July 15, 2022
I spent an afternoon this week with two of my East Metro Episcopal Church colleagues: the Rev. Anna Doherty from Christ Church in Woodbury, and the Rev. Lindsey Biggs, the new priest at Saint Mary's, in St. Paul. It was such a pleasure to invite Anna and Lindsey to Saint Anne's, the midway point between the three churches, and give them a tour of our beautiful grounds, building, and sanctuary. It was wonderful to hear about everything happening in their communities, and it brought each of us a feeling of connection to something bigger than ourselves to hear that some of the same wonderings, some of the same explorations, and some of the same desires to grow into what's next for the Episcopal church in this world are being expressed in each of our communities.
More than anything, it was wonderful to imagine in an outward way again, after so long of being so (necessarily) inward focused. I hadn't realized how much I missed the spark of Spirit that comes from connecting with other communities to share and hope and dream more widely. My afternoon with Anna and Lindsey reminded me of this offering from Bishop Steven Charleston, posted on his Facebook page this week:
What do you need most right now? What would be of the greatest help? Once you have clarity of focus you can create a spiritual strategy for yourself. That will include prayer, of course, but it can also include intentional reading, small group conversations, meditation, contact with the Earth...or any number of other sacred resources designed to support you. Our needs are not always met quickly or easily, but they feel less overwhelming when we have a plan to cope with them. Your primary need is a good place to start on the way to establishing wholeness.
My first prayer for you this week is time to discern the question What do you need right now? My next prayer for you is one of gratitude. Thank you for being part of this community and the support we offer one another in answering questions like this - first for ourselves, then for our church community, and then for the wider world. Little by little, we are laying the foundation for the wholeness that comes from living into the answers. Dreams and visions become God's beautiful reality when we make it so, together.