Now, I'm in Washington, PA

The last time I posted, I was with a group of Chi Rho youth (junior high) in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and we were doing hurricane recovery work. The opportunity to get online at that work site was difficult and the only reason I was able to do so then was because Becky's Blackberry let me access the internet. Take care of necessities like laundry, groceries, and sermon prep, I've had little time to do other writing. I have traveled many miles since then - church camp, a quick trip to Tennessee, and General Assembly in Fort Worth. I arrived last night in Washington, Pennsylvania, along with 7 other faithful travelers to participate in a Habitat for Humanity project.

I have to say that I was not looking forward to getting back in the car or the van for that matter. But it was a relatively easy drive and the company was good. We drove all afternoon in the mist and fog, arrived, got our bellies full, and stocked up for Monday's meals. We concluded the day with a short time of worship using Lectio Divina and 1 Kings 19:11-13 - Elijah's encounter with God in the utter, sheer silence. We explored our expectations for the week, our thoughts about where we might encounter God, and why we were here.

I'm here because I think such experiences open us up more fully to the possibility of God's transforming work. Elijah was running from the prophets of Baal as well as the wrath of Jezebel and Ahab. He went into the wilderness to hide and encountered God. I'm here because it is holy and sacred time and space and company. God will move among us this week in unexpected ways and will come to us in unexpected places. We sometimes get trapped in the day-to-day mundaneness in which we let our calendars and our to-do lists close us off from God. Those are stripped away here and we are reminded that God is moving in the world and even in the midst of the mundane.

I've got access here so I'll post as I'm able and will include pictures if I can.