PIF Redux Part 2

Yet more blathering filler from your's truly:

Please describe present call and accomplishments:

For two years I served as Intern in Urban Multicultural Ministries at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Berkeley, CA. This was the only internship I applied to because when I came to the church, I immediately felt welcomed into a new, strange and wonderful family. During my internship I worked with youth, did adult education, preached and led worship, and participated in every part of the life of the church.

I have described this congregation as a “beautiful mess”, and I think it fits. I love the variety, I love the constant opportunities to learn and to grow, and I love the daily demonstration of the Gospel’s power to overturn everything – language, economics, culture, politics - that keeps us apart. I love to watch the Body of Christ be knitted together one sinew at a time.

I am currently serving in another “beautiful mess” of its own at Saint Francis Memorial Hospital as a chaplain in a year-long CPE residency. This residency has nearly driven me insane – it has pushed me to the brink of giving up or breaking down. What has brought me through is the love and support of my wife, friends and colleagues and the depth of my commitment to my calling. I have been face to face with death, suffering, want, addiction and mental illness, and I have seen God in every single patient, staff-person, and event. I have been softened, sharpened, shaped and refined, learning more fully where my strengths and weaknesses lie, where I am most prepared and where I have yet to grow.