I’ve been visiting Camp Cross for over 10 years. We attended a Labor Day Family Camp with our St. James’ (Pullman, WA) parishioners and I enjoyed the glorious natural beauty, but also the fellowship among the participants. Christian community in a non-parish setting is one feature of Camp Cross that has me reminding others to “keep comin’ back! “

While wading at Crescent Beach, my wife Alison relayed her metaphor for her relationship to God.  In the cool water, she floats effortlessly.  As she returns to the rocky shore, her body becomes heavy as she leaves the (holy) water and works to carry herself. It’s harder and harder to gain ones footing.  Yet, a loving arm reaches out to help her gain stability. This arm is God’s love in the form of your loving friend. Together, you can walk the journey on hot, dry land, until you once again return to refreshing water for relief.

Additionally, Camp Cross is a holy place where I have seen miracles happen.  Of course, miracles are in the eyes of the beholder and subject to perspective. This week I have seen the miracle of change. Mid-high campers arrived on Sunday, with anxiety, fears and few friends. In just a few days, I have seen them transformed. They’ve bonded with each other, shared intense experiences, been challenged in their views of faith and even improved their table manners (yes, a great miracle indeed!).  In all seriousness, the joy shared in a small group or gathered around a summer campfire is a holy miracle repeated again and again here.  I’ve noticed another transforming miracle recently.  As I look at this year’s staff members, several have spent many years coming to Camp Cross. They’ve loved being a camper with all the newness that experience brings. Camp Cross can be an intense emotional experience of faith on a young person’s own terms, far from their parish home.  It’s their mountaintop where they gain spiritual insight. Some grow into being a counselor, learning leadership skills shepherding a small group.  This is a critical stage in the faith formation of young people. Of that group, some continue serving as permanent staff members, gaining more leadership skills at the next level, long after coming to Camp Cross for the first time.  This chain of transformative experiences shapes the lifelong faith of many.

Wednesday night, we used a meditation from Taize to focus in the darkness of the cool evening, sitting on a floating dock.  Many relaxed on their backs, pondering the universe, gazing up into the vast expanse of stars. Some reported seeing up to five shooting stars and several orbiting satellites were visible.  Amid the cool breeze, surrounded by both intimate friends and endless cosmos, God is good; Very good; Always.

Those audacious thoughts come from the Mission Strategy Committee of Diocesan Council. They emerged after a couple days of retreat last year when members, meeting with Bishop Waggoner, dreamed and strategized about strengthening all communities of faith within the Diocese. The committee report and recommendations were then affirmed and accepted by Diocesan Council.

But their work wasn’t just about dreaming. They set out a plan to build a congregational development program in the Diocese to help our churches flourish and grow.

One part of the plan is well in the works – a team of consultants who will be available to assist congregations in their efforts to be stronger and more vital. A staff core team of Bishop Waggoner, Bryan Krislock and the Rev. Paul Lebens-Englund and I are working on logistics.

A group of potential consultants has been identified and invited. The Bishop and staff have sketched out a skill set that consultants should have. A training event for consultants has been scheduled in April.

In the meantime, work is under way to identify some of the greatest needs of congregations. That includes a review of the information collected a few years ago as well as gathering some new  information this year.

Once that preparatory work is done, consultants will be available to walk along with congregations whose intent is to grow stronger and who are willing to make a commitment to this process. All of the consultants will have some basic skills in facilitating this work. Some will have specific interests and skills to address certain needs that include things like Christian formation; stewardship; church growth; vision and goal-setting. Some have received special training in programs such as Appreciative Inquiry and Natural Church Development.

The Mission Strategy committee report lays out some qualities of dynamic, growing communities of faith – some things to aim for. One is “mission development” – responding to a congregation’s call to mission and calling forth the gifts of members and resources of the congregation to do that.

Another is a commitment to invite and equip people, then send them forth in ministry. They see vital congregations knowing their own faith story and knowing how to share it; knowing something about the identity and tradition of the Episcopal Church, and offering programs of formation for all ages.

They would like to see our churches be “mission-driven” – with good management, stewardship and resource development and with a clarity of purpose, a willingness to plan and evaluate, and an openness to fun and surprises all along the way.

A tall order?  Absolutely.  Impossible?  Not at all.

Stay tuned this spring for more news about our team of consultants as they are equipped and deployed for their work in our congregations.

But let me suggest a few resolutions of a different sort. These have to do with those mission imperatives that we, as a diocese, adopted a few years ago and which drive our mission. These imperatives were chosen after a planning group met with every single congregation.

Such “big” goals can seem intimidating, even distant and institutional. But each one of them started close home somewhere in the diocese-maybe in your own congregation. And each of them has a side that can be “up close and personal” – a side that invites our individual response.

So here are some New Year’s resolutions that can start small and have a big impact:

1. Invite – Welcome – Include

This is a no-brainer. Invite someone to church. Or, if you can’t think of anyone to invite, spot a newcomer and invite them to coffee hour or some other gathering and let them know that they are truly welcome.

Involve younger members

Who are the younger members of your church? Get to know them. Learn what opportunities your church has for children and young people. Offer to help. Pray for the children and young people in your congregation every day.

Faith formation for all ages

This is what we used to call “Christian education,” and it has to do with being a lifelong learner. If your congregation has a study or discussion group, join it. If you have a special interest, see about starting a group. Read a good book and share it with a friend.

Unify our diocesan community

Read the Inland Episcopalian carefully to learn what’s going on in other parts of the diocese. Visit the diocesan website [www.spokanediocese.org] and learn about programs and other congregations. Pray your way through the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer.

Bold new ventures

What bold new thing can your congregation do in your community? Dream big dreams and find others who share your enthusiasm.

Strengthen Hispanic Ministry

Who are the Spanish-speaking people in your community? Find a way to meet them. Learn a little basic Spanish. Learn something about the Hispanic congregations in our diocese. Learn the Lord’s Prayer in Spanish.

Focused Outreach

What are the outreach efforts in your congregation? Find out and offer to help with one of them. Learn about the new things happening in the diocese in outreach and social justice ministries.

And, by the way, Happy New Year.