Holy Cross Lutheran Ministries - Lake Mary, Florida

Ben talks to a Cop

Ben Hoyer - Monday, November 02, 2009

I had a long conversation with a Lake Mary Police officer today.

Normally this would happen while I sat in the driver seat of my car, but not today. This policeman started as a night patrolman and now is the community relations officer. He's a good guy, and he's done a lot to build a bridge between the churches and the "protect and serve" folks of our fine city. We worked with him a couple months ago on a school supply drive, Helping Hands Holy Cross L Team is working with him to refurbish a house right now, he's doing a lot of good. It's fun to see churches partner with the city to make things better.

So the talk today was in our courtyard and centered around a Christmas project we're going to help him with. But in the course of that conversation our motivation for helping folks came up. It was fun to stand in our courtyard, watch preschoolers walk by and share with a police officer the model I've learned from Jesus. He walked into cities and healed people, fed people, and cast out demons without any strings attached. There was not requirement of a sermon or gospel presentation coupled with service, he answered questions when they had them but often came with one motive: love and serve. I'm trying to love and serve without any other strings attached and lead folks to do the same. It was fun to get to talk with somebody about that today.

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thirteen dollars!

Ben Hoyer - Tuesday, October 13, 2009

There was mild outrage in the office at the church yesterday as folks logged on to our new credo coffee page and exclaimed thirteen dollars for coffee? (they misread the page, the coffee is $8, if it needs to be shipped there is a $5 charge). As I was fielding their concern I realized...I've been thinking about money a lot lately.

It is all over the place and affects us all. I just had a phone conversation with a guy at his whits end, without work and staring down eviction. I spoke with some friends this weekend about being laid off, others about their job sending them out of the state, others about working a job that feels like it's killing them just for that paycheck. I have a friend working jobs on the weekend and losing the family time he wants so he can earn more money, one who is investing as much as he can in his future business, and one whose business is just taking off and he wants to know the best place to invest. Money is all over, and has its hand in everything so this may sound funny, but: money is a serious distraction.

It's not the point. Money is not the point of your life. It may be easy to agree with that, but it's harder to live like it's true. It's hard to avoid living like money is the point of our lives. I think that's why Jesus spoke about money so much. He knew that it had the possibility of being our biggest distraction.

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I roasted a pig, how about you?

Ben Hoyer - Monday, September 14, 2009

So here's some stuff I've been thinking about.

I listened to a couple podcasts lately. One where they recorded conversations with folks that worked and visited a rest stop in New York over a two day period. Sounds like it could be a lot of nothing. But it was cool to hear all the stories, workers from the Ukraine, divorced fathers visiting their kids, crazies doing pilates in a rest stop parking lot, and backpackers heading for the Appalachian trail. It reminded me that the folks around me all day long are in the middle of their own lives. With issues and families. That strangers are more than strangers. They have lives. Like at any given moment (driving down the highway, sitting in a restaurant, or at the desk at work) there are all these stories happening in peoples lives all at the same time. It's kind of overwhelming and cool to think about all at the same time.

Another one interviewed these guys that are advocated doing something. Again sounds simple, but their premise is that lots of people want to do cool things and some even have good ideas but never really act on them. That the road to significance and impact in life starts with doing something. It could be small or simple but you have to start somewhere. They started everymondaymatters.com and the junky car club. It's nice cause it's makes me feel like I'm doing this stuff with other people.

A friend of mine and I had the idea to roast a whole pig (he wanted to bury it, I wanted to put it on a spit). That was several months ago. Saturday night we did it. With one other friend. It was a lot of work and took all night, but yesterday a lot of people enjoyed the meat with us. It was fun to see that we had a big idea (180lbs of pig is big people) and made it happen. I am already thinking about what idea I have now will happen in a couple months. What idea do you have? What do you want to do for fun

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coffee

Ben Hoyer - Friday, September 04, 2009

I have been thinking lately that our capitalist culture teaches us that we are primarily consumers. That our job is to be shrewd customers, rewarding the companies that produce the products we want for the lowest cost. For most of my life, how these companies do that has not been my concern. Recently I am starting to change my mind on that. I want to try to avoid being complicit in exploitation, and be more intentional about the places where I put my money.

When I consider the life my King Jesus lived while he was here, he spent lots of his time improving the lives of the poor, I want to emulate that wherever I can. I can’t do it all at once, and can’t be sure about where all my money goes; but I’m realizing that each purchase has potential to help out. I’m trying to make changes a little bit at a time.

It’s in this context that I’ve started to think about coffee. Where do those delicious little beans come from?

I like coffee. I didn’t always, but I learned with beauty of the bean 6 or eight years ago. It’s a treat that encourages me out of bed in the morning, and a special incentive in some slow or tough evenings. Recently I realized that people have to grow this stuff. I mean some one some where farms the beans you use to make that coffee. It’s a nice treat for you, but serious work for someone else. It tends to grow best in countries that are less developed than the united states. In fact there are people in the world growing great coffee, that are doing good to live in small shanty style homes with dirt floors.

Recently I got connected with a gentleman that imports that sort of coffee from several small farmers in Guatemala. He pays them a better rate than they could get even with fair trade. He just wants to bless them. I do too. I think others might as well. That’s why we’re going to find places to sell it. Maybe we’ll call it Credo Coffee...what do you believe?

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whose kingdom?

Ben Hoyer - Tuesday, July 21, 2009

“Why do I feel the urge to serve, why do I know it’s the right thing to do?” Until this evening I couldn’t put my finger on why. A lot of folks say it's because we are called to build the kingdom of God to to bring it in. But we don’t build or bring the Kingdom...Jesus has and does. We’ve our hands full trying to live in it. Jesus inagurated the Kingdom and invites us to enter in as citizens, born not of parents ascent but by the will of the father through the blood of the king himself. Living under the reign of Jesus involves every big decision we make in our lives and a hundred small decisions every day. The thing is that life in his Kingdom, under his reign is affected by a different ethic than this world. Jesus is not a King like this world has ever seen, and his Kingdom is not like one this world has ever known. Here, the first is the last. The greatest is the servant of all. Here justice is impenetrable and unassailable and left completely to the perogative of the King...unquestioned. As I live, a citizen only (not a builder, in my best days an ambassador) fully submitted to the king, I find myself serving. Not to bring the kingdom but because I’m a citizen of it. It is a small distinction in words but huge in my conception, and experience.

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big things

Ben Hoyer - Friday, July 10, 2009

Megan and I went to dinner with some friends the other night (Amura for sushi, then Corona for a nice after dinner cigar. Gotta love the colonial town plaza). In the course of conversation someone mentioned that a classmate of theirs had gone on to start an orphanage in Ethiopia. As the story goes, the project started innocently enough: she went to adpot a kid, saw a need over there and invested herself in helping. A year latter she's got all these kids in an orphanage. Pretty cool, and a little humbling when someone you know does big things like that.

There was a short exchange in the comments section of a blog post a while back that got me thinking about the size life we are called to. I think maybe sometimes I have thought that big things are for other people, but I am starting to challenge that...at least for myself. I am realizing that I know people who know people. That I'm just about as grown up as most grown ups I know. That I don't have lots of money, but Jesus does and he'll find creative ways to get it to projects. So if anyone is going to do anything it could just as well be me as anyone else. I am thinking that Jesus might open opportunities for me to do big things, to make a real difference.

I read this book Glocalization. It's written by a guy that I've mentioned before and is making me think that I can do big things to. I mean, I am starting to think that anyone who wants to can impact the world for better. You don't have to be on t.v. or elected to office. You don't have to have lots of money (but it does help to know Jesus).

I am starting to bite off pieces that are bigger than I would have 1 year ago, and it is exciting to be a part of. What problems bother you, and how can you be part of the solution?

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Tom's

Ben Hoyer - Thursday, June 18, 2009

I have been thinking a lot lately about how much time Jesus spent with poor people. It's crazy when you think that the Son of God could have become a man in any segment of society. He could have come as part of the ruling class, as heir to throne. He could have come as a movie star or an athlete or rock star. But he didn't he came in a small village, in the middle of an occupied country to a family without a place to stay. I'm just saying I don't think that was an accident. When you add that to the fact that he spent his time with lower class and no class people, and then fact that when he did bump into the social elites he mostly insulted them...well it makes me think.

Lately it is making me think I want to find ways to give, help, to serve. I am thinking though that I may be a little niaeve or grandiose; because what I really want is to be part of something big. Check out this video about a company called tom's shoes. This is just a guy who was going to a church in california.

I like the vision of simply making people's lives a little better, without any strings attached.

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come on magic

Ben Hoyer - Friday, June 12, 2009

I have been holding off all day. But I can't keep quiet any longer. Come on Magic!

Hit some free throws and don't turn the ball over. I love having a team to root for. You know where you care whether they win or not. I have watched all of the games, even though they frustrate, it's still fun. But seriously hit some free throws. Oh yeah and gimme some more Skip to My Lou.

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Capitalism

Paul Hoyer - Thursday, April 30, 2009

Those of you who know me, know that I am most definitely a Capitalist! I believe that the best form of economic development is rooted in individual profit and I worry when the government takes more and more control of the economic systems of this country. That would usually be the end of my comment, "End of Story". However, I have been doing some praying and soul searching over the last few months. Here are some more of my thoughts on the economic situation.

I can't help but see some of the problems of Israel in the Old Testament in the current problems of our country. The prophets complained to the nation that they had quit worrying about anyone but themselves. As long as they had enough everything was fine. The nation never listened to these prophets and it was only after Israel was overrun and enslaved that they would stop and listen to God and how He wanted them to live!

In the recent past there were those who said that our country was becoming too segregated (the haves and the have nots) and that our rampant capitalism was the culprit. As we lived here in Lake Mary (4th best place in America to live) and contemplated which car we should buy next or whether or not we could afford a house on the beach we would respond to the detractors that this is how it should be, people should reap the benefit of their labor. Those that do not have just have not figured out how to get it yet! But now that "regular people" i.e. our parents and others we know are losing their savings and retirement while CEO's contemplate bankruptcy for their companies and a life for themselves with millions in a foreign country we look at the situation with a different eye.

Suddenly there is an outcry that we need to care for the poor and homeless, we need to make sure that people are not put out of their homes, that children don't live out of their cars! The rich need to foot the bill taxes and rules are good if they level the playing field. Now it seems that everyone should be looking out for others as well as themselves! It would seem that just like the Israelites we have come to realize that living selfishly leads to a country of selfish people!

However, our concern for the less fortunate may simply be a new form of selfishness. We are outraged that there are those who continue to have enough money to build 94,000 sq. ft. houses and sent their dogs to New York City for their styling, while we are worried about keeping our jobs and our homes! Our seeming concern for the less fortunate may be a thinly veiled cover for our concern that someone is making sure that I can keep my stuff!!!

Maybe we all need to do a self check? Have we become too worried about things? What should our standard of living be in this country? Just because I "Can" have it "should" I have it?

What do you think?
Pastor Paul

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Comments

Sara commented on 01-May-2009 12:32 PM

I think we do need to have a concern for others. I think I would be proud to live in a country where we raised everyone's standard of living. But I think it's only possible when we live within our means. We are all going to have to make adjustments. You are right -we are probably asking for help primarily to get what we want. Hmm....

Jan commented on 02-May-2009 04:22 PM

I agree that we need to have a concern for others. But it gets harder and harder to take care of others when you have less and less. Maybe what we really need is to find contentment with what we have and stop wanting more and more. And with the Apostle Paul be content with whatever we have.

John A. Sauder commented on 03-May-2009 04:10 PM

Thank you Paul for your thoughts

Naming capitalism as an economic system of choice would also reflects who I have been and still am. Ever since my second year of college I have had the privilege of working as a manager, leader, executive, years of board leadership in the community and church, and for many years enjoyed a six figure salary.

Today, due to some choices I wish we could remake, than the economic situation that magnified the outcome of the choices may thousands of times, I find myself living on the non management side of the capitalism system. Only having punched a time clock for a few part time jobs during college, now I find myself punching the clock for near to minimum wage.

Over the past few months I too have reflected on how we have and are reflecting Jesus’ teaching in our capitalist society. Maybe more, how do I keep my eye on God’s dream for the whole of creation? In light of our current situation, a temptation is to only focus on what “I” need to do to take care of me. Then I ask myself, has this been the root of what has and is happing causing the current economic situation?

Robert K. Greenleaf’s writing on servant leadership continues to give me much to think about. Two of the quotes that I find very intriguing;

“Caring for persons, the more able and less able serving each other, is the rock upon which a good society is built.”

Then his definition of servant leadership, “… do those served grow as persons; do they, while being served, became healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants?”

Maybe in our questioning, we will find an answer.

Valerie Fosburgh commented on 08-May-2009 10:38 PM

Your article strikes a chord with me because I have been thinking and mulling over the idea of "excess" for several weeks now...it's everywhere. When will we decide enough is enough? It starts with each and everyone of us and the things we tell ourselves about what we deserve, racking up credit card debt, and living the "high life" in search of things that make us "happy" - I'd liken it to being drug-dependent and looking for the next "fix." Then on a larger scale, we collectively elect people (or let other's elect them) to serve in public office, and then these so-called public servants tell themselves what they deserve and so it goes! Imagine voting yourself an annuual raise like Congress has done for years? Don't forget they do this right after they've been "bought" by some high-paid lobbyist to sway an important vote in one direction or another! We pay for it in every sense of the word.

What are we doing about it? Nothing. We allow it. We accept it. The athletes, Hollywood stars, the rich, and government officials have all been created and perpetuated the divide between the "haves" and the "have nots" for years, and we have stupidly bought into it! We pay $30 for movies and popcorn, or $50 to watch a pro-ball game in person, and we buy their CD's and logo T-shirts. We keep telling them they are special and deserving of it. In Washington, without term limits, we allow the old stodgers to stay in power and do what they've always done and keep everything the same. It won't change unless WE change it.

We've got to face the facts. Everyday, we wake up to 24-hr air-conditioned comfort, running clean water, indoor toilets, good food in abundance, 100+ channels of entertainment at our fingertips, paved streets, good schools, adequate forms of transportation, coffee on every corner, and yet we continue to complain about NOT having ENOUGH!! We should all be forced to go on a mission trip and see what the rest of the world faces every day. That'll open our eyes.

We have MORE than enough - we just have LESS SENSE about how we spend it. We have less sense because we started thinking WE did it and WE earned it, and that belongs to US, it is OURS to spend and not God's. I think the Devil has been having fun with this one for way too long. We ate that apple down to the core.

We earned it, alright. We deserve this downturn. We deserve to be forced to step back and see what we've become - selfish little greedy whiners. I'm all for getting compensated for hard work and engenuity, but I would agree with the man you quoted that no one is worth $1,000,000 a year. If we could all be satisfied with less for ourselves and want more for others, we would ALL have more...peace, love, and blessings abounding. If we could live like Christ and serve Him first and others second, we could turn this thing around! I'll keep on praying for that.

"You may say that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one..."

Thanks for letting me rant.

Chris Johnson commented on 13-May-2009 10:11 AM

What a great comment Val. We ate the apple down to the core. Great point.

Ron Fischer commented on 03-Jul-2009 12:50 PM

Many christians think that our system of capitolism is broken. Not true. It works perfectly! It's the 99% of the population that doesn't understand what the system is used for, who runs the system, and why it is drastically changing. The have nots always complain about a sports figure not worth $1 mil / yr. I know who I am and will tell you that I'm worth a whole lot more than $1mil/ yr. I will also tell anyone who is open minded that each and every soul in this coutry is worth at least 33.5 billion digits via the Social Security trust that you are a beneficiary of. Notice I said digits, not money. Big difference. "Accept for value and return for value for peaceful settlement and closure".Does not this statement reflect the true essence of the crucifiction? Was not everything PAID for? Understand the REDEMTION system, and you are financially free.Jesus died not only to save us from sin, but from every challenge we face in life, which includes being financially free.This current economic down turn was by design.Does the population deserve it? Yes and no. No,you should not have to suffer from the corrupt politicians and bankers who run the system, and YES to finally seek the true answers to your lifes freedom. The answers are in front of everyone ( ie the Bible) who has a very very deep faith in who they are, how they walk WITHIN the sovereignty of our Creator and are willing to study and dispel all of the old myths that permeate our society AND the christian church 501 C3 corporation structure. All christians, right now, are living in one of the most important times of mankind.The new era has already begun! Some of us will be leaders, most will be followers until they shed their fear of not knowing who they really are.The era of spirtual ascension is upon each and every christian, and the world at large as the past 3 millenium of man's Adamic nature which was crucified on the cross with Jesus is finally being recognized. Turn off your televisions from all the filtered propaganda that intentionally causes chaos that keeps you in the BOX, and a slave to man's system. As each living man, woman and child comes out of Egypt on their own, which is biblical,
then and only then will will you see HIS truth, and in turn will act accordingly. But let me caution you, for when the truth is upon your spirit and soul, you will not be able to turn back and view the current everyday system that one lives in now.I'm debt and spirtually free,as is my family.Take the journey, the addmission has already been paid for everyone.May everyone who reads this blog, be a instrument of God's great abundance and love!

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Ben talks to a Cop

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thirteen dollars!

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I roasted a pig, how about you?

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coffee

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whose kingdom?

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big things

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Tom's

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come on magic

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Capitalism

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