“It’s about time you learn how to shift,” said my Aunt Barbara. She was exceptionally cool. She was a special education teacher in Indiana. She was interested and interesting, with boundless energy. One summer day, while visiting her home outside Terra Haute (IN), she took me for a ride in her “VW beetle” to buy some things for a family barbecue. On our way back from the store, she stopped the car on a quiet road, got out and told me to get behind the wheel. I did. She became the passenger. She went on to instruct me on how to shift and clutch and brake . . . with great care, patience and affirmation, as we lurched our way down the road. I had just turned 15 and was eagerly anticipating my drivers license. Aunt Barbara knew that; she said that my parents didn’t have to know about this lesson . . . right away; but the experience has stayed with me for a lifetime.
Here at LAC we have made special note of matters of “shift” . . . change, and transition. Jed Koball coined the term SHiFT (for Senior High Fellowship Time); indeed, there are changes and transitions embodied and borne by our teenagers. This past year, we have generated discussions and study under the theme of “Paradigm Shift.” To be sure, there is a shift upon us as a church, as we grow and move into the future, as we consider new and different ways of participation, leadership and organization. In April, we took a step in reducing the size of each board – session and trustees – from 18 to 12 (deacons remain at 18). With that move - and along the way - we have noted the possibilities, and necessity, for a new pattern of involvement, within our busy, intergenerational, growing church family. We are different as a church from the ways we have been, particularly at the apex of American church life and membership, 30-40 years ago. The culture about us is different insofar as the configurations of our families, the roles of women, the activities of our youth, the demands on time, outlooks, diversity, use of technology and more. The implications of all this for our ministry and the life of the church are challenging. As we have been blessed by Jed’s presence, we will soon be welcoming a new associate pastor. Thanks to our growing sense of change and “shift,” there is a new, developing sense of leadership and participation emerging here at LAC – with members and ministers – doing and being the church. We are a community of Christ of all ages: welcoming and gathering in love, growing and learning by grace, going forth to serve.
Learning how to shift has it’s challenges. It can be awkward, with lurches and bumps that can be unsettling. But shifting is important, because it’s how we grow and go forward. And, the good news is, we do not go alone. God is on our journey as we venture on as a community of faith, guided by grace throughout all the shifts ahead.
Faithfully yours,
Bill
