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Journal Joy Notes Who Am I

A New Granddaughter!

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Someone is way overdue for a Grandpa post.   I am so much enjoying being a grandparent. And on November 17, 2014, our second grandchild was born, a little girl, Annabelle Jocelyn Stater, 6 lbs. 11 oz. One of the special moments over Christmas was being left in the Stater dining room holding Annabelle. I rocked her in my arm, looked at the tree and Sammie’s new oversize Melissa and Doug creation while listening to Christmas music playing from the iPhone on the table.

But back to the story. We were awakened in the wee hours on Nov. 17 by a call from Keely and Mark that they were going to the hospital.   We left quickly. But Annabelle did not wait. She barely waited for the doctor to arrive. Mark accidentally dialed JoAnne as we were walking out of the hospital parking garage. JoAnne answered and heard the baby’s first cries. Keely and Annabelle were released from the hospital the next day.

JoAnne and I will also remember it for the very busy week that it was.   I officiated at one funeral later that same day and met with two different families about funerals that I had yet to do. Besides that I ended up making at least three trips to the hospital in the first two days to visit and or pick up JoAnne. In addition, our choir was gearing up that week for a special presentation on the Sunday before Thanksgiving the next Sunday.

But we certainly had some very special blessing for which to give thanks the following week on Thanksgiving.   The attached pictures are all from Annabelle’s first days.

 

 

Categories
Journal Meditations

Observations on the 2011 NIV

NIV2011Now they’ve done it! They changed my favorite verse, my life verse.   “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work (2 Co. 9:8 1984 NIV) becomes “And God is able to bless you abundantly …. (2011 NIV).   At first I felt the gut reaction of reading a new translation. It is different. I resist change to that to which I have become accustomed and especially hold dear.   But then I thought about the new version. It’s so accessible to the uninitiated, so immediately plain; it requires no accompanying explanation of the varied meanings of the word grace in the NT in order to understand it.   I could not help but be impressed that for many readers, probably for most readers, the new version was more understandable, more in today’s language.   That is really the point of this new translation in a nutshell.   And I could not help but approve, in spite of myself.

I have been working on a comparison of the 1984 NIV with the 2011 NIV for some time. I have now been using the 2011 NIV for my sermon text at church for more than a year. I like it very much and find it to be in keeping with the reformation principle that the Bible needs to be in the language of the people.

10 Observations

  1. First of all, reading this translation is so easy! One morning, I easily read Galatians through in morning devotions.
  2. Second, I am much impressed with the gender sensitivity that has been used to respond to the fact that modern English usage of gender pronouns has changed. It has resulted in a translation that is gender friendly yet does not sacrifice the patriarchal nature of OT culture or impinge upon the ubiquitous divinely chosen metaphor of the Fatherhood of God.
  3. The 2011 version will be more easily understood by new Bible readers. I think the translators of this version have tried to keep them in mind as they worked.
  4. Perhaps more than any other version I have read, there is excellent feeling for the overall outline of passages rather than just verse by verse translation (Example 2 Cor. 9).
  5. Often the 2011 has moved a little more away from the tradition of translation into English and toward increased accuracy. A relatively trivial but noticeable example is the dropping of the traditional “O” in front of “LORD” in translating in the Psalms (Example Ps. 8:1).
  6. The exceptions to the move toward tight accuracy are when the 2011 includes more explanatory phrases to help newer readers (Example Rom. 15:4).
  7. The new version tries to translate more for the immediate context with less intent of creating general quotable wise sayings as previous versions have done (unfortunate example Ps. 19:14).
  8. Subtitles make it much easier to skim for pericopes and follow the thought outline of the passage. John 17 is a good example.
  9. Female leaders in the NT church get better treatment in the 2011 version.   In Rom. 16:1, Pheobe is called a deacon – using the usual translation of the Greek word.   In Rom. 16:7, Andronicus’ companion is called Junia, rather than Junias (The Greek form can be either m. or f.).   1 Tim 3:11 refers in the 2011 version to the “women” rather than the “wives” (1984) leaving open the possibility in English that is open in the Greek that the reference may be to women leaders—to deaconesses as well as other leading women.
  10. The treatment of Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53-8:11 seems problematic for contemporary translations.   In the 2011 NIV, the language of the notes setting apart Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53-8:11 has been softened and in the case of John 8:1-11 also balanced. This is an improvement over the 1984 version, but I would have liked to have seen the notes moved to the footnotes. In my red letter version, the publisher made things worse by not putting the words of Jesus in red in these passages. They should be!
Continue reading “Observations on the 2011 NIV”
Categories
Journal Joy Notes

An Unusual Winter Walk

Turkeys next to Salmon Brook today
Turkeys next to Salmon Brook today

I’ve been walking in our neighborhood for about 17 months now. I see lots of fascinating and beautiful things because I look for them.   I’ve found picturesque stream crossings, a hidden falls, and a mountain overlook. Until today, the only large wildlife I’ve seen were deer.   But nature has a way of surprising you.

I’m not particularly quiet as I use a walking stick and it clunks on the pavement or the snowy mountain path as I go. Today was no exception. I wasn’t even away from the houses yet on Broad Hill Rd. and there on my right just over the guardrail was a flock of turkeys. I stopped in my tracks, expecting the usually skittish birds to immediately fly away. But they did not. They just meandered in the other direction. So I took their pictures. Then, I tried to be quiet, and, assisted by the terrain, I walked back in the direction they were going, popping over to the creek bank to spy on them and taking more pictures. Two cars went by and still they did not spook. As both I and the flock approached the bridge, it became clear that they intended to cross in front of me. I just stopped and waited. After a few moments hesitation, they did just that.   I took photos without scaring them.

I finished my walk up the hill and back down and then headed home. As I started up the knoll toward our house, there was the flock crossing Simsbury road in front of me again. Again I followed them without spooking them and took several more pictures.

Here is a selection from my unusual winter walk. I put in a couple in the middle of the snowy top of the hill, including a selfie of me.

Turkey do not spook this time
The followed the creek
At the bridge
flying across
last bird
snowy top of the hill
Who's that?
small tree bent under the heavy snow
Turkeys again
In a neighbor's yard
All in a row

[Show as slideshow]

 

Categories
Journal News Commentary

Less partisanship needed to resolve immigration issue

On the issue of immigration, I am appalled that the Republican party cannot see the need for compromise and the necessity of fixing a badly broken immigration system.  When families are being tragically divided and young adults who were brought here as children are being deprived of their futures for lack of paperwork, justice is not being done.  How long will the Republicans hide behind tired rhetoric about “amnesty” that doesn’t get the job done.  I agree with Obama on this issue that the Congress has had long enough to act (and I seldom agree with Obama).    This recent statement by John Boehner just shows once again that the Republicans don’t get it on this issue.  http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-30049038.  They are completely unconcerned with the human plight of  illegal alien families while being perfectly happy to live in a society that takes advantage of, in fact depends upon, the labor provided by immigrants.  I wish the Republicans would replace Boehner with a leader who understands the issues from a less partisan perspective.   They need to do something about immigration for justice sake and they also need to remember how much they needed the Latino vote in 2012.

Categories
Americana Journal News Commentary

Baseball ads and culture

Star of Chevrolet World Series ad
Star of Chevrolet World Series ad

For the first time, I was able to watch at least some of every game of the World Series.   For a long-time baseball fan, this was a big deal that has been a long time in coming.    But since I am not a big TV watcher, I am not as adept as some at escaping the commercials. Oh yes, I take snack breaks, probably a few too many of them. But, still over the course of the World Series, I watched a lot of ads, many of them multiple times.   So I decided to make watching ads a little more interesting and become a critical observer of them. The results of this are my own annotated lists of the best and worst of them.

Here are five of my most important criteria.

  • Was there creative energy in it?
  • Did it have a positive message overall, positive for the company and for our culture?
  • Was it interesting?   Did I enjoy watching it?
  • Did it respect my intelligence?
  • Did it fit and respect the venue?

Okay, here are the top five

  1. Mo’ne Davis – This ad was sponsored by Chevrolet. It championed the rise of women’s sports in America today and fitted with the World Series by featuring a young girl who can pitch a baseball 70 mph at the age of 13. By the end of the ad, I wanted to know what company had the wisdom and welcome sense of Americana to sponsor it.
  2. T-Mobile’s the Big 7th – This ad reflected the interactive nature of the world today, something that cell-phones are exploiting for better or worse. The ad was shown as part of the traditional 7th inning stretch. It allowed the audience to be part of the ad in the way that TV announcers at games are trying to do by showing fan clips.
  3. Anheuser-Busch – the history of baseball. The ad showed great moments in baseball history through the experience of fans of that time in history. It was appropriately sepia in tone for the oldest ones too.   I loved the Babe Ruth’s speech over the radio moment. I’m not a fan of alcoholic beverages, but I have to hand it to the people who do advertising for Budweiser.
  4. Nissan Rogue – the little boy’s ride home.   The ad was a gem of creativity. It seemed to flow from the fresh mind of a child where the line between fantasy and reality is very thin. It was fascinating to follow. It captured the desired feeling tone of security very successfully too.
  5. HP ad with the lost iguana — This ad successfully showed that HP has many products while keeping attention with a mini-story of a child-prodigy manager who smoothly runs his campaign to find his lost iguana using HP technology.   Two favorite moments – he’s in bed and lights up the town with big screen ads at the click of a button on his phone; and, like a big-time CEO with a little too much confidence, he rightly predicts the knock at the door.

When I finished making this list, I noticed that four of the top five winners also had great story lines. Interesting!

No ad rating would be complete without talking about the losers as well. The World Series had plenty of them too. When these played I went to get a snack whenever possible.

  1. Painfully awkward Rob Lowe   – This ad was banal and offensive to my intelligence from the beginning.   Do ad makers really think people are that dumb? It was unkind to those who are not with it. It sealed its fate as the worst of the worst by sinking to offensive and unnecessary toilet humor at the end. Direct TV – you lose.
  2. Dumb and Dumber 2 – This is the trashiest ad for a trashy program. Raunch and idiocy replacing humor! Enough said.
  3. Geico – Ickey Woods – celebrate anything.  This whole series of ads has long ago lost its punch. You can only ride a good idea (..but did you know that…) so far. This one rode it ad nauseam.  More stupidity. Seeing ads like this confirms how TV in general has sunk so low that smart people seldom can find a show to watch.
  4. Rob Lowe – Creepy – Direct TV loses again. This one was not quite as low as the other one as it had no toilet humor. But it still insulted my intelligence. Do they really think I would choose Direct TV because one creepy person uses cable? I’m not impressed by actors playing different roles. I felt creepy about the whole ad.
  5. Sonos your home – The one where gold crept up the walls. This one is gross and seems more like a horror flick where the viewer is about to be engulfed in good-looking yuck. It is on the list because it failed spectacularly in the basic task of advertising – making a positive emotional appeal on behalf of the product.

Well, that’s my take. Any comments? What were your favorites and what ads were the butt of your jokes?

 

Categories
Journal News Commentary

New threats to religious freedom

I can’t believe that a city in the US would try to force ministers of the gospel to act contrary to their consciences in their practice of Christian ministry.  Yet that is exactly what is happening in the case of this couple from Idaho.

http://www.adfmedia.org/News/PRDetail/9364

The radical homosexual lobby will not stop at being allowed to do their own thing.  They also insist on forcing everyone else to agree with them which violates the right of others to disagree with their opinions and agenda.  I pray that the courts will uphold the first amendment rights of these ministers of the gospel on behalf of all of us.

If you think this is an  isolated case, think about the mayor of Houston who recently attempted to subpoena pastors’ sermons in her city to see what they were saying about her agenda.  Talk about government overreach!!   This was another attempt to violate first amendment rights.  She quickly realized that the move was political suicide and withdrew it.

One of the great things about our country is religious freedom.  Right now, this means that ministers in denominations which believe homosexual marriage is okay should be able to do such ceremonies if they also feel it is right.   But if religious freedom means anything at all, it means that ministers in groups that hold to traditional views that homosexual marriage is not in accord with Scriptural teaching, and ministers who individually feel the same way, cannot be forced to officiate at such unions.    It is their right in the United States of America to perform only those ceremonies that they feel comfortable in conscience to perform.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Church Leadership Journal

I vote for congregational engagement

Should worship planning and leadership be done to create a great performance or primarily to help the congregation be involved in what is happening?

http://worthilymagnify.com/2014/09/30/worship-at-a-crossroads-congregationalism-versus-performancism/

This excellent article explains a conflict that exists in the Christian church today.  As the author says, a performance orientation in worship services that focuses attention on what happens up front can describe either a traditional service or a contemporary one.   But I actually think what has brought the contrast the author describes into sharper focus is the modern trend to place church congregations literally in the dark as in a theater.    This trend, I believe, decreases interaction and is culturally set up for a performance mindset.  It makes the congregation feel more like an audience.

I have always taught that the most important thing that happens on Sunday morning is not what happens on the platform, it is what happens in the hearts of those in the pews.  The job of worship leaders and pastors is to suggest/guide/facilitate those responses in the congregation.    But that job cannot really be accomplished unless the Holy Spirit is allowed to work in people’s hearts.   Every Sunday morning, what the pastor and others leading worship are trying to accomplish cannot be done by human beings.  The transformation of lives, the healing of souls, the conversion of wills, the sanctifying of lives–this is all God’s work.  Whatever happens up front has as it’s only purpose to help those who are attending to connect with God and his truth and respond to it.  Focusing on performance first will not get this job done.   Being aware that congregational involvement individually and collectively in the service is essential is basic to being used of God in worship.

I need to say though that focusing on congregational response in no way means that those leading worship should settle for less excellence in what they do than those who might have a performance mindset.  Absolutely not!    God’s work is worthy of our best efforts!    God uses excellence by his servants to affect the lives of others.   Those who minister show their heart for God in their excellence.

Categories
Journal Meditations Wisdom

A 10 point strategy for dealing with the many charitable requests we receive?

Question:   One of my parishioners recently wrote me about a dilemma that is certainly common to all of us today.

“I received email from 6 organizations wanting donations from me today. This is pretty much a daily happening and it’s causing me mixed feeling. The question is how do I handle this situation? I have my pet charities; but I don’t feel I should support them all.   Some of them do grab at my heart when it comes to children and animals, and even disabled or blind vets.  The list is getting longer and I feel guilty when I discard them. This is not counting the many calls I get via phone – please give me some advice.”

Answer  from the Pastor’s Desk:

It is unfortunately part of the modern world that we are able to receive so many calls for donations. As you mentioned, some come by phone and some by email, not to mention TV.   Many come from automated mailing systems.   I’m sure before long they will figure out how to send them in other ways as well.   Even at church we have plenty of fund appeals. There are twin spiritual and emotional dangers. On the one hand, we can become overwhelmed by them and laden with guilt so that we hardly know what to do.   On the other hand, and this may be even worse, we can become immunized by the barrage of them to the point that our compassion atrophies and we can no longer respond when we should.

Here is a strategy that I recommend that I believe will allow us to respond in compassion appropriately while protecting ourselves from overload.

1. Pray about where God is calling you to help.

2. Then choose a few charities that are very reputable and that deal with issues that are dear to your heart.   Use your passion for issues and world needs as a guide.  For example, if you feel strongly that you would like to eradicate cancer, then you might choose the American Cancer Society as one of your charities.

3. The number of charities you choose may depend on your means but for most people, I think it will probably be from 3-6. Keep the list small enough so that you can respond occasionally to all of them every year.   Don’t worry if you don’t respond to every call. I don’t think anyone does that. Most of us can’t.  Married couples may decide to each add some favorite ones to a joint list or they may each have their own.

4. Your local church will likely be your number one charity.

5.  I recommend that all Christians in developed countries like ours include at least one charity that ministers to needs in the third world in their list.   It might be UMCOR or World Hope (the one JoAnne and I have chosen), or Samaritan’s Purse or World Vision, for examples (Gal. 2:10).

6.  Consign all other email solicitations ruthlessly to the junk email box. For most of the repeated ones, you can get your browser to do this for you before you even see them. Trash both email and snail mail from other charities without even opening it.

7. For phone calls, tell the person up front if their charity is not on your list and if they won’t take “no” for an answer, they deserve a hang-up.

8. The fact that you are obeying God in generosity to the charities you have chosen helps you to not feel guilty in disregarding the others.  Seek to be at peace with your level of giving.   God does not want you to feel burdened with guilt about it but to be a joyful giver (2 Cor. 9:7).

9  Follow faithfully the charities that you have chosen, allowing God to use you to help them.  Read their materials and become knowledgeable about them.

10. Annually evaluate your overall participation in your chosen charities.   If you do taxes, that is a natural time to evaluate.  Your ultimate goal as a Christian steward is God’s well-done for your handling of the wealth he has entrusted to you.   A term that I have found helpful in measuring my response is to ask whether or not I have been generous.   God loves generosity and his economy rewards it.   As the Proverb says, “The generous will themselves be blessed” (Pr 22:9 NIV 2011).

Categories
Journal Joy Notes Who Am I

My daylily hobby

Old stone walls make great back drops for daylilies
My daylily bed - upper part
My daylily bed - lower part
I am happy to have several daylilies I inherited from my grandmother, Jessie Isaman
I like single specimen shots
An apricot beauty
One of my favorites
This one is called Yellow Submarine
The picture doesn't do it justice
clumps of bloom are always a delight
Another favorite and the show-stopper of my garden
Red Sails is also an impressive spider daylily.
A new purple called Imprimatur
An almost white daylily
Siloam June Bug
This daylily was the star of my garden this summer
Sometimes two daylilies complement each other
My new rather hot colored one
7 blooms on daylily Burnt Sienna
Siloam Doodlebug

[Show as slideshow]

An inherited avocation

The last daily bloom faded away one day this past week ending another season of daylily delight. Growing the flower technically called hemerocallis is a pastime I inherited from my grandmother, Jessie Isaman. Watch out! Growing daylilies is catching; my daughter has the bug as well.

How it started

I started growing daylilies while at my first church in Bentley Creek, PA.   When I visited my parents, I would dig up a shovelful from the huge clumps on the farm and transport them to my parsonage in northern Pennsylvania. When I moved from there I took a shovelful from each clump and threw the daylilies in a crate in the back of the moving truck. In spite of being packed away in the closed up semi-body for a month, every plant lived.   They are tough. I had the start for a new daylily garden at my second parsonage in Kirkville, New York.

How it grew

While in Kirkville, I discovered a daylily farm at Grace Gardens on Angus Road just off Route 14 south of Geneva, NY.    Over the years that I lived in Kirkville I purchased many more daylily varieties and planted them around the property until I had more than 30 varieties.   A few more came from Roots and Rhizomes by mail. When I moved to my third parsonage in West Granby Connecticut, my plan was to take a shovelful from each clump and pack them in the truck again. But this time, I was using a moving company and they would not do that.   So, I clipped a double fan or so from each clump that I had dug and gave the rest away.    I filled my car trunk and brought them with me.   Some ended up at my daughter’s house.   Most of them form the nucleus for my collection here.

My latest additions

This summer, I was meandering home from an Adirondack vacation when I drove by Jim’s daylily farm in Ticonderoga, New York.   He has the healthiest daylilies I’ve ever seen and lots of them.   Though his lot space is limited, every square foot was growing daylilies.   I brought the car to a screeching halt, turned around and somehow found room for about six new varieties on top of all our camping goods. My wife was not so happy about some dirt that filtered down through.   But then I’m not noted for keeping my car pristine. I’d rather carry some things that I need and clean up later.  Anyway, with these new additions, I now have about 40 varieties of daylilies here at West Granby parsonage.   Fortunately, there’s lots of room.   Of course, the beds are young, so the displays are just getting started. Here are a few pictures from this summer.

 

 

Categories
Americana Journal Who Am I

A 1921 Truck

Bob Whittier with his project
1921 Republic truck

[Show as slideshow]

A few weeks ago I stopped by the Hartford County 4-H Fair to see the exhibit of one of the families in our congregation. Griffin and Connor were working hard and doing great with their animals. Their grandma, Carol, a former 4-H organizer, took me around and introduced me to some of her friends. I love fairs anyway as they bring back memories. I exhibited Guernsey cattle at the Steuben County Fair in Bath NY as a teenager, both in the 4-H and open division. Many nights, I also watched over all the cattle our farm sent to the fair—memories.  JoAnne and I dated at fairs.

While I was walking around at the Hartford 4-H Fair I came across another exhibit that I found fascinating. Bob Whittier was exhibiting his partially restored 1921 Republic truck.   I chatted with him for a while and learned, for example, that the original headlamps still work.   I also learned that the truck was the main source of transportation for the US military in WWI at which time they were called Liberty Trucks. He cranked up (literally) the engine and it purred. He plans further restoration of the roof.