“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot…” Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
After I retired from ministry in York, Maine seven years ago, we headed west to further develop our spiritual retreat center in the Colorado Rockies. At the time, I wrote about packing the 16-foot truck, selling my beloved Yamaha V-Star motorcycle, and leaving our church, memories and cherished friends behind.
Little did I know at the time that a wonderful opportunity would emerge to become an ambassador for Jesus on a tropical island. I’d never lived anywhere that didn’t require down jackets, wool mittens and a snow blower. Now that I’m serving my last four days in a community where a cold day is 72 degrees, I thought I’d check the weather at our destination. As it turns out, the wind chill fell below zero last night at our mountain cabin, so I repacked my suitcase, pulling to the top that ski coat and gloves that so recently seemed unnecessary here in Florida.
As you might imagine, I’ve been getting a good deal of advice about retirement. One sage senior opined that our lives are like coffee cups on the shelf. When one comes down, there’s always another to take its place. I rather like that image, in part because we’re blessed by an inspiring ministry team, dedicated staff and faithful lay leaders. When my husband Ellis and I embark next Tuesday on a month’s long grand tour to visit family through ten states, the church will be left in most capable hands.
It will take weeks to reflect on our life together. Wherever you’re reading this today, you know what you’ve been through and what brought you to the other side. You know where we’ve been and what we’ve seen and what we’ve learned since that day we all stopped breathing on one another and put away our inclinations to hug for a safer day.
For all of us, for differing reasons, the future will likely be bumpy for a while. We humans tend to resist change, we prefer things to stay the way they are or the way they’ve been, even when we quietly hope for a better future. If we can muster the faith to lean forward and lean in, God will guide our path and grant us the courage to take. We will be given God’s vision for the church the world needs today, and for lives abundant with joy even through the challenges that life inevitably brings. I have every confidence in our future, because I trust the author of our story, whatever the ending may be.
For those of you who have followed and shared these devotional blogs through the years, thank you for walking with me in faith. We’ve each in turn traveled down hard roads a long way, and we’ve equally rejoiced with one another when the path cleared and our burdens became light. Thank you for walking with me to this time of letting go and letting be.
I’ve written regular reflections for the church for over three decades, and now for the foreseeable future, Anna Verlee Copeland’s Blog takes a sabbatical. When I return to writing sometime after the first of the year, I’ll be curious about what will capture my imagination. After years of diving deep, maybe I’ll write about fantasy football, or how to winterize a Corvette at altitude, or the challenges of getting back in shape after reaching for muffins or bourbon when stressed or tired. Or maybe I’ll write about exotic recipes, creating sculpture from found objects, or surviving the holidays with cantankerous relatives. I will have had copious amounts of time to reflect on these matters by then.
So just for today, thank you for joining me on this pilgrimage journey to a tropical island, where the earth rolls towards a scarlet sky at every dawning. And so a new day begins.
God’s grace, mercy and peace be with you,
The Rev. Dr. Anna V. Copeland
Senior Minister, The Community Church of Vero Beach
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