Scattered Reflections on Temping / Pilgrimage Wk 4
Background; I am currently working half-time for St. Peter's UCC, and all the other time possible for a temp agency.
"Scattered" is the operative word; perhaps you will percieve a theme I have not and can comment back to me. I will try to frame these thoughts as part of my own faith journey, and not as blanket proscriptions or generalizations.
Have you heard of the "tentmaking" model of being a pastor? The idea is that the apostle Paul, while he was travelling around shepherding new groups of Christians, maintained his trade (tentmaking) to support his ministry. He was not a full-time, professional, salaried pastor; there's a security and a perspective to be had for people in ministry who follow that model. After two years of full-time professional ministry, I've been tentmaking this month.
It's revived my respect for the struggle between working a regular job (and probably having a family in the household, which I don't) and then trying to be involved in a faith community. It's a lot to do!
Jody and I do well at keeping our message concrete, real, and the temp experience is affirming and re-emphasizing the importance of that. If we learn anything from Jesus, it's that the whole message must be complete at the ground level. Higher-level abstract theology is fine and good and even interesting to me at times, but our core truths and ways of living are something we share with uneducated, first-century peasants.
I feel like I'm walking a fine line here. I'm not saying that we ought to be stuck in the past, stuck in a book, or stuck in an understanding of God's truth that people had two thousand years ago. I'm saying that the basics - Christ loves us, do not be afraid, care for others and the world and live in communities of love so outstanding that the world is compelled to pay attention - are necessarily expressed and embodied in offices, garages, homes, farms, factories, and on the street.
Tentmaking is freeing me up to follow Jesus a little differently, and have some distance from the expectations placed, by others and by myself, on a full-time professional minister.
This leads, in my case, to a new struggle to integrate my identity as a full-time steward in Christ's service with a professional life that consists largely of stuffing envelopes, data entry, making phone calls, and other busywork that keeps large businesses running. While affirming that free markets, reasonably regulated, have created an explosion of economic well-being since the Enlightenment, I'm not sure how I feel about my new role as a grunt in the world economy. How does that fit (or not fit) with my sense of stewardship? My pop band raises the same question, albeit in a more fun way.
Note - I'm being completely un-ironic. The kindness and common courtesy I've encountered, even doing phone surveys, is inspiring. Maybe it's just Midwesterners. But I'm impressed and encouraged, folks. Together, let's keep that up. There's hope for us yet.
----
Pulling a piece from Eric's comment to the previous post up to the top level, "This post... reminds me of a one-sentence definition of salvation I came up with several years ago. It took me six weeks of work, prayer, and worship to come up with the single sentence, but it has stuck with me ever since. It's not so much a definition (as if salvation could really be defined, or words themselves could express the majesty and implications) as an indication - a pointing in a certain direction. And it touches on some of the points you made. So here it is: 'Salvation is discovering you are loved beyond your wildest imagination and determining to live your life according to this discovery.'"
This sentence, of course, made its way in to the Phoenix Affirmations.
----
The Pilgrimage last night was a small group gathered from the (so-far) usual crowd. Nothing earthshaking. OR... is a group of "two or more..." focused on listening for God's still-small voice and committed/committing to lives of stewardship, caring for God's people and universe, inherently earthshaking? No matter how (un/)emotional, or (un/)"successful," or quiet or humble such a fellowship is?
That's the question, isn't it? :-)
Is sacrificial love really what it's about?
I'm in a long process of betting my life on it.
"Scattered" is the operative word; perhaps you will percieve a theme I have not and can comment back to me. I will try to frame these thoughts as part of my own faith journey, and not as blanket proscriptions or generalizations.
Have you heard of the "tentmaking" model of being a pastor? The idea is that the apostle Paul, while he was travelling around shepherding new groups of Christians, maintained his trade (tentmaking) to support his ministry. He was not a full-time, professional, salaried pastor; there's a security and a perspective to be had for people in ministry who follow that model. After two years of full-time professional ministry, I've been tentmaking this month.
It's revived my respect for the struggle between working a regular job (and probably having a family in the household, which I don't) and then trying to be involved in a faith community. It's a lot to do!
Jody and I do well at keeping our message concrete, real, and the temp experience is affirming and re-emphasizing the importance of that. If we learn anything from Jesus, it's that the whole message must be complete at the ground level. Higher-level abstract theology is fine and good and even interesting to me at times, but our core truths and ways of living are something we share with uneducated, first-century peasants.
I feel like I'm walking a fine line here. I'm not saying that we ought to be stuck in the past, stuck in a book, or stuck in an understanding of God's truth that people had two thousand years ago. I'm saying that the basics - Christ loves us, do not be afraid, care for others and the world and live in communities of love so outstanding that the world is compelled to pay attention - are necessarily expressed and embodied in offices, garages, homes, farms, factories, and on the street.
Tentmaking is freeing me up to follow Jesus a little differently, and have some distance from the expectations placed, by others and by myself, on a full-time professional minister.
This leads, in my case, to a new struggle to integrate my identity as a full-time steward in Christ's service with a professional life that consists largely of stuffing envelopes, data entry, making phone calls, and other busywork that keeps large businesses running. While affirming that free markets, reasonably regulated, have created an explosion of economic well-being since the Enlightenment, I'm not sure how I feel about my new role as a grunt in the world economy. How does that fit (or not fit) with my sense of stewardship? My pop band raises the same question, albeit in a more fun way.
Note - I'm being completely un-ironic. The kindness and common courtesy I've encountered, even doing phone surveys, is inspiring. Maybe it's just Midwesterners. But I'm impressed and encouraged, folks. Together, let's keep that up. There's hope for us yet.
----
Pulling a piece from Eric's comment to the previous post up to the top level, "This post... reminds me of a one-sentence definition of salvation I came up with several years ago. It took me six weeks of work, prayer, and worship to come up with the single sentence, but it has stuck with me ever since. It's not so much a definition (as if salvation could really be defined, or words themselves could express the majesty and implications) as an indication - a pointing in a certain direction. And it touches on some of the points you made. So here it is: 'Salvation is discovering you are loved beyond your wildest imagination and determining to live your life according to this discovery.'"
This sentence, of course, made its way in to the Phoenix Affirmations.
----
The Pilgrimage last night was a small group gathered from the (so-far) usual crowd. Nothing earthshaking. OR... is a group of "two or more..." focused on listening for God's still-small voice and committed/committing to lives of stewardship, caring for God's people and universe, inherently earthshaking? No matter how (un/)emotional, or (un/)"successful," or quiet or humble such a fellowship is?
That's the question, isn't it? :-)
Is sacrificial love really what it's about?
I'm in a long process of betting my life on it.
Scattered Reflections on Temping / Pilgrimage Wk 4 posted by St. Peter's UCC at Monday, November 20, 2006
2 Comments:
Hey Howie,
Again, a thought-provoking post! I especially like your comment about being in a long process of betting your life on your beliefs. I also enjoyed "Collaborate" on your Five Star Crush site. Groovin'! Those grooves, along with your thoughts on keeping the faith real for new generations remind me of a fantastic sermon I heard preached at the Harry Emerson Fosdick Preaching Convocation at Riverside Church in NYC several weeks ago by Rev. Otis Moss III (a pastor at Chicago's Trinity UCC). I think you'd love the sermon, which can be viewed at:
http://www.iian.ibeam.com/events/rive001/20293/
Scroll down to Wednesday morning where he preaches and click on the "View" button. If you want to skip ahead to the juiciest stuff, move the slider ahead to around 44:00 and keep watching through 54:00. Trust me, it will be well worth the 10 minutes!
Tomorrow, in fact, I'm going to put a white sheet over me and have Otis Moss projected on the sheet in worship to symbolically "take on his message" (from 47:00-54:00, but be sure to view the 3-4 min before it).
BTW, we start our new service, Reverb, Dec 3rd! I would imagine we'll have a small group to start, too, but that's OK. Gives more freedom to make mistakes ...!
Nice post Howie. I got to know you a bit and liked that. My journey to the pastorate came 20+ years after bible college and after an early retirement from Corporate America (CA).
I have found that many many of my CA skills have helped me in ministry ... project management, computer skills, time manangement and many other have complemented my ministry.
So, here's wishing you the best in life as you grow in ministry and make a few tents along the way!
Blessings, Bob
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