Updates
Thoughts as the delegation leaves for General Conference
By Jim Nibbelink
April 21, 2008
General Conference is a lot like a family reunion - a BIG family reunion! We see people that we’re with all the time. We see people that we’re with on special occasions. We see people that we can hardly wait to be with again. It’s been too long a time! We see new people; folks we didn’t know before, maybe from places we haven’t even heard about. We see people we’re really happy to greet. We see people we were hoping not to see! Sometimes, we can’t believe that we’re related!
Some of the folks are always visible, right up front and giving directions. Some hang back, waiting for a conversation that they’ll be comfortable joining. Others wait on the fringes, wondering how they fit in and how all these other people could possibly be there for the same purpose. We don‘t look alike. We don’t talk alike. We dress differently. We have differing priorities and perspectives. Sometimes we celebrate. Sometimes we argue. Sometimes we agree.
We tell stories. Some have been heard by everyone before, but we listen again anyway. Sometimes, the stories are new and fascinating. Some of the stories draw us together. Some of them touch our hearts. Some of them move us toward anger or fear. When we tell our own stories, we hope others will listen.
We discuss the future of the family. What’s most important? What do we have in common? Do we have any problems? Is everyone in the family doing OK? Any health problems? How about the folks who aren’t too well off? Are we keeping in touch like we should? What can we do to strengthen the family ties? What can our family do to help our neighbors? In fact, we might even ask, “Who are our neighbors?”
We like to eat! Food draws us together. And when we gather around that special family table, where we share the bread and the cup, we remember why we’re family. And we remember that what we’re about, just might be God’s work. It’s reunion time!