“The last time is the one that gets you, because it leads right into the first time. Nowhere to go. But you go on anyway. The more you go on the more you stop thinking about going on, because you’re thinking about it all the time.” ~ Rudolph Wurlitzer, Nog
I have shared with you for the past few months that I will be retiring next year. I remind people of that because I’ve been here for twenty-two years and the idea that I will not be here much longer is something that has to be raised in order to be ready for what comes next.
This coming Tuesday is July 1st, the first day of the fiscal year, and the day that assignments take effect in the diocese. Tuesday begins my countdown to July 1st of 2026.
I share this with you to let you know how I plan on dealing with my last year here. I don’t want to embody “senioritis” and say that I can’t wait to leave. I don’t want to be filled with sorrow at each of my lasts: my last Fourth of July, my last Thanksgiving, my last Christmas, et cetera.
No. That will not do.
Instead, I plan on savoring the upcoming lasts. As I come to each of them, I will ask myself what memories I have of those days and celebrate the memories. After all, twenty-two years at one place have the opportunity to provide many wonderful memories. I will pray for the people that touched my life as I remember those days and I will look ahead with expectant joy.
Expectant joy. That is what the Season of Advent is all about. In Advent, we prepare ourselves for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and, therefore, we are filled with expectant joy. That joy helps us to deal with any sorrows that might come our way because life is full of not only joys but sorrows as well.
I have so many memories from being here so long. Some of the memories are quite wonderful, some of the memories are quite sad. But all of them are filled with the presence of God who walks with us and celebrates with us in the good and who carries us in the not-so-good.
As we look ahead, I know that many are nervous about who is to come after me. I have no idea who that might be. We most likely will not know until Easter of next year. Until that time, let your hearts be filled with expectant joy because God never lets His people down. He will always walk with us.
FAITH ACTION: Pray that the Spirit guides the decision of the personnel board next year.