From the Pastor
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German theologian and pastor who was executed by the Nazis near the end of World War II, shared this reflection on the church: “Christian community…is a gift of God which we cannot claim. Only God knows the real state of our fellowship…What may appear weak and trifling to us may be great and glorious to God. Just as the Christian should not be constantly feeling his or her spiritual pulse, so too, the Christian community has not been given to us by God for us constantly to be taking its temperature. The more thankfully we daily receive what is given us, the more surely and steadily will fellowship increase and grow from day to day as God pleases.”
I think I might tape those words to the cover of my church calendar. I realize that I am a compulsive temperature taker when it comes to our church. How does the budget stand, do we have enough ushers, did the roof leak last night, how is worship attendance, there aren’t any paper towels in the restroom…and so it goes. I get so caught up in the details of church life, what is next on the church calendar and what I need to do, that I forget how important it can be just to step back and appreciate our church community, our life together, as a wonderful gift from God.
The Community Church is a busy place and there is a lot to do. But rather than always being an anxious, busy presence, I also want to be a thankful presence, daily receiving the expressions of grace and love that are all around me, daily open to the mystery of God hidden in plain sight all around me. The agendas of management are important to be sure. But it may also be true, as Eugene Peterson points out, that “what we don’t do for God is often more critical than what we in fact do.” Together discovering the mystery of what it means to be people and a community made in God’s image. Something to think about in the days ahead.
Gene
