Changes in Fall

Starting this fall my role at Faith Community Church will be changing from Pastor of Care Ministry to Pastor of Spiritual Growth.  I am very excited about this change and look forward to how God might use me and others as we seek to encourage people to grow towards a Christ centered faith.

At the same time I am sad to leave the Care Ministry.  I am touched by the depth and love the ministry partners in Care show for those they care.  They are passionate, loving and joyful people who work with those in crisis and need.  they do it at personal expense and with little recognition.  I will miss working with them.

So, November 19th is a big day.  I covet your prayers as I will be taking that first week to pray and study God's Word for direction, inspiration and clarity about how I might lead this ministry.

Looking forward to the summer, especially with the boys as they grow older.  This year we are hanging in MA with camping, swimming, church and hanging out with friends as our planned activities.  It is going to be a good summer.

Holy Week

Holy week is one of the most focused and intimate times of the Christian Faith. As a church we are currently reading through John Piper's Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ. It is simply brilliant.

It cannot be read in a rush and it needs to be pondered on. Piper provides some great insight into the glory of Christ, his suffering and the reason for Satan's continued existence in a thought provoking manner. If you have not picked it up download it here

Have a wonderfully rich Holy Week and celebrate with effervescent joy this weekend.

God bless

Glee

I just finished watching the first season of Glee on NetflixWI. I know it is in the third season now, but I never quite watched it before. It is brilliant!

It captures many of the core emotional themes of teaching, adolescence, heartache, celebration and reality very well. It deals with the challenges of growing up in this modern world head on and powerfully, albeit from a distinctly non-Christian view. The music, choreography, plot, characters, costumes and sets are wonderfully done. The script is wonderfully put together. For me some of the most powerful moments are:

• Quinn's parents kicking her out - so amazingly acted and very heartbreaking.
• Artie's mob scene - well sung and choregraphed
• All of Sue Sylvester's character - she is just brilliant (some of the funniest lines ever), you love to hate her to love her.
• Rachel's voice
• Brittany's dancing
  

I look forward to a second season when it becomes available. Now I can get some sleep!

Catching Up

How bad is it to have a blog and never write on it? Well, bad...very bad!

So enough of that. It is now 2011 and it has been a full year. We visited South Africa earlier this year as a family, then I transitioned to a new job at First Congregational Church in Hopkinton as their new Pastor of Care and in the midst of this I contracted MRSA.

So the year has been filled with many highs and one or two lows, but overall the year has been great. Even the MRSA ordeal was an incredible growth time for me as I was able to experience first hand the generosity of those at FCCH, the wonderful care of the nurses and doctors at Framingham Union Hospital and the immense and God-honoring support of my wife and friends. I truly am surrounded by wonderful and loving people.

My transition to FCCH has been excellent. I love what I am doing and I thoroughly enjoy my role and contribution to the church. The church is wonderful with meaningful services, a dedicated staff, wonderful people and a solid commitment to caring for and reaching out to those in our community. Come check us out this Sunday, especially with a brand new series kicking off - Face to Face. Check out www.fcch.org for more info.

Door's Howls will be back soon with more movie reviews. I recently saw Battle LA and while very predictable the movie was a great action, shoot 'em up with Aaron Eckhart doing a great job in the lead.

The weather is now warming up and I am looking forward to some warmer and sunnier days.

Finally, Hammer and Chisel Inc, the non-profit I work with and help lead is bringing some students over to New York and Boston in April. It should be a good time as these students experience these two cities in ways they never would have before.

More to come!

Goodbye Thanksgiving...Hello Christmas

We had a very relaxing Thanksgiving, which was great. Over the weekend we put up our Christmas decorations and rearranged our house to fit them in. It actually looks really good and spacious. We bought a fake tree this year (due to our vacation) and I prefer it to the real one...no sap on the fingers, no needles all over the ground and no need to water it.

I am looking forward to the Christmas season...my favorite time of year, despite it's busyness. We lighted the first of the advent candles last night - The Candle of Hope and read from Isaiah. As we prayed as a family it was amazing to hear our eldest son's prayer as he prayed for the upcoming season. I am truly blessed to have the people in my family that I do.

The World at Night

I have for the last few weeks experienced the world between the hours of 1am and 3am. Now, I have always been a night owl, but lately, due to a number of factors, I find myself awake until late into the night (or is that early into the morning?).

It is amazing how different the world looks and feels at night. There is a quietness that just does not exist at other times. It is almost as if the earth is holding its breath. There are no demands on you. There is no constant hubbub of background noise like there is during the day. And I must say, speaking to God at this time of night is quite unrestricted.

Of course, the ongoing conversation in my mind can get annoying. It goes something like this:
"Go to sleep!"
"Would love to, but I'm not tired."
"Just try and lie down."
"Already done that for an hour."
"Read a book."
"Finished one already."
"Just go to sleep..."
"Would love to, but..."

So anyway, here's to getting to sleep tonight before 1am