Jan '10
Looking Ahead, Glancing Back
Why don’t we look forward with a sense of purpose; is there an evolutionary imperative to ask ourselves what we learned when we peer into the past? I often get caught-up in some very odd neck twisting this time of year. I turn on the radio or television the week leading up to Christmas and the week before New Year and I hear reviews of the previous year, comparisons with past years, and speculation on what might be most memorable. On the first day of the year the pundits and prophets look into the future abyss. Occasionally, a philosophical stone drops over the edge only to hit bottom after a slight drop.
Glancing Back: The congregation completed the two week shelter overflow offering. Robert McDonald was superb. He opened doors to compassion, connection, and service and we walked though with gratitude. We did create a directory. But there’s more! MaryAnne Winniford, our fearless administrator, decided, because she kept finding changes and mistakes, to print only a few. That means that any current directory is up to date. Imagine that! She became a hero to every one of us when she … you fill in the blank. It’s the stuff of heroes. Jana Rossier gave us a FaceBook group and then changed it to a FaceBook fan site. Thanks to Jana, we are holding both our Beloved Community covenant close to our hearts and we are each signing onto the Charter of Compassion, begun by Karen Armstrong. Tim and Jay and Dave inspired us with their courage and commitment in a difficult economy. Arleta and Duane Carr continue to remind us of the gift of service. Duane had knee surgery and the first thing he wanted to know was when he could work at the soup kitchen again. Shari Daly-Miller somehow managed to always be there when someone, anyone, needed a kind ear, a gentle smile, and a warm hug. Peg not only brought forth wonderful choir music, she did it with a smile that was more infectious than the flu. Thanks to Floyd and his persistence, our congregation, tiny as it is, was a major donor to the American Cancer Society. Ann Litke continues to struggle with the Auction set-up, computer records and billing, and doing the whole (used-to-be-paid) job of a bookkeeper. I could go on and I left too many people out, but I only have so many words.
Looking Forward: We are becoming a mission driven community. Walter Cummings is putting the mission statement and maybe our vision statement to music. After singing those a few times, we’ll all know them by heart. We will continue to serve the homeless community in many ways. The FaceBook page is expanding and becoming a great clearing house for church activities. I’m asking for the congregation to team up with Habitat for Humanity. Don Bell is heading up the Stewardship Team as we make stewardship a year round activity coupled to the true meaning of living our mission and principles; creating a better world for our children.
There’s more, much more. As we become more active in the larger community, incredible opportunities to volunteer also become available. My request and my hope is that we do act with a mission, team-up for volunteer activities, and, most of all, count our blessings. We are indeed a blessed community.
