What an amazing time of worshiping and conferencing we had in Minnesota last week!  Collaborating with Bishop Sally Dyck and a team of talented people from that conference to plan and implement the worship was so rich!  Our worship theme was “On Earth As In Heaven” and we utilized the Prayer of Jesus as our “thread” and “frame” throughout.  Our anchor image that we played with on screens was images of earth from the Hubble space telescope.  This image came about as the team was inspired by Bishop Sally’s message for the first night about reclaiming “awe” for worship and our call to be “odd” as Christians… praising in the midst of suffering, proclaiming hope in the midst of despair, daring to offer what we can, where we can, as often as we can.  I’ve been a big fan of this Bishop for a long time, having worked with her on many occasions outside of her own conference.  But it was a special treat to work alongside her here where she is doing inspiring work with United Methodists all over the “land of lakes.”

The theme of the conference was a focus on “re-think worship” and so I was invited to bring two plenaries to the body based on that theme.  It struck me that we in the church have no trouble “thinking” about things so, with this quote from Parker Palmer, “You don’t think your way into a new kind of acting, you act your way into a new kind of thinking,” I offered “five nitty-gritty PRACTICES for transforming worship.”  You can read a well-done story by the Communications folks at MNAC about those plenaries by clicking on the link below.  The picture with that story (the one above) is of my opening story when I was describing my ecstatic Pentecost experience with REO Speedwagon’s “Roll with the Changes” song.  Yes, those Minnesotans DID rock out with me!!!

And speaking of rocking out, one of my favorite moments was at the Ordination service, the last song of the communion set.  I had told the house band we were going to end with “Fill My Cup, Lord” but didn’t tell them what we would do with it.  We started out mellow a couple of times and then I looked at the pianist, drummer and the brass sextet and said, “We’re heading to Dixieland!”  Having heard these brass players earlier practicing “When the Saints Go Marching In” for the Postlude, I knew they could roll with it on short notice.  Their eyes got big and the smiles crept onto their faces and we “went to town,” ending the communion time with the whole congregation jammin’ and celebrating the way God calls us to joyful witness!

I know many of you are in the midst of conferences this time of year.  I’ll be honored to lead worship at another one just next week as well.  May you feel a renewed sense of “awe” in all that you do and may you find the courage to be “oddly” jubilant in the knowledge that through the work of the Spirit, all things are possible!