Ministry of Presence

I found out yesterday that one of my dear friends from Florida has passed suddenly.

I was skeptical of Allan at first, as I am of most all people in leadership roles in organized religion. I met him as Camp Chaplain for one of the Summer Camps I was working, directing, team building, I don't recall my specific function to be honest. When I asked, "what exactly DOES a Camp Chaplain do, precisely?" As I had never heard the term before...his response was simple: We are here to meet the spiritual needs of the campers and the staff. But mostly, we are here to provide a Ministry of Presence.

Wait. What? So your job is to just be there? Isn't that everyone's job at Camp or in any job?

Yes.

And no.

Yes, his Calling was to be Present. Not just there. And Allan did a wonderful job of being present. When he asked, "how are you?" he truly was asking to listen, not just to hear, "I'm good, thanks and you?" He wanted to be present. My gosh it took me years to recognize his Ministry WAS of presence in his daily life.

He was present for midnight sick camper calls, for midday iced coffee requirements (or red bull as was often my case back then. Diet though, save those sugar calories. He always knew.) When I broke up from any number of relationships, he was there. We had become friends by this time and he'd drive up from Sarasota. Sometimes we'd just have dinner and talk. Sometimes we'd go to the clubs (yep). Sometimes we were just silent, in presence. But his Ministry was on-going.

I remember one time I was in Orlando for fun and he for work. We were looking for a specific bar/club/whatever and honey we drove all over Orlando looking for it and could not find it. Traffic was horrendous. I think we ended up doing nothing but driving for hours on end. And had a blast. He was present. And unassuming. And withheld judgement. He walked soft, but carried a mighty stick. He made people's lives easier. He brought joy. He brought a deep devotion to his family and friends.

He brought Presence to life in ways that I would only understand years later.

My invitation and purpose of this blog isn't just to memorialize him but to invite you to be present today. Fully present. When you ask someone "how are you?" Truly stop and listen and hear. When someone is sick, give them a little extra care and nurturing. When the world is speeding up, slow down.

Today, be like the best Camp Chaplain I have ever worked with...Be a Minister of Presence.

While your presence will be missed, your lessons will live on.