Blessed. Yes, I am blessed as I reflect on our trip to Portugal to share in the mission of the Methodist Church in Portugal.
I was blessed to renew friendships with Bishop Sifredo, Emanuel, Eduardo, Jorge, Marcello, Sebastian and others. I was blessed to make new friendships with Christine, Ricardo, Ana, Eunice, Pedrio, Isabell and many many others. I believe these are friendships that will last a lifetime.
I was blessed to share my gifts and talents with the clergy and laity who gave up several days of their full lives to sit with us and to learn how to be an effective leader in the Church and community. At the same time, I was blessed to learn of the faith and strength of those who serve in the Methodist Church in Portugal. The greatest gift they gave was allowing us to see the strength of the Youth (13 - 30) in the Church. There are many strong leaders and servants among this group of young people, and they all have such musical talent.
I was blessed by the generosity of the people of Portugal and especially the Methodist Church. They were kind and freely gave support to my homily on Sunday morning in the Church at Mirante. They prepared untold number of meals from scratch to make sure the team was fed and nourished. They spent time showing us the improvements our investments from North Georgia have made in the lives and hearts of the people of Braga.
I was blessed to work with such a great and tremendously talented team from North Georgia. There was no ego nor agenda. Our task was simply to share from our hearts and to learn more about our family in Portugal. This team was made up of Janet Sligar, Dale Smith, Joseph McBrayer, Robin Lindsey, David Naglee, Scott Parish and John Pinson. It is a blessing to have the Rome Carrolton District join us in this Bridge to Portugal. They offer so much and a whole new and fresh perspective.
I was blessed that all things worked out in God's time (even catching the connecting flight in Madrid!!).
I believe in God's time we will have such a strong Bridge that the Methodist Church in Portugal will soon be renewed and vital and that we in North Georgia will be blessed beyond measure because we invested and trusted God to use us in this season
I'm blessed to be home with my family and the best group of clergy and laity in North Georgia. That blessing continues as this week I will have the privilege to be in Cabinet as we take a "first look" at the appointments for 2015/2016. I covet your prayers for all of us and for the Spirit of God to fall fresh in the Cabinet room. There is much to do, but I believe it all will be a blessing.
May your week be a powerful blessing from the heart of God,
Dana