I pray that you and yours are well and want to thank all of you for your notes and prayers about this Bishop Discernment moment in our lives together. I've always felt loved in my time at St. David's, but the memories and prayers that many of you have shared with me over this past week have brought back so many important moments in our life together, and remind me of how blessed we are to be together as this church on a mission. Thank you.

So, we're in this very public moment of discernment about who will be our next Bishop here, in Pennsylvania. There has been a lot of private and public prayer leading up to this point. There have been numerous interviews and conversations between the Search Committee and the clergy seeking God's will in this. On March 12, one of the nominees will be elected. We will know (or hope with all our hearts) that God's will has been made known to us and the next Bishop of Pennsylvania will be chosen. It will be a dramatic and clear discernment, and whatever is revealed, we can rest in the truth that God has spoken and we can follow where He has led us.

It be great if our every day Christian discernment was so clear-cut! Our following of the Lord of life would be so much simpler if there were set dates for getting our answers from God. For most of us, discernment is often too subtle or fluid to realize that God has directed us or answered a prayer. We long to know God's will and purpose for our lives and for the lives of those we love, but we're not sure we know - that we really know that God is guiding our lives and answering our prayers.

Hearing God's call is much more subtle and fluid than an election date, that's for sure, but the promise of God is that He answers our prayers. God is willing to guide us and, more than that, walk with us. I think the walking with us part may be an important clue for knowing God's call. Jesus invites us to "Ask", "Seek", and "Knock" and God will answer our prayers. Isaiah reminds us that discernment is revealed as we turn to the right or to the left; in other words: as we are moving. When we do, then a voice, God's or some person's, encourages us that we are on the right path and that's when we know.

So allow me in this time of discernment to say your prayers. Ask God to reveal His purposes for your life. Listen for God's voice. Take a step. If we will, then we will know.