Worship Retreat

Jonathon, DeRon and I are in Nashville at the Convergence conference for worship musicians talking about the worship experience and how to express our theology about God and life. It has been inspiring and moving in ways that I hadn’t imagined.

The church that is hosting us explained that there was a school shooting just 1 mile away from the school in March. One of the children in their congregation, Evelyn, died that day. All the parents were sent to the church where we were in to await news if their children were safe. They explained that more than ever, this was sacred ground. They also explained that they had beefed up security on their campus because of that horrible day. It was a reminder that the world that we live in and do ministry in is hurting and broken.

One of the phrases that we have heard this week that has resonated with us is “We have been bigger…but we have never been better.” In light of the last disaffiliations, we realized that this is the opportunity for us to be better too. We have the opportunity to proclaim our belief in the beautiful body of Christ that includes all people. We can move out of this season of pain and heartbreak into a new reality where love has the final word. This season is one of lament, and life is not all happy clappy. We know this. We also know that hope is powerful.

Our Nominations team is working on creating expectations for our new Leadership Team and praying over the names of members of the church who will lead us for the next few years. We ask for your prayers as we consider who should serve in this time of transition. We will also be asking three people to serve on the Nominations team and the Preschool board. If you get a call from our team, please prayerfully consider serving in this important way.

Last night, we ended the evening with a concert from Noel Paul Stookey who was in the seventies folk band Peter, Paul & Mary. He was incredible and we were amazed at his ability to play the guitar. I kept thinking how much my mother would have loved to have heard him sing live.

Pray for our safe return and for our world that needs a proclamation of love. Don’t hoard your “I love you”’s!