Barbara Brown Taylor was once asked to speak at a church conference. “What topic would you like me to speak about?” The minister in charge said, “Come and speak about what is saving your life right now.” It’s an incredible topic. How would you answer it? What is saving your life right now?
On a personal level, my answer is often, my husband Dave. Anyone who brings me coffee every morning is truly saving my life! And that is Dave. But on a more serious level, he is such an incredible partner not only in life but also in ministry. We spend many hours talking about church and faith and where God might be leading us as a congregation. He is a saving presence for me every day.
But when I think of the church, what is saving my life right now is the staff. We are blessed with an incredible staff. Always have been. But in the last year, we have had lots of transitions. As of Monday, we are “fully staffed” again. I look forward to coming to church because I know I will be met with the amazing talent, compassionate energy and sweet laughter of our wonderful clergy and staff. They fill me with hope for our future and it is truly humbling to serve alongside each of them. I don’t use the word “blessed” lightly when I say I feel so deeply blessed by each one of them and by their synergy as a team.
And then there is you. According to Webster’s, a minister is “a person or a thing through which something is accomplished.” That means that YOU are also a minister. Through you, God is accomplishing something. Through our church, God is accomplishing miracles. The real job of the church staff is to empower you to be ministers in this world of ours, where God’s love is needed in every corner. And so YOU are also what is saving my life right now. Thank you.
October is the month that was set aside to celebrate “ministry.” It would be a mistake to see that as a celebration of the clergy. In our denomination, The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) members can do everything that clergy can do – serve the holy bread of heaven or even baptize. Because your hands and feet are the instruments of God in this world. Your mind and heart are the vehicles for Christ’s light to shine.
What is saving your life right now?
Grace and Peace,
Carla