Sad News Travels Quickly

It seems like nothing works overtime like the grapevine. News travels quickly from one person to another, and bad news seems to travel more quickly than good.

     By now many, if not most of you, are aware of my decision regarding my denominational affiliation. As a result of many long and agonizing hours thinking and praying about it, I feel I can no longer support the policies and practices of the Presbyterian Church (USA). For me to leave the denomination means I will also have to step down as pastor of this church, which is very hard for me (see the Letter of Resignation below).

     I have enjoyed the years I have spent here. I have come to regard many of you as close friends and even family. But I do not feel that I can continue to be in leadership in a denomination with which I disagree on such a fundamental level. I know this will be hard for many of us, myself included, but I hope you can understand the struggle I face.

     Some of you have asked what we will do now and where we will go. I will most likely serve in a ministry capacity in another denomination with which I am in more fundamental agreement. We are exploring those possibilities now.

     Some have also speculated about a time line about how much longer we will be able to stay. After speaking to the Presbytery officials, they will allow me to remain through the end of the year. Normally, they remove pastors who are in conflicted situations, but since that is not the case here (no one is trying to throw me out) they are willing to make some leeway. For that I am grateful.

     I suppose all that remains to be said is “Thank you.” Thank you for your faithfulness, both to me and to our Lord. It is that faithfulness which has allowed me to stay as long as I have. Thank you for your love. Jesus told his disciples that the world would recognize them as belonging to him because of their love. You have certainly shown that to me, and I and my family will always be grateful.

God bless you all.

                                                                                                                                                                October 26, 2015

To the Session and Congregation of the First Presbyterian Church of Sand Springs, OK,

As many of you are aware, there have been many changes in the PC (USA) in recent years. Over the past several weeks and months those changes have accelerated and intensified. It is my feeling that these changes have not been for the better. In fact, they are so drastic and so far reaching that I have come to believe that I can no longer, in good conscience, serve in the leadership of this denomination. So it is with great sadness and sense of loss that I must resign as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Sand Springs, OK.

     This has been a very difficult decision for me. I was baptized as an infant in this church. I grew up and went to Sunday school and was confirmed in this church. I have served as pastor for over 30 years in churches throughout the Midwest. But now, I no longer feel welcome in my own denomination. The national church has adopted policies and chosen directions I feel I can no longer follow. Rather than continue in a church that I cannot, in good conscience, support, I feel I must leave.

     Please understand that I bear no ill will toward the leadership of the PC (USA), nor to anyone who chooses to stay. We must each follow the path which God has laid out for us. I will continue to pray for God’s blessing on the PC (USA) and this congregation.

     In turn, I would appreciate your prayers for me and my family as I strike out in a new direction, continually seeking God’s will and guidance for my future. I will, of course, continue to love and pray for this congregation, as we have made some wonderful friends here, and I will continue to think of you as family.

     May God’s richest blessing be upon each of us as we endeavor to seek God’s will in our lives, and serve our Lord Jesus Christ to the greatest of our ability. God bless you all.

In Christ,

Kenneth E. Lane

Prayer for Everyone

For many years, I have enjoyed the ministry of John Ortberg, author and pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in California. I have read his books, articles, listened to him preach, and used his curriculum in Sunday school.

This week, I ran across an article he wrote in Leadership Journal, a magazine written for Christian leaders. It was an article on prayer, and, as he often does, John got right to the point about prayer and had some helpful advice about how to improve our prayer lives.

I think that many of us struggle with prayer in our lives of faith. How do we pray? When should we pray? How often? Even those of us who have been followers of Jesus for many years struggle with questions like these.

One of the points he made is that it is important for us to remember that we are always in the presence of God. We don’t have to go somewhere to pray. We don’t have to adopt a particular attitude, head down, eyes closed. We can pray while we drive, run, shop, or most any time and any place.

I remember a communications class I took in college where the professor said, “You cannot not communicate.” His point was that no matter what we said, and even if we said nothing, we are still communicating. Sometimes silence communicates even more than speaking.

Think how much more true that is with God. God is with us every moment, whether we are waking or sleeping. When we think about something that is bothering us, or when we worry or wonder about what the future holds, we can turn our thoughts to God. Tell God what is worrying you. Talk to God as you would your best friend, which, after all, he is.

I am always amused when people use language they think might offend me and then say, “Excuse me, pastor.” Do they think I am their biggest problem? Do they think that I am God’s microphone, and that when I leave, they will be by themselves without God listening in?

Clearly, God is in more places, and with more people than I can ever be. God knows not only what we say in our worst moments, but what we say in our best. God even knows what we do not say, and sometimes can’t even articulate.

These should become the essence of our prayers, not the flowery language we so often associate with tall steeple pulpits and pastoral prayers. We should not be afraid to show God our heart. After all, we know God sees it anyway. I think it is helpful to remember that God is as close as our next breath, and as vital as our next heartbeat.

As John Ortberg says, “The goal of prayer is not to get good at prayer, not to see who can spend the longest time in prayer. (Jesus said not to pray like the pagans who believe they will be heard because of their many words.) The goal is not to pray with greater feelings of certainty, or greater eloquence, or even greater frequency. The goal of prayer is to live all my life and do all my ministry in the joyful awareness that God is present right here, right now.”¹

1.      1.  Ortberg, John. “Getting Good at Prayer isn’t the Point.” Leadership Journal, Summer 2015: p. 29.