I was at a conference earlier this week for Lutheran pastors in their first three years of ministry who live in the northeast part of the United States. It is one of those conferences that I really do not look forward going too. One of the reasons is that I have so many things going on all the time and it seems almost impossible to leave town for a week without something falling apart. I also dearly miss my family when I am away for more than a few days.
But after I arrive on site, I unpack and I start to relax. Then I am glad that I took the time to go. My time away helps me regain energy and enthusiasm for ministry. I usually pick up one or two ideas to use in my ministry, my time away provides me an opportunity to reconnect with friends and colleagues and a chance to make some new connections.
The title of the conference I attended was Embodying Hope for an Anxious World. How do we as a church preach a gospel of hope and renewal when we are surrounded by things that make us anxious? Whether it’s the economy, world conflicts or swine flu, the anxiety level is rising in everyone!
Our keynote speaker was Terry Leib. Terry is an Associate in Ministry, and director of Family Life Services, a part of Diakon Lutheran Social Ministry in northeastern Pennsylvania. Terry was a great speaker and really got me thinking about not how the world makes me (and everyone around me) anxious, but in fact I become anxious because of my reaction to the events happening in the world.
He also used the phrase “God image” quite a bit. I found this idea interesting and something that I really want to use in my ministry. Instead of going to people and telling them about the God that I know, a God of love, forgiveness, grace, and truth. I first want to get a sense of who God is for other people.
Tell me about your God….. who is your God? what characteristics does your God have? What does your God do? What does your God say? How evolving is your God? With an idea of who your God is, then and only then can we move forward together and have a conversation about God.
For some, thinking about a God of love can be hard, because the only thing love has done for some people is bring them hurt and pain. For others trust might be an issue, why trust God if trust is only a negative thing in life? The more that we understand the God image of the people around us, the more we can develop a sense of purpose in ministry together.
It is hard to define our God image. I know I have had a hard time this week thinking about that. We define the things around us by our job, career, family, social position, income or appearance, so how does God fit into all that. What are the messages that have brought us to where we are today? What has influenced you? How do you define your God?
Tell me about your God…..
There are no responses yet