Yesterday, while it was kind of warmish out, I cleaned out my garden. I pulled down the huge salvia's that I started from seed last winter, and I cut back the few perrenials. I pushed leaves away from the sprouting tulips, and it was so refreshing to have my hands in the dirt again. The bed looks so bare now, kind of tender and so promising. There is so much space now for new things to start growing.

My Lenten praying has been good this last week. I am using my old book, Face to Face, which gives a passage of scripture for the different kinds of prayer. Adoration, Confession, Petition, Intercession, Thanksgiving, etc. My sunday school class is beginning a quarter studying prayer and hopefully doing it too! So I have been thinking about how I pray the best. I think I need a tool like Face to Face. It is helpful for me to have some direction, but also to have space to just talk to God, and let my mind bring up the various things and people that I would like to pray for. I often find that I don't really even get going in my prayer until I get to Intercession and Thanksgiving. It is surprising to me because I would think that praying for myself would be the best part, but it isn't true.

This week was the second to last Sunday with Pastor Hall at church. The series on Roman's has truly been like a blaze of glory for an exit. From remembering the Holy Spirit in us, and how God is making us like himself, to how much he loves us, these last few weeks have been so full of grace and glory.

I wonder, like everyone, where the church is headed now. I wonder who we are now as a congregation, and where we will be a year or two from now. Are we still Anabaptists? We are certainly evangelical, and growing more liturgical. We sing hymns and we sing contemperary worship songs. We have communion once month, and three scripture readings in each service. We laugh a lot while standing around in the lobby, and at least in the crowd I hang with, there is a remarkable freedom to be ourselves, which means not always perfectly reverent. We have about a million lively little kids, and a mob of awkard and wonderful youth. So I wonder what we will keep? We've come a long way, and I wonder where we will be going.

Personally, I would love to see more tambourine. I have been listening to oldies too much lately. It keeps me happy, and I could see myself with a tambourine, but I would have to stand way in the back. But seriously, I'm not sure. Maybe more traditionally Anabaptist hymns with lot's of accapella. And I wouldn't cut one Scripture reading ever. Other than that, I am not sure.

Maybe my church is like my garden. You knew it had to tie together somehow. A lot of strong and established elements are going to be pulled out, or are soon subject to it. I am really not too fond of change, so I'd be the type to let old things stay as long as absolutely possible (just ask poor Kelly who has been wanting to rearrange the living room for about a year) But maybe the ground is now ripe for new planting, and tender young seedlings will grow. I am absolutely convinced that Jesus is with his church and will care for it. No doubt, not one.