Image
December 11, 2018

Anticipation

Dog eyeing a treat

The treat is already here!
Photo by David.  Used by permission
under CC-BY-NC-ND 2.0 license

I am truly a child of my times. Whenever I hear the word “anticipation” my mind brings up the song by Carly Simon.  In it she sings, “Anticipation, anticipation, is makin' me late, is keepin' me waitin'.

We are in the middle of Advent and this is, after all, the season of anticipation – we anticipate the birth of Christ, we anticipate the coming of God’s kingdom, we anticipate gifts on Christmas morning, we anticipate favorite foods and traditions and time off and visitors. Now, I can hear you, “Not another newsletter column about anticipation, please! Everyone writes about that at this time of year.” Sorry to disappoint you, but I am writing about anticipation.
 
I am not, however, writing about anticipating something that is to come. I am writing about how what-we-have-been-anticipating has already arrived. For the Fall Charge Conference meditations I used Isaiah 43:19 – “Look! I am doing a new thing; now it sprouts up; Don’t you recognize it? I am making a way in the desert, paths in the wilderness.” One thing has come to me over and over when I have read and thought about this verse: it isn’t talking about something in the future, it is talking about something happening right now.
 
Brothers and sisters, we are no longer anticipating a new thing coming. It is already here! It is happening all around us. The Bishop has us thinking about crossing over this year. You can’t cross over from something to nothing; there must be something on the other side. That is the new thing God is doing. This Advent we aren’t anticipating something we do not see; we are anticipating what this new thing we sense and see will mean.
 
Advent is a strange time. We kind of pretend that Jesus hasn’t yet been born, while at the same time speaking about the returning Christ. We sing about the Coming One whom we know has already arrived. We pray about what might be when the Promise of God comes, and yet we know that the One sent by God is already active in our lives and world. In the same way, we anticipate that God will do something new, while in fact that new thing is busting out all around us right now.
 
God asks in Isaiah, “Don’t you recognize it?” Do you see the new thing? Don’t you realize that I am already at work birthing this new thing? What you have awaited is now here. Stop looking ahead to try and see what is coming; instead look around you and notice that what you have been anticipating is already happening.
 
In "Anticipation," Carly Simon sings, “I'm no prophet and I don't know nature's ways. So I'll try and see into your eyes right now and stay right here, 'cause these are the good old days.

These are the days which have been anticipated. And so this Advent and Christmas, we don’t wait to see something come, we don’t celebrate what might be. This Advent we cross over to the Way God reveals and we cross over to the new thing God is already doing, because these are the anticipated days!
 
May your Advent be full of light and life and your Christmas be holy and bright!
 

Tim's signature      Tim Overton-Harris photo

Tim Overton-Harris
Cascadia District Superintendent


DS Tim Invites Retirees to Lunch

District Superintendent Tim Overton-Harris invites Cascadia District Retirees and their spouses to lunch on January 10, 2019 at 11:30 a.m.

The agenda includes celebrating our connection, information about the Annual Conference and the denomination, and a time for questions and answers.

The lunch will be held in Taplin Hall of the MICAH Building, 680 State St., Salem.

There is no cost, but please register by January 2 so that we will be prepared for your presence! You can use the link below, or contact the District Office by email or phone: cascadia@umoi.org or (503) 581-3969


Upcoming events in the District Superintendent's Schedule:


Dec. 11-13           Cabinet meetings, Des Moines, WA
Dec. 17                Special charge conference at Englewood UMC
                            Special charge conference at Dallas UMC
Dec. 18                Meeting with Conference Mission and Ministry Coordinator re:
                             Hispanic Ministry
Dec. 19 -              Holiday Break
Jan. 2
Jan. 10                 Cascadia District Retirees' Lunch with DS

Please let Tim know about significant events happening in your local congregation.  He may or may not be able to attend, but he would like to know about them!  Tim is also occasionally available to preach at your church!  You can e-mail him at tim@umoi.org


Oregon-Idaho Reconciling UMs to Meet Jan 12

O-I RUMs graphic

The Reconciling United Methodists of the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference invite all interested persons to their gathering on Saturday, January 12th at Oregon City UMC, 18955 South End Rd, Oregon City.

The gathering begins at 9:45 a.m.  At 10:30 a.m. members of Hillsboro FUMC will share their church's exciting experience of connecting with their wider community in a program entitled, "Drag Queen Story Time at Hillsboro FUMC"

The potluck luncheon at noon will be followed by a conversation about the Special General Conference in February 2019, including a time of prayer and blessing for those who will be attending as members of the delegation and as witnesses or volunteers.  

The gathering will end at 2 p.m.

Find a flyer here or a poster here.  For more information contact Rev. Bonnie Parr Philipson at revbonnie@hotmail.com  or (503) 547-3822.


 

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

This week in the
Cascadia District

December 11-13

Cabinet Meeting

Looking Ahead

Dec. 24-January 6 

Cascadia District Office closed for holiday and vacation

January 10

Cascadia District Retiree Lunch with DS

January 12

O-I Reconciling UMs meeting at Oregon City UMC (see article in this newsletter)

January 24

Communion at District Office 

 


Prayer Calendar

Dec. 9 - 15

Christ's Church: Methodist and Presbyterian United, Monmouth
David Prichard, pastor
Linda Scheirman, Lay Leader

Dec. 16-22

Mountain Home UMC
Aric Clark, pastor

Dec. 23-29

Nehalem Bay UMC
Steve Wolff, pastor
Peter Nunn, lay leader

Dec. 30-Jan. 5

Newberg FUMC
Marty Williams, pastor

Jan. 6 - 12

Oregon FUMC
Mike Benischek, pastor
Ted Thonstad, lay leader

See the full prayer calendar


Resources

CrossOver Year Begins

Advent begins the church year, and it begins our Episcopal area-wide focus on the theme of crossing over, from death to life, from despair to hope, from fear to trust in God leading us ever onward to the future God has planned for us.

Learn more and find all the resources at
greaternw.org/crossover


 

Contact us

DS Tim Overton-Harris
tim@umoi.org

District Lay Leader
Paula Sadler

jpcsadler@aol.com

District Administrative Assistant
Linda Grund-Clampit

linda@umoi.org
503-581-3969

Check out the Cascadia District webpage:
www.umoi.org/cascadia

Find us on Facebook

Cascadia District Office of the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference
680 State Street, Suite 200, Salem, Oregon, 97301 ~ (503) 581-3969 ~ Cascadia@umoi.org