June 29th will see both of our worship services led by SLLC members of WELCA (Women of the ELCA). Krista, Saoirse, and I have taken the opportunity for some time over in Marinette, WI at Krista’s parents’ house on the Menominee River. Yesterday and today, I got up early, put on my impressive collection of flyfishing gear… all newly given to me by my parents-in-law, and waded into the river for some comical mayhem!
I don’t know how the fish feel, but I’ve got to be absolutely terrifying to the equipment! In only an hour of messing around yesterday morning, I managed to liberate four flies from my arsenal before giving up and coming in to review how to tie-on. After figuring out how that’s done, I decided I needed to add some leader material to my fly line, so that took up about an hour last night of fumbling with the tiny, nearly invisible strands of fishing line. This stuff is not easy! I guess that’s one of the reasons I’ll keep it up… because today I was able to claim marked improvements over yesterday’s performance as I was in the water for almost two hours and I didn’t lose a single piece of tackle to the river.
Sometimes, I like to do things that are completely foreign to me, just to experience again the beginning of something that will take some time and effort to master. Rock climbing was that way (even though I’m not able to crank on hard routes, I know how to stay safe, rig a solid anchor, and keep everyone around me safe), and if I remember way back to when I was a kid I recall snowshoeing being quite difficult before I figured out how to keep from getting tangled up every other step and ending up on my face. My bicycling friends like to have me with them when we go mountain biking, because I’m not exactly the smoothest rider out there… I enjoy approaching the bike and the terrain like John Henry might have approached a hammer and drill steel, but that’s probably not a good comparison because John Henry made that look easy. I don’t always end up “hitting it square” when I’m on the bike.
This is not unlike the experience of becoming pastor at Spring Lake. Preaching, leading worship, and getting to know what the likes and dislikes are of the regular Sunday congregation are activities that leave me feeling very new, somewhat self-conscious, and off-balance. But this also heightens the experience of feeling like I’ve gotten a little further each time… kind of like having a couple hours of throwing fly line in the river without losing any tackle or snarling up the leader on the tip of the rod.
The congregation will have a young preacher on its hands this weekend: Ashley Mages volunteered to give the sermon. She’s already sent me a preliminary copy of what she has prepared, and I’m very impressed with her discipline and attentiveness to the text. If I know anything about the folks at SLLC, everyone will be cheering for her to do a good job, and she’ll receive plenty of pats on the back after she’s done, thanking her for standing up and preaching to them.
One key practice I use when I’m just getting into something for the first time is to find someone who shows mastery, and someone who’s also just getting to know the ropes. This way, I’ve got someone to “watch and learn” and someone to give and receive support during those times when I feel like the material got away from me. This is the kind of community and hospitality I feel reflect the best sides of a congregation like SLLC, a community of faithful service, hospitality that genuinely welcomes people and encourages them when they feel lost or left out.
Have a great weekend everyone! Krista and I are going camping in Door County, and on Sunday we’ll be riding in the Menominee River Century… I’m doing the 180K ride on my single speed, and Krista is going 25 or 50 miles on her new touring bike. Oh what fun!
