Ash Wednesday has been a highlight of my year the past two years. I have such fond memories of our first Ash Wednesday services last year. This year exceeded all my expectations. There were more people in attendance than I ever imagined would attend. We had numerous guests and friends from a sister congregation in another part of Los Angeles. You can see a short video reflection on our evening service by visiting our website and watching the featured video on the home page.

One thing I love about Ash Wednesday is the way it causes our congregation to talk together about their spiritual lives in ways that might not happen at other times. As Lent draws closer I find myself a part of dozens of conversations about what people are giving up for Lent and what they’re hoping to take on for Lent. These conversations are usually one part playfulness and three parts serious reflection on the obstacles to growth in our lives. We laugh and joke about what we should give up, but then a serious discussion ensues about what things we could really do without for a period of 46 days in order give us a clearer vision of God and God’s will for our lives.

Whether you’re joining us on this Lenten journey or not, I encourage you to think about your spiritual journey these coming weeks, and consider these words from Hebrews 12:1-2:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

What is the sin that clings so closely to you? What are the things that are weighing you down and keeping you from being the human being God wants you to be? But rather than focusing on that sin and those weights, we are invited to look to Jesus, who is the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. I’m encouraged by that, because my resolve is so thin and fragile. Perhaps yours is too.

Grace and peace,

Ryan

Sometimes I feel like the luckiest person on the planet. I get to spend my days meeting and talking with such an interesting array of people, usually about how God is working in their lives through good times and painful times.

This week I had the privilege to spend an entire day with a remarkable group of religious leaders in Los Angeles. The meeting was organized by a young lady who is currently living and doing research in China, but calls Los Angeles her home. She was profoundly troubled by the kind of rhetoric she witnessed over a year ago during the Proposition 8 campaign in California. (In case you forgot or weren’t aware, Proposition 8 was a California State ballot initiative that removed the right of same-sex couples to marry).

The purpose of this interfaith gathering was to “build respect and trust between religious leaders in Southern California on both sides of Prop 8 in order for them to influence their communities to engage with integrity in difficult conflicts of public life showing respect and good will for trustworthy opponents.”

In our circle of eight there was an Orthodox Rabbi, a Reformed Rabbi, an Eastern Catholic priest, two Mormon leaders, a Metropolitan Community Church pastor, an African Methodist-Episcopal pastor, and a Seventh-day Adventist pastor (yours truly). Four of us voted yes on Prop 8. Four of us voted no. Three of the eight were women. Two of the eight were gay.

It was a remarkable day of intense, sometimes difficult, conversation. I was physically and emotionally exhausted at the end of the day. But I am so grateful to have been a part of it and now have several new friends in the community that I didn’t have before. What’s more, this model of respectful conversion on difficult topics is a model that I think fits very well into the ethos of listening and conversation that already exists here in the Hollywood Adventist Church and would stretch us if we applied it to the difficult decisions that are in our future.

Grace and peace,

Ryan

This past Sabbath our congregation met for our annual meeting and many of you were there. Thank you so much for being a part of this ongoing conversation that is the Hollywood Adventist Church. For the past four and a half years we’ve been actively learning what it means to be “church” in our contemporary culture. Most of the maps we have used to guide us no longer describe the actual terrain in front of us. This has required us to be innovators. But this innovation is not merely confined to new “techniques” for doing what everyone knows we must do, but actual innovation at the level of what it means to be a community of God’s people in Hollywood right now. This has been a tremendous adventure and it has been the greatest joy of my professional life guide and facilitate this journey with each of you.

In the next few weeks the journey continues with a new Missional Action Team, which will again focus on helping our congregation grapple with a a challenge that we’ve all felt—how to develop structures that deepen our discipleship and empower our witness in the world. I am as excited as anyone to see what will come out of this process.

This weekend I have the privilege to share what we have been learning for the past four and a half years with the pastors and church leaders in the Ohio Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Please keep me in your prayers especially as I am teaching on Sunday morning.

My hope and prayer is that this year you will find new ways to be involved in God’s mission in Hollywood and Los Angeles. And may God help us internalize these words of Paul: “Therefore, since it is by God’s mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do not lose heart.”

Grace and peace,

Ryan

This past Sunday, Bill Salvador’s father Ben Salvador (84) passed away suddenly. Mr Salvador was the head elder of the Hollywood Church for more than ten years. Bill Salvador will be sharing today’s Journal.

Although not totally unnexpected, the end came quite rapidly. He had a stroke a year ago that restricted him to his lounge and wheelchair. He had another stroke last Wednesday, and was taken to Arcadia Methodist Hospital, but seemed to be recovering, at least according to my untrained eye.

While driving to the hospital after the work bee at church, for what I thought would be a “routine” visit, I got a call from my brother that my dad had just been transferred to ICU, and that I should come immediately. The rest of the extended family, mostly from Arcadia and Loma Linda, started trickling in over the course of the night.

It seems like “Deja Vu”, since we did this for my mom just a couple years ago. For my mom’s funeral, the church was filled. My parents were both teachers (SDA elementary, high school and college levels, plus Los Angeles Unified School District), and have lots of former students in the area. “Papa” was also head elder of the Hollywood church, so I expect to see quite a few former Hollywood church members. Only a few older, current members are left who were here when my parents were at Hollywood.

I expect a very “typical Filipino-Adventist” funeral service/reception: lot’s of bitter-sweet memories, personal reflections, lots of tears, but also lots of joy, food, laughter and relationship-building/bonding and reaffirmations. It is really more an affirmation of life than a ritual of death.

In times like these, I am reminded again: doctrines do matter. Our SDA beliefs in the State of the Dead, the Resurrection and the Second Coming have actually been internalized, and I am at peace. We DO have this hope…

Bill Salvador

It’s been a challenging week for many people in our community. From where I sit, I have seen so much grief and suffering. All week long painful stories have piled upon painful stories. This along with the very bizarre weather we’ve experienced this week in Southern California has made for an exhausting week.

But alongside all these stories I have been reading another story, found in Luke 4:14-21, which is our text for this Sabbath. This story, which Jesus quotes from the prophet Isaiah (chapter 61), speaking about one who will “bring good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind….” The text from Isaiah 61 includes one more phrase that Jesus leaves out for some reason. It says this person will also “bind up the broken-hearted.”

This the tension that I have lived with this week. On the one hand, living among a community of people, many of whom are experiencing a great deal of pain and loss. On the other hand, living with texts like these that declare, rather unequivocally, that Jesus has announced the commencement of a completely new reality; a reality characterized by healing, freedom, and good news.

During Epiphany we emphasize the revealing of Jesus as the Messiah. This Sabbath we sit before the text as the Spirit speaks a word of freedom and healing to us. If you are in need of God’s healing touch in your life this week I hope you’ll join us.

Grace and Peace,

Ryan

The beginning of a new year brings many new things. One of those that’s just around the corner is a new Bible study.

This coming week we are beginning a new series called “The Biblical Story in 7 Acts.” This study is for anyone who enjoys the Bible and I would welcome each and every one of you (though if you all showed up I would have to seriously change the way I’m approaching this. But it would be a lovely challenge to have). Specifically, however, this series of studies is for those of you who are fairly new to the Bible, or you’ve sort of been dancing around the Bible for a while, but never actually jumped in.

In eight session we will be looking at the entire scope of the Biblical story, from Creation to Consummation and everything in between. This is the 30,000 foot view. When you’re in an airplane looking out the window you can see many features of the landscape you can’t see from the ground. For example, if you’ve ever flown over the Grand Canyon it’s truly remarkable to see the entire grand canyon at once. You can’t do that by standing on the South Rim and looking down. It’s just too big. Likewise, there are things you miss when looking from 30,000 feet that you will notice if you actually hike down into the Grand Canyon.

As in geography and topology, so in Bible study, both perspectives are important. I have noticed, however, that many students of the Bible miss the proverbial forest for the trees. So we’re going to spend a few weeks studying the forest, with occasional forays into the trees.

So come with us—Monday nights at 7:30 pm at the church.

Grace and Peace,

Ryan

This week I’m writing from Red Oak, Iowa. What? You’ve never heard of Red Oak, Iowa? I’m surprised. If you’ve ever mailed in a magazine subscription you probably mailed it to Red Oak. I traveled here this week, with my dad, to attend my grandmother’s funeral, which was on New Year’s Eve. An odd juxtaposition of events, to be sure.

My dad comes from a family of farmers. My uncle Dennis still raises hogs. Uncle Jack leases out his land but is still involved in growing corn and soybeans. My grandfather was a farmer. In fact, my great-grandpa Bylund immigrated to northern Iowa from Sweden and was a homesteader until he retired. The interesting thing is that my mom’s family is from Red Oak as well. I drove by my mom’s childhood home again yesterday. A big beautiful house on the hill. My dad says he married up; not quite sure why those folks on the hill hung around with him. Their family was not as well off and lived in the flats at the bottom of the hill. The Methodist church that my grandmother was a member of is the same church my parents attended when they were kids. The church hosted the reception after the funeral. I’d never been inside this church. Upstairs is a gorgeous sanctuary where my parents were married in 1966.

Why do I say all this? Because while it was definitely odd to spend New Years Eve at a funeral and then listen to a country western cover band play to a crowd of probably 30 people, as the New Year approached, it was a rare privilege to be with aunts, uncles and cousins that I only see every 5–10 years. And more than on previous visits, I felt connected to the story of my dad’s family, as screwed up and dysfunctional as it is. I have so little in common with a hog farmer from Iowa, a poor, jobless mother of four, a corporate attorney living in suburban Delaware or a Lt. Colonel preparing to take a teaching post at West Point. But somehow they are my family.

I also marvel at my family’s ability to stay in this tiny Midwestern farming town for going on four generations. To this very day Red Oak has only 6,000 residents. During the viewing my dad was greeted by a former classmate who is now a physician. He used to run around with my dad when they were in High School in the early 60s, spending time at my grandmother’s house. Later in life he became my grandmother’s doctor. Now he was gray-haired and standing at my grandmother’s funeral. I commented about how remarkable it must be to see the passage of time and share that with his patients over the course of a lifetime. This is a kind of “pitching one’s tent” that is increasingly rare in today’s hyper-mobile society. I barely know these family members because we moved, first to Ohio and then to California. At the beginning of this New Year I sense God calling me to stay put; to resist the urge to move around from place to place and instead to invest my life where I am. I hope this year God will give you opportunities to be where you are. Not living in the past. Not longing for the future. But enjoying today, where your feet meet the ground, with the people you are with. Happy New Year!

Grace and peace

Ryan

This Sabbath is the last of 2009. Where do the years go? As my family and I prepare to celebrate our fifth Christmas in Hollywood we have been remembering God’s blessings in our lives. When I think about those blessings, what I see in my mind’s eye are faces: your face and the dozens of others that have blessed us these years.

Every Christmas we’ve spent in Hollywood has been different. Some have been punctuated by intense and painful personal loss, with others filled by genuine joy. Last Christmas I had the privileged of uniting Angie and Matt in marriage (Happy Anniversary, you two!).

When I think about our two girls, Zoe and Sophie, I’m reminded that they’ve spent more than half of their lives with you. Zoe was only four (4) when we moved here and Sophie had just turned two (2). Now they are becoming young ladies. Nothing makes me happier than to watch them interact with so many of you who they consider big brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, grandmas and grandpas.

2009 has been a challenging year for me. It didn’t have the “Wow” factor that 2008 did, when the church grew so quickly and our Missional Action Teams were cranking out all kinds of new ministries. This year has been a little more “steady as she goes.”
But I think we’ve grown deeper this year. Last January we sat in the chapel together and asked ourselves what we wanted to see in 2009. Overwhelmingly we said we wanted to go deeper in our relationships with God and each other. We certainly have not yet arrived at that place, but we’ve made some significant steps, such as the next Missional Action Team being prepared for the new year.

Our leadership had deepened in a big way. This year we’ve welcomed Nathan French to our team. He has led out in our Peace & Justice ministry in ways that we could not have imagined before he arrived. This coming year is only going to be better, as we develop a non-profit organization to extend our community work and deepen our commitment to justice through our partnerships with LA Voice, Imagine LA and others.

We also started a brand new venture this year called Cinema Divina and so welcomed Julia Alty to our staff. Her imagination, personal magnetism and hard work have already begun to bear fruit in many creative projects that will only grow in 2010. God has brought so many talented and creative people to this place at this time. I’m on the edge of my seat with anticipation about what God will do next.

I also want to thank Cecilia Luck, who has stepped into the very large vacancy left by Lennox and has already proven herself more than capable of administering the church and our relationships with our partners in the community. Scott Arany has assumed the other half of what Lennox was doing and is already making plans to grow our worship and music ministry in directions we’ve only been able to dream about until now. Pastor Wayne Jones continues to serve as a volunteer member of our staff and uses his incredible social work background to serve the members of our church in ways that even make me tired. Finally, our church board faithful keeps us focused on our mission and provides essential accountability. Thank you to all our tireless leaders who make this ministry possible! I can’t imagine doing this without you. I wouldn’t want to.

I hope you’ll pause for an hour or so this coming week and think about this past year and what it’s meant to you. Think about the important people in your life and take a minute to thank them for what they’ve done to make this year special to you. Think about the ways God has grown you in 2009 through the trials and through the good times and give thanks to God!

May you be richly blessed this week wherever you are, and whomever you’re with.

Merry Christmas!

Ryan

The pastor’s journal

Only two more Sabbaths in 2009. That’s remarkable, really. I’m finding it hard to identify the markers that divide one year from the next. That’s actually one of the beautiful things about the Christian seasons. They help us mark time. And not just any time, but sacred time. They help us measure our days by the narrative of God’s life among us. So we recall, last Advent, and last Lent and last Easter, where we were as a congregation.

So I’ve been thinking a lot about where we are this Advent as compared to last. The one thing that seems constant around our church is that very little is constant. Things are always in flux. I’ve heard many of you joke that if you miss one Sabbath the whole church might be different: new people in attendance, new romances formed…you name it.

But beyond many of those changes I feel like 2009 has been a year of maturing for us. We haven’t grown all that much in numbers—maybe 5%. But we have grown immensely in our maturity as a congregation. Our leadership team has grown. We have new ministries that are serving God’s kingdom in Los Angeles. We have a staff of six amazing leaders this year, whereas last Advent we had two. And our growing staff has not made our church top heavy, in my opinion. They have instead broadened the base of the ministry we’re able to perform. For this I am immensely grateful!

In 2009 we spend serious time in reflection and discernment…again. That discernment process has led to some concrete goals for the 2010. Next week in this space I’ll write a bit about my hopes and dreams for 2010. In the meantime, what are you thankful for as we are about to log 2009 in the history books? Where has God been at work in your life this year? How have you grown? What have been your setbacks? Your victories?

Advent Peace,

Ryan

How can we learn to live as new people in the midst of an old world? This is not only our challenge. It is our calling.

You may have missed it, but over the course of this past year, our congregation has come full circle on the discernment process that began four years ago. In January 2009 we conducted another thorough survey of the church membership. Throughout the Spring and Summer several listening groups met to discuss in depth what they were seeing in this snapshot of our church. This Fall the Church Board took all that information—the survey/snapshot and the copious notes that the listening groups—and went away on a day-long retreat. Through prayer, Bible reflection and lots of conversation we began to distill what we were hearing down to one primary challenge.

We asked ourselves, in the development of our congregation’s life, what is the next major missional challenge that we are facing? Put a different way, “If we are to continue to grow into a congregation that bears witness to our friends and neighbors concerning the reality of God’s kingdom, what is the next step along that journey?”

To answer that question we took many steps over the course of a year, in the midst of dozens of other events and activities, to listen to you.

Last night, the board voted on a question that we feel captures what we’ve been hearing from you. This question is loaded, but we think it represents a serious adaptation that is required if our church is to grow misisonally. Here is:

“What kind of relational structures would we need to create in order to foster intentional covenant community that forms us, by the Spirit, in the image of Christ as a communal witness to God’s kingdom in our neighborhood?”

I am not going to attempt to unpack that question right now. I would love for you to live with it for a while. Take it home. Read it over and over. Think about it. What does it mean to you? And if after reading it a few times you’d like to be a part of a very special group of people who will work over the course of several months on understanding this question and innovating a new phase of our congregation’s life, then please contact me at the church office or by email.

2010 is going to be a great year! God is preparing us for some amazing work and I’m honored to be on this journey with you.

Advent Peace,

Ryan