Last week, I joined NACCC clergy and CFTS students at the Midwest Ministers’ Convocation. As a local church pastor, I attended this gathering annually. But the timing did not jibe with the academic calendar when I was a college chaplain. Thus, after two decades away, my experience held characteristics of both a first-timer and a “fossil.” I was new and not new at the same time.
It was great to see colleagues I’ve known for 30 years. As the country song goes, “You can’t make an old friend.” And it was delightful to be introduced to people I hadn’t met before. Like the congregations that comprise it, the NACCC is made up of recent additions and longstanding members. Varied pasts and untold stories make for fascinating conversation as we venture into both familiar and unknown territory as people of faith.
