intent of this blog is mainly to focus on how Sunday worship and preaching informs the week, I may occasionally take the liberty of focusing on worship practice and how the week meets Sunday. In this second post of this unofficial series on Sunday worship practice, I want to direct our attention to what it means to be a confessional church and some of the things that I'm wrestling with because of that.  As I mentioned last week, I have grown up in the Christian Reformed Church (CRC), a denomination which officially affirms and utilizes three ecumenical creeds and three Reformed confessions .  We recognize that these six confessions do not have the same inspiration or authority as Scripture, but we affirm that they fully agree with the Word of the Lord.  The new Covenant for Officebearers (a document signed by all ministers, elders, and deacons who hold office in the CRC), which was passed by Synod (our governing body) this summer, goes on to say, These conf

Just another Sunday service?...Having grown up in the Christian Reformed Church , I've been around structured liturgy and Sunday bulletins all of my life.  Call to worship, song, God's greeting, song, confession, assurance of pardon, congregational prayer, offering, scripture reading, sermon, prayer, song, benediction, doxology,....oh, and don't forget pre- and postludes.  There's an order and routine to what we do, usually only changing for the occasional baptism, profession of faith, or celebration of the Lord's Supper.  Some outside of this tradition (and maybe a few in) view this ritual as boring.  It might appear to others that there is a set outline in which a pastor or worship leader plug different songs, scriptures, and themes into each week.  Carrying this thought out, people might say it's simple, a task that anyone could do.  I would contend these assumptions are not how it actually is, and I want to offer a reflection that defends the traditional

Keep it interesting... That was the command given by the jail sergeant to Opie as he handed him a pipe to defend himself on last week's episode of Sons of Anarchy.  While a pipe may seem pretty useful, one's chances of survival are pretty slim when up against 4 gang members in a small room.  Moments later, viewers watched Opie's character meet his end by that very pipe. Sons of Anarchy is now in its fifth season, and I've been a faithful follower for every one of those.  I won't condone it's low morals or promote it's viewership, but the high intensity and grittiness of each episode has me hooked.  As the third episode of this season ended, I found myself wondering  why am I and why are we as humans, particularly Christians, so desensitized to death and violence?   I laid in bed that night and I wondered, Did that just happen?  Am I okay with that happening?  Why do I set aside time and energy to watch this?  As the minutes passed by and I couldn't

Practice...If you've had any interest in basketball or sports media in the last 10 years, then you probably remember Allen Iverson's press conference  rant  from 2002 on this topic.  You mention the word around me, and to this day A.I.'s voice pops into my head mocking the reporters, "We're talking about practice!"  This topic is our focus this week, coming from the theme presented at the young peoples' retreat I was on this weekend and re-iterated today in a conversation with a friend and her dad. When we think about the Christian life, there are certain principles and practices that are meant to be included.   Matthew 25:31-40 teaches believers metaphorically about their duties.  The sheep who inherit the kingdom of heaven are those who feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and in prison.  In John 3:21 , we find Jesus teaching that those who do what is true come to the light so that their wo

The Pastoral Grind.... "Sounds like being a pastor is hard and dreadful work." "But you're not a pastor, you're a seminary student."  After choosing this name for my blog, these were two of the comments I received from colleagues so let me try to un-muddy the waters. First, while I am not (yet) an ordained pastor in any denomination, I am working my way through seminary and am currently interning with a congregation in which i have pastoral duties.  I don't preach every week or make all of the care visits, but I am called upon to observe and at times take on these duties as well as others.  While I cannot attribute a title to my name, I believe that God has called me to be a pastor and that I have begun to faithfully serve him in this capacity. Second, my use of the word "grind" is not meant to make ministry sound disheartening, but rather is intended to imply that ministry is a labor.  Ministry is a labor which is gritty, personal, and goe