News you can use
Out our way, we are used to the reality that seasons change but life goes on. We see countless acres of farm land transformed from barren nothingness into fields of crops, and then back to barren nothingness again. Except it is never really barren. For we know it is part of the ongoing cycle. The empty fields of winter begin to sprout in the spring and through the summer the crops grow until the harvest. And then it starts all over again. Same with the pastures on the Tiger Ridge and other places I have ridden. The grass is grazed down, the watering holes are drying up and we move the herd. But the next year we return to flourishing grass and sparkling waters. You see, the earth also needs to rest from time to time. Yet even in winter - with the snow pack and the seemingly dead earth - life continues. There was a reason God chose the Exodus to begin and the celebration of the Passover to be in the spring. New life and new beginnings. It was not coincidence that the Last Supper was the Passover meal so that Easter and the Resurrection would thus happen in the spring as well, as they are part of the same plan.
I, too, am looking forward to spring and the rebirth of my ministry as my energy and vision are renewed following my winter retreat. I am hoping that, like the Dairy Queen, "annual spring" opening, the sense of renewal and spring will not have to wait for the snow melt, but will declare itself even in the darkest days of calving and lambing season. New life comes into the world when those who are not in touch with the rhythm of life are still unaware of the miracles that have already begun.
So here I am in the winter of my life as a pastor in the church. But that is not to say it is the winter of my life. Oh, there is definitely a heap of "snow on the roof," and when I knelt last week to accept the laying on hands by my congregation, some were concerned I would not be able to get back up without aid. (If I can do it on the hard concrete floors at Walmart 30 times a day, I can certainly do it from a soft carpeted floor surrounded by the uplifting love of God's people!) Still, I understand that to many folks, retirement means being put out to pasture. Well if that is true I suspect it will be an empty pasture, one filled with new challenges, new fences to ride, and new herds to care for.
In my hermitage I have an icon - an Orthodox painting - of John The Baptist. As John and I share the same name, I have always had a special interest in the Baptizer. Jesus said that no prophet was greater than John, and he - John - declared himself unworthy of even loosening the sandals of Jesus, a task given to the lowest and least important servant in the Jewish household.
People came from everywhere to hear John preach, and many thought he was the Messiah. What a rush that might have been for an ordinary person, someone like me, for example, to be in the spotlight and the focus of the popular culture. But few can handle it. Look at what fame and fortune did to Robert Schuller, whose whole life's work turned out to be an empty facade that died with his talent; the Crystal Cathedral went from glory to bankruptcy. Far worse cases, like Jimmy Swaggart, Jim and Tammy Bakker, and so many other popular and charismatic religious figures have become part of our modern religious culture.
But John was different in that he never forgot Who was in charge nor why he had been chosen to prepare the way. At best, that is all any preacher or evangelist can hope to do. John never forgot it and that sustained him. When his followers left him to follow Christ, they went with John's blessing. For the One they followed was also the one John followed and served. He never sought to exchange roles or to allow others to confuse the two. When asked if he were the Christ he was adamant, "I am not!" And when his time was over, he did not mourn but said simply, "He must increase and I must decrease."
It was not a complaint, but simply a statement of fact that actually filled him with joy, for he had played his part in God's plan. Though his role was ending, the plan was gaining speed. And he had been part of that.
In my meditation before the Icon of John, I realized that I, too, can celebrate. I realize that though my part in this ministry is over, God's ministry is not. And unlike John, my enemies are small and not so powerful as his. Though they may reject me and my message they cannot imprison nor execute me as Herod and Herodias did. Though my life's work as a pastor is done, my life's work is not. I will continue to preach through my column, and in various congregations that invite me to do so, and perhaps in something I never dreamed of before but which is starting to take shape.
For all my scholastic and deep theological labors, my parables may have been my most effective means of service for the Kingdom. I will therefore continue to write the weekly columns with old "Doc" and Charley, and share parables based on the cowboy life we shared. I may even write another book. (Yep, sold out my first book, all 20 copies! Took five years to do it, but there you go. Ain't I special!) But here's the thing; as much as folks have enjoyed and appreciated these Out Our Way tales, I am now getting requests from former church members around the country for a book of "Bruin Town" and "Ratus Tales," the children's messages I have been writing for 40 years. Wouldn't that be a hoot!? The great and marvelous Dr. Bruington's legacy is a grumpy quarter horse named Doc Goliath, two bear cubs named PeeDee and Scooter, a church mouse named Ratus, and a dizzy duck named Wackdoodle and his looney tunes uncle Professor Doofus! Maybe I need to, like John the Baptizer, decrease as Dr. Bruington, and let the Masterincrease as the focus of these children's tales.
God has a sense of humor. He chose me to be a pastor. And of all the "brilliant" sermons I have preached, the most important and impressive ones may have been a series of children stories! During this retreat I am going to have to see if these unsolicited messages that have come this week from various adults, not all of whom are parents, saying they miss the children messages and cartoons more than anything else is a message. I will continue to write here and maybe find a few other places willing to take the column, but I have to really look into the possibility that God wants me to write and illustrate a children's book. I hope to start getting it on my Facebook and, who knows, maybe from there I will find a way to get it out to others.
This was not what I thought I would find as my new trail when I started this retreat, and it may not be the one to follow. What I have learned is that I must decrease - in selfimportance - that He may increase within me. I don't seek what trail to follow now - I seek to simply follow Him. The rest will sort itself out.
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John Bruington and Goliath begin the new adventure without any clue where the Lord will lead. Glad to have you along for the ride for I think it will be an adventure!
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