Today I need to have a document notarized verifying that I am the Senior Pastor of FUMC in Flushing. Due to an incident that took place more than fifty years ago, the New York State Education Department, the Girl Scouts, and FUMC in Flushing have been named in a lawsuit. Our attorney asked me to sign documents confirming that I represent the church. Throughout my years in ministry, I never imagined that I would one day be representing the church in a matter like this.
Yet, when I look back, I realize that many unexpected things have happened along the way. Friedrich Nietzsche’s famous statement comes to mind: “What does not kill me makes me stronger.” Of course, not every hardship makes us stronger. Some wounds leave scars. Yet, in many cases, difficulties open doors to new horizons we could never have imagined.
In the novel Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Jonathan rises into the sky carrying a rotten fish he found near the docks, only to be attacked by other seagulls fighting over it. Eventually, he loses the fish. But in that moment, he discovers himself soaring high above the world. From then on, he no longer pursues rotten fish; instead, he pursues the freedom of flight itself. At times, our failures and disappointments lift us to a higher place, where we learn to soar with God.
Ministry in Flushing is like a full-color Cinemascope production. This past week, legal matters were not my only concern. As we launched a senior services program in partnership with KCS, I received a message that a sewer line had become clogged. One problem after another seemed to arrive without interruption. What I am thankful for is that our ministry staff, including myself, has been well trained through years of experience. We no longer panic easily. If something breaks, we fix it. If there is a problem, we solve it.
Surfers hope for strong waves. There is pond ministry, river ministry, and lake ministry. But there is also ocean ministry. Without question, ministry in Flushing is Atlantic Ocean ministry. Waves large and small continually roll toward us, but amid those waves we learn how to keep our balance and continue moving forward.
From time to time, pastors ask me, “You have been through every kind of battle imaginable. What is the secret to winning church conflicts?”
There were certainly times when I thought I had won, and other times when I thought I had lost. But looking back over the years, I have come to understand something important: in church conflicts, it is not acceptable for the pastor to win, nor for the congregation to win. Only the Lord should win.
A good surfer is not someone who conquers the waves, but someone who learns how to ride them. In the same way, ministry is ultimately the lifelong process of learning to entrust ourselves to the hands of God.