Our power went out again yesterday afternoon, just before the new storm arrived. I escaped just in time, plodding along snowy roads at 25 mph all the way to my parents' house. Lisa met me there after work, and we became "homeless" freeloaders once again. Our house got power back last night, but we still haven't made it back.
Lisa went to work today in our Subaru, so I'm still stuck at my parents' house with our Corolla. The way the roads are, I won't make it back in that little front-wheel drive car. There's too many gigantic hills between here and there that it surely will not climb, no matter how much it thinks it can.
It's a good thing I brought my laptop with me, and a really good thing my dad is also a pastor, so I can borrow his resources and at least get some work done. Meanwhile, we're making up our plan as we go from hour to hour, constantly monitoring weather reports and road conditions. This is the worst storm I've ever lived through, and it is absolutely, certifiably crazy. I'm someone who lives almost completely by routines and rituals, so all this is really a challenge for me. Normally I love winter and snow, but right now I'm not excited about all the interruptions and the plans going awry. Still, thanks be to God that for us, it's merely been a week of inconvenience. It seems like most people are getting by just fine as well...for now. There's no telling what the next hour, day, or week will bring.
Showing posts with label Thanksgiving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thanksgiving. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
Punxsy Phil Was Indeed Correct
As you've probably heard by now, the "6 more weeks of winter" kicked off this weekend with quite a snowstorm in the mid-Atlantic. Here in Southwestern PA, the 21 inches of snow in less than a 24 hour period made for the 4th largest single storm in the history of the region. Another storm is apparently on its way with a pedestrian 5 inches expected Tuesday night. Reports say that over a hundred thousand households in this region alone lost power for an extended period of time starting late Friday night. Our church and parsonage, along with more than half of our town, was part of that statistic.
We were fortunate enough to have only about 44 hours without power (and thus, heat), in our home and at the church over the weekend. Many are still without power, but it seems like both Allegheny Power and Duquesne Light are working quickly to restore power, hopefully before this next storm. As far as I know, all of our congregation survived or is surviving without injury or much property damage, although many are scrambling to prevent bursting pipes after they froze over Saturday night when the temperatures dipped into negative.
Lisa and I have found the entire ordeal to be quite an adventure. As much as possible, we tried to make the most of the situation. Saturday morning we woke up to no power, but our house was still 63 degrees inside -- not any different than a normal winter morning. We walked over to the church and shoveled snow there for about 2 hours, then returned home for another half hour of shoveling. We then spent the afternoon reading, napping, and eating whatever we could in the fridge that was in danger of spoiling. For dinner, we couldn't cook anything because our stove is electric. But fortunately, the church has a gas stove. So, we went to the church and made dinner over there, cooking and eating with the help of flashlights and electric camping lanterns.
We called around to spread word that church was canceled on Sunday, and returned to our then 54 degree home for some board games and yes, ice cream - it was the only way to save it! We turned on all the faucets overnight to avoid frozen pipes, which in hindsight probably saved us from burst pipes. We pulled out our down sleeping bags and had a nice warm night of sleep in them. But, when we woke up Sunday morning, our house was down to 34 degrees. Thinking it wasn't the best idea to spend the day in that environment, we ventured out on the still icy roads for brunch in a warm restaurant. When we returned home, it had risen to 36 degrees, but still too cold to stay in. Plus, how would we watch the Super Bowl???
Fortunately, many of our parishioners live on the west side of town, where most homes had power. One family had offered to let us stay with them as long as needed, so by Sunday afternoon we decided to take them up on their offer. We packed up our things, headed over, and took our first showers since Friday morning. We shared dinner together in a warm home, full of laughter. We played Wii and watched the Super Bowl together. It was nothing less than extravagant hospitality, and we were very fortunate to have such a wonderful family open up their home to us in our "time of need." As a pastor, I typically spend a lot of my time being there for others, serving them in their own times of need. It was strange to be on the other side of that for once, being the one served rather than the one serving.
Finally, we returned to our home at 10 pm Sunday night after hearing from a neighbor that power had come back on around 7 pm. The house was still 48 degrees, but definitely warm enough to live in again. We went to bed dreaming of waking up to a fully heated home. And when we arose this morning, we were back up to 63 degrees in the home! Thanks be to God!
Today, many people are still without power, and some are furiously battling frozen pipes in danger of bursting. A neighboring United Methodist Church is currently assessing their broken boiler, which it appears will need to be replaced. We're not out of the storm just yet, the roads are still sheets of ice in many places, and another storm is on its way. But in these adventures of winterland, I cannot help but think of how fortunate we are. I've used that word a lot in my description of the weekend, because that's how I felt and continue to feel. We are lucky. We are fortunate. We are blessed.
Thank God that our "emergency" means that for almost everyone around here, life will return to normal within a week's time. In the midst of our storm (literal and figurative), I continue to remember those who are still recovering from truly devastating disasters -- ones from years ago, as well as those in Haiti who have become homeless for more than the day or two we were "homeless."
Personally, Lisa and I are very blessed that our abundance has made this no more than a 2 day inconvenience where our biggest worry was, "How will we watch the Super Bowl?" I am grateful for the hospitality that many people have extended to their neighbors, including that which we received. I am grateful for the men and women who continue to work around the clock to repair power lines and get electric back to as many people as possible in what has thus far been a miraculously short period of time. I am also thankful for those who continue to work hard to keep the roads as clear as possible. Both snow plow drivers and power company workers have probably had very little time for rest over the last few days, and their families probably have not seen much of them at all. What services they provide, services that we so often take for granted! It is times like these that remind us how truly blessed we are to have electric in our homes and businesses, as well as clear roads, and it is because of others that we do have these luxuries. Thanks be to God!
We were fortunate enough to have only about 44 hours without power (and thus, heat), in our home and at the church over the weekend. Many are still without power, but it seems like both Allegheny Power and Duquesne Light are working quickly to restore power, hopefully before this next storm. As far as I know, all of our congregation survived or is surviving without injury or much property damage, although many are scrambling to prevent bursting pipes after they froze over Saturday night when the temperatures dipped into negative.
Lisa and I have found the entire ordeal to be quite an adventure. As much as possible, we tried to make the most of the situation. Saturday morning we woke up to no power, but our house was still 63 degrees inside -- not any different than a normal winter morning. We walked over to the church and shoveled snow there for about 2 hours, then returned home for another half hour of shoveling. We then spent the afternoon reading, napping, and eating whatever we could in the fridge that was in danger of spoiling. For dinner, we couldn't cook anything because our stove is electric. But fortunately, the church has a gas stove. So, we went to the church and made dinner over there, cooking and eating with the help of flashlights and electric camping lanterns.
We called around to spread word that church was canceled on Sunday, and returned to our then 54 degree home for some board games and yes, ice cream - it was the only way to save it! We turned on all the faucets overnight to avoid frozen pipes, which in hindsight probably saved us from burst pipes. We pulled out our down sleeping bags and had a nice warm night of sleep in them. But, when we woke up Sunday morning, our house was down to 34 degrees. Thinking it wasn't the best idea to spend the day in that environment, we ventured out on the still icy roads for brunch in a warm restaurant. When we returned home, it had risen to 36 degrees, but still too cold to stay in. Plus, how would we watch the Super Bowl???
Fortunately, many of our parishioners live on the west side of town, where most homes had power. One family had offered to let us stay with them as long as needed, so by Sunday afternoon we decided to take them up on their offer. We packed up our things, headed over, and took our first showers since Friday morning. We shared dinner together in a warm home, full of laughter. We played Wii and watched the Super Bowl together. It was nothing less than extravagant hospitality, and we were very fortunate to have such a wonderful family open up their home to us in our "time of need." As a pastor, I typically spend a lot of my time being there for others, serving them in their own times of need. It was strange to be on the other side of that for once, being the one served rather than the one serving.
Finally, we returned to our home at 10 pm Sunday night after hearing from a neighbor that power had come back on around 7 pm. The house was still 48 degrees, but definitely warm enough to live in again. We went to bed dreaming of waking up to a fully heated home. And when we arose this morning, we were back up to 63 degrees in the home! Thanks be to God!
Today, many people are still without power, and some are furiously battling frozen pipes in danger of bursting. A neighboring United Methodist Church is currently assessing their broken boiler, which it appears will need to be replaced. We're not out of the storm just yet, the roads are still sheets of ice in many places, and another storm is on its way. But in these adventures of winterland, I cannot help but think of how fortunate we are. I've used that word a lot in my description of the weekend, because that's how I felt and continue to feel. We are lucky. We are fortunate. We are blessed.
Thank God that our "emergency" means that for almost everyone around here, life will return to normal within a week's time. In the midst of our storm (literal and figurative), I continue to remember those who are still recovering from truly devastating disasters -- ones from years ago, as well as those in Haiti who have become homeless for more than the day or two we were "homeless."
Personally, Lisa and I are very blessed that our abundance has made this no more than a 2 day inconvenience where our biggest worry was, "How will we watch the Super Bowl?" I am grateful for the hospitality that many people have extended to their neighbors, including that which we received. I am grateful for the men and women who continue to work around the clock to repair power lines and get electric back to as many people as possible in what has thus far been a miraculously short period of time. I am also thankful for those who continue to work hard to keep the roads as clear as possible. Both snow plow drivers and power company workers have probably had very little time for rest over the last few days, and their families probably have not seen much of them at all. What services they provide, services that we so often take for granted! It is times like these that remind us how truly blessed we are to have electric in our homes and businesses, as well as clear roads, and it is because of others that we do have these luxuries. Thanks be to God!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Pastoral Lessons from Paul
"We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." -- 1 Thessalonians 1:2
Paul opens his letter to the church in Thessalonica with these words, and what encouraging words they are! In this brief opening, he offers words of appreciation for the members of the community. He thanks God and prays for them. He notices the work they do and the faith, hope, and love they possess. He cares about them, he's proud of them, he is thankful for them -- he loves them. And he's making sure they know that they are loved.
I've only been a pastor for a few months, but I already know the importance of the phrase, "Thank you." Pastors are surrounded by "so great a cloud of witnesses" in their congregations, yet often all I hear is negativity from my colleagues:
"The trustees still won't fix my refrigerator."
"It's like pulling teeth to get someone to read Scripture."
"Not enough youth are coming to youth group."
"These people still don't understand they need to get off their butt and do something."
"No matter how much I visit Shut-in Sally or Nursing Home Nancy, they complain I don't visit enough."
Maybe I'm too "fresh" out of seminary to be negative and cynical. Maybe I just haven't really experienced the bad side of ministry yet. Whatever the case may be, I hope that I never allow myself to move away from this state of "freshness", a state where I am not ruled by cynicism and negativity but instead appreciate and acknowledge the great things happening in whatever congregation I serve.
Too many times, we as clergy fail to appreciate all that our laity do in our congregations. We forget to give thanks to God for them. We forget their work of faith, their labor of love, and their steadfastness of hope. We even forget to name them in our prayers. And in doing so, we fail to appreciate the work of God through them.
There's a story of a pastor who asked the trustees to replace the flooring in the entire parsonage. The trustees were unable to replace all the flooring, but did replace about half of it. Instead of thanking the trustees for the half they replaced, the pastor openly wondered why the other half wasn't done. Needless to say, the other half never got done. And can you blame the trustees for lack of motivation? They'd just been told that what they did wasn't good enough. They saw that the only work recognized is the work they did not do.
For United Methodists, Laity Sunday is this week. I hope and pray that all clergy will remember the laity in their prayers, and publicly thank them for all the work they do for the transformation of the world and the coming of the kingdom of God. Paul remembered the importance of the work of God's people, as well as the need to acknowledge it. How have we forgotten so easily?
Paul opens his letter to the church in Thessalonica with these words, and what encouraging words they are! In this brief opening, he offers words of appreciation for the members of the community. He thanks God and prays for them. He notices the work they do and the faith, hope, and love they possess. He cares about them, he's proud of them, he is thankful for them -- he loves them. And he's making sure they know that they are loved.
I've only been a pastor for a few months, but I already know the importance of the phrase, "Thank you." Pastors are surrounded by "so great a cloud of witnesses" in their congregations, yet often all I hear is negativity from my colleagues:
"The trustees still won't fix my refrigerator."
"It's like pulling teeth to get someone to read Scripture."
"Not enough youth are coming to youth group."
"These people still don't understand they need to get off their butt and do something."
"No matter how much I visit Shut-in Sally or Nursing Home Nancy, they complain I don't visit enough."
Maybe I'm too "fresh" out of seminary to be negative and cynical. Maybe I just haven't really experienced the bad side of ministry yet. Whatever the case may be, I hope that I never allow myself to move away from this state of "freshness", a state where I am not ruled by cynicism and negativity but instead appreciate and acknowledge the great things happening in whatever congregation I serve.
Too many times, we as clergy fail to appreciate all that our laity do in our congregations. We forget to give thanks to God for them. We forget their work of faith, their labor of love, and their steadfastness of hope. We even forget to name them in our prayers. And in doing so, we fail to appreciate the work of God through them.
There's a story of a pastor who asked the trustees to replace the flooring in the entire parsonage. The trustees were unable to replace all the flooring, but did replace about half of it. Instead of thanking the trustees for the half they replaced, the pastor openly wondered why the other half wasn't done. Needless to say, the other half never got done. And can you blame the trustees for lack of motivation? They'd just been told that what they did wasn't good enough. They saw that the only work recognized is the work they did not do.
For United Methodists, Laity Sunday is this week. I hope and pray that all clergy will remember the laity in their prayers, and publicly thank them for all the work they do for the transformation of the world and the coming of the kingdom of God. Paul remembered the importance of the work of God's people, as well as the need to acknowledge it. How have we forgotten so easily?
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