Commissioning
10/01/16 05:09
Our congregation is blessed to have a sister church in the Los Guido neighborhood near San José, Costa Rica. The relationship began in 1988 as the result of travels by a couple who were members of our congregation and has continued with the involvement of mission travelers ever since. It is time for Vacation Bible School in Costa Rica and we’ve had members of our congregation at our sister church participate in VBS in our sister church every year since the beginning of that relationship. For the last 15 years, we have sent the same couple to represent our congregation at VBS.
Today we commission them for another trip. It is no small thing that we do. In the book of worship of the United Church of Christ there is a service for commissioning lay workers for specific ministries. If you read the book of worship and the Manual on the Ministry, another official document of the church, you might think that commissioning has primarily to do with granting authority to do specific work in the life of the church. The history of this process does, in fact, have to do with the granting of authority, but there is much more to commissioning.
When we commission our representatives to visit our sister church, we are owning their work as ours. We are saying that their mission is the mission of the entire congregation. Our relationship with our sister church is far more than a couple of people who travel from our place to theirs and volunteer in their program. It is an acknowledgement that the mission of our sister church is also our mission. The work that our sister church does is indeed our work.
There are many examples of mission work that is carried out primarily through sending money from one place to another. Funding the work of our mission partners is an important expression of faith and our congregation participates in the major mission areas of our church. But a sister church is deeper than the exchange of funds. We acknowledge that the work of our sister church is an extension of our work. Together the two congregations share equally in a common task. In Costa Rica, feeding hungry children and providing resources to keep youth engaged in school is not just the responsibility of our sister church. It is ours as well.
I have been blessed to be able to travel to Costa Rica for four visits with our sister church. I count the pastor of our sister congregation as one of my closest colleagues and friends. I admire her dedication and faithfulness. I am honored to be associated with the work she does. I have been deeply privileged to share with her in christenings, communion, baptisms, weddings and other special events in the life of the congregation.
Our entire congregation is equally honored and blessed by the work that our commissioned ministers do in Costa Rica. We are transformed by their mission and ministry.
Throughout the history of the church we have understood that a pilgrimage undertaken on behalf of a congregation transforms not only the pilgrims and those whom the pilgrims meet on their journey, but also the congregation that waits at home for their return. We who are not traveling to Costa Rica this year are invited to invest our prayer and energy in the mission of Vacation Bible School. Praying with and for others changes our perspective. It establishes connections and deepens our understanding.
Because we Christians have divided into different denominations and congregations we sometimes think of ourselves as being members of only part of the church. In reality every Christian congregation is a part of one body. As they say, we’re all in this together. Paul’s letters to the Corinthians are among the earliest documents of our faith that detail the depth of this connection and interdependency. What happens in another congregation affects us as surely as the decisions that we make impact the lives of those in far away places.
Because we do it every year, the ritual of commissioning this morning will be familiar to many in our congregation. It may feel like we are repeating something that we have already done. In a life of sincere prayer, however, repetition is not boring. Rather it is a channel to new depths of understanding and meaning. The ceremony not only reminds us of who we are and what we are about, but it invites us to take another look to see the depth-upon-depth reality of long term commitments.
It is not possible to predict the future of our sister church relationship. Our congregation in Costa Rica serves in a tenuous position. It is difficult to see the source of leadership for the next generation. We are invited to move forward on faith, trusting that somehow God will provide. But we know that God’s primary focus is not the maintenance of institutions. Institutions come and go. Congregations live their lives and sometimes come to the end of their ministries. It is difficult for us to think of it, but we do not control the future. Instead we invest in the present and engage in ministry in the time that has been granted to us. Knowing this makes each trip precious in its own right. God’s world is constantly changing. Our roles in the ministry of the church are ours for a little while only. The time will come for new leaders and new relationships. Today we celebrate the history of our relationship and re-commit to the present and the short term future. Even though we are in this relationship for the long haul, we accomplish that one year at a time, one trip at a time, one relationship after another.
The next couple of weeks will be a time of intense prayer for our congregation. We will remember our sister church in our prayers every day. And we will be transformed by our prayers. For that we are grateful.
Today we commission them for another trip. It is no small thing that we do. In the book of worship of the United Church of Christ there is a service for commissioning lay workers for specific ministries. If you read the book of worship and the Manual on the Ministry, another official document of the church, you might think that commissioning has primarily to do with granting authority to do specific work in the life of the church. The history of this process does, in fact, have to do with the granting of authority, but there is much more to commissioning.
When we commission our representatives to visit our sister church, we are owning their work as ours. We are saying that their mission is the mission of the entire congregation. Our relationship with our sister church is far more than a couple of people who travel from our place to theirs and volunteer in their program. It is an acknowledgement that the mission of our sister church is also our mission. The work that our sister church does is indeed our work.
There are many examples of mission work that is carried out primarily through sending money from one place to another. Funding the work of our mission partners is an important expression of faith and our congregation participates in the major mission areas of our church. But a sister church is deeper than the exchange of funds. We acknowledge that the work of our sister church is an extension of our work. Together the two congregations share equally in a common task. In Costa Rica, feeding hungry children and providing resources to keep youth engaged in school is not just the responsibility of our sister church. It is ours as well.
I have been blessed to be able to travel to Costa Rica for four visits with our sister church. I count the pastor of our sister congregation as one of my closest colleagues and friends. I admire her dedication and faithfulness. I am honored to be associated with the work she does. I have been deeply privileged to share with her in christenings, communion, baptisms, weddings and other special events in the life of the congregation.
Our entire congregation is equally honored and blessed by the work that our commissioned ministers do in Costa Rica. We are transformed by their mission and ministry.
Throughout the history of the church we have understood that a pilgrimage undertaken on behalf of a congregation transforms not only the pilgrims and those whom the pilgrims meet on their journey, but also the congregation that waits at home for their return. We who are not traveling to Costa Rica this year are invited to invest our prayer and energy in the mission of Vacation Bible School. Praying with and for others changes our perspective. It establishes connections and deepens our understanding.
Because we Christians have divided into different denominations and congregations we sometimes think of ourselves as being members of only part of the church. In reality every Christian congregation is a part of one body. As they say, we’re all in this together. Paul’s letters to the Corinthians are among the earliest documents of our faith that detail the depth of this connection and interdependency. What happens in another congregation affects us as surely as the decisions that we make impact the lives of those in far away places.
Because we do it every year, the ritual of commissioning this morning will be familiar to many in our congregation. It may feel like we are repeating something that we have already done. In a life of sincere prayer, however, repetition is not boring. Rather it is a channel to new depths of understanding and meaning. The ceremony not only reminds us of who we are and what we are about, but it invites us to take another look to see the depth-upon-depth reality of long term commitments.
It is not possible to predict the future of our sister church relationship. Our congregation in Costa Rica serves in a tenuous position. It is difficult to see the source of leadership for the next generation. We are invited to move forward on faith, trusting that somehow God will provide. But we know that God’s primary focus is not the maintenance of institutions. Institutions come and go. Congregations live their lives and sometimes come to the end of their ministries. It is difficult for us to think of it, but we do not control the future. Instead we invest in the present and engage in ministry in the time that has been granted to us. Knowing this makes each trip precious in its own right. God’s world is constantly changing. Our roles in the ministry of the church are ours for a little while only. The time will come for new leaders and new relationships. Today we celebrate the history of our relationship and re-commit to the present and the short term future. Even though we are in this relationship for the long haul, we accomplish that one year at a time, one trip at a time, one relationship after another.
The next couple of weeks will be a time of intense prayer for our congregation. We will remember our sister church in our prayers every day. And we will be transformed by our prayers. For that we are grateful.