By this time many of you have already been infected by the enthusiasm buzzing around here about the Visioning Day, September 26. This is the day we kickoff the work of the Pastor Nominating Committee as they begin the search for the next installed pastor.
The theme is Building the Dream. I'm seeing an excitement and energy here at ALPC that is contagious! Here is a copy of the letter we sent out this week from the Dream Team! (That's Bill Hamilton, Scott Hay, Lynn Morway, Arlene Strauch, and Craig Young). Catch the excitement as we build the dream together!
Shalom,
Bill
Dear Members of ALPC,
In the next seven weeks you will be hearing a lot about “Building the Dream,” the theme for our Visioning Day on September 26th. This is the day we joyfully kickoff the vital and important work of the Pastor Nominating Committee who will find the next installed pastor of Avon Lake Presbyterian Church!
What thoughts and images come to mind when you see this theme, “Building the Dream”? For those of you who were here during the campaign to build the sanctuary, you may remember the theme Building the Vision. Regardless of the length of your association with the church, we hope “Building the Dream” will inspire all of us as we come together on September 26th to begin the building by sharing the dreams we have for Avon Lake Presbyterian Church.
Session has invited the Presbytery to lead us in this process – a process which has been successful with three other churches in our Presbytery. Members of the Committee on Ministry will help facilitate our work during this day. This streamlined program will identify our visions and dreams and answer such questions as:
Who are we now? What is God calling us to do and be? Who are our neighbors in this ministry? What strengths or qualities in a pastor best fit our calling?
During this day long event we will gather information to create our Church Information Form (CIF), our church’s “resume” that prospective pastors will use to find out about us in the search process. This form will be available on line and will also be entered into a computerized matching system that will be helpful to our Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) in finding candidates to interview. The day will begin at 8:30 and ends at 3:30; however, there will be breaks throughout the day. Below is a brief schedule of the day:
8:30 – 9:00 Continental breakfast
9:00 – 10:10 Session One – all together
10:30 – 11:30 Worship
11:40 – 12:15 Lunch
12:30 – 2:00 Session Two – small groups
2:30 – 3:30 Session Three – back together again
As you can see September 26th is a very important step in the ongoing journey towards securing our next Pastor. The only way the success of this day can be assured is by your presence! We cannot do this without YOU! Everyone who comes will have the opportunity to help make all of our dreams come true for ALPC.
We are excited about the new thing God is doing in our midst and know that you will want to be actively involved in this next, very important step in securing the future of this wonderful church! Look for the registration sheet in the foyer beginning on Rally Day, September 12 through September 19. We can’t wait to see YOUR name on the list with everyone else! If you have any questions, please feel free to call Bill Lindeman or any one of the team members.
In the Lord’s Service,
The Dream Team,
Bill Hamilton, Scott Hay, Lynn Morway, Arlene Strauch, Craig Young
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Looking for God in the Wilderness
With this posting we begin a new method of communication with members and friends of ALPC. Since this is a blog, equipped with plenty of ways for you to talk back, it is my hope that you will do exactly that. We have much to discuss during this Interim Time as we grow into the future that God is already preparing. And we can do that better and more effectively if we are talking TO each other, as opposed to, say, talking ABOUT each other. So, it is my hope that we can use this forum to discuss various themes and topics important to our lives as we journey together as church and Interim Minister.
This is a journey that began for me on December 10th, last year. And during this time I have frequently used the metaphor of Wilderness in making sense of our time together. "Wilderness" recalls the wanderings of the Hebrews as they left the slavery of Egypt for the hoped-for promise awaiting them in the Land of Canaan--what we now call Israel. For them, wilderness was that in-between time--between slavery and freedom. Wilderness was a hostile environment, without food or water or living accommodations. And this merry tourist group was more than quick to let their tour guide, Moses, know exactly how they felt about the room service!
Wilderness is that inconvenient time we want to get through as quickly as possible. They weren't any different than we are today, wanting to find the quickest routes on our GPS and the fastest download speeds for our internet service. We want to immediately get from where we are to where we're going with the firm belief that "life" in whatever way we define it, will begin when we get "there". We might as well call "there" The Promised Land. But the truth is, "there"--the Promised Land--never really lives up to its hype. Life is in the living, not the destination.
It seems as though this metaphor of Wilderness Wandering is not one that we should (or even can) get through quickly.
There is one other similarity between us and our ancestors: We both have an opportunity to discover that in one of the last places we would ever look--the Wilderness--we find God. The Hebrews found God on Mt. Sinai, right in the middle of the wilderness. Right in the middle, between losing the life they had and not having the life they hope for, they found God. Right in the middle, in a place they never would have found had they not left that former life, they found God. And right in the middle of all the chaos and fear of the wilderness, they received a way to find order and meaning in living together in community--the Ten Commandments.
Perhaps we too must stay in "the wilderness" until we also find God.
We are in the middle of training new church officers right now. Part of their studies includes a thorough understanding of our Book of Confessions, part of the Constitution of our church in the PC(USA). A good friend and colleague sent me this quote the other day:
"God has reached out to those who suffer injustice & defended the excluded, the poor, & the hungry...We are persuaded God is at work here & now when people deal fairly with each other & labor to change customs & structures that enslave and oppress human beings" (from A Declaration of Faith, Presbyterian Church, 1977)
As I read this quote in relationship to wilderness, and in relationship to the healthcare legislation passed this week, I wonder if, in order for each of us to be fit for living in community together, we each need to wander in the wilderness long enough to know what it feels like to suffer injustice, to be excluded, and to be impoverished. When, for instance, have you been enslaved by the customs and structures of others that keep you oppressed and feeling less than human? What have you known in your life of feeling "less than" because you weren't part of the group or class that "had it all" and had no means to get it yourself? On the other hand, what have you known of the times when you go along with the status quo, knowing that your inaction is having that same effect on others? When have you not dealt fairly with others? What effect might that have on the entire community, regardless of whether it is a couple or a world? What has happened in your world this week that brings fresh meaning to the words in this quote?
So, where do you find yourself most often, in the "promised land" or in the "wilderness"? And God? Where might God be?
I look forward to and expect your comments and ideas as we find our way through this Wilderness of interim time together.
Shalom,
Bill
This is a journey that began for me on December 10th, last year. And during this time I have frequently used the metaphor of Wilderness in making sense of our time together. "Wilderness" recalls the wanderings of the Hebrews as they left the slavery of Egypt for the hoped-for promise awaiting them in the Land of Canaan--what we now call Israel. For them, wilderness was that in-between time--between slavery and freedom. Wilderness was a hostile environment, without food or water or living accommodations. And this merry tourist group was more than quick to let their tour guide, Moses, know exactly how they felt about the room service!
Wilderness is that inconvenient time we want to get through as quickly as possible. They weren't any different than we are today, wanting to find the quickest routes on our GPS and the fastest download speeds for our internet service. We want to immediately get from where we are to where we're going with the firm belief that "life" in whatever way we define it, will begin when we get "there". We might as well call "there" The Promised Land. But the truth is, "there"--the Promised Land--never really lives up to its hype. Life is in the living, not the destination.
It seems as though this metaphor of Wilderness Wandering is not one that we should (or even can) get through quickly.
There is one other similarity between us and our ancestors: We both have an opportunity to discover that in one of the last places we would ever look--the Wilderness--we find God. The Hebrews found God on Mt. Sinai, right in the middle of the wilderness. Right in the middle, between losing the life they had and not having the life they hope for, they found God. Right in the middle, in a place they never would have found had they not left that former life, they found God. And right in the middle of all the chaos and fear of the wilderness, they received a way to find order and meaning in living together in community--the Ten Commandments.
Perhaps we too must stay in "the wilderness" until we also find God.
We are in the middle of training new church officers right now. Part of their studies includes a thorough understanding of our Book of Confessions, part of the Constitution of our church in the PC(USA). A good friend and colleague sent me this quote the other day:
"God has reached out to those who suffer injustice & defended the excluded, the poor, & the hungry...We are persuaded God is at work here & now when people deal fairly with each other & labor to change customs & structures that enslave and oppress human beings" (from A Declaration of Faith, Presbyterian Church, 1977)
As I read this quote in relationship to wilderness, and in relationship to the healthcare legislation passed this week, I wonder if, in order for each of us to be fit for living in community together, we each need to wander in the wilderness long enough to know what it feels like to suffer injustice, to be excluded, and to be impoverished. When, for instance, have you been enslaved by the customs and structures of others that keep you oppressed and feeling less than human? What have you known in your life of feeling "less than" because you weren't part of the group or class that "had it all" and had no means to get it yourself? On the other hand, what have you known of the times when you go along with the status quo, knowing that your inaction is having that same effect on others? When have you not dealt fairly with others? What effect might that have on the entire community, regardless of whether it is a couple or a world? What has happened in your world this week that brings fresh meaning to the words in this quote?
So, where do you find yourself most often, in the "promised land" or in the "wilderness"? And God? Where might God be?
I look forward to and expect your comments and ideas as we find our way through this Wilderness of interim time together.
Shalom,
Bill
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
