Reflections 2004
From Rev. Erik Swanson Rev. Daniel Wolpert, Debra Bell, MD
“People shall stream to it, and many nations shall come and say: ‘Come let us go up to the mountain of the Lord…that God may teach us God’s ways and that we may walk in God’s paths." - Micah 4:2-3
In many ways this scripture passage has been lived out this summer here in Crookston. The stream of people has been small but steady all summer. By the time you read this we will have welcomed people from South Carolina, California, Vermont, Illinois, Texas, Arizona, the Twin Cities, Duluth, Bemidji, and North and South Dakota.
We began the summer with our kickoff celebration which was attended by about eighty people including several members of the Presbytery. We gathered on the site for tours and a picnic to allow people an opportunity for fellowship as well as to experience the beauty of the land. We then turned our attention to worship and asked God’s blessing as we consecrated the site with our prayers and the individual blessings of the gathered community. We included the blessings of many friends and colleagues from both near and far. It was a beautiful celebration of what God is doing through the vision of MICAH.
The majority of our energy this summer went into four retreats intended to assist people in creating a life with God based on the exploration of issues related to Spiritual Life and Leadership. Both clergy and lay attended the retreats which were tailored to the groups that attended. The retreats were all grounded in contemplative prayer that allowed those who attended to truly ‘come and find ways to walk in God’s paths’. They were able to re-discover old paths that had gone unattended and discover new paths that had not been experienced before. From the feedback that we have heard, these retreats have been transformative for those attending and their ministries to which they returned.
These times have also helped us as a staff to figure out better ways to lead and facilitate these times. We have had time to reflect on our leadership as well as content and found that we have grown and our content has developed cohesiveness as well as depth. We have learned much about who we are and who MICAH is as well.
Our days flowed by the following schedule:
Breakfast (in apts.)
9:00 a.m. - Morning Prayer
9:30 a.m. - Prayer Practice and Small Group Reflection
11:00 a.m. - Free Time
12:00 p.m. - Lunch
1:00 p.m. - Afternoon Activity
3:00 p.m. - Small Group
4:30 p.m. - Free Time
6:00 p.m. - Dinner and Discussion
8:30 p.m. - Evening Prayer
For content we taught prayer practices that would lead into conversations regarding creating a life attentive to God with us. Some of foci included silence and space, the Word and its power, discernment (for individuals and communities), and prayer in the world. In our last retreat we addressed the interconnectedness of spirituality and health and healing.
Some of the afternoon activities included exploring work as prayer as we spent time developing the site, and one major piece of this was building an outdoor labyrinth. Many were excited to be able to help build this path of prayer, and we have just completed it.
The other major news is that the MICAH Health Center is starting up at the hospital in September. Debra and Dan have been meeting with hospital folks all summer to work out the details and to plan for the organization as well as the redecoration and furnishing of the space so that we can get started. Debra will be offering her excellent doctor care, Erik will be working as a spiritual director, and Dan will be involved in several different ways. There will be several different kinds of healing modalities practiced at the Center in an effort to offer the most whole care that is possible. We are thrilled to be working with great folks at Riverview to make this all happen.
We are very grateful to the Presbytery of the Northern Plains for the grant that has helped so much of our retreat work this summer. Incredible things are happening through this project. Thank you again, and may you know the Holy One holding you and guiding you ever more fully. We remain.
In communion,
Rev. Erik Swanson
Rev. Daniel Wolpert
Debra Bell, MD
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