After a long day...

After a long day of visiting with members and staff, writing text for a new website that is about to be launched, coordinating our "praying the psalms" conversation and recording two sets of music for upcoming public TV in Pittsfield, Di and I collapsed into our easy chairs for a bowl of turkey ramen soup and a glass of red wine. It was a full and creative day.

+ We are working at launching a summer peace and justice series that combines local musicians with people-to-people efforts at building bridges in Afghanistan, Nicaragua and Israel/Palestine. There is a lot to be accomplished in the planning, but it has the potential to be powerful and rewarding.

+ Our little band, Between the Banks, worked hard tonight and mostly hit the mark: there were a few clunkers (mostly from me) but a LOT of sweet harmonies and beautiful playing. I look forward to posting the fruit of these labors when they become available.

+ And we are inching towards crafting an Open and Affirming process that allows us to wrestle with peace and justice issues - including race, class and differing abilities along with sexuality - as the core of our study/action work next year.

As this long day comes to a close, I rejoice that our seminary member will be with us in worship this Sunday as we try to make sense of Ascension Day for the 21st century. The words of pastor/teacher M. Craig Barnes cries out to me as he reminds us that congregations are NOT interested in gimmicks or schtick!

Because God alone is whole and complete, lacking in nothing... it only makes sense that those who have devoted their lives to talking about God (pastors) would have at least a "small matter" that is missing, imperfect or habitually humbling. The purpose of this unwanted - but divine - gift is to nurture even more gravitas in the pastor's soul. Such gravity is strangely attractive to a society that has tried too long to lack nothing... (in the end) what parishioners really want is a pastor who know what it means to struggle against temptation and despair, like they do.

They want to be led by someone who has stayed up all night fretting over choices, regrets and fear, but who then found the quiet grace to start over the next morning. They want to see the Gospel incarnated in a human life that is still far from complete but has become more interesting because the human drama is now sacred. In other words, they want a pastor who knows what it means to be them, but them in communion with God. Innocence is precious, but it's the glimpses of redemption that truly compel.

On Sunday two different people said something that touched me to the core: they both spoke of searching for everyday music in which they heard God speaking. One resonated deeply with "Bridge Over Trouble Water" - a real favorite - and the other gave me a total surprise - "Message in a Bottle" by the Police. It is so freakin' SPOT on... it may just have to make appearance at Pentecost.