Legendary

I’m following with interest today (Monday) a conversation on my nephew’s facebook page about his grandpa’s legendary prowess as a typist. Grandpa Trueblood was known as an amazing typist. On his old Underwood Standard he was known to slam out a hundred and twenty words per minute! Dave wonders early on if such a speed is even possible. “It seems super-human” he opines. But testimony follows declaring it possible. Such speeds have been recorded. One friend claims the speed for herself in grade eleven typing class. (She doesn’t reveal whether or not she had the benefit of electricity.)

Eventually Dave’s own mother, daughter of the legend himself, enters the conversation and swears to its validity. The legend is true! Today’s conversation began, not about typing, but about Grandpa T’s one hundredth birthday. His legendary status depends on much more than his professional abilities. He was a true "man of faith."

This weekend many of us may have sat around the family table together, perhaps in a rare occasion to be together and share those family legends. Thanksgiving does tend to be celebrated with an extended family dinner. There are others as well and we can all recount our experiences at weddings, funerals, congregational anniversaries. It’s at these times we bring out our legends, share our stories together. This is so important to helping us remember who we are and what we value.

Carman recently wrote his thoughts about our community’s giants. I love the picture the Wiarton congregation shared of their Thanksgiving service. (Find them on facebook.) Several “living legends” are pictured there. But let us not forget the other part of this whole concept. There was a day when those gray heads were young. They were once the little ones in the front row.

At what point does one become a “legend”?

A blogging pastor I occasionally follow speaks about a “man of faith” or “woman of faith” this way:
When we describe someone as a “woman of faith” or a “man of faith,” we mean more than the ability to articulate beliefs. We are describing how they walk through this world. We are describing how they go to work, how they behave in relationships, how they use their time, how they spend their money, how they get through each day, how they live their lives with all of the questions and all of the stresses that all of us have. Faith is not necessarily being sure where you are going, but going anyway.

(Read the rest of her sermon here if you like.)

We’re all of us on a faith walk. We’re walking together creating new legends as we go. I love watching you and seeing you being new legends. And I love telling those stories. I invite you to join me in the watching and in the sharing of the stories.

I am convinced that not only are we standing on the shoulders of giants, we are walking among legends! Here’s your assignment: watch for the emerging legends around you and then find a way to share their stories. That’s the good word for today.

Posted by Marion

Why?

The disciples came up and asked "Why do you tell stories?"

He replied, "You've been given insight into God's kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight, it hasn't been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That's why I tell stories, to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen til they're blue in the face and not get it.

Matthew 13,
from the Message

There is a Zen saying that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. It seems to me that this something like Jesus is saying here. But the teacher is the story! Each story has something to teach. We may or may not be ready for the teaching; but we remember a story. The stories I've shared with you this week are stories I've heard for years. Some of them have been around for centuries, just waiting to teach something.

Another thing I've learned from stories is that they don't always teach the same lesson to the different people who hear them. And they don't necessarily teach me the same lesson I may have gleaned the first time I heard the tale.

How many sermons have you heard of the good Samaritan, or the scattered seeds, or the widow sweeping her home? And how many different "lessons" have you considered? Too often we may have believed that this or that lesson is the correct meaning. This must be what Jesus really meant by his parable.

But I think otherwise. I think the story may indeed have different lessons to teach at various times and to new generations of hearers. When we are ready we can learn the lesson that is right for us. Even these ancient stories can give us new insights if we let them. Let your heart be open to whatever new lesson the Spirit wants to teach. Let the story nudge you into a new direction.

That's my advice today at the end of this week of stories.

Posted by Marion

Ideas

My In-Box today has been just over-flowing with ideas!
It does appear that everyone has been busy over the weekend dreaming up good stuff.

Here's a recommendation for a book that might be great for the CPI pastors (and others too). Here's a great web site with wonderful preaching tips. Here's a terrific report from a congregation who had an amazing service on Sunday morning with a whole bunch of visitors, who'd come at the invitation of a young adult via his facebook page. What a great idea!

I've managed as well to collect two boxes of books from a dear friend who's downsizing and thought I'd have an idea about what to do with them. And invitations. I have invitations to attend any number of amazing activities and events. I really must pace myself, or I'll have so many good ideas of new things to do, places to go, people to see that I shall run out of time for them all.

So here is my advice to all you dear friends who keep sending me your excellent ideas:
Don't send me any more of them. Keep them and Do something exciting with them. Then send me the story of what your idea was, what you did with it, who helped you and what was the amazing and surprising result that was even more than you expected.

Now I'm not suggesting that all these good ideas that are coming my way are ALL being offered for me to do with by myself--although, all too frequently there is a tiny hint that "CEM should do something." But I am saying that my time is limited and is getting shorter every day. So do get busy yourself, because that will happen to you one day and you'll be glad of all the ideas you acted on.

And I shall love to hear your stories. Now, off with you. Get busy working on one of those great ideas yourself. Permission granted!

Posted by Marion

Sacred

I was privileged to enjoy a day visit to a reunion, arriving in time for the morning sharing service. The theme being discussed was “We share the Sacred Story.” I listened as several people shared how much the reunion community meant to them, and how the story of the grounds had become sacred in their experience. Perhaps surprisingly, as the conversation continued in that vein, I found myself growing somewhat uneasy.

It was not that there was anything wrong with what was being shared; in fact the stories were both touching and wonderful. What was scratching at the door of my consciousness, however, was a fear that we might grow to think that this is the place where the sacred story happens. To be more precise, I would not want us to think that this is the only place where the sacred story happens.

In that context, I began to let my mind wander and think of other places; other stories. I thought of our Montreal congregation with their passionate and joyful music and deep prayer life. I thought of that community gathering resources to share with our Haitian brothers and sisters who are so desperately in need following the earthquakes. I know both these places and all of these people to be sacred.

I thought of the little team of dedicated disciples who serve others through Sionito Development Corporation. I thought of the lives they touch: some the elderly poor, some persons who are physically challenged, and others who suffer with mental illness or addictions. I thought of the difference that our devoted Sionito team is making in their lives. I know these people and stories to be precious and sacred.

I thought of a group of young adults and others gathered around tables at GTA-West congregation, forming a production line to pack more than 150 lunches to be shared with homeless or poor people in the city of Toronto. I thought of the love that went into those bags with the cookies and apples and peanut butter sandwiches. I thought of the smiles those lunches produced. I know these moments to be sacred and precious indeed.

The point is that every life is sacred, and so is every encounter and every story. Our task is to share our sacred story with others, and to listen carefully to theirs. It is not just in our sacred space that this happens, but in every space made sacred by the fact of God’s creation and the presence of God’s children. It is in the sharing that we create new sacred stories. I know this deeply to be true.

As we each go throughout our day today, may we each be blessed by an awareness that each moment and each person we encounter is sacred, and may we share and create sacred stories as we go.

Posted by Carman

Diary

Did you ever keep a diary? Did you have one of those neat little books with a lock and key that you had to hide from your kid brother or your parents? Did you write down your innermost thoughts and record your deepest questions for the universe? Or were you one who just wrote down the bare facts of what happened that day? [got up, ate breakfast, math test, came home, supper, bed] Have you ever looked back at a diary or journal from bygone years? Did you recognize that person? Are you the same person?

One conversation at our recent get-together with new high priests centred around the notion of “I’m not the same person I was when I first felt a call to ministry.” But how are you different? And how do you know you’re different? How do you track your story?

Some write diaries; some keep journals; some read back through old day-timers or office organizers. Maybe you look at snap-shots or keepsakes from events, ticket stubs, church bulletins, prize ribbons or report cards from school days.
All these things are the building blocks of our life stories. Each one is a story and each is a small bit of the bigger story. Just like our blog posts as “What’s the Good Word” unfolds.

A blog is a kind of diary. The word comes from “web log” equivalent to a ship’s log, kept every day by the captain. But this diary is kept on a computer and posted on “the world-wide-web.” I read recently that the country that has the largest number of blogs is Japan; and that Japan (I didn’t know this either) has a long tradition of keeping diaries!

If you’re interested in the idea of Blogging as a way of keeping a congregation’s life story you can read it here. Just as a diary entry is a very personal notation, a tiny piece of an individual’s life story, so are our blog-posts, personal commentary on what’s happening in this part of a much larger unfolding story. Our gathered high priest ordinands considered ways available to stay in touch, to create support networks, to learn from each other and share perspectives. The essay I’ve cited suggests using a blog as a way to preserve our congregation’s history. You might want to consider that.

How will we know who we are and how we’ve grown and changed or what has endured and remained stable and solid in our lives without tracking our story? Join our blogging community. Read along or send us your stories to be packaged in with the rest. These are exciting times and it’s good that we’re keeping a diary.

Posted by Marion

MEGA

This past weekend, a group of about 30 (mostly) young adults and Seventy gathered at the Toronto West church campus for MEGA. The name MEGA is an acronym for the theme of the weekend, which was Make Everyday a Great Adventure. To avoid confusion about the above references to 30 and 70, perhaps I should explain that Seventy here refers to the priesthood title a group of missionary Elders in Community of Christ, based on Luke 10. There were four such persons in the group this weekend.)

The weekend had several purposes. One was to provide a forum for young adult leaders and potential leaders to come together. A second was for the Seventy to be together in a ministry situation, and a third was to begin to build community between these two groups.

Each of these groups has its own set of characteristics. Young adults are always bursting with energy and ideas, so being with them is always a lot of fun. Just being in their presence will inevitably lead to lots of smiles and laughter. The Seventy, on the other hand, tend to be natural story tellers. These folks have been on their own great adventure with God for many years, and have lots of stories to share. Given these characteristics, it is only logical that putting these two groups together should make for an interesting weekend. It did.

I think it is safe to say that this group found fun in everything they did. Together they played ping-pong, went bowling, and took in a Blue Jays game at the Rogers Centre, which several still insisted on calling Skydome. Attending the ball game was made even more fun because the Blue Jays actually won! The group also found great pleasure in assembling 150 lunches for the benefit of homeless people in Toronto, and in sharing food together themselves.

On three occasions during the weekend, the group sat around together to share stories. While the Seventy led in this, not all the stories came from them. Several young adults shared their own stories of life; some of which were happy and some of which were not. This sharing of stories led us to amazing moments of seriousness and sacrament, as several people asked for the blessing of laying on of hands for healing in their own life needs; some shared and some not.

Finally, on Sunday morning, the group met together with the host congregation to lead in an outdoor worship service. This too proved to be an adventure (competing with a neighbour’s lawnmower) and a blessing as music and still more stories were shared, followed by a bar-b-que with the congregation.

Should you happen to look up mega in the dictionary, it would tell you that this word is a prefix used to indicate something “large or great.” I suspect the impact of this gathering will be both large and great in the lives of those who participated. It was good to gather, good to have fun, and good to share stories together. We have agreed that this must not be a one-time event, but needs to happen regularly. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, as you go about your day, let me urge you to remember what MEGA stands for, and enjoy your own great adventure today.

Planting

Goal # 2: Plant (or re-plant) five new congregations in the next ten years.

Goal #2 was first spoken out loud at the Noronto reunion in August, 2009. The response was immediate! People began to come forward with expressions like, “Let me tell you about my community!” Or “ Have you considered planting a church in _____?” It was exciting!

We have not been idle on this goal since then. Despite our expressed intention to “go slow and learn with each new effort”, our people began rolling up their sleeves and working right away. The following is what we can report so far.

Fired Up Congregation was launched in September under the leadership of four enthusiastic young adults. The new congregation has had highs and lows, but we are learning and optimistic about this new plant.

Brantford congregation began the work of re-visioning and re-planting, and has gone from an average attendance of four people to between fifteen and twenty in just four months! They have already had a baptismal service.

The people of Sudbury congregation, who had not been meeting for perhaps two years, began to discuss their options. Getting together for fellowship and food, they decided not to close the congregation after all, but instead, to see what is possible. Now they meet from time to time, and bless each other with their love. The re-visioning has begun.

When it comes to fulfilling the call of God, the church does not have the luxury of simply marking time. Trying to stand still will inevitably lead to falling behind. There are people whose lives need to be blessed by the message of the gospel. There are communities of people everywhere we need to reach out to. These communities are not about towns, cities, or rural geography, they are about people. The potential to do something new exists wherever leaders of vision see and recognize a new opportunity. That may happen where we have only one member now, or where we already have a flourishing congregation. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that we are reaching out to those whose lives we can bless.

In some cases, we have congregations that need to be re-planted. These are communities that may have existed for many years but are now in decline and in serious need of a new vision of greatness. Where we have people in those communities who want to try something new, we have hope. Given the choice, isn’t it better to re-plant than to close?

Some will no doubt say that we should strengthen our existing congregations before we plant something new. That is the stuff of goals three and four, and we will have more to share about that later. Today is about goal two.

Where else does the Gospel need to be planted? Barrie? Stittsville? Do you feel the stirring of a new plant in your community?

Posted by Carman

Group

While I had a pretty good idea of the thoughts I wanted to share this morning, I was uncertain which "word" to select. I've opted for group.

Last Sunday I enjoyed a wonderful brunch with a great group of women, some of whom I've known for ten years. It was my writing group. Some time ago, after moving to my new town and new job I was feeling the need of a different sort of connection. I'd say friendship but at the time I had no idea that I was looking for friends or certainly that I would find friends in the class I signed up for.

I happened to notice that a class was being offered on life writing. That sounded interesting to me, and like an opportunty to write for fun with some amateurs totally unconnected with my work and my work community.

Since then, I've tried each year, spring or fall, to find a writing class that works with my schedule. In the process I've been introduced to memoir, poetry and most recentlly fiction. (More of this another time, perhaps.) Because the more valuable thing I've found is a group of fifteen or twenty women who've been part of those classes.

All of us have "other jobs" although some of us have been pretty regular and serious published writers. Mainly we listen appreciatively to each other's work, offer genuine and helpful critique when asked, and laugh and eat together as often as we're able. Usually the get-togethers, even the scheduled classes have only five to eight at a time because of the necessities of our other life. I'll not be doing a class this fall as I cannot synchronize a class schedule with my busy work calendar.

But I know my friends are there. We are connected. So I guess, by definition, we are a community. We care about each other's success and well-being. We follow one another's journeys. We lament each other's trials.

What connected us in the first place? I think it has to do with sharing story. I believe there's something about the discipline of being authentic together. I suspect the regular sharing of food has something to do with it. (It doesn't hurt that Anne is a published cookbook author and the rest of the gang are amazing foodies!)

Do we share a mission? I've pondered on this one; but I think the answer is Yes.

What does any of this have to do with the ongoing conversation about community and congregation? And how much does it matter if I happen to call this bunch of friends a group? What groups do you belong to? Do you share any of my experiences with your groups?

More thoughts from you readers out there?