Sunday is gone, as is the calendar year 2007. Winter is here, 2008 is here, school is almost here, the future is near. I have things I wish to write today, yet I know not where to start. so lets start with Sunday and go from there.
Sunday was an amazing day, a challenging day, and an exhausting day. I awoke early and hit the road before the Sun had risen. I drove and I drove and eventually arrived at a Methodist Chapel next to a cemetery. I was the first to arrive, having left a bit earlier than needed and making the trip in slightly less time than I had anticipated. So out of the car I went into the frigid morning air and walked through the cemetery and examined the exterior of the church. Then back to the still warm, at least relatively warm, interior of the car. The re-listening of a song I heard on the way built upon the words of Doctrine and Covenants 162. A car arrived, its occupants exited it and entered the church and soon I would follow suit. Within the church I would find my way into this foreign sanctuary and try to get centered, focused and adjusted to these different surroundings. I would converse with various people, would find that I had my early perpetration notes with me, but as for the later ones I had grabbed copies of a Prayer for peace service and not the reflections and dabbling of my mind upon the themes and scriptures for this day. No worries though, as rarely do I preach from the notes or a manuscript directly, but do like to reflect upon them before hand.
The service would start, prayers would be given, words would escape my lips and though they flowed they did not flow as well as I would have liked. The service would come to an end. I would stay around and speak with people and shake their hands. They were a wonderful group of people and I was pleased to get this opportunity to meet them. Then after a bit it was back into my car and back onto the road and soon found myself at another little church. With just two people there when I arrived, and soon a handful or two more would arrive, including the pastor, my friend, who I was filling in for.
here in this congregation almost all the spoken words found within the service came from my lips, where as at the last it was split between me and another. so different from what I am use to. When it came time for the sermon, it flowed much better than the time before. Perhaps one could say it was the first time, for while both were upon the same text, with the same focus the words used and the ways of drawing imagery were different.
The service ended, and then after visiting with those there it was time to go with my friend and her brother to eat a quick bite and visit and then back on the road to return to Kirtland and share with friends a bit and realize just how exhausted I was and so found myself soon taking a nap. I wonder how my friends and classmates survive this? As some of them have two and a few even three congregations, and it takes a lot of energy to give one sermon, but two plus presiding… was wow… Granter probably most of them don’t have the two hour drive on either side but still…
Monday was a good day to end the year with, yesterday was a good day to start the calendar year with. For the new year we received a nice snow, I spent yesterday with friends rather than doing chores that needed to be done. I now look into the days and weeks ahead with joy an anticipation.
Friday will be a long day as I must drive to school, spend the day in class, and then drive back. This I will do for three weeks before having a week off from class and the start of Spring Semester. The 13th I will be missing my family, as they share together with the Eugene Oregon Congregation in the Sacrament of the Blessing of Children and my two youngest nieces will be blessed. The following Sunday I will be preaching in Kirtland, Ohio so I now enter once again into the process of reflecting, thinking, and pondering over themes and scriptures, and how I feel the Eternal One calling me to serve and share the the Good News…
Ah I am sure there is much more to write, but my incoherent ramblings must draw to a close at some point, mustn’t they?
Peace be with you,
— Lyle II