It's that time again

Last year we were introduced to a word that, while we had heard it before, did not carry with it any true weight or deep meaning in our lives. We could give you a textbook definition of the word and even explain it accurately if we had been asked the meaning.  But we could not have in any way anticipated what the word would one day meant to us.  Today, this one word defines for us everything from life circumstances to emotional states of mind to headaches to opportunities to change things we've always wanted to.  And that word is... transition.

I always thought that was a nice word that described leaves changing from green to red in the fall or fashions going from tight-rolled jeans to bell bottoms.  But we learned quickly with some help from other transitioning families and well-experienced ministry pros that transition is a whole lot more than that.  Sometimes it's exciting.  New adventures.  New people.  New places to discover.  Sometimes it's exhausting.  Awkward moments.  Frustrating schedules.  Throbbing headaches.  Sometimes it's over quickly.  Sometimes it takes a while.  And sometimes, it takes more than a while and just when you thought it was over, it just takes a new turn.

Our family has found ourselves in transition once again.  We have adjusted well to life here in Kentucky.  Great schools, wonderful neighbors, and a routine we were just getting comfortable in...sooooo... it was time for a shake-up.  And doors opened.  And we walked through.  I started my new job at NUMC as the director of children's and family ministry.  Luke accepted a position as the vice president of leadership on the Asbury student council and substantially cut back his hours at the library so he can be home while I work.  The girls decided to move on to their next grade level with flying colors and Caleb looks to be starting preschool this year.  And..oh yeah, I have officially started my master's program through Wesley Seminary as of Thursday.

It's a lot of... transition.

In a way, we find ourselves right back where we were last year at this exact time.  While we don't have to figure out where to buy groceries or how to pay our bills, we are navigating the halls of a new church and adjusting to a new schedule and norm.  When we first moved here, we heard a talk famously known as "The Transition Talk" here on

campus by the Asbury Vice President of Community Formation, Dr. Marilyn Elliot, who compared the time of transition to an ice rink.  She said to imagine that in an ice rink, furniture had been set up and frozen into the ice.  It can be moved but it takes a great deal of work and frustration.  However, during a time of transition, it's like the ice is melting and things are slushy.  It's much easier to move things around and evaluate if things need to go or stay and where they best fit.  But it has to be done quickly before the ice starts freezing again and the furniture is once again immobile.

That is where the Embree family once again finds ourselves.  We're moving things around, figuring out what works, what we want to add and what we need to take away.  We are experiencing all those things I described earlier: excitement, exhaustion and time-consumption.  But I was so blessed this weekend to be reminded of something by my new professor, Dr. Colleen Derr.  She asked all of us gathered in the new master's cohort, a simple question; "Why are you here?"  Simply put, most of us answered the same, "We feel called by God..." in one way or another.  

We don't find ourselves here because we are bored or because we need to do more to make ourselves feel good.  Neither Luke or I would have ever imagined that we'd find ourselves here.  But we truly do believe we are following God's leading into ministry.  I imagine Paul experienced quite a bit of transition between the time he got knocked off his high horse and his journey into ministry.  I'm sure Peter and Andrew experienced it as they left the nets and the seas and started leading the first churches.  

Please pray for us as we navigate these new waters.  Pray for wisdom as we determine what stays and what goes.  Pray that we find our new norm quickly and easily.  And pray that above all, we seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness, that His kingdom would grow, and our family will remain rooted in His love.  We are so blessed to have so many praying for us and speaking into our lives.  Thank you for walking with us!

Big Words I Don't Understand

Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate and Yellow #5 - Yum!

So, in my attempt to be more healthy, I have been trying very hard not to eat anything that contains big words I can't pronounce let alone understand.  You know, those words that show up on the list of ingredients with 20+ letters in them and no semblance to something you would actually find naturally occurring in creation.  And it's not easy, let me tell you.  Those big words and ingredients with numbers and hydrogenated oils creep into a lot of things.  At this point, I'm pretty much trying not to eat anything that comes in a plastic or foil package.

That said, I also started my new job this week and I've noticed that there are a lot of "big" words that we sometimes throw around in church that are often hard to understand or don't make any sense to the average "consumer."   Since I work in Kid's Ministry you would think that wasn't so much the case but let me throw out a few: "Family Ministry" Hmm, so what exactly does that mean?  You minister to families?  Isn't that kinda what the whole church is supposed to do?  "Children's Ministry"  So what is that exactly?  Babysitting for kids while parents go to church?  Wouldn't that be "parent ministry"?  How about "Volunteer?"  Don't you actually mean guilt trip into doing something because it's your job to make sure there are enough teachers and helpers?

Sure, we can pronounce these words but do we really know what they mean?  Or are they just words we use in our ministry circles, and nod, and assume we all mean the same thing?  Well, as I pondered this very thing, I remembered something I'd written called "Why Children's Ministry?"

Children’s Ministry
These words conjure up all sorts of thoughts and images in our minds; some good and some not so good. Children reciting Bible verses, singing choruses, having fun at VBS and recounting Bible stories are generally good thoughts. Finding volunteers, creating adequate space, acquiring funding, balancing schedules, managing behavior... did I mention finding volunteers? Unfortunately, most of the times, the images brought up by the mention of this particular ministry are less than favorable leading many, including myself, to fall back on the age-old “Christian” cliché of “It’s not my gift.” 

I am often asked, “Why did you go into Kid’s Ministry? You must really love kids.” While I would never say I don’t love kids, I would never have described myself in the past as a “kid person.” My undergraduate degree is in secondary education, not elementary, and I taught juniors and seniors, not kindergartners or first-graders. One thing I did feel strongly was a call to ministry and to building the kingdom of God. When I started serving in Children’s Ministry in 2011, one thing became clear to me: if I really wanted to grow God’s kingdom, I had to make Children’s ministry a priority. There simply was no way around that fact. 

In his book, “Transforming Children into Spiritual Champions”, George Barna of the Barna Research groups sites the following statistics: 32% of all people who come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior at a young age continue in or come back to their faith in their lifetime. Alternately, only 6% of adults without prior exposure to Christ will ever come into relationship with Him. These findings are both alarming and challenging. Barna points out in the same book that the majority of churches spend the majority of their ministry budget on programs targeted towards adults. Even most children’s programs state that a major part of their purpose is to entice the parents of attending children to begin visiting or attending the church.  

However, the statistics above paint a different picture for churches who are serious about building the kingdom of God. Children’s and Family Ministry, directed towards and dedicated to children and to strengthening the family, is the number one way to build God’s kingdom and to bring people into the body of Christ. Unfortunately, many churches view Children’s Ministry as a means to an end or a necessity for parents and they tailor their program in such a way, to make it appealing to adults rather than formatted for discipling children and mentoring families.

You see, this is what it comes down to for me.  It's not about Children's Ministry, or Family Ministry, or volunteering.  It's not about Sunday School attendance or Children's Church curriculum or even about a good Children's Ministry director.  It's about the church taking seriously Jesus' commission and "Going" and "Making" disciples of ALL men, without regard to age or development.  It's about "welcoming a child in His name" because that is the same as welcoming Christ.  It's about seed-planting and fruit-bearing for eternity, not putting in your time for a few hours on Sunday.

And that's why I am passionate about Kid's Ministry.  Because when I talk to adults of all ages and I ask where they first saw Jesus, first came to know Him or first made a profession of faith, the vast, overwhelming majority of them start by saying, "When I was a kid..."  Whether their path from childhood was straight and narrow or winding and wide, somehow those seeds planted in childhood found life in adulthood and eternity in Christ.

Do you want to grow the kingdom of God?  Invest in a child.  Show them God's love.  Speak truth to their hearts.  Let them see the awe and mystery of the Word and the Word made flesh.  BE the church to the youngest members of the church.  It doesn't take a special gift or a unique call.  If you are a believer, you have the call and God will supply the gift as needed.  It doesn't take "big" words with ambiguous meanings. Just don't neglect the chance to welcome Christ into your life as you welcome a child in His name.

Old T-shirt and Jeans

You know that feeling at the end of a long day and you get home, head upstairs, get out of your work clothes and reach for your favorite pair of jeans and the oldest T-shirt you own?  You shrug into them and suddenly life is a little bit more comfortable and you breathe a little bit easier and your mind switches into a lower gear as you begin to wind down from your day.

Maryland Blue Crabs and Family
Best Dinner Ever

For some reason, that's what coming to Pennsylvania has felt like this time for me.  It's been a full year since we moved to Kentucky and started seminary life.  It has been a good year.  We have made friendships that will last a lifetime.  We have learned so much about God and love and life and hope.  We've also learned what Kroger to shop at, where the library is, how to get the best and freshest donuts at Fitches IGA, where we can hike and where we can play, and why school starts so early in Kentucky.  

But that's part of why coming back to Pennsylvania feels so comfortable.  As I told Luke on our first
day here, "I can drive these roads mindlessly.  I know exactly where I'm going and how I"m going to get there."  My synapses don't have to fire as much as they do in Kentucky where I still say to myself, "Hmm, what would happen if I turn here?"  I walked into Walmart last night at 9 pm and ran into three friends from church, high school and work.  I went to church and was surrounded by a congregation who knew me, my kids, and my husband.  I ate crabs with my parents and siblings in the house we grew up in and knew where all the utensils went and where to grab a tasty drink.  It's comfortable.  It's familiar.  It's second nature.

Grammie, PopPop and the kids

As we wrap things up in Pennsylvania, it is a little hard to think about leaving behind this comfort and heading back to a place that while now more familiar still isn't completely broken in.  It's hard to say good-bye again to friends and family and to not know exactly when our paths will cross again.  It's never easy to say "so long" to familiar things and comfort zones.  But that doesn't mean it isn't good.  If there is one thing I have become convinced of in our year in Kentucky, we have heard and followed God's voice.  We are exactly where He wants us for this time.  And He is with us every step of the way.

The thing about that favorite T-shirt and pair of jeans you have hanging in your closet or folded in your drawer is... you'll never let it go.  Unless the shirt gives out on you or the jeans fray apart, it's likely they will remain within your reach.  I love the people in Pennsylvania, family and friends (and some who have moved to New York but still visited us in PA) and it is the greatest comfort to me knowing that they are always within my reach.  As I read recently, "True friendship isn't about being inseparable; it's being separated and nothing changes."  The relationship is greater than the distance, the love stronger than the sadness, and the history longer than the miles.

Campfire, S'mores, and Illos are the perfect combination for a great night

For all of you we got to spend some time with this week, thank you!  Your friendship and your love was a comfort and a joy.  To my sister, thank you for making your home our home and letting us live, eat, laugh, have guests, drink coffee, do laundry, and come and go with love.  To my parents, thanks for our crab feast, for coming with us to Laurel Lake, and for loving us so much.  

Our last day in PA will be filled with wedding joy and birthday celebration and while I will certainly not be wearing an old t-shirt and jeans, it may very well feel like I am.  We return to the Bluegrass tomorrow to our "new" old house and our "new" old friends and "new" old life.   We are beyond grateful for the blessings we find in all our homes (here, in Indiana and in Kentucky)  Our life is blessed and full because of the people who fill it and the God who blesses it.  And there is nothing more familiar and comforting than that.