Practicing Hospitality

For many, the far-flung village of Glenville is a holiday destination.

Nestled in the Appalachian mountains Glenville is home to the highest (3492 feet) large body of water in the Eastern US.  It has unique history.  The climate is near perfect.  The mountains are peaceful and beautiful.  The skies are bluer than blue.  The lake offers limitless outdoor fun. How could it not be inviting to people!

For my family, Glenville is simply home.

Yet, it is great when holiday destination and home intertwine.  It provides unique opportunity for hospitality.  And this practice of hospitality is important for my family of three.  It is at the core of our lives together--our lives in ministry--our lives of faith.

I understand hospitality to mean having a welcoming spirit and being open to others.  If we are hospitable, we are willing to set ourselves aside for someone else.  It often demands generosity, selflessness, and maybe even sacrifice.

I intentionally make every effort to claim this spirit of hospitality not just because it is a nice thing to do.  I seek to be hospitable because I identify myself through God's narrative, a narrative of openness, generosity, selflessness, and yes sacrifice.

Admittedly, these characteristics of hospitality don't just happen.  We may be given through God's grace the mind and eyes to know, but it really takes practice to be open, generous, and selfless.  Ultimately, when this grace and practice find rhythm together, setting oneself aside for another becomes a privilege and a gift.

My family experiences this giftedness when we are able to offer hospitality, especially in our Glenville home.  We will joyfully host several sets of visitors in Glenville in the coming weeks, and so we will offer hospitality a little bit more in this mountain destination.  We certainly want to stay in good practice.  We want to hone our skills.  We want to ready ourselves for the next destination spot that will become our home.  And I am so excited!!

I am excited for my life to bear witness to the hospitable character of God, but I am also excited about the opportunity to extend hospitality to family and friends in England!  What a privilege and a gift this will be!

Pink Flowers

My dogwood tree has two pink flowers!

Champion of Change

My days are filled with the truth of change.

My husband and I are noticing the effects of change. We learned that we would be able to live a dream and move to England.

Cashiers United Methodist Church is noticing the effects of change. I announced my departure, and my colleague announced his six-week sabbatical.

The Wesley Foundation is noticing the effects of change. My husband and the students are anticipating the close of this semester and the inevitable goodbyes.

My two year old daughter is noticing the effects of change. Just days ago she began the new journey of night time sleep without her pacifiers.

In the midst of it all, my daughter is undoubtedly the champion of change.

To be very honest, I am not sure who misses the pacifiers more, my daughter or her mother.

My own separation anxiety does not arise out of the minimal restlessness at night in the time before sleep; instead, it finds its way through my not too distant memories (last weekend in fact) of that little mouth and those little hands clutching those little pacies.

Admittedly, I shed tears even thinking about it. I recall the constant and careful rotation, as we would sit and read. From right hand to mouth to left hand and back again, the pacies would move as if on an amusement park ride. Yes, tears. But, tears of joy and new life.

Somehow the changes in life for me, as monumental as they really may be, pale in comparison when seeing through little girl eyes--when remembering the goodness of pacifiers. I am a grateful mother. And my daughter is truly the champion of change!

Moments of Surprise...Over and Over

I scared the turkeys away this morning when I stepped onto the back porch.  I watched and listened to them fade away into the hill.  I, also, caught a lengthy glimpse of a beautiful woodpecker on a tree.  It changed its course before my daughter could see it for herself, but we discussed its visit.  If it is not a moment with the turkeys or woodpeckers, it's a moment with the deer or owl or bear or hummingbirds.

For some reason, moments such as these continue to surprise me.  Even after four years of living on a secluded mountain, I somehow have these experiences over and over, as if for the very first time.  I guess this is the undeniable city girl in me.

When we moved to Glenville, I didn't have any concept of darkness.  I had always lived in places where street lights illumined the night.  To be honest, I know now that I had never really seen stars and certainly not a shooting star streaming across the nighttime.

Every time there is a full moon, as there has been lately, like clockwork I ask my husband the same question, "Did you see the full moon?"  Really, his response should be, "Of course...  How could I not see it on this dark mountain."  But, he always graciously says, "Yes."  Then without fail, I respond, "Oh, isn't it gorgeous?!"

I deeply appreciate the beauty of the mountains, and I treasure every surprise moment that I experience over and over.  Yet, I still can't deny the city girl in me.

Thatcham, England

Our home-to-be in Thatcham!!

Glenville, North Carolina

Our home in Glenville!!

A New Home

I am anxiously waiting for my pink dogwood to bloom! Sadly, it didn't bloom last year because of a heavy April frost. Those beautiful pink flowers were noticeably absent, and the view from my front porch swing was simply not the same without them.  Now the springtime snow has fallen on those bare, dogwood branches. The freezing temperatures have persisted for several days.  I am holding my breath and watching.

My heightened sentiment for those pink flowers has come in response to the news of our upcoming relocation to England. I have really begun to notice the things of home--to see them with very sensitive eyes. So...I continue to watch and wait for the pink of the dogwood to appear. I gaze out from my front porch with hopefulness and anticipation. For me, this is more than simply a view--it is an image of home.

I am well aware in these cool, spring days that the location of my home will soon change, and I am clinging to the image of the dogwood that is life, peace, identity, quiet, family, simplicity, joy, comfort, place, and gift (yes, a tree from my husband!). What is a dogwood in bloom here will be something else there.  We will exchange one place of home for another, and we will watch with hopefulness and anticipation for home to arise.

What I ultimately recognize in this image is that the things of home translate beyond Glenville, North Carolina, even into Thatcham, England.  What we have discovered throughout our years in Glenville we will joyfully rediscover in Thatcham.  It will be a welcome adventure to embrace a new culture!  It will be exciting to explore this English town! It will be a blessing to find home in the midst of it all!  And it will be so special to have these experiences with a lively, perceptive two year old!

I am grateful for my pink dogwood tree--flowers or no flowers--because in the midst of transition, it helps me to anticipate a new view that will narrate the familiar--life, peace, identity, quiet, family, simplicity, joy, comfort, place, and gift (and maybe a new tree awaits!). I look forward to life that remains filled with these things of home. I look forward to a unique setting for life together. I look forward to gazing out from another vantage point. I look forward to a new home!

Speaking Words Aloud

There is power in speaking words aloud!

Although I knew it very well as a concept, it wasn't until I began to say out loud, "I will be moving to England and serving in The Methodist Church in Britain," that this concept became real--that this idea came to life.  As my own spoken words fell fresh upon my ears (and the ears of everyone on the listening end), I realized immediately that this actually meant that I would be moving to England...!!

Admittedly, there was a part of me that thought, "Oh my!"  Yes, there was a moment when I said to my husband, "Wow, this is really going to happen."  Obviously, England was the ultimate dream and goal; yet, somehow in speaking this aloud, it had new impact.  It had a new claim upon my life.  In uttering these words, I was uttering words of truth.  I would see, know, feel, understand, and respond in a different way after having heard myself say it.  I was reminded that there is power in speaking words aloud.

I am grateful for this reminder!

After all, speaking words aloud is pivotal for my covenant in ordained ministry.  So that I am faithful in my calling, I must be faithful in preaching--in speaking aloud the words of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  There is certainly power in speaking these words.  Once they roll off the tongue and fall afresh, one hopes with all hope that there is new impact--that there is a new claim upon the lives of those on the listening end (and, yes, maybe even on the one speaking).

With distinct impact and refreshing claim upon my own life, I am humbled to hear myself say, "I will be moving to England and will be serving in The Methodist Church in Britain."  Yet, I know that this humility has little to do with me and everything to do with God's grace that opens hearts, forges a path, and grants courage for response.

I have discovered a new sense of responsibility in uttering words of truth, as there is promise that they will be both impacting and life-claiming.  Without a doubt, there is power in speaking words aloud!

Oh, the Joy of Easter!

I was waiting for definite word about where I would be serving at the start of the new appointment year. It was a holy week like none other. I spent the week in quarantine with my husband, both of us suffering with influenza. Although much of this time was a blur, I finally received a clear word about my next church appointment. This would be one more step in the direction of new ministry, fresh opportunity, and in this case exciting adventure! I began to remember what comes on the other side holy week--EASTER! And it was time to share my good news with Cashiers UMC.

We have celebrated! We have rejoiced! We have sung praises! We have remembered the wondrous resurrection! Oh, the joy of Easter!

The disciples long ago discovered this joy, as the resurrected Jesus surprisingly appeared to them on various occasions. Jesus even instructed them, as Luke tells us: “You can see now how it is written that the Messiah suffers, rises from the dead on the third day, and then a total life-change through the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed in his name to all nations—starting from here, from Jerusalem! You’re the first to hear and see it. You’re the witnesses. What comes next is very important…”

So, what does come next for us as Easter people? We may very well find ourselves in the same posture as the disciples, following the ascension of Jesus Christ. “And they were on their knees, worshiping him.” We are overjoyed and humbled by the resurrection, but we are waiting to see what lies ahead.

The disciples were in between the glory of resurrection and the “what’s next” of life in faith. They were waiting for the promises to be revealed. They were anticipating something, but not sure what that something would be. Yet, despite the uncertainty, the “in between” was a place filled with hope and blooming life. And the disciples would have to balance delicately the present and the future.

These seasons of the “in between” can be exciting in our lives of faith, especially if we remember the hope and blooming life that abounds. We must always remember the hope and life in Jesus Christ, and we must expect that something will come next for us, as Easter people!!

I find myself completely reliant upon this hope and life because I am living in a season of “in between.” I am trying to balance delicately the present and the future. I am trusting in the promises that come with life in faith and ministry, and I am expectant for what will come next. Easter is the gift that has reminded me that there is hope and life amidst the in between, and this brings me to my knees!

In the past couple of months following the announcement of my anticipated summer departure, I have been grateful for the outpouring of love and concern. It has brought to light both the gift of faithful life in community and the difficulty of transition. Many people have asked about the “what’s next” for me, and I am pleased to share with you my plans for ministry beyond Cashiers.

Following an extensive application process and months of waiting, Timothy and I have very recently received confirmation from The Methodist Church in Britain that we will be placed in ministry appointments to serve churches in England. We will be moving in August to the county of Berkshire, which is directly west of London. Depending on which manse (parsonage) we choose, we will be living near either Newbury or Reading and serving in two separate but adjacent Circuits. I will be serving in the Newbury and Hungerford Circuit and Timothy in the Reading and Silchester Circuit.

This has been an exciting yet daunting decision, but thanks to Easter I have been reminded once again that there is hope and life in the “in between!” There is promise in the journey of faith! As I anticipate the experiences to come, I will cherish and hold tightly to the experiences of ministry that I share with you right now. May you know that by the grace of God these experiences are shaping my life and leading me forward into this new adventure.

I prayerfully trust that you too will find hope, life, and promise in what lies ahead for your life of faith and for the ministry of Cashiers UMC! Oh, the joy of Easter!

This is truly a dream bursting to life!

New Direction

Following nine months of discernment, I disclosed in early 2008 to the church where I serve that I was seeking a new ministry appointment. Honesty is very liberating. The message that I shared with the congregation of Cashiers United Methodist Church introduces the new direction of my journey of life and ministry. These words begin my reflections of life at the riverbank.

I would like to have been at the river that Sabbath day. The prayers were being lifted in harmony with the soothing, life-giving waters. The fellowship was bearing witness to the need for life lived in community. Lydia and her companions were engaging in the familiar—sharing the everyday. Unsuspecting. Unassuming.

The visitors strolled along and joined them by the river. Little did the women know that this meeting would transform their lives. Little did they know that they would be set on a new direction of faith. Little did they know that the Lord would make an opening for them that would compel response.

We don’t know much about this encounter between Lydia and Paul and their friends, but what we do know is that Lydia heard something new that day. The familiar and everyday became something more. Her transformation and new direction culminated in her response through baptism, and she heeded the call, as “the Lord opened her heart.”

I often imagine myself sitting at the riverbank with that group of praying women. I think about such a grace-filled, seemingly unlikely occasion when hearts are opened and the word of the Lord falls afresh on innocent ears. I recognize the effervescent possibility at the waters edge when that call is heard. I understand all too well the transforming power of such an encounter.

I have been at the riverbank, and I have heard the unexpected call afresh on my ears. For me it means transformation and new direction, and as startling and unsettling as it may be, I have realized its truth for my life. Following much reflection and discernment, God has helped me to envision for myself a new path of ministry, and I have been compelled to respond.

At the start of the New Year, I submitted a formal request to our District Superintendent for a change in appointment. In this my fourth year of service at Cashiers United Methodist Church, I am humbled by my experiences of ministry and am grateful for the growth and learning that has come to me in this place. However, I see the inevitable promises of ministry that are to come at Cashiers UMC, and I honestly know that I am not the one to carry it forward.

With the needs of families, youths, and children at the forefront, I clearly understand that my own calling and giftedness do not compliment these important areas of ministry. I trust that there is another gifted clergy colleague in the waiting in the Western NC Conference, who can provide with energy and excitement new vision—new leadership—for our growing church. With this said, there is a wealth of opportunity for the next associate minister to be a leader not only in age-specific ministry but also in teaching, preaching, and providing pastoral care.

I do not yet know where my next appointment will be, nor do we have any idea at this point who will be appointed at the time of my departure. However, we do know that appointment changes are made at the end of June and that they happen concurrently. In the meantime, I will continue to live with you in the Cashiers UMC family, and I will continue to share this ministry that God has given us. It is my distinct privilege to be in service with you, and I thank you for your constant love, uplifting support, and faithful prayers.

I am honored to have been the first of what is sure to be many associate ministers at Cashiers UMC. I am thankful to have been able to help identify needs within this growing congregation and in turn to have been able to identify the desires of my own heart for ministry. At this point, I am no longer sitting at the riverbank. Instead, I am responding to God’s leading and am walking in a new direction of faith. May God’s grace and love sustain us along the way!


The journey continues...