The World's Okayest Pastor

I have a confession: I will disappoint people as a pastor. This is a reality I live almost daily. I see it when I'm introduced by my last name and watch as a person's face falls when they realize I'm female. I see it in some folks who see my tattoos and shake their head in disapproval that I'd mark my body. I will disappoint people as a pastor because I will make a mistake and/or forget something. Yes I try to remember what I'm told on the fly, but my brain is not as good as it once was. Sunday mornings before and after worship are not always the best time to tell me things because my brain wrestles with many things. (Note - help your pastor out and write stuff down for us. We thank you in advance.) I will disappoint people by my choice to schedule time off when they feel that I should be present with them. While I personally, and many of my colleagues do the same, will attend to true crisis during our off time, others have different values, priorities and expec...

It's that time of year where every weekend, as you go out, you will hear the phrase "would you like to buy some Girl Scout cookies?" Girl Scout cookie season, loved by those of us who need our yearly "fix" and yet it is also one of the most despised times of the year by some Christian groups who want to protest the sales of Girl Scout cookies. Here's are two reasons for protesting Girl Scout cookies: Girl Scouts, along with many other non profit organizations, receive grant money from the United Way. Planned Parenthood also happens to receive money from United Way. Because of the this, groups who are anti-abortion believe that by buying Girl Scout cookies, it is money going to support Planned Parenthood. Second arguement is that we have lost our "Christian way" and we need to come back to being more faith based. So as a lifetime member of Girl Scouts (I'm celebrating 25 years of girl and adult membership - gee I'm old now), active leade...

  In the aftermath of the events of Paris and San Bernadino, California, there has been quite the backlash against all Muslims. We now have political candidates stating that we need to "register" Muslims and block Muslims from entering the country. The fear and hate speech is out of control and based on ignorance, not the facts. A country that once said that we welcomed people is now saying we welcome only those who look, act, and believe like those in control.   So as a pastor, let me tell you why I love my Muslim brothers and sisters. First off they are not out to wage a violent, blood "holy way = jihad" against anyone. Jihad is the struggle each Muslim has, within themselves, to lead the most holy and right life. It is not about bloodshed and "killing the infidel." Any Muslim who claims to believe in a holy killing war is misguided and has been denounced by the majority of the world's Muslims. As I write this post, the Western Christian world is in...

  The “war on Christmas” has begun. Or at least that’s what some Christians want us to think. Because  Starbucks , a company that has never claimed to be Christian, chose to have red cups without snowflakes, Santa or reindeer on them (just a reminder that none of those are Christian symbols), there is a "war on Christmas."   Once the “cup controversy” hit the news, old articles and videos came back about how using the abbreviation “Xmas” was anti Christmas and Christian. To address the "Xmas controversy," let’s learn a little Greek. X or “Chi” is the first Greek letter used in spelling “Christ” and is a common Christian symbol representing Jesus Christ. Therefore Xmas is Christian and appropriate for Christmas.   But regardless of what we choose to learn and teach about what’s Christian or not, I’d like to pose two bigger questions: why does the color of a coffee cup mean a person’s faith is being questioned and why do Christians feel that just because...

I learned many things while I was in seminary. I learned things from books, my professors and teachers, classmates. I learned a lot about my self during the process. Some of it was easy, others were very painful. I came away with a lot of knowledge. However as I have lived into this thing called ministry I have a list of things I wish I had been told, taught. So here is what I have learned and lived into so maybe it'll help others. Plus some of it is just plain funny how I learned these things. Laws and Rules- Although many churches are exempt from certain things, they are still called to follow many laws and rules. One of the main ones that comes up often is copyright laws and rules. Churches are notorious  for being communities of paper. We make a lot of copies of things and hand them out: bulletins, newsletters, inserts, etc. And while this isn't all bad to give people something to read and to take home it brings up the question of what are congregations legally allowed t...

  In the church I currently serve, we celebrate communion on the first Sunday of the month. Everytime we celebrate communion I always conclude the meditation and the Words of Institution with an invitation to the talbe that includes the following: Come to the table because this is God's table. It's not the table of this congregation or this denomination, but God's. Because of that you all are welcome here.   Some of my church members think that I just like to repeat myself. But I say this for theological reasons. All too often churches like to put up boundries to participation in the full life of the church: membership requirements, approval by the pastor, counsel/boards, reciting certain creeds/belief statements, etc. While these are more formal reasons that churches bar people from full participation in all aspects of the church, there are informal ways of keeping people from full participation: unwelcoming, rumor mills, creative ways of making sure people are not includ...

  Every Sunday I greet my congregation with these words: "Good morning beautiful people of God." It is a habit but I say it for a few reasons. 1) always greet people when you interact with them. 2) these are words that need to be heard by everyone, and often. Why these words? Let me break this greeting down for you.   "Beautiful people" - Who gets to define beauty today? Generally the media and those in the fashion industry. As a woman in the plus sized part of society, all too often I don't see the message that I'm beautiful, if anything I told exactly the opposite and that I need a lot of things to "fix" myself. In my work with youth and in particular girls, it is more clear to me than ever that being exactly the way they are is not okay and they won't be beautiful unless they have the right things to make them so. So I call everyone a beautiful person because guess what you are. We need (myself included) need to hear these words often so th...