Gman again

yeah, he's got another list thing that struck me:

The Power of Four

Four jobs I've have had in my life:

1, Dishwasher
2. Bell Hop
3. Radio DJ
4. Muffin Baker

Four movies I would watch (and have watched) over and over:

1. The Big Chill
2. Casablanca
3. STar Wars
4. Raiders of the Lost Ark

Four places I have lived:

1. Gibsonia, PA
2. Jamestown, NY
3. Edinboro, PA
4. California, PA


Four TV shows I love to watch:

1. C.S.I.
2. West Wing
3. This Old House
4. Two and a Half Men

Four places I have been on vacation:

1. Lake Tahoe, CA
2. Williamsburg VA
3. Gettsyburg, PA
4. Toronto, Ontario

Four websites I visit daily:

1. www.beliefnet.com
2. www.postgazette.com
3. http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com
4. I went back and looked and there AREN'T four sites I visit every day.

Four of my favorite foods:

1. Italian
2. Chinese
3. Sandwiches
4. Chocolate

Four places I would rather be right now:

1. At home
2. With my wife, wherever
3. Pittsburgh, PA
4. Puerto Rico

Peace

And a little child...

Well I'm exhausted!

Three events in two days, two of them an hour and a half drive away on consecutive days. Saw the installation of our new cathedral dean and spoke with her briefly. Seems very nice and the congregation seems excited about having her as their spiritual leader. Then back home for an ice skating party on my Lutheran schedule (fairly successful I think). Then up bright and early for a presentation at a church in Buffalo, which also went very well. But a lot of driving (300-400 miles). I didn't wake up this morning till after 9!

But what really jumped out at me was the sermon yesterday. Deacon Edith Patterson preached on the feeding of the multitude and did what every preacher hopes they can do. She brought something to my attention that I had never noticed before. I doubt what I noted was on her radar as she prepared to preach (the whole sermon was very nice) but something struck me about that well known story that I had never thought about.

There's some discussion about what really happened at the time of this miracle. Out of all those thousands was there in fact only one person who had brought ANY food for the day? To many that seems unlikely and the miracle they believe was one where greedy folks who had in fact brought food, but had kept it to themselves the first time they were asked, eventually shared so that everyone ate. The traditional view is that the miracle was simply taking little and creating more.

But that's not the point of what struck me. Out of all that crowd of thousands, all those adults, only one person offered up what they had. It was a boy, a youth, a child. No matter how you choose to interpret the miracle think about this - one young person had that little bit of something (remember the "loaves" mentioned were probably the size of dinner rolls and the fish the size of sardines. Thanks Deacon Edith!)that was justifiably his. And he handed it over when the master asked. The adults were either too dumb to be prepared or too greedy to share.

I'm always looking for stories of young people in the scriptures. I've read this story probably 500 times in my life. Never saw that young man standing there.

And a child shall lead them.

Peace
JP

A Collect for Young Christians

(which could be used as a specific commissioning)

All-holy God, source of every blessing: We thank you for the mystery of transformation in body, mind and spirit that brings children to adulthood. We rejoice with you in the energy, imagination and truth-seeking that young people bring to your Church, challenging us all to grow into the full stature of Christ. Bless our youth [or, N. {and N…}] with courage and persistence as they offer their unique gifts in your service, and assist us who support them in the discernment of your will, that your Body may reflect the fullness of Incarnation to your honor and glory; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and guide. Amen.

My thanks to the Rev. Susan Anslow Williams for this.

Gman's questions

Every week my friend Gman offers a set of questions for youth ministers. You can check his blog through the link on the right. I've looked at the questions for a while now and this week I'll take them on.

Gs Q 4 YM

"The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth." Psalm 145:18

1. What is on your "To Read" list? Oh Lordy where to begin? I have a stack of 11 books sitting here in my office that I'd like to read (and another stack of about 6 that are being considered, though not very hard) Plus I'd love to read something just for enjoyment and escapism. I'm currently reading "A Prayer for Owen Meany" which I've never read before.

2. Who is your favorite Cartoon character? Gotta be Calvin and Hobbes. Yes, I know that's TWO characters but they're inseperable. Close behind them is Opus.

3. What was the last thing you watched on TV? My lady wife starts her day with re-runs so I watch some with her. It's Buffy, then The Practice and if we are slow in the morning Spin City. Last night I watched a tape of the Formula One race in Malaysia, The West Wing and Crossing Jordan

4. What was something you got rejected about? The last role I auditioned for at the local community theater.

5. What is something you got accepted for? This job, for which I was largely unqualified.

6. What is something you are afraid of? Heights.

7. What is the hardest thing you have had to do this week? Travel a lot. I'm tired and just want to stay at home.

A. Prayer: Please be with my family as we continue to make our way through so many changes this year. That includes my wife, my daughter and my brothers.

B. Praise: Thank you for the special time my lady wife and I got to spend with each other over the weekend. You know how much better that made me feel!

C. Other: Help me get through all this buget paperwork that has suddenly decided to be a pain in my life again.

Copyright 2006. Gerrard R. Fess. Free to pass onto all those March Madness Fans.

I'm not a March Madness fan but I think Gerrard will give me a pass.
Peace

Oh and a momentous event

I almost forgot.

A momentous occasion took place at the airport. There is a little girl that I first met when her age was still computed in days or weeks I think. And since that day she has never had the time of day for me. Once she learned to speak her favorite words for me were "Stop!" and "No". The stop command was hysterical because she would put out her hand in the classic position, look me straight in the eye and say it very seriously. Other folks, even other males would get a hug or say hello, but never me. She'd take one look at me and say "No!". Never hysterical or fear reaction, just did not want me in her life.

Which made me kinda sad. Cause she a cute little tyke and I like her family a whole lot.

Well last night she said Hi, gave me a hug and even teased me a little. Not a Stop or No to be heard.

Almost made waiting in baggage claim feel good.

Thank you Willow.

Peace

And Back from Atlanta

Hmmm, had virtually no travel "adventures" this time. Felt kinda strange. Delta did annoy me a little though. I've gotten used to "jetway checking" my carry on bag. You get a neat little tag, they pick up your bag just before you get on and bring it back to the jetway at the other end. It allows me to avoid the baggage claim.

But not (apparently) on Delta. They will give you a tag BUT you then have to chase it down in the baggage area. Which was especially annoying since Buffalo was fogged in and outbound flights were being cancelled right and left. So all that baggage had to be sent back down for pick up. Plus to be honest the Delta employees in the terminal were rather abrupt. It wasn't that they were rude, it was more that you were keeping them from doing something "useful/important" Not the flight crew however. They were very nice. But Delta is NOT my carrier of choice at the moment.

The young people were fabulous! What a great group from Hawaii to the Dominican Republic. Articulate, intelligent and a lot of fun to hang out with. General Convention is a LOT of work for everyone. It helps when you have folks around you that you trust and enjoy. I think I'm going to enjoy this immensely. Then I'm going to be exhausted!

Well lots still to do.
Peace

Report from Atlanta

I'm in Atlanta for the weekend, working with an amazing group of young people. They are the General Convention Official Youth Presence. Two young people from each of the provinces chosen to bring the voice of young people to the highest councils of our church. I had the chance to work with a similar group of young people three years ago and the experience was just astounding. They were articulate voices for their age group and had a true effect on the conversations last time. As I get to know them better I'll share some of my thoughts with you.

I did have a truly wonderful experience when I arrived. At the Atlanta airport while I was waiting for some of the young people to arrive I sat in the large central waiting area. The Atlanta area has several military bases so you see a lot of military personnel in uniform in the airport. But four times a military unit would file through, some 50-100 men and women. When the units moved through everyone in the waiting area would begin to applaud. About 2/3s of us would also stand. The applause would continue until the last member of the unit passed through. I found myself moved deeply by the display. First because I'm the son of a Navy officer. He was on active duty the day I was born. The loneliness and pain of a military family, left behind while their loved one(s) are in harm's way have a special place in my heart.
The other reason is that I'm old enough to (just) remember the pain faced by the veterans returning from Viet Nam. What was done to the members of our armed forces at that time was a terrible, un-American act. It strikes to the very heart of the relationship between the nation and the military. And it's something that must never happen again.
What ever your opinion about the war may be we need to separate the policy from the troops. Those are citizen soldiers. Quite simply "they" are "us".
I was proud to applaud those soldiers. And I pray that every single one of them comes home to family and friends safely.

Peace

And quickly...

I have a new column to share with you as soon as I can get back to the computer on which I wrote it! It was created during my "exile" period and I forgot to copy it and bring it home. So probably next week.

In the meantime I'm off to Atlanta to work with the GCOYP. That's the General Convention Official Youth Presence, a group of young people chosen to bring a voice for their age group to Convention. They are given seat and voice so they can address the issues facing the church. I did this 3 years ago and it was an amazing experience with an incredible group of youth. My primary function (beyond serving as a stellar example of what NOT to do!) is teaching them how to deal with the media. Since I worked in radio for 19.5 years including stints as news person and talk show host and morning personality (can you imagine waking up to me?). So I get to tell them how to "deal" with the media. What are the secrets:
Never lie to them.
Give short answers.
Offering them food never hurts.
Ok the first two are serious the third only sorta. Most media folk aren't making the big bucks. It never hurts to have a media event and have some decent food just "lying around". Yes, it really can be that easy. Of course if you violate the first two rules the third one won't help. We can be swayed but not bought by food.

Looking forward to some warmer weather, looks like low 70s. Fun fun fun!
Peace

A New link

I've added a couple new links to other blogs along the side here.

The first is the new blog by Ryan Nielsen. Ryan is the long time web master of the Pastor2Youth Here. I've had a link to that site from my own website for several years now. Great resources, so I recommend you cruise on by if you haven't already.

As for the blog - check out the February 15 entry especially. Ryan's just getting started but I believe he'll be a worthy addition to your regular blog surfing.

The second is the blog of Mark Ostreicher, known affectionately to all and sundry as Marko. He's the current boss man at Youth Specialties but that's not why I've added him. He's smart, he's dedicated and he has a great sense of humor. Plus the only important thing - he's worth reading.

Peace

An Arrogant Christianity

I was walking through a parking lot the other day when a bumper sticker caught my eye. For reasons I can't explain I've been a bumper sticker fan most of my life. This despite the fact that I don't like having them on my own car. The only one I've had read "If you love Jesus, TITHE, anyone can honk".

Anyway.

This one made me equal parts angry and sad. It read:

Try Jesus, if you don't like Him you can always go back to Satan

I literally stopped and went back to make sure I had read it right. My first impulse as a person of faith was to scrape the bumper sticker off or disfigure it so that no one else would have to look at it. Then I was overwhelmed at the sadness that some person thought this was a form of evangelization. That it represents the Gospel or God.

It is the overwhelming arrogance of the statement. The underlying message is "I'm going to Heaven and you're going to Hell. Nyah!" I'm always appalled at folks who seem to revel in pointing out who's "going to Hell". It's arrogant to think we know or have any business making such judgements. For that matter it's arrogant to automatically assume that any of us are going to Heaven. Yes I believe in the grace of a forgiving God. But grace by definition is something unearned and therefore we have no right to declare ourselves saved. That we have hope of salvation, yes. That we should start getting fitted for our halos? Arrogance.

Even beyond that how can any of us so blithely just dismiss one of God's children this way? The only responsible reaction to a person who chooses to turn away should be mourning tempered by a determination to work harder to assist in revealing God to them.

If we believe that we are judged by how we live our lives, how we represent a life in faith in this world, by the fruits of our faith how can we not be outraged at the sentiment of this bumper sticker?

This is not what we are called to be or do or say.

Peace

Another day

I posted yesterday and promptly started feeling guilty.

"You're such a whiner" ran my thoughts. "You know, SOME people have REAL problems in their lives" was also pitched in. I was raised to feel that you took care of your own troubles and you didn't talk about them. Suck it up and move on.

I've come to realize what a stupid way to go through life that is. It's probably why so many men in my family have died relatively young.

All those problems from yesterday exist. They are a burden to me that feels like it could break my back some days. But it hasn't so far.

Today I got a nice note from a friend encouraging me (you know who you are, even if I don't), I got an encouraging e-mail from a congregation excited about having me come out and help them, I had a good meeting with someone who is "journey-ing" with me from my congregation and I had a great Greek lunch with a group of friends.

I also had an eight year old look at me and say "You look tired".

So the bad stuff must be real, but I'm feeling better and stronger today. And that's all I really need for the moment. To pick up my burdens and move on.

Peace

Oddness Murray Oddness.

The title of this entry is a line from the play "Thousand Clowns" by Herb Gardner. A show I did years ago and this line just found a place in my life. It's the perfect summation of how I've been feeling recently.

Which reminds me. If you're wondering about the oboe reference in the last post, I had included one of those little online tests. This one was for what orchestra instrument are you? Unfortunately I could never get the coding to work so I dropped it. And forgot about changing the title. I think I'm going to leave it as a representation of the anarchy that threatens to break out in my life.

I'm really coming up fast on a crossroads in my life. In the best of all possible worlds I wouldn't have to make a choice. But it seems pretty clear right now that staying on the current route is going to slam me right into a wall. It's the bits and pieces I've mentioned over the past couple months:

My mom's death;
My wife's ongoing illnesses tagged with her first surgery (about which we have some small worries that may be nothing);
Having my primary job reduced to 80% of full time so that...
I have to get a second job (and the related issues that I want to go whole hog on a job, which is darned tough to do on two fronts);
ongoing funding issues (no longer immediate problems but long term challenges that require here and now commitments of my time);
I talked with one of my brothers and he's having some undisclosed problem too (and I want to help him but I'm stretched close to my limits as it is. So what do I do?);
plus the every day stuff like my own health (I weigh too damn much), my daughter graduating from high school, paying bills, an unexpected tax bill (which we can pay but will wipe out our savings)etc...

It's just tiring, mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I told my lady wife this morning that I'm beginning to wonder if my parents made the right choice for the executor of their estates. I don't feel like I'm handling this at all competently (I haven't screwed anything up. At least not yet. But it's been close. And there's tax time hanging over my head.)

I can tell when things start overwhelming me. My usual borderline orderliness goes straight over the edge. Papers begin to pile up, things start getting misplaced and occasionally lost. The very thought of even trying to dig my way out is so overwhelming that I can't bring myself to even try. Today was a good day, I sat down and forced myself through the filing and throwing away. Now I'm certain that I'm missing two pieces of paper. One's important, the other one isn't. I've taken steps to replace the unimportant one and think I know what to do about the other.

You know what a koosh ball is? They were all the rage about ten years(?) ago. They look like balls made entirely of rubber bands. Right now I feel like a koosh ball that has someone pulling on every single rubber band, in completely different directions. What happens is that the ball is under maximum stress but can't move in any direction because of the equal pull in ALL directions.

To be perfectly honest the feeling sucks.

So soon I'll have to make some decisions. Decisions about giving up ministries that I love and that have been very good for me. But they take me away and chew up time that I'm not sure I have to invest any more. I may have to make some decisions that will hurt/offend family members in order to get things moving because I can't emotionally deal with letting them slide any more. I have to commit to investing more of my time and energy into things that are "job" rather than "ministry" or "passion". There's not anything wrong with those things but they don't excite me and I don't believe they play to my strengths.

I have a couple of really cool blog entries I want to share but I don't feel like I have the time. Like the White Rabbit in Wonderland it's "So little time so much to do".

Yet the people around me seem to think I'm doing a fine job.

Oddness Murray, oddness.

Peace

I am an.....Oboe?

My apologies for the long interval here. With my lady wife recovering from a total hip replacement my life is totally up in the air. She's doing fabulously well but we're temporarily living in a different house so nothing is where I expect it. Half of what I need is still at OUR house, I'm sleeping on the futon (so as not to disturb her) etc. I barely know what day it is most times. (Which would explain how the last post got published WITHOUT a title - now fixed)

BUT!!!!!!!

We move back home on Friday! YAY!

Peace

Super Bowl review

 


Yes it was a very good day to be a Steelers fan. I was a teenager when the Black and Gold went on their title run during the 70's. There was one year when every time my brother baked a cake on Sunday the Steelers won, when he didn't they lost. Every time. With one exception. One Sunday he baked brownies. And they tied.

I remember being in a bowling alley listening to the Immaculate Reception on the radio.

I remember how that whole region of the state rolls with the Steelers, more than the Bucs or the Pens.

It felt great watching the Coach and Mr. Rooney lifting the Lombardi.

And yes, there was a little tear in my eye.

Peace 

A thought on baptism and television

I was watching one of my favorite TV shows, "Lost", a couple weeks when the subject of baptism came up. If you don't watch the show the important details are these: Buncha people stranded on a remote island, facing a variety of problems, one young woman has delivered a baby and her friend had a dream which he believes tells him that the baby must be baptized.

Personally I think he's stretching that interpretation, the dream just tells him that the baby needs to be saved but there's a lot of Christian imagery running around loose in this dream too.

Now they have a Catholic "priest" there (that's a looooooooong story but I'll let him slide on how he "became" a priest. Let's just say it's not anything that the Pope is likely to approve of but we're going to roll with it). Mom brings baby to "priest" after a series of strange events (very Lemony Snicket) to be baptized.

Here's where I start having a problem. Not with infant baptism, though I know some folks don't believe in that. Rather it's the baptism as eternal fire insurance. Mom's not particularly Christian. Heck, neither's anyone else including the priest. There's no community of believers welcoming this child into their midst. It just made me wriggle in my seat. Yeah, there's a feel good, this is something I think I ought to do aspect to it but I'm past the point of being good with that.

I guess in the end it's like my Christmas rant. I want the church to take back our holidays and ceremonies. I want the stores out of the Christmas business, I want the government to do it's own marriage paper work and I want baptism back from the "doing the kid" mentality. Why do we let this nonsense go on? You want to share Christmas or baptism or marriage (in whatever form that community of faith understands those concepts)? Fine but it comes with an understanding and a certain commitment. No ill feelings if you're not into it, hey we appreciate the honesty.

But get yer mitts off our spiritual life.

Peace

Just befuzzled

My wife came home from the hospital today, one week and one day after having a total hip replacement. Ain't modern medicince wunnerful?

She's doing very well and even got in and out of the car fairly easily so I'm hoping she'll really get going on getting well now. She HATED being in the rehab facility.

Other than that I have multiple tasks to get caught up on and several things I want to write about but no time now!

Oh yeah and the Super Bowl is Sunday. Go Black and Gold!

Peace

And catching up to do

So many things going on...

The anniversary of the shuttle Challenger's explosion came and went last week. As someone who grew up during the true heyday of the space program it was a terrible event. I worked at a radio station and my desk was in the news room with most of the other announcers. They had the launch on the small TV that sat over the news desks and I was watching the vehicle climb. To this day I remember the last command given before the explosion "Go throttle up". I listen for it each time I watch a shuttle go up over the last 20 years. It didn't take an expert to see that something catastrophic had just taken place and I know that I cried out. The scene is still vivid in my mind. I try to remember to pray for all those who go where I would still dearly love to go. Into space.

My life as a bachelor continues. With my lady wife in the hospital following hip surgery (which went very well) and my daughter on a mission trip it's me and the two cats for just over a week. It's a great reminder of how much the rest of my family does around the house now that it all falls on me. I'm happy to report that I and the cats are surviving quite nicely thank you. Check back with me in a few days!

I know there were several other things I meant to share but they're eluding me at the moment. I did see a bumpersticker that made me both very angry and very sad simultaneously. I'll write about that soon.

Peace

A moment to breathe

I've just about run myself off my feet. So let me catch up.

First for Bill Johnson out at the Rocky Mountain News - How's Pittsburgh looking right now? It's a beautiful city this time of year.

Yeah, that was rubbing it in.

In the last week my wife has gone in for hip surgery (long story, short version is that this is a good thing) and my daughter has gone on a mission trip to Honduras. So it's me and the cats for about a week. We'll see how that goes.

Finally I continue to struggle with what this blog is supposed to be. I keep trying to seperate my private life and my faith life. Which I know is silly and just wrong. So I finally sat down and said "OK, let's stop worrying about what we're doing and figure out why"

And I think I have it. Deep in my heart of hearts I don't want people to think about me as a "minister" or "person of faith". Why? Because in my experience such people tend to be tight asses and boring and people who want to beat on you (one way or the other) with their faith. And I want no part of that image. That's exactly who I don't want to be.

Then it hit me - I am a minister and I am a person of faith and I DON'T whale on people with my faith and I don't think I'm a tight ass and I certainly try not to be boring and I hope that I've got some serious joy to share.

So that's what this is going to be about. Being me - a person of faith who's currently trying to minister to some of his fellow children of God who has the occasional drink and has been known to swear when appropriate (and yes there are perfectly appropriate times to cuss), who lives and loves and just generally enjoys the living daylights out of life as much as he can.

I'll keep talking about faith (although I will edit any sermons in the future. 15 minutes of talk is a LOT of print)and talking about the stuff that happens and what makes me craxy in this mized up world and what brings me joy.

And that other image can be sent straight to the shredder. Not wanted nor needed.

Peace

The Choking Game

Okay I'm way behind on things I want to post but this is more important. If you work with youth and haven't heard about the "Choking Game" then you need to read THIS from Tom Reindl at the Faith through Jesus blog. This isn't a joke or some overblown piece of hype. It's something we need to know about and to be ready to deal with because it's 1: Very Dangerous and 2: Very Stupid.

I remember mostly girls doing this same kind of thing when I was in elementary and junior high school so it's not even new. But depriving your brain of oxygen, for ANY reason, is something that we need to stand up and fight.

Other stuff coming tomorrow, I promise.

Peace

We Three Kings

Sermon for 1 Epiphany
I talked about the three kings that morning. This is an edit of the whole sermon

Now at this time of year when we speak of gifts our thoughts tend to leap to brightly wrapped packages under the tree but those are not the gifts that have been foremost in my mind. It is the gifts that all of us have both individually and collectively and how we deal with those gifts. The Magi present an interesting example of what to do with gifts.
It is the giving of our gifts that has been central in my thinking recently. Over the next year you're going to hear a lot of discussion about community in our diocese. Community is the at the center of the sharing of gifts. It is in community that we bring together whatever we have and offer it for the common good. Gifts are large and small and the only time that gifts do not work to the good of all is when we refuse to share them. And there's the hard part – sharing. Watch any group of two year olds together and you will see the perfect example of how not to share.

As I look at the place of young people in the Body of Christ the problem I see most often has to do with the sharing of gifts. Or rather the TROUBLE with the sharing of gifts. It is a problem on both sides of the equation too, both young people and adults. How often do things NOT happen because either the young people or the adults aren't willing to give up their time, their effort, their talents to make something work. Like the Magi we need to bring our gifts, lay them down and walk away. And in doing so we will discover that we walk away richer than when we began. As a community of faith we will make not only our lives but the lives of those around us richer as well.
So what gifts do we have to offer our young people and what gifts do they have to offer us? As the older brothers and sisters in Christ we carry with us tradition and inherited wisdom from those who have gone before us. This does not make us wise necessarily but rather makes us bearers of wisdom. That wisdom is not ours in any way shape or form. Rather it is gift that we have been given responsibility. Central to that responsibility is the requirement, not the option I believe, but the REQUIREMENT to pass it along, to share it, to teach it, to live it. If that wisdom is not freely and easily accessible to our younger brothers and sisters then of what use is it to them? In fact why should they even believe that such wisdom exists? Wisdom is a road map that says this way was tried before and this is what happened and this is why. So maybe you want to try a different way or at least try a different approach. It is also a tool that grows and remains sharp only when it is used.

I also mentioned tradition. I should note that mentioning church tradition to most teen agers will get you rolled eyes and an agonized moan. The reason for this is that too often they see tradition as manacles designed to stop them from doing things rather than tools that can make their journey easier. My contention is that sharing tradition means that we understand that tradition is a way of joining a community, a community not only of those folks we see here at St. Philip's on Sundays in the 21st century but also with the people who have worshiped in this community going back to its founding. And that our traditions make us members of a community that dates back through the history of our country, leaps back across the ocean to England and from that island to the earliest Christian communities in the Holy Land.

Here's one of my favorite traditions, the Book of Common Prayer. It is a rich resource for any person's life in faith but I think it is an especially valuable tool for a young person just beginning their walk with God. I will admit that upon occasion, when the sermon has not deeply touched me, I will explore the Book of Common Prayer in my pew. I have always felt that clergy would prefer that to me nodding off and snoring. What a wondrous book this is and yet one that many of us spend all too little time with most days. If you are a young person beginning a life in faith it can be hard sometimes to figure out what you're supposed to do or say. Young people tell me all the time that they don't know what to say when they pray. I tell them not worry, just look it up. (This book is filled with prayers for every occasion plus guidelines for history and even daily study of the Bible) I did a quick scan and found prayers for the Use of Leisure Time, for an election, for families and another for our enemies, plus one specifically for young people and even one on the proper use of God's gifts. Next time a young person needs to say grace remind them that there are no less than FOUR in the prayer book.

There are also traditions of love and support and healing and understanding that can give our young people the strength to carry on in a difficult world.

We must also remember that community is a two way street. What then are the gifts that our young people bring to us? As a group what gifts can they offer their community of faith?

I believe that the most important one is making us uncomfortable. The natural questions of someone who is exploring the world are exactly what we need to keep us thinking. It is far too easy to become comfortable, to simply walk our way through without pause or consideration. And because young people are not expected to know everything they can ask questions that maybe many of the adults would like to ask but are too embarrassed to admit they don't know the answer. Their questions become a gift when we allow ourselves to be drawn back into the process of discovery. Often we will find that in doing so we too discover something that we had forgotten or had never seen before. The questions continue the growth of the wisdom that our young people will then care for, preparing to pass it along to the generations that follow them.

Another of the gifts they bring to us is impatience. An impatience with waiting, an impatience with things that don't make sense. Because that impatience forces us to reassess what we're doing and how we do it. It forces us to decide what's important and what isn't. Their foot tapping, eye rolling, big sighs "Will you please get on with it" impatience makes us trim the dead wood away from our life in community. It's easy to live with somethings that really don't work any more simply because we're comfortable with them. Our young people will look at those parts of our life together insist that something needs to be done about them. When we find ourselves fighting to preserve every last button and dust mote we need to remind ourselves that while lighting the house with candles was certainly good enough for Jesus we really do have better ways of doing that today. Everything that we hold as traditions today was once a new and exciting change. Another historical aside – when the Book of Common Prayer was first created in England it was greeted with riots in some churches.

When we add in all the individual gifts that we each bring, be it music or cleaning or organization or preaching or teaching we find that we can live in a community of faith that is so rich and diverse that we may be dazzled by the possibilities Any humble home may become the center of great richness and joy.
Unlike the Magi we will not have to travel for years to find our goal, we will not have to inquire if we've found the right house.

Here is the house that you seek. You are the Magi the wise men and wise women, the wise young people and wise children bearing with you a multitude of gifts unimagined by those Magi two thousand years ago. Gifts still offered to the King of Kings. Not on one day only but now and forever.
Amen.