Instagram story viewer> @_brianlane_> Posts

Brian Lane

@_brianlane_

641

followers

989

following

Follower of Jesus, husband, pastor, co-owner of cat.

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

The bottom photo is from my sister’s wedding many years ago. The larger one is from our wedding ten years ago today.

For a long time, I held onto that first photo thinking our time together was over. I could never bring myself to get rid of it, and now, as evidenced by the photo behind it, I’m glad I didn’t.

Both sit on my desk as little reminders of the journey of life, grace, and sacrificial love. But mostly, they remind me of how cute you are and how deeply I cherish the life we’ve built together. I’m excited to keep building our life, home, and family together.

Happy 10th anniversary, Katie-bird. I love you the most. by @_brianlane_

48

5

12 days ago

Before we say goodbye to summer, one more look back at Maine!!

Finally checked our New England adventure off the bucket list, and it was every bit as dreamy as we imagined. 🌊🫐🦞 by @_brianlane_

74

3

2 months ago

“What up, B?” “Yo yo.” “Chicoro.” “Mooshi mooshi.” And other complete nonsense.

I have missed those words deeply this last year. They were some of the ridiculous ways my sister would answer the phone, and somehow it is those little things I find myself missing most.

Yesterday marked one year since Jackie died.

I miss her thoughtful faith, her compassionate love for others, her belief in the scientific process, and her hopeful posture toward the human spirit. But most of all, I miss the things that belonged only to us: weird jokes, nonsense words, conversations no one else quite understood, and the way we could make each other laugh and confuse our mother and spouses. I miss the version of myself that existed with my sister.

C.S. Lewis wrote, “In each of my friends, there is something that only some other friend can fully bring out.” There are memories no one else remembers quite the same way. Jokes no one else can finish. A little world existed between you and another person, and when they leave, you discover just how precious it was.

Jackie was my older sister, best friend, encourager, and one of the people most responsible for nurturing my faith. She taught me to love compassionately, follow Jesus thoughtfully, and cultivate a particular kind of ridiculous humor I intend to carry on.

Grief has not diminished our shared faith in the resurrection. It has made me realize how desperately I need it. Nothing else promises me what the Kingdom does: a table together again, filled with shared food and laughter (Luke 13:29).

Scripture calls death the “last enemy” (1 Cor. 15:26). My faith does not ask me to pretend death is beautiful. I can hate death while placing my hope in the One who defeated it.

A year later, I still miss my sister. But I can drink from our sibling coffee cup with appreciation now, cry less in grocery stores, and still believe death is not the end of our shared story.

I believe in resurrection. I believe death does not get the final word. And I believe that one day, by the grace of Jesus, we will open our eyes again and pick up where we left off.

Until then, I miss you Jackie.

Mooshi Mooshi. by @_brianlane_

37

1

2 months ago

Escaping the heat wave, chasing mountain views, and seeing it all through Jackson’s eyes. 👶🏼🌲🇺🇸 taken in Adirondack, New York by @_brianlane_

47

3

3 months ago

The first week of Summer was so sweet. Living a blessed life with family of all kinds. by @_brianlane_

26

0

4 months ago

“By the power of Jerry Lane, I have the Power!”

That’s my Father’s Day variation on the He-Man catchphrase I shouted around the house for most of my childhood. Holding my flashing magic sword aloft, I would declare my power and battle the only other guy in the house, my dad, over and over again.

I was always He-Man.
He was always Skeletor.
He did not complain often.

In our home, Dad was always willing to be the background character, the support role, and the quiet teacher. I remember hearing “What do you think we should do?” far more often than getting a lecture about a mechanical issue, math homework, or an ethical decision. Jerry Lane’s superpower is being a steady platform for others to play the hero.

Grateful for a father who lives Philippians 2:3: “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.”

Happy Father's Day, Dad. Happy Father's Day, to all the men who keep using their strength to lift others up. by @_brianlane_

18

0

4 months ago

End of an era.

Since Jackson's birth, we have been taking frequent walks to Pennington Market, usually planning on one small item we need to justify the trip. He smiles and waves at everyone while we sleepily pass the time. We walk our usual route: avoiding the pile of teen backpacks at the entrance, stopping by the bakery to scan the donuts, and then heading back to the soups to see what's being offered that day, all while Jackson makes friends by smiling at every employee.

We've known many of them for years. Some are part of PQM's commitment to hiring adults with special needs. It's a good example of how small-town stores can serve as shared community spaces.

The church I serve has partnered with PQM for longer than I've been alive. We've used their quiches, donuts, and deli trays for Sundays, meetings, and funerals. They have always impressed. We are sad to see this chapter end and grateful that both of our organizations have been part of the community for so long. Mourning a grocery store closing has reminded me of my age and growing sentimentality. I don't mind that either.

Thank you to the Rothmans for shaping the culture of PQM, and to all the staff whom I hope will continue under the new ownership of McCaffrey's. taken in Pennington Quality Market by @_brianlane_

19

2

4 months ago

Growing up, I heard David’s anointing in 1 Samuel 16 preached as if he were unloved or despised by his father. But rereading, I’m not sure the text actually says that.

The prophet Samuel shows up suddenly and unexpectedly at a time when the region is in chaos. David is far away tending sheep, doing necessary and faithful work for the family. Jesse may not have intentionally excluded him; they just did not think to bring him in until all the obvious options were exhausted because he was far away and his job mattered.

That feels more familiar to me than outright rejection and perhaps more true to biblical theology than Disney step-parents' storytelling. We are often more wounded by the incidental realities of life than by intentional malicious harm.

I am grateful to not have much childhood trauma, and yet I still wrestle with insecurity. I still have moments of deep self-doubt, even though I have been loved well. It’s not intentional, but the slow erosion of a broken world.

Maybe some of our insecurity does not come from being hated or abused, but simply from feeling ordinary, unnoticed, or “not the first choice.” Perhaps some of our self-doubt was unintended and never actually meant for us.

Many people carry deep wounds from intentional hurt, and I do not want to minimize that. But sometimes life circumstances quietly teach us to internalize rejection that was never actually spoken over us. We focus on where we were overlooked instead of where we are already loved and valued.

Whether you buy my interpretation of David’s anointing or not, the Good News of Jesus, a millennium later, reminds us that our value is not determined by whether we were the obvious choice in the room, but by the God who sees us, calls us, and moves toward us.

My point is that we are always more valuable than we have internalized. by @_brianlane_

5

0

5 months ago

Nearly every year, I get to be one of the leaders for our 4th and 5th grade students at Kids Camp. It is one of my favorite things we do even though I need tylenol and a nap by the end.

There is something sacredly hilarious about spending a few nights with kids who are full of questions, energy, vulnerability, laughter, and just the right amount of “little stinker” chaos. As my oldest niece once told me when she was that age, “Uncle Brian is cool because he’s an adult and a kid.” I’ll take it and attempt to still hold that title.

That is also part of why I love Kids Camp so much. It reminds me that faith is supposed to be innocent, fun, and practiced in the presence of children.

Jesus once told his disciples, “Unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 18:3, NLT). These moments gives us the chance to create space for children to encounter the love of Jesus with joy, imagination, and burgeoning frienships. Every year, I think the adults end up being reminded of something we need too. Tylenol and coffee free for all volunteers.

This year, we’d love to invite families in Pennington, Hopewell, and the surrounding area to Candy Land Kids Camp at Pennington AG Church!

Kids Camp is happening June 23–25 from 6:00–8:30 PM for kids entering Pre-K through 5th grade.

Each night will include games, music, snacks, skits, Bible lessons, and lots of candy-themed fun as kids learn that following Jesus is the sweetest journey.

The cost is $15 per child, which helps cover the shirt and snack cost, and registration is open now.

Register Children Here:
https://penningtonag.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3491294

Feel free to share this or tag a family who might be interested! taken in Pennington AG Church by @_brianlane_

12

0

5 months ago

We dedicated Jackson to God within the community of Christ this past Sunday.

I have led dozens of dedications, and I was surprised by the emotions I felt when the roles were reversed. It was not only because Jackson is my son, but because I felt, in a deeply personal way, the beauty of being cared for and embraced by the community of Christ.

I will remember for a long time the leadership and partnership of Pastors Alyssa and Rachel, my biological family, nieces and nephews included, rushing over to embrace us, and our church family extending their hands and proclaiming the shared way of Jesus over us.

Brian Zahnd writes, “If we want faith in Jesus to remain realistically possible in a secular age, one of the most valuable things we can do is bring children to church. We need to raise children in the community that is formed and sustained by the grand narratives of Scripture, a story that culminates in the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

I understand why others do not see the church as a safe place. Too many have experienced the church as a place of harm. I have seen that pain up close, and I have felt and caused some of it myself. On Sunday, I was reminded of what the church is called to be at its best: a community where the story of Jesus is embodied; where children are surrounded by generations of prayer; where all of us are invited to become more like the One who laid down his life for others.

I am grateful for the gift of serving and leading my son. And I am newly aware of the role we all share in carrying forward the stories of love and hope we have received from generations before us, and in passing on the discipline, instruction, and way of Christ to the next generation.

“Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord.”
Ephesians 6:4, NLT taken in Pennington AG Church by @_brianlane_

78

2

6 months ago

50

5

6 months ago

Jesus' longing to gather his people like a mother hen was my teaching focus for the start of Lent, and it appears God continues to remind me of his desire to gather and comfort us. Below are my reflections on my morning scripture mediations for today.

In Deuteronomy 32:11 and Matthew 23:37, God is described with the image of a mother bird.
In Deuteronomy, Moses says God cared for Israel like an eagle hovering over its young, lifting and protecting them on his wings.

In Matthew, Jesus laments that Jerusalem is no longer willing to be gathered that way:
“How often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”

The Bible holds both masculine and feminine imagery for God.He is strong and mighty, but also gentle and tender.

The church father Origen wrote: "The Savior compares himself to a hen gathering her chicks, showing that the love of God is not only kingly and powerful but also motherly and tender.”

And yet the story of Scripture repeats itself.
God gathers.
We wander.
From ancient Israel…
to first-century Jerusalem…
to my own restless heart.

As Augustine said:
“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” taken in Seattle, Washington by @_brianlane_

2

0

7 months ago