Most of
us are probably familiar with the ancient proverb: "A journey of a
thousand miles begins with the first step." On Friday, April 20, we
began a journey together… now this was not quite the first step. There
were interviews, letters, telephone calls, candidating, calling,
packing and moving before this. Maybe we could call them pre-steps…
before the actual first step of "officially" starting our journey
together.
When Harold asked me for an article for
the Weaver I begin to think of what I could write. I thought of many
things… then my thoughts went to the book of Joshua and the first steps
of entering the promised land. In Joshua 3:15-16a we read: "Now the
Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when
those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the
priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the
waters following from above stood still…" I like the image
presented here. The priests come to the water's edge, the Jordan is at
flood stage, the waters are raging by, how do we cross such a torrent?
By taking the first step. No journey can begin until that first step is
taken.
Where is our journey going to take us? I
don't know. I have some hopes and dreams which, over the coming months,
I hope to share with you. You have hopes and dreams about the future of
FBC and I hope, over the coming months, you will share them with me.
|
And then, together with God, we can mold and fashion those hopes and
dreams into a reality of ministry. It may be different than anything we
have imagined… sounds Scriptural: "Now to him who by the power at
work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we
can ask or imagine" (Eph.3:20). Or, it may be just what we imagine…
but it will not/could not happen until these first steps together are
taken.
Thus, we begin our journey together. A
journey of faith. A journey of hope. A journey of unexpected
adventures. A journey that we do not walk alone, for our God walks
with us. We may not know where God is leading us but we do know that
God IS leading us. It is with that hope and determination that Diane
and I look forward to many years of working together with you in
partnership in ministry. We don't have all the answers, in fact I have
far more questions than answers… but as my mentor, friend and
colleague, John Drane often says, "It not necessarily in knowing the
answers, it is more often in asking the right questions!"
We begin. We have taken the first few
steps. We are excited. We trust you are too.
Pastor Dennis
(P.S. Many people struggle with Plourde - so I am very comfortable
with Pastor Dennis!)
|
