Timeline Activity

      This past week in our class we worked on an activity that really allowed us to look back at our lives and put to paper major events that happened to us throughout our lifetime. We were asked to make two separate sides on the timeline. One would have the major events that happened in our life outside of church related things and spiritual events. The other would have those events that happened in our Christian walk. After we were done we got together with other members of our class and shared some of those experiences with each other. This was such a great activity. It reminded me of so many good things that have happened in my life and how far in my journey with Christ that I have come.

     Some of the items that I recalled on my "secular" timeline included being able to skip a grade before starting school, spending time at an after school program for many years, learning guitar, playing baseball for 12 years, getting into an exam high school, being denied from the college I wanted to go to, becoming an assistant bank manager, my brother dying, moving to Pennsylvania after living in Boston my whole life and getting married this past year. All of these were highlights that I could vividly remember throughout my 28 years of life and have certainly helped shape a part of who I am.

     Then when I was making my spiritual side of the timeline I included my mom accepting Christ when I was about 3 years old, going to Sunday school throughout my lifetime, being baptized in the Holy Spirit at 11 years old then being baptized in water, preaching my first sermon at 12, leading worship, singing, traveling to Haiti on a missions trip, playing on a traveling worship team, attending bible college, and being a youth worker since I was 21.

     All of these things combined have been so important in my growth as a Christian and a person. Then being able to hear the journeys that my classmates have gone through to get where they are. This activity really was a blessing to be able to look at bad and good times and see how God has carried all of us through all of those situations. I am definitely going to recommend this activity to other groups and use it myself in the future. 

Dave Peterson

      Pastor Dave grew up in a Christian family and came to Christ early on in his life. When he was 3 years out of his masters program at Lutheran theological seminary in Gettysburg, PA and he was really frustrated after breaking up with his fiancé, being asked out of the seminary and lost his credentials with the Lutheran church. Around this time his 19 year old nephew was also killed by a drunk driver. This led to a spiral in his life that led him to brokenness. Throughout this process he came to realize that some of it was his own fault and some of it was no ones fault. This led to him finding himself sleeping in car. He was so angry during that experience and would be driving around screaming at God. Eventually he was given an opportunity to being a chaplain and writing a curriculum for a nursing home ministry.

      He was then given the chance to create a whole pastoral care department for the nursing home. He went around doing research and eventually was offered a job. By the end of his time doing this job he was overseeing over 40 locations with chaplains. The name of the ministry was Shepherds Path ministry services. Around 1999 the government changed the way reimbursement was given and the nursing homes couldn’t reimburse the pastors working at the locations.

      Then he went through another period of brokenness. A Lutheran facility called Perry Village gave him a call and asked him to join them. They told him that the bishop that he had been on the outs with was ok with this and the truth was that after three months this was not true at all. He worked there for about three years. He was given an opportunity to go work at a hospice. He went and spoke with the director about the job. That was over nine years ago and he still works for them until this day.

      He told us that he finds it very meaningful to find the Lord among the hurting and broken. He would like for all of us to experience this at some point in our life.

      He is now pastoring two churches every Sunday. He told them that in order for him to take these positions was that hospice was going to come with him.

      Pastor Dave said something incredible about us being incarnational in our ministry to others. To go out and find God in places where no one else wants to go. This was a real important point that he made for us during his time spent in class. We can not give up on people because of the way they look. We need to minister to people right where they are.