Burnside Table.

In September, my life took many new turns. As a need for stability arose, I asked my friend Larisa who was attending church with me, if she would find a church small group and commit to it with me. And she did just that.

We met Chris and Noelle on small group Sunday, they told us to remember their names like Christmas - Chris and Noelle. And we did. Noelle and I also had the same Merona brand, brown Cardigan. And their house was only a mile from where we lived. So we attended that Thursday and committed to every week. And we have stuck to that unless there was something else going on that had to pull us.

And while at this small group, I had the opportunity to get to know this man, Austin Way. And he has become one of the joys of my life!

And we participated in a real community, one that I had not experienced since I was very little. It brought back many memories of my parents hosting such home groups in their home. Of the guitar versions of "As the Deer Pants for the Water." Of the store bought pastries, the coffee, the laying on of hands in prayer, the tears, the stories, the late nights, the laughter, the clean house. I see now, what it must have been like for them... good. It must have been So Good. No wonder they committed to it in such a deep way.

At our small group this past year, called Burnside Table, we enjoyed a potluck meal together every week. We bonded over food, the way I imagine Jesus and his Disciples sitting around the big feast tables. I learned many new recipes, and had failed attempts on just as many. Noelle taught me that it is possible to make a different soup every week without repeating one for a solid seven months.

I learned how to study the word, in a group, in a productive way. I learned how to interact with differing ages again. And the wisdom that comes from the couples my parents age. And the joy of watching a baby grow before our very eyes. I learned about unconditional love, and support. I experienced a safe place to share myself, to cry out, to be seen and heard, to hear and listen.

Thursday we had our last small group. Chris and Noelle just received news of an incredible job/ministry opportunity that will bring them back to their home in California! Normally on group nights, we discuss what was discussed on Sundays. Well, this past Sunday, there was no sermon, we spent the service sending people off. And Thursday, that was what we did. We feasted. And worshiped. And prayed. And cried. And  sent off. Together we have tasted and seen that the Lord is indeed good.

I am starting to loath change, but this change, this one just IS ... it needs to be. There was something so beautiful about the end of it all. It ended well. And strong. And really, the dynamics are just changing, because it is our leaders who are leaving, but the group is still here. And I see so clearly how the Lord works, and how he carries us to do exactly what he wants us to do, through seasons, some short.

Noelle and Chris, you opened heart and home to me. Thank you for teaching me, for living life with me. May the Lord bless you and keep you! And I know we shall all see you again soon! And to the other members of Burnside Table, lets continue this that we have started. "For everything there is a season, a time for every matter under heaven." (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

And last night, I came home with Larisa, who now lives with me. And we sat on her bed and reflected over these past seven months. What a joy. What a joy. What a joy.