Ordination

Several really important things happened during the Arkansas UMC Annual Conference this year. The most important, from my perspective, was what happened on Monday night when the baseball Hogs beat Baylor to go to the College World Series! Calling the Hogs in the hotel bar after Jake Wise became our savior was the most moving worship experience for me during conference. 


The second most moving worship experience for me was getting ordained. This confuses lots of people since I have been a pastor for a while now. Well, in the UMC, to be fully ordained is a long process that is somewhat similar to the way people train to be doctors. They go to medical school and then have a period of residency, and in a similar way, to be ordained you have to go to theology school and then take a few years to be a pastor and show the denominational leaders that you can take what you have learned and put it into practice. I did that, so here I am. 


Here are some pics of the event:

This is when the magic happened.

This is when I got to be the "mantle boy" and represent the new class.

This is when I got to give the Benediction.
It was everyone's favorite part, because it signaled the end of the very long worship service.  

This is just a couple guys hanging out in black robes.

These are the three most brilliant and beautiful girls ever.

The Bishop left his shepherd's staff unattended for a few moments, so I tried it on for size. 

While I got several great ordination gifts, Andrea's  gift is far and away my favorite.