"I have a favor to task of you," I said, looking up and backwards, searching to find Pastor Mike's face. As with most conversations we've had, PM had me in a headlock.
"You do?" he asked, spinning me around again. I was glad today's greeting didn't involve his binder pounding on my head. That's apparently reserved for the days when I already have a headache.
"Can I borrow your keys?"
"For?"
Dang it. Had I really hoped the senior pastor of a megachurch would willingly surrender his keys to some mischievous members?
"Pastor Russ's office." I quickly began to explain the situation in the briefest of terms. I also regretted not chasing down Pastor Jim (PT) instead. To PT, all I would have needed to say was, "It's Trinity Sunday" and the keys would have been mine.
"Well--" PM started. I knew what was coming: no. It's understandable. You can't have three girls unchaperoned in a pastor's office, even if it is Trinity Sunday.
"We won't touch anything," I added, holding my hands in the air. PM's face softened to a smile.
"I already saw the balloons," he said, reaching through his robe and into his pocket to pull out his keys. "And touch anything you'd like," he added with a laugh.
Yes! Pastor Mike has always liked me. Something to do with his being the father of four girls and my being the oldest of three. Either that or the fact that we were pranking Pastor Russ.
Drums and I tried not to run as we headed down the office hallway and back to our heap of balloons outside PR's office door. The hard work had been done. The Athanasian Creed had been cut apart line by line. Each line had been shoved into a balloon. The balloons had been blown up and the key obtained. Now the fun stuff: the decorating.
We didn't have enough hot air, I mean, balloons to fill the office. Unfortunate! Instead we filled every nook and cranny we could fine. A few under his desk, another behind the guitar, some on the bookshelf, one in the Easter basket, one next to the Jesus doll... more or less, everywhere. We even taped one to his desk that read "Trinity Sunday" and one to his door that read "Athanasian Creed." Now everyone that walks by will be curious as to why PR's office door became a bulletin board... today.
You see, this is a four-year tradition. The first year Melissa and I were caught red-handed. We had the Creed in a plethora of different languages taped to his door. He thought it was hate mail from the "Sex Sermon" he'd done on the 6th Commandment the week before. We learned PT felt left out so the following year we used 12-inch white letters to write "Athanasian" down PR's door and "Creed" up PT's. I was in Costa Rica for the third year, but Dawn and Melissa decorated the door with the Creed... on Post-It notes.
A few weeks ago, Trinity Sunday talk began on facebook.
Melissa: This week is Pentecost. You know what that means next week is?
Pastor Russ: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooo... just kidding.
Katie: Pastor Russ is just kidding. He likes Trinity Sunday.
PR: I like Trinity Sunday. I just don't like "Let's celebrate Trinity Sunday on Pastor Russ's office door."
Katie: We could celebrate Trinity Sunday in Pastor Russ's office, if that would be better.
Dawn: OOOHH! I want in!
Somewhere in here a secret leaked that PR would be out of town this weekend. We started an email conversation.
Katie: Let me get this straight, you're fleeing on Trinity Sunday, leaving your office open for whatever cockamamie scheme we develop?
PR: My office may be boobie trapped. Enter at you own risk.
Katie: For the Trinity, we're willing to risk it.
And we did. PR congratulated us on another clever and successful Trinity Sunday. (Even though he'd popped half of the balloons before discovering the Creed was inside of them). Rumor has it PT felt left out again. We'll have to fix that next year. Any ideas?
<>< Katie
PS: Happy birthday, Drums!
Showing posts with label Apostle's Creed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Apostle's Creed. Show all posts
Monday, June 14, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Volunteers
Sunday morning Pastor Russ spoke about the "communion of saints" line in the Apostle's Creed. (Baptist readers: please don't condemn me because I go to a creedal church...). One of the things he mentioned was that Christian life is like breathing. Going to church (physically) is breathing in. Going out into the world and being the church is breathing out. You need both. You can't just breathe in and you can't just breathe out. There needs to be a balance between the two. I completely agree.
Later he said something else I'd never really thought about before. He called parents volunteers. He supported that idea by saying they've volunteered their time and gas money to get their children to and from activities. They coordinate carpool, snacks, and game schedules... They're the volunteers that get the least amount of credit. Sunday night I got to see that idea in action.
There's a group of middle school girls currently a part of our confirmation class. As a class they sponsor me through an adopt a college kid ministry. Basically this means they send me packages periodically, I send them cards, and I visit them when I'm in town. I'm in town, so Sunday night I paid them a visit.
In case you've never spent time with eight 7th grade girls: they are crazy. To top it off, this was their end of the year party, so we had a chocolate fountain in class. BIG MESS, BIG MESS!
Yes, there was chocolate everywhere. As we were cleaning it up, I asked the leader how she was going to go about cleaning it. She explained she'd used the same fountain with her son's Sunday School class that morning, and she just let it sit in the sink all afternoon. Here I was thinking about how I never wanted to clean a chocolate fountain and she did it twice... today.
After the girls left, she was telling me some of their stories. Mind you, this is a middle class, primarily-white, suburban church. Well, a lot of the students in her group came from single parent/ divorced homes. Most of them weren't just a "it is what it is" situation but rather there was baggage. A "Mom died six days after she was told she had two months to live" story. A "Dad's got a girlfriend abroad and spends most of his time there but also has primary custody of the kids." The ones that have two parents have heart-breaking stories, too. "Her brother died in the military." "Mom had the primary income, but then she lost her job, so they're living on Dad's part-time salary."
On the surface, these are average middle school girls who enjoy chocolate a bit too much, spend all summer in the swimming pool, and can't wait to go to camp. When you look a little deeper, they've all got stories that will break your heart.
"I'm just trying to make a difference," the leader said. She explained most of them are not in church other than confirmation class, so she struggles to find the balance between fun and teaching about God. "This may be their only opportunity to hear His word; that's a big responsibility on me," she explained, maybe not orally, but I heard it. "I've been trying so hard to reach this one girl, and I just can't seem to get through."
I told her I'd pray for her. And I did. All the way home. Those girls' stories tug on my heart-strings, and that woman's obedience to God's call and willingness to do what's right. She's an everyday, unsung hero. She's the kind of woman I want to be when I grow up, even if it means I have to clean a chocolate fountain twice in one day. As soon as I wrote that sentence, a little voice in my head said, "Why wait?" Why wait to be obedient and willing to volunteer your time, energy, and gas? So I ask you, why wait?
But this blog isn't about you and me. It's about this the volunteering that often goes unnoticed.
Parents, thank you for volunteering your time and making a difference, not just in the lives of your youngsters but also in the lives of their friends. With your kids, you can see your impact. With their friends, it's hard to see the fruits of your labor, but they're ripening. Somewhere.
<>< Katie
Later he said something else I'd never really thought about before. He called parents volunteers. He supported that idea by saying they've volunteered their time and gas money to get their children to and from activities. They coordinate carpool, snacks, and game schedules... They're the volunteers that get the least amount of credit. Sunday night I got to see that idea in action.
There's a group of middle school girls currently a part of our confirmation class. As a class they sponsor me through an adopt a college kid ministry. Basically this means they send me packages periodically, I send them cards, and I visit them when I'm in town. I'm in town, so Sunday night I paid them a visit.
In case you've never spent time with eight 7th grade girls: they are crazy. To top it off, this was their end of the year party, so we had a chocolate fountain in class. BIG MESS, BIG MESS!
Yes, there was chocolate everywhere. As we were cleaning it up, I asked the leader how she was going to go about cleaning it. She explained she'd used the same fountain with her son's Sunday School class that morning, and she just let it sit in the sink all afternoon. Here I was thinking about how I never wanted to clean a chocolate fountain and she did it twice... today.
After the girls left, she was telling me some of their stories. Mind you, this is a middle class, primarily-white, suburban church. Well, a lot of the students in her group came from single parent/ divorced homes. Most of them weren't just a "it is what it is" situation but rather there was baggage. A "Mom died six days after she was told she had two months to live" story. A "Dad's got a girlfriend abroad and spends most of his time there but also has primary custody of the kids." The ones that have two parents have heart-breaking stories, too. "Her brother died in the military." "Mom had the primary income, but then she lost her job, so they're living on Dad's part-time salary."
On the surface, these are average middle school girls who enjoy chocolate a bit too much, spend all summer in the swimming pool, and can't wait to go to camp. When you look a little deeper, they've all got stories that will break your heart.
"I'm just trying to make a difference," the leader said. She explained most of them are not in church other than confirmation class, so she struggles to find the balance between fun and teaching about God. "This may be their only opportunity to hear His word; that's a big responsibility on me," she explained, maybe not orally, but I heard it. "I've been trying so hard to reach this one girl, and I just can't seem to get through."
I told her I'd pray for her. And I did. All the way home. Those girls' stories tug on my heart-strings, and that woman's obedience to God's call and willingness to do what's right. She's an everyday, unsung hero. She's the kind of woman I want to be when I grow up, even if it means I have to clean a chocolate fountain twice in one day. As soon as I wrote that sentence, a little voice in my head said, "Why wait?" Why wait to be obedient and willing to volunteer your time, energy, and gas? So I ask you, why wait?
But this blog isn't about you and me. It's about this the volunteering that often goes unnoticed.
Parents, thank you for volunteering your time and making a difference, not just in the lives of your youngsters but also in the lives of their friends. With your kids, you can see your impact. With their friends, it's hard to see the fruits of your labor, but they're ripening. Somewhere.
<>< Katie
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)