It’s a good sign when you think about Sunday’s sermon the entire following week. Even when you preached the sermon. It was my privilege to preach last Sunday’s sermon at Ossian Presbyterian Church. In the course of the sermon, and it made sense in the context of the sermon, I quoted the first question from Lord’s Day 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism. For those of you not familiar with the catechism, it dates from 1563 and the now German city of Heidelberg. It has been used throughout the various branches of Reformed Christianity, but is especially identified with the Dutch Reformed churches of which it is one of the three standards of faith, or Forms of Unity, along with the Canons of Dort and the Belgic Confession.

Enough of the history lesson. In the sermon I made the point that creeds, confessions, and catechisms help us make sense of our world and our lives in it. Lived experience is not ultimate truth for those who know the creeds of the church. Rather, the creeds explain the meaning of those experiences.

Here is the first question and answer from the Heidelberg Catechism (1963 translation):

Q. What is your only comfort, in life and in death?
A. That I belong—body and soul, in life and in death—not to myself but to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; that he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him. Continue reading →

HAPPY 249^TH, USA

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. . .

IN CASE YOU WONDERED

Straight from Indiana: yes, the corn is defintiely more than knee-high (by the Fourth of July).

GRACE, NOTHING BUT GRACE

With our good friends Nilda and Odias

Continue reading →

This summer, in fact, this coming week, marks the fifth anniversary of my retirement. Also, the fiftieth anniversary of my entry into full-time ministry. I’ve been thinking about retirement, its meaning and its purpose. Today I continue with Part 4 of a four-part series:

1. Retirement as a gift from God
2. Retirement as a gift for others
3. Retirement as a call to look forward
4. Retirement as a time to look back

(As I wrote in the first post, I should acknowledge that my retirement is pretty traditional. Five years ago, I quit receiving a paycheck, moved out of my office, and was no longer bound to a position description and job expectations. In those five years our retirement income has proven to be more than adequate, my health is good, and my energy level is high. We also moved 600 miles from the place we had called home to a new house and home we enjoy greatly. I understand that some people cannot afford to retire, and others enter retirement with regrets and worries of different sorts. So, as I think about retirement, most of the data comes from my own good experience and from conversations and observations from those around me. I will cite no studies and offer no footnotes.)

4. RETIREMENT AS A TIME TO LOOK BACK

Several of you have been kind enough to respond to these posts with reflections and insights from your own retirements. Thank you. Continue reading →

The local paper recently ran a piece which included some comments about the former pastor of a church in our community. His friends and family talked about how he had “retired” several years ago. Scare quotes in the original. Webster tells us that scare quotes are “quotation marks used to express especially skepticism or derision.”  Apparently, the former pastor’s friends and family are skeptical as to his actual retirement.

This summer will mark the fifth anniversary of my – no scare quotes – retirement. Also, the fiftieth anniversary of my entry into full-time ministry. I’ve been thinking about retirement, its meaning and its purpose. Today I continue with Part III of a four-part series:

1. Retirement as a gift from God
2. Retirement as a gift for others
3. Retirement as a call to look forward
4. Retirement as a time to look back

As I wrote in the first post, I should acknowledge that my retirement is pretty traditional. Five years ago, I quit receiving a paycheck, moved out of my office, and was no longer bound to a position description and job expectations. In those five years our retirement income has proven to be more than adequate, my health is good, and my energy level is high. We also moved 600 miles from the place we had called home to a new house and home we enjoy greatly. I understand that some people cannot afford to retire, and others enter retirement with regrets and worries of different sorts. So, as I think about retirement, most of the data comes from my own good experience and from conversations and observations from those around me. I will cite no studies and offer no footnotes.

III. RETIREMENT AS A CALL TO LOOK FORWARD

Becky and I are planning a trip to Brazil this fall. We are looking forward to it. We look forward to times with our children and grandchildren. We look forward to the next meeting of our small group Bible study and the next worship service at our church. I look forward to phone calls with friends far away and tomorrow morning’s run through the neighborhood. This is a wonderful season of retirement. As the psalmist writes, “The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places.” Psalm 16:6. Continue reading →

The local paper recently ran a piece which included some comments about the former pastor of a church in our community. His friends and family talked about how he had “retired” several years ago. Scare quotes in the original. Webster tells us that scare quotes are “quotation marks used to express especially skepticism or derision.”  Apparently, the former pastor’s friends and family are skeptical as to his actual retirement.

This summer will mark the fifth anniversary of my – no scare quotes – retirement. Also, the fiftieth anniversary of my entry into full-time ministry. I’ve been thinking about retirement, its meaning and its purpose. Today I continue with Part II of a four-part series:

1. Retirement as a gift from God
2. Retirement as a gift for others
3. Retirement as a call to look forward
4. Retirement as a time to look back

As I wrote last week, I should add that my retirement is pretty traditional. Five years ago, I quit receiving a paycheck, moved out of my office, and was no longer bound to a position description and job expectations. In those five years our retirement income has proven to be more than adequate, my health is good, and my energy level is high. We also moved 600 miles from the place we had called home to a new house and home we enjoy greatly. I understand that some people cannot afford to retire, and others enter retirement with regrets and worries of different sorts. So, as I think about retirement, most of the data comes from my own good experience and from conversations and observations from those around me. I will cite no studies and offer no footnotes.

II. RETIREMENT AS A GIFT FOR OTHERS Continue reading →