Rev. Andrew's Adventures

Earlier this month at UMC of Rancho Cordova where I am a member, our new Pastor, Jo Ann challenged the congregation to press on, not looking behind at what 2015 was and to press forward in 2016.  Pressing on is something we must do, through the good times and the bad times.  In Philippians 3: 12-16, the Apostle Paul writes 12  Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; [ g ]  but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13  Beloved, [ h ]  I do not consider that I have made it my own; [ i ]  but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,  14  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly [ j ]  call of God in Christ Jesus.  15  Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you.  16  Only let us hold fast to what we ...

Happy New Year, or at least while it's still relatively fresh in our minds!!  Here we stand three days on the other side of the threshold of a new year as we have said our farewell to 2015 and hello to 2016.  I always view the world in artistic terms and see each new day, each new week, and each new year like that of a fresh canvas.  Just like each episode of the late Bob Ross's The Joy of Painting, the artist would always begin with a blank canvas and so too can we start anew as this year unfolds. It was also a new day at The United Methodist Church of Rancho Cordova this morning, as Pastor Tina has moved onto retirement and we welcomed Pastor Jo Ann to our congregation.  It has been a strange feeling leading into this, as I have had to say farewell to two other beloved colleagues this past year, but as Pastor Jo Ann reminded us this morning, we need to press on and keep looking ahead.  Change is a constant in life, whether we like it or not.  But tha...

A couple of weeks ago, I received some encouragement from my mentor to start blogging again.  Seems like some of my more positive, devotional, or more useful posts on Facebook and social media carry an encouraging message for others.  I'm known for posting a lot of random stuff, but have made an intentional effort over the last year have become more selective in what I post.  I still get here and there from family members "well, you gonna put that on Facebook?" and admit while it can be a little amusing or annoying, find myself challenged to post things that will make a positive difference among my friends and family.  It seems like today that we are finding ourselves more polarized as a society and social media is definitely not exempt.  I guess in some ways, some of my more inspirational posts are mini sermons in themselves, as well as small snippets of what my original blog was meant to do.  We need a word of hope, and need to see the light in this world...

After returning to Washington, DC three months ago after a two week intercultural immersion on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, I have had this sense and nudging to get back to blogging again.  I have found myself hooked on a soon to be colleague's blog and have other friends who blog regularly, so why not try to get back into the swing of things.  I also find it a great spiritual discipline where I can share my random ramblings, thoughts on the world, thoughts on God/theology, health/self-care, and the like.  I actually began a blog on WordPress under this title and after reflecting further on my time in Pine Ridge and encountering extreme poverty and poverty in general, thought that a re-launch of "Let's Go Light our World" was in order. A lot of the inspiration for "Let's Go Light Our World" came five years ago when I still worked at Raley's in the guest service counter at the North Highlands location (until its closure in 2012) and would have...

I sit here in the Denver International Airport Frontier Airlines terminal waiting for my flight back to Washington, DC and am processing so much now that our immersion with the Lakota Nation at Pine Ridge has ended.  The view of the Rockies to my left are stunning, as I wish I had more time to explore Denver, but alas, there is work to do and a new semester on the horizon.  And it's a fresh canvas too, full of new possibilities, but also fresh vision of who I am and how I see others.  The one thing that has really been going through my mind these last two weeks is John Wesley's quote, "the world is my parish," as the Lakota and all who were native to this land are our neighbors and part of our parish too.  I have to admit that I feel more conflicted than ever as I go back to Washington, DC. Learning in history classes, we often get a one sided view.  Even as I recollect reading stories, watching cartoons, or in film, we have often grossly stereotyped the Native ...

So at last, our time together has come to an end and here I am sitting in the Rapid City Regional Airport waiting for my flight to Denver, in which I will then switch to a different airline and fly to DC.  As I wait, figure I would have a chance to record some thoughts.  Yesterday was another full day of activity, as we went up to Christ Episcopal Church on Red Shirt Mountain and listened to their pastor, Robert talk about his life on the Pine Ridge Reservation and growing up Lakota.  Rev. Robert's talk was similar to that of Kelly Looking Horse's, as there is still a great deal of lingering pain through the generations from Wounded Knee and that there is still a great distrust of the U.S. government and rightfully so.  Promises have been made and broken time and again, land is given and taken away time and again.  So it is easy to see the frustration in the faces and hear it in the voices of the elders in the Lakota Nation.  But, there is a full trust in...

These last two days have had so much happening and so much going on that it has been hard to keep up here in the blogosphere.  While we have had our share of down time to reflect and relax, we have had plenty to keep us busy.  Yesterday, after hearing stories from Norma, one of the residents of Pine Ridge, we headed up to Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse up in the Black Hills.  Although I was excited to see Mount Rushmore (we were supposed to Saturday, but the van broke down), I had mixed feelings about it after seeing the movie "Skins" which was filmed at Pine Ridge in 2002.  To the Lakota people, the construction of Mount Rushmore, while an impressive feat, was akin to tearing a gash out of the Lakota people's land.  To some, it was more an act of desecration.  Land is sacred and much of the Black Hills is an integral part in the Lakota creation story.  In fact, I keep thinking of the end of "Skins" where red paint is thrown on George Washington's face...