Toby is a wonderful guy with a big heart. He was one of the first chaplains called to New York on 9/11 with FEMA. When I was leaving church this evening this was an email I received from a pastor buddy of Toby’s wanting his friends to pray for the Gulf states and for those who are grieving. I will post this pastors emails as I receive them.

Pastor Toby Nelson, formerly of Sierra Presbyterian Church, Nevada City CA, called me on his cell phone today with this report. He was “activated” Sunday afternoon as part of a FEMA Response Team, and flew out to Little Rock, then on to Louisiana by vehicle (presumably bus). He says new Orleans looks like a war zone. Indeed, looting and general unsafe conditions required that an armed National Guard unit escort the team into the Superdome, the site of their assignment. He said media is not able to paint the full picture. The situation in the Superdome is dire, critical - no power, darkness, no water for plumbing, with all kinds of crimes taking place including stabbing and rape among those trapped there. He discerns significant demonic activity and a great spiritual darkness over the New Orleans region. Significantly, for the first time in his service with FEMA, his Team asked him to pray over them before entering the city.

He made his report from the only quiet room he could find: the morgue at the Superdome. Toby said his cell phone battery was going out and he has no way to recharge it. I will forward next message when I receive it.

When I think of learning about the life of a church, I think of some of the old tricks of the trade. I know these are not new to you veterans. I try to have special youth group nights or events at kid’s homes throughout the year. It gives me a chance to learn about the student and their families. One oldie of a youth event is the “traditional thanksgiving progressive dinner.” It draws kids out and it’s also a way of getting kids together, especially the ones who don’t usually celebrate thanksgiving or who don’t have much of a family when it comes to the holiday season. I also have tried this last year to venture out and visit some of the older persons of our church. These fellowship groups or Marinerships have met for years. They’ve watched their children group up, have celebrated weddings, and have even celebrated being grandparents together. They’ve also celebrated loss together. These Marinerships have been a form of community for folks in many ways. It’s also a quick way of getting to know the church and its history. It gives me a chance to visit and to cast some vision for what the church has called me to do as one of their pastors. One comment I received this past year was, “we didn’t know all of the things that were happening at our church for youth and families, until we met you.”

In our presbytery here in Sacramento those who are in their first ordained call are expected to participate in a first call group of pastors who are in their first few years of ordained ministry. One of the mentor pastors of the group was teaching on servant leadership and what is expected of leaders of churches. She made the comment that before pastors could effectively lead their churches, they need to learn as much as possible about the lives of the people and love them as Christ loved them. I can’t argue with that at all. Three things I hope to apply to my ministry.

It’s been a while. A long while. The last time I watched the VMA show on MTV was when Hootie & The Blowfish was actually hot and Van Halen made a guest appearance. Much like what MC Hammer did last night in his guest appearance. I decided last night that I would actually sit through the whole show to get a glimpse of what is out there in the land of music. One of the things I remembered from the last show I watched sometime ago was the number of "thank you God’s." Nothing wrong with this. Can’t judge a persons heart for the Lord. Last nights show had a whole lot less of the, "I thank God for…" during the performers thank you speeches. I think I counted five or six "I thank God’s" inserted into the "thank you so much" speeches. I also noticed was that Pdiddy’s work at proclaming the Gospel. Pdiddy was the spokesperson for the lastest in Jesus wear. His "God is the Greatest" t-shirt he wore stood out like a sore thumb. Watch out WWJD! Pdiddy made it once again hip to wear the latest in Jesus gear.

The band that really came out a winner last night was Green Day. Now I have to admit. I actually like some of Green Day’s music. The lyrics I could probaly do with out. On the flip side, the lyrics to many of their songs are very powerful I found the lyrics to one of their winning hits last night here. The song acutally reminded me of growing up in Hollywood as a kid…here are a few lines of "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams"

I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don’t know where
it goes
But it’s home to me and I walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city
sleeps
and I’m the only one and I walk alone

My shadow’s the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart’s the only
thing that’s beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
‘Til
then I walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city
sleeps
And I’m the only one and I walk a…

My shadow’s the only one
that walks beside me
My shallow heart’s the only thing that’s
beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
‘Til then I walk
alone…

Powerful lyrics. After watching the show, I believe the lyrics speak volumes of much of what took place on the show. I have no doubt those who serve in youth ministry have students who understand loneliness. Many of the adults in our churches if they stopped and listened (okay read) to the lyrics would find that they themselves have walked down roads of loneliness in their own lives. We have a huge job in loving and ministering to youth right where they are at in their lives. They need someone to walk with them down the lonely roads of adolescence and to shine some kind of hope that the Lord is with us in the midst of the stuff of life. Thanks be to God that he walks with us and fills those places where we feel like we walk alone.

I love birthdays. I love it especially when we get to celebrate our kids lives and their birthdays. Our youngest kiddoe has a birthday next week and today we celebrated. Hot dogs, cake, a pinata, some presents, and a happy kid. What a privilege, an honor, and a blessing of God’s grace to celebrate a child’s life.

For those of you parental units from church who might visit here…

September 24th at 6:00pm,the  First Evangelical Free Church of Sacramento is hosting an "Understanding Your Teenager" seminar. The seminar is being led by Dr. Les Christie, the chairperson of the youth ministry department at the William Jessup University. I’d encourage you to check it out if you have some time. My friend Jen does have a good point…what about an "understanding your parent" seminar for teens????

Saw a similar gas sign on the late night new last night…I had to post this. When we were near Tahoe last weekend, gas prices were at $3.00 a gallon.

One of the pastors I serve with calls me the “newbie.” Although I’ve hung around the church for a while I’m still very much wet behind the ears when it comes to being a pastor. I am a newbie. I’ve recently shared that over the last few weeks I’ve started to make reading a regular part of my growth and ministry as a pastor. Today I found one of those newbie books that I’m really excited about when it comes to this newbie pastor stuff. This morning I purchased a book by Henri Nouwen called, “Creative Ministry.” Something in his introduction, “Beyond Professionalism” caught my attention: “…a Christian minister will never be able to be a minister if it is not his or her own most personal faith and insight into life that forms the core of his or her pastoral work.” Pg. 7. I’m taking a wild guess in what Nouwen is trying to point out when it comes to ministers and their own faith and spirituality. A minister is to move beyond the normal regular office hours, pastoral care, preaching, and other day-to-day duties of an ordained minister. He or she is to move to a place in which their very core of who they are as followers of Christ becomes the reason for why they do what they do within the life of the church as a minister. In essence it gives a newbie like me permission to venture out into the world of asking the hard questions and to begin building some kind of foundational basis for my ministry as a pastor.

I have to agree with this. It is time.

One of my youth leaders sent this to me. Found it amusing…