The Pastor's Corner for August, 2021

Reflections from Pastor Kim

Who are you?  Who, who, who, who? 
Who are you?  Who, who, who, who? 
I really wanna know (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?) 
Tell me, who are you? (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?) 
source: https://www.lyricsondemand.com/tvthemes/csilyrics.html

          These iconic lyrics were released by The Who on August 18, 1978. Some of us of a certain generation (ahem!) have memories of this song being released, and maybe even who we danced with Homecoming 1978 to this tune.  Yet there is another generation who doesn’t attribute their memory of this song to an album, 8-track or cassette (gasp!).  That generation remembers sitting down to watch a hip crime/police drama on or after September 23, 2002.  From the TV set that song called folks from all corners of the house to watch the intro of that week’s show.  They just HAD to see what zinger (even when it was corny) that Horatio Caine expressed as he slid those Ray Bans back on his face.  Same song, same artists, different lens.  Yet the song is known by millions.   
 
          There are similarities to our memories of songs, events, or people in the church, just as there are to the great pull of the secular world.  We remember singing “Amazing Grace” at Hildebrand’s funeral, and doing a scavenger hunt during Youth Group our sophomore year.  We remember a pastor who could make goose bumps jump onto the whole rooms arms as she sang “What Wondrous Love Is This”, and the nausea those same folks felt as another pastor surprised them with his original rendition of “When We All Get to Heaven.”  Our memories are precious and remind us that we have a rich heritage which brought us to where we are today.  Those memories also inform us of what and who we have been as this part of the Body of Christ known as Oakland UMC.  What memories don’t inform us of is who we are now; in this minute, in this place, in the shelter of the Most High, discerning who calls us NOW.   

          So, who are we?  This is a question we MUST ask ourselves repeatedly and continually.  Hopefully at least part of the answer takes the following into consideration.

​“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be 
restored?  It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled underfoot.  You 
are the light of the world.  A city built on a hill cannot be hid.  No one after lighting a lamp 
puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.  In 
the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give 
glory to your Father in heaven.”   
Matthew 5:13-16  NRSV 

          If the world shifts under our feet, either literally or figuratively, we have an obligation to work even harder to not loose our “saltiness.”  When we’ve been hurt physically, mentally, spiritually, or emotionally, we have those around us who keep oil in the lamp and keep it high about the destruction to ensure it’s longevity.  When we find that God’s call might look or sound different than it did even yesterday, we come together to figure out our place in the Body of Christ.    

          That’s where we are at, friends!  We are in a place of exploration.  Seeking God’s call on Oakland UMC in this time and place; to continue that exploration in the years to come.  Just as God does not call us at the age of three in the same way as at eighty-three, God does not Oakland UMC in the same way today, as he did in the decades before.  Over the last sixteen months or so the world has tilted.  Regardless our viewpoint in anything which occurred during that time, today is different than this same date in 2019 or 2020.   

          So, who are we in the midst of, and in addition to this?  That’s what we’ll be exploring in the weeks and months to come.   What we know for sure is that we are part of the Family of God and the Body of Christ.  Called to fulfill the Great Commission to make disciples.  Together we move forward to seek the movement and leading of the Holy Spirit in fulfilling this.  We sing a song of praise familiar to our ears – it is the one we sing in response to God’s call to a new day, sung for the faithful.  To God be the glory! Be blessed, be a blessing, and take someone on the journey with you!

Pastor Kim