cruise

I returned Saturday from a 7 day cruise in the Eastern Caribbean.
I always feel guilty that we do this - every year in January - but it has really become something that I look forward to in December. It is not Christmas that wears me out so much as the end of the year business of the church - nominating committees, budget for the new year, congregational meetings, etc. I have influence but no real power in any of this but somehow feel responsible for all of it. By the time the year is over, I need a break.

Cruises work for us because Chuck and I have different needs for vacation. Food is reallly important to him and cruises take care of that! I want to be taken care of and have lots of possibilities of activities and no place that I have to go for sure. So, this year we did less than ever. No tours off the ship - just kind of walking around. No shopping. No beaching. Reading, sleeping, looking at the water and, of course, eating. It is also wonderful to have time for doing nothing and not thinking about church at all.

I started every day with my devotional - reading a great book by Eugene Peterson and read completely through a thousand page book by Ken Follette. That was a real gift to be able to lose myself in a novel about the middle ages. I did not think about my church - but I did spend time with Father Phillip in the book and could reflect a bit about the work of ministry through his eyes. It was all good for me.

Coming back to Columbus felt okay - I was ready to go back "into it." And what "it" is is congregational life. Sometimes it feels like I live in the guts of it all - caring for people of all ages and situations, trying to sort through issues that come and go in the life of the church and take on greater meaning than they probably deserve, praying for God to show me/us the way this year. I love what I do, but I am blessed to have time away to take the time to breathe before I go back into this life.