by admin | Dec 19, 2007 | Blog Posts
We have a beautiful Christmas tree. It is a Frazier Fir, ten feet tall and full all around. In keeping with tradition we purchased the tree a few days after Thanksgiving and soon filled it with endless strands of lights and Christmas ornaments that are kooky but special. We have enjoyed the tree ever since. There is just one small problem: the tree is leaning. I have tried everything to remedy the problem. I have readjusted the stand; trimmed limbs; prayed over it and now I am just trying to ignore the tilt altogether. Our evening dialogue goes something like this: “Honey, the tree is leaning.” “I know, I know,” I snap back. At this point I start brooding. I cannot blame it on the tree and the stand seems to be working fine. Our house is not leaning. I guess it is just part of the unexpected and unplanned. Is your Christmas perfect? I am sure it is not. Not only do trees lean and strands of light fizzle out, but people disappoint, illness sets in, and the unexpected and unplanned lands at the doorstep. When we try to pretend that we can pull off the “perfect” Christmas, watch out – not only will the Christmas tree lean, but disappointment and depression can enter as unwelcome guests. Peace and joy? Forget about it! Maybe a leaning tree is as good a reminder as any that this is what Christmas is not about. Amidst a surging crowd, inns too full for company and while a new tax was about to be levied, a Child was born in a trough....
by admin | Nov 8, 2007 | Blog Posts
For the last few weeks Amy and I have been at a little home improvement project. We have built a rather rustic stone patio and fire pit in the back yard. Amy and I know how to build a fire but we have never designed and constructed a stone patio for a fire (did I mention it was rustic?) You will be happy to know that so far our marriage has survived our efforts. True, Amy did hurl a twenty pound slab of flagstone at me, but fortunately her aim was off. Last Saturday evening we warmed ourselves before a fire and watched the stars sail by and the earth spin on. This week I was warmed by another welcome fire. At the Fall Georgia Cooperative Baptist Fellowship meeting Chuck Bugg was the keynote speaker. Spending time with Chuck and Diane was an occasion to warm by the fires of our shared home. Years ago the Buggs came to Augusta and shared their ministry with First Baptist during the 80s. He went on to teach at Southern Seminary and I happened to be one of his students. The Buggs placed stones and kindled fires that I am blessed – we are blessed – to enjoy today. And so it has been down through the ages – ministers, laity, members and strangers have offered voices and shoulders; tears and laughter that have strengthened our home. You and I are laying stones for those who will follow us. As the nights grow longer and the air colder may the fires that warm you be kindled out of love for others. Who...
by admin | Oct 30, 2007 | Blog Posts
Pardon me if I sound sexist, but I believe there is something about a man that loves to smell gasoline and fire up gas combustion motors. Sometime ago my “wild man” sensibilities were awakened when a neighbor asked to borrow my wood chipper (this wood chipper, by the way, was purchased used from a church member. I have no idea why anyone would want to part from such a fine piece of mechanical testosterone). My heart was pounding at the opportunity to fire up the chipper. I had already chipped up all the stray limbs on our property and shredded every leaf that has fallen on our yard. I told my neighbor that not only could he borrow the chipper, but I would be happy to help – who would want to miss out on a chance to reduce a fallen Bradford Pear tree to a pile of sawdust? After viewing the tree and her limbs I surmised that this job would be an hour or so. Four hours later our task was complete. Limb by limb we completely mulched the tree and sectioned the trunk for firewood. The chipper did just fine, but the controller did not. I was deaf. Well, not deaf, but several days later I still had a persistent ringing in my ears. I found myself getting confused when more than one person was talking in a room and it sounded as if all the voices were under water. Perhaps the worst of it all was that I was overcompensating from my hearing loss by raising my voice. Now folks, you already know that I...
by admin | Oct 30, 2007 | Blog Posts
Have you ever thought about how you describe your faith journey? Are you a believer or a follower? I would like to say I am both but somehow that response seems too easy. There are many things I believe to be true in life yet I am hesitant to follow. I will not sky dive, for example even though I believe a parachute will work to preserve me life. I also believe that if I sky dive, Amy will throttle me (but I digress!). I have met many inside and outside the community of faith who either cannot reconcile beliefs with actions or are too tangled up in one in order to do the other much good. Alas, for me there are too many days when my beliefs are all I have going for me but I am too weak to follow and then there are those moments when all I can do is follow but I cannot get my head around what I ascent to believe. Two years ago I had tentative “beliefs” in coming to this church (let’s be honest, I really did not know you as a congregation) so I was left to simply trust and follow. Perhaps the best we can do is to simply surrender over into a relationship that transcends both our beliefs and our actions. I find it interesting that in many of the world religions there is that common thread of surrendering oneself before a higher power. The Buddhists call this emptying; the Hindus refer to this as abandonment; the Sufi mystics speak of releasing; in Judaism it is called submission;...
by admin | Oct 30, 2007 | Blog Posts
There was a time when I knew where the pot roast (or hamburger, or steak) came from: off the farm. Sometimes we named our beef, but most of the time we did not. Trust me, you really don’t want to make a pet out of your next meal. Now that I am twenty years-plus removed from DeLoach and Son Dairy Publix or Kroger, has been the name of our beef. Somehow this just did not seem responsible. A couple of weeks ago, however, Amy and I met a farmer – Tinks (yes that is her real name) who has a beef farm in Washington. We are now buying our beef from her. I must tell you that it is not convenient and it is not cheaper. We do this for two reasons. First, because the beef is grass fed and therefore better for you. Secondly, we like the satisfaction in knowing that we are supporting a local farmer and by extension a local economy. For us it is a matter of stewardship; being responsible. It is a small step, but a good start. Each of us must evaluate for ourselves how we are being responsible to the earth and people around us. Granted, we may not all go out and buy local beef, or poultry, or Emu (okay I just threw that one in), but we have a responsibility to taking care of all that has been entrusted to us. Stewardship includes what we eat, what we do, how we act, and how we relate. We often hear the church speak of stewardship and too quickly assume it is...
by admin | Jul 19, 2007 | Blog Posts
Many years and a few pastorates ago I was taught that the proper way to eat an oyster is raw. From the first time I let one slide down with a dollop of hot sauce I was hooked. Is it any wonder that we plan our vacations near Apalachicola, oyster capital of the USA? This year was no exception. One night I sat down and ate two dozen oysters right out of the shell and chased them with a hot dog. Life is good. While on vacation I watched the sun rise every morning, read a few good books, kayaked with the dolphins, laughed with some dear friends and caught up with my family. In spite of my pasty white complexion I managed to avoid getting sunburned. Life is good. While I cannot help but feel a bit melancholy when the time comes to fold up the beach chairs and head for home, it is such a comfort to know of the welcoming embrace of our church family. Here is where I know that no matter how far I go our home is here with each of you. Life is good. Life is good not simply because good things happen, or good circumstances occur. That is hedonism whose promises are empty. Life is good because of the pleasure and joy in relationships – friends, family and community. Thanks be to my good congregation for allowing my family and me time to get away, get reacquainted and get some rest. They help make life good. Are you living the good life? I hope so. … for I have learned to...
by admin | Jul 19, 2007 | Blog Posts
Once upon a time our attic served as the archive of a class project completed several years ago by one of my sons. It was of the solar system. Notice my use of the past tense. The planets were made of clay and evidently in the heat of the attic the clay went through a metamorphosis. The class project of a solar system started to look like somebody’s left over school lunch. One would think that Mercury, with its close proximity to the Sun, could have handled the heat of an attic better. It appears that the school project of a solar system was out of date for other reasons. Now instead of nine planets, Pluto was booted off about a year ago, demoted to the status of a dwarf planet. Just before Pluto’s demotion scientists announced the discovery of another planet in our solar system. Instead of it having the cool name of a Greek or Roman god, they gave it the sterile moniker of 2003 UB313. Is it any wonder that astronomers don’t have a reputation as romantics? If I had the say-so I would call it something cool like Bocelli or Lasagna or Frappuccino. There is some debate, however, as to whether or not 2003 UB313 (henceforth to be known as “Frappuccino”) is actually a planet. Even though “Frappucino” is larger than Pluto and made up of the same materials as Pluto, the scientific community is at a disagreement as to what actually qualifies as a planet. For right now “Frappuccino” will just be some big honking object out there in the solar system. My degree...
by admin | Apr 25, 2007 | Blog Posts
…My wife has it. Literally. She is sneezing, snorting and wheezing along with many in our good state who also suffer from allergies. She also has the baseball kind of spring fever. Now that baseball season has returned Amy has commandeered the remote control whenever the Braves are televised. Last week I began having symptoms of spring fever. It started when I glanced at the many empty flower pots around our house. I realized that it was time to go by the nursery and purchase geraniums, ferns, and perhaps even a few tomato plants. While I love where we live, I miss not having a suitable lot for a vegetable garden. In years past I would plant more tomatoes, peppers, and cucumber than I could ever possible eat. There is just something satisfying about watching something grow and bloom. I just finished an autobiography by Nelson Mandela and he shared that while he was a prisoner in South Africa gardening kept him centered and fulfilled even though he was surrounded by reminders of oppression. To be in God’s community, like gardening, is about cultivating one’s life; enriching the soul. Albert Camus writes: “If there is a soul, it is a mistake to believe that it is given us fully created. It is created here, throughout a whole life.” Mirabel Osler compares the soul to a garden and observes, “[with a garden] there is no ‘The End’ to be written…but a garden is always on the move.” As we find ourselves invested in the spring, making plans for the summer and even looking ahead to the next year, may we...
by admin | Apr 25, 2007 | Blog Posts
I do. It is coming from the back of my car. It all started with a weed-eater, actually a weed-eater that was out of gas. I drove to the gas station and filled up my gas can for the appointed task of tidying up my yard. All was fine and ordinary and such until I pulled out in traffic and my gas can tipped over sideways. The can was riding happily in the back and so by the time I pulled my car over, lifted the hatch, enough gas had sloshed onto the floorboard to power my weed-eater for a week. It is at times like these that I need to come to grips with the fact that my MINI Cooper is not a pick-up truck. Be that as it may, my car has a rather strong odor of gasoline. I have left my windows down and the trunk open. I have scrubbed over and over again the floorboard carpets. All of my efforts have come to no avail. Alas, my poor car smells like a mechanic’s garage. There are just some smells you have to wait out. In an odd way this has reminded me of a saying my grandmother had: “If you hang around garbage you are going to smell like trash.” As the matriarch of the DeLoach clan this was her way of cautioning us to be careful with the company we keep. This is of course good advice for all ages, but with all due respect it is not entirely true. The believing community is also called to leave the safe and sanitary confines of...
by admin | Apr 10, 2007 | Blog Posts
Last week I joined my family for a bit of Spring Break vacation. There are a few essentials I pack for vacation: at least one pair of shorts; one Hawaiian shirt; one pair of Birkenstocks; and a stack of books. Really there is not much else one needs when taking a few days off. I did have to drive back to Augusta for a funeral but returned later that afternoon. It was there that I “unpacked” my watch. That is, I took my watch off to ignore for the remainder of the week. I love my watch, but I have no need of it when there are no schedules to observe, meetings to attend or appointments to keep. Perhaps you remember my watch? It was the one I bought in New York City for $38, which of course is a deal because anywhere else it is valued at $38,000 (I was told by the street vendor that it is a genuine Patek Philippe and the guy looked sincere so surely it is the truth, right?). My watch is self-winding and so when it is not worn it will eventually stop. I was amused when I glanced at my watch on the nightstand later that week and discovered it stopped keeping time a few days earlier. It reminded me these lines from a Jimmy Buffett song: I bought a cheap watch from a crazy man Floating down canal It doesn’t use numbers or moving hands It always just says “now” Now you may be thinking that I was had But this watch is never wrong And if I have trouble...
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