and the hunter home from the hill.
Well, I'm back from the Benedictine center. I had a delightful time at the candidacy retreat. I worked last night and this morning with two excellent young adults from the Bloomington area who are exploring ordained ministry. We talked about a lot of things and previewed several more we will be talking about in the weeks ahead.
Accountability and support, in formal covenant groups and in one's network of friends, formed a big part of our conversation. This hits me close. I've been feeling the lack of this kind of close connection for at least a year now, and the need has been growing ever more urgent within me over that time. Now, I have a Clergy Covenant Group, made up of some of my oldest friends in the ministry. But appointments and retirements have scattered us all over God's Acre; we are in Ellettsville, Brownstown, Indianapolis, Connersville, and Camden (Michigan!). It's hard for us to get together more than a few times a year.
So this is the thing I need to work on this year, before the year gets too old: putting together the support network I need to keep my own walk with Jesus on track. So: top of the old prayer list until it gets worked out. God speed the work!