Posted on Jul 18, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
Sunday, July 17
After a great night of sleep, Lisa and were treated to a wonderful breakfast at our host’s home. Rolls and croissants delivered to the house by the neighborhood baker, fresh honey, preserves, cheeses, salmon, sausages, hard boiled eggs, coffee and juice. It was delicious. The meals are much slower and relaxed here. The conversation around the table is as appetizing as the food. We felt welcomed and made comfortable by our hosts.
We noticed that napkins are not a common item on the table so you have to be careful with your food. Read more…
Posted on Jul 17, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
So the journey has begun…Lisa and I made our flights and connections from Detroit to Frankfurt and the on to Hamburg. We both struggle to sleep on the plane but our enthusiasm for the trip outweighed our exhausted state when we arrived.
The Will Family was there to greet us when we arrived. Oliver Will was our exchange student son for a year from August 2005 to July 2006. He is now 28 years old, working as a consultant for a large international company in finance. These kids grow up!
Together with Oliver were his parents Claus-Peter and Eva and his younger sister Maike. We had met Maike a few years ago as she was also an exchange student in Ohio a couple years after Oliver. She came to spend Easter with us that year. She now works in human resources for a company in Frankfurt.
Claus-Peter and Eva work for the family business – agricultural supplies and equipment. Read more…
Posted on Jul 13, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
The waltz is a dance in three-quarter time: One-Two-Three, One-Two-Three, One-Two-Three.
Through the end of July, my wife and I will be dancing a German Waltz – a trip in three steps. One-Two-Three. One-Two-Three. One-Two-Three. Three steps in a journey that will take us from the northern regions of Germany with its flat lands and seas to the southern border of the country where the Alps start their ascent to the heavens. In the coming days, I will be posting stories, memories and pictures of this journey, and invite you to follow along. Here is an overview of our German Waltz.
Step One – Northern Germany – Schleswig Holstein
In 2005, our family welcomed Oliver Will into our home for a year.
Oliver was an exchange student from Germany, and we have kept in contact with him since his time with us. Read more…
Posted on Jun 15, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
On Sunday, July 31, we will be honored and blessed to have the Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) proclaim the good news here at Epiphany Lutheran Church. Bishop Elizabeth Eaton will preach at two special services – 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. -at our Far Hills Campus. In the fifty-seven-year history of Epiphany, this will be the FIRST time the presiding bishop of the national church will be here.
The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton was elected as the ELCA’s fourth presiding bishop at the 2013 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. Born in Cleveland on April 2, 1955, Eaton earned a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School in Cambridge, Mass., and a Bachelor of Arts degree in music education from the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.
Read more…
Posted on May 17, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
Last week I was on retreat with pastors who serve the larger congregations in the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). This annual event is one I look forward to each year, as I get to pick the brains of colleagues who are experiencing the joys and challenges that we also experience at Epiphany. During my week away, I was once again reminded that I am not alone. I have brothers and sisters in Christ who are serving God in wonderful ways where God has called them. I was also reminded once again that WE are not alone – we have brothers and sisters across the country who are faithfully proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ and serving the community and the world with the resources God has given us. We are the church together.
That was a song we sang at camp for years–
Posted on May 2, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
One hundred holes of golf in one day! And it’s all for a good cause. On May 23, I will be joining dozens of others on the links for one hundred holes of golf, with the goal of raising money to support Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) of Greene County. The mission of Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greene County is to reflect God’s love by providing short term housing and assistance for displaced families through a united community network. A renovated building in downtown Xenia provides temporary housing for several families who are working their way from homelessness to a place of their own.
Years ago, we used to have families stay at Epiphany as a part of this program. But now — with the facility — we are able to support the ministry with meals and serving as overnight hosts a couple of times each year. Our quilting ministry provides quilts for all of the kids who are at the facility during the weeks we serve. Our youth often provide a meal during that time as well. Read more…
Posted on Apr 12, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
These are questions that comes up often, “Why is there suffering? Why does God allow it to happen? How does God address it?”
These are good questions. Questions that will be addressed at our next Speaker Series Event on May 1, 2016. We will gather for a potluck dinner, then our speaker will focus on this. Our speaker will be Dr. Meghan Henning, a professor at University of Dayton who has written extensively on this. She will be approaching this from a biblical perspective. The title of her talk is Bodily Suffering in the Ancient World and the Bible: Jesus the Physician or the Christ Who Suffers?
In a message she sent to me, Dr. Henning shared that her talk “…will be an interactive journey through ancient conceptions of sickness, disability, and suffering, that will invite participants to think about the way we understand suffering in our contemporary context…
Posted on Mar 21, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
We wish every day could be a Palm Sunday – Parades, celebrations, everything going the way WE want it to go. You want a Messiah? Here he is. You want power? You got it. You want something to feel good about? Celebrate. Wave the palm branches. Sing the songs of Hosanna.
BUT, the reality is, every day is NOT Palm Sunday.
We live in a society of every kid gets a trophy. A’s on tests are good for the self-esteem. Don’t want to discourage them or hurt them in any way. We also want the same when we grow up – we deserve the best. Best seats – call ahead seating. Best prices, first in line.
But, the reality is, every day is not Palm Sunday.
We don’t always win. The weather isn’t always sunny and 75 degrees. Not everyone gets a job. Our kids are not always perfect. Relationships don’t always last. Sometimes we lose. We get sick. People die.
Read more…
Posted on Feb 29, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
I invite you to come to Epiphany Lutheran Church’s Far Hills Campus on Good Friday, March 25, for a time of reflection and prayer. In addition to our worship services at 12 noon and 7 p.m., there will be an opportunity for you to walk the path to the cross through a series of prayer stations. This is an individual time of devotion and prayer that includes twelve separate stations. When you enter the Gathering Space, you will be given a prayer booklet to guide you along the steps. The stations begin with Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and conclude with his death on Good Friday. At each of the 12 stations, there will be a Bible reading, questions for reflection and an activity.
The stations meander through the hallways, the Sanctuary and the Narthex (just outside the sanctuary). For those who wish to walk these steps, the church will be opened at 6 a.m. and will remain open through 11 p.m., breaking for worship at noon and 7 p.m.
Posted on Feb 22, 2016 in From PC's PC - Pastor Charlie's BLOG |
What Happens When You Die?
A Practical Look
March 7, 11:30 a.m.
Far Hills Flag Room
We were out on the golf course on a beautiful summer morning. It was our weekly gathering for “Swing and a Prayer,” beginning with breakfast and a Bible Study, then off to the golf course for a time of fellowship on the links. As I walked the fairway with a member of the church, he turned to me and asked, “Pastor, what happens when you die?” This is a rare moment in ministry when a question is asked for which your theological training can kick in. Death and resurrection, hope and promise. I thought, “This is great! I am ready to offer a response of which my seminary professors would be proud.”
And so I started in, talking about the promises God offers us through Jesus Christ and the empty tomb. I was on a roll, but I didn’t get far.
