Dan's Thoughts

Trish #49 - October 28, 2004

Our remaining time here is short now and the hours are really full of things to do. We keep packing. We keep preparing for the movers, who are arriving Saturday morning. We are also meeting with people to say goodbye. But the most important thing we did today was to celebrate a new life in Christ.

Matthew grew up around our church but he had never made a profession of faith. He is now a young adult who has traveled some rocky road. He had been thinking about the condition of his soul but had not been sure of what to do about it. Sunday, he told his grandma that he hated to see me go because he had really wanted me to baptize him. When she told me that, I knew that I could not leave town without taking care of this very important bit of spiritual business. So today, at 5:00 PM, with his family and some friends as witnesses, I baptized Matthew.

I had real joy in doing this baptism. I think I felt something like St. Simeon the prophet who did not want to die without seeing the Christ. But when he held the infant Jesus in his arms, he knew that all would be well. "Now you may let your servant depart in peace, for my eyes have seen the salvation of your people, Israel," he said.

Generations come and go. It is the natural rhythm of things to "find our place in the path unwinding," as Elton John puts it. Yet, few people in authority like to let go of it. Church leaders particularly are notoriously reluctant to surrender power to the next generation. However, when one sees, as St. Simeon did, God at work in the hearts of a new generation, one can endure and even celebrate the passing of an era. It is, after all, in youth -- at the beginning of things -- when one's accomplishments are uncertain. The longer one lives, many victories get securely established in the one place where no power can steal or corrupt them -- the past! That's why I left the sanctuary today singing and skipping. On this, the last day of my work with the people of the Valley Cathedral, God allowed me one more victory: I saw a young man join the family of God. Furthermore, he invited me to be a part of his joy. And so "the circle of life moves us onward till we find our place."

Tomorrow for several hours Trish will be in neurological examinations to determine what she needs to help her return to a full and vibrant life. As for me, vibrant life consists in doing what I did today -- helping a young man find meaning in the world. I have discovered a source of incredible joy -- helping people to find theirs. Every time I help someone find their place of meaning and purpose, another piece of my life becomes secure and eternal. That is what pastoring is all about and it is what I am called to do. When I do it, I feel the wind rushing through my hair and the blood pumping through my body. That is what life is for me. I want to do it until I die, like Simeon, blessing the new generation.

I did not fail to notice that "Matthew" is a name of beginnings. Malachi ended an old era. Matthew began a new one. Sunday, an old era ended for me. Today, a new one began. I celebrated life with a new generation. I took great pleasure from knowing that a new generation of Christians is here. May it prosper!

Now if I can only remember where I left my keys!

Dan