Drew Boswell

a place for us to share ideas, talk about life, and learn together.

Familial Memories — The Unseen Chain

A Walk in a Dark Park

We were able to go to Alabama this year for Christmas (the first time in a long time), and we had a wonderful time with family. One of the evenings over the remnants of a delicious meal, dessert, and Dunk’n Doughnuts coffee my father said he wanted to take my sister and I to a cemetery.

Yes, I said cemetery. How is that for a transition from dinner to “catching up” conversation? So, I asked him, “should I bring my camera or my shovel?” He said, “no, I just want to show you two something.” So the next day we started out early and went to the graveyards my father had in mind. This was not exactly what I had in mind for a short Christmas vacation, but life has a way of bringing reality to your doorstep.

We drove to a plot of graves; my father stops, turns off the car, turns towards us and began to talk. He said that he was concerned that there were members of our family that if we (my sister and I) did not know where they were buried, then they would be forgotten, and that no one would know who they were. He was concerned that no one would take care of the tombstone (laying flowers, checking on them, etc.)

He then began sharing whom each person was, whom they were related to, and some memories from their lives.

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 Ft. Benning Liaison

Recently Ft. Bragg was merged into Ft. Benning, GA, so there was corresponding surge of soldiers and their families into the Russell County, AL area. This is where I grew up, and still consider my ancestral home. Because of this significant growth to the population, housing, government spending, the expanding training facility desired to purchase what equaled to thousands of acres and the lower third of the county.

In order to make a purchase of this size, there was a community meeting. At this meeting, the people did not line up to sell their land, and the flavor of the meeting was quite the opposite. The military and their desire to expand did not understand the blowback they were getting from the community. The deathblow to the discussion was when the liaison for Ft. Benning said, “it’s just land.”

Trust me, it’s not just land.

What the liaison didn’t realize was that this “land” had been in families for many generations. Family members going back hundreds and hundreds of years were buried on the land. Livelihoods were developed off of the land, blood, sweat, and tears were shed on this land, and there was a connection to the land that a carrier military officer, who had traveled all over the country and world, and did not have this connection, did not understand.

Large tracks of land were passed from family to family, and there was an unseen chain of memory that connected these people to plots of land, and to a way of life. These chains were not one of bondage, but one of responsibility. It was a way for them to be grounded and to feel connected to others in their community. These plots of land were connected by marriages, memories, and a love for neighbors. This southern culture had a genuine family value to build and to improve. They desired to have a better way of life for their children, and eventual grandchildren. You cannot put a price on a way of life, and a value in a person’s life.

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Familial Memory

Why was it so important to my father for my sister and I to know where our relatives were buried? I believe that it goes back to that unseen chain of memory. Each generation adds a link to this chain that if it is broken, a connection is lost that gives one strength. Families that remember where they have come from have history.

History gives one an ability to learn from past mistakes, and to build upon previous successes. When this history is lost, each new generation has to start over in the building process. Even a family filled with previous bad decisions can learn that this way of life does not end well. Families that can build generation upon generation can build upon their ability to influence the world around them (for the good). We all have a part to play in the world around us, and for me that requires a calling to a place apart from the ancestral home, but the chain is still connected and because of years of story telling over dinners, family gatherings, and a trip to a cemetery, memories have been passed down and our family becomes slightly stronger.

 

See also Institutional Memory.

Why Local Churches Should Work Together

For the typical Southern Baptist Church there is the assumption that churches are working together if they are giving a portion of their budget to the Cooperative Fund. This is very important to their missions efforts, but there may be no actual work that is done (in person), where various personalities and talents work on a project or event in close proximity of each other.  Too many times the first question we ask is, “how will this help our church?” or “Who will get credit for this?” Growing our churches seems to take the place of God receiving glory through our service in His name.

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So why should churches work together (in ways other than the financial pooling of funds)?

1) churches will gain a respect and genuine love for a body of believers other than their own local church. People have a tendency to value what they invest themselves into. If you give days to an effort and work long hours with others, there will develop an overall concern for the project to be a success.

This desire will overflow into a love for others who are also trying to make the effort a success. There will be a sense of camaraderie that will lend itself toward letting go of pride and “our church” and to see the church universally. That is not to say that an individual should not be a member of one church and be apart of that body through giving, service, fellowship, worship, etc. but joint efforts allow people to see beyond their own congregations.

Lowndes County Football Players came out to throw the ball around.

2) churches accomplish more when they work together, than if they work separately. When resources, volunteers, and man hours are channeled toward the same efforts by different churches, the over all event or results is more than either could do by themselves.

Each person is a special and unique being created with their own personality, talents, gifts, life experiences, and countless other things that makes them different. There is no other “you” in another church. Churches are not made of the same personalities, doing the exact same roles or functions, just in different bodies of believers. There are pastors at every church, but there are no two pastors that are alike.

So when you combine all these different gifts, talents, life experiences, etc. it makes for a glimpse of heaven. Heaven will be a time when we will see all of God’s children gathered together to serve and worship Him, and we will all be unique and wonderfully made.

3) churches are able to share the joy of serving together. When a church has an event and experiences the joy that comes from service, that joy is confined only to the local body of believers. But when when churches work together, the joy is multiplied. Two churches are able to share in the joy of serving Jesus — and there is plenty of joy to go around.

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Pastor Jay Watkins and children

Today was Christmas Time at Camp Rock where First Baptist Church Valdosta and Redland Baptist joined together to serve foster families in 13 surrounding counties. The two churches were able to minister and share Christ’s love to hundreds and hundreds of children, siblings, and foster parents. These families were served a hot breakfast and lunch, hosted by Disney characters, pony rides, petting zoo, inflatables, carnival games, gingerbread houses, a drama group came and performed, various bands played, local high school coaches and football players came out, and all the children received a Christmas gift (plus much more). It was a time many will never forget.

For some this would be the only Christmas they would experience, and for many it was a magical day where they could forget about the pain and abuse they have suffered. One five year old foster child there today was left in her home for five days alone to fend for herself. It was on the fifth day that she was found by the authorities — who knows how long it would have been otherwise. Today she was loved and shown a magical day. Today she smiled. Today she smiled because two churches worked together.

One particular boy when he received his gift ran up on stage and looked at me right in the eye and almost yelling said, “thank you!” He was thanking me as if I were responsible for putting this whole thing together. It was then that I felt that love for all the volunteers from both churches that made the event happen. How could I say, “your welcome?” I pointed him to Pastor Jay Watkins, and said “that’s the guy you should thank.”

The petting zoo turned into a nativity scene

So from time to time put the church banners, brochures, postcards, pens and pencils, and promotional flyers away, and just focus on showing Christ’s love with a new Christian friend from another church family. Trust me, it’s a ton of fun.

Click here for an article regarding Christmas Time at Camp Rock.

Planning Your New Year

Is It Too Early To Begin Planning? 

I know that the second week of December seems a tad early to begin discussing the new year, but I typically use the down time between Christmas and New Years to contemplate the next year. But with new responsibilities and ministry planning, the next year already weighs heavy on my heart. So as I prepare to spend time with family, finally buy my Christmas gifts, and celebrate Christ’s birth, I also begin to think about the new year.

God in His grace gives us newness; new days are given after a night’s rest, new growth is seen as the seasons of the year change, and new years are given to be used for His glory. If you have not had a good year, or if you seem to be reacting to life instead of moving the rudder of your life’s ship, then consider the following as you approach the new year:

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Six Items To Consider As You Prepare For a New Year

1)   Pray. It seems obvious, but God already has your year mapped out, so why not see what he says about your next year. Are there things that you find yourself foolishly repeating year after year simply because you didn’t spend time with the Lord? Before we begin to plan our next steps, we must consult the Lord and His plans for us.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare2 and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

2)   Develop Your Calendar. It has been said, “If you don’t control your calendar, then your calendar will control you.”  As you chart your next season of life, begin by taking your yearly calendar and adding all of the big annual events (vacations, ministry events, family events like anniversaries and birthdays, and conferences).

Once you have yearly events, then move to monthly, and then weekly. But before you add all the events from last year to the calendar for this year, you must prayerfully consider each one. How will you evaluate if you need to do this or that event again, on the same scale, or the same way?

Make sure you put as much information as you know on the calendar. There will be events that you do not have a specific date for yet, but try to place it as close to the date of where you think it will be held. By having all your events on the calendar before you, you can also evaluate if there will be simply too much going on, or if more things can be added to the calendar. Perhaps, an alternative is to move events around until you find the balance between the two.

3)   Along with your events, simultaneously, develop your budget. How much will you need for specific events, trips, or ministry efforts? You may find that you need to scale down an activity or that you have the ability to do something else or to do the event on a larger scale than you once thought possible.  Like air in a clown’s balloon, you can twist all the links into it you want, but there is only so much air and the balloon can only stretch so far.

4)   Consider your own personal goals and need for growth. If you are finding yourself feeling “burned out” spend some time asking the Lord, “Why am I feeling this way?” or “What am I doing regularly that is negatively impacting my life?”

It may be that you are spending too much time away from home, or not enough in devotional time. It will be different for everyone, but now is the time to plan out how you will not continue to do these same things. You don’t have to feel tired, depressed, worn out, etc. all the time.

This is also a great time to consider the needs of your family. Just as the seasons change, so do the needs of family. Each year brings its’ own set of problems and challenges, and so as you prayerfully plan your budget, calendar out events, and set your personal goals, also consider how your family has changed in the past year. Avoid excessive activity, and build in family time, or special time with a child that may need some extra attention. Your first responsibility is to your family, and then to ministry.[1]

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New Years Resolutions

For a person to keep a New Years’ resolution it has to be rooted in the person having a genuine need and the person seeing the benefit of keeping the resolution. Your praying, planning, budgeting will bring needed resolutions to your attention that if you make these changes will help you to be healthier, happier, more rested, and growing as a person.

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5)   Review the past year. I keep a journal where I record detailed notes of meetings, planning lists, journal entries, ideas etc. and I when I go through this time of planning I review these journals from the previous year. I am reminded of ideas that I had forgotten about, people I need to develop relationships with, projects that have been completed, or even goals that have been met.

These journals are encouraging because I am able to see how God has answered prayer, provided what was needed to complete various ministry projects, and carried me through one more year of ministry. They are a reminder of God’s faithfulness.

Unlike a previous year’s calendar, a journal reminds me of thoughts and feelings. There are some items and information that I will transfer from an older journal to a new one, but for the most part each journal is a step forward into a new year.

Regardless of your method, how will you review the previous year?

6)   Contentment but not Satisfaction. This is not about “we had 20 last year, so this year I want to have 40.” Or “we had 6 groups last year, so this year I want to have 12!”  Wanting more people, money or “equipment” simply because that’s how the world measures success is not a good way of determining a direction in ministry. This method is rooted in pride and will be quickly abandoned when things get difficult.

We should be content with where we are, being the person we are in Christ, and in the position we hold, but we should never be satisfied in our level of quality and service to the Lord.  So, we are not to look for the next bigger and better thing, instead we are to look for ways to constantly improve what we are doing for the Lord.[2]

[1] 1 Timothy 3:4

[2] 2 Corinthians 12:10; Philippians 4:11; 1 Timothy 6:8

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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