Isobel and Jim Bishop isobeljimbish@optusnet.com.au Thank you Margaret, your words so much reminded me of our tiny congregations in our outback here. Peace is yours, with love, Isobel. On 07/11/2016, at 5:51 PM, Margaret Aiseayew via OE <oe@lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:

Dear Colleagues, In these times (in which we are still the people), we all find ourselves in vastly differing personal realities. I am serving two very small congregations here in the middle of Iowa and this past weekend was our Thanksgiving Ingathering. Between the two churches (where attendance ranges from five to ten in one and ten to fifteen in the other) we managed to raise nearly $12,000 for contributions to global missions presented at the In-Gathering. Please don’t start on the inadequacies these contributions (or missions) represent and celebrate with me this large accomplishment of very few.

Believe it or not, all that we have been discussing here on the list is tearing at the fabric of these small communities. I felt compelled to address it this morning in a witness that I titled “The Time Has Come.” I am severely constrained in the language I use. I have tried to convince them in many ways what I mean when I used the word ‘God.’ I tried to address their fear, frustration and anxiety. I closed my talk this morning by reminding them that no matter what happens on Tuesday, on Wednesday morning when we rise God will still be God and we will still be charged with loving God’s world and all that is in it with every cell of our being. Margaret

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Thank you, Margaret for your thoughtful message -- a testament to what a small group of people who care can be and do. Our fear, frustration, and anxiety sit at the root of this whirlwind of change. And yes, my hope, with Dharma, is that one day we will grow more mature, and become able to take our place as a nation among the nations. And thank you, Ellie for sharing the Native American 10 Commandments -- guideposts leading us toward building peace among the people, and between the people and the earth. All is well, and the sun will come up on Wednesday. Joyce On Mon, Nov 7, 2016 at 12:51 AM, Margaret Aiseayew via OE < oe@lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:

Dear Colleagues,

In these times (in which we are still the people), we all find ourselves in vastly differing personal realities. I am serving two very small congregations here in the middle of Iowa and this past weekend was our Thanksgiving Ingathering. Between the two churches (where attendance ranges from five to ten in one and ten to fifteen in the other) we managed to raise nearly $12,000 for contributions to global missions presented at the In-Gathering. Please don’t start on the inadequacies these contributions (or missions) represent and celebrate with me this large accomplishment of very few.

Believe it or not, all that we have been discussing here on the list is tearing at the fabric of these small communities. I felt compelled to address it this morning in a witness that I titled “The Time Has Come.” I am severely constrained in the language I use. I have tried to convince them in many ways what I mean when I used the word ‘God.’ I tried to address their fear, frustration and anxiety. I closed my talk this morning by reminding them that no matter what happens on Tuesday, on Wednesday morning when we rise God will still be God and we will still be charged with loving God’s world and all that is in it with every cell of our being.

Margaret

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Yes, Amen Margaret, that could not have been an easy sermon to preach. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to shine the light of real hope to most people living in the middle of the country right now. But what phenomenal commitment to mission to raise that kind of money. If the well-attended wealthy California churches I served in raised that kind of dough for global missions, we would consider it a miracle. That speaks so loudly to their ability to love God’s world. Wednesday will be another day. Seth T. Longacre on the road ———-O0ooo— ———–(——)— ————)–-/—- ————(_/- —-ooo0O—- —-(——)—- —–\-–(– ——\_)-

On 6 Nov, 2016, at 22:51 , Margaret Aiseayew via OE <oe@lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:

Dear Colleagues, In these times (in which we are still the people), we all find ourselves in vastly differing personal realities. I am serving two very small congregations here in the middle of Iowa and this past weekend was our Thanksgiving Ingathering. Between the two churches (where attendance ranges from five to ten in one and ten to fifteen in the other) we managed to raise nearly $12,000 for contributions to global missions presented at the In-Gathering. Please don’t start on the inadequacies these contributions (or missions) represent and celebrate with me this large accomplishment of very few.

Believe it or not, all that we have been discussing here on the list is tearing at the fabric of these small communities. I felt compelled to address it this morning in a witness that I titled “The Time Has Come.” I am severely constrained in the language I use. I have tried to convince them in many ways what I mean when I used the word ‘God.’ I tried to address their fear, frustration and anxiety. I closed my talk this morning by reminding them that no matter what happens on Tuesday, on Wednesday morning when we rise God will still be God and we will still be charged with loving God’s world and all that is in it with every cell of our being. Margaret

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