The difficult truth about the role of women that was lost in the outrage for/against Harrison Butker's speech

 

It was entirely predictable that NFL kicker Harrison Butker's commencement address would be condemned in most blue circles and lauded in red ones.  The click-bait outrage fueled Culture War industry needs new topics on a daily basis, and this one is a near-perfect Rorschach Test that allows both sides to see what they hope to see in it.  For example:

Chiefs' Harrison Butker 'said nothing wrong' during faith-based commencement speech, religious group says - Fox News

vs.

Backlash over NFL player Harrison Butker’s commencement speech has reached a new level - CNN

To read the full text of the speech: Full Text: Harrison Butker of Kansas City Chiefs Graduation Speech - National Catholic Register

While Harrison Butker said a lot of things in his speech about politics, COVID19, and the Catholic Church (especially the Traditional Latin Mass), some of which was good and true but parts of which were conspiracy-theory driven and dangerous, it was his address directly to the graduating women that caught the attention of most:

For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment. You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives. I want to speak directly to you briefly because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. How many of you are sitting here now about to cross this stage and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career? Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world.

I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say that her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother. I'm on the stage today and able to be the man I am because I have a wife who leans into her vocation. I'm beyond blessed with the many talents God has given me, but it cannot be overstated that all of my success is made possible because a girl I met in band class back in middle school would convert to the faith, become my wife, and embrace one of the most important titles of all: homemaker...

I say all of this to you because I have seen it firsthand how much happier someone can be when they disregard the outside noise and move closer and closer to God's will in their life. Isabelle's dream of having a career might not have come true, but if you asked her today if she has any regrets on her decision, she would laugh out loud, without hesitation, and say, “Heck, No.”

Here is the difficult truth that Butker didn't mention in his speech: For most young women in America today, there is no choice between being a homemaker and having a career.  Most won't get to choose because they will have to work throughout the years in which they may or may not be also fulfilling the role of mother.  Economic realities are, in fact, realities.  

When I was growing up I was blessed to have a mother who was, mostly, able to be at home before we went to school and when we came back home.  My mom, Kathy, worked a few odd-jobs during those years, but it was mostly running day-care out of our home that helped to pay the bills.  My dad, Walt, worked hard for over 40 years at Amway, working his way up the ladder and teaching himself the math that his high school education didn't include.  I'm exceedingly proud of the hard work and dedication of both my dad and my mom during the decades when my brother, sister, and I were growing up.  We were blessed to have both of our parents so involved in our daily lives.  

That was then, it was tight for us with my dad's income as the primary, supplemented by what my mom could earn, but the economic situation for most of my generation-X, and certainly the generations after, has gotten more difficult.

The reality is, most of the women hearing Harrison Butker's speech will need to work full-time, or close to it, if their future family has any real chance of owning a home and paying the bills.  It won't be about choosing the "vocation" of being a homemaker, but the juggling of multiple roles and responsibilities, something women have known about for centuries.

The stay-at-home mom may be an ideal among Christian conservatives {and not just Catholics, see: Why does John MacArthur think it is ok to tell Beth Moore to 'Go home'? - blog post 10/19}, but the economic choices facing would-be mothers and fathers don't care if you root for the blue team or the red team.

I'll let a story from my own life and marriage to Nicole be the last thought here: When we were first married in 2001, my wife worked full-time as a teacher (first at Saranac High School, then Pewamo-Westphalia, both in MI).  That continued for the first 9 years of our marriage.  It wasn't because she wanted to work full-time, but because even with my own multiple jobs added to the mix we struggled to pay our modest mortgage each month, and in fact had a significant debt-load to climb out from under when we moved to PA in 2012.  We both worked hard, but we were spinning our wheels financially.  To make matters worse, from 2010-2012 we didn't have any health insurance.  I was working multiple jobs but none of them had benefits.  I know that this story will sound familiar to a lot of people.

It may come as no surprise, then, that our daughter Clara wasn't born until 2015, after our financial situation had improved significantly (and when we had health insurance).  If God had blessed us sooner with a child, we would have celebrated and praised that blessing, but Nicole would have been forced to return to work as soon as she was physically able after that child was born.  I know many women who have done just that, returning full-time to the work force within a few weeks of giving birth.  I can't begin to imagine how difficult that must be physically and emotionally, they're amazing.

In the end, it doesn't really matter if the "ideal" family in Harrison Butker's view has a stay-at-home mom to the millions of families for whom that "ideal" can never be a reality.

Let us remember to support and encourage the young mothers and fathers in our own churches and communities who are trying to juggle all of the roles and responsibilities that reality has tossed at them.

My daughter turns 9 this week, what that makes this dad think about

It was in the fall of 2014 that I put Nicole's first sonogram into our Sunday worship PowerPoint and told the congregation that I had a picture to share with them.  There were gasps right away from the ladies who knew what they were looking at, everyone else needed an explanation.  Clara Marie was born in 2015, changing my wife Nicole's and my own life for good, and changing it for the good.

I spent a lot of time dealing with unpleasant ideas and people, that isn't an indictment of my congregation or this town, as they have been stupendous in their support of myself and my family, but a reality that reflects the human condition.  I research, write, and speak about racism, nationalism, sexism, corruption, abuses of power, heresy, greed, lust, and all the rest.  I also get to talk about love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control (the Fruit of the Spirit), but my own nature as a communicator and my personality often draw me toward those people and causes who need to be defended against evil.  What does any of that have to do with Clara?  Clara is a ray of sunshine and a breath of fresh air.  She hugs her dad with clinging arms and gives far too moist kisses.  She laughs with gusto, believes the best is possible, and doesn't know yet that life and people can really kick you when you're down.  I know that some day Clara will change, somebody will disappoint her, break her heart, but I'll appreciate every day that she has remaining with her youthful optimism, and pray that they continue.

That Clara is about to be 9 already also reminds me of our need to make the most of the time we have in this life, to borrow from Dead Poets Society, we need to "seize the day."  Clara being 9 reminds me that I came to Franklin more than 12 years ago, that now more than half of our married life has been spent here in PA.  Until 2023, the longest tenure of my career had been teaching at Portland Adult and Community Education, now it is being here at First Baptist of Franklin.  Unless God has plans for me that I don't know about, this will be the longest and most impactful chapter of my life; that it also happens to coincide with the years that I have been blessed to be called "Daddy" by my little girl only amplifies that thought.  

I also think at times of reflection like this about the men and women who haven't been blessed with the role of parenthood, and those who have become estranged from, or have mourned their lost children.  It was at a funeral a few years ago when a church member about my own age asked me to read a poem about her dad that I realized that being a dad had changed my emotional make-up.  Funerals can be hard for me, other peoples' grief can hit me hard (that's inherited from my mom) but this wasn't that, it was the thought that popped into my head of Clara having to grieve me some day that choked me up so thoroughly that day.  That being said about a child mourning his/her parent, I can't imagine what those of you who have carried the scars of a child who was only in your hopes, or who was with you for far too short a time, have been through.  May God grant you peace, that you still function each day with that pain is a testament to the strength you must have.

Lastly, being Clara's dad is one of the top three things I've ever had a hand in.  I say top 3 because I'm not counting being a child of God who was redeemed by Jesus as something I had a hand in, that was 100% God's grace, the Spirit's calling, and my parents' faithfulness; I don't take any credit on that one.  Those three things are, then, being the pastor of a congregation, Nicole's husband, and Clara's dad.  God has been good to me, I'm blessed with all three of those right now, and the knowledge that the one that was all grace (my salvation) will remain even if/when the others have come to a close.

If you read this someday, Clara, know that your dad is amazed by his Silly Pants* and loves you more than the words he's typing can ever express.

*The nickname Nicole gave her, appropriately she has embraced this accurate description and refuses to have any other nickname.

The Stories We Choose to Tell: God’s use of The Exodus

 

My beautiful wife Nicole and I have been married for 21 years and counting.  Early on in our married life she began a habit of asking, “tell me a story” at the end of our day.  Aside from an occasional foray into fiction, my go-to response was to tell her about how we had met, about our first kiss, reminding her that she asked me to kiss her, and how we had subsequently fallen in love. 

Along with these origin stories about how our union came to be, which she enjoyed even though they lacked any radioactive spider bites or experiments with gamma radiation, I recounted to her the tales of road trips we had taken together to Texas, Virginia, Glacier National Park and Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain National Park, and once more to Glacier National Park, and the various adventures, and misadventures that accompanied them. 

For example, “Do you remember the time we pulled a pop-up camper to RMNP, only to discover while we tried to set it up in the dark at the end of the first day that we’d left two of the poles behind, necessitating making new ones from some pipe purchased at a Lowe’s the next day, have the stove be unusable because the gas line was clogged with a wasp nest, discover the hard way that misquotes had multiple ways inside that we needed to plug, have a flat on the car in Colorado and on the trailer in MN, and finally have the lift mechanism stuck in the up position while I beat on it with a rubber hammer at Tahquamenon Falls State Park in MI’s U.P.?  Ah, fun times.”  FYI, that was the only trip we took with that trailer, sold it the next summer.

For Christmas 2007, I created a journal of memories to give to Nicole that covered our relationship from 1999 when we first met until then.  It was a leather-bound journal with the written version of the stories from my point of view that I had been telling her at night, in my dubious handwriting, but also with stickers representing the various events in our lives together and places we had visited in it that I had purchased at a craft store to give it some flare.

In 2014, when Nicole and I returned to Glacier National Park, hiking to some of the same places as we had in 2004 like Avalanche Lake, but adding a 13.6-mile round trip trail with 3,526 feet of elevation gain to Sperry Chalet, the last mile or so on top of the still six or seven feet deep snow that remained in mid-June.  It was a climb that seemed endless to Nicole, especially since you can’t see the goal to know if you’re getting close or not until you’re almost to it.  After that trip, Nicole took it upon herself to one-up my effort of commemoration by making this professional looking book on the computer and printing it on Shutterfly.

The thing is, we both knew the stories that we were telling each other, or writing about, already.  It wasn’t new information the first time we told it to each other, let alone on subsequent retellings, so why did Nicole want me to share with her those same memories over and over again? 

The reason has to do with the value we place on the stories we choose to tell about the past.  There was a reason why she didn’t ask me to, and I didn’t choose to, recount boring everyday stories, things from work, traumas, or sorrows, but rather focused upon those seminal moments, those vivid, comic, and happy memories that we shared together.  Our shared stories are instrumental in explaining how we became who we are now, the experiences themselves having molded and shaped us along the way.

It turns out, God does much the same thing by choosing to share, and reshare, specific stories about the past in the scriptures.  One moment in time stands out as the example par excellence: The Exodus. 

The first time God tells Moses that The Exodus is going to be a recurring theme occurs during the instructions about the Passover,

Exodus 12:14     New International Version

“This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance.

Even before it had happened, God told Moses that his people would be required to commemorate this display of God’s power and covenantal faithfulness with a yearly ceremony in perpetuity.

It was much less than one year before the story of The Exodus was brought back up, even before the Israelites arrived at Mt. Sinai, God needed to remind them of the plagues that had befallen Egypt, this first time using the story to put a stop to their grumbling along the way.

In fact, Moses used the story of The Exodus when talking to God, who certainly hadn’t forgotten about it, in his plea for mercy upon the Israelites following the Golden Calf debacle.

Exodus 32:11-12     New International Version

11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people.

Thus begins a pattern repeated many, many times in the remaining books of the Hebrew Scriptures as well as in the Gospels and the rest of the New Testament, of God, the psalmists, the prophets, Jesus, the Apostles, and more making direct references and easily identifiable allusions to God’s actions in The Exodus. 

The Exodus in subsequent portions of scripture becomes a catch-all capable of both admonishing the people when they go astray from the covenant and encouraging the people during times of oppression.  While pointing to the past, references to The Exodus also become the basis for promises about what God will do for his people in the future, with the ultimate culmination being the Messianic fulfillment of Jesus whose life and ministry is steeped in Exodus imagery highlighted by a Passover meal at the beginning of his Passion.

The past, for God, is a tool capable of teaching his people what he needs them to know in a variety of settings and circumstances.  It is not meant to be forgotten, but remembered and learned from not once, but multiple times.

What then do we do with what God has done in our lives, individually, our families, as a local congregation, and as a region of the American Baptist Churches?  Commemoration and celebration are certainly in order, as is storytelling and preservation of that history that allows it to be shared now and in the future. 

Following the biblical examples of how The Exodus is used, perhaps the most important things we can do with our knowledge of what God has done for us and through us in the past, is use it to help us confront, and by God’s grace overcome, the challenges of the present.  Have we strayed?  Remembering how God forgave our past can guide us to repentance again.  Are we burdened?  Recalling how God provided in our past can comfort us and give us hope.  Do we need motivation? Praising God for the outpouring of his amazing grace in living memory can help us find it.

What stories do you need to tell of the love of God manifested in your church and your family?

The stories I can choose to tell to Nicole in the present have a new character in them since she made “Nicole and Randy’s Big Adventure” in 2014: our precious Clara Marie.  And while we were already aware of God’s presence in the first 14 years of our journey as husband and wife, especially the difficult years that led step by step to our decision to move to PA in 2012, and while we have already given him glory for seeing us through those days, parenthood is often God’s way of saying, “you ain’t seen nothing yet.”  We have so many stories to tell of God’s love and faithfulness.

Looking at my own FB activity since COVID-19 started

Given how much of our communication of late has been online, I thought it worthwhile to examine my own posts/shares to Facebook since March 12th, the first day that COVID-19 was a part of one of my posts.  The results were enlightening, at least to me.  I'd be happy to respond to your thoughts on this as well, and perhaps you too should scroll back and see how this pandemic has affected your online persona.

In just over two months, I have posted to Facebook 114 times.  Here are the categories (which I created, of course) to differentiate them {the numbers won't add up to 114, some posts go into two categories}:

1.  Local announcements regarding the Church, Venango County Christian Ministerium, etc. many of which revolved around COVID-19 cancellations: 26 times

2. Covid-19 related Hoax/misinformation correction, including regarding the End Times and Mark of the Beast: 24 times

3. Sermon Videos and Bible Study podcasts (this number doubles when considering that I provide this information to Church FB page as well): 22 times

4. Inspirational messages, encouraging news: 22 times

5. Theology on a variety of topics: 16 times

6. Family news, most numerous for this period are walks in the woods with my girls: 11 times

7. Humor, I'm not big on sharing these, only the geekiest typically: 8 times

What are the sources of my posts?  The vast majority are from material I've created, whether that involves writing announcements, creating the content for sermons and Bible Study podcasts, or writing my own blog posts.

1. My own sermons and Bible study podcasts: 22 times

2. This blog, my own original material, even when commenting on things written by others: 15 times

3. CNN.com : 5 times

4. Christianity Today: 4 times

5. The New York Times: 4 times

6. The Detroit Free Press (an excellent newspaper): 3 times

7. Things written by local pastors: 2 times

8. The rest of these, only once per: Fox News, Vox, The Gospel Coalition, NPR, Snopes, 538.com, Politifact, Science Magazine.org, and Academic Logos.

How then has the COVID pandemic affected my online persona?

1. The primary source of what I share online remains my own mind, for better or for worse.

2. The primary focus of my blog and my FB feed remains ministry related (about 2/3 of all posts)

3. I've shared more news articles since the pandemic began than is normal for me.

4. I've made the choice to attempt counter the misinformation about COVID (vaccines, Bill Gates, Plandemic, etc.) that has flooded my FB feed.

5. Responding to End Times / Mark of the Beast misinterpretation was necessary.

Well, there's some honesty and transparency, the first time I've ever gone back and actually counted and examined my own FB posts.    

Seeing the world through a father's eyes

For those of you who don't know, I came to fatherhood later in life than most of my peers.  My wife Nicole and I had already been married for nearly 15 years, I had been a teacher at Portland Adult and Community Education for ten years, concurrently a pastor at 1st Baptist of Palo for five years, and moved here to Franklin PA to be the pastor at First Baptist of Franklin just over three years prior to the birth of our beautiful Clara Marie.  As much life experience as I had: marriage, teaching, being a pastor, all of which had their own unique challenges and lessons to be learned, nothing changed my point-of-view as much as becoming a father.  Books that I had once read, and am now re-reading (I do that a lot), with a father-daughter relationship, or TV/Movies that hadn't struck me that way before, now touch at something in my heart and mind that is both real and powerful.  {For example: The girl in the red dress in Schindler's List, while always being a gut punch, would shake me much harder now}  I consider myself to be a person of empathy and compassion, by the grace of God, it is a characteristic one must have to be an effective pastor, but nothing reinforces these Christian virtues in our hearts quite like having had a similar experience; its just the way we work as human beings.

Clara on the day of her birth, holding dad's finger.

Clara on her way to her first day of pre-school this past August

Hebrews 4:15-16 (NIV)
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

You don't need me to tell you that our experiences powerfully affect us, both for the better and for the worse, but the words of Hebrews offer an insight into our relationship with God that is truly profound.  Jesus knows what it is like to struggle, to feel tired, to be in pain.  Jesus knows what it is like to wait patiently, to have to trust in your friends, and to be let down by them.  Jesus knows the sorrow of being at the graveside of a parent, the frustration of being rejected by people you're only trying to help, and the joy of helping a 'lost cause' find purpose in life again.  Jesus has been there, and his empathy for your life situations is real.  That alone would be a Truth to "cling to when the rain set in".  But Hebrews tells us something far more important: Jesus knows what is like to be you without the failure of sin.  One of the reasons why we have empathy for other people is that many of us recognize the wisdom of the phrase, "there but for the grace of God, go I".  In other shoes we might equally fail, or we might even do worse, than the person whom we now empathize with in their struggles.  That compassion compels us to act, but that weakness limits how much we can do to help.  Not so with Jesus.  Not only does Jesus know what it is like to be you, but he knows what is necessary to overcome and be victorious in your situation as well.  I, and others like me, can comfort you, maybe even assist you, Jesus can save you.  As followers of Jesus Christ, we can point out the way to hope, Jesus is the way.
What do we do with this knowledge?  Hebrews offers the answer there as well, approach the 'throne of grace with confidence', knowing that in our time of need, our compassionate AND victorious savior, who empathizes with our plight, is both willing and capable of giving us the mercy and grace we need to live righteously, no matter what. 

How should I interact with my pastor?

I can't speak for all of us, but perhaps some examples from my own perspective might help both my congregation and those from other flocks understand both positive and negative ways of interacting with your pastor...

• DO...Seek my help when you need it.  It doesn't matter if its the middle of the night, it doesn't matter if you're not a member, or even if you're new to the congregation.  If you are in a spiritual crisis (or an emotional, relational, financial, or health one) please don't try to go it alone.  An FYI, I may have run an ultra-marathon last week, but I'm no masochist, I don't keep my cell phone next to my bed; if you don't get an answer on my cell between 11 PM - 7 AM, leave a voice mail or text and then call the parsonage number.
• DON'T...Call me before calling 9-1-1 if you have a health/safety emergency.  I'm not a doctor, nor have I medical training beyond CPR, nor am I a psychiatrist, or a suicide-prevention specialist.  In a genuine medical emergency, seek medical help first, then call me or have a relative call me and I'll meet you at the hospital.  If it is a safety emergency, call the police, they're trained to help on those situations.
• DO...Seek my advice and counsel on issues of morality.  Applying Biblical principles to our chaotic lives can be difficult, while what you read from a book or off the internet might be helpful, we have a relationship for a reason, so that I can understand what the Word of God would say, not to someone like you, but to you.
• DON'T...Seek my legal counsel, nor my opinion on political matters.  Just as medical school was not in my past, nor was law school, if you need legal advice seek a competent lawyer.  If there is an ethical dimension to your legal issue, I would be happy to offer counsel, but the law itself is beyond the scope of my training.  In terms of politics, I do indeed have well informed and Bible-based opinions (in my case, ones informed also by a deep study of history), but you're out of luck if you want to know what they are.  Why?  As I've said on many an occasion, I will not risk your relationship with God, as supported by your relationship with his local church, in order to gain power/influence in this life.  Political power is transitory and fleeting, the Kingdom of God is forever, it isn't hard for me to choose which I care more about.
• DO...Ask questions and share your insights following my sermon on Sunday, I'm glad to hear that you liked it, if you did, but even more eager to know what your response is to the message I've prepared from the Word.  Likewise, if you're at Bible study on Wednesday, please speak up and ask questions as we work through the text, share what you see, what you've read before, the best Bible study is one of interaction.  Of course, you know that if you don't say anything during Bible study, I'm more than capable of filling the whole hour with my own talking, it just isn't as effective as a back-and-forth conversation.
• DON'T...Begin your phone call to me, or conversation, with, "I'm sorry to bother you, but..." or "I didn't want to disturb you at this hour, but..."  They're not necessary.  It isn't a bother, and you didn't disturb me, especially if the call reflects a true need.  Not only is it my job to be available and to be willing to set things aside to meet sudden needs, but far more importantly it is my calling.  As an ordained minister, one who has accepted the solemn duty to act as shepherd of a flock of our Lord Jesus, I don't consider your troubles to be an imposition; they're an opportunity for me to serve God by serving his people.  Do I value the time I share with Nicole and Clara apart from my work?  Of course I do, and nobody likes to have their dinner or sleep interrupted, but I'll adjust my schedule on a subsequent day and spend that time with my family if I end up spending an evening at the hospital with your family (for example).  If I'm on a date with my wife, or at one of my daughter's functions (when she's old enough to have functions, all too soon), I still need to know that you or your family member is in need, and I'll get to that as soon as possible, in all likelihood after my current family obligation ends, but let me make that determination, I can handle it.  My commitments as a husband and father are sacrosanct, I won't let my service to the church undermine them (nor should my congregation want me to, in fact it is their duty to prevent me from doing so if I foolish begin down that path), so you need not worry about the day/time when you need to reach out, as I said in the first point, seek my help when you need it.

That's enough for now, hopefully these will be of use.

Out of Control: The unspoken cost of over-scheduled children

The most recent issue of Time magazine featured a cover story, "How Kid Sports Turned Pro" which highlights many of the financial dangers to families of the traveling sports teams for children, some younger than ten, which can cost a family tens of thousands of dollars a year in the pursuit of the dream of raising a professional athlete or simply netting a college scholarship.  In addition to this financial burden, the article emphasizes the serious potential for emotional and physical injury to these children (from the frantic schedules, high pressure performances, and too specialized exercise).

All of these things, and more, should be warning signs to parents of the danger of over-scheduling the lives of their children, and of raising a narcissist by teaching that child that the world revolves around him/her, and yet there was one area of danger that the article failed to address: the elevation of these athletic pursuits above devotion to God.   It should come as no surprise that the weekend tournaments that families travel, often half-way across the country to attend, necessitate that the family will not be attending church on Sunday.  As a pastor, I've seen this trend increase over the years, as families feel pressured to choose the hobby/sport that their child loves (or at least the parent thinks they love it) over spending time as a family in the house of God at worship.

Going to church isn't the priority it once was and our society (and countless individuals and families) have lost an intangible asset as a result.  In a world where human connections are more tenuous and rare, our spiritual connection to God and each other looms ever more crucial.  Will my child someday participate in a sport that holds games/tournaments on Sunday morning?  No, she will not, and not just because I'm a pastor and my absence would be noticed; because my wife and I recognize that our time spent as a family in the house of the Lord is an invest in our family and an example to our daughter of how highly we value God.



** This is not an indictment of parents who must work on Sunday to provide for their family, such things are unavoidable for some, nor does it concern those who miss church to take a family vacation or attend a family event.  My concern is with those for whom church is such a low priority that attendance a "we're not doing anything else" option instead of being the high priority that our devotion to God ought to demand of us.**

From where does my belief in Christian unity come?

In light of the baptism of my daughter Clara, there are likely some who are wondering where my belief in Christian unity (ecumenism) has its origins.  From a theological footing, I have been heavily influenced by the words of I John and the prayers of Jesus for the unity of his followers.  While I was at college, learning theology and philosophy, I became more certain of the fundamental things, and more generous with the permissible/debatable things.  This maturation of my mind is a natural process when know it all teens are confronted with the truth that the world is larger and more complicated than they once thought.  In my case, it was seeing the ebb and flow of history, secular and church, that taught me humility in the light of those who have served the Church in generations long past.

I had already begun down a path toward a stronger commitment to Christian ecumenism when my beliefs were confirmed by two extraordinary women of faith who evident love of Jesus Christ and staunch faith in him was in no way compromised by their adherence to Catholicism.  The first of the two was the young woman who would eventually become my girlfriend, and then my wife, and the second was her mother.  Through my love for Nicole, I began to attend Mass with her, coming for the first time on a regular basis into contact with Catholics in a religious setting, and witnessing firsthand their faith and their devotion to Christ.

Theology prepared the ground on my ecumenical journey, but experiencing the love of Jesus Christ alive and well within the Catholic Church provided the passion.  Are there still issues between Catholics and Protestants?  Of course there are.  The defensive positions adopted as part of the Counter-Reformation at Trent remain, but the pendulum began to swing back toward the Evangelical position with the Second Vatican Council.  The theologians will still have plenty of room to disagree, most notably upon Transubstantiation, (and on that the Catholics still have Luther on their side, the Reformed theologians could not budge him from that belief) and upon the relevance of tradition and authority to theology, but one thing to me is clear: I have found many whose hope is in faith alone, who trust not in their own works, who wholly depend upon the sacrifice of Christ, among my Catholic brothers and sisters.  If faith is alive there, as it is amongst my church, who am I to deny it?

My mind started me on this path, my heart made gave me joy in the journey.

A father's prayer of thanksgiving to God

This is the closing prayer that I gave at the end of the baptism of our daughter, Clara.  My wife, Nicole is Catholic, I am the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Franklin.  Our marriage is a testament to the spirit of Ecumenism that I have hoped for (and found here in Franklin) in my ministry.  Thus long before Clara was born, we had already decided to honor her mother's tradition, and that of her mother's family, should we have children, through baptism into the Catholic Church.  Clara will be brought up to honor and respect the traditions of the faith of both her mother, and her father, attending as both Nicole and I do, church on Saturday (at St. Pat's) and Sunday (at 1st Baptist).

What have we learned, one month into our time with Clara?

Tomorrow will be one month since the birth of our little bundle of extra cuteness, Clara Marie.  What have we learned thus far, about parenting, life, and humanity?  Perhaps not all that much, sleep deprivation is not the formula for mental brilliance.  We have learned things that every parent knows: that an infant in entirely dependent upon others for his/her care, that their communication ability consists of three types of crying ("feed me", "change me", and "I'm too cranky to do anything but cry").  It is a wonder to me that anyone could harm a child, especially their own.  What does it say about humanity that we see this sort of depravity far too often (let alone the killing of unborn children in the womb)?  It doesn't say anything good about us, that's for sure.

It seems far fetched at this point, but I know that before we know it our sweet little girl will look back at us and say, "no" with all the fervor of a zealot.  That fallen nature, although nowhere on display as of yet, is there in the background waiting to come to the surface.  Soon enough, our little Clara will show herself to be just like the rest of us, a sinner in need of the grace of God.  That day lies in the future, for now, we'll just enjoy the fact that everyone's first comment about our girl involves how cute she is.

God answers the prayer of children too

On April 19th my wife was almost two weeks past her due date and not enjoying the "extra" time at the end of her pregnancy.  I asked her to come over to the church at 6 while I was teaching the AWANA lesson to our group of 20+ k-6th graders.  When Nicole arrived, I finished up the lesson and then asked her to sit in front of the kids.  Most of these kids know Nicole already, about half of them are from the church, and they were aware of her pregnancy and had been asking if the baby had arrived yet.  I asked the kids to come around Nicole, place their hands on her to pray with me for a speedy and healthy delivery.  We always prayed to end our lesson, and had often prayed for various family members or others in need that the kids had asked me to pray for, so this felt like a teachable moment to me as well as an opportunity to add a few more prayers to those already going up here and back home in Michigan on Nicole's behalf.
It was twelve hours later that Nicole went into labor, nine hours after that Clara Marie had entered the world safe and sound.  God is good, God answers prayer.  This confirms my theory that God hears the prayers of little ol' ladies first, kids second, and the rest of us are in line after that (I'm kidding, of course, but then again I'll gladly take a 70 year old grandma praying for me any day of the week).
The following week in AWANA, I had pictures of Clara, Nicole, and myself for the kids to look at on the PowerPoint, but I also wanted to thank the kids for their participation in the previous week's prayer and encourage them that prayers do get answered, so I asked all of the kids who had been in attendance the previous week (most of those present) to raise their hands, told them the baby had come 12 hours after they had prayed for just that, and gave them all a high five in turn.  God answers the prayers of children too.

Clara Marie Powell, born 4/20/15

Nicole, Clara, and myself at the hospital

The dedication of Clara Marie

On Sunday I was had the honor of dedicating my six day old daughter, Clara Marie.  Infant dedication is a formal acknowledgement of the role of the parents in teaching a child about the love of God, and the role of the local church in demonstrating and reinforcing our collective faith.  It was an emotional ceremony for me to perform, and a bit humorous one as well because I was making statements for the father of the child as the pastor of the church that I myself in turn had to respond to.  Trying to adjust the pronouns from "you" to "we, us" was a hoot as well.  My thanks to the people of First Baptist of Franklin, I know that they will be the extended family that Clara needs, and I trust that the mercy and grace of God will take the seeds of faith planted within her heart and cause them to grow as they have in my life and the life of my wife Nicole as well.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Dedication ceremony for Clara Marie

Sermon Video: Reflections on her birth - various texts

This week's events necessitated a one week hiatus from our study of Titus because it marked the arrival of my daughter, Clara Marie.  My wife Nicole and I give thanks to God for her safe delivery and Nicole's health through the birthing process as well.  There were people praying from Pennsylvania to Michigan, all of whom have our gratitude.
This message focuses on three passages of Scripture that spoke to me as I pondered the experiences of the past week: Luke 13:34, which speaks of God's willingness to help people, but mankind's reluctance to accept it.  I thought of this verse as Nicole went through labor, for I could do nothing to take that pain away, nor nothing to help ease it beyond emotional support.  I wanted to help, and Nicole would have been glad to accept it, but I was powerless to do so.  God has the power to transform the life of each and every person on the planet, it is mankind's stubborn rebellion that holds the grace of God at bay.  The second passage, Hebrews 12:2 speaks of Jesus' ability to look beyond the agony of the cross to the glory that lay in his victory at the resurrection.  In a similar way, mothers going through the labor of childbirth take comfort in knowing that their trial and tribulation will result in new life, joy exists on the other side of pain.  The last passage, Ecclesiastes 11:5, speaks of the mystery of the wonder of human life, of God's amazing hand of creation that forms a distinct human being within the mother's womb.  Witnessing my daughter's birth, I felt the awe of God's creative power, of his ability to turn a biological process in a wondrous gift.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video