Is It a Blessing or Curse?

10/26/2015 – Charge Conference:  Blessing or Curse?

            This is the time of year when United Methodist pastors and their congregations alike are involved in the preparations for and the holding of Charge Conferences.   For those who are not of the United Methodist persuasion, let me explain what a Charge Conference is.  First, let me tell you that a Charge Conference has nothing to do with making sure that your car battery is charged.  Neither is a Charge Conference related to the scream of “Charge” that football fans and cheerleaders alike offer to encourage their favorite team.         Amidst the paperwork that I and our congregation had to fill out for Charge Conference, I found this pearl of wisdom that explains well what a Charge Conference is:   “The primary responsibility of the charge conference in the annual meeting shall be to review and evaluate the total mission and ministry of the church.”

            I am not a novice to Charge Conferences or to the paperwork that it requires since I am in my 42^nd year as a pastor.    I am the first to say that there have been times when I have grunted and groaned about the paperwork that is to be completed and the meetings that are required for Charge Conference.  However, in recent years I have chosen to see the goodness of a Charge Conference because every now and then we need to review and evaluate what we are doing as followers of Christ Jesus and as the body of Christ.  I hope and pray that somewhere in the midst of the meetings, conferencing, and the documents prepared for Charge Conference  that is happening.

            In Mark 8: 27-30, we see a time when Jesus was evaluating his mission and ministry.   I don’t believe they called it a Charge Conference, but simply a conference between Jesus and his disciples as they around the region of Caesarea Philippi.     Mark 8:27-30 says:  ²⁷ Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?  ²⁸ They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”   ²⁹ “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”   Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”   ³⁰ Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.

            

What are you doing to build up the Kingdom of God?  What are you doing this day and this week to love God and love your neighbor?    That is a question we need to ask and answer every now and then whether it be at a Charge Conference or simply in the silence of our hearts.  Have a joy-filled week.--  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:    O God, thank you for your call and claim upon my life.  Thank you, Lord, for the gifts you have given me.    Give me the wisdom to take time to see how you are working in our lives and how we can more fully and completely yield ourselves to you;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.  

Pastor Appreciation Month

            In recent years,  the month of October has been promoted as Pastor Appreciation Month.    I am not sure why the month of October was picked to show appreciation to clergy.  Holidays are special times when we remember people or things that we should remember all the time.  Just as it is important to express our gratitude (for example)  to mothers and fathers on their annual days, I believe it is also important to remember and celebrate the myriad of things that pastors do in our communities, in our churches, and for us as individuals and families.   I have never used my blog as a forum to express thoughts about Pastor Appreciation Month in the past, but feel led to do so now even though some might see this blog as an indirect way to get praise for myself.

            Few people really know the hard work that most pastors do.  Most people only see the tip of the iceberg of the duties of the pastor as they sit in the pew or are on the receiving end of the pastor’s note… prayer… visit… or attendance at a community event or church event.    There are even some who kiddingly or unkiddingly  contend that pastors only work an hour or so  a week as they see the pastor only at a Sunday worship service.    Like the people who are in the pews,  no pastors are perfect but most pastors care deeply about the congregations they serve, the communities in which they live, and the God they love.   

            There are many things you could do for the Pastors in your community and in your life during Pastor Appreciation Month.     I want to encourage two things that are easily affordable and cost just a little of yourself and your time.    First, I encourage you to pray for your pastor not just in October, but regularly.  Pray for your pastor as you pray for other community, state, and national leaders.        Pray your pastor and their family if they have one.  Pray for your pastor as they seek to share the gospel message in word and deed.    Ephesians 6:19 puts it this way:  ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,    Pray also for your pastor that “The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—  the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might,  the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—  (see Isaiah 11:2).

            Secondly, I encourage you to take time this month to send your pastor  a note, a card, an email, or even a text message.   It does not cost much money to do such things.    Let the pastors in your lives  know you appreciate them and tell them why.     As one of friend of mine likes to say, “everyone appreciates being appreciated.”        I know from personal experience that pastoral ministry can sometimes be lonely and sometimes you don’t know if you are making a difference or not.   Tell your pastor they are and they have in your life .  They will be glad you did, and you will also.      Have a joy-filled week.--  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:    O God, thank you for the pastor in my church and the pastors in my community.  I thank you for the pastors that you have used through the years to touch my life and heart.   Bless these pastors, O God, that they might be faithful leaders of the body of Christ, the Church;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

                 

Getting Your Exercise?

One of the habits I have developed in recent years is to  exercise four to seven days a week.   I acknowledge this has not always been a habit of mine.  However, I spend 30 to 50 minutes exercising several days at week.      I was exercising at a local fitness center the other Sunday morning when I looked around the place at the few people there and thought:  “I wonder how many  of these folks will be in a place of worship today?”     I can testify that physical exercise and worship can co-exist with each other on Sundays.    Most every Sunday, I will go to church after having spent some time at that local fitness center.  

As I wondered  to myself about the number of people in that place who would be a part of a corporate worship service  on that Sunday, I remembered a passage of scripture that is found in I Timothy 4:7-8 which says:

Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales;  rather, train yourself to be godly.  For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 

It is important that we care for this body that God has given us.  Many of us spend far too much time living a sedentary lifestyle.   Our bodies are  as the scriptures say a “temple of the Holy Spirit.”  However, physical exercise is not enough.  We also need regular spiritual exercise through disciplines like prayer, reading the scriptures, and worship.    Are you building up  your spiritual muscles and doing your spiritual exercise?   I commend it to you.  Have a joy-filled week.  -  Pastor Randy Wall 

Prayer:   Lord God,  thank you for creating me and giving me life.  Help me to take care of this body you have given me and take care of my soul.  I want to be closer to you and bring others closer to you.   Hear my prayers;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

An In Cognito Christian?

As many of you know who are reading this,  my wife Ann and I moved a few months.  While our home is not newly built, it is new to us.  We are enjoying making the house into our home.     

I realized the other day that this is the first home where I have lived in my adult life that was not known as the parsonage.   Some of the places where I have lived were known as the parsonage simply because it was located right beside the church.  There was one parsonage where I lived that actually had a sign that noted it was the parsonage.  It occurred to me the other day that perhaps none of the neighbors nearby know that I am a pastor.  I suspect that some of the neighbors do  know that Christians live  here as we are some of the first folks to leave the house on Sunday mornings.

It occurs to me that I have the task in these days not only to make this house our home, but also to find a way to show the love of Christ in this neighborhood.    Since I do not live next to the church or in a parsonage, no one knows that a pastor or even Christians live here.  I am living “in cognito” as a Christian in this neighborhood.  How can I show the love of Christ to my neighbors and not just be a secret agent for God?   

In Matthew 5:14-16,  Jesus says, ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.     I can I show the love of Christ in the place that I live?  That is something I need to get busy to figure out.  And you know what?  So do you.    Have a joy-filled week.  -  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   Living and loving God:  I thank  you for revealing yourself to the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Give me the courage and the wisdom to reveal the love of Christ in the world where I live.  Amen.