The Wehrles

The Methodist movement in the United States was begun in homes. The Christian work empowered by the love of Jesus that poured out from those homes was not led by a professional and college-educated clergy, but by regular folks. These were people who worked regular jobs and had families and homes and other such things to care for… but they also loved their neighbor and wanted them to experience the same love of Jesus that they knew.

As for the clergy, they were hardly better trained. They were, however, more focused.

I feel like I am losing focus. This month, I have spent dozens of hours trying to complete all the paperwork and financial arrangements to purchase a home. I have spent dozens of hours trying to get all the services arranged, hooked up, working, scheduled and paid for that a modern home requires - water, sewer, phone, internet, garbage pick-up. Then, I’ve spent dozens of hours arranging to be paid, to be insured, to study for a drivers license, to get my kids hooked up with music instructors and a tae kwon do class. I’ve spent dozens more hours shipping furniture and belongings from Kentucky, Charlotte and New Jersey. I’ve spent dozens more hours purchasing things I don’t have and need like a refridgerator, a table, a car…

And… now things have started to break… I spent an hour and a half tonight on the phone with the cable company on the other end trying to get my digital HD DVR cable box to “reboot.” Remember the days when two simple wires screwed to the back of your ENORMOUS 17″ black and white T.V. set and connected it to rabbit ears that pulled in a whopping 10 channels of television because you were lucky enough to live at just the right distance from both New York and Philadelphia. Those were the days! The days when Star Trek was on every night with a new episode… really!

Now, my 42″ 1080p HD LCD TV has 12 cables connecting it to two mysterious boxes - one for sound and DVD, and one for digital cable and DVR - and one of the stinking boxes is broken! Too many circuits and no TV.

Too many circuits… and too little riding…

Peter Cartwright described the life of the circuit-rider in his mid-19th century autobiography: “A Methodist preacher, when he felt that God had called him to preach, instead of hunting up a college or Biblical Institute, hunted up a hardy pony, and some traveling apparatus, and with his library always at hand, namely, a Bible, Hymn book, and Discipline, he started, and with a text that never wore out nor grew stale, he cried, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.’ In this way he went through storms of wind, hail, snow, and rain; climbed hills and mountains, traversed valleys, plunged through swamps, swollen streams, lay out all night, wet, weary, and hungry, held his horse by the bridle all night, or tied him to a limb, slept with his saddle blanket for a bed, his saddle-bags for a pillow. Often he slept in dirty cabins, ate roasting ears for bread, drank butter-milk for coffee; took deer or bear meat, or wild turkey, for breakfast, dinner, and supper. This was old-fashioned Methodist preacher fare and fortune.”

The life of the circuit rider was simple and focused… get out there and share the love of Jesus with people. What has happened? I feel like I’ve gotten tangled in too many circuits and I am doing far too little riding…

Pray for me!

How about letting me know if I can pray for you, too?!?!

Now… tomorrow, I am going to untangle myself from all these circuits. I am going to pray. Then, I am going to connect with the folks in my neighborhood who need me to be a friend and, more importantly, need me to introduce them to Jesus.

Ron - Where is Ron? His riding mower has been parked on his front lawn with the hood up for three days now. Is something wrong?

Julie and Zach - the young couple down the street… a communications company technician and a nurse. What are their dreams? How are they feeling about living in a new home and neighborhood?

Peter and Jill - Love their twins… They are becoming fast friends with Elliot and Gabriel. They seem to have an interest in the “all American stuff” including attending church once in a while. Where are they in their faith journey? Do they really understand that Jesus is God come in human flesh to prove his love for us?

What about the rest of my neighbors? Are they too entangled in circuits and worldly cares to even stop for a moment and consider their loving creator?

There is work to be done here! I can’t afford to be distracted… by circuits… I need to be out… riding the circuit…