A Most Amazing Day

Sundays for me generally fall into two categories, normally by how I feel about my church after I arrive back at home. There are those Sundays where I could pastor my church for the rest of my life, God seems so real and the Spirit is working in my folks in such concrete ways. Then there are those Sundays where I come home and want to quit on Monday. God seems absent; Jesus has gone somewhere that I do not know, and my people are acting like four-year-olds. It's been said that a pastor should not quit on a Sunday or a Monday, and given my experience I tend to agree.

Then there are days like yesterday. There are these most amazing days where God shows up and Jesus is walking thisclose to me and the Holy Spirit is at work so much that everyone knows it.

It wasn't about my sermon. My sermon was okay, not great. I tend not to get a whole bunch of comments at the door from folks on the way out and today was no exception. But there was some anticipation in the air. Today we were having a multicultural Advent potluck. Our Burmese congregation that meets in our building would be joining us for lunch after their worship service.

Before we got there, however, we needed to wait for them to worship. So headed back to my office to do some reading in the in-between time. As I was headed there, and lady who had been coming for a few weeks pulled me aside. She told me that she herself was a refugee when she first came to America, and rememberd worshipping with her congregation in the afternoons just like the Burmese do now. We had just received a bus from First Pres in Lansing, much to the consternation of some in the congregation who worried about costs and money and such. She wondered if she could give to the transportation fund to help keep the bus going so these Burmese Christians could worship. She handed me a check. Not an insubstantial one either. From one refugee to another.

Then the bus pulled up and 65 people got out. Normally on a Sunday we would have 40 on the bus. But it seemed the whole Burmese community was ready for this day of food and fellowship. And my people came back from their brief naps and got ready for the fesitivities while the worship service was going. We set up a camera to take pictures, a room for games for the kids, and another room for decorating Christmas cookies. This was going to be fun!

The worship service ended about 1:25 in the afternoon. We had told everyone that we would get going about 1:30, and we still had to tear down the Sanctuary and set up tables, chairs, and food. As the Burmese congregation filed out, we started getting tables in the room. Then, as I took a step towards the room with the tables, the tables all got set up. We had about 25 people doing setup, and it was the fastest I had ever seen it done. We had Burmese and Americans working together and we had 126 chairs set up in about 5 minutes, ready to go. But the narthex and rooms with games and cookies were full and people were still coming in. Oh boy, would there be enough chairs? Would there be enough food?

At about 1:45 we called everyone into the Sanctuary-cum-Fellowship Hall. I asked everyone to find a chair so we could see if we had enough. A translator/pastor gave the appropriate request in two dialects of Burmese. The chairs filled, and there were still people standing. We prayed for God to bless the food and the fellowship and asked that everyone without a seat go first so we could set up tables and chairs in the narthex for them. Everyone was very nice, but by the time I got to the narthex outside the back doors of the Sanctuary the tables and chairs were already set up and people were sitting down to eat.

Sure enough, we ran out of paper cups and napkins early on. We sent my wife Shannon to get some. We ran out of paper plates a little later, but we sent another home to get some plates she had. The food? It never ran out. At potlucks it never does. It's a miracle of God that often goes unnoticed, but it went noticed this day. Everyone had enough to eat, everyone had a place to eat.

Then we starting singing Christmas carols. An 81-year-old pianist from the Presbyterian church down the street from us played "Joy to the World" and the Americans sang it. Then a group of Burmese got up and sang it in their language. They sang through a couple of times, and each time more and more joined in. It was beautiful.

Then Santa Claus came. An elder in my church dresses up like Santa every year, and he has a friend who dressed up in the funniest reindeer costume you've ever seen. I hope to have a picture up soon.

About six months ago, a small group in my church built around motorcycle riding wanted to come up with a mission project for the winter when motorcycling isn't as popular around Michigan. They asked the session if they could get presents for the children in the Burmese community. We told them go ahead. So in November and December this group and a group of youth from the same Presbyterian church down the street collected presents and wrapped them. They counted about 84 presents given from two small churches.

As the children came into the Sanctuary though, the worry began: would there be enough presents? And what would we do if there weren't? Santa began giving out presents to all the kids, starting with the youngest and working through to the oldest. And there were presents left over. We took them to another church that houses a food and clothes closet - we thought it would be appreciated.

Then we cleaned up, again with about 25 people - Burmese and Americans together. We left about 4:00. My wife came with Eva about 2:00 to enjoy the event. She said when she walked in the building was so energized she had never felt it that way before. This was the largest event in terms of numbers of people that we've ever had in the over 20 years this building has been there.

I went up to a congregation member as we were cleaning up and asked them, "If I told you when I came four and a half years ago that we would hold an event where we would run out of tables, run out of chairs, run out of paper products, not run out of food or presents, have people out the door, and see God so at work it would impossible to ignore, would you have believed me?"

"No way," she said, "but it sure was amazing."

I agree. Thanks be to God.

No, Really, We Need to Save the Auto Industry

My apologies for not writing for some time. Much has been going on in my family's life. Not much of it is postable to the Internet. Sorry.

I live in Michigan. I guess that makes me extremely biased when it comes to a possible auto industry bailout. I mean, the car companies are the industry of choice in Michigan. It is estimated that the Big Three employ 250,000 people just by themselves. This does not count the parts suppliers, dealers, cleaners, plant demolition teams, civil engineers and road construction workers, and all the other ancillary employment. (Some believe that for every automotive job another 10 jobs are related directly or indirectly to those jobs.) Many of these jobs are in Michigan. Like Michael Moore's hometown of Flint, many cities' economies are based almost completely on the automobile industry.

I live in Michigan. I pastor a church in Michigan, and that means that every day and every week I see the effects of Michigan's years-long recession and I see the possibilities of what could be if Congress and the Bush administration do not act. I recently heard on Michigan Public Radio that of cities with a population of 20,000 or more, three Michigan cities are in the top 5 in unemployment percentage. Three cities, all with unemployment rates above 20%. That's right - 20 percent.

If the domestic auto industry collapses, Michigan will be hurting. Many more cities will have unemployment at 20% or higher, and some villages and towns may be completely wiped off the map.

"So what?" you may say, if you live in New York or Georgia or Alabama or Washington State or California, "Why should I care about Detroit if there's no auto plants in my region?" You should care not for GM, Ford, or Chrysler. You should care because in your area there is a manufacturing firm that makes the knob on the radio that goes in not just a Ford, GM, or Chrysler vehicle, but also in a Toyota, Honda, Hyndai, or Kia vehicle. Or maybe they make the pedals for the brakes. Or they make sun roofs.

All across the country there are manufacturers for domestic and foreign-owned companies that are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. If the domestic auto industry collapses, these companies collapse. Without the parts suppliers, the foreign companies that have plants in the United States will also collapse - they will have no parts.

Almost overnight, the car industry in the United States, domestically owned or foreign transplant, will collapse. And all the jobs that go along with it, from Michigan to Alabama to California, will go as well.

So really, we do need to save the auto industry. Restructure? Fine, do what needs to be done. Car czar? Not sure how that's going to work, exactly. But at the end of the day, if we do not wish to fall into a deeper recession than we are experiencing now we must act.

P.S. AIG has gotten a total of $80 billion without so much as a congressional hearing. The autos are looking for less than half that - for three different companies.

Having Courage

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage.” – Psalm 27:14

This, I think can be said, is a time of great fear. To be honest, we’ve been living in a state of perpetual fear since September 11, 2001. We could even go back farther if we had to, and look at 1939 and the start of World War II and then the Cold War as a time of perpetual fear. Our fears have become all the sharper in recent weeks: the stock market has crumbled, the “Big Three” automakers all seem to be in intensive care in need of cash like a car accident victim needs blood, and our congregation is talking about moving in significantly different directions than we’ve taken over the last three decades. There is a lot we could be afraid of; there are many things going “bump” in the night.

Yet in times of great fear it is all the more important that we hear the words of the Psalmist. “Be strong and let your heart take courage.”

Why? How? How can we take courage when everything around us seems to be thrown into turmoil?

We believe that the God of the Universe loves us. We know God loves us because of Jesus. We trust in the Holy Spirit to guide us.

When we remember this, then we remember that everything has not been thrown into turmoil What has been thrown into turmoil are economic systems, national pride, and maybe our sense of how church should be or what it looks like. But all of these things can be idols, things we place in front of God in our lives. Remember, brothers and sisters, that God calls us to worship the Lord alone, not our stock portfolios or our military might or even our church building. And we can love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength even if we have no money, no status, no security. Loving God takes only the willingness to pray, to worship, to love our neighbor.

The Christian Science Monitor recently published an article on the use of solar panels by Amish communities. Yes, it seems strange to us that the same community that rejects the use of automobiles, cell phones, and central heating and air conditioning would join the 21st century through the use of “green” technology. At the end of the article, the writer quotes an Amish mother talking about how their lack of radio or television buffered them during the recent stock market roller coaster ride. “The banks are closing,” she said, “but look – it’s a beautiful day.” (Christian Science Monitor, October 27, 2008 edition, page 20.)

Do you see the beautiful day God has store for you today? Let’s try something: for the next month, at the end of your day think about what good thing God provided for you that day. It could be the colors of the leaves or an interaction you had with a stranger that brightened your day. And if you can’t think of something good, then wait on the Lord and be of good courage, for tomorrow God will show God’s self to you. And if God shows up, nothing else matters.

(The preceding was published in Mount Hope Presbyterian Church's November 2009 newsletter.)

Water Water Everywhere

My basement flooded this week. Our sump pump failed in the middle of the night, and the annoying water sensors didn't pierce our slumber until it was too late. Even now my shoes go "squish, squish, squish" every time I walk on the carpet. Yuk.

Shannon and I, being pastors, have bantied about theological reasons for the "flood." Maybe God is saying something and we are not listening. Maybe it's a sign of our baptisms. Maybe it is to remind us of Noah and the covenant of God. Frankly, I really don't want to put theological grounding on water restoration and plumbing.

But with all this water around, I am reminded of all the water we find in the Bible. It starts with the spirit of hovering over the waters in Genesis 1. Then the flood story of Noah in Genesis 6. The Israelites walked on dry land to get out of Egypt, and then to get in to the promised land. There's Elijah challenging the priests of Ba'al on Mount Carmel during a drought. There's John the Baptist, and indeed all our baptisms. There's Jesus turning water into wine. Water is everywhere we look, and God is at work in this very simple element.

Sometimes we wonder if God can work in us, we seem so small and insignificant. Yet in the waters we see how God can take anyone or anything and mold it into something divine and even mysterious.

Good Friday Zaniness

So Good Friday comes around, and my church worshipping with a Methodist church just down the street. Except this is Michigan in March, so wouldn't you know but a snow storm pushes through leaving the roads slick and icy. Shannon's church goes ahead with their service, and I call up to Lansing to see if we're still on and we are. Except I can't go, not taking Eva over slick roads. So I call around and the folks who were doing readings for the service are all going. That's good. Turns out that about 25 people were involved in the service, including choir members and scripture readers. About 20 people not performing showed up.

By Sunday snow is still on the ground but the roads are still passable. My sermon title? "March Madness." Let your imagination roam freely.