"How is it with you in your call?"The question came from a woman I had just met at the Pacific Northwest Quaker Women's Theology Conference. It took me by surprise, but after I thought for a moment, I said that there had been a lot of energy at the conference around beginning the journey, and that is not where I am. I feel like I am on the path, but just plodding along.
The call to ministry is exciting and sexy. Trying to live a life of ongoing faithfulness is not.
I have been a public Friend for six years now. Not long compared to some, but long enough to get past the initial excitement of the call. Sometimes ministry is exciting, sometimes it is horrible, and sometimes it is just a slog.
I have found that, once Friends are on board with the idea of ministry, there is a lot more focus on getting started than on the tools we need for a sustained life of ministry. I hope that those of us who are doing this work can find ways to encourage each other in the middle and along the way.
I agree that living into the Call in the daily is often difficult. I can and do so easily forget to do the things that keep me yoked in Love, or sometimes I even consciously chose not to. Then the life and vibrancy is all but gone and my soul is lonely.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Connie. I don't know if this is where you were going with it, but I was reminded recently of the important spiritual practice of doing things that bring me joy. Fortunately, one of those things is spending time with my nieces and nephew, and I have been able to do that a lot lately!
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