My study leave this year looked different than a conference, or even sermon series planning. I used my study leave to catch up on all the articles I’ve been meaning to get to during this COVID-19 craziness. That meant I read about everything from church conflict to air ventilation during this past week.  And in that odd range of topics, I also found time to read the article in the Harvard Business Review titled, “That Discomfort You are Feeling is Grief.” If you have not read it, I highly recommend it.  As I gave myself time to really read this article (rather than skim it, which I admittedly find myself rushing to do most of the time), the following words brought actual tears to my eyes:  “Finally, it’s a good time to stock up on compassion. Everyone will have different levels of fear and grief and it manifests in different ways. A coworker got very snippy with me the other day and I thought, ‘That’s not like this person; that’s how they’re dealing with this. I’m seeing their … [Read more...]

Take time to read the parable of the lost sheep in Luke 15 this week.  The compelling piece of this parable is the shepherd’s sensitivity to care for all of the sheep, especially the vulnerable one.  I have never thought about this before, but we don’t hear the perspective of the sheep – whether it wanted to be rescued or knew it needed to be rescued – all we know is that the shepherd went after the one who was lost, in danger. During this crazy time of pandemic ministry, I have noticed a concerning, consistent trend.  In speaking with other ministers, it seems pastors are much more reticent to move from online worship to indoor worship than their congregants.  I daresay that the decision to go from indoor to online worship was actually an easier choice than when or whether to resume indoor worship (I would not say this applies the same way to outdoor worship; our church has successfully worshipped outside and in-person for a month now).  I am not certain why pastors seem more … [Read more...]

During this time of fear, disease and sadness, it seems we, more than ever, desire concrete answers. We want accurate tests for this virus.  We want to know the exact symptoms.  We want to know exactly how effective masks are (even though they are not all alike).  We want to know the exact “damage” that is caused by re-opening our community “too soon.”  We want a vaccine. And it makes complete sense, in a world of uncertainty, that we would long for concrete answers.  It makes sense that we would want black-and-white answers so that we can make the right decisions to protect ourselves, our families and others around us. But I am not certain that God always works like that. I am sure you have seen those memes going around that insist, “We cannot go back to normal, because normal wasn’t working.”  No gray space in that statement, and yet, in reality, I believe there still is.  Because, there are people whose normal was more than working before this.  I have friends who God … [Read more...]

When I went for a walk a week ago, I saw a mom holding her little boy and the leash of her dog.  She was hugging her boy to her chest.  As I glanced at them, I realized that I have not been touched – let alone been hugged – by a single person since March 14.  A friend of mine who also lives alone came to that same realization days ago. I am “not a hugger” normally, which can be a challenge in church.  During seminary, I remember a woman at church exclaiming, “We need to hug single people at church, because it may be the only physical contact all week!”  I was unsure at the time whether that was more about her desire to hug or her concern for those who don’t have a lot of opportunities for positive, connective physical touch in their lives.  I hug my little nieces and nephew when I get the chance.  And most of my friends actually are huggers, so, before all of this, I was getting that physical contact whether I thought I needed it or not. I’ve read articles on early childhood … [Read more...]