a (not) typical tuesday in advent

so, here are the highlights of a (not) typical tuesday in advent.

i hosted our circuit leaders meeting. in our area of united methodism, our churches are divided up into circuits -- mostly geographical, with the aim to be connectional and to be accountable to one another, and to explore what we can do better together for the mission of god than we can do on our own.

preparations included what merced is seeking to become known for...hospitality; being ready with expectation for those who will be coming -- our, in other words, people who are not yet here. sounds like a real advent phrase; getting ready; being prepared for those on a journey. so, what does this mean? it means a 'costco run'...'cutties', muffins, good coffee, hot water for hot beverages (not just tea), making sure people know where to park, what entrance to come in, where the restrooms are, and having the heat on, the room set up for meeting and lunch and welcome snacks. all was in readiness!

lunch was bubbling -- two kinds of soup, multi-grain bread, butter, dessert, everything ready in a moments notice. ok, so one of my crock-pots is wearing out, making one of my soups warm, but not hot...fortunately, in our fireside room, there is a microwave!

the meeting finished, 'a spontaneous elephant gift exchange', and a sermon starter for christmas eve; great conversation, and a little known fact....

...for those NCIS fans, and for those who have no idea what that means, check on the youtube link below; i love how we share things in this group!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP2bqK5b5JY&feature=youtube_gdata_player

all this to say, pauley perrette -- abby of NCIS fame -- is a united methodist; an awesome video, no?

moving on ... no time to waste; the journey is not yet finished; bethlehem -- well today, the journey will be to the wesley hall -- is quickly approaching.

each year our united methodist women host a catered christmas dinner; this year our chancel choir was the entertainment; we have been practicing a cantata; a musical story based on the journey to bethlehem; a delightful opportunity to sing and share the story of our faith. if you were unable to attend last night, fear not -- to use a very biblical/advent phrase -- there is always sunday -- the fourth sunday of advent; the sunday of love.

our offering to the congregation will include this musical celebration, complete with orchestra! awesome, awesome.

if you haven't yet gotten into the mood for christmas; if advent is just a reminder that there are only 10 shopping days left before christmas; this is the sunday NOT to be missed! and, as an aside, if you are still looking for that perfect christmas gift -- fear not! -- and read my blog from last week for a great idea!

by the time yesterday was over, and i was beginning to let visions of sugarplums dance through my head, i wondered...is this tuesday? i didn't do my blog! fear not, came the answer, there is always tomorrow.

and so there is; today is tomorrow, well, only if you are thinking about yesterday.

have i lost it? no! i know that easter is yet to be.... anyway, merry christmas, a little early!

the season has begun! a wesley student treat

i only took this picture because i saw someone else do it!

that's what advent was like for me, after a non-stop week-end. it all began on friday night when a group from church went to see 'the wizard of oz' at playhouse merced. i'm not sure why that began to get me in the mood for christmas, but it did...perhaps it was the apple trees in the forest that reminded me that i haven't put mine up yet! whatever the reason, it is worth a viewing...it closes on sunday, december 18th.

then there was our united methodist women's 81st annual holiday bazaar...an event not to be missed...with all kinds of holiday spirit, a tea room for resting, cheese balls, attic treasures, the infamous jam and jelly room, a christmas room, a candy room, silent auction, bake sale, linins room and a hmong room with beautiful handwork and egg roll sale; yummy fruit cakes too! all this finished up with a wonderful 'christmas around the world' luncheon! what a treat...always the first saturday of december...mark your calendars for next year.

sunday we lit the candle of peace and focused on joseph...the week before we focused on hope and mary. worship was followed by the opportunity to be in mission; our social action team, led by dave hetland, sponsors a women's prison holiday gift bag project. about 80 people came and put together the packets, 3650 in total. what a meaningful way to help remember the women imprisoned; reminding them that they are thought about, and prayed for.

that evening, our wesley club merced hosted a christmas party. the board members were invited to mingle with the students. we gathered in our 'wesley house', had a wonderful dinner, followed by a spirited gift exchange, and then the students retreated to play apples to apples, while the board members moved in on dessert -- homemade sugar cookies that we got to frost! the picture of the tree above was part of a plate of dessert that someone else brought -- gingerbread and tree cakes, festively frosted. yum.


this lighted christmas tree stands in the front room of the wesley house, lighted as a reminder that in the midst of all the troubles in the world, and all the issues that students need to contend with -- finals being one of them, beginning soon! -- the light of jesus still shines brightly.

o holy night...in the coolness of the winter, and in a world that is not always welcoming, these students, many a long way from home -- like mary and joseph -- can find a place of warmth and care even in times like these.

our board seeks to be very supportive of the students, and our campus minister, jennifer, is a gift to them and to this ministry. we hope that we can be a place of support and faith for them, so as they depart from campus, they can know that they are important, loved and cared about, and encouraged to grow in their spiritual awakening.

we hope to provide an element of the christian faith that encourages them to be the light that shines in the world's darkness. we hope that they will be encouraged to grow in their faith, and to have hope, peace, joy and love light their path. we trust that these elements will guide them into adulthood, and bring them to a place where they can feel that sharing with others, in spiritual ways, is as natural as breathing.

may we all learn to feel that way; because god has been so generous to us, we in turn, can be 'jesus' to others as we journey together on the road of life. and if you wonder how you can be supportive of students, or want to give something unique to the 'person who has it all', perhaps you'll consider making a donation to wesley foundation merced; a beautiful gift can can be sent in your name to anyone you choose, as a reminder that your care for them has been extended to others. check out their website at www.wesleymerced.org

blessings to you as you continue to journey toward bethlehem. may you be renewed and strengthened as you share love this season . . . .

thoughtful movies

sometimes it is just important to take yourself to the movies. it's foggy; just go! thoughtful movies abound!

over this thanksgiving ~ advent beginning week-end, i took advantage of not going to midnight madness by ducking into the local theater.

and a slight digression...the wizard of oz opens at playhouse merced on friday night for this holiday season! ok, back to the movies....

hugo. you have to know that i love time period films, and this is so very interesting because it takes place in paris (!) mostly at the train station! how many ways can you say awesome?! what this film did for me was to remind me to look for a now seemingly lost swatch watch in which i could see the inner workings. i love to see the inner workings of things, and so this was a movie that shows the inner workings of things. but it is very powerful. a wonderful seasonal film that has nothing to do with santa clause, but with the spirit of forging ahead! well done. and if you appreciate ben kingsly's acting ability, and how we get to be and act the way we do, you will appreciate this fine story that let's you in on how the characters ended up the way they did.

so, treat yourself to an matinee, indulge in popcorn and a soda -- or an icee (!) and enjoy...cautionary note: visit fort knox first, or just bring your atm card! worth the extra in 3d!

j edgar -- based on the fbi creator j edgar hoover, this is amazing. it is a period piece of our history, and does a great job of aging the characters as well. lots of 'i didn't know that' kind of information, but very engaging, and done with great direction by clint eastwood! who knew that the actor could become such a compelling director and composer?! i would say of this film, controversial, as we get to see a little 'behind the scenes' of the washington political machine. while we may be a great nation, we might all do well to be more involved in politics...i don't want to run for office, let me be clear! but what happens behind the scenes, and what we hear about are not always the same thing! the ending is very moving, and insightful.

so, i'd even say, take a break from holiday baking and shopping and decorating, and spend some time away. take a friend. make it a date. enjoy the company, and spend some time afterwards in conversation over a cup-of-something!

and, in case going to the movies is not an option, pop some corn at home, snuggle down with some homemade hot cocoa, and watch this (about) 10 minute utube

http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/TEDxSF-Louis-Schwartzberg-Grati

soothing to the soul.

may advent, as we journey toward bethlehem, be filled with the light of hope. take time to share hope with someone this week . . . .

changes at thanksgiving

it seems that thanksgiving week is really the signifying change of seasons. as i ventured to church today, i noticed the 'leaf collectors' from the city.

i have to confess, since i left sacramento, i have not had to rake a leaf! i've even contemplated getting rid of my rake! i have treated myself to lawn care, and i quickly learned that the treat became a necessity! i can't imagine doing that kind of yard care, in the quick time they work, on my own. it is a pleasure, even when i come home in at night, to notice that my yard looks cared about; i even noticed that the last of my leaves fell from my front tree this week-end, and on monday, they had been nicely raked by someone -- an angel leaf compacter perhaps? -- neatly under my tree. My backyard tree has just begun to turn from green to harvest red!

but i remember the sight of fallen leaves, and the delight (?) of families raking them into piles, and children jumping into those neat piles. I do love this time of the season.

and, you may recall, about a year ago this month, i wrote a blog on bridges/pass-overs. i had gone to a clergy gathering on the coast about the same time that our train over-pass here in merced was erected. 2 pictures appeared in that blog, connecting the bridges that week. well, the latest on that 1 1/2 year project is that on Saturday, December 3rd -- same day as the community parade and our you'll-not-want-to-miss united methodist women's bazaar (81st annual! jams, lunch, and yummy other rooms) -- the project will be complete, and people will be able to travel 'g' street in style; it really looks amazing. this will be the only track-free main driving section in merced.

and, by the way, the women have been busy at it this week already, making holiday cheese balls and yes, even fruit cakes for december 3rd. and, quite honestly, these fruitcakes are awesome!

i have to say, merced really is amazing. for all our economic difficulties, we are still a living/breathing community that offers much in the way of life to the central valley. and if all else fails, you can take a trip to oz this december, when playhouse merced opens "the wizard of oz". this will be a holiday delight indeed!

so, at thanksgiving, give thanks for being a part of a land of plenty. even when we do not have what we 'always want to have', we have more than enough. give thanks for at least that much! and remember to offer not only a prayer of thanks! share from your bounty; offer to help distribute good cheer in some way this holiday season.

we were invited to ring the bell at a kettle this holiday season for the salvation army. i've never done that before . . . .

so whatever you do this week-end, share the gift of time with family and/or friends; try to resist the urge to rush through thanksgiving so that you can stand in line for midnight openings so that you can spend money you don't have, securing items people really don't need...instead, spend time, precious as it is, sharing your love. help improve the economy by making every cent count, interest free! if your church doesn't have enough options for holiday ministries, send a donation to "wesley foundation merced" as a gift-in-kind for the ministry of college students. a beautiful card will be sent to the recipient in your name!

but more than anything else, invite someone to take a walk, look at the leaves, in piles or simply falling to the ground, and give thanks for the opportunities before you.

i give thanks for being invited by a group who purchased a wonderful dinner from our service auction back in june. on sunday, 9 of us gathered for a homemade incredible mexican dinner. what a gift! what a treat! what a delight-ful evening!!! the perfect end to my week, and the beginning of a restful day off. and here i am, back at it again, but renewed...ready for another walk among the leaves. . . .

talents . . . gifts . . . mission

in a previous blog about a month ago, i shared that i had passed out 120 marked $1 bills, based on giving to god what belongs to god. my challenge to the congregation was to utilize that $1 bill as seed money and then report back what was done to 'give back to god'.

i report today that there were many things done, and i want to share that information here, at least briefly. all proceeds, unless otherwise stated, were returned to our church where we will send them to our mission fund, world service.

$4 came back that very first Sunday. $2 was sent to World Vision who multiplied that amount by 5 to save young lives. cupcakes were made for our tuesday afterschool program, as well as a cake walk for our halloween carnival. jalapeno jelly was made and sold, the profits given back to the church. our halloween carnival, for which a number of marked dollars were contributed by the way, brought in $300, half going to unicef and the other half going to umcor -- united methodist committee on relief, that serves as a first responder to places throughout the world who are hit by a natural disaster.

someone was inspired to donate $25 for our holiday gift bag ministry for the chowchilla women's prison, as well as purchasing a box full of greeting cards for that same project! Someone bought a 'flock of chicks' from heifer project, funds went to the food pantry, and someone creatively returned the earnings of 'a dollar saved is a dollar earned' philosophy. this seed money was added to donations to a children's toy drive in central baja, and a vacation bible school program in south mexico. someone made straw jewelry, purchased communion bread, and supported the hmong women's car wash. an egg roll sale from one family netted 20 1/2 dozen egg rolls totaling $106.00.

another idea formed from someone who was not even in worship that day. but gwen bortner's husband arlis shared with her this challenge. Gwen, a professional knitter, creatively put together a knitting pattern, with the proceeds going to cancer research. she placed the story on ravelry, basically facebook for knitters. and through a series of sharing -- dare i say, evangelism, or 'you can't keep the good news (of jesus) to yourself! -- people not associated with this church, or any church or even this community, got on board...and you can too! pass this site onto your knitting friends: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/mariposa-flip

someone purchased gas to pick green beans, someone held a candy sale, and someone even invested the dollar and made .93 cents! a couple focused on 'found money', having had a series of fortunate instances, and were able to donate $230 to the merced county rescue mission for their thanksgiving dinner. and finally, three yet-to-be completed projects were planned: a crayola crayon box of 64 was purchased to do a crayon ministry, a donation is planned for the children's hospital of central ca, and a soon-to-be knitted scarf will be done for charity.

the point, of course was not about the funds raised but our ability to do more together than we could ever possibly do on our own. allowing god to work through us is the miracle!

the result is that from 120 marked one dollar bills, eight times that amount, or $970.93 has been donated to mission. awesome, don't you think?

new direction unvailed

i spent the first part of my week attending a workshop that explained the new direction for our annual conference -- a church phrase that basically means our group of churches in united methodism in the northern half of california and the northern part of nevada; some 375 churches.

but before i got to that part, i wanted to share the view from my window in the santa cruz mountains. it felt very private and restful! so this is where i spent three days; beginning my morning in time for breakfast at 8 and finishing up by about 9 in the evening. useful time...productive time...even some restful times...and here i am, as they say, 'back at it again!



so this is a picture of what our movement into the 21st century will look like...we are working to re-order our conference so that all our energy and the movement of all of our churches will be aligned with one another, so that we might focus, not on ourselves, but offering the grace of god through jesus to others. our practice will be to 'make disciples of jesus christ for the transformation of the world'.

we united methodists have not always been a 'come to jesus' kind of people...of course we've always believed and lived the jesus way, but we haven't been so 'inviting' in a real and intense way. we've been the 'well, if you want to come to church, come to ours' sort of people...and 'we will feed you a pot-luck meal, and give you church coffee'. (a note about church coffee...if you like weak/see through coffee, come to church. but if you like strength, come to our welcome coffee before church!)

anyway, we're working at learning how to be more intentional. instead of being the 'if you've got nothing else better to do' kind of people, we are learning to be intentional -- listening to other's needs and longings in the spiritual realm; really trying to offer jesus, not as a last chance sort of experience, but as a friend, companion, meaningful way to live; we're trying not to keep jesus a secret -- actually, we're not trying to keep our christian faith so private any longer. as united methodists, particularly in merced, we are wanting to express a more progressive kind of expression for our faith; to be in mission and service, and to invite others to experience the kind of love and life we are encountering.

we hope to share a 'non-judgment christianity', where going to hell isn't an option -- isn't even part of the conversation; christianity in new clothes, so to speak. we're inviting those who are longing to be renewed and have a spiritual presence in their lives to find themselves greeted with the eyes and hands of jesus; to be neighbor, friend, fellow-journeyer in faith; growing in love and grace.

paul nixon (no relation to richard, i don't think) wrote a book called 'i refuse to lead a dying church'. he was one of our presenters. paul offered six concepts -- choices, really -- worth thinking about in terms of becoming a "living faith": 1. life over death. 2. community over isolation. 3. choosing fun over drudgery. 4. being a frontier over being a fortress (people unfamiliar with 'church' aren't about to walk into a 'church building' unless they are invited and have to go -- usually to a funeral or a wedding!) 5. bold over mild (why don't you come with me -- i think you might find what you need; as opposed to, well, you can come if you want!) and 6, now over later -- what is the mission of god calling us to?

exciting times ahead.



and so i took this picture as a reminder that even in the midst of tranquility, life is moving; notice the sun exposing the waterfall, as it cascades over roots that have grown together to be a barrier. the leaves of autumn have fallen into the water, and they can't get out...but not all of them are stuck in that path. some have found their away around the blockage, and are moving forward.

i believe this is a great image...a new direction. this is the reminder that we could, as a church, just pack it in. but if we do that, everyone misses out! we simply need to explore our options and notice that packing it in is only one option. people have many choices now. jesus is but one option.

as christians in the 21st century, we have come to believe that jesus points us to god's message of welcoming grace. others choose other paths. our focus: to be inviting of those who seem to have no path; no direction, or have been discouraged by 'the christian church'. could jesus be what they need?

well, you'll never know unless you enter into conversation. just start with a smile, and a hello. the relationship will develop from there . . . .

november one

somehow, this picture mysteriously moved to the very top of the blog...a spooky mystery. so, you'll have to "read all about it" under the second treat!

if you were to think of this blog as going 'trick or treating', you will notice that you have three visits in which to receive treats....no tricks here! and we'll do a sort of "ginger rogers" -- going backwards, but not in high heals; only in costume!

the first treat is a poem by j. barrie shepherd. it is entitled november one. we usually consider november first as 'all saint's day' in the church; some cultures call it the 'day of the dead', in which we remember those who have gone before us; family members, loved one, mentors in the faith and so on. we remember those who have died in the past year at our church on the first sunday of november. as a tribute, i share this poem by shepherd:

'to all the saints, god bless 'em, we dedicate this day

in hopes that from eternal bliss they'll spare a thought,

or blow a kiss, in sympathy for all who miss

the straight and narrow way.'

and so we remember wonderful people this past year, who offered us love, and care and a glimpse of god here on earth. we have been blessed . . . .

the second treat recognizes our halloween carnival; the first in a long time here at the church. we saw many unique characters, and had a wonderful time! proceeds from the event went to two places -- unicef, to care for the severe famine happening in the horn of africa, and well as umcor -- united methodist committee on relief, who respond instantly to any disaster throughout the world. we are proud to support mission in this way, and have some fun at the same time....

so, to all to the first picture of this great treat, i add the adult costume party. so often we are so amazed at the little ones, that we forget the adults to come with a heart of children on all hallows' eve. this is the night we poke fun at the things we do not understand . . . spooks, and unexplained phenomenons, and even death itself.

for the spiritually faithful, we know to whom we belong, and we do not fear death, at least in theory. halloween is the night we get to have fun. and we did! neighbors, friends and family enjoyed a cake walk (we had enough cakes to feed eternity, i believe), a positive fortune teller, who shared that we were all children of god, a bean-bag toss, bowling, face painting, a basketball toss, fishing game, guessing game, duck pond, hot dogs and nachos, and, of course, a haunted house...great fun that concluded with a costume judging contest -- with great prizes! we do holidays up right!

the third treat was experienced by me as moving day; daughter kristen (who turned 23 on halloween!) and boyfriend ben moved to the oakland hills...what a tough sacrifice!

here is a picture of the bay area from their bedroom porch; i know it will be so tough for them to have to sit there and have their morning coffee; i feel so sorry for them....perhaps i could offer to make the sacrifice for them . . . .

then, of course, there is the sunset; another tough break to sip wine and relax while unwinding from the day....do you think i should offer another sacrifice to sit out there on their behalf? gosh, it is a touch job, but someone has got to do it! what a beautiful view, don't you think? ah...to be young and in love....

ok, back to reality. so my treat was to spend time with this wonderful couple, helping them move in and visit with their very friendly dog ace.



ace really is, literally, a hand-full, but only when you are holding him. otherwise, he is good as gold.
and kristen and ben are delightful; what a treat to watch them grow and share life with each other and those who cross their path.

and so, you've been treated to three gifts today; all memories of things we can do to enrich the world; remember those who have helped us be the best person we can be . . . share the blessings we have received with others, and have a little fun in the process . . . and spend time in the beauty of the day, sharing a little love and giving thanks for the gift of life.

i ask you; could life get any better than this?