Dialogue With God

Numbers 11 was our lectionary text for the week.  What a thrilling read that is!

I had the opportunity to lead the weekly Bible study, aka "no holds barred Bible study," on Wednesday.  The only rules are:
1. Be honest
2. Be humble
3. Be hospitable
4. Don't talk with your mouth full
After communal dinner, a group of 10-20 people gather to discern the lectionary text for the week.  What is unique about these Bible studies is the rich diversity.  The makeup of the group can't be explained as it is often a very equal mix of poor, rich, young, old, and different ethnicities.  What this leads to is a VERY rich discussion, as you hear interpretations that you often miss.  Having a poor person speak of what struggle means to them can rock your world.

Anyway, Numbers is a difficult text.  What we got out of chapter 11 was a story of God's spirit sending aid to complaining Israelites through chosen elders.  This spirit also falls upon 2 others in the camp who prophesy, at which Moses responds in disgust that people are offended that the spirit could fall on others less "qualified." I asked the people to relate themselves to people in the story and had a wide variety of responses of relating to the ones complaining, the ones feeling burdened, the ones feeling like leaders behind the scenes, etc.

This Sunday, Rev. Bill took a different angle to the text by focusing on the complaints of the Israelites and the tenacity of Moses to argue with God about it.  He spoke of the significance of this dialogue with God, being honest about struggles and complaints, all the while recognizing our place and our true needs vs. wants.

Beyond this, I had a busy week of meetings!  As I begin to discern what my specific role will be at this place, I am doing my best to learn how the wheels turn around here.  It is looking like a big chunk of my responsibilities will revolve around connecting with prospective volunteers to Broad Street programs.  Basically, I'll be doing a LOT of coffee dates and phone conversations to reach out to people pastorally, all the while discovering their gifts, needs, and how they will fit into the structure of things at Broad Street!  Easy right?

Exciting things coming up, I'll try to post as best as I can!  Things happen so fast around here it's hard to catch up with it all!

By the way, here's an image of the worship space at BSM, with the windmills and prayer cards turned into origami birds.  I'll leave the interpretation up to you!

peace,
Mike