Mike McClenahan

The Lord went ahead of them ... to give them light, so they could travel by day and night. Exodus 13:21b Our job is to be attentive to his presence; to see what God is up to, to listen to his voice, to watch for his leading. And when we believe God is leading us, we respond. For the Israelites it meant traveling, because that's what God was calling them to. Sometimes God calls us to sit, sometimes to discern, sometimes to listen.  Last Sunday we launched our Generations Campaign. After years of conversations, decisions, feedback, prayer and discernment , we moved forward. We shared the vision and the plans for building new buildings on our campus that will provide places of welcoming and transformation for our children, students and families, as well as bring us all together as the generations of our church.  We also launched a new way of worshipping, especially in the morning services in the Sanctuary, with children first through sixth grade in worship for the first ...

If your presence does not go with us, do not send us from here. Exodus 33:15 What other assurance does Moses have but God’s presence to go to places he’s never been before? In the next verse Moses says, “What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” (v.16) What distinguishes us from anyone else, any other association of people except the presence of God to lead and guide and forgive and shelter and save; to shape us into the likeness of Jesus and to reflect his glory to the world? While we were on sabbatical we had the opportunity to describe our church to people who don’t know what churches like ours are like and to people who don’t know what any church is like. I tried to think of words that were common, understandable, and relatable to anyone. I started with “We take relationships seriously, so most of us are in a small group with people where we can talk about the message I preached and pray and support each other through lif...

Abraham... obeyed and went, even thought he didn't know where he was going . Hebrews 11:8  Saturday night Amy and I attended the Amor Ministries 30th Anniversary Dinner in Fullerton. Not only did we attend, but I had the privilege of emceeing and together with Amy introduced the founders Scott and Gayla Congdon. Thirty years ago Scott and Gayla began a ministry that would build houses in the Tijuana dump so families could stay together. After working in an orphanage they realized that many children are given up to orphanages not because they have no parents, but because the parents couldn't afford to raise them. So what if they had a house to live in? So Scott and Gayla began to invite churches to build homes with them for these families. They trusted God. They didn't know where it would lead them, but like Abraham, God put a promise in their hearts that would be an eternal promise, one that would change lives forever. Saturday night we celebrated 300,000 particip...

In just a few hours Amy and I will fly from Gatwick to Atlanta to LAX. Since May 3 each of us has been living out of a 21 inch roller bag and small backpack: few pants, a few shirts, toiletries, art supplies and a few books. We've learned to live the pilgrimage by traveling for the love of God, letting go, being led, praying, giving thanks for all see and meet, and telling stories. We are ending our sabbatical, but we know we are not ending our "pilgrimage" as we travel back home. We have spent the last 12 days in London in flat of our friends who have been back in California these last two weeks. It's been a great gift to us to be able to relax and begin our transition home. London is a great city. We walked for miles and didn't run out of things to see. The shows are so good it's hard to choose. Public transportation is amazing. The museums are free and so are the evensong services. We worshipped at All Souls Church, where John Stott served as pastor ...

There have been two pieces of art that have caught my eye on sabbatical and have taught me something about our pilgrimage. The first was Rembrandt's Return of the Prodigal which surprisingly hangs in the Columba Room of the Northumbria Community. Surprisingly because I have kept a small postcard version in my journal for the last year or so. Part of my discovery in the last year has been the story of the prodigal, the desperation and poverty of the son and the blessing and embracing love of the father. I had hoped we would have been able to see the original in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg with others after the choir trip in Moscow, but we decided instead to fly to London. So when I saw the large poster hanging in Hetton Hall I had to smile. But today we went to the National Gallery, one of the great museums of the world. The one painting that caught my eye, and represents themes of our sabbatical is the Supper at Emmaus by Caravaggio, the Italian master. This painting has Jes...

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right. Blessing May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors. We prayed this prayer each morning at the Hetton Hall. Since the Northumbria Community is dispersed, companions and friends follow along online or with the book of Celtic Daily Prayer .

Note to reader: Since so many enjoyed Amy's blog last week, this blog is written by another guest blogger who is anonymous. On the Holy Island of Lindisfarne Mike and Amy left the Northumbria Community on Saturday morning. It was like leaving home, they told me. Apparently they grew attached to the creaky floors, ancient Aga (oven stove that heats and bakes at the center of the old farm houses in England), friendly people and daily offices (community prayer four times a day) in the old Hetton Hall, which the community will be moving out of this fall and into their new home in Acton, about 20 miles south. Sorry for the run-on sentences, but I don't know what they have already told you. They arrived in Durham on Saturday afternoon on a cloudy, almost rainy day. They rolled their 21 inch bags to Hatfield College where they stayed in one of the student dorm rooms. Hatfield College is named after Mike's ancestor Thomas de Hatfield on his mother's side. Here's wh...