Reflections from ngli

Hey Friends!
Happy Fall! Pumpkin spice abounds and the leaves are starting to change. As we enter this season of hibernation and dormancy, we’ll take time to reflect on all we’ve done and dream about all we want to do. Our garden did great, and we have plans to expand. Weekends of Wonder continues, and we hope it will grow. Our livestream is active even as we continue to learn. Our rummage sale was a success, and we have other fundraiser ideas in the works. Power Pack is back and continues to feed our community. We’re doing a lot!
 
For those who don’t know, I was accepted to the UCC Pension Boards’ Next Generation Leadership Initiative. In this program, the UCC invests in young-ish clergy with the goal of creating transformational leaders. In September, I spent a week in Memphis, TN with about 14 colleagues as we started our NGLI journey together.
 
As I considered how to bring the information back to Solomon’s, I wrote down some thoughts:

We are a healthy church! We have a good culture of inclusion and community. Can we be MORE inclusive and welcoming? Yes! Of course, we can. But we’re good at welcoming new friends into our church community, and that’s not something every church can say. We also have a wonderful vision! The Search and Call Committee did a great job of discerning who Solomon’s feels called to be. With that vision in mind, and with focus, we can steward our resources well and effectively describe who we are.

Our calling to creation care and environmental stewardship was affirmed – at least for me. In November, we’ll do some more discernment together regarding this calling.

You are part of the Solomon’s UCC community because you WANT to be! Gone are the days when societal pressure obligated us to be Christians and to attend church. That means there is a reason you continue to participate at Solomon’s. I encourage you to reflect on that reason, to identify that “why,” and then to share it with others. What is it about Solomon’s that keeps you here? How can you invite or encourage someone else to experience that? Is there a way we can further cultivate that?

​I want to hear from you! Solomon’s is YOUR church! As your pastor, it is vital for me to receive your feedback, ideas, dreams, hopes, and concerns. God calls to you just as much as God calls to pastors. YOU are God’s church; we are the church together. I’m just your guide. ;)
 
Please be in touch with questions, ideas, concerns, needs, and critique! God has us working together for the good of God’s beloveds. Let’s further that work and obediently pursue the vision God has shared with us!
– Pastor Julia