Some time towards the end of July, I decided to take the next step towards pegging down my tent in Crossroads, in terms of church life in Canberra. So I signed up for the small group introductory sessions. That was probably 19 or 26 July.
When the first meeting finally arrived on 5 Aug I had mixed feelings. On the one hand it was tiring to head out at night mid-week, especially on a cold winter’s evening in Canberra. On the other hand, I thought it was something I had to do, if I was to have a better fellowship with believers here in Canberra.
The introductory group met 3 consecutive weeks, each week seeing me battle the mixed feelings and ended with me being glad I went. So on 19 Aug – the last meeting – the pastor said in the next few days we’ll be contacted with information about new groups we could consider joining on a longer term basis.
3 weeks on, I haven’t heard back from anyone. 6 weeks after making the first move and some 2 months after deciding to do this, nothing has come out of it.
I’m suddenly reminded of how crappy church and Christian organisation admin can be. Maybe there are other priorities. Maybe there are extraneous issues. Still, 3 weeks to simply facilitate connections? Potentially it could well be October before it happens and by then it’s close to year end break up stuff.
So last night I decided to cut my losses and move on. Sure, waiting can yield results but this is waiting for nuts reasons. There is no reason to hold on to this thread and allowing the frustrations or disappointments to continue. I have had enough of frustrations and disappointments. What I need is hope, promise/source of more hope and something to look forward to with less prospect of disappointment.
So it’s back to the drawing board for me. It could be another Anglican church somewhere in Canberra or if that fails, then it’d just que sera sera. Numerous Canberran Anglican churches have causes such as inclusiveness, gender equality, indigenous reconciliation, refugees rights etc as core concerns. Sure they’re all important but somehow they don’t strike me as what a church is about in terms of core focus. Only 1-2 says preaching the word of God is a core focus so I might give those a go, though they’re not near enough for me to ride my bike to.
I guess in so many ways, church life in Canberra is but another moving feast/target at this point in my life. Still in a roundabout of sorts I guess.
Ante 