[From my journal while pastoring a church in downtown Columbus:] It was a sad and difficult situation. We have a locked wooden box bolted to the back wall of the church. It has a slot in the top for receiving gifts that visitors (and members) might drop into it for the maintenance of our old … Continue reading Pastor Notes #11: A Desperate Act by One of the Least of These
Tag: discernment
Pastor Notes #9
[The following is a letter I wrote to a forty-something parishioner who had been raised in a nominal Roman Catholic home and had given her life to Christ while she was in college. This letter was written on the occasion of her nominally Catholic mother's death. As you will also see, the circumstances of my … Continue reading Pastor Notes #9
Prayer Notes #1
A Prayer about Prayer Lord, I struggle so much to force myself to be still and to concentrate on anything, but especially on prayer. I really do hate this about myself. Do I have to be this way? Please, Lord, if I could simply be still and concentrate better mentally, I believe I would be … Continue reading Prayer Notes #1
Pastor Notes #8 (9/11/2001) — Presence as Ministry
[The following is from several entries into my journal about the events of the evening of September 11, 2001. I was at that time the pastor of Central Presbyterian Church in the heart of downtown Columbus, Ohio. There are several large, high-end hotels in the immediate vicinity of the church.] Tuesday, September 11, 2001 7:30 … Continue reading Pastor Notes #8 (9/11/2001) — Presence as Ministry
Pastor Notes #5
A Prayer My Father, I want to be a man of discernment. I want to be a man thoroughly committed to acting on your will as I discern it. But I know that that means I must be committed to nurturing a spirit of patience and quietness in myself -- a quietness that is not … Continue reading Pastor Notes #5
Pastor Notes #4
A Prayer You bring unexpected and surprising encounters into my life regularly, Lord. And because you are the Lord and my Lord, I know that these encounters are part of your purpose for me. I often don't know exactly what your purposes are in bringing me and any given person together, but I know that … Continue reading Pastor Notes #4
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 