To Post or Not to Post

For several years I talked about blogging.  When the pandemic hit and I was home more, it seemed like an excellent time to begin.  I discovered, in the midst of a less structured schedule, that I liked the routine it provided.  Writing regularly was a pleasure too.

It seemed questionable whether I would be able to keep the blog going when we ended up in Maryland taking care of our preschool age grandsons for nearly four months in late 2020.  But I managed to do it and it didn’t seem all that difficult despite all my other responsibilities during those months. 

So when I accepted a position as pastor in Montana, I thought surely, if I could do it caring for two small children, I could continue as I pastored. Many pastors I’m sure would wholeheartedly agree that this role is even more time-consuming than caretaking small children!   But because there were many opportunities I passed up when I was younger due to lack of confidence, I tend to challenge myself with things that seem like a stretch. Witness pulling up stakes at this point in our lives to move to small town Montana to take a pastorate!

The path to ministry itself was a challenge.  I nearly gave up.  A minister who had once served on the ministry committee “overseeing” my progress, encouraged me to persist and even asked me to fly down to Florida to present at a women’s conference.  The fact that she had enough confidence in me to ask me to lead a day long conference for 100 women probably meant more to me than her message not to lose heart. I had never done anything like that and it is still one of my favorite memories.  I had returned from an overseas trip, landed in Atlanta, spent the night at a nearby hotel and caught a flight to Tampa the next morning.  Though in need of hip surgery at the time and in terrible pain, I hardly noticed it throughout the presentation because I was having such a wonderful experience with the group. 

So I started out to write this to suggest as I approach the 100^th blog post, that I may be nearing the end of this run.  But the message to myself that seems evident is to persist!  I write for the discipline of it and for my own pleasure.  But I do hope there is some benefit to others. 

May we be bearers of hope, the “wait staff” of Hope’s Café for each other and all those we encounter.  Shalom, Kate

Hope’s Café Bonus:  When I began this blog, I thought I would use the bonus for recipes to tie into the title “Hope’s Café.”  Over time, I have evolved into other uses for this space.  Today, reflecting on persistence, I just suggest your deepest prayers or strongest support for the people of Ukraine and all those impacted by this war.  And for a remarkable piece of history about the Ukrainians that is very pertinent search for Holodomor, a famine induced by Stalin that killed millions in 1932-33.