I recently went to Duke Divinity School in North Carolina for some continuing education. Well, I didn’t really go to Duke, but joined in a virtual conversation for their annual Fall Pastor’s Convocation series offered for pastors across the country.
The Dean of Duke Divinity, L. Gregory Jones, addressing the webinar, explored “Navigating the Future in the Midst of a Heavy Fog.” Jones contends that we are currently experiencing four overlapping pandemics: COVID, racial injustice and systemic racism, economic disruption, and a mental health crisis. Any of these on their own have the ability to trigger massive anxiety and disruption, but the compounding realities at the intersection of these issues creates a deep unease within ourselves, our families, our churches, communities, and the world. Jones compared the looming chaos and unpredictability to a heavy fog.
I don’t know how you drive in heavy fog, but I’m overly cautious. Even on the roads of Butler County, which might be familiar to me and well-traveled in my daily life, I move forward with hyper-attentiveness and restraint, trying to anticipate what might emerge from the mist. What’s ahead? When do I need to slow down or turn? Each of these are difficult to comprehend when not able to look ahead with clarity.
Throughout the biblical narratives, people often met God in cloudy and foggy moments. A fog was lifted from eyes and hearts. God spoke from the cloud and the Spirit descended. Jesus was shrouded in haze on the mountaintop during the Transfiguration and the Israelites were led by a pillar of cloud and fire through the wilderness wanderings.
We don’t know what the coming months hold, but we trust that God will meet us in the fog of our lives and bring transparency. The One who has been faithful throughout all of history, will continue to guide us. As we move through the clouds of this season, we are planning with clarity for the future.
Looking at our 2021 Mission Spending Plan, you will notice that we have some new additions. Our congregational and community needs continue to grow, so we are proposing new staffing positions to help us grow in faith, first, adding a Director of Faith Formation. This person will devote attention and energy to engaging and equipping people of all ages with tools and opportunities for deepening their discipleship, by inviting them into transformational learning and serving moments.
We also hope to round out our digital strategy by hiring a part-time Digital Ministry Coordinator to help Lord of Life sustain high quality online worship and faith formation experiences, while also supplementing and enhancing our in-person experiences. As we have seen during the pandemic, the way we worship has changed and has allowed us to remain connected while socially-distant and reach people that previously were not attending in-person worship.
What a gift it is to not be in the fog alone. God promises to be with us and, to sweeten the deal even more, God gives us traveling companions who encourage us and walk boldly into the future with us.
Navigating together,
Pastor Lowell