Responding To A Call

Thanks to each of you for the wonderful welcome to All Saints! I am excited to be a part of ASUMC and look forward to getting to know each of you. Coming to All Saints during the “Called” sermon series has really made me reflect on where I came from, how I got here, and how God can put together seemingly unrelated pieces of our past to help us serve in the present. In my first blog, I would like to share a little about how God seems to have put together pieces of my past to bring me to and help me serve at All Saints. It seems like the best place to start is with a little history. Hopefully that will also help you to get to know me better.

One of the first things I learned as a child was the importance of working as a team. Growing up on a dairy farm near Saxapahaw, NC, grandmother, mom and dad, my four siblings, and I all chipped in every day to complete daily farm chores. Not only did I learn the importance of teamwork from this, but I developed a strong appreciation for nature, animals, crops, harvests, and the circle of life. On Sundays we did our work early and then attended worship at Saxapahaw United Methodist Church (right beside the Haw River – I started early as a Methodist!). My mother had a great appreciation for music and saw to it that I learned to play the piano and sing. Looking back, it’s easy for me to see God’s hand in my development as a young person.

This development as a young person led me into musical activities throughout high school and on to UNC-Greensboro where I studied music education. My next step was to become a music teacher at Roanoke Rapids High School. I learned a great deal as I studied and then taught music. I learned just as much and was rewarded just as greatly through the relationships I enjoyed with my students, their parents, and the staff I worked with while I was teaching. I had the opportunity to interact with many of the same people (Roanoke Rapids is a small town) as a member of Rosemary United Methodist Church, where I was also active in the music program. Again, looking back, it’s easy for me to see that God was using these experiences to prepare me for my next step – - serving as a school administrator. I began my administrative work as an elementary school assistant principal in Vance County. Soon afterwards, I met Liz (like many callings, this one was very persistent – - – but definitely not mundane!). Liz and I got married (yes, at Saxapahaw United Methodist Church) and I moved to Fuquay-Varina where she already lived. Soon afterward I became an administrator at Fuquay-Varina Elementary School. Liz and I still live in Fuquay-Varina, close to our daughter, son-in-law, and three grandchildren.

I completed my career in education last June and took a little time to think about my next step. How could I use the experiences I had had the opportunity to enjoy and grow from in a positive and enjoyable way? Before too long, I heard about the All Saints music position and, well… another calling!

As I mentioned above, hearing the called sermon series has really rung with me as I have considered where I came from and how I got here. No lightning bolt (except for Liz), but definitely that persistent call that we’ve heard about the past few Sundays. I am thankful for each call I have received, the way each has naturally built upon and led into the next call, and the many blessings and trials that have come from each.

I look forward to hearing your stories and to getting to know each of you better as we serve together.

Ray Newlin

Where Will It End?

Have you heard the one about the child who was digging a hole in the backyard? The neighbor next door asked her what she was doing. “Oh,” said the little girl, “I’m burying my goldfish.” “I’m sorry your goldfish died,” consoled the neighbor. “But tell me, why are you digging such a big hole for a little goldfish?” “You want to know why I’m digging a big hole? I’ll tell you why. I’m digging a big hole to bury your cat who ate my goldfish!”

The story is funny but the reality that lies behind it is not. What is there about human beings that causes us to heap vindication upon vindication? I can picture the neighbor now digging an even bigger hole to bury the child who killed that cat that swallowed the goldfish. Where does it end?

Every morning I retrieve my newspaper from the driveway and I read of wars and rumors of wars, and I wonder “Where will it all end?” Israelis bomb a settlement on the West Bank. Palestinians bomb a mall in Israeli territory. Iraq’s Sunni, Shiite, Arab, and Kurdish citizens deliver tit for tat. And many of our own neighborhoods are filled with a perpetual Hatfield and McCoy mentality.

Clearly the issues are large. But the proposed solutions are small. I know that alone we cannot solve the centuries-old wars in our own communities to say nothing about those in the Middle East, but we can begin by working on our own individual behaviors that give way to retaliation and vengeance. How we handle the inconsiderate driver on the highway or the person who cuts in front of us in the grocery line may seem unimportant. Yet our responses are the seeds from which the weeds of hateful behavior grow.

Something I’m thinking about as I ponder the ripple effect of war and peace!

- Rev. Ruth Harper Stevens, Minister of Welcome and Hospitality

Evaluating The New Year

As a new calendar year begins, it is a good time to evaluate who and where you are, and to set some direction for the new year. The same applies to the church. I read an article in a journal for spiritual formation called Weavings (published by The Upper Room) that I thought gives us a good framework with which to do such an evaluation as we begin a new calendar year. See what you think…

In his article titled “The Art of Loving”, Glenn Hinson writes of churches as schools of love. He quotes “the brilliant Jewish philosopher Martin Buber” – Buber said, “The greatest thing one can do for another is to confirm what is deepest in another.” Hinson goes on to observe that Jesus made “confirming what is deepest in another” the object of his life and ministry. Using the Zacchaeus story in Luke 19:1-10, Hinson describes Jesus modeling four facets of confirmation: attention, acceptance, association, and affirmation.
Hinson notes the following in that Zacchaeus story:
-Jesus paid attention to Zacchaeus up in the tree. That attention was a most precious gift – think of how inattention takes away our self-esteem and “shrivels our souls”.
-Not only did Jesus pay attention to Zacchaeus but he offered acceptance to Zacchaeus as he told him to come down from the tree and take Jesus to his house.
-Jesus risked his life and refutation by associating with Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was a tax collector and despised by everyone. Here’s Jesus not only paying attention to him but going to his house!
-Finally Jesus affirms Zacchaeus and his response of faith. “…on the basis of God’s infinite mercy and love, Jesus declared, “Today salvation has come to this house…”
Hinson concludes his article with the following: As schools of love, churches can create a culture of confirming what is deepest in others by attention, acceptance, association, and affirmation.

So that bears the question for me, how are we doing at All Saints’? As we begin 2012 are we confirming what is deepest in others? How are we paying attention to those among us and to those around us? How accepting are we of others? Who do we associate with and is that who Jesus wants us to be associating with? How are we affirming the work of God in our own lives and in the lives of others? How are we a school of God’s love?

-Sue Ellen Nicholson, Minister of Administration and Discipleship

Blessings, Blessings, Blessings

At a recent District Meeting I was accused of loving my grandson. Guilty!

Dean is a happy, almost three year old, energetic boy. He is wise as only small children can be. Their minds and experiences are fresh and uncluttered about the sometimes harsh realities of the experiences of longer life. I love his mom too and she has always set a great example when it comes to praying with him.
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When is Enough Really Enough?

I don’t know about you but this sermon series on Enough is coming at a good time for me. I’ve had the opportunity over the last year and a half to really be faced with assessment and acceptance of what is enough. Before January 6, 2010 I had a great job that while very demanding and at times extremely stressful , compensated me very well. On that income I was able to buy a townhouse (and not have to have a roommate to help pay for it), get a new car every 5-6 years, be very generous in charitable contributions and financial support to a variety of things that had touched my life or that I believed in and felt called to support, upgrade to digital TV with a DVR and high speed internet, go on trips to the beach and other places, eat out whenever I wanted to, take advantage of sales at Belk’s and Steinmart and buy what I liked (whether I needed it or not) and add to my stockpiled fabric stash anytime I saw something I liked – all the while saving a tidy little sum every month and a good amount going into my retirement fund so I could retire early. All that came to a screeching halt. Suddenly I was faced with the questions – how much income do I need to pay the essential bills (and what is essential)? I had to say “I’m sorry, but I can’t continue to contribute to your ministry right now.” I had to evaluate every purchase, asking – do I really NEED this or is this just something that’s attractive in the moment and I think I want. I had to consider – what can I do without, is this something I really need to spend money on? I guess you could say I had to simplify my life cold turkey. Fortunately for me, I never went without the things that I really needed and the things that are ultimately important. In fact, as I remind myself often, I am most blessed and really have no basis for complaint. I share all that to say, the standard for “enough” is really much lower than we realize or at least are willing to admit, until we’re forced to. This applies not just to money and financial resources – it also applies to other things like use of time and eating habits (I sure wouldn’t be overweight if I paid attention to what was really enough for my body versus my appetites).
Coincidentally or providentially one of the devotional resources I use each day, Alive Now published by the Upper Room, has as its theme for September/October “Enough.” There have been several readings in the issue that have spoken to me and I’d like to share them with you here. I hope you find them meaningful as well and that you have the opportunity to reflect on what really is enough.

Sue Ellen Nicholson
Minister of Administration and Discipleship

Deliver Us from Today by Ciona Rouse
Dear Creator,
Deliver us from today
Where all I am is never enough
Where things are not big enough or nice enough
Where we never acquire enough things
Where we never have enough money
To spend on kids who are almost cool enough
nearly smart enough
not quite popular enough
but they could be enough
if we bought them enough
where our clothes could always be more stylish
our décor could always be more savvy
our spouses could always be more like someone else’s
everything could be more
except less requests of me
beggars get your own jobs
foreigners feed your own faces
mothers mother your own children
because there just isn’t enough
Deliver us from that, Creator God.
From the economy of needing more
From the mind lies of not enough
From the judgment of who deserves what
Deliver us from today;
drop us off at Eden.
Where your gaze fell upon the world
And all you could call Creation was good
Lovely
Beautiful
Enough
For the birds of the air
For the lilies of the field
For him
For her
Me
We

An Economy of Love by Lanecia Rouse
We thank you, Jesus,
that you offer us
more than we can possibly offer
or imagine for ourselves.
When we thirst, you offer us Living Water.
When we hunger, you offer us the Bread of Life.
When the storms of life are raging around us,
you calm the waters and offer us peace.
When we lean towards living out of scarcity,
you guide us to live out of an economy of love
where there is enough for everyone’s needs to be met,
and then some.
Holy Spirit, come,
lead us daily to be people
who live out an economy of love
for God, neighbor, and self,
in gratitude and faithful stewardship
as we daily walk
in grace
and love
with you.

Art and Failure

Recently I read an article in Duke DIVINITY magazine that was in defense of Christian kitsch. You know the art most of us call “bad” or “tasteless”. The mass produced “junk” you buy in any gift shop. I was hoping the author would have some profound way of looking at kitsch that would help me understand it and better embrace it but in the end he only confirmed my feeling, it is just mass produced junk. I would go so far as to say soulless junk.

Yes, that may seem harsh but let me explain what I mean. First off kitsch is soulless because it was created for the sole purpose of making money. Possibly the original “art piece” before it was mass produced had uniqueness and heart but somewhere between the first and 10,000th piece it lost that uniqueness. Yes, I understand we live in an industrialized world, and the ability to mass produce things is a defining feature of our age and what we have come to call success – sell a million units of anything and it was successful. And when it comes to my iPhone and car there is clear value in mass production. It allows the rest of us to own these highly technical devices. That is the big difference between art and a car. I could never make a car, aside from a kit car, but I can make art.

Art is something accessible to everyone. Sure some are better at it than others, or at least we have determined that some are better than others. True art is when someone bears their soul to us and spreads it on a canvas or carves it from stone, welds old pieces of metal together, arranges words into stories, or organizes ones and zeros on their computer to create something that came from inside them. They did not create the art to make money but to express what lives inside them. Sometimes it is joy, other times it is sorrow so deep only by pounding on stone can they drive it out.

Arguments about kitsch and high art only help to drive this gift from God further from its purpose. Since we are told by marketers and critics alike what art is good, we have scared too many people away from expressing themselves through some form of art. The further we drive people from even trying art the more we separate them from failure. Yes, you read that correctly. We drive them from failure. Not even the masters picked up a brush and painted a perfect picture the first time. Art is not always about perfection, art is about finding beauty in mistakes.

Since we are all scared of creating something ugly – bad art, we run from art, hiding in the shadows of lame excuses like “I am not artistic”. You mean you cannot paint like Van Gogh?! Who cares – that does not make you non-artistic. No, it makes you afraid of what others may think.

Watching Evelyn, my 22 month old daughter, draw makes my heart glad. She likes to tell me every crayon is yellow, even the green one; and then laughs as if she is saying “I know Dad, I am just playing with you.” Her crayon drawings will never hang anywhere besides our refrigerator and if you applied the world of art criticism to them you would say she failed. Sure she failed, but that is the point. Art is the place you can fail in beautiful ways and NOT care what others think.

I say this, but I wish I could heed my own advice. Every time I finish a piece of art I rush to get approval from others. I want people to say “I love it! Go hang it on the walls of the Guggenheim or sell it for thousands of dollars.” But if I made the art for the right reasons I would be scared to show the art because I am showing them a piece of my soul I cannot express through words. I am showing them a piece of me no one else has seen before.

I think Stanley Kubrick said it best when talking about film, “A film is – or should be – more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what’s behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later.” That is art. It is about finding a way to express the emotions that cannot be expressed any other way. God gifted humanity with art as a way of expressing the un-expressible, and the day we fill our walls with kitsch instead of moods and feelings is the day we squander this great gift from God.

The author of the article about kitsch was right that high art is not better than kitsch but he was wrong to say it was better than high art. Both miss the point. Art is letting yourself fail in an attempt to express something deep and profound. I will never be able to capture the deep unexplained parts of my life but art let’s me give form to them.

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?” God ask Job and his friends. I, like them, cannot answer that with words but through spattering paint on canvas I somehow connect with something deep inside I did not even know was there. I connect with God in a way I never knew was possible. Quit saying you are not an artist and hiding in the shadows of excuses. Create, the meaning will come later.

By Jeff Nelson

Jeff Nelson is a video producer, designer and artist who lives and works in Durham, you can see some of his work at www.variableforce.com.

The Root of All Evil...Anxiety?

Here’s what I’m thinking about today: ANXIETY. I live my life eaten up with it, and I’m wondering why? Does it serve any useful purpose at all? Or is it, not money, the proverbial “root of all evil?” I’ve rolled around in my head comparable words such as worry, distress and fretting. My analytical mind, which probably has gotten me into this current state, tells me that there are differences between these words. Anxiety seems to be less defined, more unfocused than worry and distress. And fretting is simply the outward expression of both.
What I’m relatively certain about is that anxiety undermines everything that is good and holy in life. It erodes focus, stability, inner peace, and trust. The dictionary says it is an “apprehensive uneasiness of mind.” Yes, that seems to sum up this pervasive feeling that the sky is going to fall or the other shoe is about to drop. If we live with this dis-ease every day, havoc is unleashed on our body, mind and spirit.
“Fret not thyself.” That’s what the Psalmist wrote. What a great line: Fret not thyself! The Bible is rich with reminders and cautions against being “anxious and troubled.” We are told not to worry about food, drink, clothing, or for that matter tomorrow. Peter writes: “Cast your cares on him for he cares for you.” And The Apostle Paul says: “Worry about NOTHING.”
Luke is so bold as to ask the probing Dr. Phil-type-questions: “Why are you anxious? Why do you let these negative thoughts arise in your head?” I suppose it would be too flippant (a la Flip Wilson) to say that the devil made me do it! Truth be told, I do it because deep inside of me I believe it is expected of me. I’m not supposed to simply take things as they come. There’s no virtue in being unprepared for unseen expectations or situations. That’s part of my answer. The bulk of it however, involves selfish pride, that desire to be in control of everything. And since I don’t know what might be coming my way, I am a living breathing bundle of anxious anticipation.
Phew! It feels good to give voice and focus and definition to my self-doubt about my ability to meet life’s demands. It’s not an absence of faith and trust in God that plagues me. It’s an absence of self-assurance.
So for today at least, I’m going to concentrate on casting my cares on God, remembering how much God cares for me. When things fall apart (And of course, my anxious self just knows that they will!), expect my next blog to be about the other root of all evil……………GUILT.

Ruth

Thanks for the Faith, Mom and Dad

As I think back on my childhood (I know, I don’t actually have to think that far back-but nonetheless, it’s still thinking back) I am immensely grateful for my parents. Any time I was successful, they were there. Any time I was struggling, they were there. It is their constant presence, which I now know and appreciate to be support-not obnoxious hovering, that has helped mold and shape me into the young professional that I am today.

It seems like yesterday that I was sitting at my kitchen table working through math homework with my ever so patient father, who never got frustrated as I fumbled my way through Geometry proofs. Or sitting at the computer with mom, making sure each of my English papers were as concise as possible, five “finished” products later. Words cannot describe how grateful I am for my parents, I am not sure I would have the drive and passion that I have today, if it was not for their constant patience, and their faith in my potential to succeed.

As our “Parenting” sermon series comes to an end, I think about the role that I hope to play with the ASUMC children’s ministry-each time I reflect on this thought, the same passion and dedication that my parents put forth with my siblings and me comes to mind. It is that passion that I hope to bring each Sunday to all of the children at All Saints. To reach to each child on an emotional level, and help them further in their relationship with Christ, with the patience of my father at the kitchen table, and the dedication of my mother sitting behind the computer. If it were not for their faith in me to become an innovative young adult, I would not be where I am today.

-Laura Pierrie, Children’s Ministry Coordinator

What Have You Learned from a Child This Week?

Some of the best times I remember growing up and in a previous church where I served were the times we were all together – from the very young to the very old. Multi-generation family gatherings were always a special time at my grandmother’s farmhouse (especially when watermelon was involved). My parents’ Sunday School class summer fish fry at the park by the river was always lots of fun. The Advent and Lenten Workshops at the church were times of learning and creativity that filled the halls of the church with a sound that must have been like music in heaven. We really can learn from one another when we share in experiences together – even when it means watermelon juice all down the front of your shirt or hands sticky from glue and construction paper. More often than we adults care or dare to admit, children have much to teach us. Especially in the family of God, it’s not just adults who teach the young. After all, Jesus held a special place for children and on a number of occasions said something to his disciples and followers like we find in Matthew 18: 1-3 – At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

So that brings up the question – what have you learned from a child (or youth) this week? Here are a few things I’ve learned from children and youth. From children I’ve learned it’s OK and actually a good thing to ask questions. I’ve also learned that children understand, accept and relate to the mystery of God much better than I do as a well-educated adult. Youth have taught me the blessings of the struggle to define my relationship with God and to own faith for myself.
We are embarking on an adventure at All Saints’ UMC on Sunday mornings from September 11 to October 2 that will be a time to learn from and with one another – of all ages and family configurations. This Intergenerational ConneXion Experience will meet in the Media Center at BCES from 9:30 to 10:15am. We’ll be exploring basics of the Bible, prayer, worship and service/mission together. Come join in the adventure! Who knows but you may even learn something from a child.

Sue Ellen Nicholson
Minister of Administration and Discipleship

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

I was born into a family of extroverts. Perhaps that explains why I told everyone I was adopted! I simply could not imagine sharing DNA with people who go out of their way to meet strangers in order to get to know them. Undetected existence in the shadows was fine with me. I believed that without knowing and being known one could avoid all sorts of ills: For example, embarrassment, vulnerability, rejection, and discomfort. When company would drop by I would hide in my parent’s closet to avoid having to talk to them or God forbid, play the piano for them. I can’t say that I was happy in my isolation, but I was safe.

Those who know my childhood still cannot believe that I became the pastor of a large membership church before I retired back into relative obscurity. God has a wry way of dragging us out of our comfort zones. Look at all the people in the Bible who hid behind their perceived inadequacies. Abraham and Sarah laughed at God because they knew they were too old to birth a nation. Jeremiah whined that he was too young to be a prophet. Moses stammered that he was too inarticulate to speak to anyone on behalf of the Hebrew slaves, and especially to Pharaoh.

My, how God uses us, even against our will, for our own good as well as for the good of others. Today I am serving the church as a volunteer staff member with the primary ministry of welcoming and offering hospitality to those new to the congregation. Perhaps because I was so shy and uncomfortable with new situations while growing up, I feel a passion for easing the way for others by removing the shadows of unfamiliarity and awkwardness. This often happens as I assume the uncomfortable position of initiating contact and the possible embarrassment of putting my foot in my mouth. The Apostle Paul spoke of becoming a “fool for Christ.” Sometimes it’s difficult to differential this from just being a “dang fool.” Nevertheless, I have come to find radical hospitality to be a higher calling than conservative withdrawal. It is only as we step out of our comfort zones, that solitude becomes community, and community becomes Shalom.

Growing up there was a hymn I used to play on the piano for our youth fellowship. It taught me that life is not all about me. And sometimes it’s not about me at all!

Lord, help me live from day to day

In such a self-forgetful way

That even when I kneel to pray

My prayer shall be for others.

This week wherever you go keep your eyes open for those who need you to take on the role of the initiator. Consciously put yourself in the vulnerable position so that the other person will be the one at ease. You will never believe how mutually blessed both of you will be.

Fearfully and Joyfully in Christ,

Ruth