Meeting

For many of you that’s nothing short of a “dirty word.” Oh no! You exclaim. Not another meeting.

But sometimes, done right, a meeting is just the thing and if we use them well we can accomplish great things. Sometimes also, meetings might just keep us from getting the right thing done.

Let me tell you a story about my recent visit in St. Thomas. I’d been there a few months before to help them have a meeting and figure out how to move forward in reaching out into their community. They were definitely feeling the pull to be involved but had got stuck in a round of meetings and some were getting frustrated that they weren’t really doing it.

We had a great meeting! And we decided not to meet again until we had stories to share of something that was happening.

This weekend I was back. Not for a meeting but for a class and a Sunday worship. But I heard some wonderful stories. A friend of the congregation was moving from one apartment to another--with an elevator--so her hip surgeries could heal. In the move one member realized she needed a lower bed and did what it took to provide it—before bed time! (They hope to replace a faulty toaster ASAP!)

The food pantry at the nearby housing project runs pretty low by the end of the month, so the congregation now runs a food hamper that gets filled and delivered just before the last week of the month.

Members are watching local garage or estate sales and have been picking up small appliances or bedding or toys that can be used by the not-so-well-off residents of that same project.

Police checks, youth worker registration forms, insurance coverage are all moving into place in order to be ready for whatever idea comes next. They’ve realized that some opportunity will come and they need to be ready for it!

Congratulations to pastor Stephanie Johnson and all your doers who saw what to do and did it, rather than having another meeting.

Posted by Marion