Long time readers of this blog may have noticed that it has been silent since August. There is a good reason(s) for that. September 1 my world changed...nothing too big...but I started a new chapter of life. I stepped down from my full-time position of Executive Director with Parachutes Teen Club and Resource Center (a great ministry serving high-risk and street-involved youth in Anchorage, AK ) to become the Founding Director at Parachutes part-time and the Teaching Pastor at Crosspoint Community Church part-time. I also continue to work on my PhD project. It's been a busy few months.
Previously I posted here when I had a new sermon, but now that is nearly weekly and I won't be posting those anymore. However, you can still access sermons I've given (and other wonderful teachers have given) at: http://www.crosspointcommunity.com/sermons/
I will continue blogging when I can - in fact got a great idea this morning that might be out soon - but other projects need my attention before this little hobby.
Shalom and may you have a blessed Advent Season.
Joel K
Friday, November 25, 2016
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
Sunday in Joberg
The skyline of Johannesburg
was to my left as I walked down the median of the expressway, only a foot away
from speeding freeway traffic. Leading
us (me and my new Aussie friend from Philly), like a metro transit Moses, was a legendary
pastor from Soweto. As our hastily
assembled trinity carefully tiptoed through traffic, I was I was trying to stay
as close to the guardrail (which was taking up 2/3 of the four foot wide raised
curb area separating three lanes of traffic on each side) as I could. I thought to my self, “How exactly did I get
here?” The specific cause was a burst
radiator hose that had overheated the car we were riding in, but the day was
far more complex than that.
The day had started like
each of the days I had spent in South Africa so far with a nice breakfast in
the hotel reception area. After a brief
walk, I met up with a friend to drive from Pretoria to Johannesburg to visit a
family that is “practicing neighborliness” through intentional living in the
core of Joberg in the Hillbrow neighborhood. (1)
When we arrived in Hillbrow neighborhood was bustling, even for a
Sunday morning. The city center of
Pretoria, where I have been staying, has energy, but the energy in Hillbrow was megawatt!
We were met in the lobby
and led up to the flat by the son of our friends. Once inside we talked while enjoying coffee and
tea while making a plan for the day.
That plan was to tour Joberg and then head out to Soweto later in the
day. Soon we were on the porch learning
about the broken buildings that surround their flat. One building is oozing sewage into the street
because the owner is mixing storm water and swage in order to avoid fixing the
system. A couple of days before I had
learned about the inhuman living conditions, even more inhuman eviction
practices, and high rents of these apartments which are packed with black South
Africans as well as immigrants and refugees from across Africa.
In the car we took a tour
of the city center of Johannesburg and eventually arrived at the Jetha’s Laundry. The owner is a blind Zimbabwean
man (2) who had begged in the streets for eight years before he, along with
some help, started this laundry. In a
past life he held a Masters Degree in Education but was forced to flee his
homeland as an economic refugee. He invited us to his home, just a few blocks away so we could meet his children
and sister-in-law who watches them children since he lost his wife to cancer last year.
Back in the car we drove
the couple blocks to a building the locals call “super quick” after the giant
advertising sign mounted to the front of it.
The real name of the building is The City Hives. We run into Jetha’s sister-in-law out front
of the building pushing a cart full of sodas headed to the second floor. The sodas are loaded into the car trunk and
we enter the building. The building
appears to be an old factory. The layout
is three vast open floors built like a parking ramp. My Philly friend described the situation inside
the building as “dystopian future meets horror film.” The landlord has erected on the second and
third floors a series of rooms that rent out for around 6200 rand ($450 US dollars) a
month. The rooms are hastily constructed
with thin drywall walls, cardboard ceilings with electric lights dropped
through holes with wires exposed. The
rooms have no water or sanitation both of which are available in common rooms
on each level. As we carry in that sodas
and bring them to a steel barred door. I,
at first, think we are bringing them to a storeroom before quickly realizing
that this was their shop and home.
People live in these half-built rooms!
We are invited in to see their home.
The space has recently
been expanded to two rooms and houses two small children, one teen and one
adult. The total space was twelve or
fourteen feet long and six feet wide with the store alone being a six by six
foot space that was the families home before the recent renovation - which was
simply a crude door cut through the wall into the adjacent room. The sleeping room was simple with a mattress
on the concrete floor, a TV in the corner with a Christian book on top, and the
rest of their earthly possessions. The
shop held two refrigerators, one of which was recently acquired (a clear source
of pride), and shelves floor to ceiling loaded with staple items like rice,
cooking oil, matches, and other necessities.
On a shelf near the door was a small orange machine that was another new
addition. That machine is used to sell
airtime for mobile phones and does a brisk business. Standing in this closet sized store we chat
about school, how well the store is doing, and passport issues. Then we are offered a snack. A bottle of Lemon-Twist is pulled from the refrigerator
and poured into foam cups. A package of lemon biscuits is taken from the shelf as the teenage daughter exclaims with pride and a huge smile on her face, “They're from Zim!” (3) As we stand in a
circle holding our foam cups and biscuit I am happy that I have skipped the
communion service earlier in the morning with others from the conference to be a part of
this communion.
Once we leave The City
Hives we continue our tour of Joberg and arrive back at our friends flat in
Hillbrow after a stop at the super market to grab supplies for lunch. Once back in the apartment our host expressed
“no one should have to live like that.”
He is right. “super quick” is as inhuman as it was scary.
Following lunch we leave
to meet up with a local pastor to tour Soweto.
In Soweto the strange day continues. After the pervasive poverty that we had witnessed all day we
drive by a huge soccer stadium built for the 2010 World Cup on the way to Nelson
Mandela’s house. The street on which Mandela’s
house is found is the most tourist focused place I have been in South Africa. While the commercialization of
this revered space is weird, it is not nearly as unsettling as the fact that Vilikazi
street (4) was chocked with cars, many of which were very high-end. The tourist busyness, commercialism and the
upper class black community that now lives in that section of Soweto created an conflicted experience considering the struggle that Mandela’s House seeks to bear witness to.
Back in the car we are
taking our Soweto tour guide pastor to his appointment across town. As we drive on the express way the car begins
to overheat. Soon we are standing
overlooking the city of Joberg on a highway overpass as cars wiz by and trucks
shake the bridge violently as they pass.
My Philly friend looks at me and says, “Well this is a fitting end to
this day.” Soon we will be headed out
into the traffic…on foot.
Joel K
(1) These folks are doing amazing work living in an area many a fearful to go into.
(2) A large group of blind from Zimbabwe who have made there way to South
Africa.
The "super quick" building has a number of
blind residents.
(3)
The residents
of “super quick,” estimated at 2,000 or more people, are nearly all
economic
refugees from Zimbabwe.
(4) This street also is home to Bishop Tutu’s home. It’s the only street in the world that
(4) This street also is home to Bishop Tutu’s home. It’s the only street in the world that
can boast that it has had two Nobel Prize
winners.
Thursday, July 21, 2016
Waiting for a hope that does not disappoint...
Hope is the refusal to accept the reading of reality which is the majority opinion; and one does that only at great political and existential risk.
- Walter Brueggemann in The Prophetic Imagination
Around ten days ago President Obama stood before the people of Houston, TX assembled to mourn the loss of five law enforcement officers shot during a Black Lives Matter rally. As he stood there in the role of consoler in chief, a role he has be required to play so many times before,he started with these words:
"Scripture tells us that in our sufferings there is glory, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. Sometimes the truths of these words are hard to see. Right now, those words test us. Because the people of Dallas, people across the country, are suffering." (1)
In that statement he was paraphrasing Romans 5:3b-5. This is one of my favorite passages of scripture. In fact my wife asked me last night what my favorite passage of the Bible is and I talked about Romans 5:3b-5. But as President Obama spoke my mind jumped to the rest of the verse as it reads in the Revised Standard Version (the Bible of my youth):
"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us."
I was waiting to her President Obama say "And hope does not disappoint us." I was thrusting for that line. My soul was begging for that line.
In the middle of a long string of shootings and violence that has focused the attention of the country on issues of race, policing, personal rights, and the a host of entanglements tied to all of our personal convictions and fears, it has also been a time of morning in my city and in the community I am a part of. Anchorage has had a violent year full of murders, and as the news of shootings across the country clogged the news, there was a violent torture and murder of a woman in our local headlines along with 4 other murders in the last month. While Anchorage is often violent (in 2010 Forbes Magazine voted it the 5th most dangerous city in the US (2) and Alaska was listed as the most dangerous State by USA Today in 2016 (3) ) the past couple weeks have hit very close to home. The teen center I work for lost two youth in the span of two weeks - one murdered and one who took their own life. The violence and pain is/was at all levels - national, local, personal.
So as I drove and listened to President Obama speak I kept waiting, in my disappointment, for him to tell me that "hope does not disappoint us." Even more I wanted him, or someone, to explain to me how that works. I'm disappointed when a youth sees no hope and ends their life, or another ends up the victim of the streets and addictions they could not escape. I am disappointed when innocent people are shot dancing in a club, or marching in a protest, or being detained by police. Where is this hope that does not disappoint?
Yet Paul is telling us that "More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us" Well I'm gonna be honest, right now I'm sick of suffering. Right now I'm exhausted and I'm not sure I want to endure anymore. Right now I feel like I have all the character I could every need. But Hope...I don't feel a lot of that and I want to. I want hope to wash over me, fill me, restore me, transform me and NOT disappoint me.
I love Romans 5:3b-5, not because it is a passage that helps me make sense of my world, but because it screams out from suffering, and things that don't make sense, that "hope does not disappoint us." We all want good news and a happy ending, but this set of verses speaks a hard truth - a truth the suffering is part of what makes us into the people of God and that hoping in God, even when it feels hopeless, does not disappoint us.
Joel K
(1) http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/full-transcript-president-obamas-speech-dallas-police-memorial/story?id=40521153
(2) http://www.forbes.com/pictures/efel45mde/anchorage-alaska/
(3) http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2016/01/16/24-7-wall-st-most-dangerous-states-america/78819814/
Monday, June 20, 2016
In light of the pastoral advice of Synod 2016 on same sex marriage... an ENOCRE POST
In light of the pastoral advice offered this past week by the Synod 2016 of the Christian Reformed Church in North America (of which I am a member and in which I am a commissioned pastor) regarding same-sex marriage I offer the following Encore Post.
To read about Synod's decision go HERE.
Joel K
The Issue with Same-Sex Marriage...and it's not what you think
(or why I'm not posting on Facebook like my salvation depends on it) Originally Posted June 29, 2015
This past weekend I went to a wedding. It was a wedding between a man and a woman that happened to take place on the same day the Supreme Court of the United States declared same-sex marriage the law of the land. At the end of that joyful event the presiding pastor said something that I think is at the core of the same-sex controversy and the churches response to it. The pastor (a dear friend) said, "By the power given to me by the State and the Church I now pronounce you husband and wife." We have all heard that phrase a million times, but that statement is at the core of the issue.
My pastor friend made the same statement that many, many pastors have said in marriage ceremonies for a very long time. However, the familiarity of this statement may be keeping us from seeing what is wrong here. Why are pastors functioning as a State official? In the marriage ceremony we mingle the Church and the State in a way that we do not do anywhere else in our country. My pastor friend, was functioning as both an official of the Church AND the State in the wedding I witnessed this past Friday night. That duel functioning is at the core of why the church is embroiled in the issue of same-sex marriage.
I'm going to get right to the point. Pastors have no business whatsoever performing a State function. Pastors are called to represent the church and God, but not the government. In the United States of America we have separated the church and the state...except at the alter of marriage. But in that location we are happy to allow the distinction between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this earth to be joined as much as the couple taking the vows. This is a huge issue and one I don't hear being discussed at all in the uproar following the Supreme Court's decision.
When a couple gets married and chooses a church wedding two things are happening. They are legally married (State) and they say vows in front of their community committing themselves to marriage (Church). Both are important. That being said, one is a function of the government and the other is an ecclesiastical function. The two should not happen simultaneously as they do now.
What makes matters even more complex is that marriage is considered a sacrament in parts of the Christian church (the Catholic and Orthodox Churches) and even when not viewed as a sacrament is seen as a sacred institution ordained by God - about as close to a sacrament as you can get. When viewed through this lens it appears that the State is involved in the sacramental functioning of the church. Should this be so? Does the State have a say in The Lord's Supper or Baptism? Then why should it be part of marriage?
I am willing to bet that sometime after the ceremony I was at this past weekend the pastor had the witnesses sign the marriage license. I am further willing to bet that he is responsible to file that document with the Bureau of Vital Statistics. The signing, sealing and delivering of that document are all governmental functions. This role, as governmental clerk, should not be part of the functioning of a pastor or the church. The licensing of marriage should be left to the State. The Christian ceremony of marriage, where the couple promise to God and each other to love, honor and cherish each other in every circumstance while standing in the middle of their community should be left to the church.
So what does this have to do with same-sex marriage. Simply put, if we were to untangle the knot that binds the Church and State around marriage - and the issue of same-sex marriage - the church would be free to be the church. The Constitution of the United States makes same-sex marriage inevitable. You can't say "all men are created equal" and avoid it for long, legally. If the Church were not tied so closely to the State on this matter we could simply let the State do what it needs to do, i.e., license marriage. Also, if the Church and State were not married to each other in marriage, then the church could continue preforming marriages ceremonies that allow couples to pledge their love and commitment before God, each other, and their community without a connection to the laws of the State.
I am aware that I am not addressing the moral issue, or taking a public stance on the controversy. While many are standing up and waving one flag or another, or shouting this position or that, I simply ask, "What Kingdom are you a part of?" I personally see my citizenship in the Kingdom of God, thus the position of an earthly court ruling in an earthly kingdom is a secondary concern.
I was talking to a pastor friend of mine a year or so ago. He said something I will never forget. We had just been part of a larger group conversation with other Christian leaders about what we thought was the biggest threat to the church. After the conversation I asked my pastor friend, an Anabaptist, why he hadn't given an answer. He simply stated, "I don't really understand how anything outside the church can be a threat. I'm worried about what happens inside the church."
I wonder if this debate over same-sex marriage isn't, in part, a matter of being concerned with the wrong kingdom. Have we really separated the Church and the State, or are they married? Are we so concerned that the earthly kingdom we find ourselves living in act in ways that reflect our personal position that we are forgetting where our citizenship really resides? What Kingdom are we a part of?
Joel K
To read about Synod's decision go HERE.
Joel K
The Issue with Same-Sex Marriage...and it's not what you think
(or why I'm not posting on Facebook like my salvation depends on it) Originally Posted June 29, 2015
This past weekend I went to a wedding. It was a wedding between a man and a woman that happened to take place on the same day the Supreme Court of the United States declared same-sex marriage the law of the land. At the end of that joyful event the presiding pastor said something that I think is at the core of the same-sex controversy and the churches response to it. The pastor (a dear friend) said, "By the power given to me by the State and the Church I now pronounce you husband and wife." We have all heard that phrase a million times, but that statement is at the core of the issue.
My pastor friend made the same statement that many, many pastors have said in marriage ceremonies for a very long time. However, the familiarity of this statement may be keeping us from seeing what is wrong here. Why are pastors functioning as a State official? In the marriage ceremony we mingle the Church and the State in a way that we do not do anywhere else in our country. My pastor friend, was functioning as both an official of the Church AND the State in the wedding I witnessed this past Friday night. That duel functioning is at the core of why the church is embroiled in the issue of same-sex marriage.
I'm going to get right to the point. Pastors have no business whatsoever performing a State function. Pastors are called to represent the church and God, but not the government. In the United States of America we have separated the church and the state...except at the alter of marriage. But in that location we are happy to allow the distinction between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this earth to be joined as much as the couple taking the vows. This is a huge issue and one I don't hear being discussed at all in the uproar following the Supreme Court's decision.
When a couple gets married and chooses a church wedding two things are happening. They are legally married (State) and they say vows in front of their community committing themselves to marriage (Church). Both are important. That being said, one is a function of the government and the other is an ecclesiastical function. The two should not happen simultaneously as they do now.
What makes matters even more complex is that marriage is considered a sacrament in parts of the Christian church (the Catholic and Orthodox Churches) and even when not viewed as a sacrament is seen as a sacred institution ordained by God - about as close to a sacrament as you can get. When viewed through this lens it appears that the State is involved in the sacramental functioning of the church. Should this be so? Does the State have a say in The Lord's Supper or Baptism? Then why should it be part of marriage?
I am willing to bet that sometime after the ceremony I was at this past weekend the pastor had the witnesses sign the marriage license. I am further willing to bet that he is responsible to file that document with the Bureau of Vital Statistics. The signing, sealing and delivering of that document are all governmental functions. This role, as governmental clerk, should not be part of the functioning of a pastor or the church. The licensing of marriage should be left to the State. The Christian ceremony of marriage, where the couple promise to God and each other to love, honor and cherish each other in every circumstance while standing in the middle of their community should be left to the church.
So what does this have to do with same-sex marriage. Simply put, if we were to untangle the knot that binds the Church and State around marriage - and the issue of same-sex marriage - the church would be free to be the church. The Constitution of the United States makes same-sex marriage inevitable. You can't say "all men are created equal" and avoid it for long, legally. If the Church were not tied so closely to the State on this matter we could simply let the State do what it needs to do, i.e., license marriage. Also, if the Church and State were not married to each other in marriage, then the church could continue preforming marriages ceremonies that allow couples to pledge their love and commitment before God, each other, and their community without a connection to the laws of the State.
I am aware that I am not addressing the moral issue, or taking a public stance on the controversy. While many are standing up and waving one flag or another, or shouting this position or that, I simply ask, "What Kingdom are you a part of?" I personally see my citizenship in the Kingdom of God, thus the position of an earthly court ruling in an earthly kingdom is a secondary concern.
I was talking to a pastor friend of mine a year or so ago. He said something I will never forget. We had just been part of a larger group conversation with other Christian leaders about what we thought was the biggest threat to the church. After the conversation I asked my pastor friend, an Anabaptist, why he hadn't given an answer. He simply stated, "I don't really understand how anything outside the church can be a threat. I'm worried about what happens inside the church."
I wonder if this debate over same-sex marriage isn't, in part, a matter of being concerned with the wrong kingdom. Have we really separated the Church and the State, or are they married? Are we so concerned that the earthly kingdom we find ourselves living in act in ways that reflect our personal position that we are forgetting where our citizenship really resides? What Kingdom are we a part of?
Joel K
Monday, June 13, 2016
Late Night Thoughts On Love in the Wake of Orlando
It is no secret that I am am huge fan of Stephen Colbert. Tonight's opening to his show added to this admiration. Colbert opened the show, int he wake of the worst mass shooting in modern US history with a monologue about love, a short hint at our national acceptance of these events, and a discussion with Fox News Channel’s Bill O’Reilly about how to respond to such attacks. The monologue has the feel of the peace teachings of Jesus....
You can watch Colberts opening HERE.
Or
Below is a transcript of part of Colbert's opening as posted on the Washington Post website:
“We each ask ourselves what can you possibly say in the face of this horror? But then sadly you realize, you know what to say, because it has been said too many times before,” Colbert said. “You have a pretty good idea of what most people are gonna say. You know what a president, whoever it is, will probably say. You know what both sides of the political aisle will say. You know what gun manufacturers will say. Even me, with a silly show like this, you have some idea what I will say because even I have talked about this when it has happened before. It’s as if there’s a national script that we’ve learned, and I think by accepting the script, we tacitly accept that the script will end the same way every time, with nothing changing Except for the loved ones and the families of the victims, for whom nothing will ever be the same.”
“These people in Orlando were apparently targeted because of who they love,” Colbert said of the shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub. “And there have been outpourings of love throughout the country and around the world … love allows us to change the script. So love your country, love your family, love the families and the victims and the people of Orlando.”
You can watch Colberts opening HERE.
Or
Below is a transcript of part of Colbert's opening as posted on the Washington Post website:
“We each ask ourselves what can you possibly say in the face of this horror? But then sadly you realize, you know what to say, because it has been said too many times before,” Colbert said. “You have a pretty good idea of what most people are gonna say. You know what a president, whoever it is, will probably say. You know what both sides of the political aisle will say. You know what gun manufacturers will say. Even me, with a silly show like this, you have some idea what I will say because even I have talked about this when it has happened before. It’s as if there’s a national script that we’ve learned, and I think by accepting the script, we tacitly accept that the script will end the same way every time, with nothing changing Except for the loved ones and the families of the victims, for whom nothing will ever be the same.”
“These people in Orlando were apparently targeted because of who they love,” Colbert said of the shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub. “And there have been outpourings of love throughout the country and around the world … love allows us to change the script. So love your country, love your family, love the families and the victims and the people of Orlando.”
Joel K
My other post on Stephen Colbert can be seen HERE.
Thursday, June 2, 2016
NEW SERMON: God's Dance Party
NEW SERMON
"God's Dance Party"
II
Cor. 5:16-21 &
I Samuel 16:1-13
I had the wonderful opportunity to preach at Crosspoint Community Church this past Sunday on a "God's Dance Party" - Part 2 of the mini-series "Dancing Into Summer". The audio can be found HERE.
Joel K
PS - The TedTalk by: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be view HERE.
"God's Dance Party"
II
Cor. 5:16-21 & I Samuel 16:1-13
I had the wonderful opportunity to preach at Crosspoint Community Church this past Sunday on a "God's Dance Party" - Part 2 of the mini-series "Dancing Into Summer". The audio can be found HERE.
Joel K
PS - The TedTalk by: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be view HERE.
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
The TrailerPark Levite: ENCORE POST: A Requiem for a Good Man
The TrailerPark Levite: ENCORE POST: A Requiem for a Good Man: A year ago today, May 24, 2015, my father-in-law died after a long battle with cancer. This post was originally posted as a memorial. I ...
ENCORE POST: A Requiem for a Good Man
A year ago today, May 24, 2015, my father-in-law died after a long battle with cancer.
This post was originally posted as a memorial. I re-post it today in his memory.
We miss you dad.
- JK
"If I had a hammer..."
- Pete Seeger & Lee Hays
May 24, 2015 - Pentecost Sunday
My father-in-law, Bert Steensma, was always building something.
Don't get confused, Bert wasn't a professional carpenter. However, by the time I married his daughter, Stacey, 20 years ago he had already built a number of successful businesses. Bert and his brother Gary have sold tractors and auto parts, owned a mall, an office building and a service station. Together they were always building their business.
When he retired his stated goal was to help rebuild peoples lives by helping to rebuild the homes of those who had been struck by natural disasters - and he did volunteering with the Christian Reformed Church's Disaster Response Services for years. He also spent time helping our church here in Alaska renovate their new space. He even returned a decade later to repaint the walls he had painted when we opened. In the final year of his life he was busy helping to remodel a small home for a women exiting homelessness. In the midst of cancer treatments and failing health, he worked to build a new home, and a new life, for someone in who was in need of some rebuilding.
Bert's heart for building extended beyond the borders of Michigan or even the USA. I recall a sun soaked day two years ago basking in the warmth with Dad in Talkeetna, AK and listening to him explain to me the work he had helped start in Honduras. He outlined the reasons why they choose to pave peoples floors (health and infant mortality) and why they built water boxes (sanitation). He and I talked about the relational aspects of ministry. I was so blessed to hear his heart about helping those in need, his desire to know them and be known, and to connect with him on a level we didn't often share as we shared a beer.
Bert also built a family. He married Lynda Smedley 48 years ago. Together they have three daughters (something I can relate directly to) and a son, as well as 14 grandchildren. I have had the privilege to be a part of this family for the past two decades and have been blessed by the skilled craftsmanship Bert had as a family man.
An outgoing and gregarious man Bert was always building friendships. Quick to laugh, or make a joke, he was easy company. As a churchman he built the kingdom serving as a leader in the congregations he attended and supporting mission efforts across the world.
Today my father-in-law died, a victim of the lung cancer he so valiantly fought. He breathed his last early Pentecost morning, giving up his Spirit the day we will celebrate the Spirit's arrival.
Today I reflect, not just on a good man, but on building.
Bert's life - a life lived well - is asking me the question "what are you building?"
It is a question that lingers for all of us left in the wake of this wonderful builder.
What exactly am I building in/with my life?
Rest in Peace Dad.
"Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain."
- Psalm 127:1
Berts Obituary Can Be Viewed at:
http://www.zaagman.com/obituaries/obituary-listings?obId=503169#/obituaryInfo
This post was originally posted as a memorial. I re-post it today in his memory.
We miss you dad.
- JK
"If I had a hammer..."
- Pete Seeger & Lee Hays
My father-in-law, Bert Steensma, was always building something.
Don't get confused, Bert wasn't a professional carpenter. However, by the time I married his daughter, Stacey, 20 years ago he had already built a number of successful businesses. Bert and his brother Gary have sold tractors and auto parts, owned a mall, an office building and a service station. Together they were always building their business.
When he retired his stated goal was to help rebuild peoples lives by helping to rebuild the homes of those who had been struck by natural disasters - and he did volunteering with the Christian Reformed Church's Disaster Response Services for years. He also spent time helping our church here in Alaska renovate their new space. He even returned a decade later to repaint the walls he had painted when we opened. In the final year of his life he was busy helping to remodel a small home for a women exiting homelessness. In the midst of cancer treatments and failing health, he worked to build a new home, and a new life, for someone in who was in need of some rebuilding.
Bert's heart for building extended beyond the borders of Michigan or even the USA. I recall a sun soaked day two years ago basking in the warmth with Dad in Talkeetna, AK and listening to him explain to me the work he had helped start in Honduras. He outlined the reasons why they choose to pave peoples floors (health and infant mortality) and why they built water boxes (sanitation). He and I talked about the relational aspects of ministry. I was so blessed to hear his heart about helping those in need, his desire to know them and be known, and to connect with him on a level we didn't often share as we shared a beer.
Bert also built a family. He married Lynda Smedley 48 years ago. Together they have three daughters (something I can relate directly to) and a son, as well as 14 grandchildren. I have had the privilege to be a part of this family for the past two decades and have been blessed by the skilled craftsmanship Bert had as a family man.
An outgoing and gregarious man Bert was always building friendships. Quick to laugh, or make a joke, he was easy company. As a churchman he built the kingdom serving as a leader in the congregations he attended and supporting mission efforts across the world.
Today my father-in-law died, a victim of the lung cancer he so valiantly fought. He breathed his last early Pentecost morning, giving up his Spirit the day we will celebrate the Spirit's arrival.
Today I reflect, not just on a good man, but on building.
Bert's life - a life lived well - is asking me the question "what are you building?"
It is a question that lingers for all of us left in the wake of this wonderful builder.
What exactly am I building in/with my life?
Rest in Peace Dad.
those who build it labor in vain."
- Psalm 127:1
Berts Obituary Can Be Viewed at:
http://www.zaagman.com/obituaries/obituary-listings?obId=503169#/obituaryInfo
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