Pausing at the Threshold

Aaah, summer. We’ve been told it’s the time of the year to catch up on fun, reconnect, put our feet up, cool down. We can finally get out on the water, take that trip, update the landscaping, read that stack of novels, finish the to-do list, do nothing. As a kid, summer seemed to stretch on endlessly, which was sometimes glorious, sometimes lonely. As an adult, time moves faster. Even before I had really come to appreciate that the green trees were here to stay for a while, I overheard people lamenting that summer is almost over. And finally having put away my sweaters and wool socks, excited to be outdoors, my joy was tempered by the record high temperatures and fears swirling about the future of a warming earth.

So many mixed messages from earth and culture.

Like many folks, our friends at Soul Matters took July and August off, so it’s up to us to name themes for these months. July was “everything’s different in July!” Many thanks to Sandy Nelson, Dan Swenson, Emily Fraser, Amy Betz, and others who helped make all our fun alternative activities. For August, I chose Threshold as our theme. We are on the threshold between what was and what will be. We always are — but I let’s use August to practice thresholding consciously as a community. The author Karen Hering introduces the idea here:

In its most literal definition, a threshold is a strip of wood or stone at the base of a doorway. In many houses, it is a sill intended to keep the mud from washing into the home. In my cold, northern climate, it is also an important barrier to keeping the cold from sweeping into the house in the winter. In China, a threshold might be three or more inches high, keeping the rainwater outside but also encouraging attentiveness and an awareness of the honor of being invited into someone’s home….

The word threshold also describes the doorway itself and the larger entrance into a building or home. It represents a contact point between interior safety and the outside world… It is a locus of vulnerability where we face the possibilities of transformation, not only in our surroundings but often in identity. On the other side of a threshold, we might be required to do things we’ve never done before, to face fears we have shunned for years, or to discover new gifts as well as limitations. 

Trusting Change: Finding Our Way through
Personal and Global Transformation (2022), pp. 1-2

Understanding summer as a locus of vulnerability, where I’m preparing for changes in myself, my environment, and the community, helps me reconcile the mixed messages I’m hearing. It is a time to rest and recover — and enjoy — but yes, change is coming: how do I want to show up for it? Let’s pause at the threshold. As a congregation, let’s be attentive to our needs, desires, hopes, and fears as we look toward the next phase of our life together.

What is on the other side of the threshold this fall at the Fellowship? We are moving out of pandemic recovery mode and into rebuilding. Many of our core volunteers are seeking assistance and/or new leaders to whom they can hand off responsibilities. Board members are deepening their trust in each other and their understanding of Fellowship governance. Our new Community Team is just taking shape, composed of the former Seed Team, the Minister, the Board Chair, the Director of Religious Education, and the Office and Communications Coordinator. The Board will set goals for the coming year and the Community Team will offer clarity about the roles, responsibilities, and processes for meeting those goals and sustaining our work over the long term.

One of the most important changes on the other side of this threshold is “called ministry,” which is new for the Fellowship. Following the congregational vote last May, the membership now understands the Minister as more than a staff member with specific responsibilities; I am a partner with the congregation in articulating our evolving vision and mission. I offer leadership on an indefinite rather than contractual basis. Called ministry requires new communication pathways, new decision-making structures, and ultimately new versions of our covenant and by-laws. We will learn how to do this together, with the support of regional staff and other congregations.

With the lead-up to your decision to call me as your Minister, the office staff position empty for over seven months, the subsequent hiring process, and my work to support the developmental needs of the Fellowship coming out of the pandemic, I am a bit tired. I took some time off in July for vacation and study leave and will be gone another week and half spread out in August (8/10-14 and 8/28-9/4). During this transition time, I will continue working closely with our new Office and Communications Coordinator, Hannah, who is quickly getting oriented. And I’m excited to continue connecting them to other church leaders and processes. August as a “threshold” month gives us a bit more breathing room before the church year formally starts in September.

Please breathe, rest, reflect, enjoy, care, and hold your horses. Summer isn’t over yet!

Warmly,
Pastor Isa