A Different Kind of Walking

Over the New Year weekend my wife and I went  up to one of our favorite places in the world, Grand Marais, MN. For those of you who have never gone it is a quaint harbor village of about 1300 people on Lake Superior. In the summer it is bustling with tourists and outdoor enthusiasts, but in the winter the visitors are drastically reduced because of the harsh winters of northern Minnesota. Emily and I have never gone up during the winter, so it was an adventure for the both of us.

We knew a lot of the shops were going to be closed, and they were, so we decided that we needed to have an adventure of sorts. We went about 30 miles inland up the Gunflint Trail in a bit of a snow storm to catch the start of a dog sled race (I was driving with white knuckles most of the way there!). But on the way back down we went snowshoeing. We rented a couple of pairs earlier that day and opted to trek on a cross country ski route closer to town than the dog sled race.

Now I have never been snowshoeing in my life. It was a bit awkward to start out knowing that your heel is actually about 18 inches longer than you are used to! I felt like a little kid walking around in their parents shoes, gingerly walking to make sure nothing fell out of place and praying I didn't make a fool of myself by falling down. After a few minutes I got the hang of it and was able to walk with more ease.

Trying new things or living into new things is a lot like snowshoeing it seems to me. It starts out with ourselves being rather self-conscious and hesitant about setting out. It takes some clumsy steps and some mistakes to get the routine and hang of things. But in the end...it all works out. We become accustomed to our new reality and we make the best of it.

At the congregation I currently work at we are taking off the comfortable shoes of our senior pastor and are setting out to put a new pair on. I can almost guarantee you that not having him around will at first feel like we are snowshoeing for the first time. But... it will get better. As we continue the ministries of God in this community we will see that God's work goes on! And soon enough we will have a new senior pastor who can guide us with their wisdom on how to walk forward on the path of discipleship.
 

As celebrate our senior pastor's retirement, we should be comforted in knowing that while the leader may change, while we may stumble for a moment, we are not alone. Psalm 119:105 reads, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." God is with us showing us the way and how to be God's people in this place, that will never change. So strap on your snowshoes, and let's get walking!

Peace,
Tom