LTSP Blogs

I was flying home this weekend from a Wabash Institute Pre-Tenure Seminary Faculty Consultation in Indianapolis and wanted nothing more than to take a nap for the almost 2 hour flight. I was tired after a late night karaoke party on the patio with the other participants and staff. When I boarded the plane I noticed a smiling elderly woman in the seat next to mine. I told her I needed to take my seat and then settled in for the flight.

I have had three careers over the course of my life. I taught High School History and Government for 9 years, pastored churches for fourteen years as a United Methodist clergyperson, and have been a seminary professor for four years teaching Preaching and Worship, Ministry Formation and UM courses (among others). In that time I have obviously felt called to move from one place and profession to another.

Today I walked my 12 year old son, Shelby, to the gate for his first solo flight. He is off to Arlington, Texas to spend the week with my sister and brother-in-law (and my parents for part of the week). He is so excited about the time with them and about heading off on his own. I, on the other hand, am feeling a bit sad. Not sad because he is going off on an adventure and I will miss him.

This week has been an odd one for news junkies. I like staying up to date on politics and the world, but this week news outlets have been full of Casey Anthony updates – Breaking News Flashes and in-depth analysis. (Several talking-heads seemed about ready for their heads to explode the day the verdict came down. ) The news of her acquittal of murder and child abuse charges sent shock waves in many circles.

It is 4^th of July weekend and I have been hearing once again the alarming cries of how great our country is, how free we are, and how our country is the best in the world. In many ways this holiday is one I have issues with (not the only one peeps). Yes, we live in an amazing place with astounding opportunities that are not available to others around the globe.

I just returned from The Wild Goose Festival at Shakori Hills, NC. It was an amazing experience. I am still pondering and processing all that I saw and heard. It was a fusion of justice and Jesus! It was a place where anyone and everyone was invited to walk together in faith.

I was born in Slaton, Texas in June of 1962 in a little community hospital. Slaton is a small farming community outside of Lubbock, Texas – an area with lots of cotton farming, oil pump jacks, and cattle ranching in the surrounding area.

Music is something that has always fed me. Music just makes me happy. I remember singing with my parents as a kid, singing in church from an old hymn book, singing in my basement bedroom to music my parents hated, and singing lullabies with my son in a Russian orphanage when we went to adopt him. Music has been a part of my life from my earliest memories.

I am off for the summer and am lucky that I am part of a profession that gets a few months each year when we are not in classes. I like the extra time to write, read, do a few workshops and conferences, and prepare for fall classes. But I also love the time I get to play with my kid, go to a few movies, and relax a bit.

A few weeks ago we attended an emerging church in downtown Philadelphia. The music was amazingly fresh, the message was timely and relevant, the worship stations around the room were spiritually inviting, and the multi-generational audience was a blessing.