Rev. Tracie's Blog

Pastor’s Ponderings for April 2011

23 Mar 2011 Leave a Comment

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As I write this there are several chickadees on the feeder, a squirrel on the corn, and deer in the back lawn. The sun is shining; Jafar and I are enjoying breakfast. He runs to the window – looks out – and runs back to his food. It is a perfect morning.

I am so very ready for spring. This winter has been looooooooooong and messy. My feet froze, my attitude tanked, and – well – it is time for a change.

The first change spring brings, however, is also messy. Leaves we missed last year are now a lumpy covering for bulb plants trying to break into the sunlight. I pull the barrier apart and find yellow shoots. These will turn green soon, assuming we do not have any more really harsh weather. The drive is pitted and muddy. There is a big hole at the end where we pull onto the pavement. At the sides of this hole are two big piles of dirt encrusted ice. The mailbox is loose. Several weeks ago the shed collapsed under the weight of the snow and will need to be dismantled and discarded. There is just so much that needs doing.

It seems to me that all of this, somehow, creates a sense of the transition from Lent into Easter. Lent settles in and we do as the season requires. We become introspective. We pray a bit more. Sometimes we fast; sometimes we make and keep resolutions. After a week or two, however, Lent can become habitual. Like a cold, long winter it requires certain practices and accommodations. We have done it all before. We will do it all again. Lent ceases to be truly special; it becomes another season to be experienced/endured. We may feel guilt over our distraction. Mostly we feel overwhelmed.

Then the sun breaks through. We feel the warmer breeze of spring and even lent is somehow transformed. Easter feels possible. Resurrection involves not just God; resurrection begins to involve all of us. Our spirits begin to push through the barriers and face the light. Lenten devotions begin to feel new; we begin to feel new as well. Somehow things begin to make sense again.

Easter renews our faith as well as our hope. With the first light of Easter dawn many of us become children again. We remember how exciting the holiday was at age 9; we feel a touch of the same anticipation. The term Alleluia is discovered to have new meaning. We are renewed.

When I was a child, Easter meant new, shiny shoes and a pretty hat. We all had something new to wear. As we walked to the church we greeted neighbors and friends. We skipped and laughed. Even an early, cold Easter could not mar the sense of happy and fun. I remember feeling like I was part of something much, much larger than myself, my family, or even my church.

Forget the bunnies; forget the eggs and jelly beans. Yes, they are fun, but Easter represents so much more than candy and cute, furry critters. The experience of Easter resurrects and renews our interconnection and our interdependence in all of the best ways. Through friendship, memory, perseverance and prayer we leap up from self-imposed graves and move into the warmth of a new season.

Pastor’s Ponderings for January 2011

10 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment

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As we look forward to 2011 and the Annual meeting, I want to highlight some aspects of this congregation that you may not have noticed – or if you did notice you might have taken for granted. I invite your feedback on these as I am working ahead a bit on the annual state of the church sermon. Besides that, I think we need to share ideas and reactions. It is all too easy to assume that everyone is happy until things build up and we discover that no one is happy. Let’s talk now and avoid the rush. RMPC is growing at a healthy rate. We see new faces often; many visitors keep coming back. We have welcomed a number of new members and hope to welcome even more. These newer folk are becoming active in the congregation. One of the things I like best about RMPC is the fact that integrating into the congregation does not require conformity. We are unique in the ways we celebrate folk for who they are and what they bring. At RMPC, new ideas are tried and blended with older traditions to create something most of us can support. If the new idea needs tweaking, we work together to make it better. While this may seem like obvious behavior to most of us, it is not at all obvious to many congregations. In fact, the failure to respect the gifts of newcomers is one of the primary reasons congregations fail to thrive. Worship attendance is very good. We see larger numbers at worship regularly. The choir is growing, as is our Sunday school. When a congregation grows it is all too easy to forget that the primary thing is, in fact, the primary thing. We are, first and foremost, a worshipful gathering of the people of God. If worship fails we all fail. If Christian education fails we all fail. RMPC is not failing! It is my prejudice that worship MUST be engaging, personal and stimulating. Mistakes are permitted (thank God!) but lack of preparation or attention to detail is not to be tolerated. All aspects of worship are important from the candles to the windowsills to the sermon. The sermon is especially important because we Presbyterians consider preaching the Word to be nearly a sacrament. Still, the sermon can be good and the music or the cleanliness of the sanctuary, or behavior during worship, or the blandness of prayer, or several other things can be bad enough to ruin the worship experience. The Worship and Music Committee tries to balance new with familiar, exciting with calming, attention-grabbing with subtle. Often we succeed. I appreciate your flexibility when we fail (be very glad you never had to sit through the vacuum cleaner sermon) and I welcome your suggestions and challenges. Mort is very approachable, too. He loves feedback. The bulletin will never be perfect and I will always find it difficult to preach behind a pulpit, but lots of things can evolve – and will. Christian Education is cyclical at RMPC. For quite a while, we had a lot of adults in Bible study and almost no children. Today that situation has reversed. Our Sunday school is doing well. We have a dedicated group of parents who lead and teach. I wish there were teachers available whose children were not in Sunday school. If you are interested, please give me a call. I remember the excitement the children felt when people like John Morris gave classes on topic of interest. I would love to offer that to our current batch of children. I would also love to develop adult education again. Interested? I recently ordered a video series on the book of Revelation, just in case. New programs are being implemented and championed in the life of the church. Our concert series has really made me happy. I love the music. I am excited about the ways the program changes just enough after each concert. I appreciate the leadership that keeps the series going. Dave’s Cookin’ remains fresh and fun. How does Gail keep coming up with interesting programs? How does Dave keep our palates happy without becoming boring? This is a good program getting better. Shape Up! and Line Dancing have drawn a dedicated crew that consists of newer members, long timers, and friends. The Line dancing group even met during the week between Christmas and New Year. We will keep planning; new ideas abound. It seems to me that the programs that have succeeded at RMPC have had two important things going for them. They have each had at least one champion from the congregation and each has met a need for several of our congregation. Our programming does not need to serve tons of people. It simply has to meet the needs of enough folk to keep it going. The Craft Corner regularly meets with only two or four crafters; over six folk is a big group! Still, it has continued for well over five years. Its handwork has helped clothe stillborn babies, sold well at the annual cookie and craft sale, and fueled interest in a steady stream of new folk. Our demographic is changing but our commitment has not. Robinson Memorial Presbyterian Church has been blessed with: God’s unconditional love and forgiveness, abundant talent and commitment, a rich heritage in the Presbyterian tradition. Robinson Memorial Presbyterian Church exists to: worship God, share God’s love and the Gospel with all, grow in faith. This will be accomplished by: encouraging discipleship, setting an example by living Christ’s teachings, offering our facilities, our heritage, and our talents to the community through the power of the Holy Spirit. We are committed to this community, to worship, to children, to service, to prayer, to each other. Our congregation is calling older adults into community as we planned. Now it is also drawing families with children. Clearly God has a plan for us. So far God’s plan has included things I did not imagine. Wonder what comes next? Glitches happen; we deal with them. Yes, we do. When the roof needed replacing we rose to the occasion. When vandalism became rampant, we stopped it. When Donna Chapman was Called to Whitelaw, we celebrated and coped. This is a good church, a blessed church. RMPC is not perfect, but what would a bunch of humans do with a perfect church? Would we even dare try to imagine what to do with one? I know I would be lost. Still, we are moving forward in a world where mainline congregations are falling back. We are serving the God who loves us. We are the Body of Christ, operating out of 126 South Terry Road.

Kumbak Sunday – Setpember 19th

08 Sep 2010 Leave a Comment

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September 7, 2010
Friends,
When I was a child, I spent time on Grandfather’s farm every summer.  I loved to watch the horses, feed the pigs and chase the chickens.  I wandered the fields and swam in the Susquehanna river.  It was a great time of freedom and fun.

Once a week we took milk to the processing plant.  We went by horse and wagon.

Early in the morning my Grandfather (and later Uncle Alvin) would load the milk, hitch up the horses, bring them to the kitchen, and give them feed bags of grain.  Then he would come inside for a cup of coffee before heading out.  It was a short break for all concerned before the trip began.

Labor Day is over, the summer is almost gone.  Our break is over and it is time to begin the season’s journey.  Sunday school will start again on September 19th with an exciting service of Baptism and Commissioning our new Confirmation class.  We will also hold a luncheon with an old fashioned Rally Day. Committees of RMPC will have tables to help the congregation understand their particular tasks.  We look forward to having some sort of presence from each group that helps make this congregation work.

We also look forward to seeing you!

During summer it can be difficult to attend worship regularly.  There are so many distractions, trips, and so few summer weekends.  Now, at summer’s end, we ask you to “hitch up” and enjoy the beginning of a great church year.  There are new things happening every day.  Worship includes something special every week. Rally Day on Kumbak Sunday is the prefect time to refresh good habits.  See you in church!

~ Tracie

Pastor Ponderings – August

10 Aug 2010 Leave a Comment

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Albert Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of each passenger. When he came to Einstein, the professor reached in his vest pocket. He couldn’t find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets. It wasn’t there either, so he checked his briefcase, but still couldn’t locate it. He examined the seat beside him, but it wasn’t to be found.

The conductor said, “Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I’m sure you bought a ticket. Don’t worry about it.

Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the renowned physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for the still missing ticket. The conductor rushed back and said, “Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don’t worry, I know who you are. There’s not a problem. You don’t need a ticket. I’m sure you bought one.” The professor looked at him and said, “Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don’t know is where I’m going.”

David Noreen writes in Senior Lifestyles that Billy Graham was asked to attend a special luncheon given by the local municipality to celebrate his 90th birthday. He attended in a new suit. He began by telling the Einstein story and then said, “My children and grandchildren are telling me that I’ve gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and for one more occasion.”

Graham looked intently at those gathered. “You is the suit in which I’ll be buried. But when you hear I’m dead, I don’t want you to immediately remember the suit I’m wearing. I want you to remember this …,” and he said: “I not only know who I am…I also know where I’m going.”

It seems to me that it is all too easy to lose track of whom we are and where we are headed just now. The world moves ever more swiftly while we slow down a bit more every year. We must choose to work with technology regularly or lose our ability to keep up. Television remotes of today are more complicated than any toy I had as a child. They now do more than my first computer! Fixing a modern automobile requires computer help and (almost) a PhD!

Interpersonal dynamics have changed. The old fashioned idea of dropping by has all but disappeared. Facebook has replaced it for many of the Boomers. Families live farther and farther apart. The hard thing is that none of this is new to our generation. We know what is going on; we do not know how to deal with it.

Fortunately, faith does not change. Worship trends come and go, but God is the One who remains constant. God knows who we are. God has a place for us. It is this basic faith-relationship that provides a foundation for knowing whose we are – as well as where we are going.

…Tracie

May Pastor’s Ponderings

02 May 2010 Leave a Comment

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Just over a year ago this congregation faced a hard project. Our roof was leaking – BADLY! The organ was at risk, as were several rooms. It was a big mess. A committee went to work (well, after all, we are Presbyterians) and we began to address the problem. We used a dog, faith in each other, and faith in God’s plan for this congregation. We fixed the problem.
We not only fixed the roof, we also repaired our Christ window, replaced the Memorial Hall door that was allowing vandals to enter, and now we have replaced our building’s outmoded lighting with modern, effective fixtures. The exciting thing is that we have accomplished all of this without short-changing our usual mission. We have done well.
What mission, you ask? What aspects of our church life are really mission? What are we doing? How do we know it is mission? Session has committed to wrestling with just these questions.
Traditionally, mission in American churches has consisted of coordinating activities, planning mission projects and trips, writing checks, and maintaining contact with mission workers. This is most often done by a committee. These activities are based on the understanding that mission is defined as the act of going to another place, or of doing something for someone else. There is a catch. These definitions make mission about us.
Mission starts with God, not with us. It is God who sent the Son into the world. Christ, the Son then sends the church in the power of the Holy Spirit into the world. Thus, mission becomes how we understand God’s dynamic relationship to the world. The church’s relationship to the world is located within this dynamic relationship because the church has the privilege of participating in God’s mission, but mission belongs to God, not to the church.
When we participate in this outreach, we act as partners with God, full partners. We make prayerful decisions, we take prayerful action. We serve God by serving others. It sounds simple. Sadly, it is not.
• If mission is about God and not about us, some difficult questions come into play.
• Is it OK to enjoy doing mission or must it always involve difficult sacrifice?
• Must mission be funded only internally or can some of the funding come from doing the mission itself?
• Is writing a check required? Is it enough?
• Is it moral to be both the doer and the receiver of mission efforts?
• Is a church a doer of mission, a receiver of mission, or both? Should it be both?
• How we to discern what missions are are ours?
• Can a stained glass window or a door be mission? If so – for whom?
• If mission ultimately has to do with accepting Jesus Christ as our savior and with forming a relationship with God, where do modern activities such as fund raising, music programs, children’s activities, and committee meetings fit in?
• What does it mean if some of them do not?
Obviously, I could go on forever and list questions until we all run out of paper. While I do not intend to do this, I do find it important that we question, study, pray, and try to discover what God is Calling us to do. This church is more than a building, but the building does count. Coming to worship involves more than looking at a stained glass window, but that window is a part of the RMPC history that impels us to do mission and to wrestle with its definition and its implications. If we all are Called to mission, then we are Called to mission as ourselves. This means that we all, with our diverse gifts, ideas, strengths and even our weaknesses have a place in God’s plan. No one idea will be valid in solitude; no single approach can be used to the exclusion of others. If mission is about God and includes the people of God – present and future – then it begins with and must be a group effort. – Tracie

April Pastor’s Ponderings

06 Apr 2010 Leave a Comment

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Pastor’s Ponderings…

I like bunnies as much as the next person. You probably like bunnies, too. But this is not a time to be confused about the reason for Easter. It’s not about rabbits distributing eggs, oohing and aahing over cute baby chicks or remembering Judy Garland in an outlandish hat for the “Easter Parade.”

On Easter we celebrate the historical fact that nearly 2,000 years ago a man died, lay in a grave for three days and then got up and began walking around again, telling people that God loves them. It sounds like an episode of Twilight Zone, but it is even better than great SciFi. This is real.

I remember reading the story of a medieval Christian and learned man who fell upon hard times near the end of his life. Old and extremely sick, he was rescued from the street and brought to a hospital. Believing the man was unconscious, one doctor spoke to another, saying “What shall we do with this poor, worthless creature?” Upon hearing this, the man raised up from his bed, and cried out, “Do not call that man worthless for whom Christ died!” If the crucifixion and resurrection are ever to truly take hold in our life and become more than historical events, we must appreciate this point.

We spend a huge chunk of our lives pursuing acceptance and approval from various sources: our parents, our spouses, our children, our friends, our bosses. We wrestle with self-esteem and self-worth. We spend our lives seeking to establish our own unique significance. The nature of the quest is that we can’t quite do it alone.

It is rare that we fully confess, even to ourselves, how desperately we crave this affirmation and approval, but God sees it, and knows its origin and its solution. Our worth in God’s eyes is rooted in the fact that Jesus Christ was willing to die for each one of us – that He came specifically to fill the voids in your heart and mine.

For Good Friday and Easter to change us, we must allow our quest for significance to lead us to Calvary and a personal encounter with Christ. For it is only at the foot of the cross that we can truly comprehend the depth of God’s love and acceptance. It is only then that we can look at the mirror each morning, and see the one for whom Christ died.

-With help from Rich M., Easter in Cyberspace

March Pastor’s Ponderings

04 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment

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From the PEW Forum. Frankly, I could not have said it better. – Tracie

3 QUESTIONS FOR THE CHURCH

Michael Himes, a theology professor who advises students at Boston College, suggests that, when we are facing vocational questions, we should ask ourselves three questions:

- What gives us joy?

- What are we good at?

- Do other people need us to do it?

While Himes conceived of these questions primarily in terms of individual discernment, they can just as easily be asked by a local church. Many churches struggle with questions of mission, ministry, and identity. Who are we? Who is God calling us to become? What is God calling us to do? What if a church began asking itself these same three questions?

What gives us joy?

Every church engages in multiple activities. Some clearly bring joy, whether they require great effort or are relatively easy. Others do not bring joy, and some of these require great effort. Joy is much more than feeling good or happy or content with ourselves. It is the sense of peace, calm, and strength that ultimately comes from God’s presence in our lives and our aligning our activity with God’s purpose for us. Some activities call forth joy and others do not. Even activities that are painful to do can produce joy in the end. If something consistently does not call forth joy, we need to honestly and seriously reflect on whether it is something God is calling us to do. What if the members of a local church began asking this question about the various things they do as a church? Would they have the wisdom and courage to let go of some things that did not bring or call forth joy? Would they have the courage to try some new things that may or may not be joyful?

What are we good at?

People have multiple and sometimes conflicting expectations of a church. It is impossible to meet everyone’s expectations. Can a local church focus on its strengths and nurture them? Can a local church let go of unrealistic expectations that aren’t really from God? A church does not have to limit itself to what it is already doing. It may very discover it is good at a lot of things that it hasn’t tried yet. The only way to find out is to try them. But a church also needs to be willing to graciously let go of unrealistic expectations and of things that it may have done in the past but is no longer able to do now.

Do other people need us to do it?

What does God need the church to do, not only for its members but also for the world? The church today has become too focused on itself. As important as our community life is, it can’t become our only or even our primary focus. From the day of Pentecost, the church has been called to open its doors and to live God’s good news in the world. We need to claim this calling anew.

Himes stresses that vocational discernment for individuals does not take place in a vacuum. We need other people to discern with us, especially about the second and third questions. The same is true of our local churches. Churches need other churches to discern with them who they are and who God is calling them to become. This was the basis of our early associations and conferences. How can churches help each other to claim their joy, assess their strengths, and do God’s work in the world?

It’s hard to ask these questions and can be even harder answer them honestly. But not asking them at all can, in the end, be even worse. If we don’t ask them, we may experience joy less and less often. We may lose the ability to distinguish our strengths from our weaknesses. We may become useless to others and even to ourselves.

Jesus didn’t avoid the hard questions. Neither should we.

- Pastor Tracie

February – 2010

01 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment

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Friends, it is February. Now some of us will cheer because February contains Valentine ’s Day, Mardi Gras, and Groundhog Day. Others will grumble because of the snow and cold. For me the month of February is altogether too short. I like the cold and snow of this month – at least at the beginning. February comes as we finally begin to breathe again after the Christmas holidays. The very best Februarys contain at least one snowy day when I can curl up on the couch, read a book, and wait for the soup to cook. Beans, celery, onions and a bay leaf smell especially great when it is snowing and bean soup simmers just enough that one can get comfortable. Still, it is the end of the month that really thrills me. As February ends, the very earliest signs of spring begin to show. When I was a child we used to look for signs of spring every weekend. We would bring in branches to see if they could be forced to bloom. In February the forsythia and pussy willow bloom easiest. The birds begin to sing differently as the month wanes. As soon as we hear “crowsong” we know that the angle of the sun has changed and our part of the earth is moving into warmth. The chickadees remain silent, but a sunbeam will bring so many to the feeder that one wonders if Alfred Hitchcock might be making another film. The bottom line for February is transition. Transition seldom goes as one expects because transition is not something one ever truly controls. Transition is something one experiences. We steer as well as we can, knowing that even if we have a goal firmly in mind there will always be unknowns and surprises. In a lot of ways, this congregation is in a February time. We have so much to celebrate; we have been truly blessed in our journey together. We have things that need attention. We have signs that things will be different – even better. We can also forecast some storms and need to make sure that our weather gear is ready. In short, friends, we are moving – changing – growing – and finding our way. This takes work; it takes prayer. Most of all, however, it takes listening and looking for signs. Listen to one another. Hear where there is joy and where there are concerns. Listen to God. See what God might whisper in your ear. Then respond as you can. Transition cannot be accomplished by one or two people. Transition takes a group who will commit to flexibility together. If we look at the transitions we have already experienced in our time together we might just be impressed. Having come so far – what might God have in store for us now? -Tracie

Pastor Ponderings – January 2010

16 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment

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Where are we? Is 2010 the end of this decade or the beginning of the next? It is a bit hard to tell, but the assumption that there was no year “0” tells me that 2010 ends the first decade of the 2000’s. Why is this important? I have no idea, but it fascinates me. I remember all of the angst and concern as 2000 approached. Would computers all die? Was it the end of the world? I remember watching with disbelief as a minister colleague of mine plowed his entire farm (newly purchased) and planted field after field of squash. He was convinced that civilization as we knew it was about to cease and he wanted to make sure he could feed everyone in his congregation until their “country roots” took over and they created a successful agrarian society. Sadly, he had very little farming experience, and he did not ask for advice. He wanted to surprise his flock with his care. The Zucchini squash he grew and stored did not last as long as Blue Hubbard might. The stench was quite amazing. My colleague’s congregation was well cared for that year, but not by a panic of squash. They laughed and teased him about his cellar for quite some time. He learned to investigate projects a bit more carefully; they learned just how far he would go to help them. He has moved on to another church, but the bonds of friendship and the story have both been quite long lasting. This is a good thing, but the lesson would have smelled better if he had asked for help. I find that I am all too often like my colleague. The pastorate can tend to make me feel the necessity of keeping it all together and leading without questioning whether question might help or someone else could lead as well – or even better. As this congregation and our ministry continues to grow, I am going to need help discerning what is mine to do and what is not. The biggest problem is that I LOVE being in the middle of the many events and programs here at RMPC. Help me find moderation. 2009 has been a banner year for RMPC. We replaced our roof, continued to grow our Sunday school, continued to grow in worship and program participation. We found Mort and have modified our worship style. We have taken good care of our building as well as our spirits. We have grown together and expanded our ministry. What next? As Mort says, “Flushed with success, we travel on.” Angel Food will get a boost as we publicize and grow our service base. ROAM will continue to grow with new programs and ideas. New ministries will open up – things we cannot even imagine today – and we will need to decide whether or not God might be Calling us in those directions. Friends, this community is stronger and better for the existence of RMPC. We have taken the efforts of the faithful who came before us and built something important. When I think of those I have known in just my few years and add the stories you have told me, I am humbled. We come from good stock. It is our duty as well as our joy to continue to build and to reach out into the community. I love it when a person says, “Robinson Memorial, isn’t that the church that is so busy? Are you that praying church? Could you pray for my………………..” You get the idea, I am sure. I am very proud of our reputation. Of course, “pride goeth before a fall.” We cannot rest on our laurels. That is neither faithful nor prudent. God is Calling us to continue to work, pray, and stretch our boundaries. God has placed us here and given us tasks. We are to witness to the value of an older adult ministry, help our older adults celebrate their spirituality, and feed them in several ways. We are to continue to support and nurture our children as they grow, and welcome their friends with open hearts. Most of all, I feel that we are called to celebrate. In the New Year, I plan to celebrate a lot. There is a lot to celebrate! Beginning a new decade or ending an older one? Who cares? This is going to be fun. A Note of Thanks, Bill and I thank the congregation so very much for the lovely Christmas surprise we received on Christmas Sunday. We truly appreciate it and all the gifts we were given for the holidays. The best gift, however, is that we get to work with this Amazing congregation. 2010 is going to be a great, GREAT year. Tracie