Family Updates

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

I bring you all greetings from Nashotah House. It is now warm here. That means that it is now 40 degrees instead of 2 below. Benjamin is doing great, and is enjoying life with friends, family, and school.

We are deep in the process of discernment for a call to parish. We have several options available to us, and we are really enjoying looking at all the parishes. For us, some are in the Episcopal Church, and some are not.

Everything went well with Quincy Canonical Exams. I passed. The last step in the process is one more COM meeting, before a tentative Ordination to the Priesthood date in the middle of June.

In the midst of all the excitement and the looking forward, we are still aware of how blessed we have been to attend seminary at Nashotah House, and we will truly miss it when we leave. We have made so many friends, and we will miss them all. However, we will take a lot of Nashotah House with us when we leave.

We hope that all is well with you. We will be in Tallahassee at the 9:00 Palm Sunday service at St. Peter's, so we hope to see you.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

I bring you good news from my discernment process. I am scheduled to be ordained as a Deacon on Saturday, December 8. The invitation is below:

Click here.

If Peoria is too long of trip, we understand, and we covet your prayers. It truly is an exciting time.

The semester is only three weeks away from wrapping up, and we are exciting about returning home to Tallahassee for the Christmas holiday. Please keep me in your prayers, since I will have to return to Milwaukee in January to take Quincy Canonical Exams.

Friday, August 24, 2007

I bring you greetings from a very wet and rainy Nashotah House. All is well here. Lisa, Benjamin and I returned home safely. We thoroughly enjoyed our time visiting parents and relatives, but are glad to be back home.

Orientation begins Monday. It is hard to believe that it has been two years already since I went through orientation. For me, the seminary experience has really flown by, and it is hard to believe that I am now a senior.

Here is what my class schedule looks like for the fall:
EMT2 - Ethics and Moral Theology 2
ST2 - Systematic Theology 2
CH3 - Church History 3 - History of the Episcopal Church
Lit2 - Liturgy 2
PM3 - Parish Ministry 3

Please continue to pray for all of us as we embark on our third year.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

I have now completed 8 weeks of an 11 week Clinical Pastoral Education program. It has been an outstanding experience and one that I would recommend for anyone discerning a vocation for the Priesthood or as a Lay Chaplain.

I hear the horror stories all the time from people who have been less fortunate than I in CPE. Many CPE programs will try to change you into something that you are not. Others will forbid you from saying the word "Jesus." Yet others will keep you out of the really difficult pastoral situations. I have even heard of CPE programs requiring their students to anoint patients, even though many traditions, and the book of James, say that only elders, or priests, should perform this Sacrament.

I am very thankful for my experience at VMP. The staff there has worked very hard at helping me to know more about myself, without doing anything to try to change into who God is not calling me to be. I have learned about myself and how I handle pastoral situations, and it has been one of the most meaningful experiences in my formation process thus far. Further, I have been assigned primarily to their Hospice unit, so I have learned much about how to care people who are dying. I even had the great honor to be with three people at that most Holy moment when they went to be with their Lord. It is an experience that has only been rivaled by the birth of my child.

I feel very strongly that God is calling me to Pastoral Ministry in one way or another. All that remains is for me to discern what exactly this ministry will look like, whether it is full-time chaplaincy, or working in a parish with lots of elderly parishioners. Please continue to keep me in your prayers as I continue to discern God's Call in my life.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Lisa are celebrating today our 5 year wedding anniversary. As part of this celebration, I have found myself remembering back to where I was 5 years ago and where I am today, and there is no comparison. I am so grateful for my wonderful family that there are not words to describe it adequately.

In fact, I love my wife so much that I am putting her and Benjamin on an airplane to Tallahassee. :) I will also be in Tallahassee from May 4 to May 6, and I look forward to preaching at St. Peter's Anglican Church and catching up with everyone there.

Please keep our family in your prayers over the next few weeks, as I have an inordinate amount of work ahead of me in the next 3 weeks.

After those 3 weeks are over, we will ahve graduation here at Nashotah House. It is an exciting time around here. This year, our commencement speaker will be the Rt. Rev. Dabney Smith, Bishop of Southwest Florida. There will also be a tribute to the life and ministry of the Rev. Dr. Reginald Fuller, who was visiting Professor of New Testament here at the House in 2004. Fr. Fuller died this month.

After graduation on May 24, I will have a few days rest before beginning CPE in Milwaukee on May 29. I am really looking forward to this learning experience.

Friday, March 23, 2007

Things are moving very quickly towards Holy Week and Easter, and things get very busy around here. At the seminary, we have a Palm Sunday Choral Evensong, a Maundy Thursday liturgy, a Good Friday Liturgy, the Holy Saturday Liturgy, and the Easter Vigil. Most students spend Easter Sunday at their parishes.

Lisa and I are planning a trip home to Tallahassee soon. I will be there from May 3-6, and Lisa and Benjamin will be there for a slightly longer period of time.

One update on my process...I have been granted Candidate status, which is the last step in the process leading up to ordination. I will, God willing and the people consenting, be ordained to the diaconate sometime this fall.

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Things are back in full swing for the spring, and this semester (Spring Middler semester) is widely regarded at Nashotah House as the hardest semester, especially for a Middler Chapel Scholar like me. In addition to my five classes, I will be taking a lead role in planning the graduation Eucharist that will take place on May 24, 2007, at the Victory Chapel at St. John's Northwestern Military Academic. Last year, it was a glorious occasion, and we were blessed to have the Rt. Rev. N.T. Wright as a speaker.

I am already enjoying my classes so far. Here is my schedule:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Historical Theology 2
Hebrew 2
Systematic Theology 2
(Since our Theology professor is Fr. Holtzen, we call this the Holtzen sandwich.)

Tuesday, Thursday
Homiletics 1
Old Testament 2

Lisa continues to lead a Godly Play class at the seminary, and outside of the seminary, I am a chaplain at Waukesha Memorial Hospital.

When the semester over, I will have 4 days to rest before beginning CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) at an assisted-living facility here in the Milwaukee area. The name of the facility is the Village at Manor Park. You can click here to take a look at the facility. Because of the quick turnaround, I may not be able to visit Tallahassee until August.

Benjamin continues to grow and amazes Lisa and I everyday with something new that he has learned. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful young son. Benjamin is very active at the YMCA, where he is learning to swim and speak Spanish. In a few weeks he will begin a class called the "Sports Sampler" where he will get exposure to a wide range of sports that he might like to pursue.

All is well here. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Ah, how I love the quiet days. We are in reading week, which means that there are no classes, and we can sit still with our books and read or write papers. I am in the middle of a research project on John Henry Newman, and an Old Testament exegesis paper and sermon on 1 Samuel, chapter 4 - the "Speak Lord, for your servant listens" passage.

It has been a tough week around here as far as sickness goes. There is an odd strain of Strep Throat going around here that has caused people's faces to swell up. Two of our neighbors have gotten it, and they are neighbors that Benjamin plays with regularly, so please keep all us in our prayers that we do not get sick. Please also keep the two children in your prayers, as the doctors are having a hard time figuring out how to treat the facial swelling that goes along with this.

Lisa, Benjamin and I will be staying at Nashotah House over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays this year. The Waddills will be coming to Nashotah House on Friday to spend Thanksgiving with us, and the Martins will be coming during the Christmas break. We will be looking forward to some rest over the holidays, but I will also be preparing for what may be the hardest semester of my seminary experience. In addition to the course load, it is the middler Chapel Scholars who do most of planning for the Holy Week services, as well as the graduation service at the end of the year. The senior year, though, is considerably easier.

Over the summer, I will be participating in a CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) program at the Village at Manor Park, a retirement community similar to Westminster Oaks in Tallahassee. Before and after the CPE program, I also plan to do some volunteer chaplaincy work at Waukesha Memorial Hospital as part of the Community of Hope program that I mentioned earlier.

Please continue to keep Lisa and I in your prayers as we continue on this challenging, yet wonderful journey.

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

This has been an exciting few weeks at Nashotah House. We had our fall retreat, led by Bp. William Godfrey, the Bishop of Peru. In addition, we matriculated 21 new students, including David Adams from St. Peter's.

From the sports department comes this bit of news. The Nashotah House Black Monks defeated the Seabury-Western Saints 6-0 this past weekend in Evanston. A good time was had by all.

Lisa, Benjamin and I will be traveling to Peoria this weekend to participate in the Quincy Diocesan Synod. We are really looking forward to spending some time in our Diocese.

Please keep me in your prayers as I prepare for Midterms. Again, I have a Fr. Henery exam to deal with that is chock full of information, mostly about the reformation (Luther Calvin Zwingli Knox and the English Reformation). My Church History class this semester has been incredibly fascinating. It is good to finally learn church history from a professor rather than what I read on some blogs, which may or may not be accurate.

Friday, September 22, 2006

These past few weeks have truly been a blessing. My classes are moving along at a rapid pace, and I have to say that I am thoroughly enjoying all of them. I am especially enjoying my Old Testament and Hebrew classes. I am looking forward to writing a paper on how view the book of Leviticus through the eyes of the New Testament. I will post it on my blog when it is completed.

During this academic year, I plan to focus fairly on pastoral care. My Parish Ministry 2 classes covers Pastoral Care, and I am joining a program here called Community of Hope, which is a Benedictine-based pastoral care program for lay people that stresses spiritual growth within individuals who then, in turn, care for people in need. These two programs will culminate in my taking CPE over the summer. I am looking forward to this year because, outside of my time as a Lay Eucharistic Minister, I have had virtually no experience in this area.

Things have been great in the Chapel. My organ playing has been improving. Yesterday, I played my third service, and it went very well.

I'm off to class, but I wish you all many blessings!!

Tuesday, September 7, 2006

Greetings from sunny Nashotah House. The weather has been so beautiful here that it was hard to go back to classes. I say that in jest, because, actually, it is very exciting to be back in school for the second of a three year program.

I was blessed to be able to go to Peoria, Illinois for an ordination this past weekend with David Adams and some of my other fellow Quincy seminarians. Congratulation to David Veale, Jim Fosdick, and Shawn Doubet on their ordination to the priesthood. Those of you from St. Peter's who went to Pittsburgh for the Hope and a Future Network Conference last November will remember Jim Fosdick. He was the deacon who went to dinner with us.

It is so much fun to watch the new juniors, and I found myself reflecting on what it was like to be a junior just one short year ago. I say prayers for them as they are seeking ordination in these interesting times in the life of our Church.

I'll give you a further update as soon as I go to class tomorrow and will have been through the first day of all my classes. I can already tell that it is going to be a wonderful semester. Also, keep me in your prayers as I am one of the Chapel organists and will be playing a Sung Matins service every week.

Monday, August 21, 2006

This has been a wonderful summer. The biggest highlight so far has been the Mission Trip to Mexico, which you can read about below.

I was very blessed to be able to spend time at home during the past week. It was wonderful to see friends and family, and preach at St. Peter's. If you missed my sermon, please click here.

We are very excited to have David and Debbie Adams at Nashotah House for the next three years. I know that Benjamin is excited to have his Godfather here.

Classes start in just a few weeks. Here is my class schedule for the coming fall semester:
    EMT1        Ethics and Moral Theology
    PM2          Parish Ministry 2
    CH2          Church History 2
    OT1          Old Testament 1
    Heb1        Hebrews 1

Please continue to keep all of us in your prayers as we began our second year in seminary.

Sunday, June 25, 2006

I am on the bus waiting to get back into the United States after our mission trip to Juarez, Mexico. It has truly been the highlight of my summer so far. I am truly amazed at the connections that we made here. In building this house for a family in Mexico, I feel that we have a connection for life, and no culture barrier such as language or economic status can stand in the way of our unity in the Gospel.

As I return to the seminary, I will continue to help run the Nashotah House chapel for the summer. In addition, I will continue to serve at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church for my summer teaching parishes program.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Wow! I can't believe that we have finished our first year up here. Graduation week has been spectacular and we have been very blessed to hear from the Rt. Rev. N.T. Wright, the Bishop of Durham and one of the leading New Testament scholars in the Anglican Communion. His message to us was fantastic, and he was very clearly moved by the Anglo-Catholic services that we put on this week. He said that it was "soothing to his soul" to hear the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in Anglican Chant, and also stated that it is a shame that the church seems to be in some circles losing its traditional worship. We should be guardians of it.

I was officially made a Postulant of the Diocese of Quincy this week, although I have considered Bishop Ackerman to be my bishop all this time, whether it was official or not. He is a truly Godly man, a living saint, and I am thankful to be under his authority.

Lisa and I will be on a much-needed vacation from today through May 30. We will spend one week with her family, and one week with mine. We are excited about Brian and Jennifer getting married this weekend, and we wish them all the best and will pray for them.

Please keep us in your prayers for much rest and safe travels.

Monday, May 8, 2006

The past week has been a very fun week, even though I had to work very hard to crank out many papers that were due today. All my work is done, and I am turning my attention to finals at the end of this week.

Yesterday was Benjamin's 3rd birthday, and we had a party for him and five other children at McDonald's in Delafield. The theme of the party was "Thomas the Tank Engine."

I am very much looking forward to next week, as we will be visited by the Rt. Rev. N.T. Wright. He will be speaking at our convocation and commencement exercises.

This past Sunday, I was introduced to St. Bartholomew's as their new seminarian, and I served at the altar as subdeacon. They had someone there who was pitching the EFM program, so I helped. Benjamin went up for his birthday blessing, and got a little shy, so Lisa had to go up there with him.

We are looking forward to a little vacation time before we come back for the summer TPP program. We will be in Florida (but not Tallahassee) from May 18-May 30. We will be in Tallahassee in August.

Friday, April 21, 2006

I wanted to apologize to you profusely for delinquency in journaling. Things have been very hectic here with Holy Week and Easter and my chapel scholar duties. And I thought that I was busy during Holy Week at St. John's! Holy Week at Nashotah was slightly different than things used to be in Tallahassee, mostly in that we had a Tenebrae service on Tuesday. Our Easter Vigil service was the highlight of the whole week. The entire congregation was invited to bring bells, and when it was time for the Easter Acclamation (Alleluia. Christ is risen. The Lord is risen indeed, Alleluia.), the entire congregation rang their bells. The one thing that I missed from Tallahassee was Bp. Hathaway doing the Easter Acclamation, and the music that Betsy and the choir would give us for the Easter season, especially the Pascha Nostrum setting that we would use in place of the Gloria.

We have the week off for Spring Break, and I am using the week to catch up and write papers. In the evening, I have been spending time with Lisa and Benjamin, cooking on the grill, and enjoying the wonderful spring weather that we are having here at Nashotah.

In the next two weeks, I will be writing many papers. I do not have a heavy final exam schedule at all. We are also anxiously awaiting the arrival of Bishop N.T. Wright, New Testament scholar and one of the orthodox voices of the Windsor Report. He will be speaking at our Spring Academic Convocation and Commencement exercises. Lisa, Benjamin and I will then go to Orlando for the wedding of Lisa's brother and his fiancée Jennifer. We are looking forward to a little rest and relaxation.

This summer, we will be staying in Nashotah, where I will be participating in a Teaching Parishes Program at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church in nearby Pewaukee. The website is here. It is a wonderful, growing parish and we are excited about being a part of it. We are hoping also that it will be the parish where we will be able to do our middler-year placement. As we say here, God willing, and Fr. McGlynn consenting!

Lisa and I are planning to visit with all of you when we come to Tallahassee in August. We look forward to seeing you then.

Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Greetings on this Shrove Tuesday. All is well up here at Nashotah House. It is beginning to warm up, which means that the weather is in the 40's.

Bishop Keith Ackerman, my bishop, will be coming this evening to do our Ash Wednesday retreat. The name of the retreat is "Ashes, Ashes, we all fall down." Catchy.

Lisa and Benjamin are doing well. We are in the process of figuring out what we are going to do as our Lenten discipline. One of my Lenten disciplines this year will be writing a Friday Lenten devotional for my blog and a blog called Lent & Beyond. I enjoyed writing devotionals for the St. John's Lenten devotional guide, so I am excited about the opportunity to do this again. It will be based on the Daily Office lectionary.

I have been very much struck by my Ascetical Theology class. For those of you who do know what the term means, ascetical theology basically means the study of Christian Spirituality. The class focuses on how we, as priests, maintain our own spiritual lives, while serving others in the parish. I was especially struck by our teaching on how, when we pray, we should pray that God's Will be done, and not our own. Through prayer, we do not change God, but rather we let our hearts be known to Him, so that He can shape us and transform us into His likeness. I am also excited about the opportunity to do some contemplative prayer, which is prayer in which we completely empties ourselves and are silent before the Lord, so that, again, the Lord can shape us. It is powerful, and I have found myself much closer to contemplative in my regular prayers than I have been in a long time.

I am also struck in our discussion by the reflection that a cure and a healing are not the same thing. Often times, one may be healed, but not cured. I remember a sermon that Fr. Eric gave the week before my piano teacher, Susan Conrad, died. He told us about a person he knew in a previous parish who was dying of a disease. While the person ultimately died, the true healing came through strengthening of relationship between her and her family. Often times, healing is not what we want, but rather what God wants for us, and that is where the true power is in healing. Again, the point is that God knows better than we do what is good for us, and we place God above ourselves, then can we truly be close to Him.

I also ask for your prayers for grandmother, Frances Ivey, affectionately known to us as Mimi. She is in the hospital and not doing well. Please pray that she be healed and that God's will be done.

I pray that God will bless you richly during this season of Lent.

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

All is well in my five classes this semester. I can already tell that I will have more papers to write and less exams to take, which is fine with me.

I finished my drawing of St. Peter. It is based on an icon that was written for York Minster by the Cathedral at Exeter when their Dean went on to be the Dean at York. If I can get it scanned, I will post it.

This term, I am really enjoying all of my classes. Benjamin and Lisa are doing well.

Monday, January 23, 2006

Everything went very well in my Epiphany term class with Fr. Klukas. I am still in the process of researching my icon. I am trying to find a good drawing of St. Peter. If any of you have any websites, please let me know.

I am also gearing up for classes for the Easter term, which starts on Wednesday. I have 5 classes:

AT1 - Ascetical Theology I - Fr. Klukas
NT2 - New Testament II - Bp. Parsons
GK2 - Greek II - Dr. Carlson
HT1 - Historical Theology - Fr. Holtzen
PM1 - Parish Ministry I - Fr. McGlynn

I am very excited about all my classes and I am ready to dig in for another great semester. Please pray for wisdom and courage for me as I start back for another semester.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

After a wonderful, refreshing, break in Tallahassee, I am back at Nashotah House taking a class in Liturgical Arts. We are learning about icons (how to use them as a devotional piece and how to "write" them, which means to paint them and write their names on them), vessels and vestments, stained glass, and designing chapels and worship spaces. It has been a wonderful class so far. My project for the class is to write an "icon", which means that I have to research it, paint it, give it its name, and have it blessed. I will hopefully be working with Mrs. Kaestner, the wife of the Nashotah House chaplain, who is a trained iconographer. I am looking forward to the spiritual experience and the contemplative prayer that goes along with this kind of project.

Lisa and Benjamin will return to Nashotah House on Thursday afternoon. We are all looking forward to being reunited at seminary and getting back into the routine of the Easter semester.

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

This, so far, has been an extremely busy week. I have finished all my papers, and am studying for finals next week. I have two (Greek and Church Music) on Monday, one (Church History) on Tuesday, and one (New Testament) on Wednesday. In the midst of this, we have Advent Lessons and Carols on Thursday, so I will be singing as well. After finals, I will be leaving to return to Tallahassee the next day. I look forward to seeing all of my Tallahassee friends over the Christmas break.

Today has been an interesting day. We are getting our first winter storm of the seasons, so we are getting hammered by snow showers. I went yesterday to get food and water so that I could lock myself into my apartment and not go anywhere.

Sunday, December 4, 2005

Well folks, things are very busy, but going well up here at Nashotah House. I am working on two different term papers, both of which are due a week from tomorrow. One, which has turned out to be quite interesting, is a term paper on the Minor Orders of the Roman Catholic Church (acolytes, exorcists, lectors, and porters). I will post it on my blog when I finish for you all to read.

Our low temperatures tonight will be in the single digits for the first time this winter. I have to say that I am loving the winter so far. Of course, we'll see if I'm still singing that tune when the end of February comes around. The winter up here is absolutely beautiful. I drove yesterday to St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church for Advent Lessons and Carols. They did a fantastic job.

I am truly enjoying singing in the Chapel Choir. We are having our Lessons and Carols service on Thursday, December 15, at 5 p.m. in the Chapel of St. Mary the Virgin. If you are in the area, stop by.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

My friends, I woke up this morning to the first snow of the winter. It has snowed all morning and the ground is complete white. The high today is 30 degrees and the low is 13 degrees. Let the winter begin!

I would also like mention that I spent the last weekend in Pittsburgh at the Network Conference. It was a wonderful time, and I was thankful that so many people from Tallahassee were there. I am very thankful that the worldwide Anglican Communion is taking such a great interest in our Church. To God be the Glory! Amen.

Monday, November 7, 2005

Check out my first seminary newsletter. Click here.

Friday, November 4, 2005

I apologize for not writing sooner, but I have been swamped with midterms and lots of Chapel services.

First a word about the worship life at Nashotah House during this All Saints week. We began the week on Monday with a Solemn Evensong on the eve of All Saints, followed by a Solemn Eucharist on Tuesday morning. On Wednesday morning, we had a Solemn Requiem Mass in honor of All Souls day. On Thursday evening, we had a votive mass of all baptized Christians, and the infant child of one of my fellow seminarians was baptized. Now, a word about the baptism. Since we go to Rite I after All Saints, and since the 1979 BCP only includes Rite I Morning and Evening Prayer, Eucharist, and Burial of the Dead, the Anglican Service Book (ASB) was created for those who wanted to continue to use Rite I language with the Rite II liturgies, as well as other Rites. From that book, we did an older baptismal liturgy that included oil of exorcism, salt of Chrismation, and baptism by full immersion. I was amazed at the baby held her breath while she was fully dunked in the Baptismal font. It was a really neat return to some of the earlier baptismal liturgies. Many of the traditions of baptism have been lost in our 1979 BCP, or just made so obscure that they are hardly recognizable.

Please say prayers for all of us at the Network Conference in Pittsburgh next week. It should be a wonderful occasion.

Saturday, October 15, 2005

Lisa, Benjamin and I had a great time this afternoon. While I was at Morning Prayer, Eucharist, and a study session, Lisa was at a prayer walk for the Daughters of the King. She spent most of the prayer walk doing the rosary, while teaching Benjamin the finer points of contemplative of prayer. While she was doing that, I was studying and taking pictures of nature's beauty as revealed in the fall hear at Nashotah House. See attached. Please see the pictures here. We have had a lot of fun, even though Florida lost to Louisiana State.

Friday, October 14, 2005

This has been an outstanding week for me. I have been immersed in my Biblical Exegesis paper, a piece on the Parable of the Sower in the Gospel according to Luke. In the first hour of my research and exegesis, I completely debunked my thesis and had to start over. I'm glad that I did it, though, as that helps me to remain faithful to scripture. It is very helpful to know what exegesis is. The exe in the word means taking out of. In exegesis, we extract meaning out of the scriptures. The opposite of exegesis is eisegesis, which is quite the opposite. When you take a position, and then try to read that meaning into scripture, that is eisegesis. This unfaithful to scripture and should not be done.

Benjamin was a little bit under the weather this week, but is feeling much better. Lisa is doing well, too. She had her first Godly Play class this week and it was well attended. In addition, chapel was much quieter now that the children have their own program. It was a blessing for all.

Tuesday, October 4, 2005

I bring you my greetings and I apologize for not writing sooner. Things have been going extremely well.

We are in the middle of our fall retreat right now and it has been an absolutely amazing experience. Our retreat leader is the Rt. Rev. John Howe, Bishop of Central Florida. He is a truly amazing man, and we need more Bishops like him in the Episcopal Church. Each of us are to select a book to read, and the book that I have focused on is by Lloyd John Ogilvie and is entitled Perfect Peace: The Contentment That Comes from Intimacy with God (available at the St. John's bookstore, hopefully, as that is where I bought it). Here is a good quote from the book:

"There is only one source of that kind of consistent peace - God. Throughout the Bible, language is stretched to distinguish God's true peace from temporary, transitory peace. Jesus carefully distinguished His peace from the world's peace. Paul talked about a peace that surpasses all understanding. Peter offered "multiplied peace" to early Christians in his epistle. In each case it is the same: an effort to set divine peace off and above, as something different - something that men and women cannot produce on their own. The Bible is clear: We can't make peace, but we can receive it. God's peace is superlative - excellent, the greatest, matchless, peerless, supreme, unparalleled, unrivaled, unsurpassed...

Experiencing the peace which comes from personal knowledge of God's sovereignty requires putting trust in Him, not in leaders, friends, mates, or parents. We must trust God and love poeple and never turn that around. Of course, if we are to love God, we must put our ultimate trust in Him only. Peace is broken when we depend on people to provide what only God can provide. 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths' (Proverbs 3:5-6). People were never meant to be our sources of security. When we demand that they meet our needs, we make them diminutive gods; we take our stayed eyes off the Lord God and disconnect ourselves from the consistent flow of His peace.

Peace results from a disciplined life of prayer which manifests intimate fellowship with God and the assurance of adequate resources from Him. Trusting in the sovereign God means leaving the results to Him, knowing our calling is not to be successful but to be faithful. And guess what? Real success in life means living without worry, fretting, or care that comes from trying to control everything ourselves."

Friday, September 23, 2005

I served Wednesday and Thursday in chapel for the first time. I was a first torch. Those of you who know about acolyting at St. John's know that the first torch job is one of the easiest. At Nashotah House, it was much harder, because they combine the duties of 1st Torch and Gospel Torch. Anyway, I got through it and it was fun. I can't wait for the day that I get to be thurifer. They do a lot more with the thurifer job than we do at St. John's. The liturgy was a Solemn Eucharist in observance of the Feast of St. Matthew.

Classes are going very well. I am still doing very well in Greek, and I am really enjoying my New Testament class and my Liturgy class. Our choir is coming together nicely, and we are all set to sing for the first time next Thursday. We are already preparing for Advent Lessons and Carols, and a lot of it is music that we sang at St. John's. It is nice going into the rehearsals already knowing the music. I had a great teacher in Betsy Calhoun.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

The water and electricity is now back on for the entire seminary. In a way, that's too bad, because I was enjoying the candlelight Sung Matins and Evensong. Lisa's was happy though, because she was finally able to degrease, I mean, take a bath. Benjamin was starting to slip out of her arms. Just kidding...It was the best shower I have ever taken in my life. Actually, some of the seminarians bathed in the Lake. Talk about the dark ages.

I began my service today as a Chapel Scholar at this evening's service, a Solemn Eucharist to commemorate Holy Cross day (at Nashotah, we always move feast days to Thursday). Chapel Scholars are intimately involved in the liturgical planning of all the Chapel service. Tonight's service was officiated by Bp. Don Parsons, former dean of Nashotah House and my New Testament professor. The homily was given by Fr. Douglas McGlynn, professor of Parish Ministry. We had lots of incense, in fact, so much that I started coughing. Those of you at St. John's know that I never cough on incense.

Also, today, I sang in the Chapel Choir for the first time. It is a 30 member choir and we sing during special occasions, such as Matriculation and Graduation. We also join with the Cathedral Choir in Milwaukee for a combined choir advent lessons and Carols service. I am excited about both of these opportunities.

Classes are going just fine. Surprisingly, I am somewhat caught up. Greek is turning out to be a class that I really enjoy. That's funny, considering that it was the class I was most dreading upon arrival.

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Last night, with one puff of the wind, Nashotah House was knocked back into the dark ages. The power went out, making our water pumps ineffective as well. For the first time in my life, we did an acapella Eucharist with music and candlelight Morning Prayer (since the power was out, neither the organ nor the lights were working in the Chapel). But never fear, life at Seminary moves on. We had breakfast today that was cooked by gas power, and we are starting class. I knew that I was in the dark when it comes to Greek, but this is crazy.

This is happening because we had a major storm come through last night. The good news in all of this is that the weather is down in the lower 50's.

Mid-afternoon Update:

The place where Lisa and I live, The Flats, was the only place in the entire seminary that did not lose power last night. Our building is on a different feed than the rest of the seminary. We are, however, without water. Apparently, there are 75,000 people in this area without power at the moment. The seminary is going to buy generators to run the water pumps, so we should have water soon. This is a pain in the neck, but on further reflection, this is still much better than what the folks in Mississippi and Louisiana are going through. We did pass around a few jokes, though, that this is all President Bush's fault and that FEMA should have known that the wind was blowing and should have bailed us out before it actually happened.

Friday, September 9, 2005

Well folks, there you have it. I have officially finished my first week of seminary. I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am to be here and to be learning scriptures, the history of the Church, and how we act out our faith in the liturgy, which means "work of the people." All of my classes are outstanding, even though some are either harder or come less naturally to me than others.

I am very excited about my Greek professor. He is trained in a Presbyterian seminary, serves as the head pastor of the First Baptist Church of Waukesha, is a doctoral student of a Catholic University (Marquette), and teaches at an Episcopal Seminary. What a model of ecumenism! I have been struck in that class by the ways in which knowing the Greek can open up the scripture to new meanings, and how sometimes our translations can fall short in conveying the true meaning, or hide additional insights, of scripture sometime.

My liturgy professor, Fr. Klukas, is hilarious, and I get a good laugh from him every time I am in class. Today, he was making fun of one of the deacons in my class by calling him a liturgical Tigger, because of the way he was moving around during the liturgy. Fr. Klukas informed us during our first chapel orientation session that Episcopalians have an 11th commandment: "Thou shalt not be tacky!"

All is well. I look forward to spending some time this weekend with Lisa and Benjamin. Blessings to all of you over this weekend.

Wednesday, September 7, 2005

I have officially finished my first day of classes, and my first two were great. Bp. Parsons is the retired bishop of Quincy, Illinois and former Dean of Nashotah House, and he is my New Testament professor. We studied how the Canon of Scripture came about, as well as textual criticism. Canon Kucharski is the Canon Musician of the Cathedral in Milwaukee and is the music professor at Nashotah House. He has a great sense of humor and makes music history fun. We studied the history of music in Old Testament worship, as well as the Benedictine office.

Today, I have liturgy with Fr. Klukas, Church History with Fr. Henery, and Greek with Prof. Carlson. I'll let you know how class goes.

Saturday, September 3, 2005

Our first week of school at Nashotah House is now in the history book, and what a great week it was. We started Tuesday with junior orientation, where learned all sorts of things about life at Nashotah House. I have outstanding classmates and look forward to spending time with all of them. Three of the members of my class are vocational deacons that are seeking ordination to the priesthood.

I continue to amazed by the community here at Nashotah House. On Thursday evening, we had a cookout at the Peaks, where one of my classmates from Alabama cooked Brisket (he cooked it for two days).

I have also found out that I have a fellow Gator fan up here at Nashotah. His name is John Roberts, and he is from Sarasota. In fact, he knows former parishioners Ken and Ann Smith, and he went on the mission trip to the Bahamas with the St. John's, Tallahassee youth group.

Lisa and I are doing great. We're settling in nicely, and I am looking forward to my first full day of classes on Tuesday. Here is my class schedule:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Liturgy I                   Fr. Klukas
Church History I        Fr. Henery
Greek                      Dr. Carlson (adjunct professor from Marquette)

Tuesday, Thursday
New Testament I Bp. Parsons
Church Music I Canon Kucharski

For the most part, I have all my books and am ready to go. For now, I have to run, as I have to read 4 chapters of music history before the Gator game at 5:00.

Thursday, August 25, 2005

Isn't it amazing how God's little blessings come out of nowhere? I was sitting in the chair in the den this evening listening to Benjamin babble in his bed, and he stopped and recited the Lord's Prayer. I could not believe my ears! Lisa and I have been teaching him the Lord's Prayer at night, but I had no idea that he would learn it that fast. Now that he's in the middle of his terrible twos, maybe we should teach him the confession next (just kidding!).

Monday, August 22, 2005

Lisa, Benjamin and I had an exciting, fun-filled weekend. We are trying to get all of our sight-seeing out of the way before the hectic school year starts. On Friday, we visited the Betty Brinn Children's Museum on Lake Michigan in downtown Milwaukee. On Sunday, we attended church at Zion Episcopal Church on the lakefront in Oconomowoc. Our good friend John Wallace (former singer in Dog Named David) gave the homily. Afterward, we went to the Oconomowoc Arts Festival.

The weather here has been absolutely beautiful. We have been enjoying highs in the upper 60's and lows in the lower 50's. There has not been a cloud in the sky. Benjamin was been having an excellent time, and really loves his new friends. He still asks about his old ones, though. In fact, just this morning, he woke up and asked where Kathy and Nicholas Ciarlariello were. He also asked where Miss Haley was. As he asks where his old friends or his grandparents are, we say that they are in Tallahassee. Of course, Benjamin pronounces that word "Tapassee." He is having a ball!

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

My parents left yesterday, and they were a tremendous help to us in getting the apartment set up. Mom was instrumental in helping Lisa place furniture and pictures, and dad got to help with Benjamin. Lisa and I did some landscaping in the yard yesterday afternoon, and today I spent my first full day at the seminary (even though classes do not start for the next 1.5 weeks). My day consisted of the following:
8:30         Morning Prayer and Holy Eucharist
9:15         Reading in the Library
11:00       Trip to the bookstore to pick up my books
12:00       Home for lunch with Lisa and Benjamin
1:00         Back to the library for more reading
4:30         Evening Prayer
5:00         Home for a fun-filled evening with Lisa and Benjamin

We are reading an OUTSTANDING book called Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. I am amazed that this book was written over 60 years ago, and yet it accurately describes many of the problems that are currently taking place in the Episcopal Church. Anyone who says Christianity is outdated really needs to read this book.

Here is what the standard day will look like for me once classes starts:
8:00        Chapel (Sung Morning Prayer, Eucharist)
8:45        Breakfast at the Refectory (Dining Hall)
9:40        Classes
12:30      Lunch
1:30        Studying in the Library
4:30        Chapel (Sung Evening Prayer)
5:00        Go home

Saturday, August 13, 2005

All is well here in Nashotah House. Lisa and I are determined to have the nicest basement in all of Nashotah House. Our basement runs the entire length of the apartment, and when you actually use the basement, it makes our house here larger than the one we had in Tallahassee. My dear Father-in-law, Lee, bought us indoor-outdoor carpet, and Lisa is planning on using her sewing skills to put drapers on the ceilings like she did in the Sunday School wing at St. John's.

The basement has a play area for Benjamin, a Mary Kay cosmetics area, a crafts area, an office for me, and, yes, a Godly Play area. Lisa's already recruiting kids. You know what they say: Once a Children's Ministry Director, always a Children's Ministry Director!

My parents arrived yesterday evening, and they are very impressed with the House (when I refer to the House, in capital letters, that means Nashotah House, and not our house). We drove them around and took them on a tour of Delafield. I plan to take dad on the Miller Brewery tour hopefully while they are here, and show them Lake Michigan and some of the other things in Milwaukee. Mom is going to help Lisa unpack the boxes and get us settled in. Our apartment looks great, it just needs a few finishing touches.

On Thursday evening and Friday morning, I went to Evening Prayer, Morning Prayer and Eucharist. It was great to get back into the chapel, and it reminded me of one of the things I really love about the worship here at the House. Since the seminarians are all away, there was probably 10 of us there, but that did not matter. It was still powerful.

Well, I'm off to study! God bless.

Thursday, August 11, 2005

Lisa and Benjamin arrived yesterday. Lee and I picked them up from the airport. Benjamin was very happy to be here, and so was Lisa, even though Lisa was exhausted from carrying around 4 carry-on pieces of luggage (including Benjamin!).

I took them to a nice, relaxing dinner at Water Street Brewery, before taking them to their new home.

As we walked in the door, Benjamin said "Ooh. This is nice!" Lisa and I both enjoyed quite a laugh. Benjamin slept last night in his big boy bed for the first time. The only draw back was that Benjamin was still on the Eastern time zone, and woke us up at 6:00 a.m.

We are making lots of progress on the boxes and we are having a lot of fun decorating the basement. It's huge!

Tuesday, August 9, 2005

Well, my friends. Thank you for your prayers, because I arrived safely. Tonight, I get to spend my first night in our apartment at Nashotah House. We are flooded with boxes, but the general shape of the apartment is starting to appear. For those of you who did not know this, Lisa, in all her engineering wisdom, drew me a very detailed "map" showing where each piece of furniture would go. For the most part, we have put things together.

We are very thankful for the friendships and the fellowship of our neighbors at Dean White hall. We had a great group of guys help us move, and we really enjoyed getting to eat hot dogs with our neighbors tonight in the front yard.

This seminary has a great community. We are really looking forward to being a part of it.

Monday, August 8, 2005

Well, OK, I'm amazed. Due to some great driving by Lee Martin, we made it to Nashotah this evening. And the miracles keep coming...Nashotah finished our apartment a day early.

We had a safe trip, praise the Lord. We actually went through 3 states that I had never been to (Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois) and we traveled through three NFL towns on the way (Nashville, Indianapolis, Chicago).

Thank you all for your prayers. I'll update you tomorrow on the fun part, the UNPACKING!!!

Sunday, August 7, 2005

Our first day of travel was quite a blessing. We found out that the truck goes quite a bit faster than we initially thought (60 mph instead of 45). We have just pulled off the road for the evening, and we made it as far as Franklin, KY. We stopped for lunch in Montgomery, AL and dinner in Nashville, TN. At this rate, we believe that we can make it past Chicago, and maybe even as far as Milwaukee by tomorrow night. If that is the case, barring any unforeseen trouble, we might be able to move in on Tuesday instead of Wednesday. We'll see.

Please continue to keep Lee and I in your prayers as we continue to travel. The weather tomorrow looks really good for Louisville, Indianapolis and Chicago. It should be a beautiful day.

Saturday, August 6, 2005

Well, this is it folks: my last night in Tallahassee. We spent the day today packing the truck. It was an interesting day, challenging, and yet rewarding. The first challenge of the day happened early in the morning. We got the truck loaded 1/3 of the way, and realized that there was absolutely no way that we were going to get everything loaded in the truck. We made an executive decision, and I took the truck back to Budget and swapped a 16' truck for a 24' foot truck. The folks at Budget were AWESOME!!! They did an excellent job of swapping out for me.

We had some good help from some very dear people. The Campbells (Caroline, Christopher and Tina), the Martins (Brian and Lee), and the Waddills (mom, dad, Kathleen) helped, as well as Nate, our token professional mover, and Jennifer Viglione. We were challenged by the rain, but got it loaded all the same.

I will spend the evening relaxing and taking it easy at my parents house, and will leave for Wisconsin tomorrow morning. I will drive my car and Lee will drive the truck. I'll update you as the trip progresses.

Blessings!

Friday, August 5, 2005

We are back from Disney and are in the final packing stages. For any of you who would like to help, we will be loading the truck at my house (803 E. Georgia St., corner of Hillcrest and Georgia) on Saturday morning starting around 9 a.m. Please keep us in our prayers during this moderately stressful time.

Tuesday, August 2, 2005

We are very much enjoying our trip to Disney. We were joined today by Douglas Biederman, and spent the day at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT. Benjamin has been in rare form and is having an awesome time.

Monday, August 1, 2005

Well, we made it through our last official day at St. John's yesterday, and a wonderful time was had by all. The sermon went just fine, and one of the most special times of the day was when my acolytes presented me with a the gift of a watercolor painting of the sanctuary at St. John's. In addition, the parish got me a new cassock from Whippell that I am very excited about. I was very glad to spend that time with the clergy at St. John's. Frs. Eric Dudley, Brad Page, Michael Petty, and Jim Hampson, and Bishop Alden Hathaway have all had such a profound effect on my life, and I am thankful for each them. In addition, we said goodbye to a lot of good friends. As some one reminded me, it isn't really goodbye, but more like "so long, for now."

Between the 9:00 and 11:15 services, the staff at St. John's, as well as Lisa's Cursillo reunion group, put on a farewell reception for us. It was a special day for Lisa as well, as she was recognized for her six years as the Director of Children's Ministry. Page Curry, the new Children's Ministry director, and Carol Long, Director of Christian Formation, presented Lisa with a framed picture of Lisa in Uganda on her mission trip. In the picture, Lisa had all of the children of an orphanage in one of the villages sitting around her, and she was teaching them the sign language to "Jesus Loves Me, This I Know." Then all of the children in the parish got up on the stage in front of the group, and asked Lisa to teach them how to do it. I was amazed at how many of the adults learned some sign language at that point in time.

Lisa and I are very thankful for our time at St. John's. The people there have played such an important role in our formation as disciples of Christ.

Friday, July 29, 2005

Yesterday was my last day at the Governor's Office. I will miss working there, as it was a great environment with a lot of very dedicated people.

Everything is all set for our move. We are still up to our ears in our boxes, and I don't think that will quit until we move.

We are getting to take one last trip to Disney before we leave. Or, as Benjamin says, the "big castle." Due to slow park attendance, they opened up our seasonal passes to the months of July and August. We are glad to take one more trip there before we leave for Northern Country.

Monday, July 25, 2005

I came to the realization this morning that this would be the last Monday morning I would go to work for Governor Bush. I sincerely thank the Governor for the opportunity to serve the people of the State of Florida. Governor Bush is a good man, a devoted Christian, and a great leader. I am thankful for the 2.5 short years that I was able to serve under his leadership.

Things have been moving very fast. My sermon for Sunday, July 31, is done. I just have to practice and prepare for the delivery. The parish is holding a reception for us between the 9:00 and 11:15 services. I'm not usually an overly emotional person, but I have a feeling that I will be on this day. Lisa and I have been so blessed by so many of the wonderful people at St. John's. God is truly at work there, and hopefully will be for a long, long time.

I have been having fun today getting our apartment set up. We will be living in Dean White hall, apartment 5, which is a 3 bedroom apartment in The Flats. We will be living just a few doors down from our friends, John and Ashley Wallace. WE HAVE OUR PHONE NUMBER: (262) 646-8711. It will be attached to a voicemail system until August 10, when we move in and plug up the phones. I am so amazed at how much cheaper telephone service is in Wisconsin than Tallahassee.

Friday, July 22, 2005

The reality of the fact that we will be leaving Tallahassee in just a little over two weeks is very exciting, but also just a little bit overwhelming. We will miss all the wonderful people here who have touched our lives in so many different ways.

Our life this past week has been more or less the same. Boxes, boxes everywhere. You oftentimes don't realize just how much "stuff" you have accumulated over time until you try to move.

Our moving plans are still the same. Please keep us in your prayers. August 7-9 will be the big travel dates. Also, please keep Benjamin in your prayers, that he will do well with the transition.

Friday, July 15, 2005

I am writing this update on the airplane ride back from Miami, Florida, where I hope that I have just wrapped the last major project that I have going in the Governor's Office. We have begun interviewing for my position and hope to hire someone soon.

This past Monday, Lisa had a few friends over from Church to have a "packing party." Participants were Cris Martinez, Anne Wright, Tanya Mitchell, Jane Harding, Tina Campbell, and Audra Oven.

Things are continuing to move along at Church. We have decided to say goodbye to the parish on Sunday, July 31, 2005. I will be preaching that day at all four services. We will be spending the following week finishing up everything for our move, and Lee and I will leave Sunday morning, August 7.

Saturday, July 1, 2005

This his been a big week for us. On Thursday, we received an actual floor plan of our apartment, which is a 3BR, 1.5 bath apartment in the Flats (Dean White #5). Lisa is busy working on our floor plan, and is determining which furniture can go, and which furniture must day. I am in the process of purging our utility room. I totally forgot just how much stuff I crammed in there. I found all kinds of things that I was missing, and some stuff that I never knew I had.

I'm busy preparing to leave. I announced to the Governor's Office that my last day is July 29, 2005. While I am very excited about my new opportunities at seminary, I have been privileged to work with a great team at Governor Bush's office, and I will miss them tremendously.

Things are quite busy at Church. I have been watching the installation of our new Fisk Organ with much fascination. I am pretty much LEMing or Verging every week, and I will be preaching at all four services on July 31. Our last Sunday at St. John's is August 7, and Lee and I will leave right after services on that date.

This past Thursday, I bought my first book for seminary. It is entitled "Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community," by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In addition, I am reading the book "Exodus: Why Americans Are Fleeing Liberal Churches for Conservative Christianity," by Dave Shiflett.

Friday, June 24, 2005

All is well here in Tallahassee, Florida as we prepare to go to seminary. We have heard from the seminary that we will be living in a 3BR apartment in Dean White Hall in the Flats. The Flats is one of two family housing areas at Nashotah House (all students live on campus).

The tentative plan is for Lee Martin and I to leave Tallahassee on August 7 with a U-Haul, towing my car behind. We estimate that it will take at least 2.5 days to get there. Then, on August 10, Lisa and Benjamin will fly up to meet us.

Please keep us in your prayers as we go through this moving process. Change is always rewarding after it happens, but it can be difficult while it is happening.