New Year. New Decade. How Long?

How quickly the year 2009 ended. My journey in ministry since October felt like the bullet train moving through the days towards the just completed holiday season.

The North American Division Year-end meetings in early November were highlighted by the "Year of Evangelism" reports which showed a marked increase in soul-winning endeavors. (It will be telling to see the final numbers on baptisms given the surge in spending for meetings.)

Jennifer and I were blessed to be with our friend Elder Jan Kaatz for the 100th anniversary of the Burbank Church on November 21. Jan and I served together at the Simi Valley Church in

Southern California Conference and he has really taken the challenge of turning a declining congregation in a new direction of growth and mission. Nice presentations were make by local civic officials and the leadership of the Conference.

The El Monte Vietnamese Church was quite an eye-opening experience. As I preached for two services (traditional Vietnamese and a youth service in English) on December 5 the challenge and opportunity of Pastor Vinah Nguyen who has served this church for 13 years. This is truly a missionary church that is not only serving the transitioning population of Vietnamese people in Los Angeles but also the world field with a printing press ministry. I didn't need to understand the language to comprehend the wide-ranging impact of this congregation.

A highlight for these waning weeks of the year was the Ordination service which I conducted with Elder Ivan Williams on December 12. The five evangelists serving the Amazing Facts ministry that were set aside by the laying on of hands brought back happy memories of my own ordination in 1988. Preaching for the morning service at the Granite Bay church was an inspiring experience particularly because so many in the audience were folks interested in the Adventist Church or new members. At the close I gave a hand-raising appeal for committing our lives to Christ and His teachings.

The end of the decade. How long until we shall see Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven? We don't know the day nor the hour but we can "work until Jesus comes." I'm thinking and praying about how 2010 can become a year of breakthroughs for Jesus in my life and yours.

God bless you in the Year to Come!

Would You Like To Get Away?

Quiet spaces promote reflection.

Nestled along the coast of Mendocino County, CA sits Albion Field Station operated by Pacific Union College. This was the destination for our 2nd Annual Board of Trustees Strategic Retreat.

Gibby Muth (retired professor) and Larry Provonsha (board member for 28 years) have devoted tremendous effort to the refurbishing of the property. The results speak for themselves. Brightly appointed rooms, private baths, wireless internet, and comfortable meeting rooms. These improvements have greatly enhanced the experience of students, staff, professors, community and church groups, and...the Board!

Our time was divided between learning more about board governance, socializing as members, conducting important business, and simply benefiting from the soul-renewing setting. It was particularly wonderful to meet the new "First Couple" of our College-Dr. Heather Knight, President, and her husband Elder Norman Knight. Her enthusiasm, vision, and remarkable qualifications were all on display as she shared goals for the future with us.

I'm already looking forward to our next meeting in the Fall of 2010. Until then remember Pacific Union College in your prayers. And by the way, the Albion Field Station is available for your use any time. Check their website at

Keep on Shining

Since 1897, people in Provo, UT have been making friends with Jesus Christ through the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Today was a defining moment for the community that gathered in the newly-completed Community Center of this historic congregation.

As Jennifer and I walked into the Center the smell of paint still lingered in the air. Over 200 chairs were readied for the crowd that would assemble to dedicate this space to the Lord's service at 11:00 a.m. As we toured the offices, classrooms, and large gymnasium I recalled just a few months before when it was a dirt parking lot, unfinished walls, and exposed electrical and duct work that greeted the eye.

Transformation occurred quickly! And not only the physical space but also in the paradigm of purpose for this new location on the church grounds. What makes this project unique in my eyes is that the church is not hoarding this space exclusively for its own use. The Red Cross, the Utah Bell Choir, the Boys and Girls Club, the United Way, and many others will use this as the gathering place for service.

By church time every seat was occupied. Special guests included the mayor and all the contractors that made this facility possible. It was evident from all the community friends that joined in this hour of dedication that this was truly an event that had captured city-wide attention. We sang, I offered a dedication meditation and prayer, local elder Brad Walton presented a gracious biblical message, and Linda Walton recognized the contributions of the people who had made this day come to reality. This joyous day ended with food--lots of it!

As we departed Provo Church it occurred to us that rather than an end this was truly a new

beginning. The spirit of service that brought the first Adventist evangelist to Provo, UT in 1897 will continue to light the way for this special congregation. Driving off to our next appointment the words of Jesus came to mind, "Let your light shine before men that they may glorify your Father who is in heaven."

Keep shining, Provo Church!

Tinsletown Gospel

As I walked the neighborhood around the Hollywood Seventh-day Adventist Church on Sabbath afternoon it occurred to me how differently things would've looked decades ago. There are still quaint little homes along Van Ness that hearken to a less sprawling period of this section of Los Angeles. One of the members reminded me that Elder Lloyd Wyman was the pastor who helped build this church. (Not surprising since Elder Wyman has had a part in so many parts of Southern California Conference's development and leadership over his many years of service).

The Hollywood community has changed and the church has changed with it. Visiting with

members between Sabbath School and Church the long-ago emergence of diversity was reflected in the faces of the people. Together they are the Body of Christ reaching out to a uniquely challenging city of souls.

Together we raised our voices in worship, prayer, and praise to the Lord who saves us by His grace. My sermon on the meaning of Jesus' story of the Good Samaritan (it was not told merely to remind us to be nice to the needy!) spoke to the contemporary challenge of this church and their sincere response to Jesus' call to be salt and light in the heart of the

entertainment industry. It was encouraging to share "a word" with a full church of listeners who listened and responded to the words of Christ.

But its not tycoons and moguls that populate the streets of this city. Homelessness, mental illness, and people simply in need of someone to care is the reality of life in Hollywood. It is these--"the least of them"--that the Hollywood church is particularly intentional in serving in the Master's name. I was particularly impressed with the announcement by one leader that they would be "walking the neighborhood" later in the week just meeting and talking with people.

In the afternoon it was a special privilege for me to listen as my wife, Jennifer, teach her seminar, "The Ten Commandments of Christian Finance." Like no other presentation I have ever heard, she shows Biblically faithful principles of money as they relate to each command of the Decalogue. Her class of listeners responded with questions and she stayed by for some time answering individual questions. I expect she will be back again to teach the the budgeting and money management workshop that adds specificity and practicality to these spiritual lessons.

I am reminded again of the work of Jesus that we are called to do in His name--ministry to all, for all, in all, by all.

Beginnings

I strode down the aisle of the La Sierra University Church in my blue and gold trustee robe. The organ music filled the church and the students and staff filled the pews.

Academic Convocation for the 2009-2010 school year at LSU commenced with the faculty, staff, and trustees (just me, actually!) joining the platform party for the spiritual dedication of the University. President Randal Wisbey would issue the challenge, "We Shall Be the Light of the World."

I am always drawn to the music of such an event. "Now Thank We All Our God" swelling from the church organ, a skillful violin solo by Jason Uyeyama, and the moving rendering of "This Little Light of Mine" by the LSU Chamber singers.

For this reason I was particularly inspired by a special hymn set to Beethoven's well-known tune, "Ode to Joy" (used for Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal #12, "Joyful, joyful, We Adore Thee"). Entitled "Praise the Source of Faith and Learning" and written by Thomas H. Troeger, it is a beautiful lyric describing the aspirations of Seventh-day Adventist higher education.

You can sing along by going to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPtuREcjl1M&feature=related

Praise the Source of Faith and Learning

Praise the source of faith and learning

Who has sparked and stoked the mind

With a passion for discerning

How the world has been designed.

Let the sense of wonder flowing

From the wonders we survey

Keep our faith forever growing

And renew our need to pray:

God of wisdom, we acknowledge

That our science and our art

And the breadth of human knowledge

Only partial truth impart.

Far beyond our calculation

Lies a depth we cannot sound

Where your purpose for creation

And the pulse of life are found.

May our faith redeem the blunder

Of believing that our thought

Has displaced the grounds for wonder

Which the ancient prophets taught.

May our learning curb the error

Which unthinking faith can breed

Lest we justify some terror

With an antiquated creed.

As two currents in a river

Fight each others’ undertow

‘Til converging they deliver

One coherent steady flow.

Blend, O God, our faith and learning

‘Til they carve a single course

While they join as one returning

Praise and thanks to you their source.

Praise for minds to probe the heavens,

Praise for strength to breathe the air,

Praise for all that beauty leavens,

Praise for silence, music, prayer.

Praise for justice and compassion

And for strangers, neighbors, friends,

Praise for hearts and lips to fashion,

Praise for love that never ends.

A Return

It was a nostalgic return for Jennifer and I when we stepped into the fellowship hall. Faces and voices not seen or heard for 20 years greeted us for the beginning of the Burr Ridge Church 30th Anniversary celebration. It was in this congregational family that I was ordained as a Seventh-day Adventist minister in 1988 so this weekend was particularly meaningful for me.

Sabbath morning I taught the Sabbath School lesson on the themes of 1 John. But as I never forgot when I was the pastor of this congregation from 1987-1989, my audience was again populated by bright minds that find it easy to express their views. Beginning my favorite

passage of the epistle--1 John 3:1-2, I talked about my own spiritual journey and then invited the class to work through 3 questions in sequence--"How has your picture of God impacted your life?", "How does this picture of God affect our congregational life?", and "How does our view of God impact our outreach in the community?" With microphone in hand I hosted the ongoing discussion. It was fun and inspiring.

Sabbath worship included two beautiful anthems by the choir and a thoughtful sermon by Dr. Darrel Ward, one of the 4 men who pastored this congregation. My contribution to the worship hour was calling for the offering--"Fall Mission Appeal." Our friends, Ken and Pat Denslow (Illinois Conference President) were in the audience and we enjoyed a nice visit during the nice luncheon that followed. A panel discussion with the 4 pastors who have served this church gave us each the opportunity to share our journeys since the Burr Ridge days as well as reflect on the current challenge of the congregation to purchased their own building.

It was a wonderful time of fellowship and reminded us how quickly this earthly life passes by but how "blessed is the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love."

Our Father who art in Los Angeles

I'm sitting in a small guest office room in the administrative suite of the White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, CA at the moment. As a member of the Operating Board of this historical Adventist hospital for the past 18 months I have been learning anew why Adventist health care remains "the right arm of the church."

In my past life, I've served as a hospital chaplain, board member, ethics committee member, and visited scores of members over my ministry in hospitals. My mother-in-law is a nurse, my wife has worked in physicians offices, hospitals, at Adventist Health headquarters, and is in health care consulting today. And my children both are employed at Glendale Adventist Medical Center today.

So, I know a bit about Adventist hospitals.

But something simple moved me today. That simple something reminded me why we do this health care thing all around the world as well in a needy area in East Los Angeles.

At Noon I joined the Medical Executive Committee at the White for their meeting. As a board member I was invited at a previous meeting and really wanted to take them up on their offer. The physicians heading each hospital medical department were gathered around a very plain set of tables next to the cafeteria. The President of the Medical Staff opened the meeting. Food was sitting nearby ready to eat. And then, very matter-of-factly and obviously as a natural part of every meeting the President of the Staff said, "Let's begin with prayer."

Now, at church meetings this is quite expected. We're all Seventh-day Adventists. Most of the circles I sit in these days, we're all administrative leaders. So praying is just a normal agenda item.

But today I was looking at the circle that was ready to pray. Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Jewish, and the non-religious together at this table bowed their heads as the prayer began, "Our Father in heaven...." What followed was a beautifully simple and earnest prayer from the chair of the OB-GYN department. My heart was touched. These are men and women who want to help people fine health and they have come to an Adventist Hospital that leads them to pray together as the everyday mission of extending the caring of Jesus is administered to a community that needs us.

I'm getting ready to head to the Operating Board Meeting now. We'll talk about safety, hear budget reports, and yes...start with prayer. Prayer. It's not just for church anymore! It's for everyday life in a hospital that ministers to others in Jesus name. Amen!