Posted in Ministry
Posted on by William Douthwaite

It feels like it’s been a long time since I went to church.  It hasn’t been more than a week though.  It’s just that I was so used to special midweek holiday services (since Thanksgiving, not counting some funerals), that a full week seems like a long, long time.  From now till Lent begins at the end of February, I’ll only be preaching weekly.

Wouldn’t it be great if I could get my whole Lenten series figured out by then?  I’ve always set out to do that, but have never, ever accomplished it.  I’ve always been writing two sermons a week during Lent, rather than having them prepared.  Perhaps this year will be the year.  All I need is an idea.

Posted in Life

Undecorating Day

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Kate and our tree
Kate and our tree

Liv and I undecorated the tree and put all the ornaments and Christmas knick-knacks away this morning.  Since the three kids decorated the tree this year, I actually enjoyed the undecorating process, getting to see our diverse collection of ornaments.  I remember exactly who gave us some, while others, I have no idea where we got them.  We have purchased very few, if any, so they are virtually all gifts.

The tree had to go up into the attic in pieces.  I have a new zipper bag to store it in.  Last year I learned the hard way that if you put the tree in the box or bag first, you cannot get it up into the attic.  No, not even with my amazing strength.

As I climbed down from the attic and raised the ladder and door, I knew that the memories would be there for me again next year.  Memories of Christmases of my childhood, when our children were younger, and this year.  That’s one of the cool things about Christmas decorations.  They help to preserve marvelous memories of the places we’ve  been and the people we love.

Posted in Life

Happy New Year!

Posted on by William Douthwaite

img_0041I barely made it to midnight to celebrate the first minutes of 2009.  I’m just not a night person, but come daylight, I’m up and running.

I am already looking forward to this new year.  Lisa and I will celebrate our 25th anniversary with a cruise to Alaska in the summer.  Olivia and I will travel to London at the end of the year with the high school band to march in their new year’s parade.  Olivia will also be confirmed in June.  Adam will graduate from Florida State and will move to St. Louis sometime this summer to begin his seminary studies.  We’ll get another car paid off.  Have to like that.

In between all those events, just about anything happen.  That was the big lesson from 2008.  You just never know.  Just hang on and try to enjoy the ride.

Posted in Life

Pigs

Posted on by William Douthwaite

img_00622

As we were driving through the hills of South Carolina a few weeks ago on our way home from the mountains we passed a truck pulling a trailer full of pigs.  Pigs!  About 9 or 10 off them, laying on each other in a long, flat bed trailer, relaxing, enjoying the ride and the fall colors.  I’m not sure, but it could have been their last ride ever.  Anyway, it’s very unusual to look to your left and see pigs sharing the interstate highway with you.  It was one of those things that was so unexpected, it made me laugh out loud.

Posted in Life

Shoes

Posted on by William Douthwaite

img_0069My new running shoes arrived the other day.  Same make and model as I had, but these are new, with lots of fresh cushioning and the promise of much more comfortable runs.  Yes, it’s exciting to get a new pair of running shoes, especially when I’ve put too many miles on the old ones.  They say you should replace your shoes every 300-400 miles, but I know I went way beyond that.  Anyway, the first run in them this morning was much better and even a little bouncy.  Tomorrow’s run will be in 30 degree weather.  I haven’t run in 30 degree weather for a while.  In Des Moines, I ran in 20 below temperatures, with many layers and just my eyes showing.  But that was a long, long time ago.  Yes, I am crazy.

Posted in Grace

Baptism

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Do you have any idea how cool it is to baptize an adult?  That’s when I am most aware of God’s power and presence.  Paul kind of came out of nowhere, started attending our church, and came to me to be baptized.  We didn’t do anything different.  In fact, I did nothing.  God did it all.  I started the baptism part of the service and I could feel the emotion welling up in me.  Lisa can always hear that in my voice.  I pulled it together and will remember this baptism for a long, long time.  As I told him at the conclusion, it is a privilege to call him a brother in Christ.  I can’t wait to see what God has in store for him!

Posted in Life

5K

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Last Saturday, I ran my first race in about 4 or 5 years.  Not my fastest time, but OK for an old guy.  25:49 was good enough for 12th overall (out of 66) and 2nd in my age group (50-59).  We ran 5,000 meters out and back on the beach from the pier in Daytona Beach in a race to raise funds for Parkinson’s Awareness.  Now I’ve got the running bug again and know I can recapture some of my previous speed.  My best 5K ever happend about 30 years ago when I finally broke 18 minutes at a 1981 race around Lake Takanassee on a Monday night in NJ.

Funny, I don’t feel  that much different than I did back then.  I certainly don’t feel 51.  But I ran across my birth certificate the other day and I can’t deny that the years have passed.

Posted in Grace

North Carolina

Posted on by William Douthwaite

img_0051_editedWhat a blessing to get away, just for four days, and be completely cut off from email, news, telephones, and the usual rhythms of life.  We drove about 540 miles to a cabin just inside Pisgah National Forest at the base of Mt. Mitchell, which is the highest point east of the Mississippi.  We didn’t hike up to the top, but did get to Crabtree Falls, which is a stop on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We arrived at the peak of the fall colors on Saturday.  By Tuesday, when we had to leave, we could see the colors beginning to fade and the subdued hues of winter begin to take over the landscape.

We could have easily stayed there, had we owned or bought the cabin.  What a beautiful location, location, location!  We had to drive 14 miles of sepentine switchbacks to reach the cabin, but it was worth it.  The other homes and cabins nearby were unoccupied that weekend, so we were essentiimg_0059_editedally alone.  The cabin was for sale, but a little pricey for us at $250,000.

After a day of travel, we spent one day in Asheville, wandering around some very unique bookstores and coffee shops.  Our second full day was our hike to the waterfall and some time in Burnsville.  The town is advertised as a great historic place, but isn’t much in real life.  We did eat at a pretty good Mexican restaurant there.

But the time away and spent relaxing was the best gift of all.  The guest pastor at SOTC kept everyone one their toes, but they survived and so did we.  The drive home was long, cloudy, gray, drizzly and dreary.  In a word, yuk.

The weekend, though, was all grace.  What a blessing to find, to arrive, and to enjoy such a retreat.

Posted in Ministry

Thank you

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I received an email today from the daughter-in-law of one of the home bound members, Minerva, I visit each month.  it consisted of simple thank you, but more than made my day.  Minerva shares the details of each visit with her family, from the baked goods she prepares for me to the flowers I sometimes bring from Sunday’s worship.  The email concluded, “Thanks for bringing such joy into her life.”

I rarely stop to think about the impact a visit makes.  When you live alone and rarely get out, any in-person conversation becomes a celebration.  Every personal encounter becomes a memory that can be relived and enjoyed over and over.

I also realize what an impact a thank you can make.  That one sentence blessed me more than cards, gifts, and other tokens of gratitude for ministry.  It’s not that I don’t like those things.  But I’d would much rather know that for just a moment, I brought joy to someone’s life.  I made someone’s day a little shorter, a little more crowded, a little more memorable.

I can live off of a thank you for days.