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Some Things I’ll Miss About California, Part 3
By Mark D. Roberts | Friday, October 5, 2007
Preaching at Irvine Presbyterian Church. I’ll miss preaching to what was for sixteen years my congregation. (Photo below: a pan of the congregation on my last Sunday at Irvine Pres.)
Preaching is a huge privilege. The chance to study God’s Word, to meditate upon it, to live it, to pray over it, and then to share what I’ve found with my sisters and brothers in Christ is truly a gift to the preacher (and, I hope, to the preachees). (Photo to the right: preaching in our two more traditional services)
When I first came to Irvine Pres, there were two services on Sunday morning. A couple of years later we added a Saturday evening service. Then, in 2005, we began our Veritas service, a “post-contemporary” service primarily but not exclusively for young adults. This meant that I preached four times each weekend, twice with digital projection (on Sat PM and Veritas) and twice in the good ol’ fashioned way.
During my sixteen years and three months as pastor of Irvine Pres, I preached well over 600 different sermons. With repetition on a weekend, I preached about 2,000 times. I don’t think I ever took for granted the significance of my calling as a preacher. Yes, there were some weeks when I wasn’t able to put in as many hours of preparation as I would have preferred. But I can honestly say that I never “winged it,” preaching an impromptu sermon.
Well, perhaps with one exception: my Christmas Eve sermon in 1992. I had fine plans for that sermon, but they were dashed on the rocks of joyful reality when my son, Nathan, was born on December 21, 1992, a week before he was due. Three days later, on Christmas Eve, we brought Nathan home from the hospital. As you might well imagine, I hadn’t had much time to prepare my sermon. So on the way to church that evening, I thought about what I would share, more of a testimony than a full-on sermon. I remember that one of my main points was the utter vulnerability of a baby, reflecting on the risk God took in becoming human. (Photo to the right: Preaching at our Veritas service)
Frankly, I can’t remember too much more of that sermon. And I don’t even have notes. Mostly I remember feeling like I was in a fog that night. A couple of friends told me it was one of the best Christmas Eve sermons they’d ever heard. But they might have just been being kind.
In case you’re wondering, in my new position at Laity Lodge I will have opportunities to preach, mostly as a guest preacher. The speaking I’ll do at Laity Lodge involves teaching the Scripture with lots of personal illustration and application, but it’s rather more informal than preaching. I will be able to keep on studying and sharing what I’ve found from God’s Word, both in speaking and through my writing. But I will miss the unique communication challenges and opportunities of preaching.
What are these? you might wonder. As I understand it, preaching involves teaching, but “goes for the jugular” spiritually. Though my sermons did not regularly feature an altar call at the conclusion, I was seeking to lead my congregation, not only to assent to new ideas, but also to receive God’s grace in a new and transforming way. I would regularly articulate the gospel, the good news of God’s salvation through Christ, and call for a response of faith. One of my greatest joys as a preacher was hearing how God touched people’s hearts and changed their lives. Some made first-time commitments to Christ. Others found deeper forgiveness and healing. Others gave more of themselves to the Lord.
So I will miss preaching, especially preaching to my beloved congregation in Irvine. But I trust that God will use me in new ways as I step out in obedience to Him.
Topics: California |
4 Responses to “Some Things I’ll Miss About California, Part 3”
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October 5th, 2007 at 6:42 am
Mark,
Thank you for your faithful blogging. I am particularly touched by your sharing about ministry at Irvine as you move to the next calling (and congratulations!). Your blogging is one of my regular feeds.
This last post was meaningful… I’ve been in the same position a few times where, despite my habit of preparing, I shared from the heart… God is faithful!
I had to laugh at “go for the juggler” - did you mean ‘jugular’? But then I thought, “He’s a really smart guy… maybe he meant juggler and I need to figure out what that means.” I have more than a few spiritual and life “jugglers” out there… they need the Good News of God’s Sabbath rest. Probably at Laity Lodge, you will have more than the usual amount of opportunities to minister to ‘jugglers’.
May God bless you richly in your new call!
Robert Austell
Pastor, Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church
Charlotte, NC
www.gspc.net
http://robertaustell.blogspot.com
October 5th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
I’m no preacher, but the idea of Kerygma is one that intrigues me. I think any message of truth ultimately calls us to action. Action is part of truth.
Austell’s comment cracked me up. Going for the jugular/juggler! Whether that’s a freudian slip or not, it’s awesome.
October 5th, 2007 at 6:08 pm
Robert: Nope, that was just a mistake. It comes from blogging when one is tired. But it may be Freudian, after a fashion. Increasingly, I think, pastors feel the need to be entertainers. I did a little Google search, and there is a guy who promotes himself as Juggler for Jesus (http://www.christianjuggler.com/). At any rate, thanks to you, I’ve made the correction.
October 5th, 2007 at 8:00 pm
Just a quick note to say that you and your family are one of the things I will miss most, actually being in California. I drove through Irvine the other day for work, and realized, sadly, that your home is no longer close. However, I am excited for the future this means for us all. Many future visits to the Middle of NoWhere in Texas. We will take good care of your Mom at Hollywood.
Peace, good man.