Blessings on you as we observe the transition from one year to another.
It has been a good and challenging year, one in which I have been blessed to grow closer to the Lord and to my brothers and sisters in Christ. This has been a year of deep growth for me personally; God has done a lot of work on my own heart, humbling me and showing me how I need to change in order to grow more like Jesus. It has also been an important year in the development of a new movement of Quaker Christians that can meet the challenges of our rapidly secularizing, post-Christendom context.
This year, God has called me to pay more attention to the work that Christ is doing in the city and region where I live. As I have yielded to God's nudges to be attentive to the life of the Church in Washington, DC, much of my energy and focus has been directed towards nurturing a new worship group on Capitol Hill.
I have stayed engaged in the national Quaker scene, undertaking visits to Yearly Meetings, Friends gatherings, organizing the 2010 YAF Gathering, and serving as a leader for the 2010 Quaker Youth Pilgrimage. However, especially in the last half of 2010, I have been traveling less than in recent years. In order to be faithful to the work that God has given me where I am, it feels inevitable that I must reduce the amount of time I spend away from home.
A lot has happened this year, and I have kept you in the loop through my ministry newsletter. Rather than recounting in detail the events of the year, I would lift up some of the things that have been highlights in my service among Friends in 2010:
- The formation of Capitol Hill Friends
- The launch of QuakerMaps
- Various travels on behalf of Earlham School of Religion during our 50th anniversary celebration
- Planning and hosting the 2010 Young Adult Friends Gathering in Wichita, Kansas
- Attending the TransFORM East Coast Gathering
- Serving on the Listening Committee for QuakerSpring
- Speaking at Illinois Yearly Meeting
- Serving as a leader for the 2010 Quaker Youth Pilgrimage
- Making visits to Detroit to support New City Friends
- Participating in the Friends United Meeting Emerging Leaders Conference
- Becoming a member of Rockingham Monthly Meeting, Ohio Yearly Meeting
Yours in the light of the Day Star,
Micah Bales
1 comment:
Congradulations on an amazing year! God bless you in the coming year.
Post a Comment