Pentecost

It is telling that there has not been a post since Lent. In between Lent and Pentecost, there was the great 50 days of Easter, and not a word was written here. One of the reasons might be that we have been very, very busy. Another might have something to do with an uncertainty about what to write and share in this space.

This has probably been the most difficult Easter season of my life. From the understanding that Easter is not one day (just like Christmas is not one day), but a season of the church year where we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus not once, but many times, it should have been a joyous time. Two things have hindered that this year.

The first is the same that I wrote about during Christmas, Advent, and Lent - that is, this being our first year through the cycle of the church year in this place, where some traditions are the same and some are different. The learning curve has been huge, and there has been much time discussing, learning, researching, and planning for all things to happen in some reasonable, liturgical sense.

The second is that we have hit one of those points in our ministry where there are some who are not pleased with what we are doing. While a small number, they are vocal. Any time conflict arises in the church, it takes a tremendous amount of energy to deal with it. While this is not over, and is not really for public discussion, it is only fair to mention it in response to all of you who have wondered why the blog has not been more active. The reason is simply that there are not enough hours in the day, or enough energy in either of us to deal with everything else and still post something there. Neither of us are the type to publicly air disagreements, especially not in a forum where we are the only ones with a voice, so you won't get any details here. Suffice it to say that we are in the midst of a difficult time and your prayers would be appreciated.

Now that I've told you what is going on in our lives, maybe we can post some thoughts (which may not be as upbeat as we would like) and you'll understand where we are coming from. On the up side, serving God amongst his people here continues to be a blessing to us (even on the bad days), and we look forward to being able to devote all our energy into positive things.

Last week was the NC Synod Assembly, and was a great opportunity to listen, learn, meet old friends, make new friends, and see just how big and wonderful is this body of Christ that we belong to. Even amidst the many discussions about sex and policies of the church, we were able to worship together and leave proclaiming Jesus as Lord! Alleluia!