Minister's Message - Rev. Phillis Dietrich
Dear Friends,
Wham! Bam! Pow!
For those of you that have a recollection of the old Batman TV series, that was exactly what it felt like to watch General Council 42 unfold. You see, I was trying to watch our General Council meeting, held in Cornerbrook, Nfld., on the computer feed. Trying to watch big events unfold ‘live’, isn’t as easy as it sounds. Our United Church’s work for General Council 42, was to deal with a Comprehensive Review...a task group, set up at the last General Council (held in Ottawa in 2012) looked at the way the church operates...and did they ever! While I tried to watch this over the computer feed, I found that change can be painful and downright hurtful. Trying to make change is also tiring. I felt like Jesus felt, wanting desperately to get away from it all, and go and find a quiet place; I also wanted to keep up with what was going on, bemoaning the lost of knowing what is going on, to not knowing. It felt like it was wham! bam! pow! Change is critical for growth. A baby needs to grow in order to live. Like this season, where our young folk go back to school, they grow physically, but also mentally and emotionally. We get excited when they come home from school, having learned new ideas and concepts. Before we know it, they are showing some of us how to make helpful short-cuts, or do things more efficiently than we ever could imagine. Change is frightening, but often healthy. Don’t ever take change ‘full-force’: it will only make you angry, and not permit you any room for understanding. Try to find a quiet place where you can read, digest, and pray about why the changes might be taking place. Singer/songwriter Sam Cooke, wrote a classic song on the album Portrait of a Legend, when he sang “it’s been a long, a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna come” – it always has and always will. Let’s be open to the Spirit’s calling when it comes to change. We just may need a new breeze to blow through.
Thanks be to God!
Rev. Phyllis
Spirit of God in the clear running waters
Wham! Bam! Pow!
For those of you that have a recollection of the old Batman TV series, that was exactly what it felt like to watch General Council 42 unfold. You see, I was trying to watch our General Council meeting, held in Cornerbrook, Nfld., on the computer feed. Trying to watch big events unfold ‘live’, isn’t as easy as it sounds. Our United Church’s work for General Council 42, was to deal with a Comprehensive Review...a task group, set up at the last General Council (held in Ottawa in 2012) looked at the way the church operates...and did they ever! While I tried to watch this over the computer feed, I found that change can be painful and downright hurtful. Trying to make change is also tiring. I felt like Jesus felt, wanting desperately to get away from it all, and go and find a quiet place; I also wanted to keep up with what was going on, bemoaning the lost of knowing what is going on, to not knowing. It felt like it was wham! bam! pow! Change is critical for growth. A baby needs to grow in order to live. Like this season, where our young folk go back to school, they grow physically, but also mentally and emotionally. We get excited when they come home from school, having learned new ideas and concepts. Before we know it, they are showing some of us how to make helpful short-cuts, or do things more efficiently than we ever could imagine. Change is frightening, but often healthy. Don’t ever take change ‘full-force’: it will only make you angry, and not permit you any room for understanding. Try to find a quiet place where you can read, digest, and pray about why the changes might be taking place. Singer/songwriter Sam Cooke, wrote a classic song on the album Portrait of a Legend, when he sang “it’s been a long, a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna come” – it always has and always will. Let’s be open to the Spirit’s calling when it comes to change. We just may need a new breeze to blow through.
Thanks be to God!
Rev. Phyllis
Spirit of God in the clear running waters