Merging is a New Journey - Alternate Plans

Sometimes while traveling, you wind up having to take a detour.  A road may be closed for construction, there is too much traffic, or there has been an accident.  Several years in a row I drove down to Texas and each time I drove that way, I was inevitably stuck behind some issue.  This was before everyone had some map program on their phone, so I was stuck with my prepared Mapquest maps and an atlas.  Usually, I just stayed stuck and eventually I was able to get on my way again.

Recently, with circumstances surrounding the latest virus that is wreaking havoc on everything, the Methodist Churches in our conference (and others I am sure) have been told to not worship in person for the next several weeks.

As you know, this past weekend was supposed to be the closing service for Wappingers and our first service together as a merged congregation.

Instead, we postponed the closing service.

And, at least my sister and I, joined our first worship service at Poughkeepsie UMC virtually.

Sparkle listens attentively to Pastor Jody.

Me and my iPad about a minute before worship started.

It was a pretty interesting experience.  My sister, on her phone, seemed to be a second or two ahead of me.  But we both enjoyed the service.  And though it would have been better in person, it was nice to have some way to worship on Sunday.

There have been times when I have needed to stay home (and didn't) and would have been okay without being in worship.  But this past Sunday was definitely not one of those days.

In a world full of crazy right now, it was great to have a way to connect with others, even though I don't really know many of them, and worship God through song, Scripture, prayer, and a message.

This will be my reality for the next few weeks.  It's an alternate plan.  But I am very blessed and thankful that there is one!

Merging is a New Journey - The Wait

Old Directory Cover created by a former pastor

One of the hardest parts of a journey is the waiting.  You plan a journey or trip.  You make reservations somewhere.  Maybe you buy a plane ticket.  You have a plan in place for someone to get your mail while you are away, take care of the pets, check on your home, or other things like that.  Everything is in place.

And then comes the wait.

The waiting for the day to leave arrives.

The waiting to get on the plane.

The waiting to check into your room.

The waiting in traffic.

Because of this very different time in our lives, we have a new kind of waiting.

We made all sorts of plans.  The church has been cleaned out.  We know where things will be going.  Who is going to get chairs, tables, Bibles, hymnals, etc.  The date has been set for awhile now for us to close the church as a place of worship.

But now, we too, must wait more than we expected to wait.

There are many ways we may be waiting.  But through all those ways, we wait with the knowledge that God is the One who is ultimately in charge.

Maybe we are feeling a bit of frustration or fear or nervousness or anxiousness or confusion or relief.  Those are all valid feelings.  But know that God will guide us through it all.

Be safe and well and kind in these days of waiting.

Merging is a New Journey - Now I Can Rest

Our most recent previous pastor, Pastor Peggy Fabrizio, came to our last Worship Service.  It was great to see her.  She had actually been with us when we started the thought process and decision process to go from a congregation on our own to a merged congregation.

We all went to brunch after the service (thanks to Perkins Restaurants for being the host to a crazy loud bunch of church people!) and Pastor Peggy joined us.  When we were all leaving, as she said goodbye to me, she said, "Now you can rest." And I said, "Yes, I can."

For many years, I had taken care of many things in the church.  I was Lay Leader, which meant I was preaching when the pastor was unavailable.  I was liturgist at least once a month.  I assisted with Communion.  As time went on, I also was the sound person and the projector operator, though usually not both at the same time for the entire service - I shared duties with my sister.  I counted the collection plate money after service and made sure it got deposited right away.  Took notes at meetings.  Tried to keep people up-to-date with photos and messages on Facebook.  And probably more that I didn't list.

But, I have not really rested.

And it is just about time to rest.

Not resting so that I become a "pew potato" - but being able to sit back, really listen and learn from others, grow in my faith, and re-learn how to be a member of a church.

Sometimes those of us in leadership positions forget how to rest.  We get hung up in all the things we need to do, that we forget we need to recharge ourselves too.  Whether that is through prayer.  Hearing a good sermon.  Sitting in on a Sunday School class.  Or just fellowshipping with others and not having to have come in early to make coffee or set up a snack.

I have so much going on in my life.  But I am looking forward to my time of rest as I reflect on what God has in store for me next.

My niece Anastasia (2015) helping me decorate the tree. A busy but also rest-filled moment for me.

Merging is a New Journey - Family Through It All

Sometimes when we take a journey (vacation, work trip, etc.) by the end of the trip there is a bit of frustration, strife, and annoyance between those who have spent the time together.  Even though going away is fun, there is still part of each of us that longs for our own comfortable bed, space we are familiar with, or even well-known roads instead of unfamiliar ones.

Vacation is nice.  Coming back is hard.  But going away often makes you realize just how nice home is too.

This journey we have been on in our congregation has been a long one.  It has been a strange one.  There might have been frustrating times.  But, in the end, when it matters most, our church family became stronger.

Those in attendance at the Last Worship Service

Our church family will be growing very soon, and there will be challenges ahead.  But to my current church family, I hope you know how much you all mean to me.  And if we had to go through this journey, I am glad to have travelled it with all of you.

Merging is a New Journey - The Lasts

When we first set the date for when our last worship service would be, the closing service, and when we would start worshipping at Poughkeepsie, it seemed so far away.  Now it is just around the corner and I have been contemplating "the lasts."

The first of "the lasts" that really hit me was back in October, when I gave my last Laity Sunday sermon within the sanctuary of the UMC of Wappingers.  It was a hard service for me, because in that sanctuary was the place where I first started preaching, and grew under multiple pastors teaching and leadership as I refined how I presented God's Word to others, and even became brave enough to preach in other places.

There were other lasts.  The last Thanksgiving Day Meal.  The last time seeing the church decorated for Advent.  The last Christmas Eve service.  And most recently, the last Communion Service.

Altar area set for Communion

The past three pastors I have served under have had me, as lay leader, serve communion with them.  It has been a humbling experience.  And one that I think has made me feel closer to those in the congregation as I offer them either the bread or juice.

But yesterday I served Communion in the sanctuary of the United Methodist Church of Wappingers for the very last time.

Thinking about it last month got me choked up.  I was dreading the day, not because of what it was but because of how I would react to it.  Would I be able to get the words out during the service?  Would I be dripping tears into the grape juice as I held the cup?

Luckily, I was able to get through the service.  Which I can only attribute to God knowing I needed to get through it.


We have a few more lasts to get through.  The last St. Patrick's Day parade where we host free cookies, hot chocolate, and most important - facilities after walking around the Village of Wappingers without getting a break.  The last worship service.  And the closing service, when the sanctuary is deconsecrated.

The lasts are the hardest.  But getting through the lasts help us get through the many firsts that are coming our way.

Merging is a New Journey - Hidden Places

The boiler room hid the brooms, dustpans, and mops.  Plus we had a variety of signs for things like yard sales.

There is a closet between the girls and boys bathroom that was the sexton's closet.  That was the best place to fill a bucket for mopping because it had a low sink.  It was also where spare toilet paper was and the nice-smelling cleaning stuff lived.

Strangely enough, my favorite hidden place was the closet that we built under the stairs in the education wing where we stored the Christmas Tree and other greens put up at Advent time.  The door was a pain to close sometimes, but that closet was so well hidden it was cool being able to tell people where it was and seeing their awe when they saw how far back it went.

And we can't forget the hidden hook in the lectern where originally two keys were kept, one for the little locked spot under the lectern where now the box that controls the projectors hides, and the other for a glass cabinet where the spare audio supplies were kept.

Those hidden places that, again over time, were learned about...much like the silverware.

Some of those places I learned about because I needed to know, like when I learned and started helping with the sound system.  Others I learned because someone else had shared their knowledge with me.  None of it right off the bat, but only after I had been at church for some time and was doing something that required knowledge of those hidden places.

I'm going to miss the hidden places.  Not because it was secret knowledge but because those places hold memories for one reason or another.  I am not advocating for learning the hidden places in my new church, because I am sure those will come over time.  But I just am going to miss the hidden places and the things that were in them.

Merging is New Journey - Silverware

If you haven't seen it by now...

My church, the United Methodist Church of Wappingers, is merging with Poughkeepsie United Methodist Church.  In just a few short weeks we will no longer be worshipping at the place some of us have known for a lifetime and others of us have known for a little bit less than a lifetime.

I wrote a blurb for our Annual Conference's newsletter that I entitled "Merging is a New Journey" because, in my opinion, it really is.  Some things may stay the same but other things will be new.  And it is a journey that all of us in the newly merged congregation will be traveling together on.

So I thought I would share some things randomly going on in my head as we prepare or pack for the journey.  Today's thought is about silverware.

When we first started attending Wappingers, my parents volunteered to help at the monthly Roast Beef Dinners.  For my sister and I, as young kids, that meant hanging around for a while, sneaking rolls and coleslaw, then drying silverware.  Whoever was doing the dishes would taunt us when a pile of silverware came through the sink.  And we would get a tray with a hand towel on it, the tray would be filled with wet, clean, silverware, that we would dry to be used for the next sitting or put away.

It didn't take long to learn which drawers the forks, spoons, and knives went in.  And soon that knowledge moved to plates, serving bowls, cups, pitchers, coffee urns, and so on.

There is something comforting about knowing which is the fork drawer and which is the knife drawer.  You don't feel silly opening 4 different drawers trying to find the right place for the clean, dry object in your hand.  It provides a sense of ownership and knowledge.

But soon I won't know where the knives go, or the forks, or the coffee urns or the plates.  It is an uneasy feeling...because even if I try to help dry something, I will have that "where does this go?" feeling that as a kid is easy to have because you're a kid and everyone tries to help you.  But as an adult, well, hopefully, there will be room to grow and learn.

 And I'll try to figure out where the forks go quickly.