This morning I got up early to paint. I’d already had the coffee pot set to have my coffee ready and waiting for me when I got up at 5:55 am. Pitch black out! But the light from the kitchen revealed huge white flakes of snow falling. My daughter Casile was ecstatic! I took a couple of shots of her going down the driveway to catch her bus. I tried to capture the size and beauty of the flakes.
I have no interest in maintaining an organization. By now in my life (I just turned 50), I have no energy for trying to be something. I’m not interested in our church trying to become something or accomplish something. When I go home, I like to be with my family, sit down together over a meal, talk about the good, the bad and the ugly in our lives, watch a movie maybe or some TV, maybe see some friends, and sleep with my wife. That’s about it.
I’ve been thinking about roles. I don’t ask Jesse to please act like a good son. What the heck does that mean? I let him be who he is, and his particular and vastly interesting style of sonship emerges out of that. High risk high dividends. I don’t ask Casile to be a good daughter. I don’t ask her to act like a girl. I don’t ask my friend to please act straight. And if I should ever, ever tell Lisa that she needs to act like a good wife, “DECEASED” will appear across everything I do. So I don’t expect people to behave like good Christians. It’s an insult to who they already are. I don’t require our community to be presentable as a good church. It’s an insult to what it already is. And I can’t believe how offensive it is to so many.
Contributions to nakedpastor are greatly appreciated.
David Hayward is a pastor artistically stripping to the essential.
However, if my Son were to hit my wife, I might want to encourage him to think about better behaviour … and maybe Paul wasn’t completely off his trolley when he encouraged christians to “put on” Christ. I also don’t expect people to ‘act’ like ‘good christians’ but I do believe that God has called us for the sake of the world, and that we do have something to offer … not a pretence … yes reality and acceptance FOR ALL as they (and we) are … but is there more to being a christian than this? … I think so. I’m thinking of the addicts our church works with who have been accepted as they are but also called into a better life.
This isn’t coherent, but all of a sudden I’m thinking … what is a pastor, how do we disciple people. An image of Ghandi comes to mind. I’ll think more about it and post later.
What a beautiful morning there! Glad you captured it.
I believe that if we are strong in our faith, we are going to try and live as God would have us live because we want to….not because we feel it is demanded of us. Same with the kids. Probably the best teaching we can offer them is in sharing our faith, and if they accept it for themselves, the natural byproduct will be positive, loving behavior.
Dave -
Absolutely.
Lovely photos by the way.
5.55 am man! God’s not up then!
Sas x
thinkin’ thinkin’… as always, reading you
Funny how Casile looks so small & vulnerable heading out there but isn’t that a reflection of how our heavenly Dad observes us but lets us go & isn’t over protective of us. Its all about treating people as adults, not controlling their behavior even if you think they are making a mess of it.
I’m not so sure about life being over at 50 (I am 51) but I do agree with the futility of trying to maintain things for the sake of it. It sure will be interesting to see what survives the fire & what was hay & stubble.
I think as long as you keep going the way you are, sooner or later God will show up & surprise you with more revelation about him & you, thats the kind of Dad he is, & you will be the happiest boy on earth.
Best wishes for you today
Beautiful photos David. I envy “morning people”. I cannot remember the last time I was able to get out of bed that early! Thankfully, I have flexible hours at work and pretty much take advantage of it.
Blessings,
Kathy
I think the best way to treat others, especially family, is to love them and depend on God’s grace to form them into who he wants them to be. I’ve learned that with my own two children (now grown).
I agree with Fat Radical – life ain’t over at 50. in many ways, it’s just beginning for me (51).
I’ve probably never been there, but that place in your picture looks eerily familiar.
“I don’t require our community to be presentable as a good church.”
“Presentable as a good church” is the pinnacle of what part of our congregation aspires to. It was this way at our previous church, too. I don’t know if it’s just our denomination or just the part of the world we live in. It’s that whole “what will the neighbors think” mentality that results in too much time spent keeping up appearances, doing good works just so that you can be seen doing them, and worrying about how fabric choices in the new parish hall parlor will reflect on us as a congregation.
Jon, more often than not, what we think about the characteristics of a good son/person/Christian is merely our preference. Of course there are things that are baselines, but the rest are usually our personal standard.
I think what David is trying to convey is about us pushing our preference or standard unto other people, no matter how much we think that these things are the baselines. (which in fact they’re not.)
Do correct me if I’m wrong about this, David.
And about being presentable as a good church, I believe that the outward manifestation comes when there’s inward transformation. But the problem is, people often put the cart ahead of the donkey.
Problem often arises when we take spoken/written words out of context, instead of what the person tries to convey.
“So I don’t expect people to behave like good Christians. It’s an insult to who they already are.”
I agree. What they are is good people – it’s in their nature.
(It looks in the second picture like there is a little heart emanating from her head, as if she’s just caught sight of someone just out of shot)
That’s nice Darren. There’s a few hearts actually aren’t there.
Speak to you again
love
Sas x