July 2012 - Pastor's Reflection

“The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” – Exodus 13: 21-22

I have found that moving is always an interesting event in someone’s life. It is an event that happens to us from the moment we are first born and only ends when we are laid to rest in death. Even with the many changes and moves we make in our lives, many of us resist the change or mourn the loss of our previous situation.

Since I married my husband 31 years ago we have experienced countless moves! After being wed in Florida we headed west and began our life together in California. For a relatively small-town girl, moving into Los Angeles was a culture shock but this new adventure was exciting. In addition to the physical move of a new city, I also had the move from being a single person to being a married person. This too was exciting. During this transition I experienced another kind of move that I had not really thought much about - moving from the confidence of being surrounded by parents, family and a familiar community to the insecurity of the unknown.

Some of these moves were easier than others. I adapted fairly well to the large city, falling in love with the shopping, the activities, and the surrounding landscape. There were days where I found it was harder to adapt to being married! There were days when I wanted to go somewhere and he didn't and times when he wanted to do something and I didn't. During that time I learned that mutual compromise with the intention of benefiting the total unit (us, not me, not he) was an essential skill to making our relationship healthy and long-lasting. It was especially difficult for me to create an identity for myself in this new environment. I was often overwhelmed with uncertainty and doubt as to who I was.

Whenever a church goes through a time of pastoral leadership change the congregation may experience these same feelings – excitement, distress, worry, or insecurity. It is only when we work together and remember that the Lord always goes before us, that we can claim our true identity as Christ-followers. Let’s honor the past while looking towards the future and continue to follow wherever God may be leading us.

In Christ, I am

Rev. Pat