Pete VanderBeek

By the way, I wrote a reflective blog about the original delay, but neglected to link to it from here. Here it is: http://network.crcna.org/content/pastors/stopped-and-stranded-border/stopped-and-stranded-border

On Friday Aug 3, 2012 we spoke to a representative from USCIS asking if there were reasons for the length of time it was taking to process our extension application that we could do anything about - missing information etc. We were told that the application was still in 'staging' and that the way things looked an agent would be getting it on their desk in the next 30-35 days sometime, and if there were no concerns a decision would be coming soon after.

In calls like this Greg Westra, the chair of council, has learned you need to learn what kind of terminology they are using. For instance he once called to ask a question stating he was a 'representative' of the church ("petitioner") which leads them to assume you are a lawyer and he felt he was treated differently (more carefully) in that call than the one we made Friday. I was present for the call, as they are very concerned to only be speaking to people named in the documents. Again, this might be useful reference material for anyone else in the R-1 process.

The person we spoke to also spoke of new regulations and expectations being what has been bogging the system down while staffing levels remain unchanged.

On August 8 our case status tracking site changed as captured below. Read carefully, it indicates “we have approved this I129 Petition” so we have approval.

I await having the real papers in my hands to fully relax. Maybe in today's mail?

(PS, it looks like the screen capture I wanted to share might not make it into the note)

A late-coming update: I did make it across the border R-1 Visa in hand very early in August 2011 after approval came through in late July. At the time of writing I'm in  my 8th month of serving the church in Iowa, and an application has been filed for an extension of my R-1 Visa for a year. We're curious to see if that takes as long as the original application, which is why the church has started on it early.

Paul wrote: "I’d argue that the presence of the entire framework through which we’ve interpreted the value of the Gospel has changed and in many ways we need to work to understand the gospel anew within our present cultural-values framework."

I second that. Resoundingly. We are percieved as museums, even if these are living re-enactment museums that let us feel like we are active. Let's find new ways of bringing a Reformational Gospel into our culture... if we can keep up with it.

Great reflections!

Like mothers who find they have no identity when the nest has emptied, many pastors have invested so much of themselves in their pastoral 'role' that the person underneath the 'robe' gets lost. Or, sometimes that person would be 'more lost' at the end because a person without a clear self-identity who is in search of one when the robe and its role are put upon them, is likely to not know where one's true self ends and when the role begins.

Sadly, in my years of observing firsthand, I have seen a number that find nothing behind or underneath the role and it's work when their time of serving officially ends. Troubling in a different way were the one or two I've encountered who planned to burn the robe and all artifacts related to it and dance and whoop in freedom and joy. Neither are healthy in my understanding today.

So, I would add this to what George says: Such a process of reflection should be perpetual and ongoing from the day one accepts their 'calledness.' If one is on a journey of "becoming more authentically me" already when the call is recognized, maybe there is less chance of encountering this jolt at the retiremement transition.

That said, the qualities of person that qualify them technically for the role, such as pastoral heart, or ability to explain - and so on - remain part of them throughout and have not disappeared upon hanging up the robe. So they can be very useful to the Kingdom work if they chose to continue to use those in various places.

The most consistent struggle I've heard in the words of newly retired ministers has been the sudden loss of power. Be careful, I would say, not to chase finding that power back... I've seen too much damage done in that persuit.

Pete

Google Docs/Drive has become a very helpful tool in worship planning. It literally lets everyone involved in planning worship work from the same page, instead of email editions flying back and forth.

I start by setting up a planning page, usually for a three month period of time. It looks like this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16qCGi07QCR5udWt_sDoOGHJvssx5gFDAEyebTTvXfrY/edit

To set that up, you need to learn some things about how to give people access to a page. For instance, that one I just gave the link for I changed to "Anyone who has the link can see the page."

Then, on that page, some basic information can be entered once the calendar dates are filled in. Things like Pentecost, or Communion, Liturgical seasons, Sermon series and titles/texts or which worship team is leading etc can be noted in the main line, and scheduled accompanists or techs can be given a column. All worship planners and leaders have access to this page.

Then, on the far right of the page, after the basic Order of Service (OoS) is prepared -- also as a Google Doc -- a link to the OoW or OoS is put on the main planning page, and it is set to "Anyone with the link can see" but another step is taken to give anyone who might need to make changes to it the right to edit the page. That gets a little more complicated, and I won't explain here, I'm just sharing the concept.

So, for instance, the bulletin editor or church administrator or a deacon can add in what the offering is for, and the Worship leaders can pick the songs and add them in. They can even leave a note for the Pastor asking if the song fits. Or the Pastor can leave a question about preferring a song but not being sure if the congregation is familiar with it.  A short theme statement or paragraph of where the sermon looks like it will go can be put at the bottom of the page by the pastor so others can be 'on theme' with their songs, litanies, prayers or whatever they contribute.

Then, at the printing deadline, it can be printed, or moved into a projection system. I've now already had the experince of being at a practice with worship leaders and editing it together on a tablet right on the spot. Part of the beauty of it is that it is availble anywhere an internet connection can be made.

So that is the concept. In my last church it (along with educating people to help design the service) was a definite game changer.

One additional thing is that I am slowly building up a library of my favourite liturgical components (mostly from The Worship SourceBook, or adapted from it) on Google Docs, making it very easy to find them and add them into an OoW.

Something I've noticed in similar website roving is that churches often use 'stock' pictures of people who look happy enough, but a) looked so professional that they likely were originally ad pictures or studio pictures and b) don't look anything like the people form the church represented.

I wonder what would happen to our collective carbon impact if more of us walked to church. I wonder what kind of a great testimony that might be.

A late-coming update: I did make it across the border R-1 Visa in hand very early in August 2011 after approval came through in late July. At the time of writing I'm in  my 8th month of serving the church in Iowa, and an application has been filed for an extension of my R-1 Visa for a year. We're curious to see if that takes as long as the original application, which is why the church has started on it early.