Iowa and Chicago!

            Throughout the Sabbatical, I have been trying to do a good bit of reading.  I have been working through serious, spiritual, church works, but have also been alternating with some lighter fare.  This past week, as I went through Iowa, I finished a great book entitled “The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid”.  It is by Bill Bryson and is simply a hilarious accounting of his childhood times, growing up in Des Moines, Iowa.  It is a great read but you have to be prepared to laugh out loud.

            I have to confess that the book was a contrast with the stories I heard while I was in this classic Midwestern state.  I spent a day in a small town, in the northern part of Iowa.  The pastor greeted me warmly and introduced me to several of the people within his church.  The small town was lovely.  The streets and shops were what you would picture in a classic Iowa farm town.  And yet, so many of the folks were struggling.  I met with the pastor and he told me of his challenges in this past year.  In the space of one week, his church burned and the congregation was displaced.  Days later, his wife left him.  He is now a single parent for his two young children and pastor to his community.  He leads incredibly well from his brokenness.  He introduced me to a couple in his church.  This particular man has been an alcoholic for most of his life and has recently become sober.  Through his faith, remarkable changes have happened.  At his lowest point, he simply prayed, “You take it Jesus.  You can do it, I can’t”.  Since that day of surrender, he has remarried, and he and his wife lead a dynamic youth group for their church.  I met another woman who has found hope after growing up in a very broken family with mentally ill parents.   She has found a new family in her faith.  I spoke to another man who has also found new life after alcoholism. 

            I could continue but the point remains.  So many are hurting and struggling, not just in Iowa but around our nation and world.  But I have seen it time and time again.  In the person of Jesus Christ, there is hope and healing.  A relationship with him really does change people.  In the end, it is all about him and when it is all about him, healing and hope arrive at the front door.

            After some time in Iowa, I made my way to Chicago and Champaign, Illinois.  In Chicago, I was able to attend worship at Willow Creek Community Church.  Bill Hybels was preaching and it was good to hear a powerful message and worship service.  I was also able to visit with my sister, Paula, brother in law Warren, and my nieces Hannah and Isabel.  It was a wonderful two days with them, catching up and also visiting with some great people in First United Methodist Church in Champaign. 

            Right now, I am in Detroit, and looking forward to meeting some folks that are doing some unique ministry in the downtown areas.  More to follow!