Braving The Waters

I Want to Stop Running Kenneth G. Phifer Eternal God, you are a song amid silence, a voice out of quietness, a light our of darkness, a Presence in the emptiness, a coming out of the void. You are all of these things and more. You are mystery that encompasses meaning, meaning that penetrated mystery. You are God, I am [human]. I strut and brag. I put down my fellows and bluster out assertions of my achievements. And then something happens: I wonder who I am,    and if I matter. Night falls, I am alone in the dark and afraid. Someone dies, I feel so powerless. A child is born, I am touched by the miracle of new life. At such moments I pause… to listen for a song amid the silence, a voice out of stillness, to look for light out of darkness. I want to feel a Presence in the emptiness. I find myself reaching for a hand. Oftentimes, the feeling passes quickly, and I am on the run again:           success to achieve,           money to make. O Lord, you have to catch me on the run most of

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?  It came without ribbons.  It came without tags.  It came without packages, boxes or bags.  And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore.  Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before.  What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store.  What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”     ~Dr. Seuss Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas is almost more familiar to people than the Nativity story found in the Gospel of Luke. This is a sad statement for me to make but, I fear that it is increasingly more true year after year. I have heard over the years many people say “I hate Christmas…well you know what I mean.” Followed quickly by; “I wish THEY would stop trying to take Christ out of Christmas.” Who are they and why are you concerned about how they are celebrating Christmas…the only person who can take Christ out of YOUR Chr

Why are we always waiting for an excuse to “use the good silver”?   We wait for the right moment, the perfect occasion, the celebration to end all celebrations and when it arrives, we are still sometimes reluctant to bring it out of its safe hiding place at the bottom of the cedar chest or china cabinet.   When we finally decide the occasion is worthy of “the good silver” we spend excessive amounts of time meticulously polishing and situating each piece in its proper place on the table, that we no sooner get everything set out and it is time to put it away again. How did your family’s silver become “the good silver”? When great grandma (insert your own family name here) left it to you in her Will, was there a usage clause that deemed it “the good silver, only to be used on certain days for certain occasions”? Did the clause read something like this; “The ‘good silver’ can only be used on occasions where there are more than five(5) family members present, it must ALL be used or NONE can

I have a bulletin board hanging on my office wall; it has various things thumb tacked to it. At some point each of the things hanging there were important to me. I suppose since they are still hanging there even after making a 740 mile move cross country, they are still important. The things hanging on this board vary in shape, size, meaning, and appearance. A Chalice sun catcher, a map of the church, several cards from family and friends, a picture of my paternal grandparents in front of the "Arc de Triumph" during WWII, my father’s obituary, the preaching schedule, and a couple crosses…just to name a few. When I am sitting at my desk, this bulletin board is on my left; every time I glance at it the same thing catches my eye. I am always drawn to the same card. I believe I received this card at my Ordination and if memory serves I received three or four of this same card that day. The card reads; “Be who you are. Do what you love. Make a difference. Change the world.”