ok, if you're visiting the blog to see pictures of the most adorable boys in the universe, as voted by the perry household, just scroll past this post of musings....i don't usually use this blog as a journal but am feeling nostalgic today. :)
my dad resigned from his pastorate and in the midst of the holiday season, multiple attacks of the flu, a missions trip to africa and family death, my parents have been trying to move from their 10 room parsonage into a 3 room (very cute!) apartment downtown. this has been a huge task!!! i was cleaning it over the weekend and was flooded with memories from this house, which has been our family's home since the spring of 1995, when i was finishing up my eigth grade. it is overwhelming to see it empty, after serving as an integral element of my parents' ministry for almost 14 years. so many pop-ins, the phone ringing off the hook, individuals coming to be discipled and counseled, guests for meals...i figured that if my parents had five people over every week for a meal for 13 years, that would be 3,500 hundred people. but that is a very modest guesstimate, considering multiple meals in a given week, usually with more than five people invited! considering all of this activity, the house seems hollow now, and my parents are adjusting well to the quiet life that most people enjoy in their homes, or 'sanctuaries from the world.'
as i was vaccuuming my old bedroom, i remembered my first night in the house. i was laying on my bed, a little fearful of a new life in boothbay, but feeling inspired and awe struck by the most fantastic spring thunderstorm outside. it was exciting to be starting fresh somewhere! before boothbay, my family had lived in six other places since my birth as the Lord directed my parents to new ministry opportunities. establishing nearly 14 years of roots has been a special experience for my family!
i've been thinking a lot about 'what church is' over the past few years. certainly our purpose is to 'glorify God and enjoy Him forever' (john piper), but i think a big purpose of a church is living 'life together' (the title of dietrich bonhoeffer's amazing book), walking together on our Christian journey, encouraging, uplifting, and challenging each other to grow and mature, and spurring each other on to do good deeds.
i have so many precious memories of life together with the church in boothbay. what a special thing to be a part of a church family! that bond that we have in Christ is so extraordinary. the trust, fearlessness and joy that you can share in relationship when Christ is the glue. my first sunday school teachers were pam townsend and marilyn sewall. my first and dearest friend was lucy tabbutt (now unger). what fun to play with lucy and doug at harborfields! the men and women in the church felt like uncles and aunts, and even surrogate mothers. i loved having company at our house, and being involved in the youth group, church ministries and mission trips. i loved growing from a kid in the youth group to a mother in the women's group, and utilizing my gifts in the church. life together in boothbay was characterized by laughter, so much laughter! it was beautiful, and i was so proud of my parents.
i have had a very idealistic view of the church because of these wonderful experiences and memories. the past year has been very educational in that regard! God certainly does work all things for good for those who love Him. i joke with logan that God brought us to boothbay for 'ministry bootcamp,' because the lessons we've learned have been priceless. a big one has been the value of church discipline, because 'a little leaven
will leaven a lump,' and because you only help your brothers and sisters when you correct them and set them back in the right direction. the biggest lesson by far, however, has been the importance of clear communication. church conflict is like any other conflict. i felt much like a child watching their parent's relationship disintegrate into divorce, feeling the frustration of knowing that the heart of the problem is miscommunication or no communication at all, that they are misunderstanding each other and viewing things from the irrational perspective of hurt and gossip. satan's greatest weapons against the church are persecution and deception (according to my favorite seminary professor, dr. mcdonough), and as benjamin franklin once said, 'a half truth adds up to a big lie.' when you misunderstand the intentions of someone else, it is easy to vililfy them and manifest hurts where no hurt was ever intended. nothing is more helpful with conflict than when the individuals involved speak directly to each other as soon as possible, so that sides are not drawn and gossip doesn't distort reality. the dangerous thing about misunderstanding someone else is that you then make assumptions about them, and "you know what happens when you assume something: you make an a_ _ out of you and me!" :)
last year, i felt abandoned and cut off from my church family, and i had to grieve that loss. now i am to the place where i can cherish those fond memories and trust that God will bring healing both to the church and to my family, in His perfect timing. my hope is that as people from the church prepare the parsonage for the next pastor, they will be reminded of the laughter shared with the mcnutts in that place, and hearts will be softened. as we all continue to grow and mature in our Christian walk, i pray that grace will abound. we have all made tragic mistakes and must fall on His mercy to forgive and work this for good. conflict can be a tremendous opportunity, if you learn from it and grow stronger because of it.
let us all become less, so that He can become more.
The boat is hidden by the footbridge in this picture, about 1/3 of the way into the picture from the left.
You can see the front windows of the boat right about the snowbank in the middle of the picture.
A chilled painter walking up the gangplank. :)
Benji was thinking, "What?!? I hope you're planning on serving us some REAL food tonight!!!"
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