Up Tempo

It has been about a week since I have updated you all on my internship and I will attempt to do just that here.

One thing I have learned over the past week is that a pastor's schedule can be like driving a stick shift car in downtown traffic.  You have to react to each day differently.  Some days like this past Saturday you might find yourself staying in just one gear the whole day.  We did construction all day on Saturday from 9 am to 7pm and it was great.  We made so much progress and area nearly ready for a rough inspection by the city's building inspector.  Just so you all know the church is building an elevator-like lift to go between three different floors in the building.  This lift will allow those with mobility problems to more easily traverse the church building which has been an issue for this church for years.  Thursday was a lot like Saturday in that I did just one thing and that was rest.  I spent my day off talking with friends back in Indiana and Michigan so good to hear from you all.  Then I get days like Wednesday where I come in to the church for the morning, go to Fenway park for an early afternoon game which gets rained on and then return the church at 5:30 to resume construction.  I literally changed my hats that day too going from a baseball hat to a hardhat in a matter of seconds.  Sunday was a similar story.  Pastor Reid invited me to join the worship  team for the contemporary songs segment of the service (they still use their old red hymnals too which is awesome!).  Then we went down to Providence Rhode Island to learn about Roger Williams.  Williams was an advocate for Indian rights in the 17th century and was an instrumental churchman in articulating the idea of the separation between Church and State.  I would highly encourage further study on the man if that latter idea interests you or Early American history is something you enjoy.

This morning I have spent a lot of time reading and praying.  At times I feel guilty for doing this during my work time, but I realize this is work and is necessary for work.  I know Bonhoeffer talked about the relationship between work and prayer.  I hope mine is in balance.  This afternoon I will be meeting with the associate pastor primarily talking about a reading he gave me in Bill Hull's Jesus Christ Disciple Maker.  In the book Hull touches on the idea of evangelizing to people by providing them a choice.  In a sense the gospel has always fasicanted people for a time whether they choose to believe it or not.  Hull believes that the best way to reach out to people is to allow their curiosity to bring them into the Church and let them dwell with the scriptures and believers.  After a time teachings and questions will set in and it is then that we can deepen the relationship and establish a more effective dialogue.  Also Pastor Reid has me going through a section of Richard Baxter's The Reformed Pastor.  Now I have read parts of this book already, but not this portion.  Baxter writes about the necessity of visitations.  Not visitations limited to just hospital or illness visits, but visitations to all the congregation throughout the year.  Baxter argues that the pastor cannot be effective for his congregation until he knows the state of the congregation's faith.  This knowledge of the congregation's faith is given to the pastor through relationships and interactions the pastor and congregants have.  Baxter believes that one the most effective interactions a pastor can have with congregants is a visit to their home.  Now Baxter does have concerns with doing this but for the most part he sees it in the same way a doctor used to visit the home of the ill to make his diagnosis.  Anymore we go to doctors for a diagnosis, but rarely do we see people come to the pastor when they have concerns and almost never see someone who wants to talk about beliefs who is not in some sort of crisis.  In other words few if any would come in for a spiritual check up in the way some go to a physical given by a doctor to a healthy person.  I really do wish more of the Church was accepting of these ideas thereby allowing their priests or pastors to better disciple the congregations.

It has been an excellent internship so far.


Blessings    

May I Divulge a Bit?

I want to pose a question to all of you who care enough to read my entries.

I believe my conviction as a pacifist has actually begun to slip into a more moderate position.  I am not complaining about this, but trying to understand where I might actually stand on things and maybe better describe my own beliefs.

First I want to ask is self defense an act of violence?  let me explain what I am thinking here.  I took a karate class and in it we learned some basic self defense.  The main aspect was avoiding harm, and if necessary inflicting harm to disarm the one attempting to hurt you.  In other words if a man or woman were to come at me with a knife.  I know how to misdirect the knife and then kick the person's knee thereby immobilizing them and allowing me to run away.  Not much of a pacifistic move I know, but I see no issue with doing this.

Second I am beginning to see some credence in the use of force against an oppressive state.  If it were not for the use of war the whole notion of western thought would have never arisen.  One which is based on the writing, passing, and enforcing of laws.  It is through the passing and enforcing of truly just laws that have allowed people to find a degree of peace in this world.  When those laws are unjust that the issue arises.  Laws or standards are necessary means to striving for justice.  Justice is necessary for peace to flourish.

In ideal world justice and peace would serve to enhance one another for each individual person on this world.  This is not an ideal world though.  This does not justify the lack of peace or justice in the world, but instead ought to remind us of the seriousness of the business of peace and justice.  I believe a war waged for just reasons using just means can in fact bring about peace at the cost of momentary violence.  War is not my first choice in any situation, but is not entirely outside my realm of possibilities.

Label me whatever you want.  I do care to know what you think and I'd like to believe that because you are reading this still you care to know what I think.

Blessings

One week of MA

It has been one week now since my arrival to Waltham MA, and I can tell you it has been quite interesting. Hope International Church is very small, but very involved. The first day I spent with Pastor Reid we talked about the primary goals of the Church. He emphasized Evangelism so much he had me on the edge of my seat wanting to actually do it! The best part is I will get to in the next week or so.

I have spent a good portion of my first week becoming acquainted with the area. I've gone to two of the three museums in town and walked the more storied streets of Waltham. A little information about this place for you all. Waltham is considered the "poor cousin" of all the small towns surrounding Boston. Keep this in mind as I give you a briefing on its history. In the time fo the American Revolution Waltham was a farming community with a few large estates owning most of the land the town currently resides on. These farms would grow everything and at one point a large portion of the fruit sold in Boston was actually grown here in Waltham. There is a fruit company in the Cambridge area I believe that maintains its title "Waltham Fruit Company" even though the fruit industry here has come and gone. In the 19th century Waltham became an industrial town first with textile mills and then eventually more tedious industries like bicycle and watch making on large scales. The affordability and work found in Waltham has always attracted immigrant communities. French Canadians, Irish, Italians, Greeks, Russians, Vietnamese, Guatemalans, and most recently Ugandans have all made Waltham a very diverse community. Unlike my Midwestern home though Waltham's community is not very stable community. The immigrant community comes and might stay for about a generation, but very few people who are born in Waltham can actually be found in Waltham later in life. The quality of the schools is also low which reduces the chances of young families staying around for very long. Only 8% of Waltham's community is under 18. Try and imagine that. So how does the Church serve this storied transient community?

First the Church becomes a constant in the presence of transience. Pastor Reid has served in the area for 26 years! He knows this place better than most people know their own home. I was getting ready to post a flyer in a Laundromat and he told that if the owner was in I'd probably be escorted out of the place before I got a chance to explain myself much, and it always happens with this guy (thankfully he was not in). The Church can also be a place for initial interaction with American culture. Hope International Church has offered English courses to the community for 23 years running. What better way to fulfill a relevant need to this community than through language courses? In what other way could a Japanese woman, Ugandan man, and a Midwestern kid work together in the same place for a common goal except through the Church?

I have been developing a lesson plan for the first week of classes which starts up in two weeks or so. I am excited to interact with all the student I might have. I know I'll learn jsut as much as they will. God is good and has the grace to include us in his plans.

Blessings!

Starting to Jive

Okay, I have been in my internship for a grand total of four days so far, and already I am beginning to connect with some people. My goals for the internship have been written down and agreed upon by both my supervising pastor and myself. I have begun serious work and I most importantly names and faces are becoming familiar.

I have spent most of my first days working on my own or with Pastor Reid which has been good for an introduction. Wednesday I helped with an ongoing construction project at the church building. It was here that I got to interact with three other men from the church and a woman who made us all dinner. I would give you names, but for now I want to keep them to myself, but know they are all wonderful people. Anyways, today I got to spend more time working with more people from the congregation. Part of my work at the church includes a six week long English course for non-native speakers. Today we went out and posted fliers in grocers and stores to advertise the classes available at the church this summer. I not only became familiar with the downtown area of Waltham, but also some of the congregants. After distributing the fliers we went out to lunch where I actually felt like a part of the group. For me this is amazing because rarely do I ever feel so included instantly in any situation. Prayers have been answered.

One thing I want all of you to know is I am doing more than well here in Massachusetts. I have not journeyed to downtown Boston yet, but that will come. More updates to come, and expect a reflection on the 1st chapter of Daniel before next Wednesday.

Blessings!

Jubilee Day 1

I am on the clock now! That means that I have in fact made it to the Boston area for my internship.

I started my day early by getting dropped off at the airport by my mom. Security at South Bend regional airport is way easier than anything else I've been through recently. I had a layover in Detroit. I slept through both of my flights which was fine with me. I did bring a guitar with me which was not as big of an issue as I thought it might have been. Only forgot a few small things like a hamper for laundry and shampoo for the shower. I have really learned how to pack quickly and efficiently with all the traveling I have been up to. Today was not so much about me though. Today was a day of introductions and first impressions.

At Logan Airport in Boston Pastor Reid picked me up in his pickup truck and brought me to his home. I had met Pastor Reid back in March, and had even been to his home and church. I had not however met his family. I met two of his four sons and his wife. They are all very welcoming in their own ways. It's just beginning to dawn on me that I will be living here with them for 68 days. I pray this continues to go well. I shared two meals with the family already. Lunch and dinner were both good. I thank God he put me here. I share interests with everyone I have met in the family so far. Also the Reid's just recently bought a puppy. There are now two dogs in the house. It'll be great seeing their pup grow up while I'm here. Yes I will take pictures. Tomorrow there is a funeral. I'm not sure how to approach this. The man had gone to the church for over 30 years. More to follow.

Blessings!

Jelly Beans will Never be the Same!

I nearly went to bed at a decent hour and then I remembered I had something to write to you all about!

Summer is a time that I spend unwinding a bit and working physically and spiritually more than I do during the school year. Today I did a bit of both in a strangely simple way. I mowed the lawn. Now before some of you go all "greenie" on me about how its unfortunate that my family has grass and the audacity to mow and what not let me tell you there are bigger fish to fry in this world than grass. I actually enjoyed the work because it has this weird way of reminding me of where I've been in life.

See, I've been mowing the lawn consistently since I was 11 or 12. I've figured a lot of things out while mowing. One is the simplest way to transfer the cut grass in the mower's bag into the trash bag. Another is the patterns I can mow in the lawn that go best with the lay of the land in our backyard. Now neither of those are very significant outside of the mowing world. I doubt any future employer would care if I mowed vertically or diagonally or if the cut grass was bagged or not. However, I do know of at least one part of my mowing routine that transfers into all other aspects of life; dog poop clean up. Yes, you read that right.

Ever since I've been mowing we've had a dog at my house. Now to be honest that does not mean that I've cleaned up after the dog every single time I've mowed, but I've had my fair share of clean up duty I think. You see I don't mind doing the task anymore. I used to dread it more than mowing, because of the stink, mush factor, and general land mine clearing mindset that comes with it. If you've never done this before imagine the smell as the worst passed gas you've smelled recently bagged up and warm. The mush factor as I refer to it can also be called the jellybean effect. You see the dog does its business the sun shines down on all that brown glory and the surface becomes crusty leaving a gooey or mush middle. The trick of course is to rely on the crusty shell to support the mush as you transfer the brown matter to the trash bag. The crust fails you at times, and sometimes the brown matter is so fresh it is just mush. My advice is to mow around it in hopes that you don't step on it or suck it up into the mower. Now that you have that scenario in your mind I can tell you why I told you all of this.

I can deal with the crap life gives me. Sure I hate doing it sometimes and I'll put it off in hopes that it'll get better (dry up) tomorrow. I'm willing to put up with some stank, mush, and potential land mines in my life, because I realize that I'm not in control. I cannot tell my dog where to do her business just like I cannot tell other people how to live. I can give advice if its asked for (kinda like what I do here on this blog) and I can deal with the brown matter in my own life. Is it a heroic job? NO, and it never will be. It is a necessary job though.

May you face the stank, mush, and land mines in your life with grit.

Blessings!