Parkinson's Law says that matter take up time inversely proportional to their importance. Corporate boards will spend more time on inconsequential items than on decisions that affect the future of the company. I'm not sure that's true all the time with churches, but I will say that I've spent more time in the last week worrying about getting a hose to the garden than about anything on the new building. In part that's because there are better minds than mine at work on the building. In part it's because Parkinson's Law kicked in with regard to the hose.

I know it seems as if the church is snoozing in the summer. However, after a holiday weekend and the start of a new month, I have a fairly long to-do list today. And I'm grateful for it. It means that the church isn't dead in the summer -- only hibernating. We're using this quiet time to plan and get ready for the visibly busy time of the autumn.

I've been thinking a great deal about some of the thoughts shared during Monday's Vestry meeting. We focused on the good things which have happened recently at St. John's, as well as things we might be doing in the future. There were a surprising number of things which pleased and excited us -- Haiti concert, kids signing the Lord's Prayer, special events which were well-attended,  a large, well-trained altar guild.

When I hear a group that is excited about what has been going on, I'm more energized to try to do some new things or some old things better. We all want to know that our efforts are appreciated and that they're bearing fruit, even the fruit of other people's enthusiasm.

Stay tuned!