Speaking Snapshots: June 2024

 

Yes, I know it’s July, but the very last day of June fell on a Sunday, so I waited to recap my speaking adventures from last month.

            June is typically not a busy month for me in the world of speaking, because I usually share at women’s events, and summer is not a popular time for those. But since I’m filling in at church this summer, my June was very full!

            My first Sunday to speak was June 2, which was also our monthiversary. It was also the day after I took pictures at Ryan’s cousin’s wedding, so I was pretty tired going into the day. I had tried to rest as much as possible after coming home from the wedding, but when I went to bed that night, something happened that never happens to me: I had a nightmare about speaking. Not just a bad dream. A full nightmare. It was so real that the place was our actual sanctuary and the people in the dream actually attend our church. And it was awful.

            Needless to say, I was pretty rattled when I woke up that Sunday morning, and I felt physically sick almost the entire time I was up there speaking. Ironically, my topic that day was “The Messy Middle,” which felt very much like my life that day.

            But you know what? God was amazingly faithful, as He always is, and together, we got through that message. And apparently the phrase stuck, because I’ve heard it used often in the weeks since!

            The next Sunday, June 9^th, I did something else I (almost) never do: wore a headset microphone. I’ve worn them a couple of times in the past, but my oddly shaped head, coupled with ALL THE HAIR makes it so hard to keep them in place. It probably doesn’t help that I talk with my hands, so I’m always moving. But that Sunday, my entire message revolved around a sign (like in sign language) and I needed both hands to accomplish that. We got through the morning without losing it off my head, so that was a win!

            But what mattered more to me that day was that this Sunday marked the first time in my life I have ever led a communion service. It was quite a step for this former Quaker girl who grew up not taking communion elements at all! I imagined, going into the day, that it would be a pivotal day for my heart. I had no idea how much. I had no clue how meaningful it would be. I’m gathering quite the collection of photos that carry great meaning with them, and the photo I took of the bread and cup before church started falls into that collection.

            Ryan and I are also deacons at church, so once communion began, he and I stood together at the front to help serve and to pray for anyone who wanted prayer. It was a beautiful, sweet time that I won’t forget.

            June 16^th was Father’s Day, and it was also another extremely pivotal day for our church, because it was the last Sunday we met together in our current sanctuary before relocating while construction takes place. I spent a lot of time praying about that and how to address it within the context of a Sunday morning worship service. It felt important enough to be a focus, and yet I didn’t want it to distract us from worship. So we talked about prayer, and then at the end of the service, I gave everyone an index card and asked them to write (on one side) a prayer of thanks for something meaningful and memorable God had done for them in THIS sanctuary, and then (on the other side) a prayer of hope for the new space to come.

            I compiled all the prayers to give to our pastor when he returns, and I had goosebumps reading the words and hearts of the people. Being able to share that service was another pivotal moment I’ll not soon forget.

            The church met for the first time in the new space without me, because it happened to fall on one of the few Sundays this summer that I have “off,” so Ryan and I took our vacation that weekend. They were so on my heart and mind, though, that Sunday morning.

            This past Sunday, June 30^th, was my first day to share with them at our temporary location, and Ryan asked as we made our way to church how I felt. I told him I didn’t feel nervous or worried, but I also struggled to feel excited. It all felt a bit…disjointed.

            We’re meeting in a school, and our church takes place in the gym, which isn’t air conditioned. Indiana, July, no air – eek! But we just passed out fans to everyone and I made sure the platform fans were pointed at me enough to keep me cool but not so much that my note blew away. Once I started sharing, it just poured out of my heart and felt like home.

            We talked about how we’re sojourners – in that space and on this earth. I hadn’t planned it so that this was the topic the first time I spoke at the new location…but God worked it all out!

            So what a full and unique month it was. I am grateful for each experience – even the hard ones – and all God is teaching me along this journey!