Just watching our kids move into new homes is exhausting.
There's all the work of preparing their homes: cleaning, washing, painting,
repairing odds and ends. There's the work of what to keep and what to leave
behind, the work of packing up all their belongings, moving them to the new
house, unpacking and finding a place for everything. There's the work of working
around everything they've moved, and after they've put it all away, tryign to
remember where they put it. But what makes it really work is that they
can't put their lives on hold to move: they still need to get up, go to work,
go to school, cook meals, wash dishes, get on with life.
So did we.
We approved our building plans last October - and less than one year later,
we've moved into our new home. In the space of that year we've held weddings,
baptisms and funerals, cared for the sick, fed the hungry, raised money for
hte poor. This summer we held Vacation Bible School in a storefront in a strip
mall, canvasssed the neighborhood, resumed Sunday School, gathered up school
kits, and began planning our annual Octoberfest. I am incredibly proud of the
work you did - and your tenacity in doing it. Some of those projects or events
may not have hit the mark we'd set for them - but by the grace of God, we did
the work of Church through it all, and I have no doubt that next time around
we'll do it better.
Of all the things I love about this church, it is those things I love most:
we do not give up, we do not let go; we figure it out, we make it work. I think
that's what Jesus meant when he told us to be "wise as serpents and innocent
as doves." Take a moment to celebrate what you and your friends have accomplished
- then dig in for another round!
Pastor Jim
I will sing a new song to you, O God. Psalm 144:9
From the Shepherd's Song Newsletter -- October 2009
Copyright 2009 by Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
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E-mail your comments and questions to Pastor Jim in care of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church at good.shep-holland@sbcglobalnet.