i HOPE this doesn't happen to my car!

this must be what happens to a convertible after living through the storms in the mountain (picture to your right).

i'm hopeful that you had a wonderful thanksgiving; it was probably one of my best, ever! relaxing, congenial group of family and friends, some of whom had never been together before.

i can tell that life is indeed different from how i was raised; i never dreamed i'd be spending a holiday (that was traditionally spent with my mother and highly anxiety producing to boot!) with my ex-wife and her husband at their mountain home (with an old car badly in need of repair!) seeing old friends and our daughter, meeting our daughter's significant and his parents!

everyone brought something to add to the deep-fried turkey (is that now a tradition?), and we spent hours talking, laughing, and getting to know one another on deeper levels.

there IS hope in this day and age. people don't have to argue, and families don't have to look like a father, a mother, and 2.5 children with a dog -- i never did figure out the .5 part of the children, but i digress.... we did have a dog among us, plus two cats and some strays, but they were very well behaved; mom would have been so pleased.

and no sooner than the dishes were done, the season of advent began; a season of anticipation.
we anticipate with hope, a world that will one day be at peace, where love is expressed with great joy. one of the pastor's in our conference sends people forth each week from worship reminding them with grace, that 'the world is now too dangerous for anything but truth, and too small for anything but love'.

that is advent. hope for the world to change -- for us to change -- by being the example we would like the world to be; filled with the hope of possibilities; filled with the peace that passes all understanding; filled with the kind of love that fills the soul, not just our stockings; filled with the joy that carries with it trust and compassion and safety and goodness.

this is the season to help make those things possible, because quite frankly, that is the way Jesus lived. Jesus wasn't at the mall at 3 am on the day after thanksgiving. Jesus was, i suspect, resting; ready to face the world with a new message that had nothing to do with charge cards or wrapping paper. offering the gift of hope to a world full of people who didn't know they needed hope; they just were living, but not really living!

so, may this time of advent be filled with the hope of possibilities for you and yours, and the world at large. may you light a candle each evening that will warm your heart and brighten someone else on a cold winter night. and, if you get a chance this season, put down the top of your convertible -- or come ride in mine! -- and invite others to join you; pull out the quilts and crank up the heater; sing 'joy to the world' at the top of your lungs, because this is the season to offer good cheer in the form of hope. let this be our collective prayer....

remembering with sadness and thanksgiving

i come with a quote from archbishop oscar romero today. it is with sadness that we remember 30 years ago that this roman catholic leader in san salvador was assassinated during his celebration of mass, for his liberation theological views and his commitment to speak out against poverty, torture, and his government commitment against the poor. it is an awful memory; it is the year i entered seminary.

on this thanksgiving, i wish to offer thanks to those who have gone before us to stand in solidarity with those who are without voice and power. may we remember that we are all called by god to speak the words of love, and act in ways that seek justice, love kindness, and walk humbly in step with jesus our living christ.

as we are in the midst of the 'already here and not yet' of god's realm, this is a timely reminder to us all:

"it helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view. the kingdom is not only beyond our effort, it is beyond our vision. we accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is god's work. nothing we do is complete, which is another way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us.

"no statement says all that could be said. no prayer fully expresses our faith. no confession brings perfection. no pastoral visit brings wholeness. no program accomplishes the church's mission. no set of goals and objectives includes everything.

"this is what we are about: we plant seeds that one day will grow. we water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. we lay foundations that will need further development. we provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities.

"we cannot do everything and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. this enables us to do something, and to do it very well. it may be incomplete, but it is a beginning; a step along the way; an opportunity for god's grace to enter and do the rest.

"we may never see the results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker. we are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs. we are prophets of a future not our own".

wow! i find these words honest, inspiring, and a prayer of hope. may this be our reminder that with thanksgiving, god is with us; we are never alone; and the work of christ is not finished. what will be your next step on behalf of god for others?

a little of 'this-is' and 'that-is'

this has been a week! can i get an 'amen' to that????

so what's made it so?

this-is the month for reading, and i was invited to read to a third grade class at burbank elementary school; i hadn't been in a 3rd grade classroom since my children were in school. i read 'thanksgiving wish'; a delightful story! the students were so attentive! and that-is not all; i received a package of thank-you notes on sunday morning; drawings and everything! what made this so rewarding for me was reading through the notes and having the students share about where they went to church -- after reading, we had a 'q and a' time, and, as they knew i was a pastor, they had lots of questions. but they were very willing to share their 'church experiences'. we could learn from this group of students, don't 'cha think???? this was a great experience for me; that-is why i am writing about it!

this-is a picture of merced; for many reading this blog, you might say, "so...." or "why that picture"? that-is not just any picture! it is a picture of a bridge, crossing over 'g' street, that will gain us access under the train that runs through town. it will allow us all to get to the hospital and across town, unencumbered. so the 'bridge' is really a train crossing. this will be a great gift to our community when it is finished next year; that-is why i am writing about it.

this-is a picture of the retreat i am attending with other clergy members from the california-nevada annual conference of the united methodist church. it is at the mount hermon retreat center in the santa cruz mountains. that-is that we all cross over to 'get to the other side' as it were. our retreat theme is 'bridging the covenantal divide', so that-is why i thought about the two bridges; creative, no? bridges are unique in that they bring two bodies--be it people or land--in contact, one with the other. bridges are passages way, bringing lands together, but also souls. being in covenant means that trust is built and confidences are honored. we learn to cross over into territories that we may not venture otherwise.














this experience is a growth-filled opportunity; that-is why i am am writing about this!

there are other things to write about; staff changes and my mother needing to move into assisted living, but this-is not a time to write about those things. that-is a blog in and of itself. changes happen; sometimes we anticipate those changes, and sometimes they come out of the blue! but we deal with them, don't we, in one way or another?!

this-is the time to offer one more insight to my week. that-is: coffee! not just good coffee, but great coffee and wonderful surroundings. i am doing my 'blog' while seated at peet's coffee and tea. you have to know that i fell in love with peet's the first time i walked in, smelling the intoxicating aroma of coffee beans and hearing the soothing sounds of classical music. so, whenever i see a peet's i stop and smell the coffee! this day is no exception. but, the unexpected delight was to find one of my colleagues here; i tried to share my internet access code with her so she could check her e-mail, and the message said 'that code is already in use'. ok, so peet's could use a little tutorial on sharing! this might be the only thing needed by this wonderful coffee house, so i'm willing to have another cup of coffee and offer my pastoral insight; that-is the least i can do, don't you think?

so, what are the 'this-is' and 'that-is' in your life? care to share?

"i'm wedding in the rain . . ."

come to mendocino and stay at the maccallum house; o my goodness! i could be their advertisement! but look at this house ~ doesn't it just say, stay here; relax; enjoy yourself; let us take care of you!?! and so they did....

i had the honor to participate as joel and nancy got married this week-end; it was their dream wedding, and what a dream it was! they entered a contest on the internet; won this wedding back in february, and, while the ceremony has not come and gone, the memory will linger.



we worried that the wedding on the bluff would be rained out; but as this picture shows, neither rain, nor sleet, nor any other obstacle ~ well, isn't that the letter carrier motto? ~ any way, nothing prevented the dream from coming true.

'methodists' don't get to serve here; our sisters the presbyterians are planted here in this 1,000 people town. it is their church you see in this picture during the beginnings of the morning rain storm. it rained all saturday night. but 'blue sky, won out'!

funny things about weddings; people come, and they are excited to be there; the energy is filled with anxious excitement, yes, but people are happy. maybe we should be attending weddings more often; maybe the world would be a 'happier' place!




this is the bluff where the ceremony was; an intimate gathering of 50 people; the groom was proud; the bride radiant; their daughter was every bit of 'grace' that she could be! the waters roared their joy; pictures were taken; the music played in the background, and the pastor forgot his camera, and had to rely on his phone; in the excitement, i forgot to even take wedding pictures.




so fast forward to the evening, back at the bed and breakfast, where the reception offered relaxed moods, and fabulous food. and, as i passed the 'head table', i couldn't resist a picture, very dark i know, but they were bright with the joy of it all....

weddings can be difficult; lots of opinions, and lots of personalities. it is much more difficult to participate in a wedding when i only know the couple. with with nancy and joel and grace, it has been different. they invite you into their lives; they share themselves, and their friends and family become your friends and family. and so it felt like the best of all possible worlds....the witnessing of god's love and joy ~ uniting such a wonderful couple and family ~ surrounded by supportive people who have also become an extended family. may all of our love grow like this!


and so the return trip. a couple of things to be aware of....gas in mendocino costs $4.92.9 per gallon; fill up before you turn off the 101! the highway between the 101 and the 1 takes an hour and was created by someone who was drawing for fun! plan to relax; stop when you need to, and keep breathing, even when you think you're going to drive over a cliff!

only a destination of love could make you drive that more than once; but mendocino is worth the drive!

and when you return home, stop by my barn, "dr. pierce"; another poor picture, i'm sorry to say due to the sunlight, but, who would ever believe someone had put my name on their barn? what a hoot!




but as i shared at the end of the ceremony, before the kiss and the introduction, i'll share with you: 'may the sun be warm and kind to you; the darkest night some star shine through; the dullest morn some radiance brew; and when dusk comes, god's hand to you'. that is my wish for grace and nancy and joel...and for you, too!

remembering the past and anticipating the future

it is election day and the week wecelebrate the saints. what could these two things have in common? perhaps it is about remembering the past and anticipating the future.

who knows how the election will turn out. lots of speculation. it has been a season of finger-pointing and "more of the same" style of election adds. and, i fear, as we move forward after the election results, not a lot will change. why? we don't seem to work together.

we also are remembering this week, our saints; those blessed ones in our lives who have died but who live on in our spirits. i believe when all is said and done, those who have come before us yearn even now for goodness and wholeness and the desire for the best. why can't we just get our egos out of the way, and do what is best -- even if we're wrong?! i wonder why we just can't work together. the human spirit of self-centered-ness gets in our way, and the divine spirit of harmony can't always get through the cracks!

couldn't we just learn to read the signs of our past? and perhaps listen, too?

so, i leave you with this thought. it is from a sign in waha, ontario, next to an inukshuk.

inukshuk (pronounced in-ook-shook). these are stone monuments erected in the image of humans. one of their purposes was to communicate direction in the harsh and desolate arctic. as such, they were a tool for survival, and symbolic of the unselfish act of a nomadic people, the inuit.

the inuit built the inukshuk as signposts to make the way easier and safer for those who followed.

the inukshuk are the product of cooperation, teaching us that as good as our individual efforts may be, together we can do even greater things.

the inukshuk is a symbol of the human spirit; it recognizes our ability to succeed with others, where we would fail alone. it reminds us of our need to belong to something greater than ourselves.

the inukshuk celebrates our "working together"; it continues to remind us of our efforts today to direct a better way for all our us, tomorrow. the difference we make today counts in all our tomorrows.

so, there you have it; an opportunity to remember the past and anticipate the future, by working together for the greater good. now that is an ideal i'd vote for, and be willing to risk my life for. how about you?

what makes you come alive?

normally, meetings don't make me come alive. i like to know the agenda; do the work, and move on. of course, prayer and spiritual direction have become part of the agenda for our meeting time here in merced. and perhaps the best thing about meetings is that i get to be in relationship with people who are longing for the same vision. we may not always agree on the process, but we work towards the same goal.

so, when i ventured to an overnight meeting last week, the focus was placed on transformation. richard rohr was quoted: 'transformed people transform people'. i've lived with that statement for nearly a week, now, and it makes total sense to me; does it to you? we cannot feed strongly if we are not well fed. we cannot do our best if we are not at our best. kind of like the airlines that remind you to put your mask on first -- if there is a sudden drop in cabin air pressure, and then assist children and those around you.

on the agenda for this transformational meeting was a quote from howard thurman. i have often read many things from howard thurman, but i must have missed this one. or, it could be that i wasn't in a place to really understand it. but i was paying attention this time!

thurman wrote:

"don't ask yourself what the world needs.
ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do that.
because what the world needs is people who have come alive."

isn't that powerful?! during these last couple of weeks leading up to our national election, we are hearing lots of statements; we are seeing lots of finger-pointing. but there hasn't been a statement from anyone better than that quote of thurman!

so, what makes you come alive? for me, coming alive is connected to discernment. i feel my best when i have considered -- prayed, read, journaled, listened and talked, and thought. as an extrovert, i talk out my thoughts, and then i can get excited. i do seem to come alive with people around me, but i am not 'dead' when i am on my own. because, honestly, i am never totally alone. but with others, sharing ideas and reflections, do make me come alive. that, and music and milk & cookies help too!

what makes you come alive? and share a favorite quote or author if you have one.....

blessings to your week -- and do the something that makes your heart, and the heart of other, sing!

moving ants....and herding cats

i have come to believe that working with faithful church people can be like moving ants ... and herding cats! honestly! let me tell you my funny 'sad' story.

before it rained here in merced on sunday, the ants had all come looking for water. i finally had to put out liquid poison, hoping to ward them off; trouble was that the liquid they were suppose to carry back to their hives, killed them before they got there, and so they just moved to another spot in the house; i ended up chasing them; what's wrong with this picture?

cats, as you know, have a mind and a life of their own. they just don't give you the time of day unless they choose to give your their time and their part of the day. otherwise, you're nothing but a pain in their day. i like cats, but i can't figure out the reason i do to save my soul.

so, how are ants and cats like faithful church folk? well, like ants, you put out opportunities, and some go for the 'bate', and others move to another location. the ones who are taking the bate here in the united methodist church of merced, are really having an opportunity, so i understand, in getting to know themselves and others better, and to clarify their own belief system. they are being thoughtful about what we need to be doing next to risk changing our direction. the others who have not taken advantage of our small group opportunities may seem a little lost, but are continuing on their journey; we may end up at the same place, but the ones who have participated in the journey will inevitably have the advantage of having part of the ownership in the new ministry we do.

like herding cats, not everyone will be willing to come along. but our aim is not to necessarily focus on the current needs of our congregation. well, that may not be true either. the current need of our congregation is to help focus our attention on the ministry in our community that will make a spiritual difference now and in the future. cats don't always come on board in this way.

we're planning to meet in november with our leadership to discuss one of the first major changes we will make in our visioning process; worship and education. currently we have our more praise style service at 9 with an education program, fellowship time, our more traditional service at 10:30, fellowship time (heaven forbid that united methodists would give up fellowship time!), followed by our hmong education program and then hmong worship.

one of the ideas is to combine our education programs into one hour, and flip the praise worship with the traditional worship; hmong worship would stand on its own as usual. what difference would it make, you wonder? well, in general, many of our traditional folks wake earlier than our praise people. and there has been a request to combine our children's education program. often it is more difficult for our hmong households to be at church even by 10. so we are dealing with many factors, including 'late night saturday night folks'.

another prospect is dealing with a whole population of folks that are hardly visible...young adults. and there are two areas of young adults; students and singles/young families/couples. so a group of folks will be working on what we're calling 'the new ministry'. more about that another time.

my question for you today is, what moves you spiritually, and what are you longing for? some of your answers may reflect about worship, some about education/spiritual growth, and some about fellowship. you may even long for something that doesn't happen on sundays; that's ok; your thoughtful feedback is appreciated. and, are you an ant or a cat or some other 'anamal'?