It rains a lot at Mahaffey. Well, it seems to rain a lot when I am there. Thus, the nickname - "Mud-haffey."
When I say "Mahaffey," I mean PA. I also mean the Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA) camp. It is where my wife, Dondra, would spend a couple of weeks every summer when CMAers from every corner of western PA would come together to make a unique Christian community.
Saturday night, it was raining in Mahaffey - again. In fact, it was more than just rain. It was a good old-fashioned thunderstorm. Lots of lightning. Lots of thunder. A perfect night to sit on your porch and watch the wonder of it all.
JJ, Natalie, Elizabeth, Joel and I were sitting on the porch enjoying the storm. It was spectacular! And as we counted out the seconds between the lightning and the thunder, we knew that many of the strikes were close to camp.
Just as we made that comment, we saw a tree light up less than 100' from our porch. Whether the light went from top to bottom or bottom to top (or both), we can't say. The strike happened - so fast! But we do know that wood splinters were everywhere. Some were as large as 6' long and as smooth as a saw cut.
It was terrifying and awesome all at the same time. We were shaking with delight. It was one of those events that sort of marks you. You begin to realize that you are not much in control.
"The Heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork."
21 July 2010
16 July 2010
Legacy
I have just spent a week at Camp Hickory Hill (Varysburg, NY) as the Camp Shepherd. It has been a great week, and though I have been here a lot of times over the past 12 years, this experience seems unique to me.
There is no doubt that I have reached an age when I think about ministry differently. My shifting focus is on what I am leaving behind. It is no longer a matter of using the gifts and skills I have been given, but rather, investing in young people in such a way that they can use theirs. I don't know if I am late in getting into this mindset, but I have found it profoundly fulfilling.
Much of the mystique that surrounds Camp Hickory Hill is about legacy. It is about training boys to be men. It is about training young men to be men of God.
This week, I have been observing young men serve as leaders that I once had as campers. As campers, they were consistent headaches. They stepped over the boundaries. They frequently wandered from the group. They were fidgety. At times, I was tempted to see them as hopeless.
But now, as leaders, they are remarkably different. They are focused. They are servants. They are on a mission to lead campers into a relationship with Jesus. They have stepped forward into a glorious adventure.
It is an adventure that has continued through the ages, beginning when twelve men followed Jesus around the Galilean countryside. I find being a part of that legacy extremely satisfying.
There is no doubt that I have reached an age when I think about ministry differently. My shifting focus is on what I am leaving behind. It is no longer a matter of using the gifts and skills I have been given, but rather, investing in young people in such a way that they can use theirs. I don't know if I am late in getting into this mindset, but I have found it profoundly fulfilling.
Much of the mystique that surrounds Camp Hickory Hill is about legacy. It is about training boys to be men. It is about training young men to be men of God.
This week, I have been observing young men serve as leaders that I once had as campers. As campers, they were consistent headaches. They stepped over the boundaries. They frequently wandered from the group. They were fidgety. At times, I was tempted to see them as hopeless.
But now, as leaders, they are remarkably different. They are focused. They are servants. They are on a mission to lead campers into a relationship with Jesus. They have stepped forward into a glorious adventure.
It is an adventure that has continued through the ages, beginning when twelve men followed Jesus around the Galilean countryside. I find being a part of that legacy extremely satisfying.
13 June 2010
Quirky... (Infusion 2010)
It was at Infusion during a social justice class that a question mark grew in my mind. How come Christians know so little about what is going on in the world? And how is it, that if we do know, we do so little about it?
One might call it the sin of complacency. Yes, I think it is a sin. And yes...I am guilty.
Yet, I feel hope. While I was leading the Encounter (small) group, I was asking each student what his/her dream was for their future. There were lots of good answers, all reflecting a determination to live a life of significance.
There was one young man, however, that startled me with his dream. He is kind of hard to describe. I will call him quirky. I think he might agree with that description. His dream - he is majoring in social work because he wants to go overseas and help stop human (sex) trafficking.
All of sudden, he didn't seem so quirky. He seemed unique. He seemed to be a man on a mission.
You know, I think he will do it. And I think he will be successful.
I will be keeping my eyes on him.
One might call it the sin of complacency. Yes, I think it is a sin. And yes...I am guilty.
Yet, I feel hope. While I was leading the Encounter (small) group, I was asking each student what his/her dream was for their future. There were lots of good answers, all reflecting a determination to live a life of significance.
There was one young man, however, that startled me with his dream. He is kind of hard to describe. I will call him quirky. I think he might agree with that description. His dream - he is majoring in social work because he wants to go overseas and help stop human (sex) trafficking.
All of sudden, he didn't seem so quirky. He seemed unique. He seemed to be a man on a mission.
You know, I think he will do it. And I think he will be successful.
I will be keeping my eyes on him.
01 June 2010
A Jig (Infusion 2010)
Cerebral palsy - no way!
Cynicism - dead end!
OCD - no, no, no!
Cruel friends - losers!
These things were waging war for "Jim's" heart. I could see it as we met together in Encounter groups and in individual conversations over the dinner table.
And yet, he was searching. His physical ailments, seen in his hesitant gait as he walks with a cane, represented his spiritual quest as well. A slow and interrupted pace toward something that makes sense - a purpose.
"Jim" is very much an intellectual. One might call him a pessimist. He will call himself a realist. I will call him "a piece of work." He questioned me on whether free will is a divine joke. He questioned me on whether the whole world is an illusion and only the mind is real. He then asked if I wanted to play chess. I said "no." He thinks too much.
Those kind of cynical questions came to an abrupt end last night when he admitted belief in Jesus was entirely logical. He confessed his sin and walked right into the loving arms of his Savior and Lord.
Today, "Jim" believes.
And I did a jig...
"Jim" smiled.
I think God did too.
Cynicism - dead end!
OCD - no, no, no!
Cruel friends - losers!
These things were waging war for "Jim's" heart. I could see it as we met together in Encounter groups and in individual conversations over the dinner table.
And yet, he was searching. His physical ailments, seen in his hesitant gait as he walks with a cane, represented his spiritual quest as well. A slow and interrupted pace toward something that makes sense - a purpose.
"Jim" is very much an intellectual. One might call him a pessimist. He will call himself a realist. I will call him "a piece of work." He questioned me on whether free will is a divine joke. He questioned me on whether the whole world is an illusion and only the mind is real. He then asked if I wanted to play chess. I said "no." He thinks too much.
Those kind of cynical questions came to an abrupt end last night when he admitted belief in Jesus was entirely logical. He confessed his sin and walked right into the loving arms of his Savior and Lord.
Today, "Jim" believes.
And I did a jig...
"Jim" smiled.
I think God did too.
30 May 2010
I need this Jesus (but I am not raising my hand!)...
It is Sunday, May 30, and outside, there are about 50 college students partaking in a spontaneous worship service. It has been going on for an hour.
Maybe it is not so spontaneous. After all, we just came back from a muddy pond where five students testified of their belief in Jesus. They were all wet. I am a big fan of Christians getting all wet.
It reminded me of the summer of 1971, when at 12 years old, I was baptized in Byron, NY, in what we called "Say's Pond" (I suppose it was called that because the Say family owned it). It is interesting to me that a decision that I made at 11 years old is still as "rock solid" today as it was the day I made it.
Some memories of the day in August 1970 when I crossed over from unbelief to belief remain very vivid. As the invitation was made to become a Christian, I remember thinking, "I need this Jesus." I was very convinced that this was the answer to my problems. But when they asked me to indicate that decision by raising my hand, I thought, "I need this Jesus, but I am NOT raising my hand."
But mysteriously, I opened my eyes only to see that my hand was in the air. This only feeds the debate about the role of free will and election when it comes to salvation. I seemed to have lived the tension, because I knew I needed Jesus, but I am absolutely sure I did not raise my hand that was raised in the air.
Ah...we can debate the tension at another time.
In the meanwhile, let me say - it was a great day. We should do baptisms every day!
Maybe it is not so spontaneous. After all, we just came back from a muddy pond where five students testified of their belief in Jesus. They were all wet. I am a big fan of Christians getting all wet.
It reminded me of the summer of 1971, when at 12 years old, I was baptized in Byron, NY, in what we called "Say's Pond" (I suppose it was called that because the Say family owned it). It is interesting to me that a decision that I made at 11 years old is still as "rock solid" today as it was the day I made it.
Some memories of the day in August 1970 when I crossed over from unbelief to belief remain very vivid. As the invitation was made to become a Christian, I remember thinking, "I need this Jesus." I was very convinced that this was the answer to my problems. But when they asked me to indicate that decision by raising my hand, I thought, "I need this Jesus, but I am NOT raising my hand."
But mysteriously, I opened my eyes only to see that my hand was in the air. This only feeds the debate about the role of free will and election when it comes to salvation. I seemed to have lived the tension, because I knew I needed Jesus, but I am absolutely sure I did not raise my hand that was raised in the air.
Ah...we can debate the tension at another time.
In the meanwhile, let me say - it was a great day. We should do baptisms every day!
13 May 2010
A Wild Ride (Conclusion)
This all seems like ancient history now, but it was a valuable lesson for an old guy like me. It certainly is a lesson I have learned before, but to be sure, I needed to learn it again. It is as simple as the old adage, "Don't judge a book by its cover."
If there is anyplace one needs to get that right, it is on a college campus. People are dressed every which way. They act in every way. They are experimenting with life - some experiments are dangerous, some are not.
But beneath each situation is a real person with real needs.
I discovered this once again with my travel companion. He had a job he enjoyed. He had a girlfriend he was nuts over. And deep down, he was in a search for truth.
I hope that in his encounter with me, he got closer to finding it. And I hope that God will grant me an opportunity in the future to meet up with him again. We possess the potential to be real friends, and I must admit, I hope God grants it.
If there is anyplace one needs to get that right, it is on a college campus. People are dressed every which way. They act in every way. They are experimenting with life - some experiments are dangerous, some are not.
But beneath each situation is a real person with real needs.
I discovered this once again with my travel companion. He had a job he enjoyed. He had a girlfriend he was nuts over. And deep down, he was in a search for truth.
I hope that in his encounter with me, he got closer to finding it. And I hope that God will grant me an opportunity in the future to meet up with him again. We possess the potential to be real friends, and I must admit, I hope God grants it.
19 March 2010
A Wild Ride (2)
As I sat down next to the young man, we introduced ourselves, and I found him already breaking down my preconceived notions about him. He was funny, caring, and passionate. And I found him an enjoyable companion as we flew from Cleveland to Phoenix.
It did get interesting for a moment when he asked me what I did for a living. When I said I was a Campus Minister, he froze up for a moment, and then politely asked, "What does a Campus Minister do?" It occurred to me at that moment that perhaps I should be able to answer such a question.
What DOES a campus minister do? Actually, I did like my answer. I can't remember the exact words, but it was along the line of helping college students discover what the Christian faith is truly about (not what it appears to be) and how one can effectively be on a journey of following Jesus (because it is about relationship, not religion). I am going to think that through a little more, but I like the initial direction my answer took.
As we conversed back and forth, what I discovered is that just as I had preconceived notions about what he would be like, he had the same kind of misconceptions about what a Christian would be like. And so the wild ride continued...
It did get interesting for a moment when he asked me what I did for a living. When I said I was a Campus Minister, he froze up for a moment, and then politely asked, "What does a Campus Minister do?" It occurred to me at that moment that perhaps I should be able to answer such a question.
What DOES a campus minister do? Actually, I did like my answer. I can't remember the exact words, but it was along the line of helping college students discover what the Christian faith is truly about (not what it appears to be) and how one can effectively be on a journey of following Jesus (because it is about relationship, not religion). I am going to think that through a little more, but I like the initial direction my answer took.
As we conversed back and forth, what I discovered is that just as I had preconceived notions about what he would be like, he had the same kind of misconceptions about what a Christian would be like. And so the wild ride continued...
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