Bull Moose

As many of you know, this last year and a half I have served as the intern for the Children's Ministry at a small Presbyterian Church here in Chicago.  It has been a humbling and uplifting experience.  I was able to both teach and learn during my time there.

My last Sunday was June 30.  Each week, the children are dismissed from the service right before the sermon to their time of worship.  I wasn’t teaching, however I had planned to assist in the classroom in order to spend time with the children on my last Sunday with the church..


The plan was to have this week be a relaxed "party" to celebrate the start of the school year.  As I headed from the sanctuary to the classroom, I was told by the CM Director that I had to wait before I went upstairs.

The start of the school year party had now become a "Jesse's last day party".  While I waited downstairs the kids decorated the room complete with my own special chair (a folding chair covered in crate paper), my own special lapel-pin (more crate paper) and a "red carpet" (red crate paper taped to the floor).  The brightly colored paper was accompanied by balloons and snacks.  We simply hung out and played a few games.

I received cards and pictures from the children (and parents) as well as a t-shirt signed by all the children.  But the best gift was a set of three ornaments: a bull moose, a calf moose, and a dead moose.

For those of you reading who have not worked in a camp environment allow me to explain.  No, there is too much, let me sum up.  There is a camp song about a Moose.  Actually, there are several camp songs about Moose.  This one involves a dead moose.

Okay this isn't helping.  Check out the song here  (If anyone has a clip of the song being sung at Alliance, that would be awesome)  So now that we all know the song, lets get back to the story.

On my very first day as an intern at CCP I was asked to create a “gathering time” to encourage kids (and parents) to arrive on time.  It didn’t work.  The experiment ended roughly two months in.  However I was able to bond with the three children who did attend.

One of the activities I tried was to introduce camp songs, specifically "Bull Moose".  I quickly learned why camp songs are camp songs.  It has something to do with sending children home with the tunes stuck in their heads.  For the next year and a half, each time I saw any of these three children who had learned the song, they asked me to sing it for them.  Each time I refused to sing the song again. (Claiming it was a special song for special occasions.)

It was the family of these children that gave me the ornaments.  Softened by the gift, I relented and sung the song one last time.  I lead the children in “Bull Moose” and as we finished, we were told that service was over, and it was time to dismiss the kids.

The first thing I did at CCP was sing “Bull Moose.  The last thing I did at CCP was sing that song.  I couldn’t have written a better capstone to my time of service.

--Serving Him alongside all of you, just from further away
--Jesse Letourneau

Tune in next time for "My week with JR" or "up past 1am all week"

Previously on...

So its been a while since I have blogged.  There are many stories as to why, but for now they will have to wait.  I learned long ago (in a math class) that trying to play catch up only you leaves you constantly behind and with a C in the class.  Hopefully, we will find time to fill in the gaps as we go along.

Last time I posted I mentioned that I was looking at doing CPE this summer (basically an internship as a hospital chaplain).  That didn't happen.  The short version is that I turned my application in too late to be placed this year.  The long version is one of those stories we need to skip for now.

Not doing CPE this summer means that two other things happened instead.  The first is that I was able to finish out my internship at CCP.  The second is that I was able to take a six week intensive course in Biblical Hebrew.  I am taking Hebrew as I pursue a Masters of Divinity.

Those of you close to the world of seminary, may be asking, "What happened to Children's Ministry?'  While the rest of you are asking, "What is a Masters of  Divinity?"

A Master of Divinity (MDiv) is the four degree (at least that is how long it will take me) that is the most common degree in seminary.  Statistically that may no longer be true, but the perception of most churches is  that an MDiv is the "real" degree, while the others are specializations for "lesser positions."  I know that I am over simplifying the reality, but not by much.

I am pursuing an MDiv degree because it better communicates to churches the roles and responsibilities that I am seeking.  Even when Children's Ministry was my primary focus, I never thought of myself as a Director or Coordinator but as Pastor of Children and/or Families.  My time here at seminary has shown me that the MDiv will afford me further training and experiences that will better equip me to serve in a pastoral role.

I haven't left my passion for Children's Ministry behind.

However, I have found a growing passion for "Christian Formation"  as a whole.  Christian Formation is the encompassing title for the programs and discipleship of all the congregants of a church.  My time in seminary has shown me that good Children's Ministry is closely tied to "what the adults are doing" as well as the fact that "adult" formation can benefit from the attitudes and structures of a good Children's program.  I am now seeking a role as either a Children's Pastor and/or the role of Pastor of Christian Formation.  I have found that I love to teach.  It doesn't matter what subject or what age.  I love making things understandable to others.  More than that I love to see people live out what they are learning.

When you combine this love of teaching with the the joy of watching God change lives (and being called to be a part of that process) you have the calling placed upon my life.  I believe the MDiv is the degree that will best help me live out my calling.  I am excited to see how this becomes reality in the future, as well as how God will use me these next two years in Chicago.

I invite you to share this journey of discovery with me.  Next week I will tell you a story that illustrates one way God has been using me this far.


--Serving Him alongside all of you, just from further away
--Jesse Letourneau

Tune in next week for "Bull Moose-Dead Moose" or "Bullwinkle forgets to eat his supper"