I aspire to follow Jesus in faith and love,
living into peace and justice, compassion and mercy.
Growing up with Christian parents and active in church life, I consciously trusted Jesus as a child. I mark the beginning of my adult faith journey when I studied the Book of Job as a high school senior in a public school world literature class. Though not the purpose of the course, in it God invited me to wrestle with the dark, disturbing mysteries of human life in dialog with God. Now at 75 years old, I recognize consistent themes in my spiritual formation drawn together in my opening statement.
As a young adult coming of age, my college education shifted from chemistry to English majors, followed by an MA in Christian education and later a certificate in spiritual formation. During this time I met my wife Candy whose spontaneous, unassuming spirituality has consistently refreshed me. I began my career with writing and editing, curriculum development and research in Christian education. As our sons were born, Candy and I intentionally sought to nurture their spiritual awareness. That transitioned to congregational Christian education ministry which evolved into pastoral vocation.
I never viewed Christian education as being about cognitive learning or even practicing biblical principles but as affective learning that shaped me and those with whom I served to cultivate the mind and character of Christ, specifically from Jesus in the Gospels. As I kept expanding my relationships and learning, I realized that Christian education was simply a dimension of the ancient and pervasive cultivation of spiritual formation across a wide spectrum of Christian traditions.
I was given a rich treasury of relationships with a diversity of others who were similarly pursuing intimacy with and formation into Christ. I have grown a lot from other followers of Jesus who have come at spiritual formation from dramatically different backgrounds. I have been deeply enriched by engaging in contemplative practices and spiritual exercises that had been foreign to me. Spiritual formation became a guiding metaphor not only for my personal journey but also for my educational and pastoral ministries.
Along the way, I was privileged to develop relationships and have experiences with people of many different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. I knew about the issues of justice and peace, especially for those identified in the Hebrew Prophets and the Gospels as the poor, the weak, the injured, the oppressed, the outsiders. These folk invited me into some measure of sharing in their suffering and perspectives. Engaging with peace and justice, compassion and mercy became a parallel track to spiritual formation personally and in ministry.
Just as I was retiring from pastoral ministry, Candy was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. My calling has shifted from pastor/teacher to caregiver. I am no longer publicly engaged in teaching and pastoring. I have had a few opportunities for inspirational writing of devotionals for others caring for their loved ones, but I am certainly no expert or authority, just a companion on the way. Though quite different from my previous vocation, caring for my wife is just as much a calling from God as teaching and pastoring ever were. I am still following Jesus in faith and love. I am recognizing new vistas of peace and justice, compassion and mercy as I journey with Jesus.
My youthful encounter with the Book of Job began to nourish the contemplation of mystery, increasing tolerance for ambiguity, and staring unswervingly into the spaces between the juxtaposition of incongruity and paradox in both the journey with Jesus and the most profound realities of human life. Thus, for me Christian education, pastoral ministry, and spiritual formation are not just parallel with but intrinsic to following Jesus in faith and love by living into peace and justice, compassion and mercy, so is the more hidden vocation of caregiving.
