By Intern Pastor Devlyn Brooks
One of my favorite movies is “Apollo 13.”
And my favorite scene in the movie is when after things are going haywire for the crew in space, a television station rebroadcast’s an interview with Apollo Commander Jim Lovell in which he describes an instance when he was flying a jet fighter in combat conditions. The carrier he was assigned to was running dark in the ocean so as not to give off its location, and then Lovell loses all of his instruments in his plane. So essentially he is flying dark at night, with no instruments to help him; he’s running out of fuel; and he’s supposed to land his plane on an aircraft carrier which he can’t see.
But just at the moment he is feeling the most helpless, thinking he is going to ditch his fighter jet into the cold, black ocean, he sees a “green trail like a long carpet” underneath him in the ocean. Turns out, it was the algae that was being churned up in the wake of the aircraft carrier cruising along. And so there in front of him was a big ol’, phosphorescent trail leading him home to his carrier.
“It was just leading me home. If my cockpit lights hadn’t shorted out there’s no way that I’d ever been able to see that,” Lovell said in the interview. “So, you never know what events are going to transpire to get you home.”
When Lisa Miller asked if I would write something about what it has been like pastoring Faith Lutheran during 2020, this film scene immediately came to mind. None of us had any clue that on March 15, when we squeaked in our confirmation Sunday just before the order came to stay at home the next day, that we wouldn’t meet for worship in person again for the rest of the year.
But looking back on that day now, I can best describe it by saying that I felt ike Commander Lovell did over that vast, black ocean. As the weeks waned on and we still couldn’t safely meet, I too often felt that I was in a fighter plane with no instrumentation, running low on fuel, and I was unable to see the aircraft carrier on which I was supposed to land. … But the difference was, I felt that terror nearly every single week, not just once!
I now know that I was blissfully ignorant that I didn’t know what I didn’t know about how to get us through the next eight months. And I am grateful for the many professional experiences in my previous life that helped prepare me for this experience for which no book nor seminary class could have ever prepared me. As Lovell said, I just truly feel that as each week’s service, each month’s FLC Council meeting and each instance of pastor care came up, I would look down and see a green, phosphorescent trail leading me home.
Of course, we as faithful people call that green, phosphorescent trail the Holy Spirit! And I am eternally grateful that she has carried this intern pastor home on her wings safely more times than I can count this year.
It would be foolish of me to try to describe what this entire year was like. It would take an entire book to do so! (Hmmm, wait a minute …) But let me say this: We have been on a journey in which overnight we had to learn how to worship through digital means; how to operate a church when our best resource, our people, generally couldn’t be there; and how to perform pastoral care that often was restricted to a phone call, text message or even standing outside a window.
Our Vacation Bible School, Sunday school classes and confirmation all went online. We experimented with “drive-in” communion nights, and Council President Debi Byars and I got to bond one cool, chilly October night while the wind whipped, the snow came down and we served the sacraments to a handful of grateful parishioners. … You can bet that I will never forget that night the rest of my pastoring life!
Faith Family, we have weathered an unprecedented year together. We continue to “see” each other only through digital screens, but our ministry is still vital and strong! Despite not being able to come together, we made our church financial budget thanks to your prayerful giving; our students still are receiving an energetic and joyous faith education; those in need are still receiving Spirit-filled support through our caring team; and ultimately, I am receiving a pastoral education for which, frankly, I couldn’t have paid anyone!
One day soon, we will be back in worship together. That is certain. Our faithful God has provided the scientists, the medical professionals and the public health officials necessary to put us in a position to receive a vaccine in world-record time. Soon, our country’s citizens will be receiving those vaccines, and in a few short months, our lives should be returning to some kind of normalcy. But meanwhile, this experience has only served to make our church stronger, more vibrant, more committed to sustaining a lasting ministry.
I am proud of our church, Faith Family. I know from listening that other congregations haven’t been as fortunate as ours. Yet, as a collective whole, our resolution has remained strong throughout this pandemic, and I am absolutely certain that we will come out the other side healthier as an organization, more grateful for the opportunity to worship together every Sunday and with an attitude never to take our church for granted again.
Lastly, please allow me to say a few thank yous to people who don’t hear it often enough.
First, the very first thank you deserves to go Lisa Miller who week in and week out keeps me (and our church) on track! Without all of what she does to help pull together worship services, forecast our needs for future services and to ensure that we have all of the resources we need, I would be lost. Because of what Lisa does each week, it allows me to focus on being an intern pastor, and I can’t say thank you enough.
Second, thank you to the Faith Lutheran Council who during these past eight months trusted in me, an intern for crying out loud! What were they thinking? … I suspect they were more terrified at the prospects of their blind-flying pastor than I was! LOL! … But, they graciously allowed me room to move us forward as best as I saw fit, and more importantly gave me room to experiment and fail. I am grateful to each and everyone of them. You’ve helped to grow a pastor!
Third, I thank Pastor Jill Steichen, who as you know is my supervising pastor, but has become so much more than that in these past eight months. She has become not only a supervisor, but also a friend, confidante, mentor and even a colleague in that time. I will be indebted to her as long as I pastor.
Fourth, what can I say about our Digital Services Team? … No mere words can express my gratitude for the dedication, perseverance, flexibility and joy with which they all have served. If I could lead a standing ovation for Mike Nelson, Veronica Nelson, Austin Erickson and Debi Byars during the FLC Annual Meeting, I would. They deserve so much more than these mere words.
Finally, I have to end with a very heart-felt thank you to Debi Byars, our council president the past two years. As I look back on the adventures we have been through together, all I can do is shake my head. You really, honestly could write a book about what it has been like to run a church during a year of blizzards and a pandemic. But with each twist in the road, Debi has been the consummate professional, and she has carried out her duties with aplomb. She has been a treasure to work with, and she leaves big shoes to fill! Thank you, Deb, from the bottom of my heart!
Just as Commander Lovell found his phosphorescent algae carpet to bring him home to his carrier, each of these folks I mentioned above has served to help me land my fighter jet this year. And I will never be able to thank them enough.
And now, Faith Family, onto next year, when at some point we will return to worship together in our beautiful church, and also a return to our cherished traditions and celebrations throughout the church year. This year has been heartbreaking, joyous, groundbreaking and terrifying, and none of us will ever forget it.
Blessings to you all Faith Family! … I can’t wait to see you in 2021!
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