Virtual Regional Assembly is scheduled for September 26, 2020. Congregations will soon receive important information on selecting delegates and registration by mail.
In 60 Days of Faith for Women, Rev. Cameron Trimble writes: I have no sense of direction. That should probably alarm you since I am a pilot. Because of this, I get lost quite a bit unless I am using my GSP to guide me to my destination. I usually just end up on small detours, though occasionally I can find myself way off course.
I used to get anxious about these deviations and would carefully follow my GPS for themes direct route from point A to point B. But soon I found myself missing the adventure that comes with not being entirely sure of where you are going. I realized that I saw more awake, more aware, and more curious about the journey when I wasn’t certain I was on the proven path. I had the potential of flying a new route that no one else had traversed before. It’s the subtle shift from being a follower to being an explorer–and it’s the only path I know to a fulfilling life.
Author Martha Beck once said, “A good Wayfinder is someone who’s comfortable losing the way.”
Given all of the challenges we face as a community, especially . . . with a pandemic threatening people we love in mighty forces, when the safety of our children is at stake by a potential return to school mandate, when the need for justice around systemic racism rises to protests, when the poor are run out of resources, when divisiveness is so prevalent, when the medical community is putting their lives and families at risk to save our lives, it seems we are being issued a new call to adventure. We must chart an original path forward to a sustainable future. We don’t have any templates for getting us there — no one has figured this out yet — so it’s up to us to get comfortable feeling lost while we find our way.
Where should we begin on this adventure? We could be anxious. We could be paralyzed. Or, we could be courageous. How about fixing our eyes upon Jesus?
Our 2020 Virtual Regional Assembly will focus on a few verses from Luke 4. This scripture was chosen for our Regional Assembly almost a year ago, and it seems ever more relevant today as we weather the storms in this unprecedented and extraordinary season.
Here’s what it says. Jesus came to Nazareth where he had been raised. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,
God’s Spirit is upon me;
he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor,
Sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind,
To set the burdened and battered free, to announce, “This is God’s time to shine!”
He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.”
Jesus, delivering this inaugural sermon in Nazareth, had every eye fixed on him, in awe! In awe!
Jesus had something to say to the people gathered. Jesus had something urgent for them to hear and see. I wonder what Jesus just revealed. I am not sure it was just the words from Isaiah.
In this unprecedented time and extraordinary season that we are living in, it is easy to lose sight of Jesus and what Jesus comes to reveal. It is so easy to lose our way. How do we keep our eyes and our hearts fixed on Jesus, in awe?
Join us virtually on September 26, 2020 at the Regional Assembly to find out more!
Always Picking Up the Peaces,
Pam Holt
Footnotes:
Rev. Cameron Trimble, 60 Days of Faith for Women: A Devotional to Deepen Gratitude, Praise, and Prayer. Emeryville, California: Rockridge Press, 2020. p. 76.
Quoted scripture is from The Message, interpreted by The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II from We Are Called to be a Movement. New York, NY: Workan Publishing Co., Inc. 2020. pp. 4-6.
