One of the things that I started to do with questions that have been posed to me regarding our readings in the Transformation Journal is to post the question and my response here on the blog for a wider audience to receive. I always do so only after receiving permission from the person presenting the question. [I wouldn't want anyone to be afraid of asking me a question. Confidentiality is vital and I would never seek to compromise that] Today, I wanted to share a response to this question I received this week.

With the economy being the way it is and the recent suicide of some of the executives I have a question for you: If someone commits suicide and right before they die they ask for god’s forgiveness does that mean they will go to heaven or hell?  I don’t know why but that question popped up in my head yesterday after hearing about the executive from Freddie Mac.

Here’s my response. If you have some additional thoughts or questions, feel free to email me or post a comment below.

I spent the weekend attending almost every worship service at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City, Kansas. COR [as it is commonly referred to] is the largest Methodist Church in America and is pastored by Rev. Adam Hamilton. I’ve had the privilege of being a part of the Young Pastors Network during this past year which has been co-led by Adam and Rev. Mike Slaughter at Ginghamsburg UMC in Tipp City, Ohio. I was able to attend worship at Ginghamsburg last fall.

While in Kansas City, we attended the 5:00 p.m. Saturday night service, the 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning traditional service, the 10:45 “Vibe” service which is a contemporary service in the student center with a video of Adam’s sermon from Saturday night, and the 5:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon service. They have an additional 10:45 a.m. traditional service in the main sanctuary. [identical to their 9:00 a.m. service] Adam’s sermon this weekend was the first of a four part series, “Confessions of a Struggling Parent,” and he focused on the ways we sometimes seek to bless our kids but unintentionally curse them. [i.e. All we want is for them to be happy and so we try to protect them from any struggle.]The key question for the message was this… What blessings are you giving to the children in your life?

I was moved [every time] by Adam sharing a practice that he started when his first child was born of writing a letter to them on their birthday. He has collected these letters and shared that his children will receive them when he’s gone. What was most inspiring about Adam’s message was his very heartfelt desire that he has had as a father to share his faith with his children. In talking about their own identity formation and time spent wrestling with their questions of faith, he said something to the effect, “I was so scared because I couldn’t imagine failing at this… because this is the most important thing in my life.”Hhe was brought to tears every time he said that phrase. I was too.

I was able to have lunch with two of the Associate Pastors at COR which was a wonderful treat. They had a really jam packed weekend, but we had a great conversation and it was a blessing to connect with another young couple serving the church in another context.

I came away from this experience with lots of notes and ideas for our church. I put together a four page summary for our Senior Pastor as we look at the future here at First UMC Mansfield and seek to continue to grow in our effectiveness in reaching the community we’ve been called to serve. But among all of those details and ideas, I come away with one overarching idea.

The world needs the United Methodist Church.

As a leader in this denomination I have a responsibility to do all that I can to make sure that our future is filled with churches who are effectively reaching out into the world with a desire to bring the transformation and [re]formation that represents God’s kingdom breaking into our world. I don’t mean to belittle or pass judgment on other denominations, but I do believe that the United Methodist Church has a particular part to play in God’s Kingdom and we have to do a better job fulfilling that role.

That’s the commitment of my life, and I came back from Kansas City [again] with a renewed focus on that important task of my life… the renewal of the church and the reformation of the world.

And along the way, I was reminded of the most important thing in my life… Representing God’s “fatherhood” in the lives of my children. I can’t wait to start writing those Birthday letters.

Today my family and I are heading out for a weekend trip to the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City, Kansas.If you’ve never heard about Church of the Resurrection, here’s some info from their website.

The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection has grown from four people in 1990 to over 12,000 adult members with an average weekly worship attendance of over 7,500 in 2008.  The church was listed as the most influential mainline church in America in a 2005 survey of American pastors.  The Church of the Resurrection has a three-fold focus:  1. Reaching non-religious and nominally religious people and helping them become committed followers of Jesus Christ;  2. Equipping and inspiring members to live their faith in mission to the community and world; and 3. Acting as a catalyst for renewing the mainline church.

I’ve had the opportunity to participate in the Leadership Institute sponsored by COR each year. In this past year, I’ve also been a part of the Young Pastors Network which Adam Hamilton, COR’s Senior Pastor, co-leads with Mike Slaughter, Senior Pastor of Ginghamsburg UMC in Ohio, but I’ve never had the opportunity to experience the weekend at Church of the Resurrection. We’ll be attending four of their weekend worship services including their Saturday Night service, their 9:00 a.m. Traditional service, a new service they’ve started called Vibe, and their Sunday afternoon service at 5:00 p.m. So we’re going to get some church this weekend!

We’ll be looking specifically at their welcoming ministry, children’s programming offered during their services, how they are handling a concurrent service [two at one time on Sunday morning at 11:00 with Vibe] and how they have grown their 5:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon service into one of their largest services. This will be my first “research excursion” as we continue to make plans to add additional worship opportunities at First UMC Mansfield.

On the way, we’ll also be stopping in Oklahoma City on Friday night and catch a Redhawks minor league game as well. I’ll try to post some pictures over the weekend and a wrapup of the trip on Tuesday!

Yesterday I completed my fourth interview with the Central Texas Conference Board of Ordained Ministry. These interviews take place on an annual basis and are required for all candidates for ministry who are in the Residency program in preparation for ordination in the United Methodist Church. With that interview behind me,  I have just completed my first year of a three year residency program.

Our church has a very defined and rigorous process for qualifying men and women for ordination which I think is a necessity. I don’t always like the process. It’s very long [I'll tell you how long in a minute] and it does require a lot of work, but ordination is a big deal, a sacred act that should be difficult to achieve. Along the way though, there are some interesting dynamics that you see in a process of this magnitude.

One of those happened to me yesterday when a member of my interview team asked me a question in regards to my psychological evaluation [yes, we require these!] that I completed when I was 22 years old. [I'm 31 now. That's how long the process can be] It was interesting to me because I can barely remember what it was like to be in my late twenties, married without kids, much less, 22, fresh out of college, getting ready to get married, with no seminary training and no real church work experience. So, the question that was posed to me was essentially a request for me to dialogue with a statement I had made when I was 22…

And guess what…

It was a stupid statement.

It was something that I don’t even believe anymore.

It was something that if I heard someone say today, I would strongly oppose.

The only problem was this. I was the one who said it… nine years ago.

Awkward position.

And yet it also gave me the opportunity to reflect on how much has changed in my life in the last nine years. It made me think about several particular experiences that I have had in the past nine years that radically changed my heart and life away from someone who would say something like I said at the wise old age of 22. It gave me the chance to see how God has taken my initial passion and energy for ministry and reshaped that around a clearer vision of what the “redeeming” work of God’s kingdom is really all about.

And today it’s a reminder to me that what God really requires of us is simply a willing heart.

With a willing heart, God can do amazing work. We don’t have to have all the answers. We don’t have to all the necessary skills.

Just a heart that says, “yes.”

“I’m willing to learn. I’m willing to serve. I’m willing to be changed in order to participate in the changing of others.”

That’s the word that I received from yesterday’s interview. A reminder that my highest calling is to continually place my heart and life on God’s table, willing and ready for him to continue the work of “reformation” in my life.

What has God done in your life in the last nine years?

What is it that you need to stop right now and thank God for doing in your heart in the last great season of your life?

Take a look back… You just might be surprised how far you’ve come.

Our Senior Pastor sent out the following note today about pastoral staff changes in our church.

Dear First Family,
I am excited to announce a restructuring in the ministry direction of two of our pastors that will enable our church to step up in reaching the goals we set for ourselves this year and in years to come, lining up particularly with our theme for 2009, “Discovering pathways to Christ-centered living!”

Reverend Jim Gause, our Director of Care Ministries, has recently completed his education in Counseling Psychology and is now Dr. Jim Gause, PhD.  He is a certified professional counselor and Life Coach.  He will continue to work in pastoral care with an emphasis on hospital and crisis care, but his new focus will be counseling in marriage, grief and depression.  He will be available in his office in the Wesley Mission Center and may be reached at (817)475-8749 for an appointment.  I anticipate this expanded ministry making a great difference and celebrate with Jim, now Dr. Jim.

Reverend David Alexander has been our Associate Pastor of Evangelism, leading primarily in evangelism, communication and in Saturday night worship.  His new designation will be Teaching Pastor.  David will be more involved in preaching, teaching, worship planning and pastoral care, as well as leading church-wide Bible studies beginning with “Transformation  Journey,” a study that will be offered on Tuesday evenings beginning January 27.  This is a step into a more full pastoral role.  This change will benefit all our church as we continue a year we have called “The Year of Living Biblically!”

May God bless Jim, David and our church in this transition.

For the cause of Christ,
Reverend Mike Ramsdell
Senior Pastor