I was born in southern Ohio into a loving Christian family. My Uncle Chuck baptized me "Charles Edward Swartz" as an infant. My two older sisters, younger brother and I had a great childhood full of the usual victories and disappointments. I was blessed with parents who were unusually able to express their love. I knew I was loved by mom and dad and by God. That knowledge has served me well my whole life.
In those years, Christ nurtured me through a strong Presbyterian church and Christian friends of diverse denominations. At 13, I “gave my life” to Christ and a short time afterwards was “filled with the Holy Spirit”. These were joyous exclamation marks in a happy childhood.
I went to college to become a doctor. But Christ’s plans were better. Through study in Soviet Moscow, God moved me to consider pastoral ministry. In that hostile atmosphere, God blessed me through His presence. This was found in the company of others and in isolation. I was seized by a passion to connect people with the satisfying company of Christians.
In that trajectory setting time of life, I fell in love with an amazing woman. Surprisingly, she also loved me. Debbie became my wife after college and has continued to be the best part of my life. We have a three year old son named Henry. The day he was born was the happiest day of my life.
Like many east-coast Presbyterians, I went to Princeton Theological Seminary to train to become a pastor. It was such a blast to be able to study, talk, learn all the time about God. I had never known such contentment.
In 1987 I was ordained and worked as a hospital chaplain at the Mayo Clinic hospitals in Minnesota. A small parish in a small nearby town called me to be their solo pastor. Oh my gosh – I was now “the pastor”. What a joy and responsibility! I rarely felt like I was adequate for the job, but the Holy Spirit supplied all that was needed.
After nine years, Overlake Park asked me to join them as pastor. From the first day I began work it has been a happy experience. We have grown together in love and grace. I plan to minister here for as long as the Lord wants me to, which I hope is many years.
My vision is that the church is the place where all who drop in experience God’s grace and abundance, respect and love. And that we who journey together grow as disciples.
If you want to chat with me, I invite you to visit me in the flesh or online. My office is always open, and so is my blog!
Cheerily,
Charlie
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1 comments:
For what it's worth, I'd enjoy hearing some of your thoughts more particularly about theology and culture. You've got interesting things to say along those lines, and I think that this blog would be an interesting way to hear more about them.
On a side note, what other blogs do you read?
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