July 2010
Dear Friends,
I am a selfish vacationer. I like to lay on the beach all day with a book and take occasional breaks to wade in the water or nap. When I go to the beach, I don’t want to sightsee or water ski or go to nightclubs… I want to lay like broccoli during the day, and spend the evenings playing card games with my family. I want to be a noodle.
I recently became painfully aware that my days of selfish vacationing are over. My book is going to be replaced with a shovel and pail, my naps will be replaced with endless games of peek-a-boo and my evenings playing games will be replaced by cuddles on the couch. In short, my vacation will look a lot like my normal home life… except with the sound of the ocean in the background.
It’s easy to get disappointed when our plans get changed… when what we want to happen has to give way to what actually happens. It’s easy to get caught up in doing things the way we’ve always done them because it’s comforting and reassuring and peaceful. It’s easy to get caught up—but then we miss the new thing that God is doing… the new energy and momentum that is waiting to breakthrough, should we choose to engage with it.
Will I miss my old vacation ways? Absolutely—but what it has been replaced with exceeds all notions I had of happiness. Will I return from my vacation more tired than when I left? Most certainly… but it will be that blissful tired that you get whenever you feel accomplished and fulfilled.
Mt. Zion is doing great things and is on the cusp of realizing even more “new things” that God is doing. Over the last year we have seen so many exciting things happen (Chili Cook-Off, Advent Celebration, The Place, Youth Sunday), and we are embarking on a journey to learn how to be a more “vital” congregation now that we are enrolled in the Vitality Initiative. So far, as a congregation you have embraced these new ideas and approached them with a willing heart. My prayer is that as we continue on this journey, we will keep our ears, eyes, hands, hearts, and minds open to the movement of the Spirit—and that we will be moved to participate in the realization of what we are being called to.
God’s Blessings as we continue on the journey together,
Pastor Dani