Thanks for Journeying with me.

I wrote my first blog entry in March of 2007 with the encouragement of my former boss. (Thanks Paul!)

Originally it was my intention to blog about the experiences  of being a woman in ministry, a seminary student, and a first year pastor.  I thought this would be a wonderful way to use 21st century technology to share ideas and struggles, and successes with others who might possibly have similar journeys and use it as part of my field placement. 

I then found myself in a new journey, one of having to leave all that was familiar and comfortable to unfamiliar and uncomfortable.  So, I added another component to this blog and that was about transitioning from a very large church to a much smaller one.   

I have learned much in the past year.  I have learned from some of you who also are willing to share your experiences on your own blogs.  I thank those of you who have been supportive and I thank those of you who have been challenging. 

         What was never intended, but unfortunately occurred was that this blog became a stumbling block for some of my brothers and sisters in Christ.  It has caused people to become hurt and angry.  It has caused them to take time away from their work and other events in their life to read this.  This was something I had never anticipated. I am sorry that this has happened and that some postings caused such distress for them. 

Blogging has been an interesting experience and I have enjoyed it, but I realize that time is short and there are people out there who need Jesus.  That became very evident to me today with a conversation I had with an 82 year old woman who is coming to the end of her days.  82 years old, and no one had explained who Jesus Christ was to her.  So, I am going to be saying goodbye to all of you for now in the blogosphere.   Time is short, life is busy, and I need to prioritize where to best spend my time.  For now, I realize that time needs to be spent continuing to obey Gods call to me to grow His church.  So, for now, I will be busy doing that.   I’ll probably pop in on some of your blogs from time to time, though.

Thanks for journeying for a while with me. 

Darlene

I’m sure every pastor can relate!

It was one of those days today.  I know that every pastor can probably relate to this.

We are doing baptisms this Sunday. 

I borrowed a soft-sided hot tub from a friend of mine to do the baptisms in, as our baptistry is in need of updating and relocating. 

I walk into the building and………guess what?  No heat.  28 degrees outside and 50 degrees inside and dropping, Quickly! 

So we call the furnace guys.  They can be here in a couple of hours.  Ok, no biggy, we can set up the hot tub in the 50 degree sanctuary.  Second problem…..The hose to fill the hot tub is frozen, cause we all forgot to drain it.  Bring it into the 50 degree building and pray it thaws enough to let water flow through it. 

Next problem….No room to bring the hot tub in as the aisles are too close.  Call the trustee, and say we need to move the pews so we can get the hot tub in the front of the sanctuary.  OK!  well let me tell you moving 25 pews, 20 of which are 15 feet long, well you don’t worry about no heat cause you definitely work up a sweat.  Stay with me…..move the pews…..move the hot tub…….bring up the hose……fill the hot tub…….heat comes on……hose clamp on the water supply lets loose…..YEP you guessed it….water spraying everywhere!!!!!  I mean everywhere.   We unplug the power supply and now the hot tub is draining onto the floor.

I call one of our new members who lives 5 minutes away.  They come over and help us to reclamp the hose.  We throw every towel in the building on the floor trying to soak up the water.  We get this done, tighten the hose clamps and turn it on again….and…….all is going well.  One more turn of the screw and……..it gives way again…………and water spraying everywhere.  It’s now 6:30 pm and we are all howling with laughter and exhaustion.   They bring in a rug cleaner which sucks up the water that is all over the carpet cause we obviously have no more towels. 

Yep, we’re doing baptisms on Sunday!  No matter what…….we are doing baptisms on Sunday!  

Now tell me…..Is there any pastor out there who doesn’t go through attacks when you move the kingdom forward??

Pastor Appreciation Month with a different twist

I was having a a bit of a tough time turning on the radio this month.  I like to listen to Family Life Network and they really talk up pastor appreciation month.  I found out I was a very spoiled pastor the past couple of years.  I came from a church that appreciated their pastors well.

It’s tough being the new pastor in a church that is having difficulty through a pastor transition.  I have had a group of hurting people in my congregation that need to be loved and appreciated.  They have been hurting for a few months.

So, I decided to use the month of October to appreciate the people in my church.  I have sent them notes, left little messages of thanks, and am trying to get a meal to a few of the people I pastor. 

Pastor appreciation month is also a good reminder to us pastors to remember to appreciate our congregations just as much as we appreciate them doing so for us. 

This year I am working on being an appreciative pastor rather than an appreciated one during pastor appreciation month.