Leslie Veen http://www.leslieveen.com/ en Copyright 2011 Fri, 08 Jul 2011 16:17:06 -0800 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Things are getting serious here! here.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/07/527.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/07/527.html Personal Fri, 08 Jul 2011 16:17:06 -0800 Struggling with big questions My Theodicy Model]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/07/525.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/07/525.html Personal Fri, 01 Jul 2011 17:37:32 -0800 I hate goodbyes! Mission Bay Community Church, a small church that caters to a younger demographic. The people that come are often students or early in their careers. This means that a large number of them have moved on to more permanent phases in their lives elsewhere. On Sunday, MBCC will say one of the hardest goodbyes it has had to say in its short eleven-year history - to its founding pastor, Bruce Reyes-Chow. I'm trying to cry now so that I'm not a big blubbery mess then. Bruce, and the elders Beadle and Scott, were three people who reached out to me at seriously low point in my life. They welcomed me in and helped me to laugh when I found it hard to laugh at much of anything. I have greatly appreciated working with Bruce as a colleague. He and I will still see each other around the Presbytery, but I will miss this connection. What a gift he gave me by inviting me into the life of this vibrant community. It seems to me that I should be better at this saying goodbye thing given the many times I have had to do it over the years. But I'm not. It still makes me sad. I guess that just shows that I really care. I sure wish I could receive that message in other ways.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/05/523.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/05/523.html Personal Fri, 27 May 2011 19:14:04 -0800 Going off script Mission Bay Community Church where I do most of my preaching. This is a more informal setting where the sermon is conversational - actually inviting feedback from the congregants during the sermon itself. But I've also used it in more formal settings like the church where I did my internship as a seminarian, Old First Presbyterian Church. I was happy to receive positive feedback from a parishioner at Old First after my most recent visit to their pulpit. She told me that she noticed how much I had grown in my preaching since my time as an intern. Most especially she noted how much more eye contact I had with people while I was preaching. Preaching from an outline has allowed me to have a more conversational tone while still getting my main points out in the order that makes the most sense. And it allows me to have a greater amount of eye contact with the people I'm interacting with. I have really enjoyed learning to use this style of preaching. Having said that, I still use a full-on manuscript when preaching to the seminary crowd. My motto is: know your audience. The conversational tone doesn't play as well there. So I'll stick to my notes there (for now). This evening I preached a Palm Sunday sermon from MBCC. I called it: I need a hero!]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/04/522.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/04/522.html Religion Sun, 17 Apr 2011 21:32:54 -0800 Preaching time once again Not Either/Or but Both/And.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/02/520.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2011/02/520.html Religion Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:26:00 -0800 I surprise myself sometimes here.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/09/518.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/09/518.html Fri, 10 Sep 2010 11:29:31 -0800 Preach that again here.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/04/516.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/04/516.html Religion Mon, 05 Apr 2010 13:37:01 -0800 Video killed the radio star this one from yesterday. And, who knows, maybe the act of taking a break will inspire me to write once again. Thanks for reading.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/03/514.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/03/514.html Personal Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:20:37 -0800 Preaching a double header Christmas sermon that I had preached elsewhere several years back. Some weeks after agreeing to that preaching opportunity, I learned that I would be the only pastoral person from the staff of Mission Bay Community Church in San Francisco for this same Sunday. So I got talked into taking on the sermon for that service as well. This was possible since MBCC meets in the evening and the church where I was guest preaching meets in the morning. As it turned out, I was required to write a new sermon for the service with MBCC because we were starting a sermon series on the book of Galatians and I was asked to do the kick-off sermon giving the overview - not something I've had the opportunity to do before. So I did it. In the middle of reading lots and lots for my upcoming D.Min. program, I paused and worked on writing a sermon on Galatians. I actually ended up enjoying writing it. But I was rather anxious about the whole day going into it. Luckily the people of both congregations showed me a lot of grace and God was definitely worshipped in both communities. But I'm hoping not to do that again any time soon.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/01/512.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2010/01/512.html Religion Wed, 06 Jan 2010 11:18:38 -0800 On the choices we make On this day when Christians around the world pause to celebrate the birth of the Christ child, I am also pausing to reflect on choices we make. Or more specifically, the choices I make. It is my choice to believe that this day is different than the rest. It is my choice to believe that the one called Jesus of Nazareth was, in fact, God in human form. I know all too well (thanks to many friends who never or no longer hold to these beliefs) the improbability of this being true. I know that this belief flies in the face of reason. And yet, I choose to believe in something that is bigger than reason. I choose to believe in something my mind cannot fully comprehend. I choose to believe in a God who desires wholeness for God's creation so deeply that God became a part of it. Jesus said, "I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly." This from the Son of the God who told the Hebrew people, "I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live." I choose to believe that God does offer me life and blessings and that I must turn toward God in order to see what that means in my life. Many of my choices this fall have led me to focus on the difficulties and holes in my life. But I am choosing this day to once again remember the offers of Jesus and God the Heavenly Parent of life abundant. It's there for the taking. As I write this I am reminded that this is a choice that I have to affirm and reaffirm constantly. It is all too easy to forget God's promises. So with great thanksgiving for all this day means for me, I choose to reaffirm my belief in the life-giving God made real in the Christ child. http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/12/510.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/12/510.html Personal Fri, 25 Dec 2009 19:57:32 -0800 Happy Thanksgiving! preach both at MBCC and other places - The ability to be physically active - The opportunity to live in such a cool place as San Francisco - The wonders of the interwebs that have allowed me to make, deepen. and renew relationships with friends far and wide And I could go on. But you get the feeling. I am deeply grateful for all that I have been given. And I'm glad to have a day that allows me to share my thanks with you all for being a part of my life. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/11/509.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/11/509.html Personal Thu, 26 Nov 2009 10:05:39 -0800 Re-gifting sermon that I originally preached to a church in Albuquerque, NM, in the fall of 2005. I also preached it once to the congregation of Old First Presbyterian Church in San Francisco. I will probably preach it again to other congregations in the future. I still believe in doing original work for most sermons. But I believe that God can work through the same words spoken in different contexts too. So there you go SFTS, don't feel disappointed that those words weren't originally written for you. Just know that God was in the preaching of them to you as much as God was present the first time I delivered them.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/10/507.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/10/507.html Personal Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:25:42 -0800 I opted out wrap-up on SFGate puts it this way:
Losers: The White House scheduler -- and the voters. Obama comes for the first time as President to the Bay Area -- a region that so strongly supported him -- but the only folks who get a chance to see him are those who throw big bills on the table? No public events? Shame.
I so agree! Maybe next time?]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/10/506.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/10/506.html Politics Fri, 16 Oct 2009 23:02:32 -0800 I'm still learning And not always in ways that I enjoy. My marriage ended just over three and a half years ago. And I'm still figuring out what that means for me now and for my future. One of the hardest things for me is figuring out how to tell my story. Many times I start to talk about something I have done or someone that I know and realize that I have to make a decision about whether or not to include a reference to my former husband in the story. That may seem like a weird decision to have to make. For some it would be a no-brainer - leave that part out. Duh! And sometimes I choose to do just that. But I don't want to be a revisionist. I am here because of decisions that we made as a couple. A large majority of the people I know and love are only a part of my life because of the connection we have through him. We were together for over 16 years. I don't want to just scrub those years from my memory. At the same time, I don't want to seem like I'm desperately holding on to something that is no more. I have made my own life. I am building new friendships and memories. And learning how to honor the past while living into the future. So, like I said, I'm still learning. And hoping that I am doing it with at least a little bit of grace. http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/09/505.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/09/505.html Personal Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:45:12 -0800 Sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll? Mission Bay Community Church as a part of a sermon series on A Social Creed for the 21st Century that was adopted by the PC(USA) in the summer of 2008 at the General Assembly. I was assigned the topic of "Those affected by drugs." On first blush I found this quite amusing since my last sermon was on sex. I will preach again in November and I think I'll have to find a way to work in a little bit of rock 'n roll to cover the whole trifecta. I wasn't sure how this sermon would go since it was much more political than I usually get in church. But, as per usual, the MBCC folks rose to the challenge and we had a good discussion. See my side of it here.]]> http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/09/504.html http://www.leslieveen.com/archive/2009/09/504.html Religion Wed, 23 Sep 2009 19:55:50 -0800