Why did Pastor Vicki Waddington show up for worship in her pajamas? Well, the Haiti earthquake happened, and Waddington, the new preacher at the Richey and Lonsdale United Methodist Churches, decided it was time to help – but her congregations beat her to the punch.

What a way to break the ice as the new pastor! Her friends on Facebook, mostly schoolmates from seminary, dared her to wear her pjs to church.  “I told them not unless I could raise a bunch of money for Haiti relief - and we did it,” Pastor Vicki said. The new minister wore her “anonymously donated” pink Eeyore flannel pjs to both worship services in Richey and Sidney Feb. 28 when the donations continued to soar in.

Richey offered to make a donation to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) the very first Sunday after the quake happened. “I do their service at 8:30 a.m.,” Pastor Vicki said.  When she got to the Sidney Methodist church that same Sunday, someone had already printed out slips of paper to hand out that had the Advance number (the designated fund for Haiti Relief) for UMCOR.  The local Methodist churches started collecting donations that morning and have continued to get contributions almost weekly. “I did mention the earthquake in my sermon that morning, but it didn’t take any pushing at all for me to get both churches involved,” she said.

The United Methodist denomination has gathered supplies, compiled health kits, taken monetary donations, and continues to pray for the victims of Haiti, as well as other natural world disasters. The church has raised over $12 million in donations for a five-year recovery program. No matter how much the congregation raises, there will always be another natural disaster, and it’s just a breath away, Pastor Vicki said. “But, our God is bigger than that!”

Pajama Sunday at both churches has come and gone, but not without memories and thoughts to tuck away – but really, it’s tough to listen to a minister that wears her pjs to lead the worship service, huh? Not so when Pastor Vicki’s children’s message last Sunday was titled, “What does a minister look like?”

Well, most ministers, preachers, rabbis, priests, etc., wear a suit, tie, dress pants, spiffy spit-shined shoes, or a dress for some, along with a robe and stole. Pastor Vicki was all adorned with her stole and robe at the start of the service but then started taking it off, saying to the children, “If I take my stole and robe off, will I still look like a minister?” She shed her shoes and slipped on Eeyore slippers, and asked the same question again until all that Pastor Vicki had own was her Eeyore flannel pajamas. Does she look like a minister? The children pondered that one for a while, until the pastor continued with the message.

She definitely shed a different light on what a minister could and did look like. “It doesn’t matter what I wear, if I’m in my beautiful robe, or if I’m wearing my pajamas,” she said. A minister tells the good news about Jesus, and tells everybody that God loves one and all. “I have told people about God’s love wearing my motorcycle leathers, or on another day, my sweats. You have never seen anything like the look on a child’s face when their minister takes off her robe and puts on a fringed leather jacket, riding boots and a bandana on her head!  And, am I still a minister? You bet I am! What matters is that we can all tell everybody about God’s good news.”

The question of which church, Richey or Sidney, did better at wearing pjs Sunday?

“Richey chose to ‘let’ me be the only one wearing my pajamas,” Pastor Vicki said.  “Sidney’s congregation participated in wearing pjs pretty enthusiastically. I was especially pleased that the youth wore their pjs, as Emily Schaff was my worship leader, and it was really fun to have us both in our pajamas at the platform.”

A few interesting reasons were offered for not wearing pajamas to worship that morning, but Pastor Vicki felt her congregations enjoyed the “different” experience of informality in church, and said it was fun to feel the relaxed atmosphere of worship. Yet, she continues, “It is good to know that we were absolutely serious about giving glory to God and taking care of our neighbors, as Jesus charged us to do.”

The United Methodists are still working on the health kits and will continue to do so.  If you want information on them, give Pastor Vicki a call at 433-3151 or 433-3110. “With the earthquake in Chile now, I’m sure the need will be even more critical,” she said.

Pastor Vicki Waddington shows it doesn’t matter what is under the robe and stole, only what is within the heart.

homespun@sidneyherald.com