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That Which Gives Us Value
On Sunday mornings, I lead worship at my church. I look out and look at my congregation. Many of them are unemployed, some of them stay on the street, many of them struggle to make ends meet. Many in my congregation are visibly broken and noticeably hurting. We collect an offering, because stewardship is important…
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Hump-Day Hymns: I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say
The words in hymns are directed in three major ways: first, the words could be God speaking to us, us speaking to God, or us speaking to each other about God. This hymn falls in the latter category. When a congregation sings this hymn, they sing to one another and tell others about our experiences…
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I almost gave up on someone, and I’m glad I didn’t
Like many inner-city ministries, we often have people show up who are at various levels of intoxication. We, as a rule, do not turn people away simply because they are drunk. If people come to a worship service intoxicated, or show up to our Saturday morning breakfast program intoxicated, they are welcome to join us…
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Sin and Restoration, Patriarchy and Mutuality
I am so grateful to Rachel Held Evans for this Week of Mutuality and for all of the others linking their thoughts together regarding mutuality between men and women. I was brought up with traditional gender roles, i.e., women cook and men manage the money. I was also raised and nurtured in a church tradition…
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Hump-Day Hymns: Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken
Most people who know me personally know that I love hymns. I do not love hymns because they are “traditional” or “the way we’ve always done it”, but I love hymns because, in my experience, there is a richness and depth to hymns that cannot be matched by the so-called “contemporary” music which is often…
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Connection with God in the Midst of Concrete and Steel
I often hear people talk about how they feel close to God while in nature: a forest, meadow, lake, ocean. It is in these areas that many people can often discern the fingerprints and footprints of God. I can definitely relate to this, however, I have also learned to be able to encounter God in…
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The City and the Redemption of Creation
I try not to talk or write about politics very often as a normal course of my ministry. My congregation is composed of people of all political stripes, and I strongly believe that no one political ideology has a corner on the Gospel. However, something has been disturbing me as of late about the Wisconsin…
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On Being Dried Up
Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you. do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress. Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call. For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace. My heart is…
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Examining Students of Theology
Yesterday we had our Spring classis meeting (the classis is the regional assembly of ministers and elder delegates from churches [If you’re interested in the governance and structure of my denomination, there is information on its website), and at that meeting we have the opportunity to examine our enrolled students of theology. These students are…
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Our Greatest Need? Hope
Because of the nature of my ministry, and the fact that nearly all of our funding comes from outside sources, I find myself in contact with people from other churches in many different places and many different contexts. There is a question that is asked by almost everyone is some variant of “what is the…
Matthew van Maastricht
Shepherd of Souls | Spiritual Director | Psychotherapist
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