Staff Trax

One of the privileges I get as a pastor is to sit at a funeral home table after a loved one has died. I’m there to give support, act as a liaison between the funeral home and the church, and to just be another set of listening ears.

One of the most difficult times to do this has been when a loved one has completed suicide. It is a very painful goodbye. I have been with families of those…

Dear Beloved of Salem,

By now, I hope you have received and read over the covenant that the councils and leadership of both Salem and Atonement sent out via email last week. This was drafted with careful consideration and with hopes of some structure moving forward. As part of our continuing collaboration, I wanted to make all of you aware that starting Sept. 9, I will be working…

There is so much paperwork involved with dying. I know so many of you know this already, but since my dad passed, I am constantly amazed by the amount of paperwork. It’s ironic: we receive one piece of paper when we’re born. Upon death, the paperwork never ceases. Dad’s cancer didn’t give us a lot of gifts. But it did give us time. We had time to plan, talk about end-of-life wishes, dad’s…

As I compose this, I have just returned from vacation. It was a restful time away visiting family in north Texas as well as a few days in Austin. The weather was sweltering but we still managed to have a good time. And as soon as we returned home on Monday, we started preparation to send our daughter, EJ, to camp.

EJ has been attending Camp Shalom in Maquoketa, Iowa, for seven years. When…

On June 6, Van and Judy Chappell and I gathered at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Overland Park to represent Salem at the Central States Synod Assembly. This year, the assembly took place online (a cost-saving decision). So, around 20 folks from around the metro gathered at Holy Cross so we could be together even while being virtual. I love Synod Assembly because it is a reminder of what we do as…

Dear Beloved of Salem,

During a recent meeting with Pastor Zac and Pastor Jordan at Atonement, we asked a really logical question of “why aren’t we sharing preaching responsibilities?” The initial plan was for Pastor Zac or Jordan to preach the Atonement “lead” services (Saturday and early Sunday) and for me to preach our 11:00 service. But, in order to foster a sense of collaboration…

It’s hard to believe that we are coming up on a year together! Last year, my first event as your pastor was to attend Synod Assembly with Joyce Benedict and Renee Loya. It was one of the most Holy Spirit filled events I had been to in quite some time, and I was so proud to have been a part of the election of our now-bishop, Rev. Dr. Donna Simon.

The work of a Synod Assembly is hard and…

As I write this, we are two weeks away from Good Faith Network’s Nehemiah Action meeting. It will be held Tuesday, April 28 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Leawood campus of Resurrection: A United Methodist Church (formerly known as Church of the Resurrection). It is not too late to let me, Renee Loya, or Chris Wise know you are coming.

I’ve spent some time thinking about why the work of Good…

I once had a member of a previous congregation tell me “I don’t come to the services during Holy Week … it’s just too hard.” It wasn’t hard from a transportation or time aspect. It was hard from an emotional standpoint. This person didn’t want to witness (again) the trial, torture, and state sanctioned execution of Jesus. They chose to be at Palm Sunday and skip to Easter. And in some…

Shortly after marriage, Chris and I moved to Wichita Falls, Texas. Chris had gotten his first teaching job and so we moved someplace where we knew no one. Our first task: find a church. Since it was Texas, our options for Lutheran churches (at least in that part of Texas) weren’t great. So, we settled at Faith Lutheran. Our first Sunday was our pastor’s first Sunday. Quickly after arriving we…