The first few rows of my third grade class picture. 37 kids, one teacher. And, yes, I am in the photo.

A friend from long, long ago recently posted some black and white classroom photos from our shared years at Northmont Elementary School on his Facebook page.  Though I was not in Jim’s third grade class, I recognized most of the faces in the photo even if I did not remember most of the names.  I was impressed by the commentors who did remember every face and every name. I rummaged around for my own black and white third grade class picture, and found it.  Again, I recognize the faces but don’t remember all the names.

The photos were taken 64 years ago this fall – a long time ago.  Remembering is sometimes good just for the sake of remembering. I have no idea what has become of most of the students in those photos – what joys and what sorrows, what successes and what disappointments they have encountered since 1959.  I don’t need to know. There’s enough reward in the remembering. Remembering can be a good thing in and of itself..

For some of us, though, memories are not rewarding. We may need to acknowledge the bully and the bullied in the third grade classroom (I think we were pretty bully-free, but I might revise that memory if someone tells me otherwise).  Sometimes, however, we are tempted to revise what we remember of the past to suit our understanding of the present. We might make bullies where there were none. Continue reading →

The old adage reminds us “if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” But what if they don’t want to hear something nice?

I’m still thinking about a request I received recently from an organization for a personal reference for someone seeking to serve in its work.  The request named the individual and the nature of the work they might do, and then said, “If you, as a church leader, have any concerns about the individual listed above, …please respond to this email and share those concerns. If the individual is an active participant in your church and you would, indeed, recommend them…, there is no need to respond.”

Serving as a personal or professional reference, completing recommendation forms, or verifying application details go with the territory.  They are some of the things a pastor just does.  And typically, happily so.  My guess is that I have offered references, recommendations, and verifications hundreds of times over the years.  From candidates for ministry or mission positions, to scholarship applicants, to, recently, someone wanting to be a prison guard, I have been honored to be asked to offer a word or two about friends, parishioners, and proteges.

Most of the time when I have been asked to provide a recommendation for someone, it has been a happy task.  I have good things to say – sometimes so good as to advise the asking organization not to pass on the opportunity the applicant represents.  But I also take seriously the challenges/weaknesses section most reference forms have.  I try to offer honest and candid assessments. Occasionally sitting on the other side of the table, I have found no weaknesses, walks-on-water/turns-water-into-wine recommendations to be mostly useless. Continue reading →

I like to be right, and there can be something wrong about that.

When I was in seminary, we were taught that maybe the best way to think about the Bible’s King David was as if he were some sort of ancient Middle Eastern Robin Hood – more legend than fact – but a great story and a nice message.  You know, take from the rich and give to the poor, face your giants, or “don’t worry, even people after God’s own heart get themselves into trouble.”

It looks like my professors were wrong.

The current edition of Christianity Today has an interesting article, How Archaeology Affirmed the Historic Stature of a Biblical King.  The subtitle is “Once, the House of David seemed like a folk tale. Now, the rocks testify to its historic significance.”  You can read the story, but the point is that there is there is good evidence of David being more than a legend and his kingdom extending far beyond Sherwood Forest.

My guess, however, is that the new archeological findings have not moved every scholar to considering more faithfully the one whose story begins “Once in Royal David’s City.” And my guess is that we’ll still get lots of bad sermons about facing our giants (and maybe a few about taking from the rich and giving to the poor). Continue reading →

The minutes of Sunday’s meeting of the congregation have already been written. They show the call to the new pastor being approved and the meeting closed with prayer and thanksgiving to God.

Before any stated clerks, church polity wonks, or parliamentarians among you get too anxious or begin to file charges against me, let me explain.

The church I have been serving during a season between pastors is now ready to call a new pastor. This is a very good thing, and we perceive God’s gracious hand in bringing a wonderful candidate to what Becky and I have grown to know and love as a wonderful congregation.

Presbyterians like to say of ourselves that “we do everything decently and in order.” The phrase is mostly used self-mockingly and usually evokes a sense of mild (or forced) amusement when said at a presbytery meeting. In fact, the phrase comes from the Bible in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians and at the end of a long discussion about the right and the wrong way to worship. Having reminded his readers that God is not a God of confusion but of peace, he writes, “All things should be done decently and in order.”  1 Corinthians 14:40 (ESV) Continue reading →

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

…I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

– Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken

I’ve been thinking about the road less traveled by. In popular culture it is identified with our excessive and often destructive expressive individualism. But I get ahead of myself.

For over a year now, Becky and I have traveled a 40-mile trip to worship with the people of Ossian First Presbyterian Church where I am serving as the moderator of the session and most-of-the-time preacher. It has been a joy. On Sunday mornings and on those occasional trips to session and other committee meetings, we almost always take the road less traveled by. Continue reading →