Elm Street Congregational Church Newsletter

A Letter from Pastor Linda
March 2010

Dear Friends,

I don’t know about all of you, but I can tell you that each year, after Christmas has come and gone. I take a deep breath, I say a prayer of thanksgiving for the gift given to all of us in the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ, and then I take a week off to recover and renew. The season of Advent and Christmas is always busy with the preparations that lead up to Christmas Eve: banner building, Advent candle lighting, concerts, the Blue Christmas service, delivering poinsettias and baskets for our homebound members, and the other minutia that is such an important part of planning for this liturgical season of waiting and celebration. And I know I am not alone in saying that the “busyness” of the season, whether it be church related or family related, can be tiring indeed. Many of us long for a time of rest, not just during the season, (when rest seems to be one of those gifts that we may not find placed under the Christmas tree, wrapped in festive paper, and topped with a large, brightly colored bow), but afterwards as well.

All of us lead such busy lives. I know that for me as a pastor, my daily work week revolves around the church. Meetings, visitations, counseling, outreach, worship preparation and sermon writing, conference work, and community work, keeps me on my toes, and many weeks, especially if I am called to do a funeral service or a wedding, there is little time left over for family, friends, and just plain rest. And I know many of you live on a very similar schedule. I have come to the realization though that living a life that allows barely any time for renewal and rest is a sure fire way to burn out and to possibly make yourself sick, maybe not in body, but in spirit and mind and I would say that I am probably not alone in that revelation.

About two months ago I went before the Church and Ministry Committee of the Hancock-Waldo Association for my periodic review. This is a time when a minister can sit down with the members of the committee, along with our conference minister, David Gaewski, to “check-in,” and to let them know how you, as a minister, and the congregation you are serving, are doing. Joan Jordan Grant, a contemplative, and a member of that committee and one of the founders and owners of the Alcyon Center, a place for spiritual retreat located in Seal Cove on Mount Desert, asked me a question related to my sabbatical leave that is coming up in June. Joan knows, as well as I do, that many pastors take their sabbatical time to study, to take courses, to travel to various places around the globe that are known for feeding ones body, mind and spirit, like Taize, France or the Iona Community in Scotland. She also knows that I lead a very busy life both within the church setting and also as a community volunteer. So Joan asked me, “Linda, during your sabbatical, how are you going to feed yourself spiritually?” Now I have been thinking about this for a long while now and my answer to her was simple and clear. “I am going to take care of me” was my reply. “I am going to take time to rest, to read, to knit, to spend time with my husband, my children, my grandchildren, and my animals. What feeds me spiritually is time with my loved ones and time in the outdoors and so Dick and I are spending a month at China Lake. I experience God in that place.” Joan was very happy with this answer because it was “me” and “God” centered, which in this instance she felt was a good thing, and so do I. I am speaking to all of us who tend to be “work-aholics.” Rest and renewal is critical to our well being. I am not alone in this congregation when it comes to working hard and community involvement. There are many of you who fit that same mold and I hope that all of you know who you are. Time for “me” and time for God has to be part of our daily ritual; there needs to be time to enter into an attitude of prayer, a time of communing with God, where there are no other distractions to take you from God’s presence. God is always there for us, walking with us, holding us when needed, supporting and encouraging us and pushing us to be all that we can be. But in our busyness we many times tend not to have time for God, or we miss God’s still speaking small voice that speaks to our heart and to our mind and we miss it because we tend to get so caught up in our running around that we don’t take time to listen, to discern, and to “be.” So, hard though it is to change our habits of working 24/7, my vow as we enter into this season of Lent is to change, to take time for myself and more importantly, time to be in God’s presence and to listen and hear God’s voice speaking to me. That resolution means I have to change, a disturbing and scary word to be sure. How many of you need to change also? Be honest with yourselves and then make that effort. It will make all the difference in your life and how you live it.

During this Lenten season, SLOW DOWN, take some time each day for you and God. Be disciplined about this and don’t make excuses. “I’m too busy” doesn’t cut it when it comes to your relationship with God. God always has time for you. Spend some time each day with God. Fill your well with God’s Holy Spirit and renew your relationship with the Holy One. My dear friend and in care advisor, Rev. Susan Stonestreet, gave me some really good advice as I was wrestling with taking just one more summer course my junior year at the seminary. She told me to take the summer off, to rest and renew, and she said to me, “Linda. Just sit and listen to the flowers grow.” What good advice for all of us to remember. Take time with God not just during these 40 days, but take time with God every day of your life. It will make all the difference in the world. Blessings to all of you as you walk this journey through Lent.

Yours in Christ’s Love,

Rev. Linda A. Smith, Minister