About our blog

This blog began as an attempt to keep our family and friends included in the adventures of little Baby Blakely until he made his appearance in the world. Now, this has become a gathering place for all of our various adventures as we continue to enjoy time as a growing family.

Monday, June 5, 2017

Memorial reflections this weekend

This past weekend, I had the privilege of leading the memorial service for Longwood University's mega-reunion. During the tree planting service, I shared the following reflection:



Reflections – Roots that anchor
I love trees. The way they reach up to the heavens – like the original skyscrapers – towering above as a silent testament to the power of nature. Those giant trees, indeed the very ones around us, have seen the great passage of time. They were planted when we were but glimmers in our grandparents’ imaginations and will go on until our grandchildren walk these hallowed grounds. I’ve often sat in the shade of these behemoths and wondered what they have seen: proposals and breakups; intense happiness and profound loss; hope of a life ahead and the finality of a life lived. Trees have stories to tell if we would but listen for a while.

But trees don’t grow tall without also growing deep. Beneath each towering tree is a root system that anchors it to the earth. The roots draw nutrients from the soil and hold the tree upright to drink in the sunlight. The roots hold the tree fast during a strong storm. Indeed, the roots form the base from which the tree can grow to the towering heights and resplendent shade that we know and love.

And we too have roots that run deep, that anchor us to what we know. Our family, our friends, our community – these are what anchors us. When we are challenged, our roots help us to draw forth support. When the storms of life hit, our deepest roots help us to weather the wind and rain until the sun can shine again. Indeed, our roots in this place form a base from which we have been given the opportunity to grow to great heights ourselves.

Some trees use their roots differently than the ones we see around us. The mangrove trees of the tropical rainforest exist as an interconnected community. Their roots weave together so tightly that they can actually share resources from tree to tree. When an individual tree is in need of something, its neighbors respond by diverting these nutrients to the needy one’s roots. They support each other and so the entire community is strengthened. Don’t we, as Lancers, do this with one another? When a Lancer is hurting, don’t we rally around them to strengthen them for road ahead?

Still other communal tree populations are being studied by scientists. These scientists have discovered a rudimentary communication system in the roots of densely packed forests. When a bug or illness threatens a tree, it releases chemicals in its roots which other trees drink in. This prompts the neighboring trees to develop defenses against the intruder. When our community is threatened, don’t we do everything in our power to support the Lancers we know and love?

Trees are truly magical creations. Their roots draw up from the soil the things they need to survive. Their leaves act as little power plants giving the tree life and, as an added bonus, us fresh air. But there’s another part of the tree that I like less: the pollen. I don’t know about you but I have some pretty intense seasonal allergies. When the oaks start blooming, I start sneezing. Around here, as I’m sure you all will remember, the streets literally run with the catkins – the pollen producing part – from live oaks. If it was feasible, I’d pack up during the Spring and head somewhere that oaks couldn’t follow.

But pollen season is a reminder to me too. Although I love to sit in the shade of a towering tree, that’s not ultimately why that tree grows tall. It grows tall so that it can have better access to the sun so that it can do a better job of creating pollen. The pollen creates the next generation of tree. The tree is powered by its roots and leaves so it can spread its life all around.

Isn’t this what we’re supposed to be doing too? We’re fueled by our roots – by the people who have gone before us – and our leaves – the people who have empowered us – to spread out into the world. We are propelled by their support and nourishment so that we can make a difference to others.

Like I said, I love trees.

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

We are called to connect



*This post is the aforementioned assignment for the class I'm taking online.*

I was listening to a podcast recently called Bullseye with Jesse Thorn where the host was interviewing comedian Guy Branum. The guest, an openly gay man whose comedic work largely centers on issues in the LGBT community, was discussing his latest show, Talk Show The Game Show – a talk show in the format of a game show where guests receive points for doing “talk show” things. Branum offered an insight into his goal behind the show when he said, “Talk shows at their best are people having a real conversation with the utmost of themselves.” I would say that church is at its best when real people are having conversations and listening to God with the utmost of themselves.

After an incredibly polarizing election season that has only progressed into a contentious period in our collective, secular lives I feel that it is critical for communities to have places where people can come together to rise above the party politics and divisive rhetoric. Church should be that place. Indeed, it is the only place where all should be able to set aside their affiliations and join in worship of the Almighty. In his letter to the Romans, Paul didn’t write that only some had erred but rather that “…all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). To take it further, neither republicans nor democrats, right nor left, conservative nor liberal have monopolies on the need for the free justification given by Jesus Christ (Romans 3:24).

A recent study by the Pew Research Center shows that even our religious lives are increasingly polarized as well. Types of churches have become de facto designations of ideology and affiliation with beliefs in secular society. Evangelical Protestants are distinguished from Mainline Protestants who are, in turn, distinguished from Catholics. But Jesus did not call us to group up in these ways according to ideology or belief. Instead, he called us to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). Paul also got in on the act of calling for ignoring these divisions in that same Romans passage mentioned above when he rejected his equivalent group designations, “There is no difference between Jew and Gentile…” (Romans 3:22b).

Churches often agree with these statements in principle but don’t necessarily live them out. The same Pew Research Center study found a striking disparity between race and ethnic composition in various sects of religious groups. It should come as no surprise that there is a diverging between black and white Christians into historically Black protestant denominations and Mainline Protestant ones given the relatively recent (and some would say on-going) racial oppression in this country. As Cone said, “African slaves found white churches socially unacceptable as places of worship. Therefore they created their own church structures that would more accurately represent their affirmations of faith in their struggle for freedom.” (Cone 533) That being said though, will our issues around race in this country really be solved without inviting brothers and sisters from different backgrounds to join with us in relationship, friendship, and community? Can the church really call for reconciliation without affecting this reconciliation in our own sanctuaries?

I believe that this sort of reconciliation across boundaries in the Church will not occur thanks to deep-thinking theologians. Rather, much as Cone identified regarding white theologians’ response to black theology (535), theologians beholden to denominational polity are likely to ignore conflicting views. It is the armchair theologians sitting in the pews who need to engage with people of all backgrounds so as to more accurately understand the fullness of the image of God.

McNeil advocates that our engagement should emulate Jesus who made an intentional effort to “reach across the human boundaries of culture, class, ethnicity, religion and gender” (56). It is not enough that we would “ask them to come to us” (McNeil 52) or to “plan special evangelistic events and invite them” (McNeil 52) as churches so often do. Instead, we as Christians must “leave our comfort zone and intentionally go to places where we will meet people who are different from us” (McNeil 52). Indeed, John Wesley himself preached early on in the Methodist movement about the need for all to experience the grace of God regardless of where we might encounter them (Logan 29).
I’m reminded of a hymn, “For the healing of the nations,” that has always struck a chord with me. Most of the hymn discusses overcoming all of the issues that humans encounter when we group together into various factions. The hymnist Fred Kaan calls on us to battle against war and famine and status in favor of peace, hope and goodness. It is the last stanza though that convicts me:

“You, Creator God, have written
your great name on humankind;
for our growing in your likeness
bring the life of Christ to mind;
that by our response and service
earth its destiny may find.”

While the world continues to polarize and become more tribal day after day – spurred on by fake news, alternative facts, and threats of violence on a global scale – the grace of God still calls all to God’s fold. A Christian community should be the place where brother can sit with brother, sister with sister, transwoman with coal miner, California democrat with Kansas republican, and all agree on one thing, “Christ is risen indeed.”

Want to learn more from the media, studies, and theologians I referenced? Here’s a rundown:
Thorn, Jesse (Producer). April 10, 2017. Bullseye with Jesse Thorn – Guy Branum [Audio Podcast] http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510309/bullseye

Religious Landscape Study. Pew Research Center, Accessed: April 24, 2017. http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/

Cone, James H. (1979). Evangelization and Politics: A Black Perspective in Wilmore, Gayraud S. (Ed.), Cone, James H. (Ed.), Black Theology: A Documentary History, 1966-1979 (pp.531-551). Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books

McNeil, Brenda Salter (2008). A Credible Witness: Reflections on Power, Evangelism and Race. Downer’s Grove, Illinois: IVP Books

Logan, James (1989). How Great a Flame! Contemporary Lessons from The Wesleyan Revival. Nashville, Tennessee: Discipleship Resources

Kaan, Frank (1989). For the healing of the nations in The United Methodist hymnal : book of United Methodist Worship. Nashville, Tennessee: United Methodist Pub. House

It's been 2 years!

Wow, it's been almost two years since we last published a blog post. In that time, we've had another kid and BB has grown to an almost kindergartner. Josh has changed jobs and Lyndsie is looking to scale back her work at church. Lyndsie has also become trained as a doula and is looking to take on some clients soon. A ton has happened and we've neglected to keep you all informed!

Expect to see a little more action here on the blog coming up soon. I'm taking a class online and have to publish a public presentation on evangelism. I'll be publishing that here in the form of a blog post. Who knows, maybe this will spur us to get back into the blog writing game!

Family Easter Photo 2017

Thursday, September 17, 2015

It's a dry heat

CRAZY!
Many of you know that I have begun a small side career doing public speaking on the topic of Title IX. It's a pretty exciting opportunity that fulfills a dream. If it can help with paying off some student loan debt then that's even better!

Although I've presented my speech in multiple venues over the course of the last year (even winning an award for it at a conference) but this past week I had my first paying job at another institution...all the way in Arizona. I was hoping the first few jobs would be at someplace more local but apparently the public speaking powers that be had other plans. This past Sunday I woke up super early to head out west to visit the campus of Arizona Western College. Since I had never been to Arizona before and we have a friend who recently relocated there, I worked an extra buffer day into the travel to do some sightseeing. I'm so glad I did!

I flew into Phoenix and got my trusty rental steed without much incident along with a recommendation for the best breakfast burrito in town. I was thrilled that the rental car guy knew exactly the place: Los Mexican Friends. Let me tell you, that really was the best breakfast burrito.

So here's the thing about Arizona if you've never been out there: nothing seems to be close together. From the comfort of my office in VA one evening I made all my travel plans completely disregarding things such as miles, time, and distance. Not my best move but it certainly allowed me to explore the countryside. I stayed one night in Sahuarita with a friend. This small suburb of Tucson exposed me to pueblo style houses, saguaro cacti, and the (admittedly overblown) threat of scorpions around every corner.

Turns out, two major cities in a state are not conveniently located right next to each other.
That evening I mapped out my route to Yuma, AZ from Sahuarita, AZ. The map looked something like this:
This route looks awesome and totally doable.
The next morning I hopped in the car, plugged in the address and this is the route that popped out:
Notice the major difference between the last photo and this one. That's an hour detour all of the sudden.
It seems that overnight a road had been shut down. It also turns out that in the AZ countryside, one road makes a big difference. Boom, overnight I got the gift of another hour's worth of a drive. More cacti, more desert, and more brown to see.

At any rate, I made it to Yuma after a largely uneventful ride and lots of podcasts. The biggest issue I encountered along the way was the relentless sun. As I watched the temperature gauge in my rental car creep up to it's final destination of 105 degrees, I felt the sunburn forming on my left forearm and thigh. The only thing I can compare it to is standing too close to a hot oven. At one point, I literally draped paper napkins over my arm and leg to block the sun as much as possible. I think I managed to avoid a terrible burn but it certainly wasn't pleasant.

The people at the school were incredibly kind and gracious. They gave me a golf cart tour and I even got to see a little bit of the residence halls they have. The reslife geek in me really enjoyed that side of things. The show itself went well and some of the students seemed incredibly engaged.

In particular, I want to tell the story of a strong young lady about four rows back from the stage. I didn't get her name but her spirit emboldened me through the presentation. She had the unfortunate pleasure of sitting right in front of a pair of...jerks. That's the nicest way I can phrase it. These gentlemen were distracting and unfocused throughout. They were not engaged except the few times they emerged from their ambivalence to mock the topic at hand. In short, they were real winners. Now as a professional speaker (holy cow, I'm a professional speaker) I've learned to ignore the haters in the room. It's not worth my energy to try to connect with folks who aren't meeting you halfway so it's better for me to focus on the ones who are on the fence. Motivating the middle, if you will.

As I said, my new friend in the fourth row was unfortunately placed in front of the Tom & Jerry of Yuma, AZ and she largely ignored their provocations. Then, about 3/4 of the way through the presentation she got fed up. I watched as she turned to them and calmly explained where they could shove their feedback. I fought back the urge to cheer as she turned back having eviscerated their egos while also standing up for her own experience. I hope she caught my affirming smile. I pray she keeps that spirit throughout her life.

Overall, it was an awesome trip. I'm jet-lagged but thankful. I'm exhausted but energized. I'm behind on work but caught up in a movement. I'm itching to get back out there but incredibly excited to be home again.
Sunset in Tucson, AZ

Amazing vista in Saguaro National Park
I mean just look at that color!