Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Skiing reflections

We had a great time at our retreat at Luther Crest this past weekend. The facilities were perfect, the food was great, and all in all I highly recommend Luther Crest to any group looking to plan a retreat. We had a fantastic group of youth, of course, which made everything twice as much fun.

The cross-country skiing was a lot of fun, which for me means that I only really fell about four or five times (some people have higher standards). Pastor Paul showed us the ropes quite well, and so it is not his fault that I kept falling over sideways. I even got to use my fledgling downhill skills once or twice (on very small hills). It helps that I tend to laugh when I fall (the worst has happened, and it was not that bad, and actually it was pretty funny).

The challenge for me, with skiing, is that I do not like that feeling of being out of control. When I strap on skis and introduce any sort of slope to the equation, I am not in charge anymore. And, like most people, I suspect, I don't like that. I want to be in charge of where I am going, both literally and figuratively.

This, of course, tends to get me into trouble when I try to ski (as in, I don't get anywhere). But it gets me into even more trouble in the rest of my life. Because, really, I'm not in charge: God is. And God's will is going to end up being done, not mine. (That's why Jonah gets so angry in our reading for this week. He knows that God is going to do things God's way, and he does not like it.) But that's what being called by God is all about--it's about God being in control of our direction. And because it's God who is in charge, even the parts where we mess up can be opportunities for grace. So yes, even when we fall over, we may end up laughing. (And yes, like with my skiing, we may need practice!)
~Pastor Sarah

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