I preached my first sermon this morning at St. Bart's. I think it went really well, and I got a few compliments on it. I always have a hard time figuring out how to respond to such comments, because I know that anything I manage to say that's any good is definitely the Spirit speaking through me. I guess I could say that, but it gets a little wordy, so I usually just say "Thanks."
After the sermon, I spent some time talking to Aaron and one of the parishoners about the sermon. They gave me some great constructive feedback, as well as some wonderful affirmations. The most interesting part for me was that I got the same feedback from Barb as I did from one of my classmates: I was too animated at the beginning of the sermon, and it seemed fake. I never knew that my go-to nervous reaction is to get more dramatic. Good to know, and I'll definitely keep working on that.
Well, to spare you having to read a long post and watching the sermon, here you go. This is my sermon from today, although it was filmed last week, and I definitely changed a few things in between: Woo!
21.10.12
11.10.12
History
This week at St. Bart's, I got to be the deacon, which means I helped out with a bunch of the service. I did the opening announcements, read the Psalm, prayed several prayers, assisted with Communion, and gave the sending. This is usually something one of the congregation members does, so it was fun to have a chance to fill this role. I'll be preaching in a couple of weeks, so it's also good for me to be up front where people can see me and get to know me before that!
I really appreciated that a member of the congregation does the announcements here. I don't think I've ever seen that done in another church, but I liked it. Rather than putting another task on the pastor's shoulders, this allows more participation by the people of the church. Since I am very much of the mindset that the pastor is NOT the only leader in the church, I like any opportunity to let others lead and participate.
After church this week, one of the members took me through a short history of the congregation. It has been around for almost 100 years, since they bought the church building from an Episcopalian church. I had a really good time learning about where the congregation originated, who has led it, and how they have developed over the last century. Seeing how the pastor did or did not foster growth was interesting, and a good insight into how congregations function. I would have liked to hear more about the role of the council at different moments, but that is a little harder to recreate than the pastoral history.
St. Bart's had four female pastors before Aaron came, so it is no surprise to me that they have been gracious and accepting of me. They have been through something like four maternity leaves, as well, so they are also willing to work with me as I figure out what will happen over the next few months. Aaron had told me a little of this history, but seeing it laid out on Bill's timeline gave me a lot of insight. I would love to spend some time at my first call learning the history of the church up front. I think we tend to believe that a church is not so much its past as its present, but this is obviously not true. The pains and joys of the past, the growths and declines, the good and bad pastors all affect how the congregation functions today, and I need to remember to take note of that.
I really appreciated that a member of the congregation does the announcements here. I don't think I've ever seen that done in another church, but I liked it. Rather than putting another task on the pastor's shoulders, this allows more participation by the people of the church. Since I am very much of the mindset that the pastor is NOT the only leader in the church, I like any opportunity to let others lead and participate.
After church this week, one of the members took me through a short history of the congregation. It has been around for almost 100 years, since they bought the church building from an Episcopalian church. I had a really good time learning about where the congregation originated, who has led it, and how they have developed over the last century. Seeing how the pastor did or did not foster growth was interesting, and a good insight into how congregations function. I would have liked to hear more about the role of the council at different moments, but that is a little harder to recreate than the pastoral history.
St. Bart's had four female pastors before Aaron came, so it is no surprise to me that they have been gracious and accepting of me. They have been through something like four maternity leaves, as well, so they are also willing to work with me as I figure out what will happen over the next few months. Aaron had told me a little of this history, but seeing it laid out on Bill's timeline gave me a lot of insight. I would love to spend some time at my first call learning the history of the church up front. I think we tend to believe that a church is not so much its past as its present, but this is obviously not true. The pains and joys of the past, the growths and declines, the good and bad pastors all affect how the congregation functions today, and I need to remember to take note of that.
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