October 17, 2021
What a day! Worship, the beginning of a Book Study led by Intern Sara, and a new Faithful Innovations training time for four congregations. Faithful Innovations is a process of asking questions of others and listening to their answers, then doing experiments, and finally reflecting on what we learn through them. The idea is to more deeply discover what God is up to in our world and where God is inviting us to come alongside in ministry.
One of the pieces of the learning today was some practice in asking questions and listening to answers. It included sharing with a partner a time when we felt closest to God or most spiritual. We were invited to talk about several questions: what was happening; how was the church a support during the time; what do you think God was teaching you in the spiritual moment? The last was the question that really stuck with me.
The event was easy to identify - when my grandma suddenly died and I was devastated with grief. The church showed the most support when my pastor drove an hour to attend the graveside service. But what surprised me was that I said I thought God was trying to teach me to trust the church and be open to the possibility it was not just a place to go to be made to feel guilty or forgiven. What an interesting thought - one I had never considered before. God is so good to help me see some of the good that came from that horrible event - even decades later!
Blessings. And prayers.
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