In the throes of transition

Along with the recent series of military transfers from our church
has come a trickle of new, incoming people. God has a way of
balancing everything out. Our new sound man came drifting in the
door and stayed. His mother was so pleased with the changes she saw
in him (particularly after summer camp) that she came and stayed and
now leads our Hospitality Ministry. Her name is Leona and she is
unreal. She arrives at 7:30 AM to prepare for a 10:00 AM service, and
she cooks every Sunday morning. Cooks. Not snacks. One Sunday she
made breakfast burritos. Last week it was blueberry pancakes and
chicken salad sandwiches. The woman is a serving machine. I have to
credit the local mega-church for some of that --- they really have a
way of training people to serve, and Leona came from there.

There are others: young couples full of promise, full of challenge,
and wanting to really make a difference. Singles with hopes and
dreams and passion and talent. It is the stuff of pastoral dreams.
But it doesn't come problem-free. People are complex. Relationships
are messy. Group dynamics are difficult. In a constantly growing,
constantly changing environment stability is difficult to maintain.
It really feels sometimes like we are juggling chainsaws.

There are some areas of success, for which I can take no credit;
there are areas of difficulty and challenge for which only I will be
blamed. Such is the nature of "the-buck-stops-here" leadership, I
suppose. We have people who need to be more closely mentored and it
seems there is never enough time. There are changes that need to be
made in programs and leadership and I am often too slow to act,
making it even more difficult when I finally act. God is about to
send more capable leadership our way to help with leadership
development, and His timing is always perfect.