Seasons of Life

Several years ago Pastor Chuck Swindol wrote a book entitled, "The Seasons Of Life". It was an outstanding book shedding light on the natural process people go through as they grow older. It deals with changes in family, career, life focus, and so on. One of the things I have found in my journey is that there are passages that one travels through as they experience the various seasons of life. These passages bring meaning and purpose to the journey. Ruthie and I are traversing one of those passages now. We have been in Pastoral ministry for 35 years. For the most part they have been very rewarding and fulfilling years.

When Silver Creek Community Church and Seattle Family Church merged two years ago I took a step back and breathed a sigh of relief. I felt the pressures of ministry being lifted off of my shoulders now that I was functioning on a team of three that were carrying the load of leading our church. I have recently come to the conclusion that I actually never fully reengaged after the merge. Brent & Elizabeth have walked with me for the past year as my job performance was slipping and I found myself dealing with some pretty severe anxiety. I have appreciated the manner in which Brent and Elizabeth have worked with me in addressing many areas of concern. We came to a point at which it was apparent that I was falling short and so our board became involved as a job description was developed where I could continue to serve as a pastor but function only in the areas where we all felt I could be successful. This new job description focused on my natural abilities and strengths and would allow me to have more time to heal, spend time with Ruthie, deal with my anxiety and reflect on where I stood in regards to moving forward in ministry. Initially I accepted the role but after some time spent with trusted friends and counselors who understand pastoral fatigue and spending much time in prayer while going through the process of weighing my options I realized that I didn't feel I could continue to function in a pastoral role. Therefore I needed to resign. My resignation will become official as of January 1st. I am going to be preaching the 19th and 26th of December and then will be in attendance on January 2nd.

I have been overwhelmed with the kindness and grace of our staff, board and leadership team during the past weeks as I have struggled with my decision. Ruthie and I love SCFC. We will always consider this home. For the next few months we are going to take a little vacation time, get rested up and decide what to do next. There are a number of options out there, none of which I want to think about right now. I am going to focus on getting healthy mentally, physically and spiritually this next year.

I want to be sure you understand two things; First, Ruthie and I love you all and will be attending SCFC when we are in town. We have no desire to go anywhere else. Secondly, We believe in Brent and Elizabeth. If you were here this past Sunday when I resigned to the congregation you heard me say I think they are two of the most gifted people I have ever worked with. Ruthie and I believe in them as "our" pastors. SCFC is in good hands.

Ruthie and I would ask that you pray for us in this season of our life as we discover what God has next for us.

If you have read any of my writings you will know I sign off with one or two sayings... "As always, I am expecting God's best!" or "Great days ahead!" Well, I believe both of those apply in this situation. Our best days are ahead of us and God is walking with us. I'll sign off saying, "I am expecting God's best for SCFC!"

Our New Tree

Fall is my favorite season! I love leaves under my feet, I love to wear sweaters, boots, crazy socks, scarves, gloves…you name it! I also love windstorms and the excitement of having our FIRST SNOW!! I am a kid at heart and I love every minute of what this season brings. We are now past Thanksgiving and headed into another Christmas season. I have been blessed with many great memories and traditions and so this time of year is also a blessing to me. I know that the overcast days can be overwhelming at times but I just pop a few extra Vitamin D pills and I am off and running! :)

Our family has the tradition of cutting down our Christmas tree! We have always enjoyed the adventure of bundling up, heading to a family owned tree farm in Arlington, meeting up with various family members and picking out the perfect tree. We have come to the point of knowing exactly what a Volz tree should look like. It has to be one that isn’t too full, the branches need to be far enough apart that our decorations have room to hang but they have to be close enough together to be able to fit a multitude of decorations and not show too much of the trunk. We like Noble firs that aren’t too wide at the bottom and we definitely like the fact that the tree is fresh because we typically have Christmas décor up from Thanksgiving until the New Year. In short…we are picky and that has worked well for us for years.

This year was different…the desire to maintain tradition was overcome with the desire to have a bit more time to just relax with the boys, avoid the rainy 42 degree tree hunting weather, save some money over the long haul, put some new traditions in place and just simplify. So…we finally made the switch. I never thought this day would come but here we are with an artificial tree in our living room. We like it but I believe we will come to love it. We don’t have to water the tree, or in many cases kick ourselves for not watering it. We don’t have pine needles everywhere, and there are no little spiders making our ceiling their home. We really do like the way it looks and we will now always have a tree that looks like the perfect Volz tree.

There are times in life when circumstances force change. Sometimes we invite that change and sometimes we have no way of predicting when it will occur. Regardless, it can take time to adjust. I don’t know what might be going on in your life right now but whatever the case may be I hope you will trust God to walk through the good times and the dark times, and to bring you to a place of contentment and trusting in HIM to supply your peace and joy regardless of the changes that may be happening around you.

Don’t forget to join us, at FUSiON, this Sunday! We are going to be talking about JOY!! It will be a great day to put new traditions in place and enjoy being with friends and our church family!

I hope to see you there! God bless you!
Elizabeth

Politically Incorrect

It's been so much more enjoyable to watch any television now that the election season is over. Even individuals and initiatives drive me crazy. Apparently to be politically correct you must overstate the truth about yourself and not even come close to being honest about your opponent. I'm happy to be involved in the political process, but could they just be straight with us and say what they stand for, what they care about and what they want to see happen. Let me take a moment a be politically incorrect and be straight forward with you about something going on at Silver Creek.

Silver Creek is a church that deeply cherishes and highly depends on it's many volunteers. There is a tremendous amount of people that give much of their time and effort to helping out in invaluable ways. Here's the politically incorrect comment where I just tell you the truth. Even with all the people already involved we continue to have areas where more people can step forward and fill a role or increase their involvement. Please know, we don't just create volunteer spots for fun, the spots are created because ministry is developing and growing. Read the next paragraphs and catch why the volunteer position are needed and then check out the new page on our website highlighting our top five volunteer needs.

Our group of kids birth through kindergartner, has grown to the point that the two rooms we currently use for these age groups is insufficient. It's exciting that God is blessing our church with families with young kids. God is blessing and we need to respond by opening a third room, designed for toddlers. This will allow us to meet the specific needs of each age group.

We encourage volunteers to find areas of ministry they are passionate about, even when that means they step away from a current volunteer spot. Some Base Camp (1st-6th grader) coaches have felt a pull to help with our Student Ministries. This means we are in need of people to replace those Base Camp coaches.

Living in the NW, we all know the value of a casual, warm and inviting place and if that place provides coffee all the better. Each Sunday, Silver Creek makes coffee and tea available to our guests and regular attenders. We can't yet afford the coffee that brews itself, so there's a team of people that get the drinks ready each Sunday. Our team of people that serve once a month has a couple of openings. Not having coffee on Sunday morning at a church this close to Seattle would be a sad, sad thing.

Use of video in our Sunday services and on our web page is engaging, fun and relevant. There are people in our church with creative video editing skills that need a place to express themselves. Monthly we have videos that need editing and preparing for viewing.

I can't imagine going through a Christmas season without hearing "The Little Drummer Boy". That would be as crazy as coming to a service on Sunday and not seeing a drummer in our band. Having multiple musicians for each instrument is critical to avoiding this situation and we are looking for additional drummers.

Our belief is that as people within Silver Creek become aware of why we need their help along with the role where help is needed, they will respond. Take a look at our top five volunteer needs and respond where you sense God might be leading you.

Thanks,
Brent

An amazing verse

In the first chapter of the Gospel of John there is a verse that maybe the most amazing verse in all the Bible. There John writes, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." It is really an incredible thought! That God would step out of eternity and take on the flesh and blood human likeness of humanity so that we could come to see Him and know Him.

On a backpacking trip several years ago I found myself for a few days at a high mountain lake in the Rockies. When I set up camp I wasn't very observant. It so happened I set my camp up right in the middle of a grey squirrel highway. All day long there were squirrels running around me and chirping at this intruder. Over the few days I was there I kept trying to when them over. I would lay out some peanuts on the log and try to get them to come closer and closer to me. The hope was they would come to a point where they would trust me enough that they would eat out of my hand. I got them to within a few feet but never closer than that. It occurred to me that the only way they would ever trust me was if I became one of them. Then I would be welcome in their world and be allowed to have influence in their life. You can see where I'm going with this. God knew for us to completely understand His love for us He would have to come into our world and demonstrate it. Can you imagine a greater example than a Father laying down his life for his son. That is exactly what God did in Jesus Christ. I hope you celebrate the fact that Jesus loves YOU and He came to show it.

Hope you have a great end to your week,

Steve

Three Headed Pumpkin

Two weeks ago my kids and I got a real jump on the pumpkin carving process. We went to the store and they each got to pick out the pumpkin they wanted. My oldest son, Kade, found the best pumpkin we've ever had. It's actually three separate pumpkins that had fused together along their outer skins. We were all pretty excited about this great find.

We brought this unusual pumpkin home and placed it on our craft and homework table with the plan to carve it in one of the next days. Kade got busy hanging out with friends after school. I was concentrating on getting a couple home improvement projects completed. The other kids were sidetracked with homework and playing around the house. All that to say, we kind of forgot to carve the pumpkin. We forgot until my youngest son asked why the pumpkin was leaking water.

Our delay had led to the internal rotting of the pumpkin and it was oozing onto the table. Kade and I managed to cut the rotting section of the pumpkin out and still create a pretty sweet looking three headed jack-o-lantern. Unfortunately the decline of the pumpkin has continued and each day the jack-o-lantern gets softer, squishier and falling in on itself. Bummer how this incredible gourd didn't get to be all that we had dreamed it was going to become.

I've been reminded over the past weeks how incredible of a place God envisions Silver Creek Family Church to be. We are no three headed pumpkin but I know He sees amazing possibilities with what He plan for us to become. That's why I love it each fall when we take a fresh look at our Core Values. Our Core Values are pretty simple but so critical. When we keep them in focus, they prevent us from forgetting who we are on the craft table and becoming rotten inside.

We could easily become distracted with lots of things that make us feel good, that help us look like a church might want to look like and even good things that just take up our time. The problem is that we have been called to be something unique in our community. To reach people that nobody else is reaching. To be a place where people can journey together in their individual spiritual lives, knowing it's safe, yet challenging church.

I hope you've been able to be at church these past three weeks to hear about three of our Core Values. If you haven't head to our web site and take a listen. Then plan to be there during the next weeks as we finish up the series. We have to stay focus on what God has called us to be, let's not miss an incredible opportunity to be the church this community desperately needs.

Brent

Partnering with Parents

Every month I get a newsletter from the organization that writes our curriculum for both preschool and elementary students. They do an amazing job of writing scripts, providing activities and centering all of that month's content around a common virtue or truth. I found some great reminders as to how we can partner with parents as they connect with their kids. I know that not everyone reading this blog is a parent or has young children but everyone knows a parent and I encourage you to pass along this information as we desire to reach into the lives of children and help to transform the way that they see God and how they process what it means to be growing in their relationship with God.

At Silver Creek, ministering to the whole family and partnering with parents are both huge priorities. The first Sunday of every month we have FUSiON, our family production, which is in place to provide a worship experience for the whole family. We believe that if we can get parents and kids to start talking about the same virtues then we have the potential to make a far greater impact then if we just leave that job to the church. As we look for realistic ways to partner with parents to nurture their children's spiritual growth, it's just as important to understand what this partnership is not. It's not about making parents meet a specific, predetermined standard, as if every situation is the same. It is about helping every parent make the most of what they have.
If we want to partner with parents, we must first believe in them. We need to believe that they want to get this right and that they care about their kids even more than we do. A few years back, the Barna Group released these statistics:

85% of parents believe they have the primary responsibility for teaching their children about religious beliefs.


96% of parents believe they also have the primary responsibility for teaching values to their children.

Parents feel strongly about their influence with their children. So we in the church need to see our primary responsibility as partner - giving encouragement and providing helpful resources that seem possible from a parent's perspective. The resources can't add to an already hectic lifestyle.

The American Time Use Survey asked thousands of Americans to share how they spend each minute of every day, and then averaged the results. The survey found that sleeping, eating/drinking, working, and watching TV take up about two-thirds of the average day. In the "people with two or more children" demographic, three more categories took up significant portions of each day - household activities, traveling, and family care (an additional half hour for each child). Not surprisingly, some of the smallest slivers of time spent were on personal care, socializing, relaxing and thinking, and religious activities.

With so much already packed into families' busy lives, how can we help parents use the time they are already spending with their children to create more of an everyday faith? It seems like the most likely way is to intentionally cue or prompt parents to use certain times of each day to further their children's spiritual growth. To not just drive to practice, but talk about the Bible or listen to praise music on the way there. To not just eat dinner, but to start a discussion about God and how He is working in their family. By cueing parents to use these key times they already have with their children, we are partnering with them and encouraging them to use their greater influence for their children's spiritual growth.

We think parents want the best for their children. They want to raise kids who believe in God and see Him as active in their lives. We need to help CUE every parent to make the most of their everyday moments with their children, instead of setting up an unrealistic model that makes them feel hopeless. In First Look (preschool), Base Camp (K-4th grades) and Summit 56 (5-6th graders) we have included pieces, marked with a CUE symbol, to help prompt you as parents to create and see natural opportunities to build an everyday faith at home.

We are here to support you in this adventure!

See you Sunday!

Elizabeth Volz

Disappointments

Don't you just hate when customer service representatives are kind and helpful on the phone? Yep, you read the question right. It's frustrating when a person in a position (that is supposed to be a helpful position, but rarely is) proves that someone in that role can actually be helpful. We've all grown so accustomed to going in circles with the voice prompts that large companies force us to deal with. We've have all felt the aggravation of a customer service representative who forgets we are the customer, that they are supposed to offer us a service and that they are representing a company that claims they care about us. In those rare moments, when someone we need to be helpful, actually is, we are forced to evaluate and maybe adjust all our preconceived ideas and biases against anyone in that occupation.

I just hung up the phone with my medical insurance company, trying to find out if I could have a procedure completed that a specialist ordered. Unfortunately since the time I first saw the specialist and she ordered the procedure until now, I've changed insurance companies. I had to make sure the procedure would still be covered. The lady I spoke with was incredible. She listened to my situation, did some research on her data base and when I needed to talk with the imaging center to confirm information, she asked me to hold and made the call for me. She took care of everything, found all the information I needed and went above what I expected she would do.

Those of us that have decided to be followers of Jesus, face a similar stigma as customer service representatives. The label of being a Christian or follower of Jesus, often communicates to people that we are judgmental, arrogant and hypocritical. Too bad it's a label we've either earned for ourselves or someone else, that's a follower of Christ or claims to be a follower of Christ, has earned for us. Unfortunately it's been earned or demonstrated enough that it's often what people expect, from you or me, when they realize we are a Christian.

That makes our new task, to be one of disappointing people. To frustrate them by not living up to what they've come to expect from someone that claims to know Christ. How amazing will it be the next time someone tells you, "you are so different from what I was expecting a Christian to be?" "You treated me with love." "You didn't make me change everything I do and think before you'd consider me a person of value." What if tomorrow when you are the customer service representative for Jesus (which you will be), the individuals you interact with are blown away as they experience what they didn't expect?

Let's get out in our community and strive to be huge disappointments. I know that each of us can do it.

Have a great week,

Brent