Tonight I had a presentation scheduled in Tama/Toledo. These two little towns are so close I can’t tell where one ends and the other begins. And based on my introductory sentence, you might guess that I wasn’t exactly sure which one I was supposed to be in! You see, many little towns in Iowa still…
The Body of Christ
we are the church
Honey Badgers, Anxiety, and the future of the church
At our conference Orders Event a few weeks ago, we talked a lot about being anxious. The talk was from a systems theory perspective and focused on how pastors need to be non-anxious participants in the system to effectively lead change and help the system to be healthy. I’m not going to comment on the…
Longing for Crocus…
17 months ago, I planted nearly a thousand bulbs at our parsonage. While that sounds like a lot, let me tell you, a bag of 100 crocus bulbs are cheap and they plant easily when the soil has already been worked up and is ready. It was a lot of hard work, but the results…
Why you shouldn't share goals in fundraising
I made a rookie mistake during my first donor visit a few weeks ago. I announced, proudly and out loud, what our conference goal was. To me, it seemed like a no-brainer. People what to know what you are trying to accomplish. They want to see the finish line and know how far we have…
My Book of Resolutions
Resolution 2013.1 WHEREAS, my change in job has caused some stress in my family life WHEREAS, stability is sometimes more important than flexibility WHEREAS, I need to remember this job is a marathon, not a sprint THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that I will prayerfully (and with consulatation from my husband) discern my schedule in the…
Vision, Mission, Money and Imagination
I love my new ministry as the coordinator for Imagine No Malaria in our conference… but I often have a hard time explaining why. While there are similarities with local church ministry (which I also love), so many aspects of this position are drawing upon gifts in new and different ways. But because I am…
Shine Like Stars
Imagine No Malaria Guest Sermon – Advent 2 When we lit our advent candles just a few minutes ago, we were reminded that not everything in our scriptures is full of sunshine and roses. Luke’s vision of the coming Messiah includes terrible signs and distress among the peoples. As the Message translation of these…
Life on the Road
When I accepted the position as a coordinator of Imagine No Malaria, someone asked what it was like to no longer be serving a church. My response back was that I’m not serving one church… I’m serving nearly 800 of them! It is exciting to be working with so many new people and communities of…