Water Words: September 2009

I was talking with a member of Christ Church today and we started laughing about the irony of what we learned when we were young. Many of the things we were taught are “bad” are actually very good and sacred; i.e., our sexuality. And many of the things we grew up believing are very good are actually quite bad; i.e., fried chicken!

My father ate two fried eggs every morning for breakfast, most of the meat he consumed was fried, and he chewed tobacco! He lived to be 94! But his work was physical labor on the farm and his body was in very good shape. The life I live is very different from that of my father’s. He would laugh out loud at the thought of me paying $19.00 a month to go to a gym to work out.

Life is constantly changing. What worked well 20 years ago doesn’t work so well now. Some of what was the best 40 years ago is still very good, but is easily replaced. How do we know what to do and who to be in changing times?

I believe our faith community is where we best live into the future and challenge one another about the way we think, our social values, and our political opinions.

Where else can you sit down with a cup of coffee and be taken seriously when you say, “I just don’t know what to think about…?”

Rally Day is September 13. Rally Day is the effort we make to remind folks who have taken a summer break or changed church routines that it is now time to come back, to be back, to show up, and to engage with one another.

I hope you will make Christ Church a priority in your weekly life specifically for the purpose of having one place where you constantly engage in the harder questions and difficult challenges of life. Whether it’s you sexual identity or your attempt to maintain a healthy diet, we are on the journey of figuring out how to live this life in a good and holistic way.

Let life be your religion and welcome the Christian journey as your road map.

See you in church?

—Carolyn Waters