"I'm back in the saddle again."
Come on now, sing along with me. You know the words
"I'm back in the saddle again
Out where a friend is a friend
Where the longhorn cattle feed
On the lowly gypsum weed
Back in the saddle again."
Very good. Shall we try the chorus. It's easy. All together...
"Whoopi-ty-aye-oh
Rockin' to and fro
Back in the saddle again
Whoopi-ty-aye-oh
I go my way
Back in the saddle again."
Good singing and thanks for the support. Yes, you've probably guessed we are indeed back in the saddle again. It all happened very fast. Monday and Tuesday I was innocently working on my taxes. Yes, the 2008 taxes! I forgot to take my tax stuff with me when we went to Arizona so I filed an extension. Jana, Korak and kids are coming next week so I knew I had to get the taxes done NOW. No more procrastination. So anyway... I calmly -- well, mostly calmly -- got the taxes done and mailed. Wednesday I was on a conference telephone call with the Ministerial Appointments Committee and it happened: "Gene how about going to Lebanon to work with Trevor to get him off to a good start." Joyce said it's probably a good thing it happened so fast; if we had time to think about it we might have said no.
We don't even know how the whole thing is going to look because we are still working on the details, but here is a brief overview. Trevor and Shannette are a mid-twenties couple who are going to the the pastoral team at the Lebanon FM Church. But they have no pastoral experience and are still in school. Trevor has about 2 years at 8-10 credits a semester to graduate from George Fox Evangelical Seminary; Shannette will graduate from George Fox University in December. Because we want them to succeed we are paring them with an "experienced, mature, pastor with lots of wisdom and knows where the pitfalls are." (Those words were actually used!) Isn't that a kick? I'm not even sure who they are talking about but I'm scared to death they are talking about me. Pray for me. Often. This is to begin Sunday, July 19 and go for 6 to 9 months, maybe a year. Joyce is right in there with me as she always is.
Friday we met with our Superintendent and Trevor and Shannette (Joyce and I had met Trevor before but not his wife) in Eugene for lunch. It gave us an opportunity to get acquainted and begin to make some plans. We decided Trevor and I will be co-pastors with the greater balance of the responsibility being mine at the beginning and then switching to Trevor as time goes on. Friday evening our Annual Conference began; continued on Saturday until about 3:30. Then we drove to Lebanon to meet with the the Lebanon board -- of course, Trevor and Shannette were there also. After that meeting the four of us went to a Taco Time for some planning and prayer. Then we drove back to Eugene. We stayed the night with Jack and LuWayne. Jack is Joyce's brother. We were physically beat but mentally hyped. This morning I preached my "final" sermon at Springfield, had lunch with Jack and LuWayne and drove home.
Right now we are wondering how we are going to fit Lebanon into all our summer plans -- and of course they have to take priority. But many of our plans can't be changed. We'll figure it out. We believe God is in this so he has a plan and he'll give us the guidance we need. Needless to say, stay tuned. There is a LOT more to come.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Quick Trip to Salem
We were quietly preparing for our trip to Springfield this weekend. Ginger was going to join us at a motel Saturday, we would have fun together, attend church together, go to a nice Father's Day dinner and then part for our separate homes. How quickly plans change.
The Conference Superintendent asked to set with him in an interview of one of our pastors on Thursday. This man was being accused of some inappropriate behavior by one of his female parishioners. I can't go into detail but after visiting with him for over an hour it was our opinion that he was being falsely accused. In a situation like this particular one it is very hard to know where truth stands; there will be one more meeting between he and the accuser plus their spouses, the Superintendent, and maybe me. What stood out as we talked with this man is the importance of one's integrity. None of us can prevent someone from making a false accusation, but if our integrity is intact it goes a long way in establishing where truth abides. In fact, -- and I used this concept in my sermon this morning -- people can take everything from you except your integrity. They can take your money, your job, your family, even your life but they cannot take your integrity. The only way you can lose your integrity is if you give it away through your dishonesty, your theft, your cheating, or whatever. (Actually, I can think of one other thing that people cannot take from you but I'll let you think about that one. If you have an idea let me know by using the comment page -- the link is below).
Anyway, as you have already gathered, Joyce and I drove to Salem Thursday and stayed at Ginger's Thursday and Friday nights. In the meantime, Ginger's boss -- the owner of the company -- had to be out of town for a few days because of a family emergency. And the person who would ordinarily take charge also had to be out of town. So the boss asked Ginger to be the "person in charge." Even though she has lots of responsibility in the company, she has never been asked to do this before. However this meant she could not leave town so there went our fun time in Springfield. But since we were already in Salem, not all was lost. We celebrated Father's Day on Friday night. Ginger took us to a really nice restaurant called J. James. I had some very yummy and tender pork loin.
Joyce and I used the motel room Saturday. The ladies of the church had a simple but real nice brunch set up. My sermon was on "The Measure of a Man" so I gave each one a small tape measure to help remember the main points. Since the church is not large, there were not a lot of men so it didn't cost me very much. After worship we went to lunch with a couple from the church.
And then we drove home.
The Conference Superintendent asked to set with him in an interview of one of our pastors on Thursday. This man was being accused of some inappropriate behavior by one of his female parishioners. I can't go into detail but after visiting with him for over an hour it was our opinion that he was being falsely accused. In a situation like this particular one it is very hard to know where truth stands; there will be one more meeting between he and the accuser plus their spouses, the Superintendent, and maybe me. What stood out as we talked with this man is the importance of one's integrity. None of us can prevent someone from making a false accusation, but if our integrity is intact it goes a long way in establishing where truth abides. In fact, -- and I used this concept in my sermon this morning -- people can take everything from you except your integrity. They can take your money, your job, your family, even your life but they cannot take your integrity. The only way you can lose your integrity is if you give it away through your dishonesty, your theft, your cheating, or whatever. (Actually, I can think of one other thing that people cannot take from you but I'll let you think about that one. If you have an idea let me know by using the comment page -- the link is below).
Anyway, as you have already gathered, Joyce and I drove to Salem Thursday and stayed at Ginger's Thursday and Friday nights. In the meantime, Ginger's boss -- the owner of the company -- had to be out of town for a few days because of a family emergency. And the person who would ordinarily take charge also had to be out of town. So the boss asked Ginger to be the "person in charge." Even though she has lots of responsibility in the company, she has never been asked to do this before. However this meant she could not leave town so there went our fun time in Springfield. But since we were already in Salem, not all was lost. We celebrated Father's Day on Friday night. Ginger took us to a really nice restaurant called J. James. I had some very yummy and tender pork loin.
Joyce and I used the motel room Saturday. The ladies of the church had a simple but real nice brunch set up. My sermon was on "The Measure of a Man" so I gave each one a small tape measure to help remember the main points. Since the church is not large, there were not a lot of men so it didn't cost me very much. After worship we went to lunch with a couple from the church.
And then we drove home.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Just a Week
Maybe I can call this preparation week because I spoke at the Men's Fellowship Dinner at Jerome Prairie Bible Church on Friday and then preached at Springfield on Sunday. Both of these had to be prepared for. So that consumed a lot of the week. A little work in the garden; a little work around the house; a visit to the doctor for my semi-annual checkup (I'm okay); some shopping -- and that's the week. Well, almost.
We drove to Creswell Saturday afternoon to Betty's house. She is my niece and Creswell is about 10 miles south of Eugene (or Springfield, since that was our ultimate destination). We enjoyed pizza and lots of conversation with my sisters, Doris and Beth; with Doris's husband, Bing; and with my nephew and wife, Roy and Twyla. This was the first time we had seen them since last fall before we left for Arizona. Nice visit. Betty let us spend the night at her house. This morning I preached at Springfield and we drove home -- with a stop at Appleby's in Roseburg for lunch.
It was just a week. Not a lot happening. Stay tuned. That will probably change.
We drove to Creswell Saturday afternoon to Betty's house. She is my niece and Creswell is about 10 miles south of Eugene (or Springfield, since that was our ultimate destination). We enjoyed pizza and lots of conversation with my sisters, Doris and Beth; with Doris's husband, Bing; and with my nephew and wife, Roy and Twyla. This was the first time we had seen them since last fall before we left for Arizona. Nice visit. Betty let us spend the night at her house. This morning I preached at Springfield and we drove home -- with a stop at Appleby's in Roseburg for lunch.
It was just a week. Not a lot happening. Stay tuned. That will probably change.
Sunday, June 07, 2009
From Pool to Pool
Sometimes I wonder how so much can get into one week and then another week has very little. It all began with a call to jury duty. Then there was the sermon preparation time. And it ended with a camping trip.
Last winter I received a letter asking me to report for jury duty on a date when we were still in Arizona. I wrote a letter asking to be excused -- or rather have my report date postponed. It turned out that my contribution to civic duty was to happen the first week in June. (In our system we eligible for one week every two years). Tuesday was orientation and one trial. My number was not called for the trial. That evening I called in to see if I was needed for Wednesday. Nope. Wednesday evening I called to see if they wanted me on Thursday. They did. I ended up being in the "jury pool" in case one of the first 12 was excused. The problem however, was that the trial was for a guy accused of four counts of sexual abuse and the judge described what he supposedly did -- rather graphic, odd, weird stuff. Then the judge asked if any of us would have a problem rendering a fair verdict. Lots of hands went up, including mine. I told her I had counseled too many victims of sexual abuse and I would begin with a strong bias against the guy. So I was excused. It's not that I
wasn't willing to do my duty but it would have been impossible for me to be fair.
By this point in the week my sermon was finished so I went home, hooked up the RV and we left for a camping trip. Mike and JoAnn also took their RV and we all went to Belnap Hot Springs, east of Springfield along the McKenzie River in the Cascade Mountains. This picture is the lodge; the hot water swimming pool is just this side of it.
Belnap has a long history for me. When I was a kid, our church had a camp near here (in fact, where I accepted the Lord as my Savior). They would take us to Belnap to swim. Since that time way back in history the whole place has been developed, remodeled, and improved. Now they have two pools, two areas for RV and tent camping, and a beautiful landscaped flower garden for weddings, etc. Our RV site was right on the edge of the river so the rushing water lulled us to sleep each night. And the hot water pool was so relaxing. That is why I titled this "From Pool to Pool," -- I went from the jury pool to the hot pool. Guess which one I like best!
One reason we choose to go here was that I am preaching at the Springfield FM church each Sunday in June. So Saturday afternoon we moved from Belnap to the field next to the church. Not quite as pristine and lovely but it worked. The Springfield church is not large but they are a very loving and caring group. Something happened that has only happened to me one other time -- a lady passed out during the service. I was praying the closing prayer and she fainted. She seemed to think it was caused by a change in her blood pressure medication. After resting for a little bit (and being very embarrased) her husband took her home.
On our way home, we stopped for lunch at Peggy's at Rice Hill. It is just a little homey cafe but known for it's great ice cream. Yes, I imbibed. I see the doctor this week and he is not going to be happy with me! Oh well.
Last winter I received a letter asking me to report for jury duty on a date when we were still in Arizona. I wrote a letter asking to be excused -- or rather have my report date postponed. It turned out that my contribution to civic duty was to happen the first week in June. (In our system we eligible for one week every two years). Tuesday was orientation and one trial. My number was not called for the trial. That evening I called in to see if I was needed for Wednesday. Nope. Wednesday evening I called to see if they wanted me on Thursday. They did. I ended up being in the "jury pool" in case one of the first 12 was excused. The problem however, was that the trial was for a guy accused of four counts of sexual abuse and the judge described what he supposedly did -- rather graphic, odd, weird stuff. Then the judge asked if any of us would have a problem rendering a fair verdict. Lots of hands went up, including mine. I told her I had counseled too many victims of sexual abuse and I would begin with a strong bias against the guy. So I was excused. It's not that I
wasn't willing to do my duty but it would have been impossible for me to be fair.By this point in the week my sermon was finished so I went home, hooked up the RV and we left for a camping trip. Mike and JoAnn also took their RV and we all went to Belnap Hot Springs, east of Springfield along the McKenzie River in the Cascade Mountains. This picture is the lodge; the hot water swimming pool is just this side of it.
Belnap has a long history for me. When I was a kid, our church had a camp near here (in fact, where I accepted the Lord as my Savior). They would take us to Belnap to swim. Since that time way back in history the whole place has been developed, remodeled, and improved. Now they have two pools, two areas for RV and tent camping, and a beautiful landscaped flower garden for weddings, etc. Our RV site was right on the edge of the river so the rushing water lulled us to sleep each night. And the hot water pool was so relaxing. That is why I titled this "From Pool to Pool," -- I went from the jury pool to the hot pool. Guess which one I like best!
One reason we choose to go here was that I am preaching at the Springfield FM church each Sunday in June. So Saturday afternoon we moved from Belnap to the field next to the church. Not quite as pristine and lovely but it worked. The Springfield church is not large but they are a very loving and caring group. Something happened that has only happened to me one other time -- a lady passed out during the service. I was praying the closing prayer and she fainted. She seemed to think it was caused by a change in her blood pressure medication. After resting for a little bit (and being very embarrased) her husband took her home.
On our way home, we stopped for lunch at Peggy's at Rice Hill. It is just a little homey cafe but known for it's great ice cream. Yes, I imbibed. I see the doctor this week and he is not going to be happy with me! Oh well.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Trivial Tuesday
Since my friend Sue hasn't put up a "Macro Monday" recently, I thought I would use the idea for a "Trivial Tuesday" post -- only a day late. Can you guess what this white fuzzy stuff is? It blows around like a small fuzz ball then gathers with a bunch of its friends against weeds, at the edge of the grass, or in the corner of the garage if you forgot to put the door down. If you can guess what it is I'll buy you cup of coffee -- when I see you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)