Home again

We're all safely home. Yes, the final "Sunday blog" is coming on early Monday . . . can you spell "exhaustion." But it's a good exhaustion.
Friday concluded with an evening out for each of three groups, followed by a communion service focusing on the word "hospitality." We shared responses to four questions: (1) "Where have you seen or experienced hospitality this week?" (2) "So . . . what IS hospitality?" (3) "What gets in the way of hospitality (the "prayer of confession" part)?" (4) "In light of our experiences/observations of hospitality, and our awareness of what gets in the way of it, what is God calling us to do and be (individually and collectively) as we go forward?" Following the story of communion and the Great Prayer of Thanksgiving, participants were invited each to bring one of the other participants to the table, serve him or her, and return to seats. That way, each person was served in an act of invitation/hospitality. Brandi and I weren't prepared for the rush of pairs to the table. It was very moving.
Delta usually means "Don't Ever Leave The Airport," but not only did both planes leave on time; they also arrived early. Perhaps a fitting cap to a week of hard work and hard reflection.

I returned grateful--as ever--for the body of Christ. I am deeply grateful for the realities of the Body of Christ, that . . .
Strangers can become friends (in some cases lasting friends). . .
No one is alone in doing hard work (and work which for some of us stretched us way beyond our experience zone), that there was ALWAYS someone to help. . .
Compassion knows no bounds of time or space. . .
In the midst of serving, fears and anxieties have a way of melting away--or at least being put into a proper perspective. . .
Something powerful happens when worship flows into work (Monday evening) and flows out of work (Friday evening) . . .
At our best we fulfill St. Francis' observation: "Always bear witness to Christ. Use words if necessary."
That Paul's observation is true: "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth." Each group stood on the shoulders of prior groups, and other groups will stand on ours and theirs. . . .

Our work was done amidst the signs of incredible human selfishness and greed. Already devastated homeowners were left destitute by contractors who collectively lifted several millions of dollars out of the pockets of victims and into their own. Our group was told that during levee reconstruction, large sections of the levee were discovered to have been thin concrete shells surrounding trash and newspaper. Those realities carried with me all week; I had to pray through the anger, the dismay. It is into such a world that the Word became flesh . . . and it is into such a world that you and I fulfill the calling Jesus gave us: "As the Father sent me, so I send you." Together and individually, we are incarnations of the love of Jesus Christ. I believe that each of us experienced that; I believe that others observed it. And when the insecurities and self-doubts creep in, I choose to hope that it was so.

I trust that I speak for all on the trip, that we are so grateful to have had this experience (the first for most of us), and that we are grateful for the generosity of so many people who supported this opportunity.

Grace and peace to you from the most recent New Orleans group -- "Out of Chaos, Hope."

Val Fowler