Daniel Rose: The Pastor Next Door logo Daniel Rose: The Pastor Next Door

Glad to see Newcastle get things turned around the last fifteen minutes of the first half. I feel like they’re going to pull away in the second with a couple quick goals. ⚽️ #NEWBOU // #NUFC

Newcastle is getting it taken to them by Bournemouth at the moment. It’s been a terrible first 30 minutes. ⚽️ #NEWBOU

Why Them?

Psalm 25:1-10; Psalm 32; Matthew 9:2-13

Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew’s house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them. When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus’ followers. “What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and misfits?”

This story about what happened after the calling of Matthew resonates so deeply with me. I just love everything about it. First, the fact that Jesus calls Matthew, a tax collector, to join him as a disciple makes me smile. Tax Collectors were (and are) some of the most despised people in Palestine. He was considered a traitor to his people. Matthew was probably skimming and probably taxing the people a bit more than he ought to line his own pockets. Matthew was not a guy that anyone in Jesus’ merry band would have chosen to associate with.

But, then it gets better.

Matthew throws Jesus a party and all kinds of disreputable characters show up. The Pharisees are nearly apoplectic.

Over the course of my years in ministry I have found myself associating less and less with church people. I find myself standing on the outside looking in at Christian subculture. My people are the ones at the pubs and cafes.

It’s pretty funny to receive the scorn of the modern day Pharisees.

I imagine Jesus just smirking and shaking his head as he responded to their critique, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: ‘I’m after mercy, not religion.’ I’m here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders.”

Too many of us are way too worried about being “above reproach” and not worried enough about loving well.

It’s just too easy to get focused on coddling insiders than it is to invite outsiders. For pastors, in particular, the insiders are our “customers.” We forget that our primary responsibility is not to the 99 but to the 1. What’s just as sad is that the 99 forget that they were at one time the 1.

This morning I’m pondering the reality that as a pastor I have this dual calling. The call to care for the insiders and those on the outside. How do I orient myself to this dual calling? How do I consistently hold a posture of loving well?

#Wordle 973 4/6*

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The #OldGal has yet to report in. Honeslty, happy with this 4. This is a weird word! I am happy to see at least one of the #YoungPups with a 3!

Good morning! May you do something today that brings you joy. #MorningMug #MorningBlessing

We are heading out to our first high school basketball game of the season tonight. It’s weird that we haven’t been yet.

What is also weird is that college baseball starts this weekend.

This majestic crane was just hanging out on the pier. The crane had no cares in the world. 📷

Rejoice and Endure

Psalm 25:1-10; Daniel 9:15-25a; 2 Timothy 4:1-5

But you—keep your eye on what you’re doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God’s servant.

Every time I read this little passage from 2 Timothy 4 and Paul’s charge to his protege, I am reminded that there are always two kinds of times. There are good times and there are bad times.

I too often forget that reality.

I tend to be a bit of an optimist and assume that good times are the standard. I have friends who are a bit more on the pessimistic side of the coin and they assume that bad times are the standard. But, the reality is somewhere in between, both good and bad times. We should expect both.

Beyond that, I need to recognize that in anything, good or bad, that it is never all good or all bad. No, the good and the bad are intermingled together. Often times we cannot pull them apart. An honest assessment of any situation is the both/and not the either/or.

As I continue to grow and mature I find that understanding that in any situation there are both good and bad to it, I am able to find contentment.

Paul is famous for saying that he has learned to be content in any situation. I am beginning to believe that contentment is rooted in his understanding that good and bad are intertwined. In other words he expects to experience both. When the good comes, he rejoices. When the bad comes he is not surprised but is able to endure.

I think enduring the bad is able to be done because we are confident that the good is coming.

One of my favorite bands, The String Cheese Incident have a song called “Good Times Are Around The Bend”. It’s a joyful reminder that though we may face something hard, there will be good at some point.

Life is not dualistic. It’s a constant continuum. It’s not either/or but both/and. Not good or bad. But, good and bad inseparably mixed together so that we may rejoice and endure.

Good morning! May you know the joy that comes from a job well done today. #MorningBlessings #MorningMug

#Wordle 972 3/6*

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The #OldGal got a 3 today in our return to the frozen tundra. So a solid tie. Perhaps a #YoungPup scored a 2?