Fecundity!

It's not often that a person gets to use the word fecundity! Yet that is what the month of June has offered me. In case you don't want to look it up . . . fecundity - fruitfulness in offspring or vegetation : prolific; intellectually productive or inventive to a marked degree Offspring--Doug and I have visited with so many loved ones over the past month. Doug's daughter and her family in Alabama--especially good to see our granddaughter, Ellen, who was on leave before being posted to Naval Base San Diego. Doug's son, Jeremy, and his wife and daughters came for a visit on their way to Connecticut to visit their sailor son, JT. We spent time with Doug's son, Chris and his wife, Heather in Atlanta. I was able to watch streaming video of my son, Aaron's, graduation, where he received his Master's of National Security and Strategy. We spent a long weekend in High Point watching (in between thunderstorms) our grandson, Nate, play baseball in Pony League All Stars. Really, I can't remember so much family in so little time ever! Vegetation--the garden is producing! We have just begun harvesting squash and cucumbers--the tomatoes will take a while. But the berries! Red raspberries--a whole patch of them, from just three little plants given to me by Ernie Bentley two years ago. And lovely blackberries (no thorns!). We have been eating berries on cereal, in yogurt, and--you guessed it--in homemade ice cream! And the freezer is filling up. Berries really do seem like a gift from God. Once you put them in the ground, they just come, every summer, no effort needed except the picking and the eating. Intellectually productive--Yes, that, too! I have digested more books than I could list here, and have even delved into the Greek New Testament--which is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT for me, since I have forgotten more Greek than I ever learned! I have to say that the "input" side of the sabbatical has been full of fecundity, but, so far, the output is small--at least in any measurable way. I suppose the prolific material I have read has to percolate for a while. I need to consider what kind of output I want from all this information. Should it be a book, an online course, some kind of audio or video production? And how shall I share my learnings with all of you? Matters for thinking. I would add one more aspect of fecundity--the blessing of time with my dear husband, Doug. In the normal course of events, we really don't see much of one another, and I'm grateful for these long days together--whether we are reading or driving or packing or visiting. It's a joy to be together. So June, thanks for the fecundity! And thanks be to God, who gives good gifts!

A Whirlwind Month

It is hard to believe we have finished the first month of the sabbatical! Lots has been going on! I've been doing a lot of reading. Walter Brueggemann's An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination, proved to be 400 EXTREMELY dense, but wonderful delving into what scripture means, as it has been "traditioned" throughout the generations of its formation. On the lighter side, Polly Berends' Gently Lead: How to Teach Your Children about God While Finding Out for Yourself , offers stories and ideas about how to enrich the spiritual lives of our children in ways that enrich us as well. Sarah Juengst's Equipping the Saints has made quite an impact on me. It is a book I've had a long time, but am just now reading. Sarah (a former seminary professor of mine) says that we as churches cannot expect good leadership from members unless they are taught ahead of time--in Bible, Christian theology, and leadership. This is an eclectic list! For the next several weeks, I expect to delve into the New Testament. On the "family" side, Doug and I have been traveling! We spent a week with my mother in Pawley's Island, SC (and she returned the favor by spending a week with us). I attended the Homiletics Festival in Nashville--what a week of wonderful preaching and teaching! It was good to spend time with clergy colleagues as well as enjoy good Nashville barbecue. Next, Doug and I spent a few days in Chesapeake, VA for my niece, Lauren's graduation from high school. Then it was on to Philadelphia for a few days with our nephew and his wife, Zach and Aubrie. Many of you may remember Zach from the years he was part of our Northside family while he attended VT. Now we are off on a new adventure. We will travel to Daphne, AL, to visit with Doug's daughter, Talitha, and her family. The bonus is that our Navy granddaughter, Ellen, will be home for a few days before being stationed at San Diego. On the way back, we will hit "Hot-lanta" for a few days. I will be using Columbia Seminary's library and will meet with Rodger Nishioka and Kathy Dawson, Christian Education professors at the seminary. Hopefully, they will help me shape the material I want to bring back to the church. Hit my milestone birthday--60--last week! Hard to believe! This summer is a momentous one for Doug and me. He will hit the quarter century mark in August, and I will celebrate 25 years of ordained ministry. How time flies! At home, this past week, it's been gardening. Ernie Bentley tilled our vegetable garden, and the plants are finally in the ground, just in time for nice hot weather. Hopefully we will enjoy tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and basil. Our berry plants look to be producing well--I have just picked our first bowl of strawberries. God is amazing--look at what God does with a few plants! I miss you all, but have enjoyed meals with Martha and Kathy, and a shared birthday meal with Don and Louise Bloss and Sue and Ernie Bentley.

Getting Ready

My sabbatical starts in 5 days, and I've been getting ready for several weeks now. What to take with me? What do I need to read? To write on? To think about? And how to leave my "space" as I go. I've been sorting through the piles of papers that always seem to multiply, filing, making new piles, putting the piles into boxes so they don't look so awful . . . you get the idea. And strangely, although it's been crazy around here, I'm feeling that Sabbath feeling already. Maybe it has to do with making the space around me more serene, more orderly. Maybe it is just looking forward to days without schedules or appointments or deadlines. I'm sure the days will pass too quickly, and I'll be back. I pray that making space and time will help me get back in touch with my deepest self and with God--both get squeezed out sometimes with busyness. It's hard to step away from dear friends and colleagues, and from the life I lead when I am "at church." I realized this afternoon that I spend much more time here than in my home (if you don't count sleeping). I'll miss it. There is always a loss that goes with a gain, an ending with a beginning. But, here goes nothin'--I'm going to take a deep breath for the next three months.

Today I have been thinking about work, and how much pressure we (and certainly I) put on ourselves to be "successful," and, if truth be told, valued. I want to share a slightly edited version of a prayer in Marianne Williamson's book, Illuminata, as a prayer for myself and my work. Dear God, I release this ministry to You. I know that my tension, my control, and my direction do not always serve the Church or You. I know that my need to succeed and prosper do not always serve the Church or You. May my resources be used by You. I ask only that Your will be done. I have shown up, God. I have done as I have felt You have asked me to do. And now I place all outcome in Your hands. May my efforts gladden You. May my work please You. I am here only to do Your bidding, that I might feel lighter, that I and the entire world might be healed. Amen.