The Playbook

I'm closing in on completing my first month of minstry here in Vancouver, and it's been nothing but a tremendous adjustment to real life. So far, I've had a lot of fun as well as a lot of challenges. There's no point in me going on to list out everything on each end, but I still often find myself dazed at the fact that I'm actually supposed to be doing a job now. Again, I have to give my thanks to those that have helped me, even when it was unwarranted. It shows that I continue to be surrounded by amazing people that want me to succeed; I appreciate it.

Before I continue, I must make mention of the best concert I've been to. This past Thursday, I went to the Jason Mraz show with a good friend, and if I had to describe the show in one word, it would be "uplifting." I don't even care that I'm one of the more dedicated fans of Mraz, but being at the show really lifted my spirits in a way they haven't been lifted in a long time. Most concerts I go to, the artists do their best to put on a show and have the goal of entertaining with the audience. With Mraz, he does more than that; he has a way of connecting with his fans and really doing life with everyone for the span of the show. I very much appreciated that he made me feel like I, along with everyone else, belonged. On the musical side of things, I also think that his vocals sound on point. He's recovered well from his illness several years ago, and it's really showing how well he can sing. What a night!

Coming back to my life at Newbern, I'm beginning to get a grasp of what the culture of the church is like. There's been more than a few days where I've thought to myself and asked God, "what in the world do I have to offer for this church?" And, I don't ask it with a skeptical tone, though there has been some of it, but I think it's just part of the process of starting at a new position. With where I'm at right now, I'm not even thinking about walking yet; I'm just simply trying to stand up without being wobbly.

I've shared with a few people about how I feel hesitant to dive right into doing things. There's been advice ranging from "yes! Get right in, do as much as you can while people are excited," to "you should wait at least 6 months before even trying to do anything." The answer I'm usually left with at the end of the day is the same question I had just mentioned, "what can I even do, at this point?"

Start small. That's what keeps coming to my mind. I need to develop good habits for myself, build a good routine and solidify my foundation. Basically, I think my first big challenge is to mould myself into what God wants my church to be before I try to get people to do the same - not going to be easy, but fair enough.

To cap off this post, I think I'm going to begin using my blog to help me with my ministry as well. I'm going to try to write down my impressions of things at certain points in time and then refer back to them later on to see if the thoughts still stand. If they do, then there's probably some digging that I can do to move forward with where I need to go and what I need to do.

First of all, there are a few things that are "bylaw" here that have resulted from something happening in the past. While I don't like this philosophy of running a church, I have to comply to it for now. When something happens, and it causes you to change fundamentals in how your church policies go, sometimes to a point of them being completely unbiblical, I find it more restricting than beneficial. At times, it's just flat out wrong; and a big chunk of these issues are one-offs anyway.

The second impression has many little contributing factors. The result of these factors is a sense that the people, especially the younger ones, don't even know what having a pastor is like. I got asked tonight at youth if I have a job. I assumed it was a side job that was being referred to, which I said politely, "no, this is my job." Then the response was, "so what do you do during the week then? Just stay at home?" She wasn't trying to be mean, but she just didn't know better. What a "pastor" means for these kids has always been the person that just comes to speak on Sunday, but have no affiliation with the church otherwise. I actually find this really sad. I've heard about this somewhat ignorant misconception many, many times, but now I've seen it in action in reference to myself.

In the following weeks, I'm going to work hard at coming up with a ministry plan and goal - a playbook, you can say. The English congregation here has no identity and no guidance. One of the elders put it best when he said that it's somewhat in a survival mode. What I do appreciate is that the people are willing. That's all I need. I know that I'm going to ask to do some things that next to no one will like, but the fact that most of them seem willing is all it may take. One hopeless goal I have, though, is to make this place less Chinese. Haha! It's way too Asian for my likes, but I knew this going in.