OVER ONE YEAR LATER
. . .We are literally living in some severely surreal times. . .
STILL
well past 365 days later
The World just doesn’t merely seem to be rocked on it’s axis
or upside down
But actually less Round than we previously thought. . .
and whatever it was we thought we knew
almost seems
myth-like
to what we’re feeling. . .
L I K E :
IT
TAKES
A VILLAGE
and not that it’s just a nice cliche
IT HAS NEW MEANING

We have all heard it said it takes a village to raise a child. . .
but what about an ADULT?
What’s it take to not so much raise but
CARE FOR
AN ADULT. . . ?
Because of our continuing
MASKING
PHYSICAL DISTANCING
HAND SCRUBBING
VACINNATING
We’ve never been less of a Village
than right now,
AND THEN AGAIN. . .
never more than
A Village
OF ONE
than NOW. . .
Who could have ever imagined,
even with all of our safety measures
that one person could be a Village. . .
that YOU are a Village?  
It is true isn’t it. . .
Y O U
The Village
. . .How is that even possible?  
Because now more than ever you are re-defining
overcoming the myth
you have lived with all of your life
The fib that’s been told to us
ever since we were very
very small
the lie that might’ve been the first lie
we ever heard:
That you have a purpose
That you have a reason
That you have a destiny
That you have a meaning. . .
T O D A Y
especially today
with what’s going on all around us
all that’s grumbling loudly within us
where our World feels like it has been
rolled down a steep hill
heading quickly for a cliff
of a dark unknown return
stumbling and rumbling out of place;
B U T
now more than
our ever
we are eerily discovering
that we were born for
THIS TIME
in THIS PLACE
for THIS MOMENT
THIS NOW. . .
And it’s not to be
For a Purpose
For a Meaning
For a Reason
For a Destiny. . .
It’s truly to be
A Village
YOU,
The Village
. . .because now more than ever
we have never been more
P L U R A L
than Who we are in right now.  . .

Now more than ever
Y O U
are not just a Person
A Woman
A Mom
A Man
A Dad
A Partner
A Significant Other
A Uncle
A Aunt
A Grandfather
A Grandmother

You’re not just what your vocation says you are
you are all of those roles
all of those characters
wrapped up in one. . .
You are a walking
You are a talking
You are a living
You are a giving
V I L L A G E
YOU,
The Village

Now the most ultimate question of all
. . .especially for this new
N O W
is just what kind of a
Village are you. . . ?

Can you even be found on a map
Seen from a Satellite from way above;
Are you inclusive
Are you exclusive
Do you draw circles and include everybody
or are you a line drawer in the sand
that points as it emphasizes
you
You
and YOU
are IN
and
You
You
and most especially
Y O U
are out?

YOU,
The Village
are living in an age where the temporary feels like the permanent
but it most assuredly isn’t. . .
The new
NEW
is born in you
not just once
or once in a while
or even once a day
but every single moment. . .
And now
N O W
proves to us that it always has been this way
but never as magnified
as it is at this very
I N S T A N T

We have long heard the question
that determines whether or not we are
Optimists or Pessimists :
Is the glass half full or half empty?
N O W
Maybe another way to ask this question
Is this
NOW
Happening to us
or
HAPPENING
For Us.  . .
It’s no longer
WHAT FILLS YOUR GLASS
b u t
WHAT EMPTY’S IT
(or WHO). . . ?

It’s not really a question to answer with your mouth
but your Actions;
so how live you. . .
not what say YOU
HOW LIVE YOU

YOU ARE A VILLAGE

To know it is one thing.
To be it is another.  
But this
N O W
means to share it
is
the ultimate thing

. . .and then never let the
l o v i n g
stop from overflowing
from one
to another
until this
S E T T L E M E N T
becomes
YOU-NIVERASL

25 of anything is a good amount
but 25 years
well, now,
that’s even more of a profound number
and account.          .          .
A QUARTER OF A CENTURY
25 Years and more. . .
So very, very much more

I began serving North Royalton Christian Church on January 15, 1995, knowing that I NEEDED to have a part-time position to supplement my income having jumped from a full-time Senior Minister position at Westlake Christian Church and a part-time chaplain’s position at St. John Westshore Hospital to a Spiritual Care Coordinator’s position at Hospice of the Western Reserve.  It was a JUMP then and now I don’t regret even though it was a major change for me and the family.  I NEEDED to have this position more than I WANTED to have the position and when Susan Cash, an Elder and also one of the primary people on the Search Committee, stood up this past Sunday in Church and marked the occasion with some fabulous and humbling remarks, (which can be seen at the bottom of this post in full taken from the February Church Newsletter) It only summoned the memory to recall things that the weight of, buckles knees and humbles the heart.  

I thought 25 years ago, I NEEDED North Royalton Christian Church for the supplemental income when there have been few moments in those 25 years that have failed to remind me that I NEEDED North Royalton Christian Church for so very much more, and oh, oh how they have delivered in more ways that we will all fail to fully comprehend.  My best moments (and hopefully, theirs) is when we have lived in full, vivid living color that I am not THE minister of North Royalton Christian Church, but actually and fully, A MINISTER of the church and our greatest achievements and even failings, have been when we’ve seen each other that way.  WE, US, not I or me, do the ministry of the church. In essence, they made me A Caring Catalyst before I knew the true definition on one.

Maybe it’s ironic, but as we are celebrating 25 years of ministry together, I am also looming on celebrating 40 years of being ordained this May.  In such a profound and powerful way I fully KNOW that I’m not just a sum total of all the pieces/parts/experiences that make me up, but literally, all of the lives who have made my life, MY LIFE. 

What excites and motivates me now is that there are still lives, pieces, parts, and experiences that continue to be added, to further, and not just expand or make my tapestry, but actually  BE MY TAPESTRY.  A single thread a tapestry does not make.  I’m so richly consecrated  to have that proven moment by moment and better still, person by person.

Much in the same vein of Robert Frost’s poem, STOPPING BY THE WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING, I so much embody the last verse:
THE WOODS ARE LOVELY, DARK AND DEEP,
BUT I HAVE PROMISES TO KEEP,
AND MILES TO GO BEFORE I SLEEP,
AND MILES TO GO BEFORE I SLEEP.

In a way that echoes those very sentiments, Susan ended her much appreciated remarks with a quote by an author I’ve never really read, Ursula Le Guin.  It comes from her novel, ALWAYS COMING HOME:
“When I take you to the Valley, you’ll see the blue hills on the left and the blue hills on the right, the rainbow and the vineyards under the rainbow late in the rainy season, and maybe you’ll say, ‘There it is, that’s it!’   But I’ll say, ‘A little further.’  We’ll go on, I hope and you’ll see the roofs of the little towns and the hillsides yellow with wild oats, a buzzard soaring and a woman singing by the shadows of a creek in the dry season, and maybe you’ll say, ‘Let’s stop here, this is it!’  But I’ll say, ‘A little further yet.’  And we’ll go on, a you’ll hear a quail calling on the mountain by the springs of the river, and looking back you’ll see the river running downward through the wild hills behind, below, and you’ll say, ‘Isn’t that the Valley?’  And all I will be able to say is, ‘Drink this water of the spring, rest here awhile, we have a long way yet to go without you.’”

I know that my best steps are the ones I’ve never taken alone
but in sync with others
and that the ones to be taken
could be the best ones
still yet to come
with the promise 
that those taken long after my last step
could be the very best yet
even more
because of any step I’ve walked along with others
. . .those are the steps
that keep marching forward
. . .ALL-WAYS forward
advancing
inspiring other steps
to be taken
experienced
s h a r e d

25 Years
and More
so very, very much
M O R E
that shows you the difference between
N O T I C I N G
and
K N O W I N G
I have been so magnificently blessed
in experiencing both
and the best part–
I still do
I still am

WE ARE HUMBLY APPRECIATIVE
Thank you

January 26, 2020 

In Honor of Chuck and Erin’s 25th Anniversary 

In January 1995, we didn’t have GPS. There was no Febreze or Swiffer. Selfies & texting didn’t exist because there were no smart phones. Invisible braces were far off in the future. There was no Wikipedia, Google or Facebook and online banking and shopping at Amazon were not yet available. 

If you were attending NRCC in early January of 1995, you know we didn’t have a minister either until later in the month. That’s when Chuck joined us. 

Over the years, Chuck has presented about 1200 sermons to us. He doesn’t preach, he tells parables—I remember one of his first Sundays here he told us about a character in his hometown who the towns’ people called Ugly. It was a very touching and dramatic story. Chuck has delivered a sermon from the top of a ladder; he’s come dressed as a bum; was an Elvis impersonator; has been Paul, Peter, and Judas; and he often sings his sermons. Once his niece sat in our congregation as a homeless person. 

I don’t think he has ever repeated a sermon let alone repeated a theme. 

And standing alongside Chuck is Erin—we got a twofer—two special gifts to this congregation. We thank God for sending you both to us. You’ll never know how much we appreciate your devotion, your dedication, your love, your spirit, your teachings, and your wisdom. 

I was watching a program about the writer Ursula Le Guin recently and the program ended with her reading from her novel Always Coming Home. I think her words speak to Chuck and Erin’s ministry here: 

“When I take you to the Valley, you’ll see the blue hills on the left and the blue hills on the right, the rainbow and the vineyards under the rainbow late in the rainy season, and maybe you’ll say, “There it is, that’s it!” But I’ll say. “A little farther.” We’ll go on, I hope, and you’ll see the roofs of the little towns and the hillsides yellow with wild oats, a buzzard soaring and a woman singing by the shadows of a creek in the dry season, and maybe you’ll say, “Let’s stop here, this is it!” But I’ll say, “A little farther yet.” We’ll go on, and you’ll hear the quail calling on the mountain by the springs of the river, and looking back you’ll see the river running downward through the wild hills behind, and you’ll say, “Isn’t that the Valley?” And all I will be able to say is “Drink this water of the spring, rest here awhile, we have a long way yet to go and I can’t go without you.” 

Thank you Chuck and Erin 

Written by Susan Cash 

Is  there

 a

P           L           A           C           E

A

S      P     O     T

that makes it feel like a

h     o     l     i     d     a     y

even when.     .     .

especially when it actually

i      s     n   ‘   t.     .     .     ?

Maybe it’s where

you are known.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you are comfortable.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you are misunderstood.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you are embarrassed.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you are feared.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you are seemingly out of place.     .     .

maybe it’s where

you  are .       .        .

There’s a place

not so much where people meet you.    .     .

b u t    j u s t    a    p e r s o n

who accepts you

with all of your

flaws

misfortunes

disformaties

and sour notes

and  at

t h a t     m o m e n t

makes a mere place

H       O       M       E

D O

t      h      a      t

often

Go ahead.     .     .

Open your Heart to Everyone

and watch another’s life

LIGHT   UP

]]> http://thecaringcatalyst.com/a-place/feed/ 0 2101 http://thecaringcatalyst.com/community/ http://thecaringcatalyst.com/community/#respond Fri, 06 Nov 2015 12:00:25 +0000 http://thecaringcatalyst.com/?p=1546

You know what’s sad?

When you spell community

C-O-M-M-U-N-I-T-Y

S A D

S-A-D

Psssssssst:  Community isn’t something you spell

Psssssssssst:  Community isn’t somewhere you go

Psssssssssssssst: Community is something you do

Psssssssssssssssssssst:  Community is who we are

A couple of weeks ago my wife, Erin, put the names of the all of the folks who attend the Church I serve by Sunday’s, on a several Scrabble Boards glued together.  The little lettered tiles spelled

c-o-m-m-u-n-i-t-y

in quite another way. . .but what a great symbol that jumps into any eye that enters the sanctuary.

It was quite a feat and really. . .it’s  not  finished. . .actually it never will be.   .   .

every person who continues to visit or those who officially  join  will

m     a     k     e

The Board.

Before Church we usually stop at Starbucks. . .

It’s not just because we are in early November and Christmas decorations/trees are out and up or that several Christmas channels are on Sirius radio but Starbucks has broken out their

RED  CUPS

I love that they put our name on the Cups to remind us

W H O     W E     A R E

We are frequent fliers at our neighborhood,  STARBUCKS  and they know what we want before we ever after order. It gives me  that  Gingerbread feeling.     .     .     .

What spells c-o-m-m-u-n-i-t-y

more than THAT ?

THAT  doesn’t Preach C-O-M-M-U-N-I-T-Y

It’s  Living It

Wait. . .are we talking about

STARBUCKS

Church

or as Merriam-Webster would put it:

“A Unified body of individuals: as, (a): state, commonwealth, (b): the people with common interests living in a particular area;”

Or is it simply something more than the sum of its parts?

The only question that ever really matters is:

How  do  you  spell:

c-o-m-m-u-n-i-t-y  ?

Is it something

you     are?

]]> http://thecaringcatalyst.com/community/feed/ 0 1546