Category: Ministry

Posted in Grace, Ministry

An awkward interruption

Posted on by William Douthwaite

One of the great things about being a pastor is that you never lack for new experiences. I’ll close out the first month of January with one I had today that was partly humorous, partly embarrassing, and a little sad.

It began as a traditional visit to a member in a local nursing home who was recovering from some surgery and receiving an assortment of therapies. After some introductory conversation about this and that, it was time for the sacrament. Bread and wine were put in place, scripture read, and it was time for the words of institution.

As I am almost exactly halfway through the words, a medical assistant steps into the room and interrupts with a rather personal question for the patient. We didn’t quite hear it the first time, so she repeated it using very descriptive words, got her answer, and disappeared.

While all this is happening, I’m thinking, “Is this happening? Doesn’t she what we’re doing? Do I need start over? How embarrassing is this?” I simply picked up where I left off and Christ’s words transformed a not-so-holy situation into holy ground just like they always do. Afterwards I was reminded that Christ didn’t mind being in a world or among people who didn’t recognize him, respect him, or understand what he was all about. And he still doesn’t mind. His grace still works in humorous, embarrassing, sad, painful, and sinful situations. That’s probably why some call it “amazing.”

Posted in Life, Ministry

Haiti a year later

Posted on by William Douthwaite

It’s been a year since the earthquake hit Haiti, devastating an already devastated country. Where were you when the earthquake happened? I have no idea. I don’t remember the news even really showing up on my radar a year ago.

But now we think about Haiti all the time. Last March, when the call for help went out, my wife went with an LC-MS World Relief medical team and saw first hand what had happened and what people were going through. Although she touched a lot of lives, it turns out that others touched her life even more. Those who survived, those who had to stay there after she came home, those who email us, and those whose faces we can’t forget, touch our lives each day.

There are lots of articles out there to read about Haiti a year later, from LCMS World Relief and Human Care, Relevant magazine, and so many others. In some ways, not much has changed. Some have found homes. Many receive care. Some are back in school. A few have real hope. Hopefully our hearts have changed. We are planning on having our friend Lophane here in February to speak to us about his life, his work and his hopes for Haiti. I think it’s amazing just to be able to write that we have friends in Haiti, a place I hardly ever took notice of before.

Posted in Grace, Ministry

30 seconds

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Up at 4:45 am, I showered, dressed, ate and was out the door by 5:20. A fine mist in the dark morning air necessitated a swipe of the wiper blades every few minutes. There were no other cars to wait for, follow or pass until I merged onto the interstate, headed towards Jacksonville. Even then, the cars and trucks were few and far between.

The hospital had scheduled her surgery for 7:30, and her prep was to begin at 7, so I was right on schedule to have a little time with her and her family before they took her from the room. There were virtually no radio stations working well. Finally I found an AM sports station that lasted for about half and hour, highlighting the rest of the football game I couldn’t stay awake for the night before. The miles passed quickly, and before I knew it, the exit for the hospital approached.

When I got out of the car in the parking lot, I immediately felt how much colder it was than back home. I had called ahead to find out when the front door would be open. “5 am.” “Thanks, that’s plenty early!” There were many cars in the parking lot and more people than I expected when I walked in about 6:20.

Stepping out onto the fourth floor of Mayo hospital, I had to double check the signs to find room 422. They saw me coming from down the hall, and knew exactly who I was looking for, because she was looking for me. They were taking her for prep at 6:30 and she grabbed my hand and said, “Quick, pray with me, I’m so glad someone came.” When we opened our eyes, they were waiting to transport her. She asked one man, “Are you awake?” He replied, “I just rolled out of bed.” Lots of laughter.

And then she was gone, gone to hopefully have a brain tumor removed. All that way for about 30 seconds with her and the Lord. What a privilege and an honor.

Posted in Grace, Ministry

Visionless?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

David Hayward recently wrote a few blog posts about being visionless. The way I read this, rather than being a church that is driven towards goals by mission and vision statements, a church could instead just be the people of God who freely shared forgiveness, compassion, mercy and the gospel.

One of the reasons his posts struck in my mind is because I’ve never been good at “vision casting.” I don’t feel like I’ve ever been able to express a compelling vision around which the church can focus its ministry. However, I am very good at identifying when the church is being the church, when it is reaching both in and out, ministering to people in an amazing variety of ways.

For me, the most amazing part of this is that I had little to do with it. Recently, I made myself a list of the outreach ministries our congregation was involved in, ranging from stocking the shelves of a local food pantry to leading after school Bible clubs to distributing quilts and prayer shawls. I had very little to do with starting these ministries (which number somewhere abound a dozen), and I’m not a part of their ongoing work. This all comes from the hearts and souls of an amazing collection of people.

The only thing I can remember communicating was that if someone had an idea for ministry, they had to make it happen. If it wasn’t heretical or illegal, they pretty much had my blessing and support. Slowly but surely, they took me up on the offer. And maybe that’s what my vision was all along.

Posted in Ministry

Stick this in your Bible

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I keep this chart in my Bible to help me keep track of the kings and prophets and timeline of the Old Testament. There are many charts like this out there, but I’ve found this the easiest to use, plus it indicates whether a king was good or bad during his reign. (I can’t take credit for this chart and can’t remember where I found it, but to whoever put it together: great job!)

Posted in Ministry

Study bible

Posted on by William Douthwaite

A good basic resource to help you understand God’s Word is a study bible. The one I’m currently using is the Lutheran Study Bible from Concordia Publishing House. There are other worthy study bibles out there to consider, especially if you want a translation other than the English Standard Version.

A study bible has a few pages at the beginning of each book explaining who wrote that book, when, and what the historical context is. It will sum up some of the main themes of the book, and give you a heads up for what to look for as you are reading. It often provides a basic outline of the book, too.

When you open to a book of the bible and begin reading, a study bible will contain notes for each verse, usually at the bottom of each page. These notes will give information about names, places, words and cultural references in each verse. You’ll be directed to other verses that address similar events or ideas. You may also find a summary of a passage, an application, devotional thought or a prayer.

If you didn’t know, for example, that the prophet Haggai was around in the post-exilic temple reconstruction period of Israel’s history, much of the book will be puzzling. But once you have that info, the book makes a lot more sense. Or, if you don’t know who a Pharisee is, or where Capernaum is, or what crucifixion is, just glance down at the bottom of the page, and you’ll find that information.

Now while the biblical text is inspired, or “God-breathed,” remember that the study Bible notes are not. They are written by human authors, so you will want to pay attention to the publisher or editors of a study bible. For example, you may not find much about infant baptism in some study bibles from reformed publishers, but you definitely will in the Lutheran Study Bible.

From time to time I have to remind people “he who lives by the study bible, dies by the study bible.” IOW, don’t quote study notes as gospel. While they may be scholarly, they may also contain some opinion.

You’ll also find a plethora of maps, charts, reading plans, articles and indexes in a study bible. It can be overwhelming sometimes. But don’t be intimidated. Just use what you need, and see what a blessing this resource can be.

Posted in Ministry

As clear as mud

Posted on by William Douthwaite

The other day I was visiting a home bound member of our congregation, and after I read some scripture and talked about it for a moment, she asked, “I’ve tried to read the Bible, but I can never figure out what it’s talking about. Is there some resource that could help me?” I told her I would lend her one of my old study Bibles that I don’t use anymore, and explained how the notes on each page could help her.

But it got me thinking, even if we get people to read the Bible on their own (this is kind of a tangent from yesterday), how much of it do they really understand without someone explaining it (like Philip explained Isaiah to an Ethiopian) or some kind of study guide to help them make sense of what we’re reading? Some of scripture stands on it’s own, but so much depends on knowing the context, setting, author, purpose and what was going on in the world at that moment, and I’ll bet many readers don’t have that information when they sit down to read. Every once in a while I hear a story about someone who picks up a Bible, reads it, and comes to faith in Christ. But I’ll bet there are many more untold stories of those who picked it up, read a part of it, and put it down without understanding a word of it. It’s easy to forget that since I’ve been working really hard for the last 30 years trying to make sense out of it all.

If you’ve ever had trouble understanding the Bible, you’re in good company. The disciples didn’t initially understand a lot of what Jesus taught them. Jesus spent a lot of extra time with them after the resurrection, explaining how the scriptures all fit together around him. It’s nice when you have someone to do that with you. And I guess it’s important for me to spend time doing that, too. I think I’ll start sharing some of the resources and tools that help me get a handle on God’s Word.

Posted in Ministry

What did they do before there were Bibles?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

At the beginning of any new year, you’ll see lots of read through the Bible in a year or two plans promoted. Be sure to check out this blog that talks about what to do when you’ve already fallen behind in your resolve to read the Bible.

Here’s my question: how did Christians read their bibles and do their personal devotions before there were bibles you could own and read? Printed bibles have only been around for about 500 years. Before that, there were hand-copied bibles in churches and universities, but virtually no one had one at home. Before that, there was just the Old Testament, and they kept and read those scrolls in the synagogues. Get this: Jesus didn’t even own a Bible!

I’m guessing that the answer is, for the most part, they didn’t. If you were a monk in the middle ages, I guess you could go to the prayer hours (matins, vespers, etc.) and hear the Word read there. Otherwise, the Word was read at mass each week. In the earliest days of the church, you got your teaching live from an apostle who recounted the things they had heard from Jesus and seen Him do. That must have been very cool. And before that, you got your daily dose of the Word from the Word Himself, Jesus. And before that you would have gotten the Word from the prophets, who spoke for God, but hardly anyone listened to them anyway.

I’m not sure where I’m going with all this, but I believe it’s important to remember that the current emphasis on bible reading and study, which really drives a lot of our programs, is a fairly recent one in the history of the church. And since we do have bibles coming out our ears (and electronic devices), we should take advantage of them. There doesn’t seem to be much excuse to not know what’s in the Bible or what God says about something. But I read somewhere that biblical illiteracy is disturbingly high among self-proclaimed Christians. You know what that means: job security for me.

Posted in Ministry

Now what?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I remember reading somewhere that your most productive years as a pastor come during your seventh through fourteenth years with a congregation. I’m coming up on my fifteenth anniversary at this congregation this year, and my twenty-fifth in pastoral ministry. Hence my question: now what?

Lately I’ve been asking questions like, “Do I have anything left to say?” or “Is there anything they haven’t heard?” Other questions include, “Is anyone actually listening?” and “Are my messages becoming predictable?” How about, “At what age do you begin to lose the ability to communicate with younger generations?” and “Can they tell how much I don’t want to be at this extremely boring meeting?”

In the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, you don’t leave a congregation until you receive a call to another congregation, retire, die, or get kicked out for doing something immoral. I haven’t had a call for over 12 years, am a bit too young to retire, and am trying to avoid the last two. So it looks like I’m going to be here for a while longer, hence the question, “Now what?”

One obvious answer might be, “Just keep doing what you’re doing.” Sundays and seasons of the church year will continue to come on a regular basis, and so will planning and preparation for worship and preaching. There will be meetings to attend, visits to make, classes to teach, and special occasions like weddings and funerals. Much is predictable.

But another answer could be, “Do a little less.” By that, I mean be sure to get others in the church involved in teaching, visiting, meeting, planning and preparation. Step back so that the church is more about participating than spectating.

Yet another response might be, “Try something new.” Last year I got to accompany a medical team to Haiti. I stopped writing out my whole sermon and began using a storyboard method to compose my messages. I also began uploading the audio files of my sermons to the Internet. I know there will be some new opportunities this year. I just don’t know what they are yet, so it makes sense to leave a little room in my schedule for them.

I guess the religious sounding answer would be, “What God wants me to do.” Which on any given day could be any combination of the above. In some ways, you don’t know what that is until you get there, so “What’s next?” might be a question I need to ask each day.