The Elders were recently asked to write about three pivotal moments in their Christian formation and many have generously offered to share them in the newsletter. If you would like to share about God at work in your life, contact Mary Grimm.
By Ashley Weinard
Vision is my most precious sense. I work in the arts, so observing and analyzing visual information is part of my every day. Wisely, God uses vision to get my attention. I have to make an effort to hear Him, but it is easy to see Him at work around me. So, it is not surprising that the pivotal moments of my Christian formation begin with an observation.
The first moment is when I began to see Christians as unique individuals shaped by their faith. I was not raised as a Christian. Stereotypes were reinforced by my parents, my non-Christian friends, and popular media. I had Christian friends, but I never looked closely enough to see how their faith formed them. That changed when I was 24, living as a graduate student in New York. Perhaps it was because the city is a sea of people and I needed an anchor or, more likely, it was because I fell in love. Whatever the reason, I met two people who looked different. One was a close friend, the other a boyfriend. Holly and Chad were intriguing because they humbly shared their faith in Christ and helped me see that what I loved most about each was actually Christ in them. That was the start of a disequilibrium that left me wondering what truths were forming me from the inside out.
The second moment was on a mission trip to Rwanda. My husband and I went there to visit an orphanage for children of the genocide. We took open hearts and lots of art supplies. The children and I drew pictures of the volcanos out their back window and I cried as they joyfully sang “This is the Day that the Lord has Made.” What I saw there was a faith deeper than terror, torture, and loss. The Christians we met wore their own stigmatas and were alive to tell the tale of how Jesus brought them through crisis and the ensuing work of reconciliation. Every time I remember that mission trip, I see the thorns of the acacia tree. This symbol of resurrection was planted next to a genocide site we visited. My husband picked a thorny piece off the tree and held it out to me in his unscathed hand. That memory reminds me to trust that God will hold me gently, in spite of the sins and sadness of this world.
Finally, my last moment is a really a series of years spent in community at Blacknall. Chad and I have been privileged to be in a collection of small groups over the last sixteen years. In each iteration, it always surprises me how graciously our friends share their hospitality, time, and honesty with me and my family. In these communities, I am invited into other people’s messy, extraordinary lives. It is a gift to observe how others rely on Christ. The view always intrigues, humbles, and transforms me.
What have you seen and how does it form you? Trust your eyes, friends. God is at work.
“Heart of my own heart, whate'er befall
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all”
Read more from the February Newsletter . . .
Pastor’s Letter by Goodie Bell
Blacknall to Host the Fellowship Community Annual Gathering by Allan Poole
Chefs for Change by Anne Paulson
Iglesia Emanuel Ministry Celebration by Margot Hausmann