I love flashlights. In our house we have all kinds: colorful, alloy mini-mags; old-school plastic thumb-pushers; flashlights that are powered with a few quick cranks of a handle. Somewhat ironically, in my household, we use our flashlights less in this darkest part of the year and more in the summer when we are camping and hiking and playing in the tent. There is nothing like being out in the great big woods and losing the trail on a night-hike, only to spot it again with one's little light.
During the month of January, leading up to our pre-annual meeting on January 24 and then our annual meeting on January 31, I will preach a series of sermons to try and shed some light on the potential trail ahead for Christ Church: Where do we perceive God calling us to go? How will we get there? It has been a long time since we asked people back in October about their dreams for this parish. Since that time I have had many conversations with a variety of people. I have been doing a bit of study on my own, and there has been much prayer. Of course, the wardens and the vestry have had their own ideas. But much of the direction comes not from me or the wardens, not from an "expert" outside of our parish, but from you. There are three particular areas of focus, and I will unfold these three areas over the course of three sermons in January (maybe not knowing builds the excitement, or maybe it feels a little condescending - I promise I'm aiming for the former!). None of these three areas emerge out of cutting edge rocket science, but I find the thought of pursuing all three deeply exciting. As always, your feedback will be critical.
The process of opening outselves to the Holy Spirit, offering our reason and imagination, our bodies and our minds, this process never ends. Because God is infinite, our journey into the knowledge and love of God, and God's intention for our lives and the life of the parish just keeps going. I am looking forward to traveling this next leg of the journey with you.
Seth+