Try and imagine coping with a three year wait for a meeting.
What would you do while you waited? You would likely prepare, write and think on what you wanted to cover in the meeting. You would have key points to discuss but may recognize something else to add to the list. You would research and refine your thoughts and probably seek advice or ideas from others. Regardless of what you did during this time, you knew that when the moment came and it was time for your meeting – you would be ready.
A few members of the Reaching Out community have been on a three year wait for a meeting. In that time, they have done or experienced the following:
Planning, proposing, presenting.
Reading, writing, discussing.
Praying, thinking, doing.
Highs, lows.
Focus, aimlessness.
Hope, despair.
Helping hands, empty hands.
All the while, waiting for the meeting.
But no more.
On Wednesday August 21, the Co-Pastors and C.F.O. of the Reaching Out Community were able to sit down and plan out our vision for the future. We shared our hopes and dreams, programming ideas and more. We talked about our fears and what drives us. Most important of all: we set in motion the future of the community. We all came out of this meeting with such excitement, passion, creativity and love. We will share these ideas with you very soon and know you too will share in our feelings.
While we are excited, we are also pragmatic. The words of Sir Winston Churchill are not lost on us during this time as these words apply so aptly to our community:
“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.”
We are working on starting a new community. We are entering a new city. We are beginning to sow the seeds that will be the future of our community. This takes all that Sir Winston wrote and more. There will be times where we feel lost, cry, sweat or even bleed. This should not discourage anyone from the journey ahead, but it should give you a sense that no matter what – we are in this together. It will be hard work, but we are up to the challenge because we have the skills, people and spirit to do so.
I look forward to the journey ahead with you and to hear your thoughts on our vision in the very near future.
Until next time…
James Clark – C.F.O., Reaching Out