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Associate Minister
Rev. Laura Horton-Ludwig
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When our worship team picked
curiosity as UUCF's theme of the month for May, we had no idea that we were going to be so intensely curious about what's coming next at UUCF. Who's going to be our new music director? And who on earth is going to be our interim minister? It's a time of uncertainty and anxiety ... and curiosity. Now, within a few days we are likely to find out just who those new folks are going to be. I promise we will let you know just as soon as we know. But for now, we're stuck with curiosity, and lots of it!
So, in this moment of uncertainty and curiosity, I want to share one of my all-time favorite quotations with you. It comes from a bishop in the Episcopal Church who knew a thing or two about congregations in transition:
"This is something I have found to be true without exception: that when we, any of us, focus on things in our lives that are passing away, we get scared, we get anxious, we get depressed, we lose hope; and when we focus on things that are being birthed and are coming newly into creation, we get excited, we get imaginative, we get optimistic, we feel drawn closer to one another, we feel as if we have meaning and purpose in this life, and we have joy. ... we are given change as an ingredient in life. We can be frightened and anxious and resistant to it or we can embrace it as a tool to transform us."
- Jim Kelsey (1952-2007)
Probably all of us are feeling sad about what is passing away in our congregation - our time with Mary Katherine and Mark is coming to an end, and there is a lot of sadness and grief and anxiety that goes with that. It's just inevitable. And the sorrow is such a fitting tribute to the love we feel for them. But I hope you will also allow yourself to enjoy the delicious taste of curiosity about what's coming next. Who will it be? What new possibilities will open up? What gifts will these new people bring that we haven't even imagined yet? Back in California I learned a song that goes like this:
We give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way.We give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way.In the spirit of curiosity - may it be so.
Warmly,
Laura
