This has been an eventful 2 weeks with the head pastor gone. I almost don't want him to come back because I am having so much fun doing the things that he might normally take charge of- leading lectionary Bible study, visiting and praying with patients in the hospital (which seems to fall under my responsibilities as the associate anyway), preaching, presiding over communion, and taking communion to people who are homebound. I've also dealt with the normal crazy weird things that happen in ministry, such as calling ambulances, having weird people that think they are Santa Claus come all the way from rural IL just to shop around doing cold calls at churches for a strange sounding program, etc. You just never know what ministry will throw at you. This morning I got up a little earlier and went to the hospital to pray with a man who was going in for an outpatient surgery. I could tell he was really anxious, and I prayed with him, his wife, and his brother. He seemed so relieved afterwards. Sometimes I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing or what to say, and it is amazing what God will do in those situations. Even after my summer of CPE, it is still hard to find the words sometimes! The bottom line is that I am having a great time. There are slow days, yes, but there are also the days that come with lots of unexpected things and small miracles, and NOT just on Sundays! Stay tuned for my next Sunday of preaching...I'm sure there will be another story to be told :) See my monthly pondering for August below that will be published in the church newsletter!
The Mirror
Pondering for the Month- August
I recently read a story about a man who grew up in an unknown European town during a war. He came across a motorcycle that had been wrecked to pieces, and his personal goal was to put it back together again. Although he tried for days, he could not even scratch the surface. Finally, he came across a piece of shattered glass- part of a mirror. He began to shape it into a circle by scratching it on a stone and began to play a game- he reflected light from it and light up even the darkest places where the sunlight would never reach it- holes, closets, crevices, garbage cans- the mirror seemed to make everything beautiful, and he began to see the light again- literally and in his own life. Later in his adult life, he began to understand that this mirror was no longer just a child’s game- that this was his life. He acknowledged that he is not the source of the light or the light itself, but that light, truth, understanding, and knowledge are there, and it will shine in many dark places if he is only willing to reflect it. He says, “I am a fragment of a mirror whose whole design and shape I do not know. Nevertheless, with what I have I can reflect light into the dark places of this world, and change some things in some people. Perhaps others may see and do likewise. This is what I am about. This is the meaning of my life.” As Christians, our light is Jesus Christ- He is the light of the world that overcomes the darkness. His is the light of truth, knowledge, and understanding, and we are lucky enough as disciples to bask in His glorious light. What will you do with it? How will you become a mirror that reflects God to others, even in the darkest of places?
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