Mike Clemmer

by Mike Clemmer

In Ephesians 5:19, the Apostle Paul commands gathered believers to “sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” I wish that Paul would have given more specific directions as to what form our hymn singing and worship should be.  

According to Webster’s dictionary, a hymn is “a song of praise to God.”  That seems like such a simple definition. However, over the years, music and its use in worship has been at the center of many debates and schisms in the Mennonite Church simply because of certain differences and preferences. In the broader church, these differences in music often have escalated and sometimes are referred to as “worship wars.”  

Unfortunately, we in Mosaic Conference have not been immune from them. Throughout our history, changes in music preferences or to the “good old songs” of our past have raised our anxiety levels. These changes in preferences seem to happen in every generation.  

Recently, while paging through my great grandfather’s hymnal from 1905, I noticed that very few of the songs were familiar to me. What happened over the past 100 years that many of these songs are no longer sung in church? Why were they replaced? Was it the theology or the melody? Or, did they simply become outdated?  

In the Franconia, PA area, many Mennonites enjoyed learning 4-part harmony at singing schools as early as the mid-1800’s. Yet allowing harmonies to be sung in worship services was mostly forbidden until the late 1800’s. Similarly, when the first English hymnbook of the Mennonite Church (MC) was published in 1902, a switch to singing songs in English rather than German also created anxiety. There are many stories of church leaders weeping out loud or having members walk out the back when their congregation started singing in English, or in 4-parts, or with instrumental accompaniment. 

In my lifetime, there have been three new Mennonite hymnals, each bringing pause and pushback by some. Some churches no longer use hymnals, only having the words to contemporary style worship songs projected on a screen. In many places, acapella singing led by a song leader has been replaced with worship bands with lights, drums, and cymbals. Where will it all end? What would our forefathers and foremothers of music and worship, like Joseph Funk, think of all this? 

Funk appreciated the use of instruments in sacred music, but he also “believed strongly that music should be sung by all members of a congregation as a participatory form of worship . . . as a kind of musical democracy.” ⁱ Although Funk was a great proponent of 4-part singing, he also promoted the idea that full participation of the congregation with their voices is the goal, regardless of the way that it is practiced.  

Even though we hold our worship preferences personally and deeply, the idea of singing together as a community of faith should continue to be our focus, regardless of the way it is practiced. My prayer is that we all would “sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in our hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything” (Eph. 5:19). 

Mike Clemmer

Mike Clemmer is a Conference Leadership Minister and serves as the pastor of Maple Grove Mennonite Church (Lancaster Conference).

Spring cleaning is an annual ritual at our home. We drag our feet to start, knowing from experience that there is a lot of work ahead of us. Yet the vision of having a fresh, clean start to the outdoor season keeps us moving forward.  

There is of course all the outside work – washing windows, pressure washing decks, weeding, mulching, clearing gutters, and cleaning and placing deck furniture. When all the outside work is finished, there is a great sense of accomplishment.

But after taking a bit of a break, we realize the more intense job still lies ahead.  We still have a dirty, cluttered garage to clean out. We may feel like putting this task off for a while, but eventually the sheer volume of the stuff collected there begs for our attention. It is amazing what kind of things are collected in the garage in just a year’s time.  

There are the expected snow shovels, ice melt, and snowblower to be stored properly. But there are also tools, boxes, and Christmas stuff that were never put away properly. Decorations, paint, and sports gear are found everywhere, covered by a layer of salty road dust. Finally, after the task of reorganizing things and doing a final floor sweep, there is a genuine feeling of satisfaction and happiness.  

Why do I wait so long to clean and declutter our garage? Perhaps I delay the work because there is a garage door to easily hide the clutter that is inside. Or maybe, because people only see the outside of my house when they drive by, my self-consciousness drives me to work on the exterior of the house first. But by delaying the garage cleanout, dirt and stuff continue to build up and the deep cleaning turns into a lot more work. 

This year’s spring and garage cleaning has already happened in our home. The spiritual decluttering is still happening, but I have a vision of a cleansed heart and renewed spirit that makes the work go easier. I am encouraged to intentionally put things in their proper place when possible. And, I am inviting God to do the hard work of cleansing my soul.

I love snow. I especially enjoy watching it come down and the accompanying peaceful quiet.

As a child going to bed while it was snowing, I hoped that the accumulation would lead to the greatest possible snow event – a snow day! A snow day represented many things for me as a child: the joy of missing school, making snow forts, sledding, warm cookies, and in general, a quiet, peaceful day at home. It was a chance to take a break from the usual schedule of life and just relax.

In today’s world, snow days are certainly not like they used to be. For kids, they still include the joy of staying at home from school, sledding, and playing in the snow. But now, the fun only happens after they have finished their on-line assignments through virtual school. The requirements to complete a certain number of official school days each year trumps having official snow days.

As an adult, I also find the joy of a snow day elusive. In fact, for me, there seems to be no such thing as a day “off” because of the snow. Instead, when it snows, I get up an hour earlier so that I can clear the driveway in order to slide my way into the office or perhaps to the store for milk – because life must go on.

As I begin to write this article, there is a fresh six inches of snow on the ground. I have decided that I am taking a snow day. I am determined to not leave the house for anything. Today, life can go on without me for a change.

I believe God intended for us all to have snow days. Perhaps not in the usual way we picture them in our minds – with snow and warm cookies – but with the same benefits for our mind and spirit. We would profit from a day of having a quiet retreat from our normal schedules or simply a chance to experience joy and fun in the ordinary. Most importantly, we would all benefit from the possibility of directing our thoughts and actions towards God.

God has already provided for us a snow day each week. It is called, Sabbath. It is a day where we can experience these very things. But just like snow days, we have often neglected our Sabbath days. Instead we use them to continue our daily grind, living out the idea that we need to keep life going, or things will fly apart without us. But without Sabbath, we are the ones who fly apart.

We easily forget that life is not about us and our desires, but rather it is about embracing, honoring, and worshipping God. Life is about allowing the reins of our lives to be in God’s hands. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8, ASV) is both a command from God and a reminder to regularly honor our Creator and Sustainer of life by disengaging from the regular life that we so diligently follow. In doing that, we will find rest for our souls and the joy of life will be restored.

The great thing about snow days and Sabbath days is that at the end of the day, both are of greater profit and worth than any work that could have been done in their place. That’s because God’s work has no equal.

I am hoping for a lot of God’s snow days in 2022, for all of us. I can almost smell the warm cookies already!

This week, I had the opportunity to hold my newly born grandson. What a precious gift from God! As I held this tiny life in my hands, I began to wonder what his life will be like when he grows up. How will my relationship with him shape his future faith?

Soon my mind went even further – what will his children and grandchildren be like? Will they have a faith in Jesus? I realized in that moment that my vision of the future is often very short-sighted. My life, and even my faith, is driven by what I can see and what will happen during my lifetime. But God’s vision has always been far-reaching and generational.

Years ago, a missionary friend told me about a group of pastors in Italy. These pastors longed for a place of retreat from the rigors of life and a place where discipleship could happen. One day, a very excited pastor took my friend to see the group’s new purchase: a 50-acre property on top of a mountain. There was no road access, electricity, or source of water to the property – just land. The next generation would build the road, get electricity and water. Their collective hope was that, in 100 years or so, this place would be a Christian retreat center for many people to use. My friend was stunned by this vision of the future by the current generation of Italian pastors. In our world of immediate results and gratification, this type of visioning seems impossible.

Yet, this type of vision is what God often calls us to – a trust in what God is yet going to do. Indeed, God’s work is beyond our human comprehension, but we often fail to remember that God has always been a generational God with a plan. This was true of Abraham who never saw his family be “as numerous as the stars” as he was promised. It was true of Moses who never entered the Promised Land. It was also true of all the faithful saints who Paul says, “were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what was promised” (Hebrews 11:39, NIV). These stories show us a trust in God’s plan that was bigger than their own reality. Their commitment to God was unwavering, even though the final goal was not in sight.

God’s plan for future generations continues – despite God’s well-intentioned people sometimes unknowingly working against it. As I hold my grandson, I find myself in the category of being a well-intentioned PopPop who perhaps hopes to influence him towards my way of understanding faith. I want all the best things for my grandson – health, happiness, and a faith in Jesus, but need to be reminded that God’s plans are always good, and I need to trust them.

I also am a well-intentioned follower of Jesus who has the best intentions for the church. God has a plan for both my grandson and for the church – and it is a plan that is unimaginable. It is a plan for what the Italian mountain retreat will look when completed and for what the church will look like generations from now.

Perhaps my best gift to my grandson is for me to focus on being a faithful follower of Jesus who prays for him daily, models daily obedience to Christ, and commits to growing closer to Jesus.

That is both investing in the future generations of my family, as well as the future generations of the church.

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (I Thes. 5:18, ESV)

During this 2020 Thanksgiving week, the Apostle Paul challenges us to, “Give thanks in all circumstances!” I confess that I have not always had a very thankful spirit or attitude this year. In fact, with the pandemic, heightened political tensions, and disagreements within the church as to how we can gather safely, my focus has often been far from thanksgiving. Instead, it has been side-tracked to focus on self-preservation, complaining, and trying desperately to hold on to what I once knew as normal.  Balancing church and faith, and life in general, have felt far from normal this year.

In past years, my ability to give thanks in all circumstances seemed to be easier than it is now. Indeed, my Thanksgiving Day celebration was simple. It was a once-a-year acknowledgment of God’s blessings, blessings that I fully expected to receive from God for me and my family for our faithfulness. 

The day of celebration included family as well as special foods, like oyster filling and pumpkin pie, and always started with a time for everyone around the table to share what they were thankful for. It was beautiful, it was simple, and it was predictable. Playing out the script of the day gave me the feeling that I was blessed. And it felt normal. 

But Thanksgiving is not about me feeling blessed. It is about being thankful to God, in all circumstances. In reflection, the normalcy of my Thanksgiving has always been changing. 

My parents and my sister who were always integral parts of the table celebration have gone home to be with the Lord. My siblings now have their own times of celebration with their families. My children have grown up and are not always able to be present at our gathering. Even those who once contributed the oyster filling and the pumpkin pies are no longer able to be with us. The table and the people around it has always been changing, and that is ok. I have realized that my perfect, scripted Thanksgiving has actually never been normal.

Although it has taken me many years to see this clearly, this realization is even more of a reason to give thanks. I now see that the portrait of the perfect Thanksgiving Day that I have painted in my mind is really a work in progress; it is never finished. 

I also see now that God has always been present and working in my life (and in the world around me) in spite of circumstances and changes, and that is something to really be thankful for. Although family and traditions help make Thanksgiving enjoyable, the importance of understanding that we are nothing and have nothing without God is what is central. Whatever the circumstances, God is with us and should be the center of our thanks.

Due to COVID-19, my family will not be together for Thanksgiving this year.  I know that this is true for many people. We call it a “new normal,” but perhaps it is just normal, like each one of the years before this one. What is the same is that we are all called to give thanks to God. 

Perhaps with this attitude of thankfulness, we will also be able to see and appreciate that thanksgiving is not just a yearly occurrence, but an everyday experience.