Rob Hamilton

Last week, Pastor Rob wrote from retreat about one thread Pastor Heather and he kept hearing in our summer survey: a longing not to navigate faith, change, and the challenges of our world alone. That was only one part of what you told us, but it points toward something larger. Across the survey, we heard a congregation asking questions about belonging and difference, care for creation and care for one another, prayer and spiritual life, our United Methodist identity, the changing world around us, and what faithful Christian living looks like in the midst of it all. Underneath many of those questions is one weRead More →

Recently, while providing pastoral care to someone facing an especially difficult season, the person said something I have heard in different forms many times throughout my ministry: “I don’t know how people get through something like this without the Lord, without faith, and without a church family.” I understand the question. When life becomes heavy, like when we are grieving, frightened, exhausted, or facing circumstances we cannot change, we naturally wonder how anyone manages without something larger than themselves to hold onto. But if the question is how we make it through life’s hardest challenges entirely alone, I am not sure that we do. ItRead More →

First, thank you. Thank you to everyone who prayed for our family and wished us well while we were away. We had a wonderful time exploring the Big Island, Maui, and Oʻahu. We experienced breathtaking landscapes, learned about the islands’ rich histories, and encountered people whose generosity and hospitality left a lasting impression on us. I’ll have more to share in the weeks ahead, but one lesson has stayed with me. Wherever we went, people spoke naturally and joyfully about what it means to be Hawaiian. Their identity wasn’t something they held tightly for themselves. They shared it freely—with stories, language, food, customs, music, andRead More →

Graduation season has a way of shining a spotlight on individual achievement. And that’s good for the most part. Afterall, the graduates and scholarship recipients we know have studied hard, shown up faithfully, overcome challenges, made sacrifices, and taken meaningful steps toward the lives they are building. They deserve to be celebrated. But one of the gifts of being the church is that we also know a deeper truth: none of us are self-made. Every one of us becomes who we are through the people who love us, teach us, challenge us, forgive us, encourage us, pray for us, and make room for us whileRead More →

Summer, like most seasons, has a soundtrack. Sometimes it’s obvious and nostalgic: the splash of children at the pool, cicadas and crickets buzzing at dusk, the crack of a baseball bat, or fizz of a pop-top…or the sound of the wind whipping around your ears mingled with the first notes of a favorite song after you’ve rolled down the car windows. It’s the kind of soundtrack that can bring a memory back before we even know what hit us. But sometimes it’s a bit more “everyday,” like the hum of your ceiling fan, the beeping of construction equipment, or the clattering of tools. And, aroundRead More →

Earlier this year, before the current conflict with Iran began, someone from our congregation reached out to me. This person was raised in our church. They are someone we have loved, supported, and prayed for over the years. They are also currently serving in the military, one of the names we lift in prayer week after week. They reached out because they were wrestling with moral and spiritual questions. Questions like: What does God want from me? What does faithfulness look like in military service? What happens if I am asked to take a life, directly or indirectly, in the course of my duties? TheseRead More →