Things On My Mind
On my desk, I keep a note from a friend written at the time of my leaving the corporate life and coming to Caldwell. It quotes Paul’s letter to the church at Rome:
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,
who have been called according to God’s purpose.” Romans 8:28
As I reflect on the congregation’s recent vote to make me your “installed pastor” (I had been originally called as a “designated pastor” to serve a fixed period of time), those words mean more to me than ever – but perhaps not for the reasons you think.
The congregation’s vote to affirm my call and my place as your pastor means more than I can express, of course. But there are so many people here at Caldwell who take their own sense of call just as seriously as I do.
That call may take the form of teaching our kids or fixing something on campus that is broken. It may be harvesting tomatoes from the church garden and delivering them to feed the hungry or wrestling with new software that helps us track our finances and membership. It may be ushering in worship, singing in the choir or any of three dozen other tasks that are part of being the church.
Rarely, if ever, do I observe that our members are just performing tasks because they have to be done. Instead, I see our members approaching their roles and responsibilities as if they have been “called according to God’s purpose”, with joy, enthusiasm, hope, faith and love.
We have much to do, in the name of Christ. My family and I are deeply blessed to be called to serve alongside each of you, knowing that “in all things God works for the good of those who love God.”
The Summer Sermon Grab Bag
Caldwell’s intense, passionate focus on mission “beyond our doors” is one of its most obvious characteristics. However, this summer’s experience with the Sermon Grab Bag underscores for me that you are just as active and committed with the service of your minds.
The topics that you suggested for preaching have been wonderfully stimulating and a great change of pace. You’re curious about grief, knowing God’s will and whether Jesus really “descended into hell”, as we say in the Apostles’ Creed. You wonder whether the God of the Old Testament is the same as the God of the New Testament. You even wonder whether Jesus would have been a capitalist or a socialist.
These questions and others show that many of you are careful and thoughtful readers of scripture who seek to understand how to apply some of the most challenging aspects of faith in your lives. I am deeply grateful for the vigor and range of your spiritual, theological and biblical curiosity.
Sometime in September, I will return to my normal routine, which is to preach mostly from the lectionary, the selections from scripture that preachers worldwide reference each week. The lectionary leads us through the liturgical calendar of the church year and, if used regularly, walks us through the full course of scripture over a three-year period.
I am not wedded exclusively to the lectionary in guiding my preaching, however. As I have before this summer, I will speak to issues of the day, always seen through the lens of the gospel.
My only regret about the Grab Bag is that I received many more questions and ideas than there were Sundays to preach this summer. But I promise I will keep your excellent Grab Bag questions and ideas nearby and, at the very least, touch on them as we go.