The Hyphen In Between

In memory of Ron Bostian (November 28, 1946 - March 14, 2017)

Today we mourn the death, but more importantly, celebrate the life, of my Dad Ron Bostian. He was 70 years old, stubborn as hell, easy to talk to, and fun loving to the end. It was from him I got my announcer's voice, my cocksure sense of self confidence, my ability to make a joke during any circumstance (no matter how inappropriate), my physical frame, and my stunning good looks. Did I mention he was sarcastic too? I inherited that as well. 

Popcorn

I went to go see Logan 
Tonight
After my dad died
Today
It was a movie he would have enjoyed
It was a perfect movie to celebrate his life
A perfect movie to mourn his death
Alone in the theater
The smell of popcorn
Assaulting my nostrils 
As I walked through the doors
Flashbacks
To childhood matinees
Side by side
The warmth of dad next to me
Buttery fingers
Digging in the popcorn bucket
Together
Or the late night treats
Way past my bedtime
With content rated for eyes older than I 
But he still wanted to take me
Star Wars
Indiana Jones
Terminator
Aliens
We keep saying "I'll be back"
Until that one day we won't
Until that one day it really is
Game over man
Game over. 

First Post of 2017

I'm not much of one for New Year's Resolutions. I figure that if one is serious about changing their lives, they won't wait to start that change at an arbitrary time, such as the beginning of a year. So, what I am writing here is not so much what I will start doing now, as much as activities I have already started doing. 

Thus, in 2017, as in 2016, I resolve to make more time for the things that bring value to my life, and use less time on the things that take value from my life.

Top 10 activities that add value:

• Praying/Meditating
• Discussing
• Lifting
• Reading
• Writing
• Teaching
• Serving
• Encouraging
• Hiking
• Playing

Bottom 10 activities that take value:

• Worrying
• Brooding
• Ranting
• Procrastinating
• Resenting
• Fearing
• Arguing
• Judging
• Complaining
• Stressing

New Year's Resolutions 2015

The ball has dropped. The calendar has flipped. The holiday break is almost over.

And thus, I suppose it is time to do this year's obligatory resolutions (which, in fact, are continuations of things I am already working on).

However, on the supposition that if I make my decisions public, I have a greater chance of actually accomplishing them, here are my resolutions for 2015. I have limited myself to 5 goals, because I tend to accomplish things in sets of 3 or 5. God created us to evolve with five digits, so that is a pretty handy way of keeping track. And so without further ado, my New Years resolutions for 2015:

My Moses Year Begins

Moses wonders what he has gotten himself into, and if there is a return policy on stone tablets.

Today marks my entrance into the "Moses year": 40 years of journeying through the wilderness that is human existence. Although I can quickly count a dozen things I really should be doing instead of this, I think I would be remiss to let this day pass without some written reflection.

The Bostian Bunch 2013

Everybody is happy on Santa's lap. Well, almost everybody.

Greetings from the Texas Hill Country,

Can you believe another year has come and gone?  We surely cannot.  We have now called San Antonio home for nearly four years.  Our children are getting so spoiled by all that this great city has to offer (the mild winters, rivers, parks, hills and culture).  I didn't realize how accustom they had become to the area till the children thought that 45 degrees was too chilly to be outside, at the same time our Dallas friends and family were experiencing "Icemageddon 2013".  This year we have enjoyed the outdoors, especially as Vera has begun to get more mobile and enjoys her backpack carrier.

Sermon Archive, Ministry Portfolio and Resume

If you would like information for publicity or employment for Fr. Nate Bostian, please visit his Resume and Portfolio page found here.

Oh The Amazing Things Photoshop Can Do

This semester, I became an "art project" for the digital media class here at TMI - The Episcopal School of Texas. There were 130 pictures made of me, and we selected 25 to be shown in this slide show. Special thanks to the digital media class and Brian Palandri (their teacher)! Enjoy!!!

Nate raps at Camp 2011

And while I am posting old videos, I might as well add this. In 2011 I did my "Gospel Rap" at Camp Capers in the Diocese of West Texas, and someone video recorded me on an iPhone!

This rap was originally written for a camp I did in 1994 as a sophomore in college. Some of the theology is not exactly what I might write if I wrote it today. I would still be as Jesus-centered, but not quite as penal-substitutionary-ish. Nevertheless, it is seared in my brain after performing it at various times over the last 18 years. Maybe someday I will write a new one that more adequately reflects my theology.

Until then, here it is. Enjoy.

R.I.P. Facebook

On Saturday August 18, 2012 at 12:29:56 AM, I deactivated my Facebook account. Apparently, if my downloaded Facebook archive is correct, I was on Facebook for 5 years, 9 months, and 17 days (since December 1, 2006). In that time, I had around 1,350 "friends" while in Dallas until 2010. When we moved to San Antonio, I deleted about 300 of those friends. Tonight, I ended with 1,235 friends. How many of them do I talk to, or even take time to keep up with? A couple dozen maybe.

Welcoming Vera

Vera Grace was born on August 1st. She is our third child, weighing in at 8lbs 1oz at birth, and 19 inches long. She was also our biggest baby!

Here are some pictures, mainly for family members to download.

For Everything a Season

2010.March.14

Dear Canterbury Community,

My sisters and brothers in the Lord, the book of Ecclesiastes reminds us that "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… a time to plant and a time to harvest… a time to weep and a time to laugh." Over the last 3 1/2 years I have shared many tears, and even more laughter, with you all. You have planted love and joy in my heart that is impossible to put into words, and I hope I have planted Christ in your lives as well. And now the Lord has harvested what you have sown into my life, and has prepared another field for me to work in as the chaplain at The Episcopal School of Texas / Texas Military Institute in San Antonio [EST/TMI website: www.tmitexas.org]. My ministry at Canterbury will end on May 31, 2010, and I will begin at EST/TMI on June 1, 2010.

Thoughts on the Presiding Bishop's Visit

On the weekend of December 12-13th both Canterbury House SMU and Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church (hereafter SMAA) were visited by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Katharine Jefferts Schori (hereafter +KJS) and the longest-ordained bishop in the Anglican Communion, Bill Frey (hereafter +Frey). At SMAA, +KJS and +Frey talked about "Who is Christ for me?" and "Who is Christ for the world?". In this, +Frey represented a voice of "conservative" Anglicanism, particularly with his long standing association with the charismatic renewal movement, and his teaching experience at Trinity School for Ministry (an Evangelical Episcopal Seminary). +KJS, on the other hand, was a voice of "liberal" or "progressive" Anglicanism, with an emphasis on social and ecological justice, which has been one of the hallmarks of her ministry as Presiding Bishop. It was great to see two bishops who represent two different strands in the Anglican tapestry come together to discuss the Person at the Core of Anglicanism: Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Nate's Ordination Nov 21 at 10am

Nate and Kim Bostian cordially invite you

November 21st 2009 at 10:00 am
God willing

The Right Reverend
James Monte Stanton
Bishop of Dallas
will ordain

Nathan Louis Bostian
and
Robert Jemonde Taylor
to the Sacred Order of Priests
In Christ's One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church

On Saturday, the Twenty-First of November
Two Thousand and Nine
Ten o'clock in the Morning
Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church
8011 Douglas Avenue
Dallas, Texas

Your Presence and Prayers are requested.

Clergy: Cassock, Surplice, and White Stoles.

Reception following in Parish Hall
______________________________________________________
Email | Facebook | Map | Mailed Invitation | Directions | Saintmichael.org

Apparently, I am being podcasted

Hey folks, I did not realize this, but Saint Michael and All Angels is podcasting my sermons when I preach there (well, sort of: It does not have an RSS feed).

Anyway, several of you have asked for mp3 versions of my sermons, so I will post them when I remember to do that.

I have a sermons from January to April online right now, and I will post them below.

March 1 8:45 a.m. — The Reverend Nate Bostian
January 25 9 a.m. — The Reverend Nate Bostian
December 28 11 a.m. — The Reverend Nate Bostian

Invitation to Nate's Ordination

God willing

The Right Reverend James Monte Stanton,
Bishop of Dallas

will ordain

Nathan Louis Bostian

to the Sacred Order of Deacons
In Christ's One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church

On Saturday, the Thirteenth of December
Two Thousand and Eight
Ten o'clock in the Morning
The Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew
5100 Ross Avenue
Dallas, Texas

Your Prayers and Presence are Requested

---

Clergy: White Stoles

Reception Following in Parish Hall

---

Get a map to the Cathedral HERE

www.episcopalcathedral.org

Request card invitation HERE

[All Dallas Clergy are already recieving one]

Storm Damage Next Door

This blog is up to help us sort out some storm damage with neighbors. Simply click on an image to enlarge the picture.

Campus Minister Receives Evangelism Award [Sat 19-Apr 11am]

The Late +Donis Patterson, Bishop of Dallas

Our Campus Minister, Nate Bostian, has received the "Bishop Donis Patterson" award for excellence in Evangelistic preaching. Part of his reward for the award is to preach Saturday at 11am at the Stanton School for Ministry, located at St. Matthew's Cathedral near downtown Dallas.

So, to come hear Nate preach at the Eucharist for the Stanton Center, show up at St. Matthew's Cathedral at 11am, Saturday April 19th. Lunch will follow. To find the Cathedral, go here:
http://www.episcopalcathedral.org

When contacted for comment, Nate said "Huh? I won what? You're kidding, right?"

My Belief-O-Matic Results

Well, well, well. Beliefnet now has a QUIZ to determine what kind of religious faith you are. In a handy-dandy 20 questions, you can find the religion you always wanted to be, but didn't know it!

Based on your answers to 20 questions, you can find out which of 27 different religions fits you best. I think you should name yourself based on your top five matches. Apparently, I am a Quake-aventa-prot-edoxo-catholic Christian! Here are my matches:

MY ADDRESS TO DIOCESE CONVENTION 2007

Well, this weekend was the annual convention for the Diocese of Dallas. There was a possibility of things being really contentious (with everything going on in the National Church, and the Anglican Communion). But, I have to hand it to our bishop and our whole Diocese family: We all did a good job of holding it together. I am proud of us.

At the convention I was elected to be one of our representatives to our Province. For those who are Episcopal-challenged, here is an outline of our Church organization, and what a Province is: The basic unit of the Church is the Diocese, which is the entire Church in a geographic region (think of it like this: When Paul writes to "The Church in Rome" or "The Church in Galatia", he is writing to every Christian in that entire area, whether or not they meet in several locations or not. This region is a Diocese).

Within each Diocese are dozens of parishes, or local manifestations of the Church (think of it like this: At the end of Romans when Paul speaks of individual house-churches within the entire Roman Church, this is like a Parish). Now, for the purpose of organizing together, Dioceses are usually grouped in Provinces, which are made up of multiple Dioceses. And provinces make up national churches (like the Church of England, Nigeria, or the United States). Then all of these national Churches make up the whole Anglican Communion. There are some exceptions to this rule (hey, we're Anglican, and there's always exceptions), but this is the general outline.

So, it goes like this from small to big: Parish - DIOCESE - Province - National Church - Worldwide Communion. Make sense?