Good to be Back! | Jan 29

“Thanks” is the first word I should offer you, Faith. Thanks for granting me 2 months to rest and renew. Thanks to the lay leadership who stepped up to shoulder more responsibility, particularly Blake Steudtner, Eric Polak, Ron Hoffman, and Ruth Storts. Thanks to our staff for each agreeing to bear an extra responsibility or two so the congregation’s life together would not be thwarted. Thanks to Rev. Mark Rickman for agreeing to provide pastoral leadership while I was away, especially as he supported Pastor Heather. To Glen Moore, our Business Administrator, he is a rock star in my eyes. Even before my leave, he had stepped forward in so many areas to lead and allowed me such confidence knowing he would take care of it.

My deepest thanks goes to Pastor Heather. Faith, I hope you notice what a tremendous servant we have among us in this woman of God. Her heart is the biggest I’ve ever seen. Her gifts for leadership are remarkable. Her ability to see what needs to be done and just do it is beyond compare. I recognize that she is the reason my time away was such a blessing. I never worried because I knew she would handle whatever came up -- and she did. I am so immensely grateful to her for giving me this space to heal, to refocus, to rest, and to charge up my batteries (as Percy Brown told me.) Heather, you are amazing!

I learned a lot about myself during the last nine weeks. I learned that I am a morning person so I adjusted my schedule for an earlier bedtime and an earlier wake up time. I took up a daily yoga practice at my daughter’s urging and learned to listen to my body. Actually, I became friends with this precious tool God made for the work God has given me. I learned that my body needs me to listen better. I learned new rhythms of prayer that incorporate more time in silence and centering. I learned a lot from the books I read -- all 16 of them. I love to read, but during my time away, I learned to read for transformation instead of information.

All of these learnings are treasures for me. I certainly hope that you, the amazing congregation I’m trusted to lead, will benefit from my treasure. But, really, I see it as an investment in my own spiritual, mental, and physical health. I had reached a point where I needed it desperately. By all measures, I was frayed. Over the last two months, God and I had several really honest conversations about what landed me in this place of anguish. We continue to have conversations about how I will stay healthier. For everyone who prayed for me -- many of you prayed every day, I know -- thank you so much.

I am anxious to lead you in worship. Pastor Mark will be back with us for one last Sunday, assisting me in leadership. I’ll be preaching over selected verses from 1 Corinthians 7. You’ll want to read this chapter ahead of time because I’ll be tackling the tough topic of how our sexual relationships impact our faith. Our congregation has this long tradition of helping our students engage in conversation about sex and faith. Every two years, we offer training for our upper elementary, mid-high, and senior-high students. This sermon will feel somewhat like that training -- freedom to talk about the real life issues we all face, and encouragement to bring faith into the conversation. We are imperfect people (our sermon series title), but we are learning together how to strive toward holiness. I can’t wait to lead us toward this goal. See you Sunday.

Much Love,

Pastor Charla