Abide in Me

Our church (St. John's) is located in the Diocese of West Texas. I know, the Hill Country is not exactly West Texas, but dioceses aren't always geographically aptly named. For geography, however, here is one startling fact about the diocese: it covers 69,000 square miles. How big is 69,000 square miles? The diocese is larger geographically than any state in the United States east of the Mississippi River. When I first heard that statistic, I had to verify it for myself, so I looked up the area of what I consider geographically large eastern states--Pennsylvania, New York, Maine. Yes, it is true: 69,000 square miles is a lot of area.

Saturday the diocese put on a ministry development workshop for churches in the diocese, allowing various parishes to showcase best practices in stewardship, worship, and a variety of other areas. The conference attracted almost 500 participants--much more than the organizers had ever anticipated. It was held at TMI, an Episcopal school in the hills outside San Antonio. Our church had 22 participants--probably the largest per capita representation in the diocese. The workshops were practical and useful, and I was especially pleased to spend time with an excellent church musician, Fran McKendree from North Carolina.