I then got in the car to pick up a buddy from high school. We headed to our 30th high school reunion and reconnected with old friends. I took one last tour of my high school, knowing that it was about to be rebuilt and the building I know so well will become a municipal center.
On Saturday, I was back at work attending a Staff Parish Committee workshop on fostering healthy communication and conflict resolution, such an important ministry in any church’s life. I enjoyed the hospitality of those who provided lunch and the thoughtfulness of all the material.
Afterward, I did some yard work to get ready for Father’s Day. Then it was time to pick up my son, for Godspeed had arrived after a wonderful week in Missouri on their choir tour and mission trip.
On Sunday, two families told me they are planning to become members of the church. I had both the blessing of serving through worship leadership at 8:30 in sermon and song, and the blessing of being ministered to by our youth choir at the joint 10:45 service. We surprised our music director with a recognition on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Godspeed.
After services, we headed to a delightful Father’s Day lunch with my Dad and my children. After some Sunday afternoon rest, it was time to take my family out for pizza to spend time with two old high school buddies again. We talked and talked of memories, of children, and of transitions in our lives.
I reflect on all this to say that so rarely, in one weekend, do we experience so many aspects of life. I found myself pausing to consider where God has been at work in it all … from death and grief, to memories of days gone by, to important vocational work of the present, to vital worship, to support for children, to love for families of origin, to wrapping the experiences up with a late night visit with old friends.
Do you ever have times when it all seems to come together? Life is a journey with many rhythms. I am reading Joan Chittister’s The Monastery of the Heart: An Invitation to a Meaningful Life in which she says “We are all seekers of the God who is here but invisible to the blind eye; who calls to us but is unheard by those who do not listen; who touches our lives wherever we are, but is unfelt by those whose ears are closed to the presence of God – who is everywhere, in everyone, at all times.”
Throughout all the rhythms of life, I hope we always remain seekers of God together.
