We only need a quick glance at our lives and the lives of those around us to discover that there are a lot of hurting people in the world. The skeptics (and us believers too) wonder if God really exists, and if he does exist, does he care. Our God is not the distant, aloof, indifferent God whom some fear but many ignore. God's heart breaks when he sees his dearly loved people being crushed under the weight of their pain and punishment - his heart bleeds. And that is why he sent Jesus. This Sunday we discover God's bleeding heart in an Old Testament account, in I Chronicles 21. Join us! June 30, 10 a.m.
On Sunday, June 23, 2013, I was installed as Pastor of Ancaster CRC. I had heard the charge when I was ordained in Lucknow 5 1/2 years ago, but perhaps I was too nervous at the time to listen to the words that were spoken. Yesterday I heard them, and I was left with the impression that I am to be all things, to all people, at all the time. There was a fleeting moment when I considered changing my mind! But I answered the questions in the affirmative, with the conviction that I will be wearing this role in obedience to God and in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The role of pastor is in a state of flux. In the past it was viewed with respect and reverence, even a sense of awe perhaps. Today the pastor is unsure if she is motivational speaker, psychological counselor or team builder. He wonders if he is to be the CEO, everyone's best friend, or resident theologian. We want our pastors to be approachable and authentic, yet we want them to retain some of the mystery of the office.
When I wondered aloud whom it was that I should be in my new church, a wise friend quipped - "Be yourself - they're going to figure it out eventually anyway!" And so, I will be myself, a woman called to be Pastor (and all that this entails), humbly, yet boldly, honoured to accept the task of preaching Christ crucified.
