A Realization - Day 4

How the sanctuary is heated

Day 4 A Realization

 

We had a very productive day at St. John Kill. The main color in the chancel area of the sanctuary was finished and it looks fabulous. The brass is polished, the wood is cleaned and oiled. We refinished the front door and painted the iron railings at the entrance. Brush was cut and hauled away. And we had fun doing it!

 

In the evening some of our group went to a Wednesday prayer and reflection service at St. David in Naas and some of us went to a tea hosted by the Garland’s at their beautiful home.

 

One thought for today. Where we are working, at St. John’s in Kill, there is no running water. There are no toilets. There is no central heating and certainly no central air. Parking is limited. There is no sound system. And if you want a cushion on you pew you better bring it yourself!

 

A pew cushion

But there is the presence of God and the love and support of the congregation. For hundreds of years people have gathered under those seemingly harsh conditions for worship but they have come to experience God in their midst and to live out that loving presence as a congregation.

 

And for that I say, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Pastor Jeff Silvernail

See What God Has Done

In my last month’s newsletter article I invited you to take some time as you vacation to appreciate God’s creation and take the time to thank God in your annual vacation Sabbath.

 

Linda and I in our annual trip to see Andrew in California took a lengthy detour with him to see the Grand Canyon.

 

If there is a list of a natural wonders that can demonstrate the awesomeness and vastness of God’s creation, and put our size and significance into perspective, then certainly the Grand Canyon is near the top of that list. This picture was taken on the Hualapai Reservation. Though the reservation is getting a lot more attention since the construction of the Grand Canyon Skywalk it is still a bit off the beaten path.

 

There were chances to have some solitude, including as I found on the tip of this point – yes, I went out to the end – to contemplate the greatness of our God.

 

“Come see what the Lord has done!” Psalm 66:5

 

From the song “Nothing to Say” by Andrew Peterson

            And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah

            The canyons echo sweet amazing grace

            My spirit sails

            The mighty gales are bellowing Your name.

            And I’ve got nothing to say

            No, I’ve got nothing to say

 

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor Jeff

Christmas Greetings

The Word became flesh and lived among us and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only Son, full of grace and truth – John 1:14

Christmas Greetings from the Silvernail Family
 

Thinking back over 2012 one of the big highlights for us was celebrating our 25^th wedding anniversary by going to Hawaii with a stop back in California to see Andrew. Of course, we didn’t actually go on our anniversary. The leaders and members of Prince of Peace are understanding, but even I wouldn’t ask them to allow me to be gone over Holy Week and Easter! So June it was but it was worth the wait as we got to enjoy the Big Island, volcano, snorkeling in an unbelievable setting, waterfalls, Kona coffee… Kona Beer and all.
 

This was also a watershed year in that Linda retired. No more getting up at 4 am to make sure the customers of Price Chopper have their deli meat, cheese and salads. It’s someone else’s problem now.
 

In 2012 Jeff proudly celebrated his protégé, Becca’s ordination and installation as the pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Frewsburg, New York. Yes, that’s Frewsburg near Jamestown, right in our old stomping grounds. In fact she and her husband Will are living about a half mile from where we lived for 12 years. Small world!
 

Andrew is continuing to make the cyber-world a better place for hard core gamers in his work at Blizzard Entertainment in California. 2012 marks the year he paid off his student loans. Well done Andrew!

 
 

Desaray continues to stay with us as an “adopted” member of the family. Her presence and company is greatly appreciated not to mention the goodies she brings home from her baking class at Schenectady Community College.
 

On a sad note, one month ago we said good bye to Puppy, the best dog ever. We had nearly 15 wonderful years with him, for which we give thanks, but he is and will continue to be dearly missed.
 

We wish you joy for this season and always,
 

Jeff and Linda Silvernail

2010 Annual Report

A little longer than the typical post but I thought it would be good to have my annual report to Prince of Peace available.

Pastor's Annual Report
February 6, 2011

“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and
not for your harm, to give you a future with hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

A future with hope – as this Word of the Lord came to those suffering in foreign exile was it received as a nice sentiment or as a promise to hang on to, to give them strength for the difficult days confident in God's presence and purpose?

For a congregation that has seemed to be in perpetual transition for the last half decade, our own mini-exile, there is a Word of the Lord for us and to us:

“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and
not for your harm, to give you a future with hope.”

As we live into the future together I am excited for the possibilities that the Lord has laid our before us and for the potential of this family of faith at Prince of Peace to step boldly into the future that God has prepared for us.

Speaking of “Living Into The Future Together” one of the great things that came out of our LIFT Team is our new purpose statement. Sixteen words that claim who we are and what God is calling us to become.

Claimed by grace we seek to welcome all, worship joyfully,
grow spiritually and share God's love.

Using those 16 words let me share a bit about where we are, where we've been and where we believe God is leading us.

Claimed by grace
This goes to the heart of who we are as Lutheran Christians. The whole Christian church is a rich tapestry with many traditions lifting up many different aspects. I believe the whole church is better for all its varieties. Each brings a gift to the whole church. Our gift, as Lutherans, is to remind the church and the world of God's grace in Jesus received in faith. Nothing we could ever do can earn God's favor, “since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-24)

We seek to...
The knowledge of God's unconditional, unmerited, unlimited love for us so moves us that we cannot help but respond in praise, faithfulness, and love. We respond not because we have to but because we want to. We want more of God and we want more to share God's blessings and love in the world.

As the people of God here at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church we have identified 4 areas in which we specifically feel called to respond in thankfulness to God's grace:

Welcome All
While the answers to question asked by the slogan “What would Jesus do?” are often unclear, the answer to the question “What did Jesus do?” is very clear. In his earthly ministry Jesus welcomed all. Men and women and children; sinners and Pharisees; the lepers, the lame, the blind, the hungry and the filled are all welcomed! Even the dead are welcomed back to life!

Jesus' radical welcome is reflected in our value statements, our Reconciling in Christ membership, and in our open invitation to receive communion. Your welcome was experienced as God made some unexpected connections to bring us Rebecca Ehrlich as our seminary intern. Though churches tend to move very slowly we responded with amazing speed to make Becca's internship with us a reality. Not only that but you have accepted her ministry among us as she is learning to be a highly gifted pastor. Welcoming all is part of our core identity at Prince of Peace.

Of course there is room for improvement and we will be looking at strategies to do just that in 2011 and beyond. Our welcoming strategy will need to address 3 basic areas: Invitation, Hospitality, and Incorporation.

Part of welcoming is letting others know that they are wanted. Our advertizing, our signage, the attractiveness of our grounds all can speak words of invitation. The most important invitation, though, comes from you. Let your friends and co-workers know about worship services and events at Prince of Peace. Post comments on ministries that you are excited about on your Facebook page. Invite people to the Alpha Course, to the Lenten dinners, to the fellowship events! Be creative. We may not have the money currently to do a commercial marketing campaign, but we have several hundred faithful members who each can multiple our message of invitation into the community.

Then when folks come we need to be hospitable. No one should enter and leave POP without being greeted and meeting at least a couple of people. We assist those looking for the bathrooms or struggling with the worship or wondering if the coffee is for all. If possible we get names and contact information so we can follow up with a thank you note or call.

Then as visitors become worshipers we will need to be more intentional about incorporating them into the ministries of POP. Those who don't make friends and find connections and meaningful ministries tend not to stay.

We have work to do and this is a mission for all of our family of faith. Stay tuned for more details how you can be a part of this vital purpose.

Worship Joyfully
Worship is central to who we are at Prince of Peace. In worship we not only praise God, but we encounter God whose love and blessings lead us to joy. We value a quality worship experience, including meaningful music, engaging sermons, and the opportunity to receive Communion weekly. These remain our aims. We are also a church that values creativity in worship. Along these lines we have seen a revitalization of the Clown Troupe, now known as Fools For Christ (F4C) and we have introduced new elements into our services including dramatic vignettes, outdoor services in the summer, and blended services with both traditional and contemporary music.

As we step into 2011 the blended format will become the regular format of the 10:45 service when the choir is not singing at that service. This is not change for the sake of change but an effort to develop and nurture a worship language that can speak to those who were not reared with traditional church music. This will also involve developing additional leaders for worship.

Our quest to live into our value of worshiping joyfully may very well lead us to find ways to relate to those whose spiritual styles are not currently being addressed in the Sunday morning worship services and may involve opportunities for everything from contemplative to contemporary worship forms in various settings and at various times.

Grow Spiritually
A strong church needs a strong Christian Education ministry for all ages. The disciples never stopped growing and neither should we. The foundations of Sunday School and Confirmation are great but they are not the end of Christian growth any more than the end of middle school marks the end of our worldly education. The popularity of the Monday afternoon Bible study, Alpha and After-Alpha courses, the 3 Colors Courses, Living Life, Out of the Box, and the new Prayer Group ministry shows that there is a hunger in our church family for growth in understanding, discipleship and spirituality.

As we move forward in growing into this value we will be considering how we may offer growth opportunities for all ages and for all learning styles. One identified need is to truly make 9:30 am on Sunday a time of Christian education for all ages. We have quite a bit of work to do but the prospect of having a church full of eager disciples gathering at various times during the week to grow and follow Jesus may offer us more potential for growth may offer us more long term benefit than about anything else we may do.

Share God's Love
I have to say that a couple of times this past year I have been totally floored by your outpouring in sharing God's love. Early in the year when the Haiti Earthquake struck and the first ELCA pledge of aid was $0.25/member I challenged us to do better than that. In 2 weeks with almost no preparation we raised about $9000! Once again as a few of us met to discuss introducing the idea of the Advent Conspiracy and the impact we might have in providing clean water by cutting back 1 or 2 Christmas gifts we estimated we could raise $1250, enough for 1 water catchment system. You raised over 3 times that amount! That's enough for a drilled well in addition to the water system! And this is on top of generous support for EPES, local ministries, the ELCA World Hunger Appeal, Christmas gifts for local families, the Christmas Shoebox and many other worthwhile causes.

It doesn't stop there. We have developed a tradition for mission trips, in 2010 to work with the American Church in Berlin, Germany and in social ministries in its neighborhood. Our Stephen Ministry is active in providing trained ministers to walk with people in times of pain, grief or loss. Our deacons visit the infirm with Holy Communion and lead Sunday worship at Claire Bridge in Niskayuna. We continue to provide days to serve in local missions and at the summer lunch program in Schenectady. We share God's love!

Can we grow? Certainly! We can build on what has been started perhaps with more local service opportunities by learning to better share God's love with our words of invitation so that we may continue to welcome all, worship joyfully, grow spiritually and share God's love.

Pastor Jeff

The Rhythm of Mission

“The Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. He said to them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go on your way...'

“The seventy returned with joy, saying, 'Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!'” Luke 10:1-3a, 17.

Go and return with joy! That's the rhythm of mission. It seems especially poignant right now. I'm writing the day before we board the bus to begin the journey that will take us to serve our neighbors in Berlin, Germany.

I wish I could say that I was ready to go, but, alas, a night and a morning of organizing and packing remains. Details, details...

But I am ready to serve! I love to serve. I'm not quite sure but I think this is the 14th mission trip I have been on. It is the 3rd one to a foreign country. Though the total numbers are a little fuzzy, with everyone of those trips I have returned with joy.

There has been joy over work accomplished, but far more joy over seeing Jesus in the face of others and in some way being Jesus to others. These are times of intentionally incarnating the love of Jesus. It is so fulfilling and uplifting. In fact one of the most common expressions of those I have known on mission trips is, “I received far more than I gave.”

It feels that good to serve in Jesus' name!

But we need not limit that experience to mission trips. Every day is a day in which you are in mission for Jesus. Every day is a day in which you can share the love and acceptance of Jesus. Every day is a day in which you can see the face of Jesus in your neighbor. Every day is a day in which you can practice loving the Lord you God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul and all your strength; and love your neighbor as yourself>

Every day! Even today! Even tomorrow!

You've been called to be children of God and ambassadors for the gospel. You've been sent! Now go, then return to share your joy!

In Christ's Amazing Grace,

Jeff Silvernail

Nothing is Certain Except Taxes 3/24/10

This year was the first year in some years that we haven't had an accountant do our taxes. Fortunately in the intervening years the comprehensive on-line tax services have made the process relatively easy – even for those of us who have to factor in all of the clergy complications. Relatively easy – that is like a root canal is relatively easy with Novocaine. The pain is lessened but you still have to put yourself through it.

Like it or not, whether you expect a refund or not, we have to put ourselves through it because as the old adage says, “There is nothing certain except death and taxes.”

Mary Magdalene and the other women knew both realities. That had certainly dealt with their share of tax collectors over the years. You could curse them, hate them and maybe even try to avoid them but sooner or later you had to pay the piper. Now they knew it with death. No one wanted to hear Jesus talk about his death, not Peter or the others, and certainly not Mary.

Avoidance felt so comforting until the cold, hard reality of Friday stretched now to Sunday morning. Still, as unpleasant as the prospect was there were things that had to be done for a body – it was only right.

Luke 24:1-8 (The Message)
1-3At the crack of dawn on Sunday, the women came to the tomb carrying the burial spices they had prepared. They found the entrance stone rolled back from the tomb, so they walked in. But once inside, they couldn't find the body of the Master Jesus. 4-8They were puzzled, wondering what to make of this. Then, out of nowhere it seemed, two men, light cascading over them, stood there. The women were awestruck and bowed down in worship. The men said, "Why are you looking for the Living One in a cemetery? He is not here, but raised up. Remember how he told you when you were still back in Galilee that he had to be handed over to sinners, be killed on a cross, and in three days rise up?" Then they remembered Jesus' words.

Jesus is risen! Jesus is alive – and that changes everything. Burial spices are forgotten – who needs them? Fearful disciples are filled with courage to tell the world about Jesus. The bad news of death is canceled with the good news of life for all who will receive it. The one who was buried is alive and has changed the world. Jesus continues to change the world. Jesus continues to change us and fill us with life, and make us ready for the coming of his Kingdom when I think he will settle that tax thing too.

Being Neighbors, Our Response For Haiti 1-15-10

The initial reports on the 12th barely made the news, a 7.0 earthquake in Haiti. After all it was only a few days ago we heard of a 6. something quake off from California there caused only minimal damage. The days following though, unveiled the horror that had been unleashed upon our impoverished neighbor.

“And who is my neighbor?” So asked the teacher of the law to Jesus. He had already gotten his gold star, he gave Jesus a great answer to a question: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Do this and you will live,” responded Jesus.

I picture him beaming. Then the realization hit – that's a lot, too much even. There has to be limits. “Who is my neighbor?”

In response Jesus told the Parable of the Good Samaritan. (You can read the whole story in Luke 10:25-37.) Jesus concluded the parable with another question. “Who was neighbor to the one who fell into the hands of robbers.”

The teacher of the law responded, “The one who showed mercy.”

By now it is obvious that the poorest country in North America has suffered a cataclysm. Tens of thousands are dead and what little infrastructure Haiti had was largely destroyed. We, as people of faith ask, “What can we do?”

The US government is helping, corporations and entertainment figures are helping, but what can we do?

It is a great question because there is a vital role for the faith community. In fact, church related ministries are often the most effective at reaching the people in need and in assisting with recovery that will best meet the needs of the people – our neighbors. Often the highest percentage of your donation will be delivered. My own denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has promised that 100% of contributions to the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund will go to help victims. I'm sure we aren't alone in this.

Our faith based relief agencies across multiple denominations were there long before the quake and we will continue to be there long after the gaze of the news media has moved on.

Here's is what we can do as neighbors. Bring a donation to your church this Sunday designated for Haiti. Your finance people will know what to do to see that it gets to the proper agency. If you can't come to church this week call your church office for instructions on how to give, or check the website of your church or denomination.

The ELCA's relief fund may be found at https://community.elca.org/NetCommunity/SSLPage.aspx?pid=538

Together, in showing mercy, we can be neighbors.