Beloved friends,
As I sit down to write to you this week I do so in our church season called “Ordinary Time.” This is the very long “green” season taking us through the beautiful months of summer into the fall. The church has used this time historically in our liturgical calendar to focus on the gospel lessons revealing and shining light on ways we are invited to follow Jesus in the ordinariness of life. And while there is nothing spectacular in the coming days as far as church feasts or festivals, there is, I would suggest, a beauty that lies ahead in all that is unfolding for us at Trinity in these coming weeks and months.
We are just now, ever so slowly, starting to turn the corner making our way bit by bit back to each other in small but not insignificant ways. Last Saturday, the extended family members of lifetime Trinity members, John & Lou Woellner gathered safely in the sanctuary to celebrate John’s life. John died peacefully on April 8th and family came from all over the country to gather at Trinity- a place where many of them had spent decades growing up and then serving as leaders. This coming Saturday will be another important time in our sacred space, as Trinity members Becky Randall & Travis Walker will be married making their vows and asking for God’s blessing. And while it is sad not to be able to fling open our doors wide, it is deeply moving to be standing in our sacred place once again feeling God’s presence and love, knowing the day is coming for us all to gather again.
By the time you read this we will also have begun our 3 Feedback Session for Trinity’s 2030 Vision titled, Come & See: Building Christian Community Committed to Radical Transformation. If you came to the first session, thank you. If you have signed up to come to one of the upcoming sessions, thank you. I hope everyone else will do their best to come to one session. If, however you cannot make one of these 3 times, we still want to hear your feedback. If you have thoughts/ideas/responses to share, please email Trinity member Karen Keune at klkeune@bex.net by Sunday June 20th.
I recently read a Trinity Topics message I wrote almost exactly 2 years ago! Here is what I wrote on June 21, 2019, if you can believe it:
Last Saturday, 35 of us gathered on a Saturday morning to begin learning about the process we will engage to write a 2030 vision. It was indeed an awesome morning and by all accounts we left feeling inspired, excited and eager to welcome others onto this path leading us into a bright future… As I think about the start of this vision work and the start of this church season, I am delighted in the perfect symmetry they offer; both take the long view, both require attention to the smallest details of our ordinary lives, and both reveal untold gifts if attention is paid to the small moments, the small details: a kindness, a word, a moment of silence, a song, a prayer, a meal- the things that fill most of our days without fanfare.
So here we are today- entering this season of grace-filled ordinary time once again and this time with the fruit of the labor of so many; countless meetings, conversations, prayers, questions, ideas all pushing and pulling trying to hear and capture God’s dreams and desires for our community in the months and years to come. Thank you all for staying the course; we have had a bumpy ride this past year for sure, but the past 3 years as we have engaged this vision work have also presented moments of challenge. I am a better person for all of it and all of you. Blessed be the ties that bind.
May you never forget that you are loved,
Lisa