Posted in Life

Malware

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Endless popups.  False virus alerts.  Yes, that’s right, some malware got into our desktop at home.  How?  I’m not sure.  We’ve got enough antivirus and antispyware stuff to keep everyone but the nerdiest hackers out.  This one was tough.  I had to get on my laptop, research how to get rid of it, then download software to do it, burn a CD, run it and disinfect the desktop.

Frustration.  Aggravation.  Anger.  The blame game.  Plenty of emotional response to the whole episode.  I wonder if someone, somewhere, is getting some joy out of knowing that they’ve caused someone to waste part of their day trying to recover their computer.  Why would someone even bother to develop “malware” anyway?

Is there always someone trying to screw with your life (or your computer) in some way?  I guess the answer is yes.  I’m not going to get all theological, but I guess that is the problem after all.  Someone’s constantly hacking your life.  Hope you backed up sometime recently.

Posted in Ministry

Nobody called

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I’ve made a lot of visits with families who have visited and are interested in our congregation in the past few weeks.  One comment that’s stuck in my mind is, “No one called.”  No one called when they stopped attending our previous church.  No one called when they said they might need to check out some other churches.

Immediately I was convicted because there are a number of people I haven’t called lately.  How many of them may be saying the same thing somewhere else?  I don’t always do it intentionally.  There are some I didn’t realize I haven’t seen for a while.  Having said that, maybe I avoid some calls, either because it never seemed to make a difference in the past, or I just didn’t want to address whatever issue might come up.

Do some people have a need to be missed?  Or do they just use that to justify their next step?  When some connect with a church, do they bring the expectation that there will be ongoing contact?  Or does that expectation develop later on?

Over the years, I’ve learned that people will come and people will go.  People will join, and people will go elsewhere.  And much of the time, you can’t blame yourself or take credit for what happens.  It just happens.  So you can’t beat yourself up too much.

But I guess I could call.

Posted in Life

Powerwashing

Posted on by William Douthwaite

After years of borrowing my neighbor’s power washer, I finally got one of my own.  I had to.  His hasn’t been working and my driveway was getting mildew-y.

I got a medium-duty model at Home Depot, got it together and running without any problem, and a few hours and a bottle of bleach later, my driveway and front sidewalk are looking pretty nice.  Next time I have a half-day free, I need to tackle the soffits around the house.  They’ve been dirty for a while, too.

My wife called it my new toy.  I don’t consider it a toy, since I have to use it for work, but I do get a certain pleasure out of cranking up a small engine and powering stubborn dirt into oblivion.  Growing up, we never powerwashed anything.  Now you powerwash everything.  I don’t even know if they had powerwashers back then.  The oil stain under dad’s car was a permanent part of the driveway.  Everyone had one.  I guess everyone leaked some oil back then.  It was no big deal.

The biggest surprise was when I turned it off and the engine backfired a few times.  It made the dogs across the street start barking.  It ran OK other than that, so I’m not sure what’s wrong.  Faulty spark plug?  Maybe.  Anyway, it looks good sitting in the garage.

Posted in Ministry

What numbers are important?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

numbers1250985368So here’s my question today:  what numbers are important?  We love to talk numbers at church.  Unfortunately, most of them mean very little.

“How big is your congregation?”  I can tell them.  Sort of.  We keep track of our membership.  But we have a good number of people who attend worship on a regular basis who aren’t members.  Then we have those members who for whatever reason don’t attend worship.  Plus, some people are only here part of the year.  What number would you like me to use?

“OK, then how many do you have in worship?”  We keep track of that, too, at least an average number for each Sunday.  However, most people seem to attend worship about twice a month, so no one week gives an accurate picture.  A few years ago we had zero in worship on a Sunday when a hurricane was passing through town.  Do I have to count that week in my average?  On Easter Sunday, our attendance is double what it normally is.  Should I factor in that week?  What number should we use, and what does it tell us?

“Show me the money.”  How are our offerings doing?  It depends on the week.  Are we paying our bills?  Yes.  Could we use more?  Of course.  Do we support missions?  Yup.  Our monthly financial report is over 15 pages long, a literal sea of numbers that sucks you in like a rip current.  They never taught me how to interpret that at the seminary.  I can read some New Testament Greek, though.

“How many lives have been changed?”  No way to tell.  Everyone who worships here may be out affecting other lives where they live and work and study.  I am certain their prayers make a difference in the lives of many, too.

In the initial years of my ministry, numbers meant a lot.  My level of confidence rode the peaks and troughs of attendance, offerings, and new members.  Now they don’t mean so much, probably because I’ve seen God do some of his best work in a meeting with just one other person.

Posted in Ministry

Learning to just listen

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Yesterday, I visited with a couple who have been attending our Sunday worship services.  At one point in the conversation, they shared with me some personal information, and added that they were very nervous about talking about it.  They didn’t know how I would react.  They wondered if they would still be accepted.

As I sat there listening, I also sent up a quick prayer, “Just help me to listen, Lord.”  Though there were lots of things I could have said in response, I just needed to listen and hear their story.  I did say I appreciated their honesty, and asked a few follow-up questions to make sure I understood the situation.

I don’t feel it’s appropriate for me to share any of our conversation, but I can share some things I’ve learned about myself.  In the moment, I did try to ask myself how Jesus would respond.  I like to think he would have simply listened, which could say more than any verbal response.  I also wondered, “Why are they sharing this with me?”  Clearly there was a level of trust and the hope that their admission wouldn’t change anything.  Whether I like it or not, I represent, to some people and to some extent, God himself.  I hardly feel up to that role, but that is how people approach a pastor.

Over the years, I’ve learned that I don’t have to fix things or set people straight on the spot.  I can talk it over with God, trust him to be at work in a situation, and realize that some situations take time to resolve.  And that’s OK.

Posted in Life

Florida State University Graduation

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Our family traveled to Tallahassee yesterday for FSU’s commencement this morning.  My son, Adam, received his bachelor’s of science degree in Sociology with a religion minor.  There were just under 1000 receiving degrees today (at the 9:00 am ceremony), with some master’s and doctorate’s mixed in, too.

For an occasion of that size, things were well-orchestrated.  Done in two hours.  A quick speech by an alumni, Gen. Jay Warner (ret.) got a nice round of applause.  Everything was done in a dignified and respectful manner, suitable for those who had worked so hard over the last four or more years.

I tried to remember my own college graduation 30 years ago from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA.  Tough to do.  I remember that our speaker was science fiction author Isaac Asimov.  That’s about all I remember.  I am sure my parents have some pictures somewhere.  I should try and track them down.  My diploma, all in Latin, is in a folder on a shelf in my office at church.  Maybe it’s time to frame some of those documents.

Posted in Life

Baby Riley

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We just got back from the hospital in St. Augustine, visiting Jessica and her new baby daughter, Riley.  Mark, the dad, was out to dinner with his family, so we didn’t get to see them.  But we did see Riley, and she is pretty cute for all of two days old.

Newborns bring back memories of watching my own children being born.  I clearly remember two of the doctors saying, “If you’ve got a camera, it’s time to start taking pictures!”  And I did.  The old fashioned way, with film.  Got them developed and took them to church with me to show everyone.  Found out not everyone wants to see all the gory details.

Mark and Jess are young.  At least they seem very young.  23 and 21.  Let’s see, I was 28 when my first, Adam was born.  Lisa was 24.  We weren’t so old, either.  Somehow we figured out what to do.  I guess all parents do.

Babies are cool.  There’s no two ways about it.  You just have to like the little ones.  I’m looking forward to a baptism in the near future!

Posted in Ministry

Confirmation this Sunday

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We’re confirming seven of our young people during worship this coming Sunday.  I’ve taught confirmation every year I’ve been in the ministry (that’s twenty-three years this June).  Every time I do this, memories of past classes and students come to mind.

This year is a little different, with one of my own children in the class (the last one, our youngest, Olivia).  It’s also the largest we’ve had at Shepherd of the Coast since I’ve been here.  Now that I’ve been around for a while, I am confirming some of the children I baptized years ago.  It’s powerful to see how they’ve grown, and how our relationship has developed over the years.

I’ve picked out their Bible verses and prepared their certificates for Sunday.  I’ve gotten to know each one well enough that passages just pop into my head as I think of them.  That relationship is the most important product of confirmation, I think.  They may only remember a small fraction of what they’ve learned over the last two years, but hopefully, their relationship with God will continue, as well as their relationship with me.

Confirmation instruction most frequently occurs during seventh and eighth grades.  I enjoy teaching middle school, because most of them want to learn.  They’ve got a million questions.  It’s tough to get them to do work outside of class, but it’s easy to get them talking about various topics.

For me, confirmation is a powerful reminder of the Holy Spirit at work, calling, enlightening, sanctifying, and keeping us in true faith.

Posted in Ministry

Museum or mission

Posted on by William Douthwaite

zzzzA number of years ago, someone challenged me with the question, “Are we trying to build a museum or a mission?”  They were talking about our church (not the one I’m currently at), and the challenges we were facing.

I think that’s a great question.  Have we set out to build a museum or a mission?  A museum will contain many great memories off the past, and people may or may not come by to see them.  A mission, on the other hand, will not be an exhibit, but a journey to those who need to know Jesus Christ, and all that He has done for us.

Sometimes it seems that most of the business of the church is about the “museum.”  Memorials, buildings, and something static you can stand there and look at.  Why don’t we worry more about our mission, which will always be somewhere else, somewhere in the community, or somewhere in the world, where we are proclaiming the gospel.

It’s real hard for me to get excited about a museum, but easy to get motivated about mission.  Rather than working to enhance what we have on our site, why don’t we pour our efforts into going someplace else, where someone, anyone, needs to know about our Savior?

Whenever I’m really quiet at a meeting, it’s usually because the discussion has digressed into museum talk, rather than mission dreams.  I try to be patient and listen, but it’s hard not to say, “Who cares?  Let’s do something meaningful for the kingdom of God, rather than ourselves!”