A Daily Report

Thursday has become a day for out of town meetings.  I've been going to a pastoral staff meeting at North Heights from 11 - noon on Thursdays, but today, the third Thursday of the month, there are two other groups to attend to.  I'm on the board for an organization dedicated to helping volunteers serve senior citizens and the disabled, an organization that has been called "Faith In Action of Wright County."  Today, at our regular monthly meeting in Buffalo, we renamed it "Wright At Home: Independence for Seniors" and approved a new logo.  After that I met with Twin Cities LCMC pastors for prayer and conversation, this time at Holy Cross Lutheran in Maple Lake, a church building that also houses Sola Publishing.  Earlier today I was at my desk, where I often pray and study, communicating with people who are in various leadership positions at Crossroads.  I'm back at my desk now--my desk at home.

One of the purposes of this blog is to let people know what I'm up to.  That's even more important than it used to be because Crossroads doesn't have a full time staff that keeps me in line ;-) or an office where I report for duty each day.  Neither my current part time interim pastoral contract nor the contract that is in the works for Sep 16, 2011 through Sep. 15, 2012 requires me to keep everyone in the loop as often as I do, but, for me, that's part of what "Sharing Ministry and Faith" is about.

The more-or-less major projects in the works right now are doing what I can to encourage and work with our church's leaders as they get the education program going for youth and adults, working toward getting plans together for the Crossroads retreat (save the date, Friday evening through Saturday mid-afternoon, Sep. 30-Oct. 1) and, as I discovered I need to do last night, work with our leadership to describe our church's mission and vision--that's for the Alliance of Renewal Churches congregation application.  All of this needs to be done with boldness, humility and teamwork, and putting this up in public will help our people feel they are a part of things and that decisions aren't being made in secret by some authoritarian "Herr Pastor."

I'd like to listen as well as speak (or write), so please don't hesitate to call or write back.  As my new "senior pastor" Per Nilsen tweeted yesterday, "Leaders who refuse to listen will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing significant to say."  You all who are now, or who are considering becoming partners at Crossroads: You have the gift of God's Holy Spirit among you!  Please share your thoughts, your dreams, your prayers, words of correction.  You are no less important than anyone else, and the Lord may be speaking in and through you now, with words that we need to hear.

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