oh, oh, forgiveness

We are only whole when we share in the brokenness of others.

I was reminded of this yesterday. I was reminded because someone said it.

In the same setting, I was asked to consider forgiveness. And I was reminded what forgiveness means.

We’ve all heard people say (or have said ourselves—I plea guilty) with hate and anger and resentment the words: “I will forgive, but I will never EVER forget.”

That’s not forgiveness.

But forgiveness does not HAVE to mean forgetting. You do not have to forget to forgive.

But you have to forgive without gritting your teeth, clenching your hands, curling your toes, or…growling.

“Well what did he do to ever deserve my forgiveness?” we ask.

Nothing. He did nothing to deserve your forgiveness. She has only ever hurt you. She only left you to feel abandoned. He made you feel powerless and alone.

So what did these people ever do? Nothing, really…

But here is what I needed to be reminded of among many other things yesterday: I don’t deserve God’s forgiveness. I am not entitled to it. God does not owe me forgiveness. God doesn’t owe me anything.

But I and you and all are so deeply loved by God, all equally undeserving of grace and love and mercy and FORGIVENESS. But in love—BIG GOD-SIZED LOVE, we have received all of those things. We didn’t earn them. We still mess up. I still do things for which I am ashamed.

But whenever I decide to stop walking away from God. Whenever I decide to stop—pivot—face God—and start walking again—I will not be facing a back, but a front. I will be received again. I will be forgiven. I will be aware again of the love that I had forgotten, but never left me. I will be engulfed by love.

So why is it so hard for us to forgive each other? Or ourselves? Sometimes, I think, we feel like forgiveness is like giving up and surrendering and saying, “You win, person who hurt me very much.”

But I don’t think so. I think we are really confused. Forgiveness is not only for the person receiving it. It is for the person giving it. It is to free us up from the bondage of our anger and resentment. Forgiveness sets us free to love in a way that we were and are loved by others and God.

Forgiveness is for God. It strengthens God’s kingdom and expands God’s love on earth.

I’m not telling you to forget. But I bet once you forgive, it’ll be a lot easier to let go of remembering.

Forgive someone. Forgive yourself. It’s liberating. It’s beautiful to be set free.

And God has forgiven us. Even though none of us deserved it. We are all broken. And it is in sharing in one another’s brokenness that we are made whole. Sharing in God’s amazing endless unconditional love.

You are loved.

are we there yet?

In a press conference sort of thing right after the presidential election, President Elect Obama was asked about a timetable for selecting and announcing his cabinet. He said he planned to move with “deliberate haste.”

I really liked this phrase. I think deliberate haste is an interesting way to think of patience.

We all have visions. Not that we are prophets or anything, but we do definitely have ideas of what our lives might look like one day. What we want to do. Who we want to become. What we want our lives to mean.

We have HOPES for the FUTURE.

This Sunday was the first Sunday of advent. When we think of advent and the Christmas season, we are often inclined focus on remembering and celebrating the birth of Jesus. But what we should be compelled to consider and celebrate is that Jesus Christ will come again!

Reverend Christina preached on this first Sunday of advent. And she told this great story about an experience she had waiting for a delayed flight. I hope I do this justice, because it was awesome:

A little girl was waiting with her mom for the same flight as Christina and asked incessantly, “When’s the plane comin’, mama?” The mom didn’t know and insisted that her daughter just wait. When this answer became unsatisfying, the little girl even asked Christina…maybe a stranger would have a better answer! But Christina didn’t know and they all continued to wait together. Every plane that the little girl saw in the distance would be pointed out and she would say, “Look! Our plane’s a-comin’, mama!” Or, “Is that our plane, mama?” Over and over. Plane after plane. Finally, one got closer and closer to the gate and the little girl could excitedly say for sure, “Our plane’s a-comin’, mama! It’s REALLY a-comin’ this time!” And the rest of the crowd, including our Reverend Christina, joined in the little girl’s excitement said, “Our plane’s a-comin’, mama!”

What a great image! What a great story! What a great example of the kind of waiting we should do. That is the way we should wait for the things we hope for in our lives. That is the way we should wait for the coming of the Lord.

We should wait with our faces and hands pressed against a window. We should exhibit a kind of active patience.

When I was told to be patient as a child, I usually thought that meant to not ask again. To be quiet and not do anything. Haha—I’m pretty sure I thought it meant to stop being annoying.

But I think patience is different than that. I think patience should look more like “deliberate haste.” I think it should be active. In our patience, I think we should exhibit a kind of productive anticipation.

Our waiting doesn’t have to be lazy. As we wait to see how our lives will turn out, we have to do something. We have to work hard. We have to apply to schools. We have to go to class. We have to build relationships. We have to remain connected to our families. We have to be good friends. We have to KEEP MOVING.

As we wait for the coming of the Lord, we have to DO SOMETHING. We have to serve our neighbors. We have to edify our own faith. We have to attend worship and make ourselves physically part of the body of Christ. We have to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our communities. We have to live with care and compassion for the world God has created and the world Jesus Christ will return to. We have to DO while we WAIT.

Deliberate haste. Productive anticipation. Active patience. Now get out there, and WAIT!

in the presence of another

Hey team.

So I’ve been thinking about a story a lot lately. I am taking a preaching class and I did my most recent sermon on 1 Samuel Chapter 3. But part of our preparation for preaching is reading commentaries. We have to look at at least three, preferably more, and find out what the greatest biblical minds think about the passage. We are supposed to think for ourselves but consider the scholars, both modern and ancient.

In reading this stuff, I found out that I understood the story completely differently than any of the people whose job it is to interpret it. Not a good sign, right? No. I don’t think so. But the more I read it, the more I got comfortable with reading it differently.

In this story, Samuel is a really young boy and he was dedicated to the service of the Lord by his mother at birth. So he has lived with Eli, who is the high priest at Shiloh for his entire life. Samuel is lying down to sleep when he hears his name called. So he RUNS to Eli, thinking he must need him. But Eli says he didn’t call. So Samuel goes back to bed and this happens a second time. And the third time Samuel hears his name called out and runs to Eli, Eli realizes it is the Lord calling Samuel. So Eli tells him to go back and lay down, but this time, if his name is called, he should say, “Speak Lord for your servant is listening” (vs. 9).

So Samuel goes back to his sleeping place and lays down and the Lord appears to him and calls his name and Samuel says, “Speak Lord, for you servant is listening.” And the Lord speaks to Samuel a message against Eli’s house that Samuel is later expected to share with Eli. Not a situation I would want to be in. But Eli takes the news really well and responds by saying, “He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes.” And in projecting forward, we learn that the Lord was with Samuel and Samuel’s word came to all Israel.

This story is oftentimes called, “The Call of Samuel.” Maybe so. Okay. But here is what I read. I saw a little boy who had something really strange happening to him. He was confused, and tired, and was caught in this back and forth agility test. It was probably a really unnerving set of events. For Eli and Samuel. But together, they figured out what was happening. With the comfort and support of Eli, Samuel realized what was happening to him. With the comfort and support of Samuel, Eli received his bad news.

I read a message of community. A story that tells me I can’t do anything alone. As much as I want to, I can’t. I need someone like Eli to help me figure out my life…my gifts, my weaknesses. I need someone like Eli to point me to the thing that will give me life. And I most importantly need people like Eli to remind me of my identity as being part of something much bigger than myself—as part of the church. That whatever I do with my life, may it be because it is simultaneously my greatest desire and the world’s greatest need. I am only fully myself by being part of something bigger than myself.


So, what do you all think? If you have the time to read this story (or this blog), what do you hear? Is it purely a call story or a dream story or a community story or a something-altogether-different story? Are you where you are in your life because someone like Eli was there to point you in that direction?

All Good Things...

Dear Ones,

By this title I do not mean the Nelly Furtado video. I do not mean the movie of the same title coming out next year. And I most certainly do not mean the Mandy Moore song. If you thought of the last episode of Star Trek the Next Generation, you're in the ballpark. I remember watching that series finale in the basement of my college dorm with a bunch of other people...but I digress. I refer with the title of this post to my position as Student Assistant Pastor with BUMC. This Sunday, August 24th, is my last Sunday both on staff and as a regular part of the worshipping community.
I do not, however, consider it the end of my relationship with BUMC. You are all in my heart, as I hope I am in yours. As I have been saying, its been a challenging and wonderful journey these past two years. The Book of Worship of the UMC has an Order of Farewell to a Pastor in it. Part of that ceremony is for both the pastor and the congregation to offer and ask for forgiveness from each other. So I do with you: I ask for forgiveness, and I offer to you as well.

But, of course, the story cannot end there. And while 'all good things must come to an end', the band Semisonic reminds us that 'every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end.' It is with joy that I tell you that the new seminarian entering into relationship with college students is Casey Langley (see pic)! She's goes to school at Princeton Theological Seminary, and I'm excited about her coming on board at BUMC. Friend her on Facebook!

As for the older young adults (a.k.a., the young professional types), they have created their own ministry group called Bridges. They will be in relationship with a different seminarian, Mike Sparrow (see pic) from Drew Theological School.

My friends, go in peace and go with God. Pray for me, as I pray for you. Consider Christ in all that you do.

Blessings,
Kevin

Ghosts of Cold Wars past

Hello my friends,

Just some jots and tittles today, as I see it's been too long since I last posted. This upcoming Sunday is my last sermon at BUMC. If you can make either the 8:30 or 10:00am service, it would be good to see you. If you haven't heard yet, the blood donation/lunch plan is off for tomorrow - there was no one who could give me a definite yes that they were going to participate.
In other news...when I was a "young-an", it was sort of like living in the middle of an action movie. We, the United States, were the good guys. And our enemy, on the other side of the world, the Evil Empire, was the USSR. Being a Cold War kid was quite an experience. I figured it was something that you all would miss out on. BUT, what I'm seeing out of Russia these days is sort of frightening. Putin is an old-school KGB guy, and he's pulling the same kind of stunts that I used to see as a kid. 'Taint good, as we say up north.
The Olympics are underway, and our own Michael Phelps is doing his best fish impression. It's amazing how as a race, humanity keeps bettering itself physically. We keep reaching new peaks of physical ability. If only the same could be said for us as a race, spiritually. But I fear that is not the case. That makes me curious...I wonder what a Spiritual Olympics would look like? What events would there be, and how would you judge them? Things that make you go hmmm...
That's all for the moment. My last Sunday at the church will be the 24th. Whenever it is I send out my last blog post, I'll do my best to introduce you to the seminarian(s) who are joining the ranks of BUMC once the new school year starts.
Be well my friends.

Peace,
Kevin

PS I've decided I'm going to wear a Hawaiian shirt to my wedding instead of a tux...what do you think of the above pic? Can you picture that with a black suit jacket?

Sunday, Bloody Sunday!....er, Saturday.

Have you ever taken a close listen to U2's song "Sunday, Bloody Sunday"? There are some folks who are die-hard U2 fans who have never realized that there is a deep Christian perspective to much of their music. Check out the lyrics..

I can't believe the news today
I can't close my eyes and make it go away.
How long, how long must we sing this song?
How long, how long?
'Cos tonight
We can be as one, tonight.

Broken bottles under children's feet
Bodies strewn across the dead-end street.
But I won't heed the battle call
It puts my back up, puts my back up against the wall.

Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Oh, let's go.

And the battle's just begun
There's many lost, but tell me who has won?
The trenches dug within our hearts
And mothers, children, brothers, sisters [Matthew 10:35]
Torn apart.

Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.

How long, how long must we sing this song?
How long, how long?
'Cos tonight
We can be as one, tonight.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.

Wipe the tears from your eyes
Wipe your tears away.
I'll wipe your tears away.
I'll wipe your tears away.
I'll wipe your bloodshot eyes.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.
Sunday, bloody Sunday.

And it's true we are immune
When fact is fiction and TV reality.
And today the millions cry
We eat and drink while tomorrow they die. [1 Corinthians 15:32]

The real battle just begun
To claim the victory Jesus won
On...

Sunday, bloody Sunday
Sunday, bloody Sunday..

Where I have put in [] there is a scripture reference in that line...and of course, check out the part at the end: To claim the victory Jesus won. This is a political protest song, but it's also much more than that.

So take a closer listen to what you may think is secular music...sometimes you'll be pleasantly surprised to find that faith is flying just below the radar.

And speaking of blood...the last Young Adult activity while I'm around will be Saturday, August 16th. We'll be going to the Blood Donation Center in Princeton. Meet at the church at 9am and we'll head over. Then, after we all have donated blood, we'll grab some lunch. If you haven't already, get back to me by this Sunday, the 10th, so I know how many will be going.

Alright - be well my friends!
Peace,
Kevin

Wednesday July 23rd in the Year of Our Lord, 2008.

Hey Folks,

Here are just a few random thoughts tossed together...more 'blog-esque' than I usually am, I think...

Romans 14:13 says “Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother [or sister].” (English Standard Version) I tend to spend a lot of time talking about things pertinent to your personal faith journey...but this scripture verse reminds me that you also need to be sensitive of the faith journey of others.

I'm writing this blog update from the staff retreat. We are at Rev. Vicki's lake house, planning out the preaching topics and hymns for the next year. 'Nuff said about that.

Be aware of and pray for those dealing with hurricane Polly in Texas, please.

A lot of speculation about who McCain and Obama will choose for their running mates. It brought a question to mind...who would Jesus choose as his vice presidential running mate? Well, let's first look at how people go about choosing running mates. One way is to choose someone who is strong where you are weak. For instance, If the candidate is popular in the northeast and the midwest, he or she might want a candidate from the south. Or if the candidate doesn't have a lot of, say foreign diplomacy experience, he or she might want a running mate with a strong background in that field. Some think that you want a running mate with some name recognition and/or gravitas. Some think (particularly in this election, on the Democratic side) that a close primary contest means that the loser should be the running mate. But how do we apply any of these criteria to Jesus? No one has better name recognition, he doesn't have any weak spots to round out, and he has all the experience he needs. He is the total package. I suppose there is one other running mate criteria...personal compatibility. If the candidate and the running mate are polar opposites, then it makes for a pretty bumpy presidency. If haven't figured out where this is headed, let me make it explicit: Jesus would be picking you as his running mate. There's no one who is more wants to be with you more than He.

Peace, and have a good one.
Kevin

PS In the Roman Catholic tradition, today's saint is St. Bridget of Sweden (see pic). Go here for more information.

Bishops and such...

Greetings my friends,

There is much going on...here are some highlights:

-The Lambeth Conference of the Episcopal Church has just kicked off. This is a once a decade meeting of all the bishops of the Anglican Communion. Ya see, there are several churches (Episcopal Church, Church of England, United Church of Canada, etc.) that all operate independently but are part of this larger organization – the Anglican Communion. Once every ten years, all the bishops in the larger organization get together, smile a lot, pray, and debate the issues of the day. Some suggestions and decisions come out of it, but ultimately the individual churches are still more or less free to do what they want...it's almost like the UN I guess, but with funny hats and robes.

-Speaking of Bishops, the Northeastern Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church just elected a new Bishop. It was Rev. Peggy Johnson from the Baltimore-Washington Conference. Our own Rev. Vicki was once of the candidates in the running! The Jurisdiction's loss is our gain, and Rev. Vicki will continue to be our pastor here in Bridgewater for a time longer (hurray!).

-Since we're on the topic of bishops...here's some fast facts. During medieval times, the Church found the use of the bishop as a chess piece to be blasphemous. So for a time the piece was changed to be a court jester. The current bishop of the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference of the UMC (that's this conference!) is Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar (see pic). The denominations that have bishops are: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, United Methodist, Lutheran, Assyrian Church of the East, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (and perhaps others...there are LOTS of denominations out there). Joey Bishop was an entertainer who was part of the “Rat Pack” with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and Peter Lawford (see pic).

Oh, and I do have one non-Bishop piece of news...I've gotten engaged! My fiancee, Jill, is a seminarian at Princeton, and we're both happy and excited about entering this new stage of our relationship (see pic). We haven't set a date yet, but we are looking at the summer of 2010.

That's all for now my friends. Be well.

Peace,

Kevin

We Are All Integral Pieces of Life's Puzzle

I’m sure you’re aware of who Stephen Hawking is…and if you aren’t, you should be - stop texting the person next to you and look him up. He is one of the top minds in the world, and has been for decades. His brilliance is off the charts, and his career has been astounding. It is made even more so because he has spent most of his adult life bound to a wheelchair and unable to speak with his voice. But, that hasn’t stopped him from aiding humanity and furthering our understanding of how the universe works…it also hasn’t stopped him from experiencing weightlessness. Those of us who are not otherly-abled typically figure that people with his condition (Motor Neurone Disease and Amyotropic Lateral Sclerosis) need our help more than we need their help. But Stephen Hawking breaks that mold for us. He is an example of a universal truth: each one of us plays an important part in the world, regardless of who we are or our life circumstances.

This truth is illuminated brightly in places such as L’Arche communities. These are intentional communities where people who are otherly-abled live side by side with those who are not. These two groups learn from each other – they are not simply caretaker facilities.

It is when we realize our interdependence with others, on multiple levels, that the presence of God becomes that much more tangible. Be well my friends.

Peace,

Kevin

Pittsburgh Mission Trip: Canceled

Well folks, I have an unfortunate announcement to make: the mission trip to Pittsburgh Aug 3-9 has been canceled. Not enough people signed up. I can't wait until the last minute and then cancel, because that would leave the folks organizing things out in Pittsburgh in a lurch. By letting them know now that we can't make it, the impact on them will be much less. I wish we could have pulled this off, because there are needs to be addressed out there, plus it would have been fun and we would have learned a lot.

So, in the wake of this decision, I have a plan B…and the B stands for Blood. Let's donate blood on August 16th. August 17th will likely be my last day at BUMC, so the 16th would be a nice opportunity to see you before I go. We can take one of the church vehicles down to the donor center in Princeton in the morning, all donate blood, and then get lunch somewhere. There will be details surrounding the event in a later blog post and email and Facebook event. This is something that I will need to have a rough estimate of the number of people who will donate, so let me know if you are interested as you receive the info. This is open to college folk and older young adults alike.

That's all I have to report. Now I'm off to Kentucky for a friend's wedding. I'll be back on Sunday. Have a good rest of your week, and know that I pray for you from time to time. I will be checking email probably daily, and of course my cell is always with me (BUMC has the number if you don't).

Grace and Peace,
Kevin

Come for Coffee...Stay for Conversation

Hey All,

What are you doing Sunday night, May 29th, at 7:30pm? I ask because I know what I'm going to be doing: hanging around at Panera Bread off of the Somerville Circle. What say you come too, eh? If nothing else, it'll be a chance to say hi and get caught up on what's going on. I'd be happy to talk about the mission trip if you have questions about it...but I'd also enjoy just shooting the breeze and seeing where you stand on important issues like high gas prices, and the passing of George Carlin. This is getting thrown together last minute, but it's also a really low-stress sort of a thing...you come, you get a drink and/or a baked good, and you hang out.
No need to RSVP on this, just come by - I'll be within sight of the door.
Between now and then I'll not be checking email much...but feel free to give me a call or text me if you need to get a hold of me (the church has my cell number).
Oh, hey, I went to see REM in concert last week. They were pretty good. Not great, but good enough that I was glad I went. If there was something I'd criticize, it's that there was too much biting political commentary. And it doesn't really matter which way the commentary went, either. When you are polarizing, you are dividing and not uniting. Our country, and our world, desparately needs uniting.
This has been sort of a mish-mash post...but hey, that's what blogging is for!
I'll be praying for all of you this week.

Peace,
Kevin

The Devil's Greatest Trick

Matthew 10:34-39 34 "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and one's foes will be members of one's own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38 and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it."

These are the words of Jesus. But this is not the warm, cuddly (and suspiciously pale-skinned) Jesus, surrounded by fawning children, that we see in some paintings. It is not the mystical and otherworldly Jesus, non-threatening in his pose, giving strange hand signals from wooden icons. No, this is not a Jesus that I would walk up to and ask for a hug. You see, the Jesus I like to spend time with is all about peace and loving your neighbor. But this Jesus is edgy and confrontational, and that makes me fairly uncomfortable.

But my discomfort does not make this statement false. Peppered throughout the Gospels, Jesus makes it clear that the good news is anything but comfortable. To inherit eternal life, give away everything and follow Jesus. My mother and my brother and my sister is the one who does the will of God (rather than my blood relation). It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

This is a hard truth. As the disciples said in the Gospel of John, "This is a difficult teaching; who can accept it?"Can there be no compromise? No deal to cut? No bargain to strike where I can both follow the will of God and live life on my own terms? In short, no. Jesus calls us to a radical discipleship. One that is bigger than ourselves, one that is bigger than our blood relations, one that is the size of a cross.

Someone once wrote that "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." But maybe not. Maybe the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing us that God should play by our rules rather than vice versa.

Peace,
Kevin

Families...they're just crazy aren't they?

Do y’all know much about family systems theory? Now, before your eyes glaze over let me say this: those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it! I’m not talking about military tactics here, or government policies. I mean how your family (however you define that term) interacts. The pattern of those interactions is likely to carry on into the next generation…for better or ill. If you are aware of what those interactions are, and how you fit into that “family system”, then you can work on changing those dynamics – if you want to.

Why am I bringing this up? Because I just spent two days exploring my family system and my place in it. This type of psychological testing is part of the ordination process.

But there is another reason I bring it up, that is church related. Is not a congregation like a family, in a sense? Really any close-knit community is. So the same kinds of interactions and patterns that apply to families apply to congregations as well. Does that make you think about church in maybe a way you haven’t before? Does it at least open up some new avenues of thought on how the church (or your family) functions?

And speaking of family systems, Father’s Day is coming up. For those of you who have lost your father, or are estranged from him, or just don’t have a good relationship with him…know that I am praying for you. For those of you who do have a good relationship with your Dad – I rejoice with you in that.

That’s all for the moment. Now that I’ve cleared a path through my other responsibilities, it’s time to go full speed ahead on the mission trip to Pittsburgh! God rocks! Whoo-hoo!!

Grace and Peace,

Kevin

Go to the Atlantic City Rescue Mission!

Hey Gang,

Let me give you some info about the Atlantic City Rescue Mission. Beyond being a simple soup kitchen, it is also a shelter. And beyond being a shelter, it also has a series of programs that help equip people to be self-sufficient in society. There are programs for men, for women, and for families (which typically consists of a single mother with a child or children). Programs for detox, for crisis intervention, for housing location, for prison re-entry, etc. In addition to the facility being a shelter and a soup kitchen (and an area food pantry), there is also a medical clinic there. And there are several programs I have not mentioned as well.

Now I’ll shoot you some numbers. The mission served over 280,000 meals in 2007, helped over 8000 people and provided almost 95000 beds of safe shelter. 56% of their funding came from individual gifts. Almost 95% of their expenditures go towards programs or development.

It is the only rescue mission in southern New Jersey. That’s a travesty and an embarrassment for the State of New Jersey, and for the Body of Christ. This is a place where you can not only be the hands and feet of Christ, but you can also learn a lot about love for your neighbor and the Gospel message while you do it. Consider taking a trip down to AC to help your fellow child of God…rather than having fun at the casinos.

I was down there with for a day with some of our own (thanks Veronica, Greg, Jenn, and Nicholas) helping and learning. I encourage you to do the same.

Grace and Peace!,

Kevin

Money...Dinero...Geld...Mammon

There has been a single winner in the Mega Millions lottery. Somebody in a suburb of Cincinnati has a winning ticket worth $196 million dollars. Now, after taxes, and depending on it they take a lump sum or an annuity, it will be less. The fact remains, however, that someone has just one a boatload of cash. Ever thought about winning that much money...about what it would be like? I have. When I do, I waver between thoughts of laying on the beach on an exotic island, and doing a lot of social and humanitarian good.

But let's try to put this amount of money in perspective:

-half the world lives on less than $2 a day.
-the poorest 40% of the world's population accounts for 5% of its income. The richest 20% accounts for 75% of the income.
-over 20,000 children a day die from poverty-related issues.

And those are some of the rosier statistics. Forget about the 196 million...it makes you and me look vastly wealthy. The media is jumping around and making a lot of noise about how bad the economy is, and how there are tough times ahead. My response is: as compared to what? As compared to the majority of the world where the idea of three full meals a day is only a day dream? Where every product imaginable is not at your fingertips, within a few minutes drive, or at least attainable online w/ a credit card?

Our society has a serious case of affluenza. Our society is far too comfortable with our standard of living while other children of God are starving at the gate (check out Luke chapter 16 for the reference, starting at verse 19 and following). And I'm guilty of it too.

We are truly blessed...overly so...and perhaps we need to share those blessings a little more. I know I do.

Peace,
Kevin

Be the ball....Be creative!

Today's pic is of the gopher from Caddyshack. Why? Because I like Caddyshack!

There was a little girl drawing a picture in class one day. The teacher asked the girl, “What are you drawing?” The girl confidently replied “A picture of God.” The teacher tried to gently correct her, “But no one knows what God looks like.” The girl replied, “They will in a minute.”

The confidence of kids is fantastic. Would you even attempt to draw a picture of God? Probably not. You might put your theology hat on, and draw a picture of Jesus and deftly explain: This is a picture of Jesus. Jesus is God. Therefore, this is a picture of God. QED.

True? Yes. But also a bit of a cop-out. To draw a picture of God seems an impossible undertaking. The Scriptures tell us that no one has ever seen God. And indeed, I think that is true (with the aforementioned exception of God incarnated in flesh as Jesus).

So what is it that underlies this audacious claim by the girl? Creativity. Children have a creativity that we can’t even begin to touch. Something happens to us by the time we come out the other side of our educational system…and I’m not sure it’s a good thing in some ways. We lose a lot of our creativity because we have believed what we have been told: you can’t do this, this other thing is impossible, it would be too hard to do that, etc.

But what if we were to cast off the shackles of those who came before us and instead rediscovered our imaginations? What if we saw our dreams as possibilities…even probabilities…rather than flights of fancy.

Take the rubrics and conventional wisdom of the past for what they are…suggestions. Step out in faith and, as Gandhi said, be the change you want to see in the world. Don’t let the naysayers be your guides. And don’t trust anyone over 30…er, um…wait a minute – I’m over 30. Scratch that! But listen to the other stuff I wrote!

Peace,

Kevin

A Drop in the Bucket...

Have you ever heard the metaphor that the length of time that humanity has been on earth has been a drop in a bucketful of water when compared with how long the dinosaurs were on earth? When I was a kid I was fascinated with dinosaurs – they rocked. And since I was into them, paleontologists have found a bunch more. Kids today who are into dinosaurs have that much more to explore and learn about!

But back to the math for a moment. The dinosaurs were on the earth for over 150 million years. Human civilization has been around for…oh…like maybe 20,000 years (and that’s probably with a generous definition of what ‘civilization’ means). Have you grasped what an incredibly small slice of time we have been around?

It’s sort of the same feeling you get when you look at a night sky full of stars and realize how utterly tiny the earth is compared to what else is out there.

So where am I going with this? Well…have you thought recently about the afterlife? Now this isn’t a big speech about Heaven and Hell. But have you really thought recently about what happens after you shuffle off this mortal coil?

Usually we don’t. Usually we spend almost all our time thinking about what’s going on right in front of…whatever is requiring our action (paper, job, etc.). A friend of mine calls it “the tyranny of the urgent.” But think about how loooooooong eternity is. And so how infinitesimally small our time on earth is. It doesn’t even register a blip. Not even that drop in the bucket, or the blink of an eye. Our time here, as a percent of the time we spend in the afterlife, is so close to zero that it can’t even be fathomed.

And I think that makes our time here really precious. In fact, our life here on earth is the only ‘time’ when the word ‘time’ has any meaning. When one moment being followed by another and another has any significance. So take a few of those moments, and consider what a rare and wondrous gift this thing called life really is.

Have a good weekend.
Peace,
Kevin

Throw Me THE Life Preserver

On this day in 1920 the Turkish Grand National Assembly had its’ first meeting in Ankara. Mass beachings have been associated with active sonar. The U.S. Dept of Energy expects wind power to supply 5 percent of our power supply by 2020. In Baltimore, Maryland it is not legal to take a lion to the movies. Fire stations have circle staircases because back when fire engines were pulled by horses, the horses were stabled in the station and learned how to walk up straight flights of stairs.

What possible reason could I have for giving you this non-sequitor list of bizarre statements (most of which were found at www.randomfacts.org)? Because I’m trying to demonstrate that we are inundated, bombarded, and deluged with information. We have gone way past simply being in the Information Age. We are drowning in an information flood of biblical proportions (nice reference to Noah, eh?)!

Information has trumped formation. And we run from it to keep our sanity. Some of you don’t check your regular email and so will never read this. It’s because your inboxes are full of junk from various things/people/places trying to get your attention. And so you run to Instant Messaging…but as time goes on you find you get inundated there as well. And so you spend most of your time texting. But it’s a false security. The phone companies are already sending out mass text messages and the time will come when you get inundated there with unwanted information as well. Places like Facebook and MySpace provide some refuge as well for the time being…but you won’t be able to hide there forever.

Everyone wants your attention…mostly so you will spend money. Because without you spending money the great capitalist economy grinds to a halt.

For my part, I play the game as well. After sending out the mass email saying the blog is updated I’ll announce on Facebook that the blog is updated in the hope that you’ll hear my faint voice above the ever-increasing din of those seeking your attention.

But here’s the difference: I’m not trying to sell you anything…because what I have is not mine to give. It comes from another, who has been gracious enough to lend it to me. What is it? Well, not to sound like a Boomer reminiscing, but it is Peace and Love. Peace of heart. Depth of love. It comes with a personal relationship with the Risen Christ, and it’s really all the information you need.

Be well my friends,

Kevin

Holy Pope, Batman!

Greetings,

If you haven’t heard by now, the Pope is here. By ‘here’ I mean in USAmerica. In fact he’s going to be in NYC, including Yankee Stadium. My hope is that holding mass at Yankee Stadium will help the pitching of the Bronx Bombers…but even God’s grace may not be enough :)

If you go to NYC, you might actually get to see his Holiness pass by in the Popemobile. From USAToday.com: “In New York on April 19, Benedict will ride about 22 blocks along Fifth Avenue from St. Patrick's Cathedral north to 72nd Street, to the residence of the Vatican's permanent observer to the United Nations, says Joseph Zwilling, spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York. The procession will be at 1:15 p.m.”

The Popemobile is actually a series of vehicles of various makes and models. The current one is a modified 2002 Mercedes-Benz M-class (see pic). The bulletproof glass started getting used after the 1981 assassination attempt of Pope John Paul II.

If you had an audience with the Pope what would you want to talk with him about? Given the opportunity I would no doubt come up with a bevy of sharp theological questions and inquisitions to ask him. But once I sat down with him, I would probably just cherish quietly sharing a slice of space and time with “il papa”. To be in his presence, and to know that he is in mine, would do more for my soul than grilling him on transubstantiation or needling him on homosexuality or female clergy (although these last two are important issues that I think Catholic doctrine is way wrong on).

But what would YOU do if you had an audience with the Pope? Let me know…I’d be interested to hear.

Peace,

Kevin

L-A-R-K...etc.

Greetings!,

The pic here is that of a bird called a lark. “Larks are passerine birds of the predominantly Old World family Alaudidae.” (from Wikipedia). Now I don’t know what any of that means…and it doesn’t really matter because that’s not what the blog post is about.

A lark can also be a noun that is not a bird, or a verb. It can mean “a merry, carefree adventure; frolic; escapade” or “to have fun; frolic; romp.” (from Dictionary.com). Interesting, no? Well that doesn’t matter either…with the exception that every blog post here is pretty much a carefree adventure…

So now we get to the matter at hand! I’d like to introduce you to a website, larknews.com. I would imagine that some of you are fans of the Onion, or at least know that it’s a spoof newspaper. Well larknews is in a very similar vein except that it deals with Christianity. I find it to be quite funny…if we can’t poke fun at ourselves, who can we poke fun at? So I encourage you to go on a lark and check out larknews.com.

While I’m in the website advertisement mood…you should also check out poptech.com and ted.com. They are sites where you can watch podcasts of visionaries in all sorts of fields of expertise. You want to know what people will be talking about 5 years from now? Watch some stuff from these sites. I’m not kidding. If you want a good one to start off with, check out this video. It’s about a woman, a neuroanatomist, who walks you through a narrative of a stroke she had 8 years ago. It has some amazing insights regarding religion if you stop to think about it (I think so anyway)...plus it's just scientifically fascinating.

So have fun! As you can see, all three of these sites are now in the link list to the right (along with the new Pittsburgh mission trip blog site).

Peace,

Kevin

Hurray for Phlegm!...ok, maybe not.

Greetings all,

Well, I have been sick. Yuck! It’s been about a week now since it first started. It peaked Thursday night I think, when I had a fever and chills. Since then I’ve been slowly getting better, but it hasn’t been fast enough for me. I think what I dislike the most about being sick is that feeling that I’m not in control of my body. No matter how much I will it, I can’t stop myself from coughing at night. No matter how hard I try, I can’t make myself feel anymore energetic than I am (which isn’t very!). It’s an unwelcome intrusion of reality into my nice little universe of believing that my body is a tool to be used at my discretion, in whatever way I see fit.

It’s also an unwelcome glimpse of the future…think about it. It’s more likely than not that we will meet our mortal demise after a long life (its true that some will die before their time, but it’s not the norm…otherwise it wouldn’t be “before their time” – tricky, eh?). But even with good medicine and technological advances, the body of an 80 year old is not the body of a 20 year old. Over time you lose certain abilities. You start to deal with increasing limitations. It’s not really about you controlling your body. It’s more about you negotiating with your body in order to do what you can, come to terms with what you can’t, and learn the gift of letting others help you.

Perhaps the experience of being sick is really a lesson in grace. Or maybe I’ve been taking too much cough medicine and drinking too much decaf tea. It’s your call.

Hey, happy belated April Fools Day by the way...did you play a prank on anyone?

As soon as I’m fully back on my feet expect to see more about the mission trips (to Atlantic City at the end of May, and Pittsburgh in early August), including a new blog site, etc. I’m pushing for early commitments this year so we can get everything set with a minimum of churn.

Alright. Be well my friends. Peace of Christ to you!

Kevin

Quid est veritas?

John 18:38a “Pilate said to [Jesus], ‘What is truth?’” Whether wittingly or no, a question of great profundity was uttered by Pontius Pilate to Jesus in those three words. In biblical Greek (using our alphabet) it’s “Ti estin aletheia?” The latin is above in the title. Most people would answer this question with a doctrinal proposition. And then someone would disagree with that proposition. And then we would start fighting (refer to pretty much all of human history for evidence of this). But for we who call ourselves Christians…if we take the time to reflect on this question…we find that truth is not a proposition. It’s a person. In John 14:6 Jesus says “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”

So if Jesus is the truth, then what is a lie? I believe that the answer is un-Christlike, literally. If Jesus is the truth, then anything we willfully do that is not like Jesus is not truth…and therefore a lie. Now, I’m not being shallow about this. I don’t mean to say that when you watch TV your being not like Jesus because Jesus didn’t have a TV. I’m talking about when you live out relationship in a way that is incongruous with how Jesus lived out relationship. The example could be big (pushing someone down a flight of stairs) or small (telling someone ‘yes’ [or ‘maybe’] when you know the answer to their question or invitation is ‘no’). But either way it is un-Christlike…and so is lie.

Take some time to think about that. Think about truth as a person rather than a proposition…and see if it alters how you operate in relation to others.

Grace and peace to you,

Kevin

Holy Week 2008!

Hey Folks,

Holy holy holy week! Easter is right around the corner. My hope is that you are not taking the most important week of the year for granted, but are instead reflecting on the reality-altering events of Jesus’ life almost 2000 years ago. This week really is what its all about. This is where the rubber meets the road. If you ain’t takin’ this week seriously, then its time to really think hard about whether or not you can identify yourself as a Christian. Holy week is the World Series, Superbowl, and March Madness of Christianity all rolled into one. As the apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:18 ¹⁸ For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Hey. Wait just a second. Did I say March Madness? I did! Indeed, the Madness has begun! Last night Mt. St. Mary’s beat Coppin State to kick the whole thing off. If you haven’t filled out a bracket yet it’s not too late, since the bulk of the games don’t start until Thursday. And since this is a Methodist blog, I strongly encourage you to fill out your bracket for fun and not for money ;)

Finally, while I do not endorse any particular political candidate on this blog, I am posting a link (this link right HERE) to the speech that Sen. Barack Obama gave yesterday dealing with racism. It’s something I think everyone should watch and be conversant with, even if you don’t like the man. I believe that it will be looked back on as an important cultural event as time goes on.

Be well my friends, and prepare your hearts. Christ dies for you again on Friday.

Blessings,

Kevin

Graduation Musings...

Grace and peace my friends.

It is spring break for me, and let me tell you, it rocks. Among other things it has given me the chance to take a few deep breaths and think about graduation (both in general and my impending one in May). In doing so, I've recalled to memory a song from back in the day: "Everybody's Free (to wear sunscreen)" by Baz Luhrmann. It started as a column in the Chicago Tribune, June 1, 1997 as a pseudo commencement address (fortuitous because that is the year I graduated from undergrad!). Then in 1999, this dude Baz Luhrmann made a song over it. Here is the link to the video on YouTube, and here are the lyrics:

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of ’99
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience…I will dispense this advice now.
Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before
you and how fabulous you really looked….You’re not as fat as you imagine.
Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm
on some idle Tuesday.
Do one thing everyday that scares you. Sing.
Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. Floss.
Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself.
Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.
Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements. Stretch.
Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t.
Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone.
Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children,maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s.
Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own..
Dance…even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.
Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them.
Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.
Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good.
Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.
Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel.
Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. Respect your elders.
Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.
Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85.
Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.
But trust me on the sunscreen…

Be well my friends!
Peace,
Kevin

The Starbucks "Stunt"...or was it?

Greetings and Salutations,

As some of you no doubt know, there was a period of time last week when the foundations of the coffee world were shaken (and perhaps even stirred). Tomorrow will mark one week after Starbucks, who singly-handedly reinvented how Americans approach coffee, closed all 7100 of their stores for about 3 hours. This was done so that the coffee masters, the baristas, could be retrained. Now most of the media made one of two very incorrect assumptions about this statement. Some fell into the first trap of thinking this retraining had to do with the mechanics and systems...as if there was a new piece of equipment that everyone was learning how to use. Nope. Some (the punditry mainly) tried to dismiss it as a public relations "stunt". Now it may have had some public relations elements to it, but not in the shallow, circus-sideshow way that the media elites would have you believe.
So, what was this closing really about? It was about passion. Specifically, it was about the founder and (once again) CEO Howard Schultz energizing the baristas and helping them to become passionate about coffee again. If the baristas fall in love with coffee again, then they will be coffee evangelists, and the company will once again be the caffeinated juggernaut it was. There is no better formula for success than being passionate about your product or service.
I wonder, as the church body are we Christians passionate about our faith lives? Maybe we should close every church in America one Sunday morning and get some retraining on how to share our love for Christ will others...I think I'll go get a Starbucks skinny latte while I think about that.

Peace!,
Kevin

PS The pic is the original Starbucks logo, still viewable at the first store in Seattle (which I've been to :) )...its a twin-tailed siren...

Easter Math!

Hey all,

Ever wonder how the date for Easter gets calculated? Here is a forward I got from Cathi that does a nice job of talking about it. Oh, and the pic echoes my sentiments on that long-eared flea hotel that has co-opted the holiday.

Easter in 2008

Do you realize how early Easter is this year and why? It's March 23! As you may know, Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20).

This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify Passover, which is why it moves around in date on our Roman based calendar.

I found out a couple of things you might be interested in!

Based on the above, Easter can actually be one day earlier (March 22) but that is pretty rare. Here's the interesting info. This year (2008) is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see for the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early (95 years old or above!). And none of us have ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier!

Here's the facts:

1) The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2160 (152 years from now).

2) The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you're 95 or older, you are the only ones that were around for that!).

3) The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now).

4) The last time it was on March 22 was 1818. So, no one alive today has, or will ever see it any earlier than this year! And, by the way, the latest date that Easter can fall is April 25^th. The last time that occurred was 1943 and it will happen again in 2038, so it is more common for a late rather than an early Easter date.

Peace,
Kevin

2/29, China, and ...Churchiness!

Hey All,

This is a big year, ya know? First of all, it’s a leap year. That means that there is going to be a February 29^th. Have you thought about how you’re going to spend this extra day in your calendar? If you want to learn more about the history, etc of leap year, go here.

Besides being a leap year, this is also an Olympics year. The summer Olympics are going to be in Beijing, China. The official site is here .

But this year is also the year of the latest United Methodist quadrennial. In the parlance of the day, that means General Conference. Every four years the wise, the sage, the lucky, the luminaries, and the comparatively few gather together to debate and vote on whatever issues have been building for the last four years in the United Methodist Church. This is the ultimate vehicle through which the church structure changes.

Any proposed change has a long way to go: from the local church to the district to the conference to General Conference. The result is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, every voice has a chance to be heard. It is very democratic. On the other hand, however, change tends to occur much more slowly than it does outside of the church. It lacks a certain nimbleness.

So it ain’t a perfect system. But until it changes, it’s all the UMC has…officially. This General Conference in particular could make some important decisions regarding what direction the church is going to take as it moves forward. For more information, go here .

OK, folks, have a good one!

Peace,

Kevin

In the Year of our Lord...?

Hey all,

“What year is it here?” I heard that provocative and somewhat outlandish question from one of my professors. He uses it when he goes to various churches to give talks or consult. It’s a wonderful way to cluing the hosting church into realizing that they are, perhaps, behind the times.

Now, when I say ‘behind the times’, I’m talking about multiple levels. One level is technologically. If you walk into a church and the most sophisticated piece of technology in there is the microphone…they’re behind the times. But a church could also be behind the times spatially. Now I’m not talking about stained glass windows and stone buildings. Those things rock and can be used in ways that are quite up to date. I’m more talking about things like fixed pews and a raised pulpit. These types of things tend to limit the flexibility of the worship and the ability of the congregation to freely grow and evolve.

Perhaps the most important way that a church can be ‘behind the times’, however, is culturally. If you step through the doors of a church and you feel like you stepped into anything other than 2008, the church is behind the times. Check out the music, the structure of the worship, how people are dressed, how people talk, what (if any) cultural references you see or hear, etc… Sometimes it’s like the 50’s. Sometimes it’s like the 80’s. And, unfortunately, sometimes it’s like the 90’s…the 1890’s. The church doesn’t serve anyone by being a museum. Jesus is just as present in the culture of 2008 as He was in the culture of 1908, 1608, or 1208…or 0008 for that matter. In fact, there are things about Jesus we’ll never be able to know until we see him incarnated in today’s culture, both in Bridgewater and Beijing (or any other location you care to choose).

So the next time you walk into a church, take a few moments to soak it all in. Then, if you’re up to it, nudge the person next to you and ask “What year is it here?”

Peace,
Kevin

That Little Wharf-rat Saw His Shadow!

A Happy Groundhog Day to all of you….

I’m going to throw a wrench in the works by not talking about Groundhog Day at all. Not a whit. Not a jot. Not a tittle. You’ll have to go get your Groundhog Day fix elsewhere.

I AM, however, going to talk to you about Lent (a-ha! Gotcha! Mwahahahahahahaha). Lent is starting this week. Have you thought about what to give up for Lent? After all, that’s the traditional thing to do – give something up, yeah?

Well…let me propose an alternative. You can sacrifice and focus on Jesus during the period of Lent without necessarily giving something up (although if you want to, go ahead – I both support and endorse giving up stuff for God…I’ll be doing some of that myself in fact). You may find it just as beneficial though to ADD something (or several things) to your life during Lent rather than subtracting something from it. Here are a few examples…during Lent you could:

-Intentionally take some time in the morning or before bed to engage in a spiritual discipline of some type (read a passage of Scripture, journal, light a candle and spend some time in prayer, etc). If you already have a regimen of some type of spiritual discipline(s), consider adding a new one during Lent. Try Lectio Divina or the Jesus Prayer.

-You could engage in more service activities during Lent. Give blood, work a shift at a soup kitchen, donate food or clothes, etc.

-Make a POINT of being more humane to your fellow human. Hold open doors for people, let someone in when you’re driving, pray for people you see stopped on the side of road, give up your seat on the bus or train to someone else, etc.

We don’t have Lent police walking around making sure that you use this time of penitence and reflection as its intended. We don’t have Lent legislators passing laws mandating Lenten activities because they don’t think you have the ability to do it on your own (thankfully). So it is up to you. Take a few moments to consider Christ. Just take a few idle moments and let your mind rest upon Jesus. Let that guide your thoughts (rather than our natural inclination to rationalize a way to doing whatever we want to do) and make a decision about what to do (or not do) as we begin our Lenten journey together.

Grace and peace to you, my friends!

Blessings,

Kevin

It's Time to Serve!

Greetings and salutations!,

Well, my trip to South Dakota got cancelled. So instead I spent a few days back home in snowbound Pulaski, NY. It snowed almost 4 feet while I was there. Ah…nothing like home, eh?

So, on with the show! Let me tell you about the mission trip opportunities this summer. There are three options:

1) Pittsburgh, PA (Sunday August 3^rd – Saturday, August 9^th). This service opportunity will be “buffet style”, like the Toronto trip was last year. By that I mean that we’ll engage in a variety of ministries while we are there in order to get a feel for the city and the levels of need that are there. The specific ministry opportunities are still in flux, but one of them will be a children’s hospital. As I am able to hash out the others I will fill everyone in. This trip is geared towards college students, but any young adult is welcome. Cost is $100 per person.

2) Taize, France (Thursday July 24^th – Monday August 4^th). This is a spiritual pilgrimage that is organized and run by the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. It is an absolutely incredible experience. Please check out these links for more info: http://www.gnjumc.org/taize_pilgrimage/ and http://www.taize.fr/en. Cost is $1899. BUMC has a few hundred dollars available for scholarship, and there are other scholarships available at the District and Conference level. I encourage you to consider taking a leap of faith and consider this journey!

3) Atlantic City (TBA). This service opportunity will be a long weekend – likely a Thursday night through Sunday afternoon. The dates haven’t been set yet, but it will either be late May or mid August. This will involve being in service to the poor of the area, working in places like the Atlantic City Rescue Mission. This trip is geared towards post-college young professionals, but any young adult is welcome. Cost is $75 per person.

Please let me know which service opportunity you are interested in. I hope that you will feel led to be the hands and feet of Christ this summer and participate in some type of service to others.

Grace and Peace,

Kevin