day twenty-four: a gracious plenty

We have an unbelievable staff at our church (despite even my working there). Our ministers are gifted, caring people who are passionate about their work, and often put in many more hours than they are paid for, doing thankless and often unnoticed tasks.

So when a church member offers a simple act of kindness to say "Thanks," like making breakfast for a Tuesday staff meeting, we get really excited...

...and we eat...

...a LOT.

Today we had a gracious plenty.

Suzy made her mom's Overnight Cinnamon-Pecan Ring, which is usually enough to feed about twenty people. Today it fed five ministers, two assistants, a custodian, and two volunteers.

I prefer the butterscotch pudding. If you double it, make it in a deep aluminum roasting pan.

The finished product. It's like a gas-station pecan swirl on steroids (the size of a small tree...see top left of picture). Yummy.

Today we had a gracious plenty for a group of people who offer plenty of grace every day.

fourth sunday in lent

Today, we made up for yesterday.

This afternoon - even though we were hot, tired, and very ready to change clothes and relax - we delivered a case of canned pet food to the Humane Society before going home (a good idea given yesterday's non-action).

Right outside the entrance of their new facility

Why hot, tired, and ready to relax, you ask?

This morning we had a big anniversary at our church. We celebrated 90 years of missions and ministries with a morning (read: "day") full of activities, including a lunch and program in our gymnasium, sans air conditioning. It really was an exciting and uplifting day as we reflected on our past and looked to the future...but it was also long and tiring (especially since we spent most of the day yesterday setting up).

I was reminded, however, that my part in the life of this community of faith is just a chapter in its story. I like to think about all of the "improvements" I've made, the ways that I've added to the church, initiatives that I've taken. I want to think that people will remember me and what I have done.

But the reality is, God was working in and through this church long before I came, and will be long after I'm gone. I am just one in a line of ministers and laypeople who have served God's kingdom in this local church. There were many before me who planted seeds that have only now come to fruition. And there will be others down the line who will bring to fullness the possibilities of our present.

In other words, to play on the sign above, love must be embodied, given legs upon which to stand, journey, and serve.

Hope you can help us figure out where the journey of service will lead us over the next couple of weeks. We need suggestions for other projects, and would love to hear your ideas!

18	19	20	21	22	23	24
	Make dinner for couple struggling with medical issues	Make breakfast for ministers at church	Donate money to Heifer International	Provide fertilizer for Travelers Rest High School organic garden	Give out bags of sugar-free candy at nursing homes
25	26	27	28	29	30	31
	Take food to police officers		Leave dollars in vending machines

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
				Provide  homemade communion elements for Maundy Thursday service		Volunteer at Triune Mercy Center preparing and serving a meal

day eleven: a piece of cake

Pound cake has always been my favorite, so a few years back I decided I was going to learn how to make one. After many, many failed attempts (including making the mistake of using self-rising instead of all-purpose flour and creating a bubbly, burned, liquidy mess in the oven), I finally figured it out. And ever since then, I make them whenever I have the opportunity...and this 40 day project is as good of a reason as any to bust out the KitchenAid and bunt pan.

Last night, while we visited Suzy's German sister who's in town for a few weeks, I baked a cake at Suzy's parents' house. And this morning, I took it to the church for our custodians, assistants, and office volunteers (the rest of the staff got some, too), and...

It was a hit! Everyone loved it, but no one could believe the I was the one who made it. I got comments like, "You can bake?!" and "I thought some little old lady made this!"

But it was really nice to see everyone enjoying something that I made, something that I enjoy so much myself. Denise, Joyce, Bobbie, Joe, and all of our volunteers do an amazing job of keeping the church running and functioning. The jobs they do are thankless, often taken for granted, and they're almost never recognized for their work, which is anything but easy.

I realize that a piece of cake is not much thanks for a job that is anything but. But I think they enjoyed it nonetheless...

This was at 10:00 o'clock this morning...

...and then at 2:00 o'clock this afternoon...

...and then again at 4:00 o'clock.

If you want the recipe, you can click here. It's actually Paula Deen's sour cream pound cake, but with a couple of changes:

- Use cake flour instead of regular

- Use 1 1/2 C. of sour cream

- Use 1 1/2 tsps. of vanilla

Once all the ingredients are in the mixer, beat the batter VERY well. I usually don't even preheat the oven. I wait until the batter is ready, set the mixer on medium speed, and let it mix while the oven gets hot.

Bon appetit!

the slow church convers(at)ion

The more I find out about the Slow Church movement, the more I like it. And I love the tagline on the site above: "Because you can't franchise the Kingdom of God."

This movement takes its cues from the Slow movements (especially the Slow Food movement) and applies those principles to the church. For instance, the basic virtues of the Slow Food movement are good, clean, and fair, which the Slow Church movement has translated to ethics (good), ecology (clean), and economy (fair). At it's essence, this movement seeks to bear witness to God's reconciliation of all things, and begins to answer that call through conversation around a shared table.

For more details and a fuller explanation, see the Slow Church blog (link above), and particularly the entry called The Slow Church Conversation. Regardless, I have a feeling that entering into this conversation might be leading me toward a conversion...to slow down the Church.

But as much as I like the theory behind this movement, I can't shake the practical questions. Would this actually work in a church (particularly a church in the South)? How would someone apply these principles in a parish ministry setting? How would this look, especially in a church whose Sunday morning schedule is built around an hour-long worship service, and whose congregants expect to be out in time to get a good spot in line at the local country-cooking place? In other words, How do we do Slow Church?