AUGUST

Ahh, August. Hard to believe it is already here. August means that summer is dwindling down and families are preparing for the start of a new school year.
   My time at L Church is dwindling down. The pastoral candidate will preach on the 21st with a congregational vote to follow. I will be leaving sometime in September.
   There might be a new L church to serve closer to home, which would in a way, be nice and I won't have to contend with the hour commute one way, and put fewer miles on my van which has enough miles for a van twice its age! Fortunately they are mostly highway miles.
   There will be some grief as after nearly four years I have come to love and know these folks. But it is time - time for them to move forward into something new, time for me to move on also into something new.
   I will miss the L cluster and the neat things they try to do together - Lenten Round Robin with all our churches, some joint services - Epiphany, Ascension, etc. and joint confirmation classes which
I have been a part of and enjoyed even though it meant long Sundays. It was good to get to know these wonderful L pastors and all they do and how they serve.
   I will miss the cookies of the baker here at this church. They are the best iced sugar cookies I have ever had.
   I will miss the choir here - small but talented.
  I will miss seeing the Reservoir I cross on my way here and Lake Milton.
  I won't miss some of the traffic through Akron - especially now until I leave. Carmeggedon has
just begun in Akron - with bridges being rebuilt and lanes and ramps closed. It will be a veritable
nightmare.
   I will miss the homebound folks that I visit regularly and bring communion.
  Sigh. It is part of my journey to move on and along. Even our Lord had no place to rest his head, and was ever on the move. This has just been a more prolonged rest along the way.
   I am grateful to the Lord that I have been able to serve here and for these 4 years of employment - even if it was without medical offset or pension. LH and I have managed. Grateful that LH has
insurance and he gets pension, even if the medical costs us as much as our monthly mortgage!
    Being a "tweener" or interim is always wondering what comes next and trusting mightily in
God that there will be another congregation to serve and to prepare for new pastoral leadership. It
also means trusting God that my gifts and what the congregation needs will work together well.
Moving on the next church is always stepping into the unknown. I try not to be too anxious and
spend much time in prayer in preparation.
    August will most likely go rather quickly and slowly I will begin to move things out and
celebrate with L church that their interim journey is ending and a new beginning is before them -
full of hope and possibility.
   I pray for a good ending here and new life that awaits them and even me!