James Derkits

I feel very fortunate that I grew up in a loving family, and I feel grateful to my parents (and four older sisters) for raising me in a stable, nurturing, ordered home. I feel that I was equipped by them to grow into a somewhat healthy adult, and to raise my son Eli in a loving home.  Derkits family, Christmas 2019 I can have memories of camp-outs with my dad, and of going hunting with him in East Texas, where I learned a lot about patience: waiting hours in the cold rain for any deer to emerge from the protective woods. I remember delicious meals my mom prepared, and being sent to bed on time most of the time. Again, those are experiences I draw on to try to be the best parent I can be for my son. It also helps me know how to be a parent for myself.  I remember my parents teaching me about God as my heavenly Father. I know now that though I've moved away from my parents home and stared a life of my own, that my heavenly Father/Mother God is still and will always remain presen...

Originally published in the South Jetty Newspaper For a few years, we held an annual “Copernicus Day” celebration at the Gaff Bar. We met there for a relaxed setting and a neutral site to celebrate the harmony of science and religion. That may sound discordant to some, but I have grown up understanding the two not to be at odds. Instead, they pose different questions, and hold different truths about our reality. When it comes to questions about how things came to be, I turn to science, and do my best to understand the Big Bang, the evolution of life on earth, and if I want to stretch my brain, even a bit of quantum mechanics. The why questions of the heart bring me back to religion. Tending my soul ushers me into the unverifiable, experiential realm of the mystics. Here, I trust that Moses heard God speak from an unconsumed burning bush and that transformative encounter led him to stand up to a world superpower to liberate enslaved people. When it comes to religious experience, the unb...

  Originally Written for our Day School Newsletter I find myself, these days, trying not to get too excited about an end to the COVID-19 atmosphere we have been living with, yet I do hope we see a light ahead! I was interested to learn recently that the root word of quarantine refers to a period of time related to "forty." (Think quarter, quadrant, etc.) So, if you remember Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, Noah 40 days and nights on the ark, and Moses and the Israelites 40 years in the desert. All of those references are about suffering (which means to carry) for the sake of new life and growth. In each case, something good came from the quarantine, and as Christians, we would not have our heritage without them.  Am I trying to make a crummy thing seem not so bad? No way, it has been so challenging. We have all had to reinvent how we live and work and relate. Even my closest companions and I don't always know if it's "ok" to shake hands or hug, rather ...

Originally published in the South Jetty Newspaper With respect to my East Texas sister, I do not believe "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose." I'm a fan of Ms. Joplin's music, and it is a catchy tune, but I do not adhere to the nihilistic attitude expressed there. I believe there is always a lot to lose, because I value life and I value community. We all have something to lose, if we slow down to think about it. Janis Joplin's song occured to me as I watched the news in disbelief on Wednesday. Not only is it hard to write about the chaos that ensued in our capital from a Christian perspective, I think it is important to take time and find clarity before writing about it, at least from a Christian perspective.  I began to ponder what was actually being sought as I watch the chaos of a mob destroying property, and the angry rebellion carried out by my fellow Americans. Does freedom mean, to those who participated in the raid, as well as those w...

For Christmas, one of my sisters got me a pack of "First World Problems" pencils. They decry the "hardships" of our day to day life in the west, particularly in America. Each one is printed with the petty things we tend to whine about when in reality life is relatively luxurious compared to the daily existence of most of humanity.  I remember starting to become aware of my own privilege on a mission trip to Honduras (2002), when I was a youth minister. Most of our time was spent on the edge of town sleeping on a church floor, and then building homes for a new affordable housing development. The memories that come up immediately are of the joy of the locals with whom we worked shoulder to shoulder, and after lunch played soccer. They threw a party for us at the end of the week, and instruments came out as everyone sang and some danced.  I also saw the reality of their relative poverty, and heard from the clergy of the challenges they faced. Lack of medical care, ...

In truth, January 1, 2021 is just another day that we choose to call "New Year's Day." The things happening in the world and in our lives continue, yet as meaning-seeking people, it is reorienting and energizing to collectively agree, "It's a new year!" It inspires us to make resolutions, and mentally assign things in our past to the old year. We enjoy a sense of the openness and newness of a fresh calendar. Who's not ready for that? When I have had a particularly challenging year, I sometimes ritually burn the calendar of the year gone by, sending it up in smoke and ashes. I recommend it!  If it is about newness, and finding meaning in the changing year, how do we find meaning, and even glean deeper understanding from the hard times to carry forward? How can we intentionally and mindfully learn from what we have suffered? Sometimes making lists helps. I'm personally not big on New Year's Resolutions, but I do like to take inventory. You might ma...