Sunday I preached about how failure can be an opportunity. Too often we push being successful and how we define success ranging from making good grades, scoring high on the SAT, how much money or goods we possess, etc. While those are sometimes needed, I feel that it is more important as to what goes on within a person rather than what others would judge. I talked about how Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison would have been seen by the typical school judgments of what is successful. Neither one did particularly well in school and yet both were geniuses in what they accomplished. I quoted from both men. I wanted to include them here. Quotes on success:
Thomas Edison: I have not failed. I’ve found 10,000 ways that won’t work. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.
Albert Einstein: Try not to become a person of success but rather try to become a person of value.
I must of touched upon several people as there were many stories and accounts about how others had been judged as to their worth usually negatively and how they were able to overcome that labeling and become successful. What seemed to be true was not only did they become successful but they also had an integrity about them. I believe that is what Jesus calls us to be. More concerned about the integrity and relationship we have with God and our neighbor than being so concerned about living up to expectations of the world. I personally would rather be a person of value, faithful to Jesus and God, than to be so concerned about what car I drive, what house I live in, and how much I earn. I would wonder what type of world we would live in if we all adapted the idea of being of value to God's creation. Not only we being a person of value but treating others as if they were of value also.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Wednesday the 17th
Talk about a creative title. I wanted to make sure to write and to include the photo of the quilt that was created following 9/11. I was impressed not just by the workmanship but also about the statement it had to make about who we ideally are as Americans. I have been recovering from our 125th anniversary which went extremely well. The reason it went so well was all those who were behind the scenes planning this event for the past two years. Without those who were responsible I am certain it would not have been as impressive as it was. Our Bishop preached and we celebrated with a catered meal and entertainment. I will include some of the special quilts and stained glass that was an important gifts we received. I will do so at another blog entry.
The dedication especially as the time drew near was outstanding. So for those who read this and who participated mucho gracious, merci beaucoup, and thank you. If you see the people who helped bring this together take some time and let them know how much you appreciated the work that they did.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Gratitude
It has been so long since I have taken time to write. Our church is celebrating 125 years of being in the Springfield community. In this day when we have difficulty remembering what we have done in the last 5 years, this is quite the accomplishment. I am honored to be the pastor of this church which has seen wars, depression, recession, dust bowls, a lunar landing, and so much in the history of the church. It has remained faithful during all that time. Sometimes it seems we worship modernity so much that we forget the traditions that have been the foundation of our lives. Sometimes I also feel that we can also dishonor those who have been part of the builder generation which has contributed to our freedoms and our beliefs.
As we were preparing to celebrate this Sunday, I preached on the passage in Luke about the ten lepers. When they asked for mercy, Jesus was merciful. Nine went to the temple as Jesus commanded. Only one who saw that he was cured came back praising God and Jesus. The twist of the story was that he was a foreigner, "a Samaritan." I was thinking about how we need to open our eyes to see the blessing that God has provided to us through Jesus Christ.
As I have had time to reflect, I also believe that we often take our past for granted. It seems that we often repeat our history and have difficulty remembering. We do not "see" what God in the presence of others in our past and in our present is doing or has done. We become so embroiled in our own individual lives that we fail as a community. One example that I read dealt with Al Gore winning the Nobel Peace Prize. One article in our paper mentioned that global warming or the continuing pollution of our world was not a major political concern among most people. Whether one believes in global warming or not, I would think that most of the people should become aware of the environmental impact our style of living is producing. We no longer have many rivers in the USA that are not polluted. Many of our cities have unsafe air to breathe. The number of recalls for contaminated food have risen. Yet we are not willing to sacrifice our lifestyle to help save our future. I would wonder how my generation would survive an economic depression that my parents lived through.
I want to open my eyes and to be in a state of gratitude for what God has provided in my life. And not be so concerned about owning a new car, a new house, or even making so much money that I would not know what to do with it. I pray that we, including myself, will open our eyes to appreciate the gift that God has given us in this world and in the people who live in it.
As we were preparing to celebrate this Sunday, I preached on the passage in Luke about the ten lepers. When they asked for mercy, Jesus was merciful. Nine went to the temple as Jesus commanded. Only one who saw that he was cured came back praising God and Jesus. The twist of the story was that he was a foreigner, "a Samaritan." I was thinking about how we need to open our eyes to see the blessing that God has provided to us through Jesus Christ.
As I have had time to reflect, I also believe that we often take our past for granted. It seems that we often repeat our history and have difficulty remembering. We do not "see" what God in the presence of others in our past and in our present is doing or has done. We become so embroiled in our own individual lives that we fail as a community. One example that I read dealt with Al Gore winning the Nobel Peace Prize. One article in our paper mentioned that global warming or the continuing pollution of our world was not a major political concern among most people. Whether one believes in global warming or not, I would think that most of the people should become aware of the environmental impact our style of living is producing. We no longer have many rivers in the USA that are not polluted. Many of our cities have unsafe air to breathe. The number of recalls for contaminated food have risen. Yet we are not willing to sacrifice our lifestyle to help save our future. I would wonder how my generation would survive an economic depression that my parents lived through.
I want to open my eyes and to be in a state of gratitude for what God has provided in my life. And not be so concerned about owning a new car, a new house, or even making so much money that I would not know what to do with it. I pray that we, including myself, will open our eyes to appreciate the gift that God has given us in this world and in the people who live in it.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Back home
Nancy and I have arrived home safely from our trip. Needless to say our cats have made it known to us about our leaving them even though they were well taken care of by Luan. Thanks Luan. We will have a day where we can spend time unwinding and spending time with our grandchildren here in Omaha. We had a great time and the second dinner theater Tuesday was fantastic though not a comedy. We did stop in Galesburg Ill home of Carl Sandburg one of my favorite poets. We also stopped at one fabric store in Grinell Ia the Grinell Fiber Works. I took some pictures of one of their quilts that they did shortly after 9/11 with all the world's religious symbols and people of diversity represented in the quilt. I hope to post that in my next blog.
One other thing to note was that when we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Louisville I was impressed that they use Rainforest Alliance certified coffee. Being Methodist, I am aware and hopefully others are also of Free Trade coffee which guarantees a fair price to be paid to the growers of coffee and other products. Similarly no sweat t-shirts are part of our mission to not exploit workers. Rainforest Alliance is similar with the ideas of sustainable environment, fair markets for all people. Below is their values and mission.
Our Values and Vision for the Future
At the Rainforest Alliance our work is guided by these core values:
Respect and concern for natural environments, local peoples and all stakeholders
Dedication to pioneering pragmatic innovations with respect to common practices
A belief that sustainability is achievable only through collaboration and mutual success
An unwavering commitment to integrity in all that we do. We have taken steps to ensure our integrity
Envisioning a Sustainable Future
The Rainforest Alliance believes that it is possible to create a sustainable society, one that protects the planet and provides sustainable livelihoods for its people.
To achieve our vision, we must transform the current destructive market system into one that values sustainable production, sourcing, consumption and equitable trade.
We believe that sustainable management of businesses of all sizes requires:
Clean air and water
Healthy biodiversity and wildlife habitat
Reduction of waste and toxicity
Reduction and mitigation of global warming
Dignified and safe living and working conditions, with adequate food, education and health care for workers and their families
Equal opportunity for all
We believe that a sustainable market system requires that:
Sustainable sourcing, supply chain management and public accountability are standard practice
Products carry prices that reflect their real environmental, economic and social value
Sustainable producers, small and community-based businesses have equitable market access
People demand and have access to high-quality, sustainable and healthy products and choices
Financial and insurance sectors support sustainable operations and penalize unsustainable ones
Governments support sustainability through procurement, incentives, and regulations
Civil society sources sustainably
I am not sure if this is true for all Holiday Inns but I was impressed. I believe we need to remember [my paraphrase] what Jesus said that how we treat the least of them represents how we treat Jesus. I have tried to change the type of coffee we buy in our church to Fair Trade or Sustainable Certified coffee. Too often major coffee producers do not offer fair and equatible pay to those who raise their product and thus continue to exploit not only the workers but the land itself. I hope that in some small way we can become more aware of the injustice of this and do what we can to support fair trade, Rainforest Alliance, and Sustainable Certified products whenever we can.
This is especially true as we come to World Communion Sunday this Sunday. Let us be in community with the world not exploiting it.
One other thing to note was that when we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Louisville I was impressed that they use Rainforest Alliance certified coffee. Being Methodist, I am aware and hopefully others are also of Free Trade coffee which guarantees a fair price to be paid to the growers of coffee and other products. Similarly no sweat t-shirts are part of our mission to not exploit workers. Rainforest Alliance is similar with the ideas of sustainable environment, fair markets for all people. Below is their values and mission.
Our Values and Vision for the Future
At the Rainforest Alliance our work is guided by these core values:
Respect and concern for natural environments, local peoples and all stakeholders
Dedication to pioneering pragmatic innovations with respect to common practices
A belief that sustainability is achievable only through collaboration and mutual success
An unwavering commitment to integrity in all that we do. We have taken steps to ensure our integrity
Envisioning a Sustainable Future
The Rainforest Alliance believes that it is possible to create a sustainable society, one that protects the planet and provides sustainable livelihoods for its people.
To achieve our vision, we must transform the current destructive market system into one that values sustainable production, sourcing, consumption and equitable trade.
We believe that sustainable management of businesses of all sizes requires:
Clean air and water
Healthy biodiversity and wildlife habitat
Reduction of waste and toxicity
Reduction and mitigation of global warming
Dignified and safe living and working conditions, with adequate food, education and health care for workers and their families
Equal opportunity for all
We believe that a sustainable market system requires that:
Sustainable sourcing, supply chain management and public accountability are standard practice
Products carry prices that reflect their real environmental, economic and social value
Sustainable producers, small and community-based businesses have equitable market access
People demand and have access to high-quality, sustainable and healthy products and choices
Financial and insurance sectors support sustainable operations and penalize unsustainable ones
Governments support sustainability through procurement, incentives, and regulations
Civil society sources sustainably
I am not sure if this is true for all Holiday Inns but I was impressed. I believe we need to remember [my paraphrase] what Jesus said that how we treat the least of them represents how we treat Jesus. I have tried to change the type of coffee we buy in our church to Fair Trade or Sustainable Certified coffee. Too often major coffee producers do not offer fair and equatible pay to those who raise their product and thus continue to exploit not only the workers but the land itself. I hope that in some small way we can become more aware of the injustice of this and do what we can to support fair trade, Rainforest Alliance, and Sustainable Certified products whenever we can.
This is especially true as we come to World Communion Sunday this Sunday. Let us be in community with the world not exploiting it.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Update
Nancy and I are enjoying our time here in Louisville. Donita stated that this was God's country. I don't know about that but if it isn't you certainly are close. The people on the whole are friendly and willing to help "aliens among them." I am sure they wonder if we speak the same language that they do. I almost have saying Louisville down. One person said that you say Louisville as if you are spitting tobbaca.
We have toured several art museums and plan to go yet today. Tonight we will be attending another dinner theater, "Wait til Dark." Wednesday we will be traveling and plan to be back by Friday evening. This has been a wonderful time.
What has impressed so is how important hospitality really is. I remember reading that in a restaurant even if the food is average and the service is great people will return based only on the service. I can appreciate that. We went to a candy store that has been in business for over 150 years. They have had different owners but they still make all their candy by hand. It is delicious. It costs more than Russel Stover but the quality is so much better. They are widely known throughout the south and mid-west for their candy. They even make sugar-free candy. The owners not only gave us a sample but spent time talking about their business and making us feel welcome. Doing that costs nothing and yet the payoff is so great. It was not just the owners but every employee who went out of their way to welcome you. A good lesson for us if we want to do radical hospitality.
We have toured several art museums and plan to go yet today. Tonight we will be attending another dinner theater, "Wait til Dark." Wednesday we will be traveling and plan to be back by Friday evening. This has been a wonderful time.
What has impressed so is how important hospitality really is. I remember reading that in a restaurant even if the food is average and the service is great people will return based only on the service. I can appreciate that. We went to a candy store that has been in business for over 150 years. They have had different owners but they still make all their candy by hand. It is delicious. It costs more than Russel Stover but the quality is so much better. They are widely known throughout the south and mid-west for their candy. They even make sugar-free candy. The owners not only gave us a sample but spent time talking about their business and making us feel welcome. Doing that costs nothing and yet the payoff is so great. It was not just the owners but every employee who went out of their way to welcome you. A good lesson for us if we want to do radical hospitality.
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