We go to church for the write reasons

Fresno Christian Writers Seminar, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Fresno, California
Let’s face it, even the best writers need help to write more good.

On occasion, a church can be the place to find that help, so on Saturday, we attended a writers’ seminar at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fresno. Though it wasn’t an official program of the church, a church member arranged for using the space, and Ted Niami, Good Shepherd’s pastor, welcomed everyone to the seminar and prayed for blessings on the gathering.

The event was the second (annual?) Fresno Christian Writers Seminar, a project originating initially with one person, Dr. Allan Hedberg, a local clinical psychologist and author. He has, not surprisingly, written about psychological issues like depression and relationship dynamics, and he’s also written biographical works about Jonathan Edwards and Martin Luther. His books have been published by traditional publishers, but he has also self-published. Because of his experiences, he wanted to help writers who have a variety of goals, though the seminar is aimed primarily toward beginning writers.

After last year’s inaugural seminar, I suggested Tim Stafford as the keynote speaker for this year. Tim’s writing experience is broad; he’s worked as a writer and as an editor in both fiction and nonfiction. He’s also a good friend.

I’d read Tim’s work for years before I met him. When I was a teenager I subscribed to Campus Life magazine; every month the first article I turned to was the “Love, Sex, and the Whole Person” column Tim wrote. After working for that magazine, he worked for years in Kenya where he taught locals about magazine writing and publishing. Since then, he’s worked for Christianity Today while also writing over thirty books (his most recent, Those Who Hope, is a novel set in a rescue mission in our hometown of Santa Rosa).

When we talked before the seminar, Tim noted how much the publishing business has changed since he began writing. He mentioned that he appreciates that he’s been able to make a living by writing, but said that in the present environment, writing as a livelihood is more challenging. He added that people have been able to write for a career for only a short period of human history, noting that some monks got bread and wine for their work.

In his talk to the writers, Tim argued that writing is part of a writer's nature; when he was growing up, he knew he had to write. Like no other medium, writing has the power to communicate both personally and reasonably, and he pointed to the Scriptures as the chief example of how God values writing. He talked about the variety of genres to be found in the Bible, from history to memoir to poetry to apocalyptic (rather like contemporary dystopian fiction). “You want to read great writing? Read Jonah.”

“The Bible is preoccupied with Truth,” he pointed out, and he said that Christian writers should be as well. He talked about something he’d noticed while preparing to teach an adult Sunday School class on the life of David. He said that though the Bible presents David as a hero, “a man after God’s own heart, it doesn’t hide that he did very horrible things as well. David was an adulterer and a killer -- and at times very petty. Christian writers need to be willing to show the church and Christians doing bad things because, in fact, they do. Christians shouldn’t be writing propaganda, but rather truth.

After Tim’s presentations, other speakers talked about other elements of writing and publishing. Linda Weller, an editor and proofreader who we remembered from last year’s seminar, spoke about her work. Writers should be reminded that someone else can make their work better, since there’s some egotism in thinking you have something to say for the benefit of the world -- or even just a reader or two. [editor: Thanks, glad you noticed!]

During breaks, we headed into another room. Several authors had books for sale, and while sometimes it seems like writers are just selling to each other, it’s helpful and even encouraging to see other people’s work. (I don’t think Jesus would have overturned those book tables. I could be wrong, but I don’t think so.) Snacks were also available, which kept people circulating and chatting.

Scripture has a lot to say about the gifts and talents that God gives His Church. Writing is one of those gifts, and it’s good for churches to provide a time and a place for people to grow in their abilities. Mindy learned barista skills at church. How many millions have learned to sing at church? And what about all the churches that have, well, schools? I was glad to see the Church doing something write here (because I, to, have a lot too learn).

The First Church of Christ, Wethersfield, Connecticut

“George Washington Slept Here” was a popular marketing technique for lodges throughout New England. First Church in Wethersfield, Connecticut could advertise “George Washington Worshiped Here,” and it has the added benefit of being true. The present meeting house was built in 1761. General Washington visited the area in May of 1781 when he met with the French to plan the battle of Yorktown, but the strategizing didn’t keep him from worship.

There are a number of people who visit First Church because of the history. Frankly, it’s a big reason why we came. I was impressed to learn that Jonathan Edwards, the great theologian, studied and worshiped at the church from 1716 to 1718, when he was a teenager (different building, though).  We also came because we heard from a family friend of Mindy’s that it was a very good church.

When we arrived at the church, I met a man named Jon who, years ago, first visited the church because of its history. Because renovation work was going on, a bulldozer was a prominent part of the decor, but what kept him there was the church’s fidelity to the Bible and teaching about salvation through Jesus. He told me that since then, the church has left the United Church of Christ, because the denomination was no longer committed to Biblical teaching.

A number of churches with a noble history back in the day no longer exist, or are now only historical attractions. When we went to 16th Street Baptist in Birmingham, Alabama, we loved worshiping at a place that not only played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement, but continues to minister in a vital way to the community. The congregation of Wethersfield first “gathered” in 1635, and nearing four hundred years later, God still seems to be working in the place.

The architecture outside of the church is beautiful, and it is lovely inside as well. But a strange feature in the meetinghouse is the box pews around three of the four interior walls in the meeting house. I was concerned that the boxes (we kept calling them booths) might symbolize exclusion, some congregants walled off as separated and superior to others, but we were seated in a pew and a couple in a booth invited us to sit with them. (Their last name is the same as ours and they asked us to join them in “The Anderson Box” as cousins.) No exclusivity there, officially or casually.

The pulpit is also quite different than one you’d see in a more modern sanctuary. For the first (traditional) Sunday worship service, the pulpit is used and the minister towers high above the congregation as he preaches. That pulpit isn’t used in the contemporary service. We were told that the pulpit had been relegated to basement storage before the meeting house was restored to its eighteenth-century self.

The traditional and the contemporary service differ in a number of ways. Not only is there different music in the two services, but the traditional service uses responsive readings and the contemporary service does not. One of the few elements the two services have in common is the sermon, which is essentially the same in both services...although it’s not preached from the pulpit during the “Wind” (contemporary) service.

The church hasn’t remained stuck in its history. I was impressed by their web address, firstchurch.org, which suggests they were early adopters. Wifi for guests is available with the password found in the bulletin (a number of churches we’ve visited supposedly have WiFi for guests but don’t provide a password).

The Senior Minister, Deryk Richenburg, preached a sermon on listening to a sermon. It was part of a summer series studying the biblical book of James, focussing on being doers of the Word and not merely hearers. Richenburg noted that we live in a generation of “information overload,” and we need to be constantly filtering what we take in, but we must be attentive to God’s Word.

After the second service I had an opportunity to talk to Pastor Richenburg. I asked him what he thought were the greatest strengths of First Church. He said he appreciated the multi-generational nature of the congregation, allowing the older generation to pass on the heritage of the church to the young. Obviously, being a nearly four-hundred-year old local church that has been able to maintain a focus on the gospel of Jesus Christ is a unique thing. He said the church has also had a number of gifted teachers, not just on staff but also among the laity.

Between services I talked to an elderly gentleman named Charles with the title “Deacon Emeritus” on his nametag. He said, “I had thought I was done with church.” He had been a deacon at First Church years before, but then attended another church for a number of years. He said that though that other church described itself as Christ honoring, it proved to be judgmental and abusive. He was drawn back to First Church because “it was welcoming and brought healing.” First Church, he said, presented “Christ as loving and transformative.”

People were very friendly and we enjoyed chatting with folks before and after the services. The official greeters did their jobs well, but a number of people introduced themselves on more of a freelance basis.

We asked if we could see the “Jonathan Edwards” room in one of the other buildings. Roger, the church sexton, offered to unlock Morgan House, a separate church building. Morgan House was purchased by the church chiefly to obtain space for parking, but the building has history of its own, as a former funeral home for the community. The building now contains classrooms and meeting spaces, in addition to the Edwards Room -- a small place set aside to honor one of America’s most famous and illustrative preachers. The room’s most notable feature is a replica of Jonathan Edward’s desk.

I asked Roger how long he’d been part of the church, and he said he’d been there his whole life. In fact, his ancestors had been a part of the church since the 1660’s. We thanked him for showing us the room, and he said he was always happy to accommodate people who had an interest in the church. He then asked if we’d like to climb the steeple to see the belfry.

I answered “Yes” only a little less quickly than I would have if I had been offered free pizza for a lifetime. We went back to the meetinghouse, and Roger made sure there wasn’t anyone else around that would be interested in making the climb. The stairway is narrow and just doesn’t allow for many visitors.

Mindy was going to kick off her shoes, but Roger told her that wasn’t a good idea. “This is an old church.” The rough, splintered floorboards on the ascent later revealed the wisdom of that choice.

Throughout the climb there were a number of points of interest. We saw the clockworks, the pendulums and gears that kept the community on time ages before wristwatches, let alone mobile phones. The church had long been a source of pride for the community, and the current building (the third for the congregation) had built with local taxes (primarily from the sale of red onions, the local cash crop). We saw the bell itself. The bell was attached to a rope, and the clanger was attached to a rope, allowing the bell to be rung two different ways.

But the great treat, what truly makes the climb worth all the stairs, the ducking of the head and the twisting of the body, is the view at the top. In 1774, John Adams climbed that very same steeple and said, “We went up the steeple of Wethersfield meeting-house, from whence is the most grand and beautiful prospect in the world, at least, that I ever saw.”  It was a beautiful clear day, and we could see miles and miles of countryside along with a gorgeous view of the city of Hartford.

When Jesus was asked about the Resurrection of the dead, He cited Exodus saying, “‘Have you not read what God said to you, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

Learned and godly believers argue about whether America is, or ever has been, a Christian nation, but we certainly are a nation with a history of great men and women leaders who sought God and served Him. It is important to cherish the “Faith of Our Fathers” (and Mothers). At First Church, It was a joy to worship the God of Edwards, Washington, and Adams.

Statistics

Traditional Service

Sermon length: 32 minutes

Service length: 1 hour 4 minutes

Visitor treatment: We arrived before the greeters, but there were plenty of people we could follow to the proper entrance (Mindy had noticed that the church website listed a particular entrance and also suggested that visitors who’d like a personal greeter contact the church office during the week to set that up.) We found our way to the glass hallway leading to the meeting house, where a woman at the information desk made sure we got nametags and an information packet. Her husband handed us our bulletins at the door to the meetinghouse and introduced us to other members of the congregation. As we looked for seats, several people introduced themselves to us, and the Andersons invited us to join them in their box pew. We had already filled out a visitor card, and we also signed the friendship pad in the pew. There was also a greeting time during the worship service.

Follow up by Tuesday morning: none

Our rough count: 125

Probable Ushers’ count: 140

Snacks: ice water, lemonade, and cookies

Musicians: organ (woman)

Violin (woman)

Songs: “Trinity Ring” (of the church bell)

“Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to me” (violin and organ)

“Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”

“Gloria Patri”

“Grant us Wisdom” (chorus from “Guide me, O, Thou Great Jehovah”)

“If Thou art Near” (violin and organ)

“Doxology”

“Lord, I was Blind”

“May the Mind of Christ my Savior”

“In Thee is Gladness” (organ postlude)

Distance to church: 24 miles

Wind Service

Sermon length: 33 minutes

Service length: 1 hour 7 minutes

Visitor treatment: There was a greeting time during the worship service, in which many people greeted us (and everyone seemed to be greeting a number of people whether or not they knew each other). Again, we filled out the friendship pad in the pew.

Our rough count: 88

Probable Ushers’ count: 100

Snacks: ice water, lemonade, and cookies (between the two services)

Musicians: electric guitar (man)

singers (2 women)

acoustic guitar (man, leader)

drums (man)

bass (man)

keyboard (man)

Songs: “Good, Good Father”

“One True God”

“You are my King”

“Hosanna in the Highest”

Distance to church: 24 miles

Miles from start: 32,969

Total 2016 miles: 32,673

Church website: http://firstchurch.org/