Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. – 1 John 4:7 (NIV)
What do you think of love? How do you show your love to others? How might you do a better job showing love? How do you show your love to God? What does it mean to love God?
Someone recently shared this story with me:
There was a man doing a study of missionaries who went down to Haiti years ago, this is before the earthquake. Even then Haiti was filled with people attempting to do good work.
In his study he asked many of the locals what they thought of the missionaries that saturated their land. One Haitian man said without conviction, “Oh they are all right.”
“All right? Are some not so good?”
“Well there are bad ones and good ones… more bad ones really.”
“What makes bad ones bad?” the man doing the study asked.
“Well one can tell they come down here to make a name for themselves, or for some other selfish reasons, they just do not really seem to care for the people. They still do some good work, but they do not seem to be good people,” came the reply
“What about the good ones, what makes them good?”
“Only two things are needed to make a good missionary as far as I can tell,” replied the Haitian man. “First a love of Christ Jesus our Lord that is obvious in everything the missionary does. Second a love of Haitians that is obvious in everything the missionary does. That is what all good missionaries have.”
Look in the mirror. What do you see? You see a missionary for the mission-field of life in which God has set you. There are people who need to be loved, and there is a God whom we also must love. Pray today that we all may have a heart for people. Love has the power to change the world, in fact it is the only power that has ever changed it for the better. It is power that comes from God.
With hope and joy,
Garrett
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Minister's Minute from October Issue of the Journal of Hope and Joy
During my first year here in Georgia I was a bit surprised to discover that October is Pastor Appreciation Month. I was further surprised when I learned that it is a “national” month. Seems like something I would have heard about before, but alas I had not and I enjoyed receiving gifts and cards.
It is nice to be appreciated and I suppose some pastors long for a month when they may be told nice things, but quite honestly I feel appreciated all of the time. Therefore please allow me the opportunity to use this space as something I will call, “Parishioner Appreciation Month.”
I appreciate the silent workers of our church. Maybe you do not know about them, but they are there. They make sure air conditioners are running, lights are turned off, doors are locked, people are served, vestments are in place, bulletins are in place, forks are in place, and much more that only God knows. These people volunteer their time to ensure that the rest of us can come in to a place of worship and go right into it. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate the not-so-silent workers of our church. These are the people whose names appear as committee heads, elders, deacons, Samaritan Saturday group leaders, Community Resource leaders, Meals-on-Wheels volunteers, people who bring food to After Church Fellowship, ushers, greeters and more. Somewhere they’re names are written down. These people are rarely thanked, but do what they do not for the recognition, but instead because God has laid a burden upon their hearts and they follow their call. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate the people who go all over the church during our Ritual of Friendship to tell visitors “hello.” I have never had a guest of the church tell me they feel unwelcomed… maybe because some have never been given the chance, but more so because we are an incredibly welcoming church. There have been people who walk right by me to say hello to someone they have never seen. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate our staff. I recall one day when Ms Annie was mowing the dirt (this is before we our lawn sorted out). It was hot and dusty and yet there she was. Thankfully we have a landscaping service now, but Ms Annie works harder than ever. She is here until past 11 at night ensuring our sanctuary is perfect for a Sunday service after a wedding on Saturday evening. She works in the heat and in the cold, and does whatever is asked. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Lynn who comes in early and generally stays late. If I need something crazy done for a flyer or bulletin she will spend days getting it just right. People come in and will have long conversations with her, and she won’t complain but do her work later. She’s not a member of the church but cried when times were bad and there was only enough money in the bank to stay open for a couple more months. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Marilyn with her flair for the dramatic and her musical talent. She came in right when we needed her and is great for me to work with as I change things up at the last minute and tell her I am having people sing. Many pastors call their music departments, “war departments.” I have not. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Elaine with her amazing skills in the kitchen that have grown our Wednesday Nights. I recall one time that I was hosting some other clergy of the area and asked if she would prepare a meal. It was excellent, and I have had many of those who were there tell me it was the best meal they’ve had in any church. I am sure it was. I appreciate her.
I appreciate our newest staff member Pat. She is hard at work ensuring that our books are in order. Some ministers are great administrators and know everything about a church’s budget. I am not one of these ministers, and I thank God that we have a person who knows what she is doing and will lead us on a sound path for the future.
I appreciate the people who tell me when I am doing a good job; those that tell me what specific part of a sermon meant a lot to them; those who tell me to my face when I am doing a bad job so I can learn; those who send me cards with words of encouragement that always seem to come at the right time; those who try to invite more and more people to church… I appreciate so much about this church and about you all. Together we are blessed to have each other as we ride the wave of the Holy Spirit into better tomorrows.
With appreciation and gratitude,
Garrett
It is nice to be appreciated and I suppose some pastors long for a month when they may be told nice things, but quite honestly I feel appreciated all of the time. Therefore please allow me the opportunity to use this space as something I will call, “Parishioner Appreciation Month.”
I appreciate the silent workers of our church. Maybe you do not know about them, but they are there. They make sure air conditioners are running, lights are turned off, doors are locked, people are served, vestments are in place, bulletins are in place, forks are in place, and much more that only God knows. These people volunteer their time to ensure that the rest of us can come in to a place of worship and go right into it. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate the not-so-silent workers of our church. These are the people whose names appear as committee heads, elders, deacons, Samaritan Saturday group leaders, Community Resource leaders, Meals-on-Wheels volunteers, people who bring food to After Church Fellowship, ushers, greeters and more. Somewhere they’re names are written down. These people are rarely thanked, but do what they do not for the recognition, but instead because God has laid a burden upon their hearts and they follow their call. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate the people who go all over the church during our Ritual of Friendship to tell visitors “hello.” I have never had a guest of the church tell me they feel unwelcomed… maybe because some have never been given the chance, but more so because we are an incredibly welcoming church. There have been people who walk right by me to say hello to someone they have never seen. I appreciate you all.
I appreciate our staff. I recall one day when Ms Annie was mowing the dirt (this is before we our lawn sorted out). It was hot and dusty and yet there she was. Thankfully we have a landscaping service now, but Ms Annie works harder than ever. She is here until past 11 at night ensuring our sanctuary is perfect for a Sunday service after a wedding on Saturday evening. She works in the heat and in the cold, and does whatever is asked. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Lynn who comes in early and generally stays late. If I need something crazy done for a flyer or bulletin she will spend days getting it just right. People come in and will have long conversations with her, and she won’t complain but do her work later. She’s not a member of the church but cried when times were bad and there was only enough money in the bank to stay open for a couple more months. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Marilyn with her flair for the dramatic and her musical talent. She came in right when we needed her and is great for me to work with as I change things up at the last minute and tell her I am having people sing. Many pastors call their music departments, “war departments.” I have not. I appreciate her.
I appreciate Elaine with her amazing skills in the kitchen that have grown our Wednesday Nights. I recall one time that I was hosting some other clergy of the area and asked if she would prepare a meal. It was excellent, and I have had many of those who were there tell me it was the best meal they’ve had in any church. I am sure it was. I appreciate her.
I appreciate our newest staff member Pat. She is hard at work ensuring that our books are in order. Some ministers are great administrators and know everything about a church’s budget. I am not one of these ministers, and I thank God that we have a person who knows what she is doing and will lead us on a sound path for the future.
I appreciate the people who tell me when I am doing a good job; those that tell me what specific part of a sermon meant a lot to them; those who tell me to my face when I am doing a bad job so I can learn; those who send me cards with words of encouragement that always seem to come at the right time; those who try to invite more and more people to church… I appreciate so much about this church and about you all. Together we are blessed to have each other as we ride the wave of the Holy Spirit into better tomorrows.
With appreciation and gratitude,
Garrett
Looking Within
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” – Matthew 7:3-5 (NIV)
How easily do you see the specks in other’s eyes? Do you have a plank in your own? What is Jesus trying to teach here? Do we have ears to hear?
A couple of days ago I was having one bad day. I suppose we all have them, those days where things seem to pile up. It started off good enough, but when I finally got to my computer and opened up my e-mail I was greeted with loads of bad news.
By the time I finished reading through those e-mails I was quite upset. I was upset with how people act, I was upset with what people don’t do, and I was going about blaming people for it.
In the course of being upset I found some angry music to listen to on my phone. I thought, “Good something to help me feel how I feel.” I listened to such music for about half an hour or so until my phone received a call. It was not a happy phone call either and I was beginning to feel overwhelmed with frustration.
After the phone call I pushed the button to resume my angry music selection and yet something else came on instead. It was a gospel song and maybe you know it. A grand voice cried out, “It’s me, it’s me, it’s me O Lord standing in the need of prayer.”
How that song got on I do not know… perhaps it was one of those minor miracles we call a coincidence. I call it a miracle and it forced me to stop worrying about others and realize that I have a lot to change about myself before I can go worrying about how others need to change.
That is what Jesus was concerned about as he spoke about planks in eyes. It becomes so easy for us to look at the obvious faults of others that we can somehow ignore our own obvious faults completely. I was not taking time realizing I needed to change. Instead I allowed my anger to keep me wondering why everyone else was so messed up. Somehow through a minor miracle that others might call a glitch of technology I realized that indeed I stood and still stand in the need of prayer myself. If we all take the time to work on ourselves, I cannot imagine the ways in which we can change the world.
With hope and joy,
Garrett
How easily do you see the specks in other’s eyes? Do you have a plank in your own? What is Jesus trying to teach here? Do we have ears to hear?
A couple of days ago I was having one bad day. I suppose we all have them, those days where things seem to pile up. It started off good enough, but when I finally got to my computer and opened up my e-mail I was greeted with loads of bad news.
By the time I finished reading through those e-mails I was quite upset. I was upset with how people act, I was upset with what people don’t do, and I was going about blaming people for it.
In the course of being upset I found some angry music to listen to on my phone. I thought, “Good something to help me feel how I feel.” I listened to such music for about half an hour or so until my phone received a call. It was not a happy phone call either and I was beginning to feel overwhelmed with frustration.
After the phone call I pushed the button to resume my angry music selection and yet something else came on instead. It was a gospel song and maybe you know it. A grand voice cried out, “It’s me, it’s me, it’s me O Lord standing in the need of prayer.”
How that song got on I do not know… perhaps it was one of those minor miracles we call a coincidence. I call it a miracle and it forced me to stop worrying about others and realize that I have a lot to change about myself before I can go worrying about how others need to change.
That is what Jesus was concerned about as he spoke about planks in eyes. It becomes so easy for us to look at the obvious faults of others that we can somehow ignore our own obvious faults completely. I was not taking time realizing I needed to change. Instead I allowed my anger to keep me wondering why everyone else was so messed up. Somehow through a minor miracle that others might call a glitch of technology I realized that indeed I stood and still stand in the need of prayer myself. If we all take the time to work on ourselves, I cannot imagine the ways in which we can change the world.
With hope and joy,
Garrett
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