This past Saturday through Tuesday, I was able to go to St. Paul, MN for a couple of days. Among other things, I was able to meet with other leaders in efforts of Faith Formation and catch up with some friends. I was also blessed to experience God's sense of humor and perfect planning in my life, even when it may at times look like organized chaos. So thank you God...
for friends who offer their home to you as you get ready to step on a plane with reservations already made,
for a tugging on the dress from a two-year old, waiting with arms stretched out to share peace.
for an expired driver's license, 2 days after tuning 30...a sleek rental car turned into a super blue shuttle and creative freedom to explore on foot and city bus a beautiful city,
for colleagues who encourage relationships, not to do lists,
for a cross necklace from a middle schooler and something that I will wear until it wears out,
for an additional meeting with someone I had hoped to meet with, but could not get a hold of,
for an odd turn of events that saved me from dating a man I did not know was married,
for the gift of music and being able to sit in on rehearsals last minute,
for retreat.
Thank you God for perfectly planning a trip I thought was already planned.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Move forward, yet never forget
Last night I couldn't seem to watch enough about 9/11. Ten years. Incomprehensible. Something each program kept emphasizing was that we move forward, yet never forget. And after about the 7th or 8th time of hearing this, I listened a bit closer and wondered. Is this how we live life no matter what? We move forward, yet never fully forget? Are there pieces to forget and some to never forget?
Broken relationships, death in the family, songs on the radio, sermons that stick with us, books that hold us captive, the feeling of winning, of losing. This list is by no means a comparison meant to lessen the events on 9/11. It's the best I can do to understand if but a piece of what it feels like to have to move forward from such a tragedy, and to not forget.
In the back of my mind, words from Philippians 3:13 churned.
"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead"...
What if 'forgetting' is afterall actually not 'forgetting'? I don't believe Paul was saying he banished the past from his mind, nor could he. Rather, there may come a time where to forget the past or parts of it, requires a choice. That we have to chose to not feed certain elements of the past in remembering them. Instead, straining (sometimes in every sense of the word) forward, not to forget, but to live and as Paul continues, to "press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
Those interviewed were each at a different place, handled the grief and processed it in different ways. Regardless, each was straining forward, to not forget.
To move forward and to not forget also means to learn from the past. However, learning is not solely based on having done wrong. It is in learning how to grieve, how to let go, how to trust again, to love more deeply and see life in a new way.
Tomorrow the High School Youth group meets for the first time this year. Many of the youth were in elementary school when 9/11 happened. We live in a post 9/11 world, in which they have grown. My prayer for them is not that they remember, but that they never forget.Often times, life is found in loss. Their freedom came at a cost. Even our freedom in Christ Jesus came at the cost of the cross.
Also to never forget that we are protected on a daily basis by people who have committed their lives to protecting others. To do what we can to remember those who lost their lives in 9/11, the HSYG will write letters of gratitude and encouragement for firemen and women at Fire Station 6 of Colorado Springs. Thank you and God bless you for your service and sacrifice.
Broken relationships, death in the family, songs on the radio, sermons that stick with us, books that hold us captive, the feeling of winning, of losing. This list is by no means a comparison meant to lessen the events on 9/11. It's the best I can do to understand if but a piece of what it feels like to have to move forward from such a tragedy, and to not forget.
In the back of my mind, words from Philippians 3:13 churned.
"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead"...
What if 'forgetting' is afterall actually not 'forgetting'? I don't believe Paul was saying he banished the past from his mind, nor could he. Rather, there may come a time where to forget the past or parts of it, requires a choice. That we have to chose to not feed certain elements of the past in remembering them. Instead, straining (sometimes in every sense of the word) forward, not to forget, but to live and as Paul continues, to "press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
Those interviewed were each at a different place, handled the grief and processed it in different ways. Regardless, each was straining forward, to not forget.
To move forward and to not forget also means to learn from the past. However, learning is not solely based on having done wrong. It is in learning how to grieve, how to let go, how to trust again, to love more deeply and see life in a new way.
Tomorrow the High School Youth group meets for the first time this year. Many of the youth were in elementary school when 9/11 happened. We live in a post 9/11 world, in which they have grown. My prayer for them is not that they remember, but that they never forget.Often times, life is found in loss. Their freedom came at a cost. Even our freedom in Christ Jesus came at the cost of the cross.
Also to never forget that we are protected on a daily basis by people who have committed their lives to protecting others. To do what we can to remember those who lost their lives in 9/11, the HSYG will write letters of gratitude and encouragement for firemen and women at Fire Station 6 of Colorado Springs. Thank you and God bless you for your service and sacrifice.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Back from Labor Day weekend and as I worked today, words from a friend from South Dakota lingered in the forefront of my mind.
"It's RE-creation, not REC-reation Mary...which one are you doing?"
Sister Donna, a Catholic nun with the Sisters of the Presentation in Aberdeen, SD is a family friend and a truly delightful woman. In her late 80s, she doesn't miss a beat. Much of her youth was spent as a professional dancer, a part of a family group called the 'Brown Kittys'. We met her at a trumpet soloing performance in South Dakota with the SD Symphony Orchestra one Christmas a couple years back. Ever since that meeting, she has become a part of my journey through life. Conversations can last up to three hours and include topics such as boyfriends (or lack there of), life decisions, and questions.
Every conversation will for sure include, along with my topics, her topics; Sacraments, Irish Celtic Spirituality, dance, recreation, the Holy Spirit, with a sprinkling of the Mother Mary for taste. (She often adds she knows quite a few good Lutherans too :-) Every conversation opens with prayer and ends with prayer. It's a staple. So much so that even if the phone battery dies, we re-connect to finish in prayer.
Among her many accomplishments, and one she is passionate about, is having received a bachelor's degree in recreation and leisure from Central Missouri University, Warrensburg. She sees recreation as something holy, that recreation is not a destination, rather, it is a state of being. It happens in living out the mundane and the extraordinary each day.
I think I get what Sister Donna is saying in ways better felt than written though. One thing is for sure, RE-creation sounds more enjoyable than REC-reation.
Signing out, Sending prayers,
Mary
"It's RE-creation, not REC-reation Mary...which one are you doing?"
Sister Donna, a Catholic nun with the Sisters of the Presentation in Aberdeen, SD is a family friend and a truly delightful woman. In her late 80s, she doesn't miss a beat. Much of her youth was spent as a professional dancer, a part of a family group called the 'Brown Kittys'. We met her at a trumpet soloing performance in South Dakota with the SD Symphony Orchestra one Christmas a couple years back. Ever since that meeting, she has become a part of my journey through life. Conversations can last up to three hours and include topics such as boyfriends (or lack there of), life decisions, and questions.
Every conversation will for sure include, along with my topics, her topics; Sacraments, Irish Celtic Spirituality, dance, recreation, the Holy Spirit, with a sprinkling of the Mother Mary for taste. (She often adds she knows quite a few good Lutherans too :-) Every conversation opens with prayer and ends with prayer. It's a staple. So much so that even if the phone battery dies, we re-connect to finish in prayer.
Among her many accomplishments, and one she is passionate about, is having received a bachelor's degree in recreation and leisure from Central Missouri University, Warrensburg. She sees recreation as something holy, that recreation is not a destination, rather, it is a state of being. It happens in living out the mundane and the extraordinary each day.
I think I get what Sister Donna is saying in ways better felt than written though. One thing is for sure, RE-creation sounds more enjoyable than REC-reation.
Signing out, Sending prayers,
Mary
Saturday, September 3, 2011
A very good day, complete with a win from the Air Force Falcons football team. They played USD (University of South Dakota) and as it turned out, I was able to catch up with Dr. Olson, a family friend and fellow trumpet player. The office work tonight for a couple hours rendered me 95% ready for tomorrow. The remaining 5% (sign up sheets, registration preparation and tent set up) left for tomorrow morning will leave a mark...but....it will get done.
Tent set up. As I have said before, instructions are occasionally viewed before diving into something. Example. All the tent materials were laid out on the Fellowship floor. Simple. Put the poles through the fabric and lift the structure until tent is on all fours...
Nope. After a better look at the instructions I know that 'this assembly takes two people'. The tent remains on the Fellowship floor. My goal:
1. get to the church before the 8AM service start,
2. find the second person to the assembly team
3. assemble the tent
4. start registration for the Fall retreat
5. next time, follow the inner nudging to find help and set up earlier.
Ministry, make that, anything in life can be difficult. Sometimes reading instructions makes it easier, but then other times, two more hands just lifts the burden. Code: single forever?
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
Tent set up. As I have said before, instructions are occasionally viewed before diving into something. Example. All the tent materials were laid out on the Fellowship floor. Simple. Put the poles through the fabric and lift the structure until tent is on all fours...
Nope. After a better look at the instructions I know that 'this assembly takes two people'. The tent remains on the Fellowship floor. My goal:
1. get to the church before the 8AM service start,
2. find the second person to the assembly team
3. assemble the tent
4. start registration for the Fall retreat
5. next time, follow the inner nudging to find help and set up earlier.
Ministry, make that, anything in life can be difficult. Sometimes reading instructions makes it easier, but then other times, two more hands just lifts the burden. Code: single forever?
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
Friday, September 2, 2011
It's fair to say
As the clock turns 7:54 PM on this Fair Friday, I sit in my office, typing this blog. Just a couple things to get in line before the weekend begins. And no, don't worry. I have not been in the office all day. In fact, I took today off! Denise, a friend from Minnesota and Luther who recently relocated to Colorado, and I went to Pueblo for the State Fair. Pictures to follow...can pictures be included in this blog? Anyways. I discovered the expo building! Whoa! After visiting a couple booths and a few dollars later, we exited the expo.
Thank you to Denise for an awesome day on the road, and I think it's fair to say, welcome to Colorado!
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
Thank you to Denise for an awesome day on the road, and I think it's fair to say, welcome to Colorado!
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
Thursday, September 1, 2011
My first....or Second Blog...
It's quite late and this coming Labor Day weekend is a full one. However, I am bothered by having set up my first blog incorrectly, or at least I think I did. If I am correct, I have written a blog, but it ceases to exist...well, all but for the title, 'Mary E. Stoneback'.
You see I enjoy trying new things and most often, rarely read all the directions before diving into something. For sure, I learn a lot in the process. So, here goes, a toast to my first...or make that second, official blog post.
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
You see I enjoy trying new things and most often, rarely read all the directions before diving into something. For sure, I learn a lot in the process. So, here goes, a toast to my first...or make that second, official blog post.
Signing out, sending prayers,
Mary
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