Lord, I know less than usual what to expect during worship today. Help me to trust you more than usual. Pour your Spirit out in fullness on our worship. Quiet the fears the people may have at your Spirit's coming upon us, and instead open us to receive him in all power, grace, … Continue reading Prayer Note #16 — A Pastor’s Sunday Morning Prayer
Tag: pastoral ministry
Prayer Note #15 — A Pastor’s Prayer before Worship
I look to you, my Lord and my God. I look to you. The worship of your people and my part in it all hangs on the working of your Spirit. Be gracious and patient with us, because we do come here full of sin and self-centeredness. We are idolatrous people, because much of our … Continue reading Prayer Note #15 — A Pastor’s Prayer before Worship
Pastor Notes #19
{A note sent to a family whose dog had just been euthanized because of cancer.} Dear Ts, What pain love can bring into our lives! Whenever we give our hearts in love, we make ourselves vulnerable to sorrow. Yet in spite of any sorrow that comes into our lives by way of love, the richness … Continue reading Pastor Notes #19
Bible Notes #2 — Ecclesiates 7:21-22
"Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servants cursing you. Your heart knows that many times you yourself cursed other." Ecclesiates 7:21-22 [ESV] Have a thick skin! Don't take personally everything people say. Don't be quick to take offense. If we are slow to take offense, … Continue reading Bible Notes #2 — Ecclesiates 7:21-22
Pastor Note #16 — “Sex With a Purpose”
What is sex? And what is it for? And is your answer any of my business anyway? For all our modern western society’s fixation on sexuality, I don’t see any evidence that we are any less confused about it than our great grandparents. So many books are being published on how to deal with … Continue reading Pastor Note #16 — “Sex With a Purpose”
Pastor Notes #13
In my time as a pastor, I've performed lots and lots of weddings. I've made no secret of the fact that on the whole I'm not terrible fond of doing weddings. Each wedding with the premarital counseling, wedding planning, rehearsal, preliminary and follow-up can be very time consuming. I don't mind that so much. What … Continue reading Pastor Notes #13
Pastor Notes #12 — The Ministry of Meaning
One of the most important things pastors can do is to help people understand the meaning of their actions and the circumstances of their lives. Many philosophers and theologians have asserted that the ability to find meaning in the events of their lives and in the things that they do is one of the essential … Continue reading Pastor Notes #12 — The Ministry of Meaning
Pastor Notes #11: A Desperate Act by One of the Least of These
[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
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
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
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 