This week I was talking with some friends, and the topic of our little blogging community came up. Then, Katie turns to me and says, "You should post more." I don't know if that means that she likes what I write, or if it was just to encourage a greater participation in the blogging community. So this post is for Katie (she is one of the links on the side).
There has been all kinds of things going through my mind lately. I have this whole question of sin and evil going on because of a novel I read and helping friends with their commissioning questions. I also have all kinds of Trinitarian things going on in my head because of Dr. Chun and Dr. Martin. I also have been thinking about what it means to live a Eucharistic life, which I believed I posted about before, also due to Dr. Martin. All of these things are jumbled in my head and I can't seem to come up with anything coherent thought, which doesn't usually stop me, to write here.
On top of all of this that I've been thinking about, I have to start really looking for a job for after I graduate. I like the idea of graduating and not having to go to school for a while, but I don't really know where I'm going to end up. Sometimes I envy my pastor friends because they don't really have to go through the whole job search thing. But I don't feel called to that kind of ministry, and I do not envy my pastor friends for not knowing where in the conference they are going to end up. That can be a source of great stress.
I want to work with the church, side by side with the church not in it. I want to live Eucharistically not preside over the Eucharist. I want to help people live into their Baptisms, not actually perform the ritual. I want to work in a way that will bring the meaning of these rituals into the daily lives of the people with whom I come into contact. I want to help church to happen outside the walls of a church building and aid pastors in leading the congregation in living out its call to communion. This is the vision I have for ministry. I think this is a lot like what deacons are supposed to be, but I want to do it outside of denominations. I want to work side by side, not from within. I love the church and I want to make it more real in everyday life through experiences that are not "church."
What do you guys think? Should this be in my cover letter?
mark
