Ready to Go Again

By Lisa Kramme, Director of Faith Formation
It was so surprising to me what time away from this work could do for my body and spirit.  On July 6 at 5:00pm, sabbatical from serving as the Director of Faith Formation with the Nebraska Synod began.  After walking away from the office that Friday, my husband and I headed to a surprise birthday party for my brother and sister-in-law, and following the party we sat around a newly-built firepit in the backyard of other family members.  We told stories under the stars and simply enjoyed each other’s company.

During a lull in the conversation, I checked the time and was shocked to see it was 2:30 in the morning!  The last time I was up until 2:30 was during a youth ministry event when I couldn’t sleep, not because of loud people in the hallways but because the work-related checklist in my brain wouldn’t stop its incessant reminders of all that needed to be done.  Just like closing a large number of open apps on my cell phone can conserve battery power, it seemed like time away from numerous ministry projects at work immediately had an effect on how much energy I had.  Sabbatical not only allowed me space and time to enjoy God’s children and creation, but it also gave God the time and space to work on me.

Grateful to God for the gifts discovered during sabbatical, the Nebraska Synod Council for granting it, and for Synod staff and volunteers who worked on faith formation-related tasks while I was gone, I returned to work on September 4.  I came back as a person rejuvenated by the time away and ready to be back in a community that has joys and challenges and trusts that God’s Spirit is active through it all.

I’m looking forward with positive anticipation to learn what this new chapter of “life after sabbatical” holds.  Here’s what I know for sure:
·      I want to pull as much of sabbatical into work with me as possible, recalling insights gained, practicing self-care and reminding myself that I’m not the one responsible for making the world go around.  I believe that our communities of faith would be enhanced if we each took the opportunity to practice Sabbath and am an encourager for anyone wanting to explore Sabbath taking further.
·      I want to acquaint or reacquaint myself with people who serve throughout the Nebraska Synod.  Ten years ago when I started out in this role, my first year was filled with meeting folks and listening to their ideas, hopes, and needs.  I plan to invite people into conversations to hear what new things are stirring around the Nebraska Synod related to faith formation.
·      I plan to share a simple message of intent whenever those visits happen.  That is, as the Director of Faith Formation I care deeply about the faith of every person of any age, I care about their relationship with God and faith-full relationships with each other and I want to be of support to congregations and other worshiping communities throughout the state as they encourage the faith formation of all.
·      In that spirit, the conversations that we have will be supportive for sure, and they might even be challenging.  This work in faith formation does not have a one-size-fits-all plan that comes with clear instructions and a fail-proof guarantee of success.  It’s also been my experience that our family of Christian Lutherans are, on average, not used to talking about how faith intersects with our lives and may even have challenges naming where God’s presence is from day to day.  But I look forward to the challenges that will present themselves and the learnings that will happen along the way.

If you would like to have a conversation about faith formation in your context, please let me know.  I’m glad to have left and now be back. Recharged and ready, thinking- Here We Go Again, and remembering that God goes right along with us.


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