I "Kid" You Not.

I recall that when I was in my early twenties, one of my neighbors (who was in her late nineties) would never refer to me by my name. She would always say, "Little girl...", which I found interesting. Of course, with an age gap of seventy-plus years, she was free to call me whatever she liked. But as quaint as the moniker was, it wasn't true. I was dealing with bills and illness and the harsh consequences of poor decisions. The stereotypical "little girl" concerns of toys and games and dolls and dreams had long left my personal narrative.

On Sunday Pastor Richard Griffiths preached. It's not the first time he's preached. And, it's not the first time God has had him to depart from convention and follow the Holy Spirit's lead. But our expressions of surprise and astonishment at what God did through him seem to betray what's in the depth of our corporate heart: we are still expecting to see the Richie of twenty years ago, or even of ten years ago.

One of the drawbacks of serving in the same church one attended in youth is that others often retain the "old" narrative of who a person used to be, and they fail to notice when a shift in narrative has occurred... that is, they fail to perceive who the person has become. And the funny thing is that we know narratives shift, because our own narratives have shifted as well, but we're still blown away when we see what God has done in our pastor.

I'm not in a position to proclaim a corporate apology, and even if I were, that's not really what this blog is for. But I do think it makes sense to start this week's posts with a personal apology before I begin any discussion of Sunday's sermon. So, Pastor Richard, and I am feeling like I ought call you Richard and not Richie, I apologize for every time I've been surprised at how God uses you. I apologize for every time I've forgotten that you're an ordained Elder in the Church of the Nazarene. I apologize for ignoring that your ordination activated a particular impartation that is no longer unusual, but is now the norm-- a thing I've known in my head for some time, but until yesterday failed to embrace with my heart. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me for hanging on to a Richie that no longer exists.

To the rest of my readers, particularly those who are connected to Bronx Bethany, let's remember that God's been doing a "new thing" for the past few years, and we need to get on board. As we go through this week we'll reflect on a few of the things Pastor Richard shared concerning God's Agenda. My prayer is that all of us will release ourselves from all of our old narratives, so that we can clearly hear and know what God is saying in this new season.