Echoes and Moments

This week I'll include some visual highlights of our annual trip to Catalina Island, where we take students to study scripture manuscript style over Spring Break. This year I had the privilege to lead folks from four different campuses in the second half of the book of Mark. It was a moving experience and was especially resonant because the week coincided with Holy Week in the liturgical calendar. I could always say more, but I'll let some of these pictures do the talking.

A beautiful song that gives words to some of my thoughts and feelings during this season, as only the guys from Jars of Clay can do. Lyrics: Take Take till there's nothing Nothing to turn to Nothing when you get through Won't you break Scattered pieces of all I've been Bowing to all I've been Running to Where are you? Where are you? Did you leave me unbreakable? You leave me frozen? I've never felt so cold I thought you were silent And I thought you left me For the wreckage and the waste On an empty beach of faith Was it true? Cuz I...I got a question I got a question Where are you? Scream Deeper I wanna scream I want you to hear me I want you to find me Cuz I...I want to believe But all I pray is wrong And all I claim is gone And I...I got a question I got a question Where are you? Yeah....yeah And where...I...I got a question I got a question Where are you? Where ar...

These past few months have been long, bitter, and generally sad times for me. The trauma of life as a college graduate has affected me in unexpected ways in my personal life, and this season leaves me feeling generally dry, frustrated, and unable to see what the future holds. The only things that seem clear are the present moments of work, rest, and glimpses of joy that serve as the light of a candle would: only a small circle is lit, but it serves well as a reference that indeed there is light in the darkness. That is why this season in our Church's observance, that holy season of Lent, has become so precious to me of late. I heed the call of the prophet Joel, whose words mark the scripture that is recognized on the first day of the Lenten season, Ash Wednesday: Even now, declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.  Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to ...

   I think of myself as a generally tolerant person. Somewhere down the line I cultivated a moderately high sense of empathy that has always left a sensitive spot in me for the judgments, complaints, and offhanded quips that my friends offer every day. Normally this works to my advantage, because most people enjoy the empathetic friend's company far more than the complaining earpiece. This is how it works most days, and I enjoy the moral security this attitude brings towards my fellow man or woman. This is how it works most days, yes, but life as a minister to students at community college means most days are special days. Enter Hannah. Hannah is less than comely, a blush of freckles on cheeks that seem to press her eyes just too close together, but fortunately her overstated fashion sense doesn't diminish the pretty black-red hair that curls and waves as she walks. She is a performing arts major here to take a stab at the ranks of the PCPA, the closest thing to a pre...

Late have I loved thee, O Beauty so ancient and so new; late have I loved thee: for behold you were within me, and I outside; and I sought you outside and in my unlovedness fell upon those lovely  things that you had made. You were with me, and I was not with you. I was kept from you by those things, yet had they not been in you, they would not have been at all. You called and tried  to break open my deafness: and you sent forth your beams and shone upon me and chased away my blindess: you breathed your fragrance upon me, and I drew in my breath and I do now pant for you: I taste you, and now hunger and I thirst for you: you touched me, and I have burned for your peace. -Saint Augustine of Hippo Listen here for this set to music

Words from one of my personal heroes, Archbishop Oscar Romero. Minister of the gospel, advocate for the oppressed of El Salvador, and finally, martyr added to the saints in heaven. It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view. The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision. We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work. Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us. No statement says all that could be said. No prayer fully expresses our faith. No confession brings perfection. No pastoral visit brings wholeness. No program accomplishes the church's mission. No set of goals and objectives includes everything. This is what we are about. We plant the seeds that one day will grow. We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces far beyond...

2011 had many highs and lows, many places travelled, and many good times to be had. Here are some memorable highlights that mark my year. Favorite Album: Bon Iver: Bon Iver There's already a lot that's been said  about this sophomore effort by our heartbroken hermit-turned-musician friend Justin Vernon, and so I won't add any commentary of my own. I will say that I truly enjoyed it as my favorite music to unwind to on the drive home from Santa Maria late at night. I recommend a curving night highway or an overcast day to let these melodies and electro-acoustic soundscapes wash through your ears. Honorable Mention: Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues; The National: High Violet; New York Hymns: Songs for Lent. Favorite Travel Spot 2011: Sandia Mountains, New Mexico I was in New Mexico twice this summer, the first time for my staff training with InterVarsity (along with new interns from all the western states), and the second time with my family. Since the place...