Pastor's Message

Pastor's Message January 31, 1999 TELEPHONE MENU By now probably everyone has had the experience of calling some company or agency and discovering that a machine has answered the phone. Usually a voice presents a menu of alternatives for you: “If you want operations, push 1. If you want sales, push 2. If you want personnel, push 3.” And so it goes. This is becoming common. My problem is not that machines are helping answer the phone. For me the difficulty is that none of the options seem to answer my needs. Often I just want to talk to a human voice and explain my concern. I want to ask them which person might help me. More than once I have gone through the entire menu and then hung up feeling stupid. Sometimes I have called back and listened to the list again, thinking that surely I can figure out which one is for me. Occasionally, I just punch any number and hope that the person who answers will direct me correctly. Unfortunately, they sometimes put me on the line with the original menu, and I am back where I started. When you call on the Lord, regardless of what you want, God will answer. Sometimes God speaks for personnel. Frequently, God is there for customer services. Always God answers when you need management. You can be sure that you will not get the run-around or feel stupid when you call! - Fr. Herb
January 24, 1999 ALONG FOR THE RIDE I was cross-country skiing when I happened to notice some seeds that had attached themselves to my clothing. I must have brushed against some large weeks, and the burrs hitched a ride with me. I whisked them off, and they quickly established themselves in a new setting, probably to grow in the spring. It is amazing how seeds find such ways to move themselves to new terrain. I wonder what they did before skiers came through the area. Seeds are not the only ones that cling to passers-by. Attitudes often do the same thing. For example, after having listened to someone else complain about the boss at work, the local weather, the lack of control over crime in the streets, or the behavior of some minority group, it is easy to start sharing the same attitude. The bias of the speaker, like the seed, jumps to the listener and hangs on for a ride. Fortunately, positive attitudes are contagious, too. Whenever we truly believe in someone and his/her ability, that message gets conveyed. If we see something positive about winter weather, a friendship, or an activity in which we are involved, that understanding is also passed on. - Fr. Herb
January 17, 1999 PUFFY BIRDS Someone told me that the juncos (usually called “snow birds”), chickadees, and finches at her bird feeder look fat this year. This person feared she was overfeeding them. I responded by saying they are not fat, just puffy. That led to a strange look, so I explained that many birds, to keep warm, have a way of letting air get under their feathers, making them look puffy. The air becomes an insulation that helps keep them warm in severe winter cold. My friend was amazed that birds knew this simple way of keeping warm. I, too, am often in awe at the little miracles of nature. It’s hard to doubt the existence of a benevolent God when one examines the intricacies of the world of nature. Certainly, God is the Creator of this wondrous world, but God is also the primary care-giver of all creation. As Scripture says, not one sparrow falls to the ground without God’s permission. Since humans are more valuable than a whole flock of sparrows, would not this same God protect each person? Part of the plan for taking care of little birds is the ability to fluff up their feathers. The plan for taking care of humans is a bit more complex. God calls on people to watch out for each other. That is, people have to become a form of insulation for one another. Humans have to be the ones to reach out to others who are in pain or hurting, to those left out in the cold. When folks like us respond, they are living up to the potential that God has given them. Keep warm this week, and be sure to help one another. - Fr. Herb
January 10, 1999 WINTER SUN After last week’s snow and ice storms there may be many who are dreaming about spending a few days somewhere warm and sunny. Others may be waiting for spring and summer to come to Ohio. Nonetheless, today I want to draw your attention to winter sunshine. In spite of some stormy days, we have had many days of sun this winter. Although the air remains cold, the winter sun can refresh spirits. Because the sun comes at a southern angle, it especially awakens the colors of the stained glass windows on the south side of church. In fact, those windows look their best in winter. The summer sun is too directly overhead to do the same. Likewise, the sun rays coming through the living room windows are especially welcome in winter. They enliven the room and provide some hope during these cold days. I appreciate them more than summer rays precisely because it is winter. Certainly the sun is more rare during these months, but its appearance is so treasured! Once again God reminds us that even during the bleakest of times there is ample reason to go on. Sometimes it takes only a little bit of sunlight to warm up our entire day. These are days for appreciating God’s little blessings. - Fr. Herb
January 3, 1999 MADE YOU LOOK The billboard on the side of the road was advertizing billboards. It read, “Made you look.” Beneath it was the name of the billboard company with the invitation to viewers to use their billboard for advertizing. Lots of folks are trying to get us to look at their names and promotions. Sometimes they do it with bright and large signs. Other times they get our attention with loud and boastful commercials. Everyone in business wants our attention. That’s part of their job. But we have to make some decisions. We cannot allow ourselves just to bounce from promotion to promotion like one of those silver balls in the old pinball games, going after every enticement and attraction. Instead, we can emphasize our freedom of choice and pick carefully where to spend our time, attention, and money. Using the gift of freedom and learning how to make wise decisions is often forgotten. Trying to be an adult Christian means making good choices regularly. Even little decisions can have great consequences. Choose wisely. - Fr. Herb