March 8, 2010
Hello everybody, it is time to gather around the family table to share what has taken place for the past week and to check in about the coming week. Lately it has been clear that having the election of the next bishop of Wyoming after the walkabout event is a smart move. If we wait much longer the waiting would be too much for us. We are a people who like to get moving quickly and are prepared to take the next step into the future. I hope this letter (and now posting on a blog) finds you well.
St. Thomas (Rawlins): Last Tuesday (March 2) Pat Walsh arrived in Rawlins and together we went to make a presentation at the Boys and Girls Club of Rawlins. The presentation was about the up-coming Wyoming Wilderness Camp programming year and we wanted to share with others this wonderful resource that we are blessed to have here in Wyoming. Wednesday I attended Session 2 of Wade in the Water (I was also tapped to provide the soup). During our time together we began to explore the word authority and what does that mean in the context of Baptism. This group is not short on ideas and passions about this subject (I appreciate the energy). Yesterday I presided with those who gathered in St. Thomas church. The Sunday school lesson was about the fig tree and my daughter shared with me that she now has a plant that will bloom soon. Hah, the beauty of youth.
St. Thomas also now has a web-site www.doubtingstthomas.com it is a work in progress but I admire the effort that is being put forth to connect others beyond the building!
St. Paul (Dixon): When it comes to the Little Snake River Valley aka LSRV I have been working on meeting with different people in the area. I have tentatively scheduled a meeting for next week. Last Thursday (March 4) the Apostolic Team met on-line and Linda led the discussion. We debriefed from the walkabout and shared among ourselves our thoughts and impressions of the nominees. The purpose is not to change minds but to share what is on our minds. Linda did a superb job in keeping us on task and watched the clock. Yesterday I was presiding at St. Paul’s. As the service was about to begin it looked like there was going to be a small group, yet as we moved toward starting people started to trickle in. The touching moment was having a small boy come to the “rail” during the post communion prayer looking for more bread. He was hungry! We gathered in the parish hall (the young family got home to feed their family) and celebrated a couple of birthdays and enjoyed some soup. It was a good time as other children ran about and drank hot chocolate.
St. Luke (Medicine Bow): This is their off week in which the members of this church join with the Methodist. I received more information about what took place a couple of weeks ago with the larger gathering. As it turns out there is a group of younger singers who are “touring” around the town and singing in different churches. What a gift it is for the Episcopal Church to be available for others to share their singing ability with others. This is also another opportunity for others to gain valuable experience of being in the public arena. All seems to be well, although there seems to be a couple of snags in the opening of the preschool in Medicine Bow. Continued prayers for support are welcomed as we all move toward spring.
St. James (Encampment): On Thursday Fred and Vonnie joined the Apostolic Team WebEx meeting and provided valuable information about the walkabout. Fred took great notes and shared them with the group. It is encouraging to see these smaller churches being so involved in this process. We are uncovering or rediscovering effective leadership found in both large and small churches throughout the state!
Bishop Election Process: We are quickly moving toward the election date (12 days away) and more information is coming out. I received an e-mail from Pamela RW Kandt (communications team) saying that soon there will be videos of the walkabout in 10 minute segments for people to review on youtube at this location http://www.youtube.
What is coming up this week? Today (Monday) I am working on some administrative tasks and will be traveling to LSRV for the bi-monthly Spring Bible Café (yes Spring!) as we continue to read the Psalms. Tuesday St. Thomas will have their 3rd Session in Wade in the Water @ 5:30pm. Wednesday the Ministry Developers will have their weekly check in on WebEx @ 8am; office hours at Kraft Hall – 10am to 12pm; lunch with the leadership of St. James starting around noon. Thursday I will be meeting with the Ministry Support Team of St. Thomas and if I am needed I will attend the vestry meeting, everything starts at 5:30pm. Friday I will be heading to Casper to meet with my peers and on Saturday I will participate in an Evangelism face to face meeting followed by an ordination service at St. Stephens. Sunday will be in Encampment (St. James) that will be followed by the 3rd Session of Wade in the Water. Ok folks it is time to get out into the field and do our work! Have a great week.
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