10.18.09 "It All Depends on U"

 
WESTMINSTER PULPIT
 
    Elder Phil Stohr
 
 
October 18, 2009                          “IT ALL DEPENDS ON US”                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                 
Psalm 104:24-30, 35c
Ephesians 4:4-7, 11-16
John17:10-19
 
In the course of my fifty-plus years as a member of Westminster Church, I have been on hand for a number of interim periods. The principal lesson I have learned along the way is that interim periods present both daunting challenges and unexpected opportunities. The current transition at Westminster clearly includes those elements. The key issue is how we in the congregation will respond.
 
Our traditional leadership structure with a senior pastor in the lead staff position is one of the givens of our day-to-day lives as Presbyterians. We are quite comfortable, it seems, knowing that this key individual is there to guide and inspire us as we seek to discern our charge as followers of Jesus Christ. The senior pastor can also play a major role in supporting us as we work to spread the good news of the Gospel and to serve those in need, both within our church community and beyond. Thus, we are quick to sense that something is out of kilter when the senior pastor leaves and we are confronted with an extended period during which we must look to someone else for our pastoral leadership.
 
This response to the departure of a long-term senior pastor is hardly surprising. We know from our experience both within and outside the church that human beings are often discomfited when their accustomed environment changes in some material way. Such changes are inevitable. They also occur in many different settings. Fortunately, our experience also teaches us that we are usually able to adjust to those changes without major disruptions and with the assurance that life will soon return to normal, or indeed, to something even more engaging and fulfilling. As we now go through that kind of adjustment process at Westminster, I believe the success of our transition period efforts hinges directly upon a clear understanding of our responsibilities, as members of the congregation, to carry on the ministry of Westminster Church.
 
If one consults the Book of Order of the PCUSA (Section G-5.0102), it is immediately clear that faithful membership in the Presbyterian Church is something other than a “spectator sport.” Every member is charged to accept “Christ’s call to be involved responsibly in the ministry of his [or her] Church.” Further, such involvement is defined to include a number of obligations and duties. Consider the lengthy list of things we are expected to do:
 
  1.  proclaiming the good news,
  2.  taking part in the common life and worship of a particular church,
  3.  praying and studying Scripture and the faith of the Christian Church,
  4.  supporting the work of the church through the giving of money, time, and talents,
  5.  participating in the governing responsibilities of the church,
  6.  demonstrating a new quality of life within and through the church,
  7.  responding to God’s activity in the world through service to others,
  8.  living responsibly in the personal, family, vocational, political, cultural and social relationships of life,
  9.  working in the world for peace, justice, freedom and human fulfillment.
 
At first blush, this wide-sweeping list of responsibilities might come across as a daunting set of assignments. However, we at Westminster need not be dismayed as we ponder these weighty responsibilities. We have seen and experienced the magic which comes into play as we bring to bear the incredible power of the Trinity—Creator, Son and Holy Spirit—in our efforts to deal with countless issues and tasks. And while we have often stumbled along the way, the gift of God’s Grace has remained with us throughout. We have also seen come to fruition many of the efforts we have undertaken to serve the needs of our church community and the world beyond. And in the process of accomplishing those things, Westminster’s congregation has addressed in a host of ways all of the responsibilities set forth in the Book of Order list.
 
Of course, in noting these successful efforts, we do so with an appropriate sense of humility, since it is the guiding hand of God and the many gifts of our faith that have empowered us to do whatever we have done. Nonetheless, we need to keep the accomplishments of the Westminster congregation in the forefront as we make our way through another interim period. We must also find ways to call upon the remarkable resources and strengths of our congregation, which have been and remain a hallmark of Westminster Church.
 
These comments in no way denigrate the importance of the pastors who will assist us in making our way through this interim period. To the contrary, we have seen already in the leadership and calming influence of Rev. Bob Fernandez the manner in which a well-qualified interim can help a congregation. Other interim pastors have also ably assisted us in our efforts to sustain Westminster’s momentum and carry on the ministries and programs of the church. 
 
The importance in this interim period of continuing to move forward as a compassionate and supportive church cannot be overemphasized. Westminster’s mission efforts in particular are vital to the well-being of the individuals and groups assisted by the church and cannot be put on hold as we address other interim period issues. The congregation itself must carry the bulk of the effort required to keep the church’s programs up and running.
 
There is another important reason why we need to mobilize and bring together as many members of the congregation as possible during the months ahead. In my view, much of the difficulty we encountered in trying to resolve our differences on the issues revolving around our senior pastor stemmed from a wholesale breakdown in communications in a variety of contexts and channels. Over time, walls arose between us. Positions hardened. Congregational meetings and other forums for exchanges of information and opinions - a critically important element in a church community’s efforts to join in common cause -gradually dwindled. With notable exceptions, for example, the Connecting on Wednesdays small groups, too few opportunities were presented to get to know one another on a more in-depth and personal basis. Yet where that kind of in-depth communication did occur, hard-cast differences of opinion softened.  The exceptional quality and value of our relationships as members of this great congregation also became apparent, as did the folly and painful results of our Christian community turning in on itself.
 
That kind of healing process will continue as we go forward if we provide the appropriate venues and spend the time required to gain a better understanding of one another. And what better way to do so than to join hands in common cause to extend the gifts of love, encouragement and mutual support which we have enjoyed as members of this congregation to those whom God has charged us to serve?
 
I have a great love for this church. Over the years, it has provided a wonderful home base for the spiritual core of my life. I, in turn, have a lifetime commitment to Westminster. Thus, in the church’s present challenging situation, I find myself aglow with the excitement of this latest call to service in the name of our Lord as we assess the many options and possibilities for the months and years ahead. A detectible surge in the positive attitudes and outlooks I have heard expressed of late by others in the congregation also leads me to believe that many other church members have caught the same spirit. Indeed, that spirit has been very much in evidence at two recent church events, both of which exhibited the Westminster congregation’s capabilities and its resolve to move forward.
 
The first of those events was a large gathering last month of Westminster’s elders, including some of the elders presently sitting on Session as well as many others who previously served as sitting elders. Pastor Bob Fernandez called this meeting to pose a number of questions concerning the best strategies for Westminster in moving through and beyond the interim period. An aura of unity and common purpose characterized the meeting. The participants also expressed their views in highly enthusiastic and positive terms. Asked to come up with their respective wishes for Westminster’s future, the elders at each table responded with an array of wish list items which will be compiled and presented to Session at a later date.
 
The second event was last Sunday’s Stewardship Fair, which brought together many members of the congregation for a luncheon and “tour” of exhibits focusing on Westminster’s many programs for the church family as well as the outside community.  These programs are seldom considered as a total group, and the event served to demonstrate the broad scope of our church’s commitment to service in the name of Jesus Christ. It also delivered a reassuring message to the congregation: We are not starting from scratch in doing what we need to do going forward!
 
God has richly blessed Westminster over the years through his boundless gifts of grace, compassion and love. Westminster, in turn, has consistently tried to share those same wondrous gifts with others. Our present task is to continue that tradition and to assure that the benefits of Westminster’s programs and ministries flow without interruption to those receiving them. As Debbie Davis stated in her sermon last week: It all depends on us!
 
Let us join in the Christian love which binds us together and avidly pursue God’s Present Call to our congregation. As we do so, let us also earnestly pray that the fruits of our joint labors will be acceptable in God’s eyes and that His abiding Peace and Fulfillment will be with us each and every day.
 

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