Won Week One

One week of sabbatical under my belt.  Caught up on neglected home repairs, car repairs and people repairs that were badly needed.  I won week one.  For those with out access to our church newsletter, I wanted to print my fairly aggressive itinerary ahead;  June 28 through July 8 in Tampa Florida at General Synod as an Ohio Conference delegate, July 15 through 20 in Frederick, Maryland for a course on Native American religion and ritual, August 4 through 6 inSelinsgrove, PA for the Center for Progressive Renewal's Clergy Leadership training, and August 17 in Pittsburgh at a workshop on techniques to relieve anxiety.  (Not that anyone needs anxiety relief.)

I have several interviews planned with Pastors who are serving churches similar to Trinity to talk about effective programs in their churches.  The first interview was with Paul Shupe, Pastor of Hancock UCC in Lexington, MA.  They have some very interesting programs that may be helpful at Trinity.  I'll write a full blog later on some of the interesting programs that are happening at Hancock.

Sunday mornings are quite different as my internal clock is still set for 5 a.m.  On Sunday, June 19th I went back to my home church Henrietta UCC to worship.  Henrietta is "yoked" with St. John UCC in South Amherst. This was the second year in a row that I have been able to worship there.

  I have a lot of memories in that place.It caused me to revisit the question about why God called me into ministry.  Reflection is part of the work of Sabbatical I guess.

When my mother was in assisted living in Lorain, I took one of my vacation Sundays in 2005 and Elijah and I traveled up to take her to worship.  Over the next three years to the end of her life, she didn't remember a thing, but often when I visited her, she would always ask, "Remember that day we went to Henrietta church?"  One Sunday morning in church was something that stuck. Her faith was deeply ingrained in her mind.
My mother's enduring friendships were all formed in that church.  A woman who had worked with my Mom in the public schools told me how my mother had given her an apron and a glass bowl that she still kept as a memory of their friendship. 

I plan to write more reflections on Hancock and Henrietta later.