Dare to Dream

Good Morning All,

Dreams are interesting, aren’t they? Dreams can be comforting and exciting as well as scary or foreboding. Are they filled with signs and symbols? Who knows for certain, but just like most things in life, dreams are open to all kinds of interpretation. Many of Freud’s efforts were spent on dreams and their meanings. And long before his day, ancient interpreters of the dreams of Pharaohs and Kings can be found in scripture and other texts. Nonetheless, dreams are part of our lives; many of which leave lasting impressions on us; some even guide our decisions about our future.

I think dreaming is a wonderful tool that moves us forward into the unknown… headlong into the mysteries of God…discovering what God desires for us as individuals and as the Church-the Body of Christ at work in the world; attempting to fulfill what God is calling us to do in this time and this place.

Once again, another Anniversary Sunday at Covenant has come and gone. We “Shared the Feast” while remembering the words of the African-American spiritual, “We’ve come this far by faith, leaning on the Lord…” 21 years have passed since our congregation was but a “gleam in the eye” of a handful of leaders in our region—a dream of a faith community in the Cary area. Many people captured that dream and shared their many gifts of time, energy, money and creativity…and Covenant was born.

And the Spirit of Christ offered those gifts in thanksgiving to God, who in turn multiplied these gifts several times over. And just like the folks who were there when Jesus fed the 5000+ crowd on that hillside with 5 loaves and 2 fish, God’s Feast of Life was shared and lives were filled to overflowing. And that feast began with the sharing of the Living Bread & the Cup of Blessing; first in a Regional Assembly where other Disciples of Christ congregations pledged their support to make the dream of a fledgling community of faith a reality; and then several times over, the feast was shared in the living room of a small apartment and then in the homes of those who dared to capture the dream.

Lives were transformed over and over again…and the early stirring within Covenant Christian Church began to awaken to God’s call to be the Church. Our dreams took on many themes: We’re in This Together; Together We Can Make a Difference; and in the leaner times, Keep This Boat Afloat; Capture the Covenant Spirit…all of which have brought us to, Come, Satisfy the Hungry Heart and Share the Feast..

The dream continues as we have reached the age of accountability, preparing the fertile ground for reaching many more people as they discover this dynamic faith community filled with those who desire a deeper relationship with God in Jesus Christ; a place that welcomes ALL people; respecting our differences and celebrating our diversity…knowing, believing and trusting that God is always at work within us; forming us into a congregation that reflects God’s dream of what it means to be the Church. As we allow our lives to be reshaped by Christ into his own body for the world, we become the Living Bread as we dare to Share the Feast with others; as we dare to dream God’s dream…Dream along with me…Joanne