Category: Life

Posted in Life

Lunch date

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Today, after tying up some loose ends at church, I headed out to Gainesville to meet my daughter for lunch. Time’s flown by; I hadn’t seen her since Christmas! We sat, ate, and talked at a burger place (Cafe Gardens) near the University of Florida campus for a couple of hours. She’s twenty-two, about to graduate from college, and is actively looking for a job during her last semester. An exciting, uncertain, and hopeful time, both looking forward to being on your own, and yet wondering if you are really ready for that.

Could I possibly remember being that age and in that situation? Actually, I remember it vividly. I typed up dozens of cover letters to go with resumes, and sought out computer programming jobs anywhere and everywhere. I struggled to stay focused on the last few classes I had to finish up and enjoyed being among the seniors in the frat house. I was so ready and so anxious to be out on my own. My job search didn’t come to an end until about six weeks after my last final. Those were a long six weeks at home, but eventually the interviews and then the offer came and I was off.

Unashamedly biased, I know my kids have much more going for them than I did, and I can’t wait to see where they’ll end up. I can’t imagine anyone not being drawn to their talents, creativity, and character. I have a lot of hope for the future when I see them about to step into theirs.

Posted in Life

Band boosters

Posted on by William Douthwaite

One of the things I’ve been doing in the community is volunteering with the band boosters at my daughter’s high school. It began as volunteering to help out at football games during marching season, then developed into coordinating some of the volunteers, to now coordinating a whole winter percussion show.

I’ve enjoyed doing this and have really learned a lot, not just about how much band has changed since I was in it, but about people and myself. First, it’s been an adjustment to be at and run meetings that don’t begin with prayer, like the multitude of church meetings I’ve attended. Not a negative, just a reminder of the secular world we’re in. Next, secular organizations have the same problems as the church does. A shortage of leadership, volunteers that don’t show up, and the constant challenge of communication within an organization. Third, these folks are hard-core fundraisers. They think of everything. Everything has a money making angle. Granted, this is what they mostly exist for, but they go for it. Finally, they are a nice bunch of people. Moms and dads supporting their kids in band and colorguard. Too often we assume that people outside of our church are evil. No so. They are committed, friendly, creative, caring, hard-working, love their kids, and are nice to be around.

Since my job involves a lot of church stuff with church people, I don’t get to be in that world very often. It’s been good for me, has kept me grounded, and I like it.

Posted in Life

Rats the size of dogs

Posted on by William Douthwaite

My wife may have the opportunity to go to Haiti next month, helping with earthquake relief through Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod World relief. She recently received some descriptive information to help her prepare for the trip: there are rats in Haiti the size of small dogs.

In response, she reflected on our home in Baltimore, MD, during our vicarage year. Married three months, we moved into a row home in  the inner city which had been through some pretty rough times and refurbished on the cheap. The home included a shower where the bathroom tiles were held to the wall with a plastic garbage bag duct taped in place, a basement which I only dared venture into once the entire year, bars on every window, and rats in the backyard which we initially mistook for cats. “Is that a cat out there on top of the garbage can?” “I don’t think so. Cats don’t have skinny, hairless tails, do they?”

Twenty-five years ago it was pretty hard to figure out why God had us live in a place like that. Now, my wife’s reaction to “rats the size of small dogs” is, “been there, done that, bring it on.” So God was acutally preparing us for future ministry we never dreamed of.

Oh, one more thing: we also used to have a small dog the size of a rat.

Posted in Life

Hey, who filled up my calendar?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Uh-oh. I smell trouble. My schedule is getting out of control. Yesterday, I got out of a meeting because it would have meant being out eight days in a row. Tonight, I was trying to figure out a meeting time with a few people and couldn’t come up with any time in February. I know that sounds exaggerated, but now that we are into high school lacrosse season and winter percussion competitions, the majority of my evenings and weekends suddenly have commitments. And I was just congratulating myself on my time management skills. Down the drain, just like that.

It’s not such a bad thing, though. When my schedule is filled with time spent with family rather than meetings of dubious necessity, it appears that I’ve got a handle on at least some of my priorities. No self-congratulations here. Just thanks for the chance to be at games and events.

Posted in Life

Studying earth science

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Tonight is Earth Science study/review night with Olivia. The chapter is on the geologic periods of the earth. Now a lot of the material sounds familiar to me, but either I don’t remember it, or we just didn’t study it in the same depth as students do now.

Let’s see, I did biology in 9th grade, chemistry in 10th grade, physics in 11th grade, and didn’t take a science in 12th grade. So what did we study in eighth grade science? I don’t have a clue. But I remember my eighth grade science teacher, Mr. Smith. And all I remember about that year is combining hydrogen and oxygen in a metal tube and putting a static electric charge to the end to make it explode. Cool stuff. He also got our school an electron microscope from somewhere.

Anyway, it occurred to me that some might wonder how I can blend my belief in the six day creation account of the Bible with the chapter we’re about to review. For me, it’s never been a problem. Both look at how the world came to be, and if there are some things that don’t match up, we obviously have more to learn. I look at science as a gift from God to study and learn about the world and life he created. It doesn’t have to be a matter of proving one right and the other wrong. I learn a lot from both and appreciate the Creator even more. Math and physics are other disciplines that help me understand it as well. A lot depends on your assumptions. With a belief in God as Creator, I can see his handiwork in fossils, equations, and graphs. And I think that is really cool.

Posted in Life

Where did those feelings come from?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Over the past few days, I’ve been talking with someone who’s been surprised by feeling of rage, fear, and sadness because of things going on in someone else’s life. Simply trying to come along side a good friend, be supportive, and walk with them through some really difficult situations, they were overwhelmed with feelings that overflowed from the other person’s life.

In Galatians, the apostle Paul tells us to carry each other’s burdens. In Romans he says we rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. These are very reassuring words, because they remind us that we don’t have to carry life’s burdens alone. We have others, specifically our brothers and sisters in Christ, to help us when life gets too heavy.

On the other hand, we will end up with some of weight others have to carry will overflow onto our backs. That’s the hard part. Here we are, minding our own business and trying to be good friends, and suddenly, we’re hurting because of someone else’s pain. We’re crying because of someone else’s tears. And sometimes we’re filled with rage because someone else is suffering an injustice. Is it fair that we have to suffer for someone else’s mistakes?

Ah, you’re getting a taste of what Christ went through for us. Punished for our sins, rejected because of our selfishness, killed because of our unfaithfulness, Jesus knows all about unfair. Maybe we go through some of that so that we know him better. And like Paul also said, there’s nothing like knowing him.

Image: Anguish by Thomas Hawk at Flickr

Posted in Life

Lacrosse

Posted on by William Douthwaite

My younger daughter is playing high school lacrosse this year, her freshman year, just like her older sister did a few years ago. Women’s lacrosse is quite a bit different from the male version. While guys wear protective gear and go at it with sticks, women’s lacrosse is, in theory, a non-contact sport. It’s all about speed, finesse, and ball-handling skills. Once in a while there are some scuffles, but most refs keep that under control.

The season gets started in just a few weeks, so I’m gearing up to go to lots of games. I think it took me a full year to understand the game from the stands. The constant sound of whistles, the change of possession, and positioning players on the field left most of us parent spectators bewildered. Then, gradually, I not only began to get it, but I could even explain some of it to others.

We who frequent the games are a committed bunch. There are no big crowds like there are for football. Just a few families huddled in the stands since it can be a little chilly on those February nights at the beginning of the season.

Posted in Life

The final curtain

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Today was the last performance of “This Thing Called Love,” a dinner theater at our church. Having done five shows over two weekends gave me a new appreciation for those who do a show on Broadway for years, or those who tour and perform the same show 7 or 8 times a week. I wonder how you stay “up” for a performance that is essentially the same night after night, week after week, month after month. And many of those who do it love it. Not only is it their profession, but it is their passion. It’s what people pay to see, so that’s what you have to do. How do you keep from getting stale? I’m sure there are techniques you learn to be able to be your best on a consistent basis. But I’m also sure it’s hard work, too.

Touring bands must face the same challenges. Playing the same songs over and over each night in different places, and having to make them sound fresh and exciting each time around. I have great respect for those who do this and do it well.

Posted in Grace, Life, Ministry

People of influence

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Tomorrow, as the first part of a stewardship emphasis at our church, I’ll be talking about the influence we have in this world. My sermon is based on Matthew 5:13-16, where Jesus says we are the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world.”

One way to look at this is to see how influential Jesus says we are in this world, making as much difference as salt and light make when something is bland or dark. (If you’d prefer to think of salt as a preservative, that works, too. We make as much difference as salt and light when things are rotting and dark.) Anyway, I think we sometimes forget how influential we are as Christians. Feeling outnumbered by other faiths and atheists and agnostics, the temptation is retreat into our own worlds or let ourselves be influenced by others.

Whether we like it or not, God shakes us out of the saltshaker and puts us into the workplace, the marketplace, the schools, and our communities. There, whether we realize it or not, we bring some of Jesus with us. By that, I mean we bring what we’ve received from him, things like forgiveness, love, humility, patience, etc. And that is the stuff that salts, brightens, and changes the world. Wrap your mind (heart, soul, and strength) around that, and you might even do it intentionally, realizing what a difference God makes through you.

We are anything but ordinary, bland, and dull in this world. We’re salt and light.