Rev. Nancy Nichols became Broadway's current pastor in June 2006. Nancy has served several churches in the North Indiana Annual Conference most recently as pastor at St. Paul's UMC in Muncie, Indiana.

Send Nancy e-mail at BCPPastor@sbcglobal.net.

He was a cute little boy with a gap tooth smile. When I asked him what kind of vegetables he liked, he shrugged his shoulders. He was equally noncommittal when I asked if he liked peas. However, when I asked if he wanted to help me pick some peas from the church garden, he shook his head yes. By the time he left, 10 minutes later, he was a veteran pea picker, who had discovered the delights of eating fresh spring peas right off the vine. His mom took some straggly tomato plants that needed a good home, and they reported back later that the tomatoes were thriving and her child is now a quasi vegetable lover. Seeing the peas in the ground, helping to pick them, tasting their freshness, and then nurturing the tomatoes has turned this child, for a season at least, into a gardener and a vegetable liker. This story has been told in many different ways this summer as a variety of children have come to the food pantry and ended up picking tomatoes, beans, and peas from the garden.

Perhaps, like the little boy and pea patch, it just takes new experiences, people who are willing to ask the right questions, and a sense of adventure to make it through! So many people experience new things at Broadway. Those who join together in worship each week find a connection to God through word and sacrament. Those who work on committees together learn to struggle with and support one another as we try to discern God’s will for this place. The staff learns new skills each day – from how to execute a computer program to new ways of working with difficult guests. The guests experience new ways of grace, as they are met with love and acceptance. Community Dinner cooks learn how to translate wonderful family dinners for 8 into Sunday Dinners for 100. And we all learn how to lean on God and each other to navigate our way through this world.

Shalom,
Nancy

Looking Toward the Son

When I have a camera in my hand I slow down. I look through the view finder to see what I can see, I breathe more slowly, I stop, I look, and I even listen to the world around me. It has become a part of my spiritual discipline. I have even taken some of my pictures and written about them in a journal.

This started about 15 years ago when I took a photography class. I have always loved to shoot pictures. I just didn’t know how to do it well. I loved the class and through the years have tried to apply what I learned from our homework assignments. But one task I could not seem to complete - taking a picture with a cross reflection. I set the camera the way I was taught, lined up the shots, pointing toward the sun, and never got the picture I wanted. 15 years. Hundreds of attempts…Countless pictures of unremarkable trees, woods, and poles… I used the technique, but never got things lined up just right. Oh, I took some great pictures in the attempts, but never got the picture I wanted. Finally, this spring, several years and the digital conversion later, I got it! A picture of a cross balanced between 2 trees.

As I looked at the picture, which I entitle Looking Toward the Son, I realized that my search for the elusive cross in the trees is somewhat like my spiritual journey. I practice it. A lot. I read books, learn about the mystics, read the prayers of others, and find beauty when I don’t expect it. I try to practice my faith through faithful living and service. I try to keep God at the center of my life, but sometimes God seems elusive. And then, just for a moment, it all comes together at just the right moment, and I know that I am in the presence of the living God. I savor the moment, take it into my heart, remember what it feels like, and then start the journey anew.

Take joy in your journey of faith. May you never stop seeking.

Shalom,
Nancy

One Sunday afternoon in late winter, the confirmation class had the opportunity to join with the Grace United Methodist Church confirmation class and meet with their Spiritual Life team. As part of this experience, both classes walked an indoor prayer labyrinth, lit prayer candles in the chapel as they prayed specifically for others, and discussed the power of prayer in their lives. When we talked about the experience, several of the youth commented on the power of that experience. They suggested setting up a prayer room at Broadway, where folks could write prayer requests, or spend time in prayer each week. The action of lighting candles or walking the labyrinth appealed to them.

At the Parish Board meeting, when we discussed what we wanted in the church newsletter, there was a request to share why we are praying for the people on our prayer list. While some folks want that information kept private, others are open to sharing. Here is the best reconstruction of why we are praying for these folks. If I have left anyone out, please let me know.

Linda Van Horn who struggles with various health issues.
Matt Talboom’s uncle was a long time guest of Broadway prior to his death, and his sister Carrie Morgan volunteered in our food pantry for several months. Matt has been dealing with cancer reoccurrences.
Sara is Linda Van Horn’s niece and has chronic, life-challenging kidney disease.
Bob Lord is Nancy Nichols’ brother-in-law and has recently moved to the Ohio Veteran’s home in Sandusky because of mid-stage Alzheimers.
Zach and Nick are Mary Ellen Albaugh’s and Martha Barberino’s nephews.
Jim is Jim Hill, a member of Broadway who struggles with heart issues and is often hospitalized.
Connie- help us out with this one please. We are not sure why she is on the list.
Crystal Collier , a member of Broadway who recently had a double lung transplant.
Brandon is Pat Kyle’s nephew, who has struggled with life challenges for several years.
Mary Damian is Conrad’s mother. She too has recently moved to a care facility with Alzheimer’s.
Larry has requested anonymity but has health issues.
Diana Ruscio is a member of Broadway who struggles with health issues.
Joan Cunningham is a member of Broadway who asks for prayers for health and strength.
Linda Myers is a member of Broadway who struggles with health issues.
Dean Hunt and Cheryl Quiogue-Hunt are members of Broadway who have recently moved to Niles, MI. Dean has kidney disease and is retiring this month.
Dave and Barb Koehler are former members of Broadway. Dave has recently been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing treatment.
Lyle West is a member of Broadway who has ongoing health issues.
Bill Constable is a friend of Nancy Nichols who has bile duct cancer.

Shalom,
Nancy

This has been a hard winter on Scrubby, the 14 year old beagle. She has barked less, whined more, and slept so hard that at times she didn’t know when I came home. A few weeks ago, when she refused to climb the stairs to the bedroom, I was sure her time was coming to an end. I prepared myself each day to go home to only one long, sad basset hound, Clifford. I didn’t think Scrubby would live past Easter.

She did!

Not only did she live past Easter, but she has rejuvenated! She hops up and down the stairs, barks her demands loudly, and runs around the back yard. Last week I found her chasing the neighborhood cat up a tree. I swear she was grinning! The rejuvenation won’t last; she is, after all, an old hound dog. But she is taking delight in her life and I am finding joy in her delight.

Strange as it seems, I think Scrubby is a good metaphor for faith. Sometimes our faith is almost asleep. We are unaware of God in our midst, and we just want to get through one more day of living. At other times it is lively and filled with purpose and delight, and God is very real. We find joy in the world around us, and bound through life with energy and zeal.

We need both of these times in our spiritual lives - times of soul searching and times of rejuvenation. I hope that your summer is filled with both.

Shalom,
Nancy

Therefore, surrounded as we are by such a vast cloud of witnesses, let us fling aside every encumbrance and the sin that so readily entangles our feet. And let us run with patient endurance the race that lies before us.
Hebrews 12:1

What a year this has been! On Sunday Night, January 24th, while the rest of Indiana was celebrating the Colt’s playoff victory, I received the call that we have been waiting for since mid 2006; Crystal was on her way to Indianapolis for a double lung transplant

Over the past 31/2 years I have watched Crystal gracefully deal with her Cystic Fibrosis, and especially with the oxygen tank that was her constant companion. Talk about an encumbrance – they very thing that gave her breath could so easily trip her up. It amazes me that I never saw her trip on the tubing that always seemed to be entangling her feet! And now that tubing is gone, and with her strong, new lungs, the oxygen tank is a thing of the past. Now the race that she runs is with new breath and renewed hope.

This is a story of complexities. A person died whose gift of grace brought hope and life to the many individuals who will receive new organs. While we were waiting as Crystal’s old lungs were removed and new lungs were transplanted in, we also heard the chimes that signified a new baby was born somewhere in the hospital. Monday, January 26th, is, in many ways, Crystal's new birthday - a day that gave lungs that breathe deeply, and hope for a new way of living. The Birth, Life, Death, Life, Rebirth - and the grace and breath of God go on.

Crystal’s new race is just beginning, and the community of faith that has been such a part of her life thus far continues to not only keep her in prayer, but to learn from her amazing strength and chutzpah!

Shalom,
Nancy

This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth, and lying in a manger.
Luke 2:12

Advent is a season of preparation, and this year our preparation will be a bit slower than normal! Rather than coming in on the First Sunday of Advent and find everything ready for the season, we are adding things each week until Christmas Eve. The liturgy will also be a bit different, as we focus on scripture driven themes. The first 3 Sundays we will look at Prayer, Memory, and Baptism.

The 4th Sunday will find us focusing on the Candle of Fools! God is foolish-the coming of Jesus was announced by two peasant women, the Savior of the World was born in a barn, and that same world was saved through sacrifice rather than political power! And we are called to be foolish as well-following the ways of Christ rather than of the world, looking for meaning in the spiritual rather than the temporal, and finding meaning in Christmas through love and sacrifice rather than through materialism.

Please come and join us as we take this Advent Journey together.

Shalom,
Nancy

To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven
Ecclesiastes 3:1 Transitions are difficult, and as many of you know, we are undergoing a transition at Broadway. Bob Albaugh, our office administrator and fund raiser for the past 4 years, has left his position with us. Bob’s gifts to us were invaluable. He set up the Mission Partner Program, which has brought in thousands of dollars of missional support in the past 3 years, helped organize the past two Silent Auction and Dinner Celebrations, has tirelessly contacted other churches, the media, and businesses on Broadway’s behalf, and has helped organize the office daytime missions. We will miss his welcoming smile and passion for Broadway’s ministry. God’s Blessings on you Bob, as you move into your future plans.

Staff Parish is searching for a new administrative assistant, and hopes to have that person hired by mid to late September. In the interim, Rene Hampton, a 9 year employee of AIDS Ministries, is helping us out. Thank you, Rene for being with us during this time of change.

Please be patient as we move through this transition.

Shalom,
Nancy

It started with an on-line, facebook discussion of pickles – pickled Brussels sprouts to be specific – and ended with an invitation to dinner on Wednesday evening. The time was set, and I began thinking through the menu, when the lawn could be mowed, and just how many rooms in the house I would need to clean. – OK, she wouldn’t see the upstairs, so the downstairs and the bathroom would be fine. The heavy rain took care of mowing the lawn, and I had enough time to start in on the cleaning. Then, another friend called. She was going to be in town on Wednesday. Did I want to have dinner? I invited her to join us for dinner, and ultimately to spend the night rather than stay in a hotel. Now I had to clean the upstairs – de-scale the bathtub, move clothes designated for the consignment shop from one bedroom to another, vacuum the dog hair off the stairs, and, because it is still really wet outside, make sure the dining table is cleared off for dinner.

As I cleaned the kitchen at 7:00 this morning, I wondered: do I spend this much time getting ready for Sunday morning worship? Now, don’t get me wrong, I spend lots of time getting ready for Sunday worship – choosing which of the lectionary texts to preach on, selecting good hymns (ok, I know the jury is out on that one sometimes), finding or writing the right liturgy, even choosing which stole I will wear – but do I spend enough time preparing ME for Sunday worship.

As I read about worship practices, planning, etc., it seems like all too often it becomes about creating an entertaining worship service that will keep a technologically based culture engaged. While it is true that worship needs to be relevant, it is not entertainment; worship is an active engagement by the community of faith in celebrating God, sharing in prayer and communion, and being together as individuals and the body of faith.

It seems like in our recent survey of the congregation concerning our worship practice, we may have missed some major points… what do you bring with you to worship to enhance that time? How do you prepare yourself to meet God at Word and Table? What do you need to do to clean up in your spirit so that worship is… well, worship?

After my cleaning frenzy, both accomplished and planned, I have to ask myself the question. ‘Nancy, do you prepare to invite God into your worship as fervently as you prepare to invite guests into your home?’ I hope so.

Shalom,
Nancy

My uncle died 3 years ago this summer. Two of my sisters and I have not been to his grave, seen our cousins, or visited the family farm since he died. Because I could not attend his funeral, in my mind at least, Uncle John is still there, sitting in his chair, smiling, and with all the love he can muster, calling each of us “honey.”

By the time you read this that will change. My cousin’s daughter is getting married this Saturday. My sisters and I will be there. Once again we will go to the farm that has been the site of generations of family gatherings. We will drink water (I hope) at the old pump used by my mother and grandmother. And we will be surrounded by the memories of grandparents, aunts, uncles, great aunts and uncles, and most of all, my mother, who grew up there. We will tell the stories of folks who died long before we were born, but whose lives have helped shape us. We will be surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who lived faithfully and well. I know, in part, who I am because of who these witnesses were. But, I know too, that who I am cannot just be about that past, it must be about moving into the future.

As I prepare for the newest Broadway confirmation class, I will be asking you to help tell the stories of Broadway to those preparing to become our newest members. Help them know the great cloud of witnesses who have shaped this congregation. Tell them the stories of Broadway, and support them as they prepare to lead us into the future of who we are as a church.

Praise be to God for the great cloud of witnesses from the past, present, and future.

Shalom,
Nancy

Every year in the Angola Methodist Church children were give Bibles. They were black, had pretty gold embossing on the cover, and inside were signed by the current pastor. I received my when I was entering the 3rd grade. I remember sitting in the back seat of the car after church reading the creation stories. I remember starting with the first chapter of Matthew and making my way through the “begats.” I read Mother’s favorite book – Ecclesiastes, and her favorite Psalm – 131. I fell in love with the scripture. I kept that Bible with me for many years. Then, when I went to college and needed a study Bible, I laid aside my old Bible. Several times throughout the years I wondered where it was. When we moved from my childhood home I looked for it. When we moved Daddy into a nursing home I looked for it. I finally gave up.

Several years ago I was invited to preach at the Angola United Methodist Church for the first time since seminary. My sister was the reader that day. I wondered as she read, because the scripture sounded a bit off… After reading, she turned to me as said, “I have something for you.” And there in her hands was the Bible she had read from, The Revised Standard Version, and written on the front page was my name. It was my Bible! Margy was on the Education Committee, and when they were cleaning up Sunday School rooms they found old Bibles. Mine was one of them. That Bible now sits on my desk, and every so often I look at it, read the inscription from Rev. Ben Antle, and see my father’s strong handwriting on the family genealogy page.

My love of scripture started for real the day the church handed me the words of God. That gift of scripture, what John Wesley called a means of grace, has carried my through a life time.

Last year Broadway reinstituted giving Bible’s to the church children. On June 7th we will give our current 4th graders Bibles during the worship service. As part of the sermon time, we are inviting church members to share stories about what the Bible means to them. I hope you will all participate in this special time of worship.

Shalom,
Nancy

As a friend and I went for a walk last evening we saw flowers popping up all over the place. My friend asked me what was what. Tulips and daffodils were easily identifiable, creeping phlox was an almost ‘for sure answer’, and periwinkle was an educated guess. Later in the walk we saw flowering bushes and shrubs and tried to identify them. Then we saw such a little cardinal that we wondered for a minute if it was a really red finch. Then we started trying to identify weeds. At that point I was way out of my knowledge base – the only thing I know about weeds is the names my grandfather used to give them and the stories he would tell about the Jim(son)weed family and their cousins the Ragweeds.

As I think about that walk I wonder why we need to categorize everything – okay, I know we need some sort of classification to help us study our world or to make meaningful policy decisions based on census records – but, science method aside, why do we need to determine if something beautiful is a flower or a weed or if a flowering bush is really a tree, or if a small, delightful bird is a red finch or a common house sparrow? Why not just enjoy the beauty as a gift from God?

The implication of such cataloging means that we also organize people according to category – fully employed, laid off, ex-con, gay, straight, single mother, working stiff, black, white, male, female, Christian, non-Christian, housed, homeless, innocent, guilty…and then, humans that we are, it becomes easier to assign characteristics and value to each category.

In the book of Romans, Paul reminds us that there is no partiality with God. We are all beloved children of the creator, and no human classification can change that.

I wonder if we would walk through our neighborhoods and down the streets of our city and look for the beauty of everyone we see rather than trying to identify how we could classify them, how that might change our world.

Shalom,
Nancy

Easter was always special in our home, but one year really stands out. I was about 10 or 11. The “new” 1966 Methodist Hymnal sat on the piano all week, opened to #444 – Up From the Grave He Arose. Whenever one of us would walk by the piano we would play the chorus – “Up from the grave he arose” and someone else, deep in the bowels of the house, would respond – “He Arose.” We sang lustily, loudly, and with great humor. It was not pretty. Mother was in the hospital and so things were out of kilter. On Easter morning everyone was running late. My oldest sister and her husband squabbled all morning. By the time we finally arrived at church, they weren’t speaking to each other, we were late, and the ONLY place to sit was on the very front row. We trooped down the aisle, with my brother-in-law at one end, my sister on the other, and another sister and me in between. The tension was palatable, and it didn’t get any better as the service progressed. Then, the organ thundered the introduction to hymn #444. Within seconds our shoulders shook and tears streamed down our faces as we tried to contain our laughter. My father glared at us from the choir loft, the sister singing with him tried to pretend she had no idea who we were, and the minister just shook his head at us. Later he reported the incident to my mother, saying “Marian, I don’t know what got into your family this morning…” Looking back over the years, I think I know. In the words of the hymn, the silliness of our response, and the schmaltzy joy of the music, we found a great truth. When the world is out of kilter, when nothing is going right, when fear and frustration take hold, we can find strength, joy, and new life in God’s love for us. The resurrection is there for us - always.

Shalom,
Nancy

Someone asked me not too long ago what Lent was all about. The best description I have found is on the UMC worship page. Lent is about "roughing it," about letting go of what's distracting us and getting back to basics, individually and corporately… Lent is not primarily about the suffering of Jesus on the cross. Lent is primarily about identifying with and accompanying those who are being driven by the Spirit to make the wilderness journey -- toward baptism, toward reconciliation, or toward vocation. So I ask you, how are you keeping Lent? How are you getting back to the basics? What disciplines have you added and what distractions are you giving up as you prepare for Easter? Here are a few suggestions that might help you on this Lenten journey.

Join us for evening vespers each Wednesday during Lent. They are held at 6:30.

Read the Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings to be posted at www.Broadwayumc.blogspot.com and made available in the Narthex. The Thursday – Saturday readings help prepare for Sunday’s worship. The Monday – Wednesday readings help reflect on Sunday’s worship.

Participate in the Lenten Coins for Camp project sponsored by the Education Committee. Give up something during Lent that will equal a total of $10.00 – a quarter a day. Donate those quarters to the church to help defray the costs of church camp for some of our youth.

Join us for the Lenten Progressive Dinner that will be held on March 21st. You may sign up on Sunday’s.

Attend worship each Sunday during Lent as well as the Holy Week Services.

Whatever you choose to do, I hope and pray that this is a meaningful and holy Lent for each one of us.

Shalom,
Nancy

Last week as I watched the Inaugural Festivities, I thought back to the paper dolls I had as a child that were fashioned to look like Caroline Kennedy. The dresses that came with them were modeled after the Inaugural Ball gowns worn by the First Ladies from Martha Washington to Jacqueline Kennedy. I loved them. When we went to the Smithsonian Museum when I was 8, all I wanted to see was the First Ladies Exhibit to see those dresses in real person. They were beautiful but untouchable, and I think, somewhat disappointing because of that. What I loved in the paper dolls – the connection with famous women of history (forget for a moment that they were being celebrated because of who they were married to, what they wore, and whose historical value-at that time anyway-was based on his accomplishments not their own), the pretty dresses, and a connection to a little girl my own age who lived in the White House, was sadly missing in the museum display. The real dresses, protected behind shiny glass and modeled by fake looking mannequins, were almost illusions that had nothing to do with the flesh and blood women who wore them. Being better versed in history as an adult than I was as a child, I shudder to think what Abigail Adams or Eleanor Roosevelt would have thought about being valued only for the clothes they wore and their marital status!

In his Inaugural Address President Obama quoted 1 Cor. 13 and reminded us it is time to set aside childish things. He is right. It is time, as people of faith and as citizens, to set aside illusions that no longer tell the truth. We have people in this country; for that matter, we have people in this church, who although they work hard, live at or below the poverty level. I sit in our county’s courtroom, and hear a judge repeatedly tell the defendants in his courtroom to “Just go out and get a job.” I wonder how many times that judge has stood in the hallway by the Broadway food pantry and watched people who have lost their jobs come for food because they cannot find work. I believe he is functioning under the illusion that good jobs are easy to come by! Homeless people are not invisible, former prisoners are not unredeemable, and undocumented workers contribute to the economic stability of our country. We have illusions to address. May God grant us the voice to do it.

Shalom,
Nancy

Click Here to read Nancy's Noodles from 2008.

Click Here to read Nancy's Noodles from 2007.

Click Here to read Nancy's Noodles from 2006.

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