Go Colts!!!

Another Higdon family, fall tradition gets under way this evening. As often as possible during the Indianapolis Colts football season, Ben and his family come down to our house and we cheer on the Colts to victory. Actually I think that Ben lives for this time of year. I am afraid that he is just about as disappointed when the football season is over as I am when the NASCAR season is through.

Of course our tradition is more than getting together to watch the game, although that is an important part. I have been busy this afternoon putting together the finishing touches that should assure victory for the Colts over the Bears (sorry Bear fans, their fate is sealed) I have made a pot of my World Famous Chili and I have homemade bread baking in the Bread Machine. This should pretty much guarantee a Colts victory.

Now Terri and Josh come up for the games once in awhile, but Terri doesn’t really pay too much attention to football until the playoffs, and I think that Josh would rather do anything else other than watch football. Well, that isn’t entirely true, I think that the one thing that he likes less than football is NASCAR. But that’s ok, I am still working on him.

The only dilemma that I have today is that I really should be doing homework, but hopefully I will have some time tomorrow afternoon when I get to Ohio and if not then, I guess I will be up late Monday night, which isn’t good because by 10:00 PM I have usually gone about as far as I can go.

Anyway, I hope that your evening will be as good as the one that I have planned. The only thing that could go wrong now is if the Colts bus broke down on the way to the stadium, other than that, it’s in the bag!

Blessings

The most important things in life, I learned from TV...

I believe that you could make a legitimate argument that, at least in the past, I have watched way too much TV. It seems like I am always quoting one of my favorite television shows or movies. I used to be able to tell you in detail about every episode of Gilligan’s Island within ten seconds of the beginning of the program. I don’t think that this is something that I should necessarily be proud of.

You may have noticed in my posts that I like to use stories from some of my favorite movies as well as from television in order to illustrate a point. One of my all time favorite TV shows to use in this fashion is Andy Griffith. If I am flipping through the channels and run across Andy, I simply don’t have to flip any futher. There is just something naturally right about Andy Griffith. The stories are funny and interesting and the lessons are especially relevant even after all of these years. There is even a Bible Study series out which is based upon watching episodes of Andy Griffith and then discussing them in theological terms. You just can’t beat Andy!

Unfortunately, I don’t always learn my lessons from watching these programs. There is an episode where Andy is roped into judging a beauty contest for the city of Mayberry. Almost immediately, people begin to bother Andy with a never ending parade of their sisters, daughters and cousins in order to demonstrate to him that they would be the perfect selection for Miss Mayberry. Ultimately, knowing that no matter which way he would go, he would end up making people mad, he decided upon the out of the box decision of selecting the elderly woman who had been so kind and helpful to Andy throughout the episode. Of course this decision didn’t keep him out of trouble, but it did make peace between Andy and the pretty druggists, Ellie Walker, and I think that we all understand the significance of that decision..

Well, I share this with you because I have been asked to judge a beauty contest next Thursday for the Crothersville Sesquicentennial Celebration. “How on earth did you get roped into that?” you might ask. That is a very good question, one which I will certainly have to question either the level of my sanity or perhaps the current overloaded state of my mental faculties. I am afraid that I won’t even have the ability to pull an Andy Griffith and select the elderly kind woman who helps with the pageant, because they are all going to be kind elderly ladies. Yes, that is correct, not only is it a beauty pageant, but it is a senior pageant. Yes, I know that it was stupid of me.

Oh and one other thing, I am also judging the pie baking contest. In this endeavor I feel a little more confident. In reality, to quote the movie Rudy, "I have been ready for this my entire life." I just so happen to know a little something about pies. But, not to be overconfident in my approach I have watched a recent episode of Little House on the Prairie in which Reverend Alden was judging a pie baking contest. I watched carefully how he handled the mine field of possible challenges, masterfully using just the right superlatives and adjectives to describe the pies, ultimately settling on just the right balance of smoozing and common sense in order to extricate himself from what could have been a very difficult situation.

So, next week, as I enter the lion’s den of judging, I will take with me three sources of moral direction, the Holy Bible, Andy Griffith and Reverend Alden. I’ll let you know how it comes out.

Blessings

Out With the Old… In With the New…

This is perhaps a strange time of year to talk about, out with the old and in with the new. Most of the time when we hear these words it is in relation to the start of a brand New Year. We hear them as we are gathering with family and friends on December 31st to eat those little wieners served with barbeque sauce in the crock-pot and toast the start of an exciting New Year with our glasses of Pepsi held high. Of course, I am sure that when we get closer to the New Year I will tell you my real feelings about New Years Eve and New Year celebrations, but for now at least you get the picture of what I mean.

This week actually is the beginning of a New Year, at least in one way. When I first began preaching, my best friend and Mentor Ron introduced me to the book “The United Methodist Music & Worship Planner. This is an excellent resource. As a matter of fact, it is probably second only to the Bible as far as the reference that I use every week in preparation for the worship service. This book has all four of the recommended Scripture readings listed for the week, a list of recommended hymns along with many other suggestions on ways to make the worship service more meaningful. It also indicates the appropriate liturgical color for that Sunday (this Sunday is green as it has been since Pentecost) and the liturgical name for the Sunday such as this Sunday is the 17th Sunday after Pentecost.

Anyway, I am sure that you are wondering what on earth all of this information has to do with, out with the old and in with the new. Well, last Sunday was the last Sunday of the old book and this Sunday starts the beginning of the new book. The new one is so nice and sleek and unmarked, no pages dog eared and no pages highlighted. It is like beginning a new year on a fresh slate. As I flip through the pages I begin to think about sermon topics and what hymns I might want to use. I begin to think about Thanksgiving, and Advent. I wonder what will be happening in the church as these pages are turned one by one.

This changing of books is a reminder to me that each day is a new beginning; each day is a day where you are allowed to make a choice to follow the path which God has set before you or choose a different road. Each day we are presented with new options, and opportunities. Today is a day of new beginnings for you, don’t let the opportunities pass you by.

Blessings

A Defining Moment...

Today is a defining moment for my Blog. I had made a commitment to share my journey with who ever was interested and wanted to come along with me. I promised to share with you the good the bad and the ugly. Up to this point with only a few notable exceptions I have mostly been sharing with you the good. To be honest, this is always my preference. I want you to know how God is working in my life, I want you to understand that God is working in your life as well, even if we can’t always see the effects. If given the choice between sharing a challenge with you and a joy, I will tend to pick the joy every time. If I have to choose between preaching the love of Christ or the consequences of sin, I tend to choose the love of Christ.

But, that just isn’t right, there must be a balance. Even though Christ spoke significantly about love, He also spoke about sin and it is impossible to appreciate the view from the top's of the mountains if you first haven’t first gone through the valleys to get there. So today is a defining moment, the moment when I choose to share with you not only the positive ramblings that flow through my brain, but also the fears, sorrows and challenges that are squarely entrenched in front of me.

So, with that part of my thought process placed before you, let me share that this has already been a difficult week. My classes this semester are going to be major challenges. Each of them is going to require a significant amount of reading, thought and writing. In addition I received an email from the Annual Conference letting me know that my packet for Commissioning will be arriving soon. This process of thought, reflection, consultation, writing and interviews is beyond a doubt going to be one of the greatest challenges of my life to this point, and after 48 years on this earth, I have faced a lot of challenges.

This morning I also received an email from the conference which set a date for some initial information to be submitted and I couldn’t help but notice all of the names who had received this email, quite a few of which I know to be wonderful pastors, brilliant scholars and terrific people. The problem for me started when I counted the names, there were 29 people who had received this email, 29 people who are in the process with me, and if last year was any example there may be as few as 12-13 chosen. That means that it will be possible that some where around 16-17 wonderful, brilliant, terrific people won’t be selected to continue in the process toward Ordination.

As the reality of those numbers settled in with me, it was a little bit like getting kicked in the stomach. I know that there are more important things in the world, and that my problems pale in comparison to many people that I know, and I also know that I have been truly blessed in this process. I find my mind wanting to go to the idea that, "This isn’t fair!” “I have worked so hard, they wouldn’t prevent me from going on now would they?” And what about the others who I know that are so qualified, I certainly don’t want to do anything but cheer for them because I truly love each of those people that I know on that list.

So, What do I do? The answer comes in the quiet still moment, the moment that I stop asking the question, “Hey what about me?” and start asking the question, “Hey what about God?” What is God’s plan? What is best for God’s kingdom? and Where do I best fit in? Now that last question is important, notice it’s not about where I want to fit in, but where does God plan for me to fit in?

Let me share with you a prayer written by John Wesley, I have recently rediscovered this prayer and it is the prayer that I cling to as I move forward in this uncertain time.

John Wesley’s Covenant Prayer

I am no longer my own, but yours.

Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;

put me to doing, put me to suffering.

Let me be employed by you or laid aside by you,

enabled for you or brought low by you.

Let me be full, let me be empty.

Let me have all things, let me have nothing.

I freely and heartily yield all things to your pleasure and disposal.

And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,

you are mine, and I am yours.

So be it.

And the covenant which I have made on earth,

let it be ratified in heaven.

Amen.

Blessings

Paddle Faster, I Hear Banjo Music…

I couldn’t help but notice all of the kayaks on the top’s of cars as I journeyed to Ohio on Monday. For some reason, just seeing them makes my spirit just a little bit lighter. Perhaps it is because of the joy that I experience when I am out paddling, maybe it is just the thought that someone certainly must have enjoyed their day. Whatever the reason, just seeing those little boats go by brings a smile to my face.

I must admit that I haven’t had any time at all this summer to go kayaking. Karen told me that I should take the kayak along when we went up to Indiana Dunes State Park this summer, but we wouldn’t have had enough room for it, and in addition, there is absolutely no place in the park to launch a kayak, so my kayak didn’t make the trip. Terri and I had a plan earlier this summer to go, but it rained that day and we decided that we really didn’t want to be out in the middle of the lake soaking wet with metal paddles in our hands when the lighting strikes.

I have had some excellent adventures kayaking in the past several years. There was the time that I just about drowned in Tennessee, that trip ended with three words, “Search and Rescue.” That is a great story, if you haven’t heard it, maybe sometime I will write about it. Another great time was the trip that Ben and I made on a river down in Kentucky. Once again that was really a great adventure, and Ben showed that he was a much better kayaker than I was, even if he hasn’t had nearly as much experience.

One memorable trip, in particular, was the trip that Terri and I took down the White River in Indiana. It was a beautiful day and the river was flowing at a perfect pace. There was a Blue Herron that kept us company for quite a bit of the journey. He would watch us and wait until we got close and then lift off and fly another 100 yards or so down the river. I am not sure if he couldn’t figure us out, or if he just enjoyed our company. The trip wasn’t without its share of challenges, there were a couple of embarrasing moments when we got stuck on sandbars. It was all that we could do to get up and get unstuck due to the fact that we were laughing so hard.

I think the reason that I smile when I see a kayak pass by on top of someone’s car is that it brings back all of those great memories, well except for the one where I almost drowned. I think that maybe I should make sure that sometime in the near future I get my kayak out, dust it off and create some new memories. Terri? Ben? Josh? Wanna go again?

Blessings

The Family of God

For the past couple of weeks, Donna, our organist at Crothersville has been playing one of my favorite songs as the members of the congregation rise to greet each other. The title of it is, “The Family of God,” and the chorus goes like this:

I'm so glad I'm a part of the Family of God,

I've been washed in the fountain, cleansed by His Blood!

Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod,

For I'm part of the family,The Family of God

I love this song because it stresses that we are all part of a family, a very large family, we are a part of God’s family. Unfortunately, we don’t always treat each other that way. I often think about how society has changed just in my life time. When I was growing up, people were part of organizations, boys joined Boy Scouts and girls joined Girl Scouts. Moms were part of the PTA and Dads joined Lodges, and everyone, at least most everyone attended church. We all sat together at the meal table and participated in something almost unheard of today, conversation. We talked about school, politics, work, and a thousand other topics. In the evenings, we kids would go outside to play, and when the streetlights came on, we knew it was time to go in. People would come by the house and in return we would go visit others.

It used to be that people would sit out on their front porch and they would wave and talk to friends and neighbors who passed by. Karen and her family had this great front porch, I could always count on Karen’s Dad to be sitting out on the porch with his 7up and his fly swatter. Now compare that to today where they don’t even build front porches on houses any more, all houses come with back decks and privacy fences surrounding them.

You will have to forgive me for being a little nostalgic, it is my prayer for you today, that perhaps for a minute you have had an opportunity to reflect on a little simpler time and that even though families have changed, the family of God never does!

Blessings

Too Many Big Words…

I had to laugh the other day. My son Ben paid me a complement in one way, but also observed something that I took very seriously in another way. “You sure seem to like to use a lot of big words, it sounds like you write your blog with a thesaurus sitting next to you.” I took his compliment/criticism very seriously because I have always prided myself on using words and illustrations that were accessible to everyone. Back in my days as a Chiropractor, I truly prided myself on not using the big ten dollar medical words and instead, tried to use the most basic of language to help my patients understand why they were experiencing the pain that they were having. The only time I ever used expressions like, “You have posterior movement of the vertebral body caused by a defect in the pars interarticularus which is resulting in neurothelipsis and sciatic neuralgia,” is when I had to write reports for insurance companies, and too be honest I am not sure that they understood either, but the bigger the words the more likely they were to pay the insurance claim.

I was always much more comfortable explaining to a patient that they had a bone in their low back that had slipped backward slightly and was pinching on the nerve that went down their leg. I always liked using the illustration which compared the pressure on the nerve to someone standing on a dogs tail, the dog is going to yelp and bark and make all kinds of noise, and although you can certainly put a muzzel on the dog, that won't take care of the cause of the problem, or you could give the dog a shot so that he won't feel the pain, but that won't solve the problem either, the only way to fix the problem is to take the foot off the tail, and the only way to fix the pain in the leg is to take the pressure off of the nerve in the back. This always seemed easier for people to understand than the neurothlipsis/sciatic neuralgia stuff.

Anyway, sometimes words can be a challenge for me. I really do live in two different worlds, the world of seminary/ academia and the real world with all of the people that I care about. Let me try to give you an example of the difference between the two worlds. I mentioned in an earlier post about the emphasis on Spirituality that my classes seem to have this semester. I just finished writing a one page response to the question, What is Christian Spirituality? which I have shared below. In that response is a quote that I have higlighted and would like you to pay attention to by Sandra M. Schneider, who is a prominent expert in the area of Spirituality and I think that you will see that she puts my neurothlipsis/sciatic wording to shame.

Definition of Christian Spirituality
On the surface the assignment seemed so simple, “Provide a brief definition of Christian Spirituality.” How difficult could that possibly be? As I began to filter though the readings as well as outside sources, I quickly discovered that there is no single, simple, all encompassing answer to this question. Contained within the definitions of Christian Spirituality is a rich treasure trove of theology, meaning and history. There was one person, however, who seemed to stand out as authoritative in my initial search for a definition and her name was Sandra M. Schneider. She defined Christian Spirituality this way:

[Spirituality] “is the experience of conscious involvement in the project of life-integration through self-transcendence toward the ultimate value one perceives. In Christian spirituality these formal categories are specified by Christian content: the horizon of ultimate value is the triune God revealed in Jesus Christ, and the project involves the living of his paschal mystery in the context of the Church community through the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Studying Christian Spirituality, David Perrin, p31)

In essence Christian Spirituality is all about the transformation of the human-divine relationship as personified through our relationship with Jesus Christ. It is cultivating a relationship that is “revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition vivified by personal experience and confirmed by reason.” (UM Book of Discipline, p 216) It is the life-force which animates our faith, brings life to our relationship with the divine and illuminates and elevates our awareness of this relationship to the very core of our being.

In the future I will try a little harder to make sure that I sound more like me and less like Sandra M. Schneider, not that I wouldn’t want to be as smart as she is, but I think that if given the choice between sounding smart and being understood, I will go for understood every time.

Blessings