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We have been blessed to have the opportunity to serve at a neighboring island. Occasionally, I’ve preached at the People’s Church, however its the island’s Methodist Church that routinely invites me back.
One of the leaders there, Phil Pinder and his wife Hilary, have become close friends of ours. They always ask and pray for Micah, and even made a special trip to see him on his birthday, complete with presents and a enormous cake. Micah now affectionally calls them Pops and Mama, which their own grandchildren have coined, and thus we’ve been officially adopted.
There is also this family that routinely invites us over to their house for lunch after the morning service. Each time we come, they’ve got some special item for Micah. This past time it was to canisters of M&M’s. I’m sure Micah is thrilled to be spoiled!
There is quite a difference in serving in Spanish Wells than Windermere, but its mostly due to the fact that I’m serving at a church. Everyone is so appreciative and thankful when we come, and I think this is somewhat due to the nature of a church.
Emily and Micah love it because they get to have the fancy Spanish Wells food. In fact this time Micah got to go on his very first “date” with Mommy! I’m pretty sure they went to the local restaurant and got shrimp, so double special!
The real blessing, next to the relationships we’ve been given, is that the Spanish Wells Methodist Church gives us a break from the campus. We live at Windermere 24/7 and there is forever the constant pressure and stress of knowing that if something goes wrong or is broken I must fix it, or find myself responsible for it. In Spanish Wells, we are given the keys to the church’s manse, and the church vehicle. Its literally feels like a vacation, and as long as I’m prepared for my sermons, the time is one of the few opportunities I have to relax.
This observation will naturally lead to an evaluation of handling stress and burnout. It is true that I continually flirt with burnout. I said sarcastically to Emily the other day, “too bad we don’t live in a region of the world where people go to relax!”
How thankful we are that God has given us this blessings to teach and preaching away from our normal work, and in the process unwind a little.