I have just been invited through a facebook group I am a part of at seminary called “Prayer at the speed of life Chapel” to take a ten minute break from the mundane. At one point in time that would have probably meant for me taking a break from writing on my blog or checking my blog. Today it means for me taking a break from the business of home work to just pray aloud on my blog.
I have been serving since September as chaplain intern at a retirement home here in Holland. It has been a terrific and some what restorative experience for me. The last several months as I have grappled with some pretty big spiritual and existential questions, it has been much like a safe haven for me to just be me and do things God has created me to do, namely loving and serving others by listening to their stories and entering into their life experiences with them.
The residents there range from some quite independent folks who still get out a great deal to some who are visited regularly by nurses and are moving toward the nursing home stage. It has been a delight to get to know many of these wonderful people as they share with me stories from their various life journeys.
It has also had me thinking a great deal about entering into a CPE (clinical pastoral education) program next summer so that I can eventually serve as a chaplain. I am not set on a particular setting. But some of the options I am entertaining are residential (like where I am now or perhaps a home for people with special needs or circumstances), hospital, college campus or possibly even prison.
At this point I feel quite certain about this slight change in vocational goal. However, I do not want this to be born out of a reaction to negative experiences that I have had with the church or relationships that were fostered in the church (like the incident I recounted on my previous post). I want want my chief consideration to the experience and affirmation I have received in this area thus far as well as an assessment of my strengths and weaknesses and how these characteristics could best line up to serve others. It does help to have a few friends who take time to offer a listening and discerning ear.
However it can be really hard to discern motives sometimes. It can be really hard to discern if this all stems from reaction to negative experiences or a posture of leaning into positive and affirming ones. So long story short is that I have been looking for a part time position in church work for this summer to help with that discerning process. But I am also interviewing for a 10 hour a week intern position in assisting the chaplain at Holland hospital. This would help me greatly it would seem when applying for a CPE program next summer since numbers of openings are limited. There are only two health care facilities in West MI that offer CPE programs and I would prefer not to have to go out of state.
Erin and I are quite excited to have our second child, a baby boy on the way. He is due in June. A part time position – or two – adding up to 20-30 hours would be ideal so I can still help at home. It is a really exciting time in life right now. But at times it can feel like a lot. It is a lot to think ponder and pray about in the coming days.
Until next time…
Shalom,
Wayne
