When Kids speak....

About a week ago I sat down with my older kids to explain to them some of the changes that would be happening with my job and the future for our family. I really didn’t know what to expect, would they be crying or just not really care, seriously I had no clue. What happened….

Well my kids started to teach me.  You see as Heidi and I have been praying through all these decisions over the last while two things became clear. First of all we know that with all that is going on in our kids lives and with their unique stories that God has been crafting we are staying in Chilliwack for the near future. In other words we aint moving anytime soon. The other piece is that God is in control and we need to be obedient to whatever he has before us and to trust in him.  To be completely honest, for me, sometimes those are both easier to type then to do. My kids on the other hand it seems totally natural. I got the “duh Dad, of course were supposed to stay here.” Then they started to plan our future. I didn’t ask them to but really I was kind of cut out of the following discussion as they spoke around me instead of to me. Here is a glimpse of what took place.

Char: Hey Dad is doing guitar so maybe he can start doing music now!”

Man: “Yeah, I guess, but shouldn't he get some voice lessons too. He’s a little rough.”

Char: “Well Dad I can go do some more acting and help support us.”

Man: “Maybe you can get a job at the movies, then we can get in for free.”

Char: “Or 7-11 Dad then you can get us all slurpees, they all know you there anyway.”

Every one of my kids offered to go get jobs as long as we could keep doing church and ministering to people. Every one of them asked if we were still going to be able to open our home and study the Bible with people and every one of them asked if they can invite their friends and families.  

As a Dad I was so proud. As a brother in Christ I learned a lesson.  Though at times I may think that I need to shoulder this alone or that Heidi and I need to figure it out on our own. God speaks often through our kids as well. No, I’m not sending them out to get jobs…. Yet. But as Heidi and I are seeking out answers and as God is guiding us we will also be including those short people in some of the conversations and listening to what God has put on their humongous hearts. 

^{Matthew 19:13-15 (MSG)}

One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus intervened: “Let the children alone, don’t prevent them from coming to me. God’s kingdom is made up of people like these.” After laying hands on them, he left.

The Journey Continues!

I once had someone describe life to me as a book with chapters, as one chapter closes another one starts. Others speak of life as seasons, again as one closes another opens. I have always seen life more as a journey. This journey has taken me through some truly hard times, absolutely amazing times and everything in between.

You see the thing about being on a journey is that even though you are perpetually moving forward your past is not closed off to you. A journey, especially one that is being guided by God, will take you all over the place including places you never thought you would go or return too. It will bring people in and out of your life and as they are on their own journeys. Watching how God intersects and twist and stretches us all becomes an adventure of its own.

Today Heidi and I and the kids are taking another turn on the path and following God into the great unknown. As of Feb 28^th 2015 I will no longer be on staff at Yarrow Alliance Church. We know bits and pieces of the future. I know what God has put on my heart, but we are taking time for discernment, to build into ourselves and our kids and to try and set an example to them of what it means to follow Jesus 100%. 

I’d be lying if I told you that I know how this all turns out. That the plan is all in place for the future and that I’m not a bit scared and nervous. But I can tell you that I feel a peace and a freedom that only comes when we step out in obedience to God.  I'm excited for the journey ahead and we do covet your prayers. The announcement was made last Sunday at our church and I don’t know if I was more nervous about the announcement or the fact that I was on the worship team for the first time in a loooong time and had to throw down a lil Rap in one of the songs. Yes, you read that right.  Let me leave you with the words from that “Rap” they are taken from Eugene Peterson’s the Message. 

Matthew 5:3-12

“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

“You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

“You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.

“You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.

 “You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.

 “You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.

 “You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.

 “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.

 “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.

Arthritis, Discipleship and a Hug!!

mathétés(disciple)

I went in to the doc this week because I’d been having constant pain in my knees. After x-rays and tests it was clearly shown that at the ripe age of 36 I have degenerative arthritis in both knees. As we talked about treatment options the talk of physiotherapy came up and my doc said something that struck a nerve. “A good Physio will try and work themselves out of a job.” Meaning that if they are doing their job right I will learn the skills, exercises and all the things that will help me to take care of myself going forward.

The reason this struck a nerve was that I was in the middle of preparing my sermon for this Sunday on Matthew 28:18-20(NIV)

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

You see discipleship is about learning and training. As Christians we are called to learn from those who have come before us and to pass on knowledge to those that come after us. This seems simple enough, but truly as someone who has worked in ministry in both a lay and paid capacity for over 15 years I've come to realize that for many pastors and leaders this is actually quite scary.

I’d love to say that we pastors don’t ever think about it, but when you are in a paid ministry position the thought of training your replacement and that in doing so you may be giving up the security of a pay check or even more so the family and friends, your children’s schools, your doctor, well let’s face it your life.  Not just your life but the lives of your spouse and children. Well that is sometimes a hard thing to think about, but we do.

Thinking about those,  is one thing. The reaction to those thoughts is another. The majority of my peers and colleagues take the minute to think and then press forward in obedience to their calling. You see there is a freedom that comes through obedience to God. It is not an easy path but it is one with hope and promise. Where we are called to journey with each other as believers, climbing through the muck of life. Through the good, the bad, the funny, the sad, through disappointment and victory, all the while looking to Christ for guidance and support.

I've had people ask me how do I believe in a God we can’t see and am I just leading people astray by teaching about Jesus and the Bible and what it is to follow him. My answer…

The more I walk side by side with followers of Christ the more I see him inside each of them. The strange part is that I don’t see it when they are successful or obtain some certain goal. I see it when they are in those learning moments. When the realization comes that the only way forward is to lean on Christ, his grace and to be obedient to his call. Just like so many of my pastors took the time to pour into me to try and see how the Spirit dwelled inside me, who challenged me and pushed me no matter what the cost to themselves.

So if you are a believer, if you attend church or if you had someone that is or has disciple you. Do me a big favour. Give them a hug this Sunday or send them a note of encouragement.  The truth is that though we are in positions of discipling we are also disciples ourselves. We are constantly learning, growing and hoping. You see we know that we aren't perfect and that we sin as well. That we are human just like everyone else. We are often our own harshest critic and sometimes we need to be challenged but sometimes we just need to be loved as well, just like you.

Then after you've

done that take a moment and talk to God. Ask him who it is that he is putting in your life who has he put there for you to disciple, to do life with, to get to see another glimpse of what God looks like. Let’s focus together at discipling another generation of believers instead and work ourselves out of a job.

We're here!!! Mexico Missions 2014 day 1

We started our trip yesterday as we flew down from Seattle to join 3 from our team already here in San Diego. Everyone made the flight(though some May have cut it closer than others). Safe flight for everyone, we'll except Richards bag, but thanks to the fine clothing store Inn 'n out burger he now has a replacement wardrobe. The border was an adventure and we are still waiting for our final 3 to show up but that may be because after they had a little detour at the border and got to go on a lil adventure. They may have stopped at a taco stand on the way down to reward themselves for surviving. Well deserved I might add.

So for all you concerned family members. We are all safe. We were greeted with a great meal and smiling faces as we arrived. Everyone is heading to bed soon and tomorrow the work begins.

It's been great to see our team already coming together and the genuine love and care they have for each other. This isn't just with our team but with Crossroads as well. It was great to see people from both teams pitching in to put these bean bags together for one of the games planned for the kids. You had people making funnels, others filling the bags, then even more people sewing them shut. All this while riding in a bus with no AC and some fairly tight quarters. 

It's like the guy who took this picture at the airport told me after he saw us praying and took my camera so I could get in the pic. " it looks like y'all are off to do some of God's work, as a brother I'd like to do my part no matter how small it may seem!"

We covet your prayers, appreciate your support and pray that our eyes will be opened to what God's planned for this week. 

Cory

For Father's Day!

This morning I was listening to the radio and as usual jamming in my car to the music and laughing at the DJ's as they went through their morning routine. But then one of them said something that made my heart sink. They were talking about calling there Dads for fathers day and one of them was posing the question who should he call? That the others had Dads that had stuck around but that his just left. The hardest part for me is that as I've been listening to these folks for awhile I know that he is a new dad and that in what I hear him talk about, it seems like he is doing an awesome job. What for many of us is a natural shift where we go from being the child in our primary child/parent relationships to being the parent couldn't and wont happen for him yet despite that he is bucking the trend and ensuring that his child doesn't have to grow up with that void in their life.

 The words that popped into my head were this. "Fatherhood is not about what he did, it is about what you are doing and will do."  

This fathers day as I reflect on my own life and my relationships with my Dad and my kids, I realize that I have a long way to go but that I've also come a long way. My wife and truly my partner has helped push me to have those conversations that I didn't want to have.  To seek help when I thought I could do it alone and to slow down when I became blind to what was happening around me. 

To all you fellow dads out there let me encourage you. Stick around. Sometimes it will be hard. You will need to occasionally be the rock when you feel like a sponge. It is no longer all about you, yet by pursuing your dreams you will help them to have dreams of their own. By loving your wife you will show your daughters how a woman should be treated and your sons how to love a woman. Find other guys with similiar values and circumstances to journey through life with. Don't fall in to the traps of self doubt and learn to focus on those things that are truly important. To all of you guys I wish a Happy Fathers Day, and to that DJ if you'd like feel free to give me a call because I want to wish you a happy fathers day, and tell you well done.

Got Questions??

First I have a confession, or probably better put let me let you know, that I know, that you know that I as a pastor don’t have all the answers. I cannot chapter and verse everything in the Bible. I am not fluent in Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic. Man I’m so bad that often when you bring up some of those weird names in the Bible to impress me I just nod my head and then Google it. In fact I have and struggle with many of the same questions you probably do.

Here’s what I do know. Many of you have a lot of questions that you are afraid to ask. Either you think people will judge you or look down upon you. Truth is you might just be really shy. Maybe you have been hurt by people in the church. Or you just see the church as hypocritical. You might even think that Christians are idiots or that church is only good for community. Maybe just maybe you really just don’t care if God is real. Or you follow another God altogether.

That being said here’s what I’d like to do about it. Twice a month, on a Friday evening starting April 25th Heidi and I are going to open up our house and invite you in. We will eat a meal together and get to know each other and then we’ll go after answering some of these questions together. I’m going to give people a site where they can go and ask the questions, and my commitment will be to do my best to see what the Bible says about it if it even touches on it at all. Here’s what I ask of you. No matter where you stand on the questions we will discuss I just ask that we be respectful of each other and that you respect us and our home. That and RSVP so we know how much food to make. It’s as Simple as that! We will try and limit the size of this so that everyone can have a chance to speak. So it’s kind of a first come first serve deal. Well there you be. If this is something that interests you or that you think some of your friends or family in Chilliwack would appreciate please share it on your own FB page and have them contact me at

cory@yarrowalliance.org 

A Letter to my Mom!!

Hey Mom,

I’ve been avoiding sitting down to write this because in all honesty I didn’t want to deal with all the emotions that are flowing through me right now.  But this is something I need to do.  I needed to tell you again how much I love you. How amazing you are and how much I’m going to miss you.  

First of all I want to thank you for a few things.

1.  Thank you for teaching me to have a relationship with God!!

You not only took me to church and youth group but you let me in on your relationship with God. The doubts, the struggles, you taught me how to forgive and how to apologize.  Even in your last days you were checking in with me telling me about your devotions and what you were learning for the first time at 71. But most of all Mom you allowed me to form my own relationship with God. When I was being a rebellious teen and when I was older and was choosing the world and myself over him you didn’t shun me or judge me. You didn’t ignore it either, no you prayed for me you loved me and you pointed me to him.

2.  Thank you for adopting me.

Just over 36 years ago you and Dad took me in at 3 days old. You weren’t allowed to meet my birthparents, you received limited details about where I came from but you took me in and you loved me just as you loved Chris. The thing is I never felt unloved or different. You also realized that I was different from you and Dad but instead of trying to make me like you, the encouragement was to be who God made me to be. You never spoke negatively about my birth family but instead would tell me that if I ever met them you wanted to meet them and thank them for giving me to you. Then when the time came that I did meet them you did exactly what you said you would do.

3.   Thank you for putting us first.

As I read through the Obituary that Dad wrote I was reminded again about what an amazing, intelligent and talented woman you were. You had so many gifts and abilities. You could have done anything you set your mind to. Time and Time again you proved this. Whether as a young woman playing tennis and stirring up mischief. To graduating from college, running political campaigns, trailblazing the integration of special needs children into the public schools. The list goes on and on. But most of all you were a loving wife an amazing mom and an awesome Grandma. You always put us first and when other opportunities would come even if they were in line with your greatest passions and interests you didn’t even hesitate in choosing us.

4.  Thank you for loving my wife and kids.

The hardest conversation of my life was when you and I had to have a heart to heart and I told you that if I ever had to choose between you and Heidi that you needed to know I choose Heidi. I was worried that though we needed to have that talk I may have lost you. You were hurt and you took some time to process it but then you came back to me and told me I had made the right choice. You poured out your love on Heidi and the kids and pursued individual relationships with each of them while respecting us as a couple. In the last year especially I think you actually talked to Heidi more than you talked with me. Every single one of them misses you mom. They are all dealing with it in their own way and we are processing through this together, but I want you to know that every single one of them knows you loved them and that as we Buettners roll nothing was left unsaid or undealt with.

Now that some of that’s been said, and trust me I'm thankful for so much more, I need to say a few more things!

        Mom I miss you. I've caught myself picking up the phone to call or starting a text and deleting it half way through. As you know I've always been one who excels in crisis, but you finally got me stumped. I'm leaning on Heidi a bunch, and our church and friends have been great, but this is so freaking hard.

        Chris is hanging with us till the funeral and though we thought we were helping him out I think he`s been the one that’s been the most grounded. Every once in a while he tells me `` I miss Mommy!!`` That usually gets anyone in a 2 mile radius crying but then I ask him

Me: "where is mommy?"
Chris: "Heaven, With Jack Holderness, GaGa, Grandpa, Grandma, Cedrick!"

We cry a bit then he sits down with the kids and plays with them or watches a show with them. Mom you should have seen him jumping on the trampoline and throwing around the football. The kids are trying to teach him about mine craft and this rubber band loom thing.  I do have to confess though that we are finally trying out a goatee on him and are attempting to expand his Palette a bit. You’d be so proud of him Mom he’s doing great.

Well Mom I’m going to shut up a bit now don’t worry I’ll write again soon. And Dads going to be fine too, his brothers and sister have stepped up and are with him, we will see them in a week so they can’t get into too much trouble. Who am I kidding, you and I both know  I’m just waiting for a phone call needing to bail them out. (love ya guys!)   Tell God that I understand why he took you home, he decided to brighten up the place a bit. But I could have used some more time with you here, good thing we've got eternity together, Eh!!

Your loving Son,

            Corlin Francis Buettner