I went recently to the OCCJ banquet where they were celebrating the director’s dedication and service for the last 32 years. They had 32 people talk briefly on how she had impacted their lives. When it was over, she said that she felt like she had been to her own funeral. I went to a friend’s mother’s funeral on Tuesday. She had lived over 90 years. They told wonderful stories about the things she had taught them. The neighbor told lovely memories of how her home was always open and loving. The pastor talked about how she had been missed since getting ill because she volunteered so much at the church. She wasn’t famous or even a regular leader. She was a good mother, wife and friend. It made me wonder what kind of things people would say about me if I died. Would my kids say I taught them anything? Would it be that I will be remembered for always being at the church rather than putting people in my life first? I hope not.
This Sunday is All Saints Day. Traditionally, the church remembers those who have gone before them. They often lift up the people who helped create the church and sometimes give a brief history of the church emphasizing the connection to the past. Since we are a church that is less than a year old, I am using the text from Ephesians that Paul writes connecting the people directly to Jesus. Our hope comes from this connection to the past and yields it’s power to the present. Some day, I hope, Living Water will remember those that have helped lay the foundation for this group of people. That they will celebrate those who took a risk on trying something new. Saints who were created in this process of planting a new congregation.
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