Have you ever postponed a mildly-important project to focus on a major one?  How about adding another major project on top of the one you have already?  No problem, right?!

That’s what I was thinking in late May when my family and I found a great apartment to move into.  It had plenty of space for us all and even better – it was walking distance from the CT Conference office!  The only wrinkle – we had to move in during our busiest month as a family.  What made this CT Office Manager busy in June?  The Tri-Conference Annual Meeting, of course! 

While at work, I was preparing and organizing and boxing up things for our major event.  Then I’d go home, where I was preparing and organizing and boxing up things for our move.  Then came that monumental week, when both the meeting and the move took place. 

During the keynote address at our Annual Meeting, The Rev. Traci Blackmon spoke, “We are called to step out into the water, even if we don’t know how we’re going to make it across.  God will show up, and you will not drown.”  Even though she was speaking to a room of church members and leaders about our historic vote, I felt that Rev. Traci was speaking to me, encouraging me to keep faithful during such a hectic time. 

Weeks later, I recycled the last unused flyer from Annual Meeting.  I took the remaining boxes of meeting supplies back to their homes in the office.  At home, there only remained a few boxes left to unpack.  The craziness of mid-June to mid-July finally ended.  Which made me realize, God just showed up again. 

It was time to move!  Instead of rental trucks and registration packets, it became time to focus on the young folks.  God showed up through song and sun and my newfound floor space, reminding me that it’s summer.  I had two important and impactful ministries to dive into.  My work continued coordinating the New Haven area churches in their Federated Youth Group, and I was soon headed to dean a week-long high school conference at Silver Lake Conference Center. 

There were many times in June that I wished our family’s move was happening in July.  Once we made it to July, I knew that God was helping me make room for myself to better support and influence our young people.  I’d be scheduling events and meetings, coordinating games and activities, creating programming, delegating tasks, emailing parents…there was no more time for nesting! 
As soon as I was unboxed and unpacked at home and work, it was time to get things packed up for camp.  If that’s not God showing up, I’m not sure what is!  God continues to prime and prepare us for what’s to come.  And just like that, it’s time to get moving again.

Many Voices, One Mission is a regular series highlighting the ministries of the
CT, MA, and RI Conference of the United Church of Christ.