Memorial Garden

Have trouble remembering? "AJ" doesn't. A recent article tells that in 2000 she wrote that she "can take a date, between 1974 and today, and tell you what day it falls on, what I was doing that day and if anything of importance occurred on that day. She had been called 'the human calendar' for years by her friends and acquaintances." The very rare condition is called hyperthymestic syndrome, based on the Greek word meaning "more than normal remembering."

There are a few dates from the past that I can vividly remember where I was - the day President Kennedy was assassinated; the evening Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated; the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger; the Oklahoma City bombing; the fall of the twin towers on 9/11. Each was a traumatic national event that broke into my awareness and exposed me to a wider world than the place where I was standing at the moment.

Here, at First Christian Church, a new memorial garden has begun to take shape. Within a week flowers are blooming. I have referred to it as a memorial garden and also as a peace garden. I have been asked, "Which is it?" To me it is both, but I am happy to be consistent in calling it a memorial garden.

Will Provin and a crew of Boy Scouts, leaders and parents created the garden just outside my window. The garden is the fruit of Will's Eagle Scout Project as well as memorial funds entrusted to the First Christian Church. The garden will continue to mature and become a familiar part of the church landscape.

It is a memorial garden. When I stand for a moment in the garden, my memory does not automatically improve or expand. I not not suffer from "more than normal remembering."

But what has happened is that I can stand, quiet myself for a moment, and allow God to help my remembering. Thoughts turn to members and friends from First Christian Church I have known, loved, cared for, and who have cared and nurtured me. Their faces return to me in a few moments of quiet, peace if you would. My only response is "thank you." My world expands to recall so many who have made this church what it is - by their prayers, labors, giving, and risk-taking. I believe you can name one or two or many. In that garden my world expands to see God more clearly, this God who has stirred in their hearts and minds and in mine. My only response is "thank you."

Thanks Will. Thanks memorial fund donors. Thank you families who choose church as a place of remembering. Thank you God.

Take a moment to stand in the garden. Who comes to your mind? Click and comment below and share your memories.

I Once Was Lost

It was an impressive display. Will threw his car keys about 40 feet out into our lawn. The keys settled into down into the thick grass - out of sight. And then the search began. Middle school and senior high youth as well as parents other church members stood back in fascination as the magnificent German shepherd set to work. It was a demonstration by the Gibson City Police Department canine unit.
The few commands given were in Polish, the dog's native language. With an eagerness of a parent seeking a lost child, the dog made broad sweeping circles, zeroing in on the keys. His nose was at grass level as he tried to distinguish one scent from others. Within two minutes he found the keys and crouched down until they were retrieved - much to Will's relief. This recent addition to the police department in Gibson City also found marijuana planted under the seat of our mower as well as under the bumper of Pastor Oerter's truck. (please note - planted by the police). And finally, the dog's ability to bring a running man to a halt, until assistance arrived. Altogether, an impressive demonstration.
I envied our canine friend. It is not always an easy thing to focus. Sitting in my office, I think of multiple places to be or tasks that need to be finished up. It is hard to leave the unfinished behind. I would imagine that most of us awaken in the morning to find a multitude of decisions to be made about how or where to invest the day's energy.
Last fall as we began a new season of ministry and mission our leadership through the Board, Elders, Nurture and Outreach ministries gave some attention to the Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation identified by Robert Schnase.
They are:

• Radical hospitality
• Passionate worship
• Intentional faith development
• Risk-taking mission and service
• Extravagant generosity

These practices can be found on each Board agenda, on the walls of our fellowship place, in our chapel, and throughout the newsletter. The wonderful part of this is that they continue to show up in the life and witness of the congregation.
Extravagant generosity is evident in the tremendous response of the congregation in our recent "New Love, New Mercy" stewardship. The stewardship committee as well as the small group leaders and hosts created a healthy environment for God to do new things through us!
Keep your eyes open, your nose to the ground, as we continue to search for and discover the wonder God has placed among us. Let us take it as a gift to others in service.