In the Eye of the Storm

 May 11, 2022

 

It’s snowing outside. Happy Spring in northern Nevada! 

 

So there I was, at a Rotary Club meeting earlier today (my first one in awhile, too many scheduling conflicts the past few weeks), expecting to enjoy the company of my fellow Rotarians, have a nice lunch, hear an interesting speaker, and be off. It turned out that today was the day we heard from our scholarship award recipients! Two from Oasis, and two from Churchill County High School. And just…holy baloney, these kids.

 

First, most of them spoke without notes, and were incredibly calm and confident. I could NEVER have done that as a senior in high school. Not ever. They talked about their hopes and dreams and plans (computer science and artificial intelligence, medicine, bioengineering, environmental science and digital design), their volunteer work here in town, their love for our community. Two are military families just stationed here for a short time; two are lifelong residents. All of them just extraordinary humans.

 

After the meeting, Nancy Upham and I got talking with one of the young scholarship winners from Oasis. During his short speech, he mentioned that he spent some time when he was younger at Ronald McDonald house while he was being treated for a major health problem (he didn’t say what that was). Because of that experience and the people and patients he met there, his life’s goal is to learn how to manipulate certain proteins in the body to prevent them from rejecting transplanted organs. He talked about that in a little bit of detail, but it went flying right over my head.

 

I was thinking about myself at that age, and how I truly had no earthly idea what I planned to do, other than deciding between being a nun and raising a family. I definitely wanted to study anthropology, and I loved the idea of discovering evidence of ordinary people living ordinary lives thousands of years ago. Oh, and I would be a famous novelist on the side. As a hobby. But in the meantime, at that age, I was just being a kid. Driving too fast, staying out too late, dating too many boys, arguing with my mom, giggling with my friends in the movie theater and driving people crazy.

 

So anyway, Nancy and I got talking with this young man and his mom, and it turns out he is also a swimmer. A really good one. Mom was telling us about the time he swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco. WHEN HE WAS 9 YEARS OLD.

 

!!!!!!!!

 

So anyway. Let’s be in prayer together for these amazing humans. And for all of the other amazing young humans, graduating or not, with a plan or completely lost, figuring things out and finding their place in the world. For all that they will do and be. May God’s hand be on every single one.

Pastor Dawn

Worship Any and Everywhere!

FREAKING OUT, Part 4: When We Are the Storm 

Sometimes we are caught in the midst of a storm of epic proportions, and we are terrified. And rightly so.
But oh friends. How often it is that we cause our own storms and catastrophes. We get in our own way, cause our own stresses, make our own mistakes, burn bridges, reject help. This season we have been talking about the ways in which we make mountains out of molehills, worry unnecessarily, and need God’s help to bring us back to center. But sometimes the storms are real, and we need God’s help even more. Thank God, he promises to always be there. This week, we will meet Jesus and his disciples on the sea of Galilee, as they travel between Galilee – where Jesus just fed the thousands – and Capernaum, where he will do it again. As you prepare your heart for worship, you might like to read and pray with John 6:16-21.

 

If you’re worshiping with us on Facebook or on the radio, we are so glad! If we can be in prayer for you in any way, please call the church at 775-423-4714, or call Pastor Dawn directly at 775-671-5553.